Self-Directed Debugging

Self-Directed Debugging Skill

Overview

This skill enables Claude Code to work autonomously with proactive quality assurance. It emphasizes asking clarifying questions, verifying implementations, and automatically fixing issues.

Core Principles

1. Ask First, Code Later

ALWAYS ask clarifying questions when:

• Requirements are ambiguous or underspecified
• Multiple implementation approaches exist
• Design decisions impact architecture
• Edge cases are unclear
• Dependencies or tools are unfamiliar

Use AskUserQuestion tool proactively:

Examples:
- "Should I use Redux or Context API for state management?"
- "Do you want error boundaries at the page or component level?"
- "Should validation happen on the client, server, or both?"
- "What should happen if the API times out?"

DON'T:

• Make assumptions without asking
• Implement the first solution that comes to mind
• Skip questions to "save time"
• Guess at business logic requirements

2. Verify Everything

After implementing any feature, ALWAYS perform these verification steps:

A. Linter Check

# Run linter immediately after changes
npm run lint
# or
pnpm lint
# or
eslint src/

# If errors found, fix them automatically
npm run lint:fix

B. Type Check

# Verify TypeScript types
tsc --noEmit
# or
npm run typecheck

C. Unit Tests

# Run relevant tests
npm test -- --run
# or specific test file
npm test -- path/to/test.spec.ts

D. Build Check

# Ensure build succeeds
npm run build

E. Browser Verification (Frontend)

For web applications, ALWAYS:

1. Start dev server and verify in browser

npm run dev

2. Check browser console for errors

   • Open DevTools (F12)
   • Look for console errors (red messages)
   • Check network tab for failed requests
   • Verify no warnings

3. Test actual functionality

   • Click buttons and links
   • Fill out forms
   • Verify API calls work
   • Check responsive design

4. Common checks:

   • No hydration errors
   • No 404s in network tab
   • Images load correctly
   • CSS applies as expected

F. Report Findings

ALWAYS report verification results to user:

✅ Verification Results:
- Linter: Passed (auto-fixed 3 formatting issues)
- Type Check: Passed
- Tests: 12/12 passed
- Build: Success
- Browser: ✅ No console errors, functionality works as expected

3. Auto-Fix Linter Errors

When linter errors are found:

1. Attempt automatic fix first:

npm run lint:fix
# or
eslint --fix src/

2. If auto-fix doesn't work, manually fix:

   • Read error messages carefully
   • Fix common issues:
     • Unused imports → Remove them
     • Missing dependencies → Add to useEffect deps
     • Formatting → Run prettier
     • Naming conventions → Follow project style

3. Report what was fixed:

Fixed linter errors:
- Removed 5 unused imports
- Added missing React dependencies to useEffect
- Fixed 12 indentation issues

4. Debugging Workflow

When encountering issues:

Step 1: Reproduce

• Clearly identify the problem
• Note exact error messages
• Identify which file/function fails

Step 2: Investigate

# Check logs
npm run dev  # Watch console output

# Run specific tests
npm test -- --run ComponentName

# Check type errors
tsc --noEmit

Step 3: Ask if Unclear

Use AskUserQuestion if:

• Error message is cryptic
• Root cause is unclear
• Multiple solutions exist
• Need user preference on fix approach

Step 4: Fix & Verify

• Implement fix
• Run full verification workflow (linter, tests, build)
• Verify in browser if frontend
• Report results to user

5. Proactive Issue Detection

BEFORE committing code, check:

• No console.log() statements left behind
• No commented-out code blocks
• No TODO comments without context
• All imports are used
• No hardcoded values that should be config
• Error handling is present
• Loading states are handled
• Edge cases are covered

Quick Reference Commands

Verification Commands

# All-in-one verification
npm run lint && npm run typecheck && npm test -- --run && npm run build

# Frontend verification
npm run dev  # Then manually check browser DevTools

Common Linter Fixes

# ESLint
eslint --fix src/

# Prettier
prettier --write src/

# Both
npm run format  # if configured

Browser DevTools Shortcuts

• F12 or Cmd+Option+I - Open DevTools
• Cmd+Shift+C - Inspect element
• Cmd+K - Clear console
• Cmd+R - Hard reload
• Cmd+Shift+R - Hard reload (clear cache)

Integration with Development

When to Use This Skill

Always active for:

• Feature implementation
• Bug fixes
• Refactoring
• Code reviews

Especially critical for:

• Frontend development (requires browser verification)
• API changes (requires testing)
• Type changes (requires typecheck)
• New dependencies (requires build check)

Workflow Example

User: "Add a dark mode toggle to the settings page"

Claude:
1. ❓ ASK: "Should dark mode preference persist across sessions?
   Should it respect system preferences?"

2. 💻 IMPLEMENT: Create toggle component and theme context

3. ✅ VERIFY:
   - Run: npm run lint:fix
   - Run: tsc --noEmit
   - Run: npm test -- --run
   - Run: npm run dev
   - Open browser DevTools
   - Toggle dark mode
   - Check for console errors
   - Verify localStorage persistence

4. 📊 REPORT:
   "✅ Dark mode toggle implemented and verified:
   - Linter: Passed (auto-fixed 2 issues)
   - Types: Passed
   - Tests: All passing
   - Browser: No console errors
   - Functionality: Toggle works, persists in localStorage,
     respects system preference on first load"

Anti-Patterns to Avoid

❌ Don't:

• Skip verification steps to "go faster"
• Assume code works without testing
• Ignore linter warnings
• Commit without running build
• Forget to check browser console
• Make assumptions instead of asking

✅ Do:

• Ask questions proactively
• Run full verification suite
• Auto-fix linter errors immediately
• Test in actual browser
• Report verification results
• Fix issues before moving to next task

Tool Usage

Priority Order for Verification

1. Linter (fastest, catches style issues)
2. Type Check (fast, catches type errors)
3. Unit Tests (medium, catches logic errors)
4. Build (slower, catches integration issues)
5. Browser (slowest, catches runtime issues)

Run them in order - fix issues at each level before proceeding.

Summary

This skill transforms Claude Code into a proactive, quality-focused developer that:

• Asks clarifying questions before coding
• Verifies all changes with automated tools
• Tests functionality in real environments
• Fixes issues automatically when possible
• Reports findings transparently

By following this workflow, you ensure high-quality, well-tested code with minimal back-and-forth.