Refactor

Runtime Configuration (Step 0 — before any processing)

Read these files to configure domain-specific behavior:

1. arscontexta/ops/derivation-manifest.md — vocabulary mapping, dimension positions, platform hints

   • Use vocabulary.notes for the notes folder name
   • Use vocabulary.note / vocabulary.note_plural for note type references
   • Use vocabulary.topic_map / vocabulary.topic_map_plural for MOC references
   • Use vocabulary.inbox for the inbox folder name

2. arscontexta/ops/config.yaml — current live configuration (the "after" state)

3. arscontexta/ops/derivation.md — original derivation record (the "before" state)

If these files don't exist, report error: "Cannot refactor without both arscontexta/ops/config.yaml and arscontexta/ops/derivation.md. These files establish the baseline and current configuration."

EXECUTE NOW

INVARIANT: /refactor never executes without approval. The plan is always shown first.

Target: $ARGUMENTS

Parse immediately:

• If target is empty: detect ALL config changes and plan restructuring
• If target names a specific dimension (e.g., "granularity", "organization"): focus on that dimension only
• If target is --dry-run: show plan without asking for approval

Execute these phases:

1. Detect changes between config.yaml and derivation.md
2. Plan restructuring for each changed dimension
3. Show the plan with affected artifacts and risk assessment
4. Execute on approval (unless --dry-run)
5. Validate post-restructuring

START NOW. Reference below defines the workflow.

Philosophy

Configuration changes cascade.

Changing a dimension is not just editing a value in config.yaml. Each dimension affects multiple artifacts — skills, templates, context file sections, hooks, MOC structure. Changing organization from "flat" to "hierarchical" means restructuring the notes directory, updating MOC templates, adjusting navigation references in the context file, and regenerating skills that reference folder structure.

/refactor makes these cascades visible and manages them. Without it, dimension changes create drift: config says one thing, artifacts say another. With it, every change is planned, approved, and validated.

The relationship to /architect: /architect RECOMMENDS changes. /refactor IMPLEMENTS them. /architect analyzes health and friction to propose dimension shifts. When those proposals are approved, /refactor ensures every affected artifact is updated consistently.

Phase 1: Detect Changes

Compare each dimension in arscontexta/ops/config.yaml against the same dimension in arscontexta/ops/derivation.md:

Step 1: Read both files

Read arscontexta/ops/config.yaml and arscontexta/ops/derivation.md fully. Extract the position for each of the 8 dimensions from both.

Step 2: Build comparison table

Step 3: Check feature flags

Also compare feature flags between derivation and config:

Step 4: Early exit if no changes

If no changes detected:

--=={ refactor }==--

  No configuration drift detected between config.yaml and derivation.md.
  All dimensions and features match the original derivation.

  If you want to explore changes, run /architect for recommendations
  or edit arscontexta/ops/config.yaml directly, then run /refactor again.

Phase 2: Plan Restructuring

For each changed dimension, determine ALL affected artifacts. This is the cascade analysis.

Dimension-to-Artifact Mapping

Artifact Analysis Format

For each affected artifact, specify:

Artifact: [file path]
  Section: [specific section within the file, if applicable]
  Current: [what it says now — quote relevant content]
  Proposed: [what it should say after refactoring]
  Risk: [low | medium | high]
  Reversible: [yes | no — with explanation]
  Content impact: [does this affect existing notes? how many?]

Content Impact Assessment

Some changes affect only infrastructure (skills, templates, context file). Others affect existing content (notes, MOCs):

For content-impacting changes:

• Count affected notes: grep -rl '[old value]' docs/notes/*.md | wc -l
• List specific files that need updating
• Estimate time for content migration

Interaction Constraint Check

Read ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/reference/interaction-constraints.md and check:

1. Hard blocks: Would the new configuration create a combination that WILL fail?

   • Example: atomic granularity + 2-tier navigation at high volume
   • If a hard block is detected: WARN the user and recommend against the change

2. Soft warns: What friction points does the new configuration create?

   • Example: dense schema + convention-level automation (manual schema enforcement is tedious)
   • If soft warns exist: note them in the plan with compensating mechanisms

3. Cascade effects: Does changing dimension X create pressure on dimension Y?

   • If cascade detected: include Y in the restructuring plan even if Y did not change in config

Phase 3: Show Plan

Present the complete restructuring plan:

--=={ refactor }==--

Detected [N] dimension changes:

  [dimension]: [old] -> [new]
    Affects:
    - [artifact 1]: [specific change]
    - [artifact 2]: [specific change]
    Content impact: [N] existing notes need [what]
    Risk: [low/medium/high]

  [dimension]: [old] -> [new]
    Affects:
    - [artifact 1]: [specific change]
    - [artifact 2]: [specific change]
    Content impact: none
    Risk: [low/medium/high]

Interaction constraints:
  - [Hard block | Soft warn | Clean]: [description]

Unchanged (preserved as-is):
  - [list artifacts not affected by changes]

Estimated implementation time: ~[N] minutes
Validation: Will run kernel validation after restructuring.

If --dry-run: Stop here. Do not ask for approval.

