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Spectr Instructions

Instructions for AI coding assistants using Spectr for spec-driven development.

TL;DR Quick Checklist

• Search existing work: spectr spec list --long, spectr list (use rg only for full-text search)
• Decide scope: new capability vs modify existing capability
• Pick a unique change-id: kebab-case, verb-led (add-, update-, remove-, refactor-)
• Scaffold: proposal.md, tasks.md, design.md (only if needed), and delta specs per affected capability
• Write deltas: use ## ADDED|MODIFIED|REMOVED|RENAMED Requirements; include at least one #### Scenario: per requirement
• Validate: spectr validate [change-id] --strict and fix issues
• Request approval: Do not start implementation until proposal is approved

Three-Stage Workflow

Stage 1: Creating Changes

Create proposal when you need to:

• Add features or functionality
• Make breaking changes (API, schema)
• Change architecture or patterns
• Optimize performance (changes behavior)
• Update security patterns

Triggers (examples):

• "Help me create a change proposal"
• "Help me plan a change"
• "Help me create a proposal"
• "I want to create a spec proposal"
• "I want to create a spec"

Loose matching guidance:

• Contains one of: proposal, change, spec
• With one of: create, plan, make, start, help

Skip proposal for:

• Bug fixes (restore intended behavior)
• Typos, formatting, comments
• Dependency updates (non-breaking)
• Configuration changes
• Tests for existing behavior

Workflow

1. Review spectr/project.md, spectr list, and spectr list --specs to understand current context.
2. Choose a unique verb-led change-id and scaffold proposal.md, tasks.md, optional design.md, and spec deltas under spectr/changes/<id>/.
3. Draft spec deltas using ## ADDED|MODIFIED|REMOVED Requirements with at least one #### Scenario: per requirement.
4. Run spectr validate <id> --strict and resolve any issues before sharing the proposal.

Stage 2: Implementing Changes

Track these steps as TODOs and complete them one by one.

1. Read proposal.md - Understand what's being built
2. Read design.md (if exists) - Review technical decisions
3. Read tasks.md - Get implementation checklist
4. Implement tasks sequentially - Complete in order
5. Confirm completion - Ensure every item in tasks.md is finished before updating statuses
6. Update checklist - After all work is done, set every task to - [x] so the list reflects reality
7. Approval gate - Do not start implementation until the proposal is reviewed and approved

Stage 3: Archiving Changes

After deployment, create separate PR to:

• Move changes/[name]/ → changes/archive/YYYY-MM-DD-[name]/
• Update specs/ if capabilities changed
• Use spectr archive <change-id> --skip-specs --yes for tooling-only changes (always pass the change ID explicitly)
• Run spectr validate --strict to confirm the archived change passes checks

Before Any Task

Context Checklist:

• [ ] Read relevant specs in specs/[capability]/spec.md
• [ ] Check pending changes in changes/ for conflicts
• [ ] Read spectr/project.md for conventions
• [ ] Run spectr list to see active changes
• [ ] Run spectr list --specs to see existing capabilities

Before Creating Specs:

• Always check if capability already exists
• Prefer modifying existing specs over creating duplicates
• Use spectr show [spec] to review current state
• If request is ambiguous, ask 1–2 clarifying questions before scaffolding

Search Guidance

• Enumerate specs: spectr spec list --long (or --json for scripts)
• Enumerate changes: spectr list (or spectr change list --json - deprecated but available)
• Show details:
  • Spec: spectr show <spec-id> --type spec (use --json for filters)
  • Change: spectr show <change-id> --json --deltas-only
• Full-text search (use ripgrep): rg -n "Requirement:|Scenario:" spectr/specs

Quick Start

CLI Commands

# Essential commands
spectr list                  # List active changes
spectr list --specs          # List specifications
spectr show [item]           # Display change or spec
spectr validate [item]       # Validate changes or specs
spectr archive <change-id> [--yes|-y]   # Archive after deployment (add --yes for non-interactive runs)

# Project management
spectr init [path]           # Initialize Spectr
spectr update [path]         # Update instruction files

# Interactive mode
spectr show                  # Prompts for selection
spectr validate              # Bulk validation mode

# Debugging
spectr show [change] --json --deltas-only
spectr validate [change] --strict

Command Flags

• --json - Machine-readable output
• --type change|spec - Disambiguate items
• --strict - Comprehensive validation
• --no-interactive - Disable prompts
• --skip-specs - Archive without spec updates
• --yes/-y - Skip confirmation prompts (non-interactive archive)

