project-init · diff

v1.0 to v1.0

1 added, 7 removed. Audit A to A.

---

name: project-init

- description: >

- Scaffold an unconfigured directory into a configured pi project. Interactive,

- profile-driven: lists project profiles (coding, docs, plus user profiles),

- asks which to use, previews the planned writes, and on confirmation writes

- AGENTS.md, .pi/settings.json (with a worktreeInit hook + toolset), and prompt

- files. Use when a bare directory needs turning into a working pi project, or

- when the dashboard's "Initialize" button spawns this session.

+ description: 'Scaffold an unconfigured directory into a configured pi project. Interactive, profile-driven: previews the planned writes, then writes AGENTS.md, .pi/settings.json and prompt files — optionally also a knowledge base, an openspec/ scaffold, and user-global ~/.pi/agent/settings.json. Use on a bare directory, or when the dashboard''s "Initialize" button spawns this session.'

license: MIT

metadata:

author: pi-dashboard

version: "1.0"

---

# Project Init

Turn the current directory into a configured pi project through a guided,

conversational flow. You are running as a first-class interactive session —

converse, confirm, and only write files after the user agrees.

**Target directory** = your current working directory (`cwd`). All writes land

there. All profile/doctrine paths below are relative to THIS skill's directory

(the folder containing this `SKILL.md`); call it `<skill>`.

## Step 1 — Resolve the available profiles

A profile is a directory bundle: `profile.json` (optional, carries

`description` + `dox`), `AGENTS.md.tmpl`, `settings.json.tmpl`, and

`prompts/*.md`.

Enumerate profiles from two sources, **user wins by name**:

1. Shipped: `<skill>/profiles/*`

2. User: `~/.pi/project-profiles/*`

```bash

ls -1 "<skill>/profiles" 2>/dev/null

ls -1 "$HOME/.pi/project-profiles" 2>/dev/null

```

Merge: a user profile of the same name fully shadows the shipped one. A

directory is only a usable profile when it contains BOTH `AGENTS.md.tmpl` and

`settings.json.tmpl`. Read each `profile.json` for its `description` and `dox`

flag (`dox` defaults to `false` when absent or unreadable).

## Step 2 — Ask which profile

Use `ask_user` (select) to present the resolved profiles by name +

description. Shipped defaults are `coding` (TDD/simplicity/surgical, OpenSpec

on, `npm ci` worktree-init) and `docs` (writing structure, OpenSpec off, no

build step).

## Step 2b — Resolve the technology stack (stack-aware profiles only)

When the chosen profile's `profile.json` has `"stackAware": true` (the shipped

`coding` profile does), its templates carry technology placeholders

(`{{INSTALL_CMD}}`, `{{TEST_CMD}}`, `{{BUILD_CMD}}`, `{{INIT_GATE}}`,

`{{INIT_COMMAND}}`) that must be filled from the project's stack — a coding repo

may be Node, Rust, Go, Python, Java, etc.

**Auto-detect + confirm:**

1. Detect a best guess from marker files in the target directory:

|---|---|---|---|

Prefer a JS lockfile over a plain `package.json`. A bare directory yields no

guess.

2. **Confirm with the user** (`ask_user`): show the detected stack (or "none

detected") and let them confirm or pick a different stack from the table.

Never scaffold a stack-aware profile without a resolved stack.

3. Substitute the chosen stack's values for the `{{…}}` placeholders when

writing the templates in Step 4. After writing, verify NO `{{…}}` placeholder

remains in `AGENTS.md` or `.pi/settings.json` — an unfilled placeholder means

the stack was not resolved; go back and ask.

## Step 3 — Ask about optional capabilities, preview, then confirm

### 3a — Ask about DOX (all profiles)

DOX seeds a directory-level documentation doctrine and wires the kb toolset (see

Step 5). It is now an **interactive choice on every profile**, not a fixed

per-profile switch. Ask with `ask_user` (confirm), pre-selecting the profile's

`dox` value as the DEFAULT answer:

> Enable DOX documentation doctrine? Seeds a directory-level AGENTS.md discipline

> into `./AGENTS.md` and enables the kb toolset. (default: `<profile.dox>`)

Record the answer as `DOX_ENABLED`. The `dox` flag in `profile.json` only sets

the default; the user's answer decides. Step 5 gates on `DOX_ENABLED`, not the

raw flag.

