What triggers aut activation?

Auto-activation occurs when you work on docs, skills, agents, or commands, prompting consistency checks.

What happens if drift is detected?

The system surfaces discrepancies via tests and prompts fixes via the pre-commit hook or in-work reminders.

Which files are checked for consistency?

Counts and references in README.md, SYNC-STATUS.md, UPDATES.md, INSTALL_TEMPLATE.md, and marketplace.json are checked, along with the existence of referenced skills.

consistency-enforcement

npx machina-cli add skill akaszubski/autonomous-dev/consistency-enforcement --openclaw

Files (1)

SKILL.md

3.2 KB

Consistency Enforcement Skill

Layer 4 Defense Against Documentation Drift

Auto-activates to maintain documentation consistency when working on docs, skills, agents, or commands.

See: workflow.md for step-by-step scenarios See: templates.md for checklists and commands

When This Activates

Keywords: "readme", "documentation", "docs", "commit", "sync", "update", "skill", "agent", "command", "count", "marketplace", "consistency", "drift"

Critical Consistency Rules

Rule 1: README.md is Source of Truth

All counts must match reality:

# Count actual resources
ls -d plugins/autonomous-dev/skills/*/ | wc -l   # Skills
ls plugins/autonomous-dev/agents/*.md | wc -l    # Agents
ls plugins/autonomous-dev/commands/*.md | wc -l  # Commands

Rule 2: All Docs Must Match README.md

These files MUST show the same counts:

README.md (primary source)
docs/SYNC-STATUS.md
docs/UPDATES.md
INSTALL_TEMPLATE.md
.claude-plugin/marketplace.json (metrics)

Rule 3: Never Reference Non-Existent Skills

# Verify skill exists before referencing
ls -1 plugins/autonomous-dev/skills/

Rule 4: marketplace.json Matches Reality

{
  "metrics": {
    "agents": 8,
    "skills": 12,
    "commands": 21
  }
}

4-Layer Defense System

Layer	Location	Purpose
1	`tests/test_documentation_consistency.py`	Automated CI/CD enforcement
2	`agents/doc-master.md`	Agent memory checklist
3	`hooks/validate_docs_consistency.py`	Pre-commit hook (optional)
4	This skill	Auto-reminder during work

Run Tests

pytest tests/test_documentation_consistency.py -v

Quick Workflow

When adding/removing skills, agents, or commands:

Update README.md count
Update cross-reference files (SYNC-STATUS.md, UPDATES.md, etc.)
Update marketplace.json metrics
Run consistency tests
Commit

See: workflow.md for detailed scenarios

Why This Matters

Documentation drift causes user confusion:

README shows "9 Skills" but plugin has 12
README mentions skill that doesn't exist
User tries to use non-existent feature

With 4-layer defense:

Layer 1: Tests fail in CI/CD
Layer 2: doc-master catches before docs.json
Layer 3: Pre-commit hook blocks commit
Layer 4: This skill reminds during work

Result: Documentation always matches reality

Integration

Works with:

documentation-guide: HOW to write docs
git-workflow: HOW to commit changes
project-management: PROJECT.md consistency

Related Files

workflow.md - Step-by-step scenarios
templates.md - Checklists and commands

Source

git clone https://github.com/akaszubski/autonomous-dev/blob/master/plugins/autonomous-dev/skills/archived/consistency-enforcement/SKILL.md

View on GitHub

Overview

Consistency-enforcement prevents drift between README.md and the actual codebase. It auto-activates during doc edits, commits, or when working with skills, agents, or commands to ensure documentation stays accurate.

How This Skill Works

The skill enforces 4-layer checks: tests in CI enforce consistency, agent memory doc catches drift, a pre-commit hook blocks mismatches, and this skill provides in-work reminders to verify counts and references. It compares counts of skills, agents, and commands and validates cross-reference files.

When to Use It

When updating docs after adding/removing skills, agents, or commands
Before committing changes to the repository to ensure consistency
When updating marketplace.json and cross-reference files like SYNC-STATUS.md and UPDATES.md
During CI/CD to detect documentation drift
When referencing a skill/command to ensure it actually exists

Quick Start

Step 1: Update README.md with correct counts for skills, agents, and commands
Step 2: Sync related docs (SYNC-STATUS.md, UPDATES.md, INSTALL_TEMPLATE.md) and marketplace.json
Step 3: Run pytest tests/test_documentation_consistency.py -v and commit

Best Practices

Regularly count resources and treat README as the source of truth
Update all cross-reference files consistently (SYNC-STATUS.md, UPDATES.md, INSTALL_TEMPLATE.md, marketplace.json)
Run the documentation consistency tests before committing
Enable and respect the pre-commit hook if available
Document any intentional drift and rationale in CHANGELOGS

Example Use Cases

README shows 9 skills but the repo has 12; update counts and cross-references
A missing skill reference is prevented by the 'Never Reference Non-Existent Skills' rule
CI/CD detects drift via test_documentation_consistency.py and blocks merge
A pre-commit hook blocks a commit until counts are reconciled
marketplace.json metrics now reflect actual counts after changes

Frequently Asked Questions

Add this skill to your agents