Otherwise: Ask: "Proceed with restructuring? (yes / no / adjust)"

Handle responses:

Phase 4: Execute on Approval

Execute changes in strict order to prevent intermediate inconsistency:

4a. Archive Current State

Before making changes, record the current state for rollback reference:

# Log what is about to change
DATE=$(date -u +"%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ")
echo "## $DATE: /refactor — [dimensions changed]" >> arscontexta/ops/changelog.md
echo "" >> arscontexta/ops/changelog.md
echo "Changes planned:" >> arscontexta/ops/changelog.md
echo "[list of changes]" >> arscontexta/ops/changelog.md

4b. Regenerate Affected Skills

For each skill affected by the dimension changes:

1. Read the current skill from the generated skills directory
2. Consult ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/reference/ for the latest skill generation approach
3. Apply vocabulary transformation from derivation-manifest
4. Apply processing depth settings from the new config
5. Write the regenerated skill

Skills most commonly affected by dimension changes:

4c. Update Context File

Edit only the sections affected by changed dimensions. Do NOT rewrite the entire context file.

For each affected section:

1. Locate the section by heading
2. Read current content
3. Generate updated content reflecting new dimension positions
4. Replace the section using Edit tool
5. Verify surrounding sections are unchanged

4d. Update Templates

For schema changes:

1. Read affected templates from arscontexta/ops/arscontexta/templates/ (or arscontexta/templates/)
2. Update _schema blocks with new required fields, enum values, constraints
3. Write updated templates

4e. Update Hooks

If automation level changed:

1. Read current hooks from the hooks directory
2. Update trigger conditions, threshold values, or active/inactive state
3. Write updated hooks

4f. Update Derivation Records

After all changes are applied:

1. Update arscontexta/ops/derivation.md with:

   • New dimension positions
   • Rationale for each change
   • Date of change
   • Reference to /architect recommendation (if applicable)

2. Update arscontexta/ops/derivation-manifest.md to sync machine-readable config

3. Update arscontexta/ops/config.yaml to confirm it matches derivation (should already match since config triggered the refactor)

4g. Content Migration (if needed)

If Phase 2 identified content-impacting changes:

1. Schema migration: Add/remove/rename fields across notes

   # Example: add a new required field to all notes
   for f in docs/notes/*.md; do
     grep -q '^new_field:' "$f" || sed -i '' '/^description:/a\
   new_field: [default value]' "$f"
   done
   

2. Folder migration: Move files to new locations

   # Use git mv to preserve history
   git mv "old/path/file.md" "new/path/file.md"
   

3. Link updates: Update all wiki links affected by renames

   # Use rename script if available
   arscontexta/ops/scripts/rename-note.sh "old name" "new name"
   

4. MOC restructuring: Merge/split MOCs as needed

   • For splits: create sub-MOCs, move Core Ideas, update parent
   • For merges: combine Core Ideas, remove redundant MOC, update notes' Topics footers

Phase 5: Validate

Run kernel validation to confirm nothing broke:

Validation Checks

Validation Report

--=={ refactor complete }==--

  Restructuring applied:
    [dimension]: [old] -> [new] — [N] artifacts updated
    [dimension]: [old] -> [new] — [N] artifacts updated

  Content migration:
    [N] notes updated with new schema fields
    [N] wiki links updated
    [N] indexes restructured

  Kernel validation: [N]/[N] checks PASS
  [Any warnings or issues]

  Derivation updated: arscontexta/ops/derivation.md
  Changelog updated: arscontexta/ops/changelog.md

If any validation checks fail:

  WARNING: [N] validation checks failed:
    - [check name]: [specific failure]

  Recommended action: [specific fix]
  Rollback guidance: [how to revert if needed]

Edge Cases

No arscontexta/ops/config.yaml or No arscontexta/ops/derivation.md

Cannot refactor without both files. Report error and suggest creating them:

Cannot run /refactor: [missing file] not found.
  - arscontexta/ops/config.yaml is the live configuration
  - arscontexta/ops/derivation.md is the original design baseline
  Both are required to detect dimension shifts.

  Run /setup to create a new system, or manually create the missing file.

Single Dimension Focus

If $ARGUMENTS names a specific dimension:

1. Only check that dimension for changes
2. Still check interaction constraints (other dimensions may be affected by cascade)
3. Only restructure artifacts affected by that dimension

No Changes Detected

Report clean state and exit (see Phase 1 early exit).

Hard Block Detected

If an interaction constraint hard block is detected:

  HARD BLOCK: The proposed configuration [dimension X = val, dimension Y = val]
  creates a combination that will fail because [reason from interaction-constraints.md].

  Recommended: Either change [dimension X] back to [safe value] or also change
  [dimension Y] to [compensating value].

  Cannot proceed with current configuration. Adjust and re-run /refactor.

Do NOT proceed with restructuring when a hard block is active.

Large Content Migration (100+ notes)

For large migrations:

1. Show the count and estimated time
2. Offer batch processing: "This affects 150 notes. Process all at once or in batches of 50?"
3. For batch processing, validate after each batch before continuing

Feature Flag Changes

Feature flag changes (semantic_search, self_space, etc.) may require:

• Creating new directories (arscontexta/self/ for self_space on)
• Installing tools (qmd for semantic_search on)
• Removing hooks (for automation off)

Handle each feature flag change specifically:

No arscontexta/ops/derivation-manifest.md

Use universal vocabulary. Refactoring still works but vocabulary transformation is skipped.