Refactor

clean-abap:refactor

Refactor existing ABAP code to conform to the Clean ABAP rule set in ../CLAUDE.md (relative to this skill's directory).

What this command does

You are refactoring ABAP source code to bring it into compliance with the Clean ABAP rule set. Style and structure only — business logic stays identical. If a change would alter what the code does, you do not make it; you flag it instead.

Inputs

Accept any of the following. If nothing is provided, ask which target the user wants.

• A code block pasted into the conversation (the most reliable path today)
• An ABAP object name — only works if a community MCP exposes source reads. The official SAPSE.adt-vscode 1.0 MCP does not.
• A package name — only works with a community MCP that exposes repository search and source reads. Refactor object by object, never as a single bulk change.

If only the official MCP is connected, ask the user to paste the source from ADT in VS Code; then paste the refactored version back manually.

Procedure

1. Load the rule set. Read every ## RULE: block in ../CLAUDE.md. Those are the only refactoring targets.
2. Get the source. If pasted inline, use it. If only an object name was given, attempt source-read via whichever MCP is connected; if no MCP exposes source reads, ask the user to paste it from ADT. The official SAPSE.adt-vscode 1.0 MCP does not have a source-read tool.
3. Run the review first. Internally, perform the same analysis as /clean-abap:review. Use the prioritised list as your refactor plan.
4. Refactor in passes, in this order. Do not skip ahead:
5. Naming pass — apply use-problem-domain-names, no-magic-numbers-or-literals
6. Declaration pass — apply prefer-inline-declarations, no-default-key-on-internal-tables
7. Expression pass — apply use-string-templates-not-concatenate, prefer-is-not-initial-over-negation, prefer-case-over-long-if-elseif, use-table-expressions-not-read-table-plus-sy-subrc
8. Method shape pass — apply methods-do-one-thing-and-stay-small, at-most-three-importing-parameters, prefer-returning-over-exporting
9. Error pass — apply class-based-exceptions-not-sy-subrc, catch-specific-exceptions-not-cx-root
10. Class shape pass — apply final-classes-and-private-members-by-default, prefer-new-over-create-object
11. Preserve behaviour. After every pass, mentally diff the program logic. If you cannot prove a change is behaviour-preserving (e.g. a refactor would change exception types caught upstream, would change SELECT result order, would alter authority checks), stop and ask instead of guessing.
12. Show the diff before writing back. Produce a per-method or per-section before/after diff. Annotate every change with the rule name that motivated it.
13. Ask for confirmation before writing back via MCP. Explicit confirmation per object — not a blanket yes for a package. After write-back, confirm the object activated cleanly.

Behaviour preservation — non-negotiable

These changes are out of scope for this command — they alter behaviour:

• Changing exception classes raised by a public method (callers catch them)
• Changing the order or set of database rows returned by a SELECT
• Removing authority checks, even if they look redundant
• Inlining or extracting code that crosses a COMMIT WORK / ROLLBACK WORK
• Changing the public signature of a method except EXPORTING → RETURNING for a single output where no caller relies on IS SUPPLIED

If a Clean ABAP rule appears to require one of the above, flag it in the report and skip the change. Behaviour change belongs in a separate task, not in a style refactor.

Output format

# Clean ABAP Refactor — 

## Plan
1.  —  occurrences
2.  —  occurrences
...

## Changes

### 

**Rule:** 
**Before:**
` ` `abap

` ` `
**After:**
` ` `abap

` ` `
**Rationale:** 

(repeat per change)

## Behaviour-preserving check
- [ ] No public method signature changed (except EXPORTING→RETURNING for single output)
- [ ] No exception classes added or removed from public methods
- [ ] No SELECTs reordered or filtered differently
- [ ] No authority checks removed
- [ ] No statements moved across COMMIT/ROLLBACK boundaries

## Skipped
 at  — 

## Confirmation
Write these changes back to  via MCP? (yes / no / per-method)

Hard rules for this command

• Style and structure only. Never change what the code does.
• One object at a time. No silent batching across a package.
• Confirm before write-back. Always. Even if the user said yes for a previous object.
• Activate after writing. If activation fails, report the error and revert the write. Do not patch through activation errors.
• No rule-by-rule chatter. Group changes by method or section; one diff per change.
• If a Clean ABAP rule conflicts with the ABAP Cloud / RAP overlay, the overlay wins. Apply the overlay version of the rule. Note the conflict in the report.

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: matt1as
• Source: matt1as/claude-abap-skills
• License: Apache-2.0

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.