SpecWeave - Smart Workflow Documentation

SpecWeave provides explicit slash commands for reliable workflow execution.

NOTE: Auto-detection of product descriptions is handled by the

increment-planner

How SpecWeave Works

To use SpecWeave: Type

/inc "Feature description"

Smart workflow features:

• ✅ Auto-resume (

  /do

  finds next incomplete task)
• ✅ Auto-close (

  /inc

  closes previous if PM gates pass)
• ✅ Progress tracking (

  /progress

  shows status anytime)
• ✅ Natural flow (finish → start next, no overhead)

Available Slash Commands

Core Workflow Commands

/increment

/inc

/inc "User auth"

/do

/do

/progress

/progress

/validate

/validate 0001 --quality

/done

/inc

/done 0001

Supporting Commands

/list-increments

/list-increments

/sw:sync-docs

/sw:sync-docs --increment=003

/sync-github

/sync-github

Why Only ONE Alias?

Design decision:

/inc

• ✅ Minimizes cognitive overhead (one alias to remember)
• ✅ Other commands use full names for clarity
• ✅ Simpler mental model

Typical Workflow

Natural append-only workflow (0001 → 0002 → 0003):

# 1. Initialize project (CLI, before Claude session)
npx specweave init my-saas

# 2. Plan your first increment (PM-led)
/inc "AI-powered customer support chatbot"
# PM creates: spec.md + plan.md + tasks.md (auto!) + tests.md

# 3. Build it (smart resume)
/do
# Auto-resumes from next incomplete task
# Hooks run after EVERY task

# 4. Check progress anytime
/progress
# Shows: 5/12 tasks (42%), next: T006, PM gates status

# 5. Continue building
/do
# Picks up where you left off

# 6. Start next feature (auto-closes previous!)
/inc "real-time chat dashboard"
# Smart check:
#   PM gates pass → Auto-close 0001, create 0002
#   PM gates fail → Present options (never forces)

# 7. Keep building
/do
# Auto-finds active increment 0002

# Repeat: /sw:increment → /sw:do → /sw:progress → /sw:increment (auto-closes) → /sw:do...

Command Details

/inc

or

/increment

- Plan Increment

Most important command! PM-led planning with auto-close intelligence.

# Short form (recommended)
/inc "User authentication with JWT and RBAC"

# Full form
/increment "User authentication with JWT and RBAC"

What happens:

1. Smart Check Previous: If increment in-progress:
   • PM gates pass → Auto-close previous, create new (seamless)
   • PM gates fail → Present options (complete first / move tasks / cancel)
2. PM-Led Planning: PM Agent analyzes requirements
3. Creates: spec.md (WHAT & WHY), plan.md (HOW)
4. Auto-generates: tasks.md (from plan), tests.md (test strategy)
5. Ready to build: Status set to "planned"

/do

- Execute Tasks (Smart Resume)

Smart resume: Automatically finds next incomplete task.

# Auto-finds active increment, resumes from next task
/do

# Or specify increment explicitly
/do 0001

What happens:

1. Finds active increment (or uses specified ID)
2. Parses tasks.md, finds first incomplete task
3. Shows resume context (task T006, description, priority)
4. Executes task implementation
5. Runs hooks after EVERY task completion (docs update, validation)
6. Repeats for next task when you run

   /do

   again

No manual tracking needed! Just keep running

/do

/progress

- Show Status

Progress visibility: See exactly where you are anytime.

/progress

# Auto-finds active increment, shows:
# - Task completion % (P1 weighted higher)
# - PM gates preview (tasks, tests, docs)
# - Next action guidance
# - Time tracking & stuck task warnings

/validate

- Validate Quality

Two-level validation: Rule-based (120 checks) + optional AI quality judge.

