# Update Instructions

> Update Instructions is an Agent Skill for documents published in the majiayu000/claude-skill-registry repository on GitHub: a SKILL.md instruction file an AI agent can load to do this task.

Smart merge for CLAUDE.md and AGENTS.md instruction files that preserves user customizations while updating SpecWeave sections. Use after plugin refresh, version upgrade, or when instruction files need sync. Parses SW-managed sections and preserves user content.

- Skill name: `update-instructions`
- Category: [Documents](https://www.openparable.com/skill/documents/1)
- Source: https://github.com/majiayu000/claude-skill-registry/blob/HEAD/skills/data/update-instructions/SKILL.md
- Repository: majiayu000/claude-skill-registry (498 GitHub stars when collected)

## SKILL.md

# Update Instructions Skill

Smart merge for CLAUDE.md and AGENTS.md instruction files.

## What It Does

1. **Reads existing instruction files** (if present)
2. **Parses SW-managed sections** (marked with `<!-- SW:SECTION:X -->`)
3. **Preserves user content** (anything between or after SW sections)
4. **Updates SW sections** with latest template content
5. **Writes merged result** back to file

## When to Use

- After running `specweave refresh-marketplace`
- After upgrading SpecWeave version (`npm update -g specweave`)
- When CLAUDE.md or AGENTS.md seem outdated
- To sync instruction files with latest framework features

## Usage

```
/sw:update-instructions
```

Or via CLI:
```bash
npx specweave update-instructions
```

## How Merge Works

### Fresh Install (no existing file)
Creates new file with all SW sections + meta header

### Legacy File (no SW markers)
Prepends new SW content, preserves original below separator

### Marked File (has SW markers)
Updates SW sections in-place, preserves user content between sections

## Section Format

Template sections (in `.template` files):
```markdown
<!-- SECTION:rules required -->
## Rules
Content here...
<!-- /SECTION -->
```

Generated sections (in output files):
```markdown
<!-- SW:META template="claude" version="1.0.0" sections="header,rules,..." -->

<!-- SW:SECTION:header version="1.0.0" -->
Content...
<!-- SW:END:header -->
```

## User Customization

Add custom content **between** SW sections or **after** the last section:
```markdown
<!-- SW:END:docs -->

## My Custom Section

This will be preserved during updates!
```

## Files Affected

- `CLAUDE.md` - Claude Code instruction file
- `AGENTS.md` - Generic AI tool instruction file

## Project-Specific Learnings

**Before starting work, check for project-specific learnings:**

```bash
# Check if skill memory exists for this skill
cat .specweave/skill-memories/update-instructions.md 2>/dev/null || echo "No project learnings yet"
```

Project learnings are automatically captured by the reflection system when corrections or patterns are identified during development. These learnings help you understand project-specific conventions and past decisions.

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Source: https://www.openparable.com/skill/documents/update-instructions (OpenParable). Cite the canonical URL above.