module-lifecycle Skill

Purpose: Manage the complete lifecycle of VCV Rack modules from installation to removal with proper state tracking and safety features.

Overview

This skill handles all module lifecycle operations:

• Installation (Mode 1): Copy module to VCV Rack plugins directory (~/Documents/Rack2/plugins-[platform]-[arch]/)
• Uninstallation (Mode 2): Clean removal from plugins directory (preserves source code)
• Reset to Ideation (Mode 3): Remove implementation, keep idea/mockups (surgical rollback)
• Destroy (Mode 4): Complete removal with backup (nuclear option)

All operations include proper platform detection, state tracking, and safety features (confirmations, backups).

Mode Dispatcher

This skill operates in different modes based on the invoking command:

Mode	Operation	Command	Purpose
1	Installation	/install-module	Deploy to VCV Rack plugins folder
2	Uninstallation	/uninstall	Remove plugin, keep source
3	Reset to Ideation	/reset-to-ideation	Remove implementation, keep idea/mockups
4	Destroy	/destroy	Complete removal with backup
Menu	Interactive	/clean	Present menu, user chooses mode

Pattern: Commands are thin routers that invoke this skill with a specific mode. The skill dispatches to the appropriate reference file for detailed implementation.

Why this matters:

VCV Rack scans the plugins directory for modules. Installing to the correct location ensures your module appears in VCV Rack's module browser.

Plugin directories by platform:

• macOS (arm64): ~/Documents/Rack2/plugins-mac-arm64/
• macOS (x64): ~/Documents/Rack2/plugins-mac-x64/
• Linux (x64): ~/Documents/Rack2/plugins-linux-x64/
• Windows (x64): %USERPROFILE%\Documents\Rack2\plugins-win-x64\

---

Installation Workflow

The complete installation process:

1. Platform Detection - Determine current platform (mac-arm64, mac-x64, linux-x64, win-x64)
2. Build Verification - Check that dist/[Module]-[version]-[platform].vcvplugin exists, offer to build if missing
3. Plugin Location Detection - Find VCV Rack plugins directory
4. Old Version Removal - Remove existing installations to prevent conflicts
5. Copy to Plugins Folder - Install .vcvplugin to VCV Rack plugins directory
6. Extraction - Extract plugin archive (VCV Rack will extract on next launch, but we verify structure)
7. Verification - Confirm installation with file checks
8. MODULES.md Update - Record installation status and locations

See references/installation-process.md for complete implementation.

Platform Detection

Detect current platform:

# Determine platform
PLATFORM=$(uname -s)
ARCH=$(uname -m)

case "$PLATFORM" in
  Darwin)
    if [[ "$ARCH" == "arm64" ]]; then
      RACK_PLATFORM="mac-arm64"
    else
      RACK_PLATFORM="mac-x64"
    fi
    ;;
  Linux)
    RACK_PLATFORM="linux-x64"
    ;;
  MINGW*|MSYS*|CYGWIN*)
    RACK_PLATFORM="win-x64"
    ;;
  *)
    echo "Unknown platform: $PLATFORM"
    exit 1
    ;;
esac

echo "Detected platform: $RACK_PLATFORM"

Plugin Location

Standard VCV Rack plugin directories:

# Platform-specific plugin directories
case "$RACK_PLATFORM" in
  mac-arm64|mac-x64)
    PLUGINS_DIR="$HOME/Documents/Rack2/plugins-$RACK_PLATFORM"
    ;;
  linux-x64)
    PLUGINS_DIR="$HOME/Documents/Rack2/plugins-$RACK_PLATFORM"
    ;;
  win-x64)
    PLUGINS_DIR="$USERPROFILE/Documents/Rack2/plugins-$RACK_PLATFORM"
    ;;
esac

# Verify directory exists
if [[ ! -d "$PLUGINS_DIR" ]]; then
  echo "VCV Rack plugins directory not found: $PLUGINS_DIR"
  echo "Is VCV Rack 2 installed?"
  exit 1
fi

Build Verification

Check for built plugin:

# Extract version from plugin.json
VERSION=$(jq -r '.version' "modules/$MODULE_NAME/plugin.json")

# Expected plugin file
PLUGIN_FILE="modules/$MODULE_NAME/dist/$MODULE_NAME-$VERSION-$RACK_PLATFORM.vcvplugin"

if [[ ! -f "$PLUGIN_FILE" ]]; then
  echo "Plugin file not found: $PLUGIN_FILE"
  echo ""
  echo "Would you like to build it now?"
  echo "1. Yes, build and install"
  echo "2. No, exit"
  echo ""
  read -p "Choose (1-2): " choice

  if [[ "$choice" == "1" ]]; then
    # Invoke build-automation skill
    echo "Building module..."
    make -C "modules/$MODULE_NAME" dist