# Rule-based validation only
/validate 0001

# With AI quality assessment (LLM-as-judge)
/validate 0001 --quality

# Export suggestions to tasks.md
/validate 0001 --quality --export

# Auto-fix issues (experimental)
/validate 0001 --quality --fix

/done

- Close Explicitly

Optional command: Use when you need explicit closure (usually

/inc

/done 0001

# System validates:
# - All P1 tasks completed
# - All tests passing
# - Documentation updated
#
# Offers leftover transfer options for P2/P3 tasks

When to use:

• Explicit closure before long break
• Force closure without starting new increment
• Generate closure report only

Usually NOT needed:

/inc

/list-increments

- List All

WIP tracking: View all increments with status and completion.

# All increments
/list-increments

# Filter by status
/list-increments --status in-progress

# Filter by priority
/list-increments --priority P1

# Show task breakdown
/list-increments --verbose

# Only WIP increments
/list-increments --wip-only

Smart Workflow Features

1. Auto-Resume (No Manual Tracking)

Problem: Traditional workflows require manual tracking ("which task am I on?")

Solution:

/do

/do

📋 Resuming increment 0001-authentication
   Next: T006 - Implement JWT token validation
   Priority: P1
   Estimate: 2 hours
   Context: After T005 (token generation)

Starting task T006...

2. Auto-Close (Seamless Flow)

Problem: Manual closure overhead ("do I need to close this?")

Solution:

/inc

Happy path (auto-close):

/inc "payment processing"

📊 Checking previous increment 0001-authentication...
   PM Gates: ✅ All P1 complete, tests pass, docs updated

✅ Auto-closing 0001 (seamless)
Creating 0002-payment-processing...

Issues found (present options):

/inc "payment processing"

📊 Checking previous increment 0001-authentication...
   PM Gates: ❌ 2 P1 tasks remaining

❌ Cannot auto-close 0001 (incomplete)

Options:
  A) Complete 0001 first (recommended)
  B) Move incomplete tasks to 0002
  C) Cancel new increment

Your choice? _

3. Suggest, Never Force

Critical principle: User always in control.

• ✅ Present options when issues found
• ✅ Explain consequences clearly
• ✅ Let user decide
• ❌ NEVER surprise user with forced closure

4. Progress Visibility

Problem: Status unclear ("how much is done?")

Solution:

/progress

/progress

📊 Increment 0001-authentication

Status: in-progress
Progress: 42% (5/12 tasks) ⏳

Task Breakdown:
  P1: 60% (3/5) ⏳
  P2: 33% (2/6)
  P3: 0% (0/1)

PM Gates Preview:
  ✅ All P1 tasks: 60% (not ready)
  ⏳ Tests passing: Running...
  ✅ Docs updated: Yes

Next Action: Complete T006 (P1, 2h)
Time on increment: 3 days

Why Slash Commands?

Problem: Auto-activation doesn't work reliably in Claude Code.

SpecWeave solution: EXPLICIT slash commands for 100% reliability.

Benefits:

• ✅ 100% reliable activation (no guessing)
• ✅ Clear user intent (explicit action)
• ✅ Consistent behavior (no surprises)
• ✅ Easy to learn (visible in .claude/commands/)

How to Get Help

Within Claude Code:

User: "How do I use SpecWeave?"
→ Claude shows this documentation

Available commands:

User: "What SpecWeave commands are available?"
→ Claude lists all slash commands

Command syntax:

User: "How do I create a new increment?"
→ Claude explains /sw:increment command with examples

Documentation

• Command Reference: See

  .claude/commands/

  for all command implementations
• Quick Reference: See

  CLAUDE.md

  for quick reference table
• Official Docs: https://spec-weave.com/docs/commands

💡 Pro Tip: Master the smart workflow cycle!

Core cycle:

/inc

/do

/progress

/inc

Key insight: Natural flow without overhead. Focus on building, not project management.

One alias to remember:

/inc

/increment

Project-Specific Learnings

Before starting work, check for project-specific learnings:

# Check if skill memory exists for this skill
cat .specweave/skill-memories/detector.md 2>/dev/null || echo "No project learnings yet"

Project learnings are automatically captured by the reflection system when corrections or patterns are identified during development. These learnings help you understand project-specific conventions and past decisions.