Speckit Specify

• Optional hook (optional: true):

  ## Extension Hooks
  
  **Optional Pre-Hook**: {extension}
  Command: `/{command}`
  Description: {description}
  
  Prompt: {prompt}
  To execute: `/{command}`
  

• Mandatory hook (optional: false):

  ## Extension Hooks
  
  **Automatic Pre-Hook**: {extension}
  Executing: `/{command}`
  EXECUTE_COMMAND: {command}
  
  Wait for the result of the hook command before proceeding to the Outline.
  

Load .specify/templates/spec-template.md to understand required sections.

Follow this execution flow:

1. Parse user description from arguments If empty: ERROR "No feature description provided"
2. Extract key concepts from description Identify: actors, actions, data, constraints
3. For unclear aspects:
   • Make informed guesses based on context and industry standards
   • Only mark with [NEEDS CLARIFICATION: specific question] if:
     • The choice significantly impacts feature scope or user experience
     • Multiple reasonable interpretations exist with different implications
     • No reasonable default exists
   • LIMIT: Maximum 3 [NEEDS CLARIFICATION] markers total
   • Prioritize clarifications by impact: scope > security/privacy > user experience > technical details
4. Fill User Scenarios & Testing section If no clear user flow: ERROR "Cannot determine user scenarios"
5. Generate Functional Requirements Each requirement must be testable Use reasonable defaults for unspecified details (document assumptions in Assumptions section) 5a. Oracle check — Before finalizing requirements, identify any architectural, technology selection, or library-choice decisions embedded in the feature. For each one, suggest running /oracle with a specific question. Example prompt to the user:

   This feature involves [decision area]. Before we commit to a requirement, run: /oracle "[specific question about this decision]" If the oracle returns prior decisions that contradict or inform a requirement, incorporate the finding into the spec (as an assumption or constraint) and note it explicitly.

6. Define Success Criteria Create measurable, technology-agnostic outcomes Include both quantitative metrics (time, performance, volume) and qualitative measures (user satisfaction, task completion) Each criterion must be verifiable without implementation details
7. Identify Key Entities (if data involved)
8. Return: SUCCESS (spec ready for planning)

Write the specification to SPEC_FILE using the template structure, replacing placeholders with concrete details derived from the feature description (arguments) while preserving section order and headings.

Specification Quality Validation: After writing the initial spec, validate it against quality criteria:

a. Create Spec Quality Checklist: Generate a checklist file at SPECIFY_FEATURE_DIRECTORY/checklists/requirements.md using the checklist template structure with these validation items:

# Specification Quality Checklist: [FEATURE NAME]

**Purpose**: Validate specification completeness and quality before proceeding to planning
**Created**: [DATE]
**Feature**: [Link to spec.md]

## Content Quality

- [ ] No implementation details (languages, frameworks, APIs)
- [ ] Focused on user value and business needs
- [ ] Written for non-technical stakeholders
- [ ] All mandatory sections completed

## Requirement Completeness

- [ ] No [NEEDS CLARIFICATION] markers remain
- [ ] Requirements are testable and unambiguous
- [ ] Success criteria are measurable
- [ ] Success criteria are technology-agnostic (no implementation details)
- [ ] All acceptance scenarios are defined
- [ ] Edge cases are identified
- [ ] Scope is clearly bounded
- [ ] Dependencies and assumptions identified

## Feature Readiness

- [ ] All functional requirements have clear acceptance criteria
- [ ] User scenarios cover primary flows
- [ ] Feature meets measurable outcomes defined in Success Criteria
- [ ] No implementation details leak into specification

## Notes

- Items marked incomplete require spec updates before `/speckit.clarify` or `/speckit.plan`

b. Run Validation Check: Review the spec against each checklist item:

• For each item, determine if it passes or fails
• Document specific issues found (quote relevant spec sections)

c. Handle Validation Results:

• If all items pass: Mark checklist complete and proceed to step 7

• If items fail (excluding [NEEDS CLARIFICATION]):

  1. List the failing items and specific issues
  2. Update the spec to address each issue
  3. Re-run validation until all items pass (max 3 iterations)
  4. If still failing after 3 iterations, document remaining issues in checklist notes and warn user

• If [NEEDS CLARIFICATION] markers remain:

  1. Extract all [NEEDS CLARIFICATION: ...] markers from the spec

  2. LIMIT CHECK: If more than 3 markers exist, keep only the 3 most critical (by scope/security/UX impact) and make informed guesses for the rest

Report completion to the user with:

• SPECIFY_FEATURE_DIRECTORY — the feature directory path
• SPEC_FILE — the spec file path
• Checklist results summary
• Readiness for the next phase (/speckit.clarify or /speckit.plan)
• Oracle capture reminder: If any architectural, technology, or library decisions were confirmed during elaboration, include this prompt:

  Any decisions made during this spec elaboration should be captured now. Run: /oracle-capture "[brief description of the decision]" for each confirmed decision before moving to planning.

Check for extension hooks: After reporting completion, check if .specify/extensions.yml exists in the project root.

• If it exists, read it and look for entries under the hooks.after_specify key
• If the YAML cannot be parsed or is invalid, skip hook checking silently and continue normally
• Filter out hooks where enabled is explicitly false. Treat hooks without an enabled field as enabled by default.
• For each remaining hook, do not attempt to interpret or evaluate hook condition expressions:
  • If the hook has no condition field, or it is null/empty, treat the hook as executable
  • If the hook defines a non-empty condition, skip the hook and leave condition evaluation to the HookExecutor implementation
• For each executable hook, output the following based on its optional flag:
  • Optional hook (optional: true):

    ## Extension Hooks
    
    **Optional Hook**: {extension}
    Command: `/{command}`
    Description: {description}
    
    Prompt: {prompt}
    To execute: `/{command}`
    

  • Mandatory hook (optional: false):

    ## Extension Hooks
    
    **Automatic Hook**: {extension}
    Executing: `/{command}`
    EXECUTE_COMMAND: {command}
    

• If no hooks are registered or .specify/extensions.yml does not exist, skip silently

For each clarification needed (max 3), present options to user in this format:

## Question [N]: [Topic]

**Context**: [Quote relevant spec section]

**What we need to know**: [Specific question from NEEDS CLARIFICATION marker]

**Suggested Answers**:

| Option | Answer | Implications |
|--------|--------|--------------|
| A      | [First suggested answer] | [What this means for the feature] |
| B      | [Second suggested answer] | [What this means for the feature] |
| C      | [Third suggested answer] | [What this means for the feature] |
| Custom | Provide your own answer | [Explain how to provide custom input] |

**Your choice**: _[Wait for user response]_

CRITICAL - Table Formatting: Ensure markdown tables are properly formatted:

• Use consistent spacing with pipes aligned
• Each cell should have spaces around content: | Content | not |Content|
• Header separator must have at least 3 dashes: |--------|
• Test that the table renders correctly in markdown preview

Number questions sequentially (Q1, Q2, Q3 - max 3 total)

Present all questions together before waiting for responses

Wait for user to respond with their choices for all questions (e.g., "Q1: A, Q2: Custom - [details], Q3: B")

Update the spec by replacing each [NEEDS CLARIFICATION] marker with the user's selected or provided answer

Re-run validation after all clarifications are resolved