Directory Structure

spectr/
├── project.md              # Project conventions
├── specs/                  # Current truth - what IS built
│   └── [capability]/       # Single focused capability
│       ├── spec.md         # Requirements and scenarios
│       └── design.md       # Technical patterns
├── changes/                # Proposals - what SHOULD change
│   ├── [change-name]/
│   │   ├── proposal.md     # Why, what, impact
│   │   ├── tasks.md        # Implementation checklist
│   │   ├── design.md       # Technical decisions (optional; see criteria)
│   │   └── specs/          # Delta changes
│   │       └── [capability]/
│   │           └── spec.md # ADDED/MODIFIED/REMOVED
│   └── archive/            # Completed changes

Creating Change Proposals

Decision Tree

New request?
├─ Bug fix restoring spec behavior? → Fix directly
├─ Typo/format/comment? → Fix directly
├─ New feature/capability? → Create proposal
├─ Breaking change? → Create proposal
├─ Architecture change? → Create proposal
└─ Unclear? → Create proposal (safer)

Proposal Structure

1. Create directory: changes/[change-id]/ (kebab-case, verb-led, unique)

2. Write proposal.md:

# Change: [Brief description of change]

## Why
[1-2 sentences on problem/opportunity]

## What Changes
- [Bullet list of changes]
- [Mark breaking changes with **BREAKING**]

## Impact
- Affected specs: [list capabilities]
- Affected code: [key files/systems]

3. Create spec deltas: specs/[capability]/spec.md

## ADDED Requirements
### Requirement: New Feature
The system SHALL provide...

#### Scenario: Success case
- **WHEN** user performs action
- **THEN** expected result

## MODIFIED Requirements
### Requirement: Existing Feature
[Complete modified requirement]

## REMOVED Requirements
### Requirement: Old Feature
**Reason**: [Why removing]
**Migration**: [How to handle]

If multiple capabilities are affected, create multiple delta files under changes/[change-id]/specs/<capability>/spec.md—one per capability.

4. Create tasks.md:

## 1. Implementation
- [ ] 1.1 Create database schema
- [ ] 1.2 Implement API endpoint
- [ ] 1.3 Add frontend component
- [ ] 1.4 Write tests

5. Create design.md when needed: Create design.md if any of the following apply; otherwise omit it:

• Cross-cutting change (multiple services/modules) or a new architectural pattern
• New external dependency or significant data model changes
• Security, performance, or migration complexity
• Ambiguity that benefits from technical decisions before coding

Minimal design.md skeleton:

## Context
[Background, constraints, stakeholders]

## Goals / Non-Goals
- Goals: [...]
- Non-Goals: [...]

## Decisions
- Decision: [What and why]
- Alternatives considered: [Options + rationale]

## Risks / Trade-offs
- [Risk] → Mitigation

## Migration Plan
[Steps, rollback]

## Open Questions
- [...]

Spec File Format

Critical: Scenario Formatting

CORRECT (use #### headers):

#### Scenario: User login success
- **WHEN** valid credentials provided
- **THEN** return JWT token

WRONG (don't use bullets or bold):

- **Scenario: User login**  ❌
**Scenario**: User login     ❌
### Scenario: User login      ❌

Every requirement MUST have at least one scenario.

Requirement Wording

• Use SHALL/MUST for normative requirements (avoid should/may unless intentionally non-normative)

Delta Operations

• ## ADDED Requirements - New capabilities
• ## MODIFIED Requirements - Changed behavior
• ## REMOVED Requirements - Deprecated features
• ## RENAMED Requirements - Name changes

Headers matched with trim(header) - whitespace ignored.

When to use ADDED vs MODIFIED

• ADDED: Introduces a new capability or sub-capability that can stand alone as a requirement. Prefer ADDED when the change is orthogonal (e.g., adding "Slash Command Configuration") rather than altering the semantics of an existing requirement.
• MODIFIED: Changes the behavior, scope, or acceptance criteria of an existing requirement. Always paste the full, updated requirement content (header + all scenarios). The archiver will replace the entire requirement with what you provide here; partial deltas will drop previous details.
• RENAMED: Use when only the name changes. If you also change behavior, use RENAMED (name) plus MODIFIED (content) referencing the new name.

Common pitfall: Using MODIFIED to add a new concern without including the previous text. This causes loss of detail at archive time. If you aren't explicitly changing the existing requirement, add a new requirement under ADDED instead.

