devflow-kit

DevFlow

Development workflows for Claude Code — spec, implement, code-review, debug in one command.

Why DevFlow

Claude Code is powerful but workflows are manual — you write ad-hoc prompts, lose context on every restart, and repeat the same review steps across projects.

DevFlow adds structured commands that handle the full lifecycle: specify features, implement with exploration and planning, review with multiple perspectives, and debug with parallel investigation. Session memory persists automatically across restarts and compaction.

Features

• Structured code review — multiple specialized reviewers (security, architecture, performance, and more)
• Full-lifecycle implementation — spec, explore, plan, code, validate, refine in one command
• Automatic session memory — survives restarts, /clear, and context compaction
• Parallel debugging — competing hypotheses investigated simultaneously
• Version notifications — HUD shows ✦ Devflow vX.Y.Z · update: npx devflow-kit init when a newer version is available
• 35 quality skills — 9 auto-activating core, 8 optional language/ecosystem, plus specialized review, agent, and orchestration skills

Quick Start

npx devflow-kit init

Then in Claude Code:

/code-review

Commands

Plugin	Command	Description
devflow-specify	/specify	Interactive feature specification with clarification gates
devflow-implement	/implement	Complete task lifecycle — explore, plan, code, validate, refine
devflow-code-review	/code-review	Multi-perspective code review with severity classification
devflow-resolve	/resolve	Process review issues — fix or defer to tech debt
devflow-debug	/debug	Parallel hypothesis debugging
devflow-self-review	/self-review	Self-review workflow (Simplifier + Scrutinizer)
devflow-ambient	(hook)	Ambient mode — intent classification with agent orchestration
devflow-core-skills	(auto)	Auto-activating quality enforcement skills

Command Details

/specify

Guides you through defining a feature with three mandatory gates:

• Understanding Gate - Confirm the feature idea is understood
• Scope Gate - Validate priorities and boundaries
• Acceptance Gate - Confirm success criteria

Creates a GitHub issue with well-defined requirements ready for /implement.

/implement

Executes a single task through the complete development lifecycle:

• Exploration — analyze codebase for relevant patterns and dependencies
• Planning — design the implementation approach
• Implementation — write code on a feature branch
• Validation — run build, typecheck, lint, and tests
• Refinement — simplify and review for quality
• Alignment Check — verify implementation matches the original request

Creates a PR when complete.

/code-review

Multi-perspective code review with specialized reviewers:

• Core: Security, Architecture, Performance, Quality
• Conditional (activated when relevant): TypeScript, React, Accessibility, Go, Python, Java, Rust, Database, Dependencies, Documentation
• Findings classified as must-fix, should-fix, or nit with severity and confidence levels

Provides actionable feedback with specific file locations and suggested fixes.

/debug

Investigates bugs using competing hypotheses:

• Hypothesis Generation — identify 3-5 plausible explanations
• Parallel Investigation — each hypothesis investigated independently
• Evidence Evaluation — hypotheses ranked by supporting evidence
• Root Cause — the best-supported explanation with fix recommendation

Produces a root cause analysis report with confidence level.

/resolve

Processes issues from /code-review:

• Validates each issue is real (not false positive)
• Assesses risk of fixing (low vs high)
• Fixes low-risk issues immediately
• Defers high-risk issues to tech debt backlog

Auto-Activating Skills

The devflow-core-skills plugin provides quality enforcement skills that activate automatically:

Skill	Triggers When
core-patterns	Implementing business logic, error handling
docs-framework	Creating documentation artifacts in .docs/
git-safety	Rebasing, force-pushing, merge conflicts
git-workflow	Staging files, creating commits, PRs
github-patterns	GitHub API operations, PR comments, releases
test-driven-development	Implementing new features (RED-GREEN-REFACTOR)
test-patterns	Writing or modifying tests
input-validation	Creating API endpoints
search-first	Adding utilities, helpers, or infrastructure code

Language & Ecosystem Plugins

Optional plugins for language-specific patterns. Install only what you need:

Plugin	Skill	Triggers When
devflow-typescript	typescript	Working in TypeScript codebases
devflow-react	react	Working with React components
devflow-accessibility	accessibility	Creating UI components, forms
devflow-frontend-design	frontend-design	Working with CSS, styling
devflow-go	go	Working in Go codebases
devflow-python	python	Working in Python codebases
devflow-java	java	Working in Java codebases
devflow-rust	rust	Working in Rust codebases

# Install specific language plugins
npx devflow-kit init --plugin=typescript,react
npx devflow-kit init --plugin=go

Requirements

• Claude Code (latest)
• Node.js 18+

Installation

Install All Plugins

npx devflow-kit init

The interactive wizard walks through plugin selection, feature configuration (ambient mode, working memory, HUD, safe-delete), and security settings. In user scope, it discovers all projects Claude has worked on and batch-installs .claudeignore across them.

