cli-output-conventions SKILL.md skillA
cli-output-conventions from testland/qa is an agent skill: a SKILL.md folder an AI agent loads when a task calls for it.
mdr add testland/qa/cli-output-conventions@git:20260725.70194bePins git:20260725.70194be in mdr.lock. Pin the fingerprint instead.
- Audit grade
- A, 17 of 17 checks passed
- Kind
- SKILL.md skill
- Repository
- testland/qa
- Path
plugins/qa-cli-tools/skills/cli-output-conventions/SKILL.md- Versions recorded
- 5
- Latest version
- git:20260725.70194be, committed Jul 25, 2026
- First version recorded
- Jun 2, 2026
- Size
- 7,433 bytes
- Repository stars
- 11
- License
- MIT
Conventions for designing AND testing CLI output so it stays parseable and assertable - exit-code policy (0 success, non-zero failure with stable codes per failure mode), `stdout` for primary data / `stderr` for messages, `--json` / `--plain` for machine-readable output, deterministic ordering and timestamps, `NO_COLOR` / TTY-aware color, `-q` / `--verbose` discipline, and stable `--help` / `--version`. Built on the [Command Line Interface Guidelines][clig]. Use when designing or testing a…
Collected from public GitHub. Every version is saved exactly as it was and never changes. Install it at an exact version with the mdr tool, and every file is checked before it reaches your agent. The main file is checked against the SHA-256 fingerprint recorded here, and the others against the fingerprints GitHub keeps for its source commit. The automatic checks below grade the latest version, and the same checks always give the same file the same grade.
What the file says
# cli-output-conventions ## Overview Per [clig][clig]: [clig]: https://clig.dev/ > "Send output to `stdout`. The primary output for your command > should go to `stdout`. Anything that is machine readable should > also go to `stdout`." > > "Send messaging to `stderr`. Log messages, errors, and so on > should all be sent to `stderr`." Tests can only assert on output that is **stable, separated, and documented**. This skill defines those conventions; sister skills (`bats-testing`, `tui-snapshot-tester`) test against them. ## When to use - Authoring or reviewing a CLI's output (any new flag, command, or error message). - Writing tests for a CLI: this skill tells you WHAT to assert on; bats / pytest etc. tell you HOW. - A CLI's tests are flaky / brittle - usually the underlying output isn't deterministic. Fix the output, not the assertion. ## Convention 1 - Exit codes Per [clig][clig]: > "Return zero exit code on success, non-zero on failure." > "Map non-zero codes to important failure modes for script > integration." ``` Exit code | Meaning ----------+---------------------------- 0 | Success 1 | General error (catch-all) …
Read the whole file at its exact version.
How to install
mdr add testland/qa/cli-output-conventions@sha256:7b11c3f97b4f4ee2The line at the top of this page pins the label git:20260725.70194be, which is what most people want. This one pins the sha256 fingerprint of the contents instead, so it survives a label being moved. Either way the exact version is written to mdr.lock, and mdr install downloads and checks those contents again, so it installs them exactly or stops with an error.
[](https://markdownregistry.com/a/art_fa3il7inmxdfo7hm)
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Versions
The registry has recorded 5 versions of this file, between Jun 2, 2026 and Jul 25, 2026, about one every 13 days.
| version | committed | commit | size | audit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| git:20260725.70194be latest | 2026-07-25 | 70194be | 7,433 B | A | view · diff |
| git:20260724.d4db756 | 2026-07-24 | d4db756 | 9,839 B | A | view · diff |
| git:20260706.4e1409c | 2026-07-06 | 4e1409c | 9,965 B | A | view · diff |
| git:20260603.21eda0e | 2026-06-03 | 21eda0e | 9,982 B | A | view · diff |
| git:20260602.ce520f0 | 2026-06-02 | ce520f0 | 9,996 B | A | view |
Audit of the latest version
- pass: Frontmatter block present
- pass: Frontmatter declares a name
- pass: Frontmatter declares a description
- pass: Size between 200 bytes and 200 KB (7433 bytes)
- pass: No zero-width or bidi control characters
- pass: No instruction hidden inside an HTML comment
- pass: No link to an exfiltration or paste host
- pass: No credential-shaped string
- pass: No instruction to send local credentials anywhere
- pass: No text hidden with inline styles
- pass: No prompt-injection phrasing
- pass: No curl or wget piped into a shell
- pass: No recursive delete of root, home or parent
- pass: No instruction to read or print local credentials
- pass: No base64 blob over 200 characters
- pass: No link to a raw IP address
- pass: No script tag
Source
testland/qa · 11 stars · license MIT · pushed 2026-10-20 · branch main
API
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/artifacts/art_fa3il7inmxdfo7hm GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/resolve?ref=testland/qa/cli-output-conventions GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/blob/7b11c3f97b4f4ee24d26d46a48a3174b6f5f68d751179938ea25fd8d19ca60ce
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