--- name: catlog22/parallel-dev-cycle source: https://app.decimal.ai/s/catlog22-parallel-dev-cycle@1/SKILL.md source_sha256: ae2c6ab72821 --- # Parallel Dev Cycle Multi-agent parallel development cycle using Codex subagent pattern with four specialized workers: 1. **Requirements Analysis & Extension** (RA) - Requirement analysis and self-enhancement 2. **Exploration & Planning** (EP) - Codebase exploration and implementation planning 3. **Code Development** (CD) - Code development with debug strategy support 4. **Validation & Archival Summary** (VAS) - Validation and archival summary Orchestration logic (phase management, state updates, feedback coordination) runs **inline in the main flow** — no separate orchestrator agent is spawned. Only 4 worker agents are allocated. Each agent **maintains one main document** (e.g., requirements.md, plan.json, implementation.md) that is completely rewritten per iteration, plus auxiliary logs (changes.log, debug-log.ndjson) that are append-only. ## Architecture Overview ``` ┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │ User Input (Task) │ └────────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────┘ │ v ┌──────────────────────────────┐ │ Main Flow (Inline Orchestration) │ │ Phase 1 → 2 → 3 → 4 │ └──────────────────────────────┘ │ ┌────────────────────┼────────────────────┐ │ │ │ v v v ┌────────┐ ┌────────┐ ┌────────┐ │ RA │ │ EP │ │ CD │ │Agent │ │Agent │ │Agent │ └────────┘ └────────┘ └────────┘ │ │ │ └────────────────────┼────────────────────┘ │ v ┌────────┐ │ VAS │ │ Agent │ └────────┘ │ v ┌──────────────────────────────┐ │ Summary Report │ │ & Markdown Docs │ └──────────────────────────────┘ ``` ## Key Design Principles 1. **Main Document + Auxiliary Logs**: Each agent maintains one main document (rewritten per iteration) and auxiliary logs (append-only) 2. **Version-Based Overwrite**: Main documents completely rewritten per version; logs append-only 3. **Automatic Archival**: Old main document versions automatically archived to `history/` directory 4. **Complete Audit Trail**: Changes.log (NDJSON) preserves all change history 5. **Parallel Coordination**: Four agents launched simultaneously; coordination via shared state and inline main flow 6. **File References**: Use short file paths instead of content passing 7. **Self-Enhancement**: RA agent proactively extends requirements based on context 8. **Shared Discovery Board**: All agents share exploration findings via `discoveries.ndjson` — read on start, write as you discover, eliminating redundant codebase exploration ## Arguments | Arg | Required | Description | |-----|----------|-------------| | TASK | One of TASK or --cycle-id | Task description (for new cycle, mutually exclusive with --cycle-id) | | --cycle-id | One of TASK or --cycle-id | Existing cycle ID to continue (from API or previous session) | | --extend | No | Extension description (only valid with --cycle-id) | | --auto | No | Auto-cycle mode (run all phases sequentially without user confirmation) | | --parallel | No | Number of parallel agents (default: 4, max: 4) | ## Auto Mode When `--auto`: Run all phases sequentially without user confirmation between iterations. Use recommended defaults for all decisions. Automatically continue iteration loop until tests pass or max iterations reached. ## Prep Package Integration When `prep-package.json` exists at `{projectRoot}/.workflow/.cycle/prep-package.json`, Phase 1 consumes it to: - Use refined task description instead of raw TASK - Apply auto-iteration config (convergence criteria, phase gates) - Inject per-iteration agent focus directives (0→1 vs 1→100) Prep packages are generated by the interactive prompt `/prompts:prep-cycle`. See [phases/00-prep-checklist.md](phases/00-prep-checklist.md) for schema. ## Execution Flow ``` Input Parsing: └─ Parse arguments (TASK | --cycle-id + --extend) └─ Convert to structured context (cycleId, state, progressDir) └─ Initialize progress tracking: functions.update_plan([...phases]) Phase 1: Session Initialization └─ Ref: phases/01-session-init.md ├─ Create new cycle OR resume existing cycle ├─ Initialize state file and directory structure └─ Output: cycleId, state, progressDir Phase 2: Agent Execution (Parallel) └─ Ref: phases/02-agent-execution.md ├─ Tasks attached: Spawn RA → Spawn EP → Spawn CD → Spawn VAS → Wait all ├─ Spawn RA, EP, CD, VAS agents in parallel ├─ Wait for all agents with timeout handling └─ Output: agentOutputs (4 agent results) Phase 3: Result Aggregation & Iteration └─ Ref: phases/03-result-aggregation.md ├─ Parse PHASE_RESULT from each agent ├─ Detect issues (test failures, blockers) ├─ Decision: Issues found AND iteration < max? │ ├─ Yes → Send feedback via followup_task, loop back to Phase 2 │ └─ No → Proceed to Phase 4 └─ Output: parsedResults, iteration status Phase 4: Completion & Summary └─ Ref: phases/04-completion-summary.md ├─ Generate unified summary report ├─ Update final state ├─ Sync session state: $session-sync -y "Dev cycle complete: {iterations} iterations" ├─ Close all agents └─ Output: final cycle report with continuation instructions ``` **Phase Reference Documents** (read on-demand when phase executes): | Phase | Document | Purpose | |-------|----------|---------| | 1 | [phases/01-session-init.md](phases/01-session-init.md) | Session creation/resume and state initialization | | 2 | [phases/02-agent-execution.md](phases/02-agent-execution.md) | Parallel agent spawning and execution | | 3 | [phases/03-result-aggregation.md](phases/03-result-aggregation.md) | Result parsing, feedback generation, iteration handling | | 4 | [phases/04-completion-summary.md](phases/04-completion-summary.md) | Final summary generation and cleanup | ## Data Flow ``` User Input (TASK | --cycle-id + --extend) ↓ [Parse Arguments] ↓ cycleId, state, progressDir Phase 1: Session Initialization ↓ cycleId, state, progressDir (initialized/resumed) Phase 2: Agent Execution ├─ All agents read coordination/discoveries.ndjson on start ├─ Each agent explores → writes new discoveries to board ├─ Later-finishing agents benefit from earlier agents' findings ↓ agentOutputs {ra, ep, cd, vas} + shared discoveries.ndjson Phase 3: Result Aggregation ↓ parsedResults, hasIssues, iteration count ↓ [Loop back to Phase 2 if issues and iteration < max] ↓ (discoveries.ndjson carries over across iterations) Phase 4: Completion & Summary ↓ finalState, summaryReport Return: cycle_id, iterations, final_state ``` ## Session Structure ``` {projectRoot}/.workflow/.cycle/ ├── {cycleId}.json # Master state file ├── {cycleId}.progress/ ├── ra/ │ ├── requirements.md # Current version (complete rewrite) │ ├── changes.log # NDJSON complete history (append-only) │ └── history/ # Archived snapshots ├── ep/ │ ├── exploration.md # Codebase exploration report │ ├── architecture.md # Architecture design │ ├── plan.json # Structured task list (current version) │ ├── changes.log # NDJSON complete history │ └── history/ ├── cd/ │ ├── implementation.md # Current version │ ├── debug-log.ndjson # Debug hypothesis tracking │ ├── changes.log # NDJSON complete history │ └── history/ ├── vas/ │ ├── summary.md # Current version │ ├── changes.log # NDJSON complete history │ └── history/ └── coordination/ ├── discoveries.ndjson # Shared discovery board (all agents append) ├── timeline.md # Execution timeline └── decisions.log # Decision log ``` ## State Management Master state file: `{projectRoot}/.workflow/.cycle/{cycleId}.json` ```json { "cycle_id": "cycle-v1-20260122T100000-abc123", "title": "Task title", "description": "Full task description", "status": "created | running | paused | completed | failed", "created_at": "ISO8601", "updated_at": "ISO8601", "max_iterations": 5, "current_iteration": 0, "agents": { "ra": { "status": "idle | running | completed | failed", "output_files": [] }, "ep": { "status": "idle", "output_files": [] }, "cd": { "status": "idle", "output_files": [] }, "vas": { "status": "idle", "output_files": [] } }, "current_phase": "init | ra | ep | cd | vas | aggregation | complete", "completed_phases": [], "requirements": null, "plan": null, "changes": [], "test_results": null, "coordination": { "feedback_log": [], "blockers": [] } } ``` **Recovery**: If state corrupted, rebuild from `.progress/` markdown files and changes.log. ## Progress Tracking ### Initialization (MANDATORY) ```javascript // Initialize progress tracking after input parsing functions.update_plan([ { id: "phase-1", title: "Phase 1: Session Initialization", status: "in_progress" }, { id: "phase-2", title: "Phase 2: Agent Execution", status: "pending" }, { id: "phase-3", title: "Phase 3: Result Aggregation", status: "pending" }, { id: "phase-4", title: "Phase 4: Completion & Summary", status: "pending" } ]) ``` ### Phase Transitions ```javascript // After Phase 1 completes functions.update_plan([ { id: "phase-1", status: "completed" }, { id: "phase-2", status: "in_progress" } ]) // After Phase 2 completes functions.update_plan([ { id: "phase-2", status: "completed" }, { id: "phase-3", status: "in_progress" } ]) // After Phase 3 — iterate or complete // If iterating back to Phase 2: functions.update_plan([ { id: "phase-3", status: "completed" }, { id: "phase-2", title: "Phase 2: Agent Execution (Iteration N)", status: "in_progress" } ]) // If proceeding to Phase 4: functions.update_plan([ { id: "phase-3", status: "completed" }, { id: "phase-4", status: "in_progress" } ]) // After Phase 4 completes functions.update_plan([{ id: "phase-4", status: "completed" }]) ``` ## Versioning - **1.0.0**: Initial cycle → **1.x.0**: Each iteration (minor bump) - Each iteration: archive old → complete rewrite → append changes.log ``` Archive: copy requirements.md → history/requirements-v1.0.0.md Rewrite: overwrite requirements.md with v1.1.0 (complete new content) Append: changes.log ← {"timestamp","version":"1.1.0","action":"update","description":"..."} ``` | Agent Output | Rewrite (per iteration) | Append-only | |-------------|------------------------|-------------| | RA | requirements.md | changes.log | | EP | exploration.md, architecture.md, plan.json | changes.log | | CD | implementation.md, issues.md | changes.log, debug-log.ndjson | | VAS | summary.md, test-results.json | changes.log | ## Coordination Protocol **Execution Order**: RA → EP → CD → VAS (dependency chain, all spawned in parallel but block on dependencies) ### Shared Discovery Board All agents share a real-time discovery board at `coordination/discoveries.ndjson`. Each agent reads it on start and appends findings during work. This eliminates redundant codebase exploration. **Lifecycle**: - Created by the first agent to write a discovery (file may not exist initially) - Carries over across iterations — never cleared or recreated - Agents use Bash `echo '...' >> discoveries.ndjson` to append entries **Format**: NDJSON, each line is a self-contained JSON with required top-level fields `ts`, `agent`, `type`, `data`: ```jsonl {"ts":"2026-01-22T10:00:00+08:00","agent":"ra","type":"tech_stack","data":{"language":"TypeScript","framework":"Express","test":"Jest","build":"tsup"}} ``` **Discovery Types**: | type | Dedup Key | Writers | Readers | Required `data` Fields | |------|-----------|---------|---------|----------------------| | `tech_stack` | singleton | RA | EP, CD, VAS | `language`, `framework`, `test`, `build` | | `project_config` | `data.path` | RA | EP, CD | `path`, `key_deps[]`, `scripts{}` | | `existing_feature` | `data.name` | RA, EP | CD | `name`, `files[]`, `summary` | | `architecture` | singleton | EP | CD, VAS | `pattern`, `layers[]`, `entry` | | `code_pattern` | `data.name` | EP, CD | CD, VAS | `name`, `description`, `example_file` | | `integration_point` | `data.file` | EP | CD | `file`, `description`, `exports[]` | | `similar_impl` | `data.feature` | EP | CD | `feature`, `files[]`, `relevance` | | `code_convention` | singleton | CD | VAS | `naming`, `imports`, `formatting` | | `utility` | `data.name` | CD | VAS | `name`, `file`, `usage` | | `test_command` | singleton | CD, VAS | VAS, CD | `unit`, `integration`(opt), `coverage`(opt) | | `test_baseline` | singleton | VAS | CD | `total`, `passing`, `coverage_pct`, `framework`, `config` | | `test_pattern` | singleton | VAS | CD | `style`, `naming`, `fixtures` | | `blocker` | `data.issue` | any | all | `issue`, `severity`, `impact` | **Protocol Rules**: 1. Read board before own exploration → skip covered areas (if file doesn't exist, skip) 2. Write discoveries immediately via Bash `echo >>` → don't batch 3. Deduplicate — check existing entries; skip if same `type` + dedup key value already exists 4. Append-only — never modify or delete existing lines ### Agent → Main Flow Communication ``` PHASE_RESULT: - phase: ra | ep | cd | vas - status: success | failed | partial - files_written: [list] - summary: one-line summary - issues: [] ``` ### Main Flow → Agent Communication Feedback via `followup_task` (file refs + issue summary, never full content): ``` ## FEEDBACK FROM [Source] [Issue summary with file:line references] ## Reference - File: .progress/vas/test-results.json (v1.0.0) ## Actions Required 1. [Specific fix] ``` **Rules**: Only main flow writes state file. Agents read state, write to own `.progress/{agent}/` directory only. ## Core Rules 1. **Start Immediately**: First action is `functions.update_plan` initialization, then Phase 1 execution 2. **Progressive Phase Loading**: Read phase docs ONLY when that phase is about to execute 3. **Parse Every Output**: Extract PHASE_RESULT data from each agent for next phase 4. **Auto-Continue**: After each phase, execute next pending phase automatically 5. **Track Progress**: Update `functions.update_plan` at each phase transition 6. **Single Writer**: Only main flow writes to master state file; agents report via PHASE_RESULT 7. **File References**: Pass file paths between agents, not content 8. **DO NOT STOP**: Continuous execution until all phases complete or max iterations reached ## Error Handling | Error Type | Recovery | |------------|----------| | Agent timeout | followup_task requesting convergence, then retry | | State corrupted | Rebuild from progress markdown files and changes.log | | Agent failed | Re-spawn agent with previous context | | Conflicting results | Main flow sends reconciliation request | | Missing files | RA/EP agents identify and request clarification | | Max iterations reached | Generate summary with remaining issues documented | ## Coordinator Checklist (Main Flow) ### Before Each Phase - [ ] Read phase reference document - [ ] Check current state for dependencies - [ ] Update `functions.update_plan` with phase status ### After Each Phase - [ ] Parse agent outputs (PHASE_RESULT) - [ ] Update master state file - [ ] Update `functions.update_plan` phase completion - [ ] Determine next action (continue / iterate / complete) ## Reference Documents | Document | Purpose | |----------|---------| | [roles/](roles/) | Agent role definitions (RA, EP, CD, VAS) | ## Usage ```bash # Start new cycle /parallel-dev-cycle TASK="Implement real-time notifications" # Continue cycle /parallel-dev-cycle --cycle-id=cycle-v1-20260122-abc123 # Iteration with extension /parallel-dev-cycle --cycle-id=cycle-v1-20260122-abc123 --extend="Also add email notifications" # Auto mode /parallel-dev-cycle --auto TASK="Add OAuth authentication" ```