Install Specific Plugins

# List available plugins
npx devflow-kit list

# Install specific plugin(s)
npx devflow-kit init --plugin=implement
npx devflow-kit init --plugin=implement,code-review

Scopes

• --scope user (default) - Install for all projects (~/.claude/)
• --scope local - Install for current project only (.claude/)

Working Memory

DevFlow automatically preserves session context across restarts, /clear, and context compaction — zero ceremony required.

Three shell hooks run behind the scenes:

Hook	When	What
Stop	After each response	Updates .memory/WORKING-MEMORY.md with current focus, decisions, and progress. Throttled — skips if updated <2 min ago.
SessionStart	On startup, /clear, resume, compaction	Injects previous working memory + fresh git state as system context. Warns if memory is >1h stale.
PreCompact	Before context compaction	Backs up git state to JSON. Bootstraps a minimal working memory from git if none exists yet.

Working memory is per-project — scoped to each repo's .memory/ directory. Multiple sessions across different repos don't interfere.

Documentation Structure

DevFlow creates project documentation in .docs/ and working memory in .memory/:

.docs/
├── reviews/{branch}/         # Review reports per branch
└── design/                   # Implementation plans

.memory/
├── WORKING-MEMORY.md         # Auto-maintained by Stop hook
├── backup.json               # Pre-compact git state snapshot
└── knowledge/
    ├── decisions.md           # Architectural decisions (ADR-NNN, append-only)
    └── pitfalls.md            # Known pitfalls (area-specific gotchas)

Workflow Examples

Implementing a Feature

/specify     # Define the feature with clarification gates
/implement   # Execute the full lifecycle

Debugging an Issue

/debug "login fails after session timeout"
/debug #42   # Investigate from GitHub issue

Before Creating a PR

/code-review      # Multi-perspective code review
/resolve     # Fix low-risk issues, defer high-risk to backlog

Session Continuity

Session context is saved and restored automatically via Working Memory hooks — no manual steps needed.

CLI Reference

Command	Description
npx devflow-kit init	Install all plugins
npx devflow-kit init --plugin=<names>	Install specific plugin(s)
npx devflow-kit list	List available plugins
npx devflow-kit ambient --enable	Enable always-on ambient mode
npx devflow-kit ambient --disable	Disable ambient mode
npx devflow-kit uninstall	Remove DevFlow

Init Options

Option	Description
--plugin <names>	Comma-separated plugin names (e.g., implement,code-review)
--scope <user|local>	Installation scope (default: user)
--teams / --no-teams	Enable/disable Agent Teams (experimental, default: off)
--ambient / --no-ambient	Enable/disable ambient mode (default: on)
--memory / --no-memory	Enable/disable working memory (default: on)
--hud / --no-hud	Enable/disable HUD status line (default: on)
--hud-only	Install only the HUD (no plugins, hooks, or extras)
--verbose	Show detailed output

HUD Options

Command	Description
npx devflow-kit hud --status	Show current HUD config
npx devflow-kit hud --enable	Enable HUD
npx devflow-kit hud --disable	Disable HUD (version notifications still appear)
npx devflow-kit hud --detail	Show tool/agent descriptions
npx devflow-kit hud --no-detail	Hide tool/agent descriptions

Skill Shadowing

Override any DevFlow skill with your own version. Shadowed skills survive devflow init — they won't be overwritten on reinstall or upgrade.

# Create a personal override (copies current version as reference)
npx devflow-kit skills shadow core-patterns

# Edit your override
vim ~/.claude/skills/core-patterns/SKILL.md

# List all overrides
npx devflow-kit skills list-shadowed

# Remove override (next init restores DevFlow's version)
npx devflow-kit skills unshadow core-patterns

Uninstall Options

Option	Description
--scope <user|local>	Uninstall scope (default: user)
--plugin <names>	Comma-separated plugin names to uninstall selectively
--keep-docs	Preserve .docs/ directory
--dry-run	Show what would be removed without deleting anything
--verbose	Show detailed uninstall output

Building from Source

git clone https://github.com/dean0x/devflow.git
cd devflow
npm install
npm run build
node dist/cli.js init

License

MIT