arn-code-init

Arness Init

Set up Arness for a project by analyzing or defining code patterns, choosing configuration options, and persisting everything to CLAUDE.md. This is optional — Arness auto-configures with sensible defaults on first skill invocation. Use this to customize directories, add integrations, update templates, or review your current settings.

Workflow

Step 1: Check Existing Configuration

Read the project's CLAUDE.md and look for a ## Arness section. If no CLAUDE.md exists, create one at the project root before proceeding.

If the section does not exist:

• Proceed to Step 2 (fresh init)

If the section exists:

1. Parse all config fields from the existing ## Arness block
2. Read the current plugin version from ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/.claude-plugin/plugin.json
3. Show the user their current configuration and version comparison:
   • Config template version vs current plugin version
   • Number of config fields present vs expected
4. Ask via AskUserQuestion:
   • Review — Show current configuration summary, no changes
   • Upgrade (recommended) — Check for gaps and update only what's needed. Best after a plugin update.
   • Reconfigure — Re-run the full setup flow from scratch (change directories, regenerate patterns, etc.)
   • Keep — No changes

• If Review → display a clean summary of all ## Arness fields, then exit the skill
• If Keep → done, exit the skill
• If Reconfigure → continue to Step 2, pre-filling known values as defaults
• If Upgrade → proceed to the Upgrade Flow section

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Step 2: Detect Project State

Determine whether this is an existing codebase or a greenfield project.

Look for indicators of an existing codebase:

• Package manifests: package.json, pyproject.toml, Cargo.toml, go.mod, pom.xml, build.gradle, Gemfile, composer.json
• Source directories: src/, app/, lib/, cmd/, pkg/
• Framework markers: manage.py, next.config.*, angular.json, vite.config.*, main.go, main.rs
• Meaningful source files (not just README, LICENSE, .gitignore)