### 3b — Ask about OpenSpec init (coding profile only)

**Gate: only when the selected profile is `coding`** (skip for `docs` / any

OpenSpec-off profile), mirroring Steps 4b and 5. Skip the prompt entirely when an

`openspec/` directory already exists in the target (idempotent — treat as

already-initialized). Otherwise ask with `ask_user` (confirm):

> Initialize OpenSpec for this project? Runs `openspec init --tools pi`, which

> creates the `openspec/` scaffold and wires the OpenSpec commands into pi.

Record the answer as `OPENSPEC_INIT`. The actual run happens in Step 6.

### 3c — Preview + confirm

List exactly what you will write, then ask the user to confirm (`ask_user`

confirm). The writes for profile `<p>` are:

- `./AGENTS.md` ← `<skill>/profiles/<p>/AGENTS.md.tmpl` (substitute `{{PROJECT_NAME}}` with the directory basename)

- `./.pi/settings.json` ← `<skill>/profiles/<p>/settings.json.tmpl`

- `./.pi/prompts/*.md` ← each file in `<skill>/profiles/<p>/prompts/`

When `DOX_ENABLED` is true, ALSO name in the preview:

- the DOX doctrine seed appended to `./AGENTS.md` (see Step 5)

- the kb toolset flip written to `./.pi/dashboard/knowledge_base.json`

When `OPENSPEC_INIT` is true, ALSO disclose the side effect (see Step 6) — NOT a

plain file write:

- runs `openspec init --tools pi`, scaffolding `./openspec/` and wiring pi

When the chosen profile is `coding`, ALSO disclose the possible side effect (see

Step 4b) — NOT a file write:

- may offer to `pi install` the `eng-disciplines` skills **user-globally**

(writes `~/.pi/agent/settings.json`). This is machine-wide: the skills become

available in **all** projects on this machine, not just this one. Always

opt-in via a separate prompt; never forced. Needs Node/npm on the machine

(the install runs `pi install npm:…`); the scaffolded repo itself gains no

dependency.

**Idempotency:** before writing, check whether `./AGENTS.md` or

`./.pi/settings.json` already exist. If they do, ask before overwriting — never

clobber silently.

## Step 4 — Write the scaffold

On confirmation, write the files listed above. Substitute `{{PROJECT_NAME}}`

in `AGENTS.md.tmpl` with the target directory's basename, and — for a

stack-aware profile — the stack placeholders resolved in Step 2b.

**Validate the hook.** After writing `./.pi/settings.json`, confirm its

`worktreeInit` is a valid change-A hook: a non-empty `gate` string plus a `run`

that is either `{ type: "script", command: "<non-empty>" }` or

`{ type: "agent", prompt: "<non-empty>" }`. If it is not valid, warn the user —

an invalid hook fails open (change-A ignores it) and the Initialize button will

loop back to this skill instead of running the hook.

## Step 4b — Ensure discipline skills (only when the profile is `coding`)

The `coding` template's `## Discipline Skills` checkpoint table references the

`eng-disciplines` skills. This step makes those references live. **Gate: run

only when the selected profile is `coding`** (skip for `docs` / any

OpenSpec-off profile), mirroring how Step 5 gates on `dox: true`.

**Detect** (read-only; both forms tolerate a missing `pi` binary):

```bash

pi list 2>/dev/null | grep -q pi-dashboard-eng-disciplines \

|| stat ~/.pi/agent/npm/node_modules/@blackbelt-technology/pi-dashboard-eng-disciplines >/dev/null 2>&1

```

If `pi` is not on PATH and the stat misses, treat as ABSENT but do NOT error

the init — fall through to the footnote. (Known limit: the stat form only sees

the `npm:` global path; a `git:`/renamed install is invisible and would

re-prompt.)

