copilot-instructions brainstorm-spec-workflow.instructions.md

copilot-instructions brainstorm-spec-workflow.instructions.md is an instructions file for GitHub Copilot from ThiagoGuislotti/copilot-instructions. It costs 834 tokens per session, scanned A, original, MIT.

A set of instructions for brainstorming and writing a specification before planning substantial software changes. A specification records the intended behavior, alternatives, risks, and acceptance criteria.

In plain words
What is it for?
Use it for changes that affect features, architecture, workflows, scope, or system behavior. Small, simple changes may not need a separate specification.
Why use it?
It keeps design decisions separate from the implementation plan, so planning does not become the first place where key choices are made.

Instructions file for GitHub Copilot

Written for GitHub Copilot: a Copilot chat mode or prompt.

Install

Getting it into your agent

One page per mod, every tool's command on it. A separate URL per tool would split the same page into five that compete with each other.

agentmods
npx agentmods add instructions/thiagoguislotti/copilot-instructions/brainstorm-spec-workflow
Clone the repo
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/ThiagoGuislotti/copilot-instructions

Made for: GitHub Copilot.

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README.md
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Per session 834 This file is loaded in full into every session.
When invoked 834 The same file — it is already loaded in full.
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Origin original No closer match found in the catalogue.
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ModelPer sessionOnce invoked
Fable 5.1 $0.00834 $0.00834
Opus 5 $0.00417 $0.00417
Sonnet 5 $0.00167 $0.00167
Haiku 4.5 $0.00083 $0.00083

Measured 5d ago against content hash 1cded6706b87, method: parsed. Prices are Anthropic first-party input rates as of 2026-09-05, from the pricing page.

Security

Grade A, and why

copilot-instructions brainstorm-spec-workflow.instructions.md scanned grade A with 0 findings against 26 rules in 11 categories — prompt injection, anti-refusal, data exfiltration, privilege escalation, supply chain, agent snooping, system-prompt leakage, SSRF and excessive agency — measured 5d ago.

A static scan of the body, not an audit. Every finding is printed with the line that produced it so you can judge whether it matters here. A mod is markdown that instructs an agent; that is exactly why what it instructs is worth reading.

Nothing flagged

None of the 26 patterns this scan looks for appear in this file: no shell pipes, no recursive deletes, no credential paths, no hidden text, no instruction-override or anti-refusal phrasing, no agent-config snooping. That is not a guarantee, it is the absence of the things that are checkable.

.github/instructions/brainstorm-spec-workflow.instructions.md · 61 lines

How it starts

The opening of the file, as written. The whole thing — 61 lines — stays where its author put it; the contents beside it link to each section on GitHub.

Brainstorming And Specification Workflow

Purpose

  • Introduce a brainstorming and specification step before implementation planning for non-trivial change-bearing work.
  • Keep design intent, alternatives, risks, and acceptance criteria versioned separately from execution plans.
  • Prevent implementation planning from becoming the first place where architectural decisions are made.

When A Spec Is Mandatory

Create or update a spec under planning/specs/active/ when the workspace provides that surface, otherwise under .build/super-agent/specs/active/, when any of these are true:

  • the task introduces or changes behavior, architecture, workflow, or feature scope
  • the task is non-trivial and planning is already required
  • the task spans multiple work items and design tradeoffs must be documented first
  • the request changes orchestration, runtime behavior, governance flow, or user-facing workflows
  • the request is ambiguous enough that alternatives or explicit design decisions are needed before implementation planning

When A Spec Can Be Skipped

A separate spec is usually not required when all of these are true:

  • the work is trivial and tightly scoped
  • the task is maintenance-only, doc-only, title-only, or configuration-only
  • there is no meaningful design tradeoff to lock down before planning

Spec Workspace Contract

  • Use planning/specs/README.md as the guide for versioned specs when the workspace provides it.
  • Active specs live in planning/specs/active/ when the workspace provides a versioned spec surface; otherwise they live in .build/super-agent/specs/active/.
  • Completed specs move to planning/specs/completed/ or .build/super-agent/specs/completed/ only when the associated workstream is materially finished.
  • Reuse the same spec file for the same workstream instead of creating duplicates.
  • Use stable names such as spec-<scope>.md.

Dating Policy (Mandatory)

  • Every spec must include Generated: YYYY-MM-DD HH:mm at the top.
  • Every key decision, alternative, or assumption added after creation must carry a [YYYY-MM-DD HH:mm] prefix.
  • When planning readiness changes (e.g., spec updated after new information), append Updated: YYYY-MM-DD HH:mm — <reason> to the planning readiness statement.
  • Dates allow agents resuming from a compacted context to read the spec and understand exactly when each design decision was made and whether it is still current.

Read the full file on GitHub · 61 lines

Changes

What this file has done since we first saw it

Hashed on every crawl. A supply-chain change to an agent config is a question of when, not whether, so the history is kept rather than the latest state alone.

  1. 5d ago First seen · 61 lines · 834 tokens per session scan A 1cded6706b87

Subscribe to this mod's changes

copilot-instructions brainstorm-spec-workflow.instructions.md is an instructions file published in the GitHub repository ThiagoGuislotti/copilot-instructions (2 stars, last pushed 2mo ago), licensed MIT. It adds 834 tokens to every session, about $0.0042 per session on Opus 5. A static security scan graded it A with 0 findings. No closer match exists in the catalogue, so it is treated as the original; first seen 2026-08-31.

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