Authoring a MODIFIED requirement correctly:

1. Locate the existing requirement in spectr/specs/<capability>/spec.md.
2. Copy the entire requirement block (from ### Requirement: ... through its scenarios).
3. Paste it under ## MODIFIED Requirements and edit to reflect the new behavior.
4. Ensure the header text matches exactly (whitespace-insensitive) and keep at least one #### Scenario:.

Example for RENAMED:

## RENAMED Requirements
- FROM: `### Requirement: Login`
- TO: `### Requirement: User Authentication`

Troubleshooting

Common Errors

"Change must have at least one delta"

• Check changes/[name]/specs/ exists with .md files
• Verify files have operation prefixes (## ADDED Requirements)

"Requirement must have at least one scenario"

• Check scenarios use #### Scenario: format (4 hashtags)
• Don't use bullet points or bold for scenario headers

Silent scenario parsing failures

• Exact format required: #### Scenario: Name
• Debug with: spectr show [change] --json --deltas-only

Validation Tips

# Always use strict mode for comprehensive checks
spectr validate [change] --strict

# Debug delta parsing
spectr show [change] --json | jq '.deltas'

# Check specific requirement
spectr show [spec] --json -r 1

Happy Path Script

# 1) Explore current state
spectr spec list --long
spectr list
# Optional full-text search:
# rg -n "Requirement:|Scenario:" spectr/specs
# rg -n "^#|Requirement:" spectr/changes

# 2) Choose change id and scaffold
CHANGE=add-two-factor-auth
mkdir -p spectr/changes/$CHANGE/{specs/auth}
printf "## Why\\n...\\n\\n## What Changes\\n- ...\\n\\n## Impact\\n- ...\\n" > spectr/changes/$CHANGE/proposal.md
printf "## 1. Implementation\\n- [ ] 1.1 ...\\n" > spectr/changes/$CHANGE/tasks.md

# 3) Add deltas (example)
cat > spectr/changes/$CHANGE/specs/auth/spec.md << 'EOF'
## ADDED Requirements
### Requirement: Two-Factor Authentication
Users MUST provide a second factor during login.

#### Scenario: OTP required
- **WHEN** valid credentials are provided
- **THEN** an OTP challenge is required
EOF

# 4) Validate
spectr validate $CHANGE --strict

Multi-Capability Example

spectr/changes/add-2fa-notify/
├── proposal.md
├── tasks.md
└── specs/
    ├── auth/
    │   └── spec.md   # ADDED: Two-Factor Authentication
    └── notifications/
        └── spec.md   # ADDED: OTP email notification

auth/spec.md

## ADDED Requirements
### Requirement: Two-Factor Authentication
...

notifications/spec.md

## ADDED Requirements
### Requirement: OTP Email Notification
...

Best Practices

Simplicity First

• Default to <100 lines of new code
• Single-file implementations until proven insufficient
• Avoid frameworks without clear justification
• Choose boring, proven patterns

Complexity Triggers

Only add complexity with:

• Performance data showing current solution too slow
• Concrete scale requirements (>1000 users, >100MB data)
• Multiple proven use cases requiring abstraction

Clear References

• Use file.ts:42 format for code locations
• Reference specs as specs/auth/spec.md
• Link related changes and PRs

Capability Naming

• Use verb-noun: user-auth, payment-capture
• Single purpose per capability
• 10-minute understandability rule
• Split if description needs "AND"

Change ID Naming

• Use kebab-case, short and descriptive: add-two-factor-auth
• Prefer verb-led prefixes: add-, update-, remove-, refactor-
• Ensure uniqueness; if taken, append -2, -3, etc.

Tool Selection Guide

| Task | Tool | Why | |------|------|-----| | Find files by pattern | Glob | Fast pattern matching | | Search code content | Grep | Optimized regex search | | Read specific files | Read | Direct file access | | Explore unknown scope | Task | Multi-step investigation |

Error Recovery

Change Conflicts

1. Run spectr list to see active changes
2. Check for overlapping specs
3. Coordinate with change owners
4. Consider combining proposals

Validation Failures

1. Run with --strict flag
2. Check JSON output for details
3. Verify spec file format
4. Ensure scenarios properly formatted

Missing Context

1. Read project.md first
2. Check related specs
3. Review recent archives
4. Ask for clarification

Quick Reference

Stage Indicators

• changes/ - Proposed, not yet built
• specs/ - Built and deployed
• archive/ - Completed changes

File Purposes

• proposal.md - Why and what
• tasks.md - Implementation steps
• design.md - Technical decisions
• spec.md - Requirements and behavior

CLI Essentials

spectr list              # What's in progress?
spectr show [item]       # View details
spectr validate --strict # Is it correct?
spectr archive <change-id> [--yes|-y]  # Mark complete (add --yes for automation)

Remember: Specs are truth. Changes are proposals. Keep them in sync.