**PRESENT** → skills already global. Skip the prompt (idempotent re-run) and

write NO activation footnote into `./AGENTS.md`. If a prior run left the

"not detected" footnote (e.g. the skills were installed after a decline),

remove that line before exiting so the file never claims the skills are missing

when they are present. Done.

**ABSENT** → `ask_user` (confirm):

> Install the discipline skills globally? They power the checkpoint table this

> project's AGENTS.md references, and become available in ALL projects on this

> machine. Writes `~/.pi/agent/settings.json` (user-global, not project-local).

- **Yes** → run `pi install npm:@blackbelt-technology/pi-dashboard-eng-disciplines`

and verify exit 0. On success, write NO footnote. On non-zero exit (or a

missing `pi`), fall through to the footnote path.

- **No / install failed** → append ONE line under the `## Discipline Skills`

table in `./AGENTS.md`:

> Discipline skills not detected — run `pi install npm:@blackbelt-technology/pi-dashboard-eng-disciplines` to activate the checkpoints above.

The footnote is **detection-conditional**: written only on the absent/declined

branch, never on the present/installed path (so a successfully-wired project

never carries a false "not detected" line). The install is always user-global

and never forced.

## Step 5 — DOX doctrine seed (only when `DOX_ENABLED` is true)

> Gated on the user's Step 3a answer (`DOX_ENABLED`), NOT the raw `profile.json`

> `dox` flag — the flag only supplied the default. Skip this step entirely when

> the user declined DOX.

The canonical doctrine ships once at `<skill>/dox-doctrine.md`. Do NOT copy the

whole file. Seed a single block into `./AGENTS.md` **only when it does not

already carry the marker** `` (idempotent — if the marker

is present, skip this step entirely).

Compose the seeded block as:

1. The marker line ``

2. The WRITE discipline — the text between `` and

`` in `dox-doctrine.md`.

3. ONE READ discipline variant — **skip this item entirely when the chosen

profile's `AGENTS.md.tmpl` already embeds a `## Finding docs (READ

discipline)` section** (the shipped `coding` profile does; seeding it again

would duplicate the gate). Seed only the WRITE discipline in that case.

Otherwise:

- If the kb toolset is wired (this profile writes

`knowledge_base.json` with `indexAgentsFiles`/`directoryLevelAgents`),

use the text between `` and

`` (references `kb agents` / `kb_search`).

- Otherwise use the text between `` and

`` (manual chain-walk; no kb references).

Strip the delimiter comments from the seeded text. Append the block to

`./AGENTS.md`.

Then write `./.pi/dashboard/knowledge_base.json` (when absent) enabling the

directory-level AGENTS.md toolset:

```json

{

"sources": [{ "kind": "filesystem", "ref": "." }],

"indexAgentsFiles": true,

"directoryLevelAgents": { "enabled": true }

}

```

## Step 6 — Run OpenSpec init (only when `OPENSPEC_INIT` is true)

Gated on the user's Step 3b answer (`OPENSPEC_INIT`); this only becomes true for

the `coding` profile when no `openspec/` dir pre-existed. Mirrors Step 4b's

side-effect pattern — opt-in, verified, never forced.

**Run** (always non-interactive so it never hijacks the conversation):

```bash

openspec init --tools pi

```

The `--tools pi` flag pins the wiring to pi and skips OpenSpec's interactive tool

picker. Verify exit 0 and that `./openspec/` now exists. On success, tell the

user OpenSpec is wired (the `coding` AGENTS.md already documents

`openspec change new <name>`). On non-zero exit (or a missing `openspec` binary),

warn the user and point them at `openspec init --tools pi` to run manually — do

NOT error the init; the scaffold is already written.

**Idempotent re-run:** if `./openspec/` already existed, Step 3b never asked, so

`OPENSPEC_INIT` is false and this step is skipped — no clobber.

## Step 7 — Done

Confirm what was written. Writing `worktreeInit` flips the directory to

"configured": the next dashboard **Initialize** click runs the hook (change-A)

instead of re-launching this skill. Tell the user they can click Initialize

again to run `npm ci` (or the profile's hook).