Spine Capture

Spine Capture — Document Work to Obsidian Vault

Capture completed work into the Spine Architecture vault.

Vault Path Resolution

Resolve the vault path using this config chain:

1. $SPINE_VAULT_PATH environment variable
2. ~/.spine/config.json → read the vaultPath field
3. Default: ~/Documents/SpineVault/

If the vault doesn't exist, tell the user to run /spine-init first.

Doc Types and Prefixes

| Prefix | Tag | When to use | |--------|-----|-------------| | Fix - {description} | type/fix | Bug fix — include root cause and code snippets | | Feature - {description} | type/feature | New functionality | | Architecture - {description} | type/architecture | Design doc, API structure, data flow | | Plan - {description} | type/plan | Implementation plan | | Decision - {description} | type/decision | Decision record with context and trade-offs |

Date prefixes: Add YYYY-MM-DD prefix on Fix and Feature docs only. No date prefix on Architecture, Plan, or Decision docs.

Step 1: Determine What to Capture

If $ARGUMENTS is provided, use that as the description. Otherwise:

1. Run git log --oneline -10 and git diff main...HEAD --stat to see recent work
2. Read any recently modified source files to understand the change
3. Ask the user: "What type of doc is this?" (fix / feature / architecture / plan / decision) — unless obvious from context

Step 2: Determine Repo and Feature

1. Repo: Detect from the git remote:

``bash basename "$(git remote get-url origin 2>/dev/null)" .git `` Fall back to the current directory name if no git remote.

1. Feature: Read existing spine notes at {vault}/{repo}/ to find matching features. Match by:

• File paths changed (which feature folder do they map to?)
• Component names, module names
• If no match, ask the user: "This looks like a new feature area. What should I call it?"
• For new features, create the folder and spine note

Step 3: Draft the Obsidian Doc

---
title: "{Type} - {Description}"
date: {YYYY-MM-DD}
tags:
  - {repo}
  - {feature-kebab-case}
  - type/{type}
severity: {sev1|sev2|sev3} (fixes only)
status: {resolved|in-progress|pending}
---

# {Type} - {Description}

> [!bug|note|tip] {One-line summary}
> {2-3 sentence description of what happened / what was built}

**Files changed:** {list of key files}

---

## {Root Cause / Problem / Motivation}

{Detailed explanation with code snippets where helpful}

---

## {Fix / Implementation / Design}

{What was done, with code snippets showing before/after or key patterns}

---

## See Also

- [[{related spine doc 1}]]
- [[{related spine doc 2}]]

Guidelines:

• Use Obsidian callouts (> [!bug], > [!note], > [!warning], > [!tip])
• Include code snippets for root cause and fix — these are the most valuable part
• Keep wikilinks relative (just the note name, not full path) for Obsidian compatibility

Step 4: Present Draft for Review

Show the user:

1. The proposed file path
2. The full doc content
3. Which spine note will be updated

Ask: "Does this look right? Any changes before I save?"

Step 5: Save and Update Spine

After user approval:

1. Write the doc to {vault}/{repo}/{feature}/{filename}.md
2. Update the spine note — add a [[wikilink]] to the new doc under the appropriate section (Fixes, Features, Architecture, Plans, Decisions)
3. Check Claude memory — if this is a new feature with no memory signpost, create one pointing to the spine note
4. Confirm — tell the user the doc is saved and where to find it in Obsidian

Step 6: Detect Patterns (Optional)

After saving, quickly scan the feature's existing docs:

• Are there 3+ fixes touching the same area? Suggest an architecture doc
• Is there a fix that contradicts an earlier plan? Flag it
• Are any existing docs referencing files that have changed significantly? Flag as potentially stale

Report findings briefly — don't act without user approval.