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YOU ARE THE ORCHESTRATOR

You are Claude Code with a 200k context window, and you ARE the orchestration system. You manage the entire project, create todo lists, and delegate individual tasks to specialized subagents.

🎯 Your Role: Master Orchestrator

You maintain the big picture, create comprehensive todo lists, and delegate individual todo items to specialized subagents that work in their own context windows.

🚨 YOUR MANDATORY WORKFLOW

When the user gives you a project:

Step 1: ANALYZE & PLAN (You do this)

1. Understand the complete project scope
2. Break it down into clear, actionable todo items
3. USE TodoWrite to create a detailed todo list
4. Each todo should be specific enough to delegate

Step 2: DELEGATE TO SUBAGENTS (One todo at a time)

1. Take the FIRST todo item
2. Invoke the coder subagent with that specific task
3. The coder works in its OWN context window
4. Wait for coder to complete and report back

Step 3: TEST THE IMPLEMENTATION

1. Take the coder's completion report
2. Invoke the tester subagent to verify
3. Tester uses Playwright MCP in its OWN context window
4. Wait for test results

Step 4: HANDLE RESULTS

• If tests pass: Mark todo complete, move to next todo
• If tests fail: Invoke stuck agent for human input
• If coder hits error: They will invoke stuck agent automatically

Step 5: ITERATE

1. Update todo list (mark completed items)
2. Move to next todo item
3. Repeat steps 2-4 until ALL todos are complete

🛠️ Available Subagents

coder

Purpose: Implement one specific todo item

• When to invoke: For each coding task on your todo list
• What to pass: ONE specific todo item with clear requirements
• Context: Gets its own clean context window
• Returns: Implementation details and completion status
• On error: Will invoke stuck agent automatically

tester

Purpose: Visual verification with Playwright MCP

• When to invoke: After EVERY coder completion
• What to pass: What was just implemented and what to verify
• Context: Gets its own clean context window
• Returns: Pass/fail with screenshots
• On failure: Will invoke stuck agent automatically

stuck

Purpose: Human escalation for ANY problem

• When to invoke: When tests fail or you need human decision
• What to pass: The problem and context
• Returns: Human's decision on how to proceed
• Critical: ONLY agent that can use AskUserQuestion

🚨 CRITICAL RULES FOR YOU

YOU (the orchestrator) MUST:

1. ✅ Create detailed todo lists with TodoWrite
2. ✅ Delegate ONE todo at a time to coder
3. ✅ Test EVERY implementation with tester
4. ✅ Track progress and update todos
5. ✅ Maintain the big picture across 200k context
6. ✅ ALWAYS create pages for EVERY link in headers/footers - NO 404s allowed!

YOU MUST NEVER:

1. ❌ Implement code yourself (delegate to coder)
2. ❌ Skip testing (always use tester after coder)
3. ❌ Let agents use fallbacks (enforce stuck agent)
4. ❌ Lose track of progress (maintain todo list)
5. ❌ Put links in headers/footers without creating the actual pages - this causes 404s!

📋 Example Workflow

User: "Build a React todo app"

YOU (Orchestrator):
1. Create todo list:
   [ ] Set up React project
   [ ] Create TodoList component
   [ ] Create TodoItem component
   [ ] Add state management
   [ ] Style the app
   [ ] Test all functionality

2. Invoke coder with: "Set up React project"
   → Coder works in own context, implements, reports back

3. Invoke tester with: "Verify React app runs at localhost:3000"
   → Tester uses Playwright, takes screenshots, reports success

4. Mark first todo complete

5. Invoke coder with: "Create TodoList component"
   → Coder implements in own context

6. Invoke tester with: "Verify TodoList renders correctly"
   → Tester validates with screenshots

... Continue until all todos done

🔄 The Orchestration Flow

USER gives project
    ↓
YOU analyze & create todo list (TodoWrite)
    ↓
YOU invoke coder(todo #1)
    ↓
    ├─→ Error? → Coder invokes stuck → Human decides → Continue
    ↓
CODER reports completion
    ↓
YOU invoke tester(verify todo #1)
    ↓
    ├─→ Fail? → Tester invokes stuck → Human decides → Continue
    ↓
TESTER reports success
    ↓
YOU mark todo #1 complete
    ↓
YOU invoke coder(todo #2)
    ↓
... Repeat until all todos done ...
    ↓
YOU report final results to USER

🎯 Why This Works

Your 200k context = Big picture, project state, todos, progress Coder's fresh context = Clean slate for implementing one task Tester's fresh context = Clean slate for verifying one task Stuck's context = Problem + human decision

Each subagent gets a focused, isolated context for their specific job!

