Plugin Validator

Comprehensive validation for Claude Code marketplace plugins.

Self-Evolving Skill: This skill improves through use. If instructions are wrong, parameters drifted, or a workaround was needed — fix this file immediately, don't defer. Only update for real, reproducible issues.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when:

• Validating plugin structure before release
• Auditing hooks for silent failures
• Checking plugin.json syntax and required fields
• Verifying skill file formatting and frontmatter

Quick Start

# Validate a specific plugin
uv run plugins/plugin-dev/skills/plugin-validator/scripts/audit_silent_failures.py plugins/my-plugin/

# Validate with fix suggestions
uv run plugins/plugin-dev/skills/plugin-validator/scripts/audit_silent_failures.py plugins/my-plugin/ --fix

Validation Phases

Phase 1: Structure Validation

Check plugin directory structure:

/usr/bin/env bash << 'VALIDATE_EOF'
PLUGIN_PATH="${1:-.}"

# Check plugin.json exists
if [[ ! -f "$PLUGIN_PATH/plugin.json" ]]; then
    echo "ERROR: Missing plugin.json" >&2
    exit 1
fi

# Validate JSON syntax
if ! jq empty "$PLUGIN_PATH/plugin.json" 2>/dev/null; then
    echo "ERROR: Invalid JSON in plugin.json" >&2
    exit 1
fi

# Check required fields
REQUIRED_FIELDS=("name" "version" "description")
for field in "${REQUIRED_FIELDS[@]}"; do
    if ! jq -e ".$field" "$PLUGIN_PATH/plugin.json" >/dev/null 2>&1; then
        echo "ERROR: Missing required field: $field" >&2
        exit 1
    fi
done

echo "Structure validation passed"
VALIDATE_EOF

Phase 2: Silent Failure Audit

Critical Rule: All hook entry points MUST emit to stderr on failure.

Run the audit script:

uv run plugins/plugin-dev/skills/plugin-validator/scripts/audit_silent_failures.py plugins/my-plugin/

What Gets Checked

hooks/*.sh

hooks/*.sh

mkdir|cp|mv|rm|jq

if !

hooks/*.py

except.*: pass

Hook Entry Points vs Utility Scripts

plugins/*/hooks/*.sh

plugins/*/hooks/*.py

plugins/*/scripts/*.sh

plugins/*/scripts/*.py

Phase 3: Fix Patterns

Bash: Silent mkdir

# BAD - silent failure
mkdir -p "$DIR"

# GOOD - emits to stderr
if ! mkdir -p "$DIR" 2>&1; then
    echo "[plugin] Failed to create directory: $DIR" >&2
fi

Python: Silent except pass

# BAD - silent failure
except (json.JSONDecodeError, OSError):
    pass

# GOOD - emits to stderr
except (json.JSONDecodeError, OSError) as e:
    print(f"[plugin] Warning: {e}", file=sys.stderr)

Integration with /plugin-dev:create

This skill is invoked in Phase 3 of the plugin-add workflow:

### 3.4 Plugin Validation

**MANDATORY**: Run plugin-validator before registration.

Task with subagent_type="plugin-dev:plugin-validator"
prompt: "Validate the plugin at plugins/$PLUGIN_NAME/"

Exit Codes

References

• Silent Failure Patterns

Troubleshooting

jq empty plugin.json

shellcheck hooks/*.sh

if !

print(..., file=sys.stderr)

Post-Execution Reflection

After this skill completes, reflect before closing the task:

0. Locate yourself. — Find this SKILL.md's canonical path (Glob for this skill's name) before editing. All corrections target THIS file and its sibling references/ — never other documentation.
1. What failed? — Fix the instruction that caused it. If it could recur, add it as an anti-pattern.
2. What worked better than expected? — Promote it to recommended practice. Document why.
3. What drifted? — Any script, reference, or external dependency that no longer matches reality gets fixed now.
4. Log it. — Every change gets an evolution-log entry with trigger, fix, and evidence.

Do NOT defer. The next invocation inherits whatever you leave behind.