Output Contract

After completing a capture (single or batch), emit a structured observation block.

spine_capture_result:
  status: success | partial | skipped | error
  summary: "Captured 2 docs (1 fix, 1 feature) into auth feature"
  saved:
    - { file: "2026-05-03 Fix - Login Race.md", feature: "auth", type: "fix", spine_updated: true }
    - { file: "Feature - OAuth Flow.md", feature: "auth", type: "feature", spine_updated: true }
  skipped: []
  patterns_detected:
    - { type: "recurring-fixes", feature: "auth", count: 4, suggestion: "consider architecture doc" }
  next_actions:
    - { action: "open Obsidian", path: "{vault}/spine/auth/" }
    - { action: "review pattern", detail: "4 fixes in auth — architecture doc recommended" }
  recovery_hint: null

Status values:

• success — all docs saved and spine notes updated
• partial — some docs saved, some skipped or errored
• skipped — user skipped all docs (batch mode)
• error — capture failed (vault missing, write error) — include recovery_hint

Cross-skill input: In batch mode, check for {vault}/.spine/scan-gaps.json first. If present, use it to pre-populate feature groups and file lists instead of re-scanning git history. Do not delete the file here — cleanup happens in Batch Step 6 after all save/skip decisions are finalized.

---

Batch Mode (--batch)

When invoked with $ARGUMENTS equal to --batch, switch to batch capture mode. This is typically triggered automatically by the Stop hook at session end.

Tier 3 Gate

Before proceeding, check if Tier 3 is enabled:

1. Read ~/.spine/config.json
2. Check the tier3 field
3. If tier3 is false or missing, skip silently — batch mode requires Tier 3.

Batch Step 1: Read Pending Data

1. Resolve vault path (same config chain as above)
2. Check for {vault}/.spine/scan-gaps.json (written by /spine-scan's output contract). If present, use it as the primary source for feature groups and file lists — skip re-scanning git history for those gaps. Do NOT delete this file yet — defer cleanup to Batch Step 6.
3. Read {vault}/.spine/pending-commits.json
4. Check for {vault}/.spine/pending-commits.fallback.*.json sidecar files (written by the bash fallback when no JSON parser was available). If any exist, merge their commits arrays into the main pending data, then delete the sidecar files.
5. If no scan gaps, no pending commits, and no sidecars found, print:

🦴 Spine: No pending commits to capture. Session clean. Then exit — do not proceed.

Batch Step 2: Group by Feature

1. For each pending commit, examine the files array
2. Match file paths against existing feature folders in {vault}/{repo}/
3. Group commits that touch the same feature together
4. If a commit's files don't match any existing feature:

• Ask the user: "Commit {hash} ({message}) touches {files}. Which feature does this belong to? (or type a new feature name)"
• Create the feature folder and spine note if new

Batch Step 3: Draft Docs

For each feature group:

1. Read the actual git diffs for all commits in the group:

``bash git diff {hash}~1 {hash} -- {files} ``

1. Consolidate into a single doc (don't create one doc per commit)
2. Classify the work: fix, feature, architecture, plan, or decision
3. Draft the doc using the same template as Step 3 above (frontmatter, callouts, code snippets, wikilinks)
4. Use the combined context from all commits for a richer description

Batch Step 4: Present Batch for Approval

Show the user all drafted docs at once:

🦴 Spine: You had {N} significant commits this session:

[1] {Type} - {Description} ({Feature})
    → {N} commits consolidated
    Preview: {first 3 lines of the doc body}

[2] {Type} - {Description} ({Feature})
    → {N} commits
    Preview: {first 3 lines of the doc body}

For each: (S)ave, (E)dit, or S(k)ip?

Process each doc based on user choice:

• Save → proceed to Batch Step 5
• Edit → show full draft, let user request changes, then save
• Skip → do not save, remove from pending

Batch Step 5: Save Approved Docs

For each approved doc:

1. Write the doc to {vault}/{repo}/{feature}/{filename}.md
2. Update the spine note with a [[wikilink]] under the appropriate section
3. Check Claude memory — if this is a new feature with no memory signpost, create one
4. Log to {vault}/.spine/curator-log.md:

```markdown ## {YYYY-MM-DD} — Batch Capture

• Saved: {filename} (approved)

```

Batch Step 6: Clean Up Pending

1. Remove saved and skipped commits from {vault}/.spine/pending-commits.json
2. If all commits processed, delete the file
3. If some commits remain (shouldn't happen normally), keep them for next session
4. Delete {vault}/.spine/scan-gaps.json now that all save/skip decisions are finalized

Batch Step 7: Summary

Print a final summary:

🦴 Spine: {N} docs saved, {N} skipped. Vault updated.

Source & license

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

• Author: Nodewarrior
• Source: Nodewarrior/spine
• License: MIT

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