feat: add paperclip-dev skill with optional bundled skill support (#3854)

## Thinking Path

> - Paperclip orchestrates AI agents for zero-human companies
> - Agents working on the Paperclip codebase itself need guidance on dev
workflows: server lifecycle, worktrees, builds, database ops,
diagnostics
> - There was no bundled skill covering these workflows — agents had to
figure it out from scratch each time
> - Additionally, not every skill should be force-installed on every
agent — a dev-focused skill should be opt-in
> - This PR adds a `paperclip-dev` skill with `required: false`
frontmatter so it ships with Paperclip but isn't auto-installed
> - The skill's PR section references canonical files
(`.github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md`, `CONTRIBUTING.md`) instead of
duplicating their content, with gated instructions that force agents to
read those files before creating any PR
> - The benefit is that developers (human or agent) can opt in to
structured dev guidance without polluting the default agent skill set or
creating drift between duplicated docs

## What Changed

- Added `skills/paperclip-dev/SKILL.md` covering server management,
worktree lifecycle, builds, database ops, diagnostics, agent operations,
and common mistakes
- The Pull Requests section uses gated, reference-based instructions —
agents MUST read `.github/PULL_REQUEST_TEMPLATE.md` and
`CONTRIBUTING.md` before running `gh pr create`, with a brief checklist
of required section names (no content duplication)
- Updated `packages/adapter-utils/src/server-utils.ts` to respect
`required: false` frontmatter — optional skills are bundled but not
auto-installed on agents
- Added test in `server/src/__tests__/paperclip-skill-utils.test.ts`
verifying that optional skills are excluded from the default install set

## Verification

```bash
# Run tests
pnpm test

# Manual verification: create a fresh worktree without seeding
npx paperclipai worktree:make test-optional-skill --no-seed
cd ~/paperclip-test-optional-skill
eval "$(npx paperclipai worktree env)"
npx paperclipai run

# Verify paperclip-dev appears in company skill library but is NOT auto-assigned
# Call listPaperclipSkillEntries() — paperclip-dev should show required: false
# Call resolvePaperclipDesiredSkillNames() — paperclip-dev should NOT be in the default set

# Cleanup
npx paperclipai worktree:cleanup test-optional-skill
```

## Risks

- Low risk. The `required` field defaults to `true` when absent, so all
existing skills behave identically. Only the new `paperclip-dev` skill
sets `required: false`.

## Model Used

Claude Opus 4.6 (`claude-opus-4-6`) via Claude Code, with tool use and
extended context.

## Checklist

- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used (with version and capability
details)
- [x] I have run tests locally and they pass
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [ ] If this change affects the UI, I have included before/after
screenshots
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [x] I will address all Greptile and reviewer comments before
requesting merge

---------

Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
This commit is contained in:
Devin Foley 2026-04-26 11:06:13 -07:00 committed by GitHub
parent c036bbfa98
commit 91333ec86f
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3 changed files with 275 additions and 7 deletions

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@ -1037,6 +1037,20 @@ export async function resolvePaperclipSkillsDir(
return null;
}
async function readSkillRequired(skillDir: string): Promise<boolean> {
try {
const content = await fs.readFile(path.join(skillDir, "SKILL.md"), "utf8");
const normalized = content.replace(/\r\n/g, "\n");
if (!normalized.startsWith("---\n")) return true;
const closing = normalized.indexOf("\n---\n", 4);
if (closing < 0) return true;
const frontmatter = normalized.slice(4, closing);
return !/^\s*required\s*:\s*false\s*$/m.test(frontmatter);
} catch {
return true;
}
}
export async function listPaperclipSkillEntries(
moduleDir: string,
additionalCandidates: string[] = [],
@ -1046,15 +1060,20 @@ export async function listPaperclipSkillEntries(
try {
const entries = await fs.readdir(root, { withFileTypes: true });
return entries
.filter((entry) => entry.isDirectory())
.map((entry) => ({
const dirs = entries.filter((entry) => entry.isDirectory());
return Promise.all(dirs.map(async (entry) => {
const skillDir = path.join(root, entry.name);
const required = await readSkillRequired(skillDir);
return {
key: `paperclipai/paperclip/${entry.name}`,
runtimeName: entry.name,
source: path.join(root, entry.name),
required: true,
requiredReason: "Bundled Paperclip skills are always available for local adapters.",
}));
source: skillDir,
required,
requiredReason: required
? "Bundled Paperclip skills are always available for local adapters."
: null,
};
}));
} catch {
return [];
}