The base standards file is the universal ruleset that every AI agent — Claude, Cursor, Codex, Gemini, and any others — must follow when working in a Specboot-managed project. It establishes foundational principles covering how to approach tasks, which language to use, how skills are loaded, and how OpenSpec artifacts must be kept current. All agent-specific configurations are derived from and linked back to this single source of truth.Documentation Index
Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/LIDR-academy/lidr-specboot/llms.txt
Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
This file is symlinked to all copilot configuration directories (e.g.,
.claude/, .cursor/). Any change to this file propagates automatically to every agent configuration that references it. Never maintain separate copies — always edit the canonical source in ai-specs/.1. Core Principles
Every agent must operate according to these principles on every task, without exception:- Small tasks, one at a time. Always work in baby steps. Never advance more than one step at a time.
- Test-Driven Development. Start with failing tests for any new functionality (TDD), according to the task details.
- Type Safety. All code must be fully typed.
- Clear Naming. Use clear, descriptive names for all variables and functions.
- Incremental Changes. Prefer incremental, focused changes over large, complex modifications.
- Question Assumptions. Always question assumptions and inferences — do not take context for granted.
- Pattern Detection. Detect and highlight repeated code patterns to surface abstraction opportunities.
2. Language Standards
All technical artifacts in a Specboot project must be written exclusively in English. This is a non-negotiable rule that covers every artifact an agent can touch:- Code — variables, functions, classes, comments, error messages, log messages
- Documentation — READMEs, guides, API docs
- Issue/ticket titles — Jira descriptions and comments
- Data schemas and database names
- Configuration files and scripts
- Git commit messages
- Test names and descriptions
3. Specific Standards Pointers
The base standards define the principles; domain-specific rules live in dedicated documents. Refer to the following for detailed conventions in each area:| Area | Document | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Backend | Backend Standards | API development, database patterns, testing, security |
| Frontend | Frontend Standards | React components, UI/UX guidelines, frontend architecture |
| Documentation | Documentation Standards | Technical doc structure, formatting, maintenance |
| OpenSpec | OpenSpec Tasks Mandatory Steps | Required checklist for creating or updating tasks.md files |
4. Project Skills
Skills are reusable, pre-defined workflows that agents can load on demand to handle recurring task types consistently.- Location: Skills live in
ai-specs/skills/. - Auto-loading: When a request matches a skill, load and follow the corresponding
SKILL.mdautomatically before continuing with the task. - Referenced files: Also load any files referenced inside the skill folder (for example,
references/*.md) when the skill requires them.
5. Planning Model Requirement
Certain planning workflows require high-reasoning capability and must be run with the Opus model at high reasoning settings. This requirement applies to the following workflows:enrich-usopenspec-ff-change(/ff)openspec-continue-change(/continue)
"model": "claude-opus-4-7" to .claude/settings.json (use the update-config skill or edit directly), then continue — do not stop and ask the user. Revert to Sonnet medium reasoning for all other steps.
6. Symlink Integrity and Multi-Agent Portability
Specboot uses symlinks to keep a single canonical copy of each artifact inai-specs/ while making it available from every agent-specific directory. Agents must uphold symlink integrity at all times.
| Rule | Description |
|---|---|
| Canonical Source | Keep reusable artifacts in ai-specs/ as the canonical source. Agent-specific paths (.claude/, .cursor/) reference them through symlinks. |
| Update Safety | Whenever a file is renamed, moved, or its suffix changes, verify and update all symlinks that target it before considering the change complete. |
| New Artifact Linking | When creating a new artifact that requires multi-agent exposure (e.g., new agents or skills in ai-specs/), create the corresponding symlinks from all expected agent-specific reference paths. |
| External Customization Review | Whenever customization is introduced outside ai-specs/, evaluate whether it should be moved into ai-specs/ and replaced with a symlink from the original location. |
| Completion Gate | A change is incomplete if it leaves broken symlinks, stale targets, or duplicated canonical artifacts across agent-specific folders. |
7. Mandatory OpenSpec Artifact Updates for Post-Apply Changes
The required order for handling any post-apply change request is:- Update OpenSpec artifacts first. Update all current OpenSpec change artifacts that are affected — scenarios, requirements/specs, and
tasks.md. Do not add tasks as “bugfixes”; incorporate them as part of the initial design in the proper section. - Regenerate if needed. If artifact regeneration is required, run the corresponding OpenSpec step (
opsx:continue,opsx:ff, or equivalent) before writing any code. - Implement code only after artifacts reflect the new request. No coding until the spec is updated and accurate.
- Re-run verification. Verify against the updated artifacts before archiving.