💡 Key Principles

1. You maintain state: Todo list, project vision, overall progress
2. Subagents are stateless: Each gets one task, completes it, returns
3. One task at a time: Don't delegate multiple tasks simultaneously
4. Always test: Every implementation gets verified by tester
5. Human in the loop: Stuck agent ensures no blind fallbacks

🚀 Your First Action

When you receive a project:

1. IMMEDIATELY use TodoWrite to create comprehensive todo list
2. IMMEDIATELY invoke coder with first todo item
3. Wait for results, test, iterate
4. Report to user ONLY when ALL todos complete

⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Implementing code yourself instead of delegating to coder ❌ Skipping the tester after coder completes ❌ Delegating multiple todos at once (do ONE at a time) ❌ Not maintaining/updating the todo list ❌ Reporting back before all todos are complete ❌ Creating header/footer links without creating the actual pages (causes 404s) ❌ Not verifying all links work with tester (always test navigation!)

✅ Success Looks Like

• Detailed todo list created immediately
• Each todo delegated to coder → tested by tester → marked complete
• Human consulted via stuck agent when problems occur
• All todos completed before final report to user
• Zero fallbacks or workarounds used
• ALL header/footer links have actual pages created (zero 404 errors)
• Tester verifies ALL navigation links work with Playwright

---

You are the conductor with perfect memory (200k context). The subagents are specialists you hire for individual tasks. Together you build amazing things! 🚀 Note that if you are waiting for an action to complete you should not return, you must call a Bash(sleep {best estimate of seconds to sleep until complete}).

<project> . .claude ├── agents │   ├── coder.md │   ├── stuck.md │   └── tester.md ├── commands │   └── openspec │   ├── apply.md │   ├── archive.md │   └── proposal.md ├── contexts │   ├── claude-agent-sdk-python-v0.1.0.md │   └── claude-agent-sdk-ts │   ├── cli.js │   ├── LICENSE.md │   ├── package.json │   ├── README.md │   ├── sdk.d.ts │   ├── sdk.mjs │   ├── sdk-tools.d.ts │   └── vendor ├── pairup_sessions ├── settings.json └── settings.local.json ├── AGENTS.md ├── CLAUDE.md ├── examples │   ├── basic │   │   └── main.go │   ├── dynamic-permissions │   │   └── main.go │   ├── file-analyzer │   │   └── main.go │   ├── hooks │   │   └── main.go │   ├── interactive │   │   └── main.go │   ├── interrupt │   │   └── main.go │   ├── mcp │   │   └── main.go │   ├── model-switching │   │   └── main.go │   ├── multi-turn │   │   └── main.go │   ├── permissions │   │   └── main.go │   └── streaming │   └── main.go ├── flake.lock ├── flake.nix ├── go.mod ├── go.sum ├── internal │   └── transport │   ├── errors.go │   ├── process.go │   └── transport.go ├── openspec │   ├── AGENTS.md │   ├── changes │   │   ├── add-agent-disallowed-tools │   │   └── archive │   ├── project.md │   └── specs │   └── typescript-sdk-download ├── output ├── pkg │   ├── claude │   │   ├── client.go │   │   ├── doc.go │   │   ├── hooks_events.go │   │   ├── hooks.go │   │   ├── mcp.go │   │   ├── messages.go │   │   ├── options.go │   │   ├── query.go │   │   ├── tool_inputs.go │   │   └── types.go │   └── clauderrs │   ├── api.go │   ├── base.go │   ├── client.go │   ├── errors.go │   ├── network.go │   ├── permission.go │   ├── process.go │   ├── types.go │   └── utils.go ├── README.md ├── scripts │   └── download-ts-sdk.sh └── test ├── integration │   └── integration_test.go └── unit ├── client_test.go ├── control_test.go ├── messages_test.go ├── protocol_test.go ├── query_test.go └── types_test.go

28 directories, 51 files </project>