Groove Work Spec

groove-work-spec

Use $ARGUMENTS as the spec topic if provided.

Outcome

A complete outcome spec that defines what to build and how to verify it — the agent determines the procedure.

Acceptance Criteria

Spec file contains:

• Overview: What to build and why
• Decisions: Key technical choices with rationale
• Implementation Steps: Concrete, ordered steps
• Edge Cases: Error handling, boundary conditions

Constraints

• Sanitize topic for use as filename — strip path separators, special characters, and traversal patterns (../)
• Specs directory is always .groove/memory/specs/
• Ensure the specs directory exists (create if missing)
• Research codebase first (use Explore agent)
• Interview user for decisions, edge cases, testing approach, scope
• Assess scope: if the work has natural seams (independent components, sequential phases, separable concerns), recommend splitting into a parent spec with child specs
• Parent spec: Overview of the full feature, links to child specs, execution order if sequential
• Child specs: Each self-contained with its own Overview, Decisions, Steps, Edge Cases
• Naming: <topic>.md for single specs, <topic>/index.md + <topic>/01-<part>.md for split specs
• User decides: Present the split recommendation with rationale, user confirms or overrides
• Write spec in isolated context (use general-purpose agent)
• Verify all required sections exist before completing
• Reference actual codebase patterns, not generic advice

Quality Signals

• Decisions reference real code patterns
• Steps include actual file paths and function names
• Edge cases reflect discovered constraints