    # Check if build succeeded
    if [[ ! -f "$PLUGIN_FILE" ]]; then
      echo "Build failed. Check logs/[ModuleName]/build_*.log"
      exit 1
    fi
  else
    exit 0
  fi
fi

Installation Steps

1. Remove old versions:

# Find existing installations
OLD_PLUGINS=$(find "$PLUGINS_DIR" -name "$MODULE_NAME-*.vcvplugin" -o -type d -name "$MODULE_NAME")

if [[ -n "$OLD_PLUGINS" ]]; then
  echo "Removing old versions..."
  echo "$OLD_PLUGINS" | while read -r old_plugin; do
    rm -rf "$old_plugin"
    echo "  Removed: $old_plugin"
  done
fi

2. Copy plugin file:

# Copy to plugins directory
cp "$PLUGIN_FILE" "$PLUGINS_DIR/"

echo "✓ Installed: $PLUGINS_DIR/$(basename $PLUGIN_FILE)"

3. Verification:

# Verify installation
INSTALLED_PLUGIN="$PLUGINS_DIR/$(basename $PLUGIN_FILE)"

if [[ -f "$INSTALLED_PLUGIN" ]]; then
  FILE_SIZE=$(ls -lh "$INSTALLED_PLUGIN" | awk '{print $5}')
  echo "✓ File present: $FILE_SIZE"

  # Check modification time (should be recent)
  MOD_TIME=$(stat -f "%Sm" -t "%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S" "$INSTALLED_PLUGIN")
  echo "✓ Modified: $MOD_TIME"
else
  echo "✗ Installation verification failed"
  exit 1
fi

Post-Installation

No cache clearing needed:

VCV Rack automatically detects new plugins on launch. No cache clearing is required unlike DAW plugins.

Update MODULES.md:

**Status:** 📦 Installed
**Version:** [X.Y.Z]
**Last Updated:** [YYYY-MM-DD]
**Installation:**
- Platform: [mac-arm64 | mac-x64 | linux-x64 | win-x64]
- Location: ~/Documents/Rack2/plugins-[platform]/[ModuleName]-[version]-[platform].vcvplugin

---

Uninstallation Workflow

Complete uninstallation process:

1. Locate Plugin Files - Find installed .vcvplugin files and extracted directories
2. Confirm Removal - Ask user to confirm deletion
3. Remove Files - Delete from plugins folder (source code preserved)
4. Update MODULES.md - Change status back to ✅ Working
5. Confirmation - Display uninstallation summary

See references/uninstallation-process.md for complete implementation.

Uninstallation Steps

1. Platform detection:

# Detect platform (same as installation)
PLATFORM=$(uname -s)
ARCH=$(uname -m)
# ... (platform detection code)

2. Find installed files:

# Plugins directory
PLUGINS_DIR="$HOME/Documents/Rack2/plugins-$RACK_PLATFORM"

# Find all installations of this module
INSTALLED_FILES=$(find "$PLUGINS_DIR" -name "$MODULE_NAME-*.vcvplugin" -o -type d -name "$MODULE_NAME")

if [[ -z "$INSTALLED_FILES" ]]; then
  echo "Module not found in plugins directory"
  exit 0
fi

echo "Found installations:"
echo "$INSTALLED_FILES"

3. Confirm removal:

echo ""
echo "Remove these files?"
echo "1. Yes, uninstall"
echo "2. No, cancel"
echo ""
read -p "Choose (1-2): " choice

if [[ "$choice" != "1" ]]; then
  echo "Cancelled"
  exit 0
fi

4. Remove files:

echo "Uninstalling..."
echo "$INSTALLED_FILES" | while read -r file; do
  rm -rf "$file"
  echo "  Removed: $file"
done

echo "✓ Uninstallation complete"

5. Update MODULES.md:

Change status from 📦 Installed to ✅ Working:

**Status:** ✅ Working
**Version:** [X.Y.Z]
**Last Updated:** [YYYY-MM-DD]

---

Reset to Ideation Workflow (Mode 3)

Surgical rollback that removes implementation but preserves ideation artifacts:

What gets preserved:

• Creative brief (the original idea)
• UI mockups (all versions)
• Parameter specifications

What gets removed:

• Source code (src/ directory)
• Build configuration (Makefile)
• Implementation docs (architecture.md, plan.md)
• Build artifacts (dist/ directory)
• Installed plugins

Use case: Implementation went wrong, but the concept and panel design are solid. Start fresh from Stage 0.

See references/mode-3-reset.md for complete implementation.

Reset Steps

1. Verify module exists:

if [[ ! -d "modules/$MODULE_NAME" ]]; then
  echo "Module not found: $MODULE_NAME"
  exit 1
fi

2. Check status (block if in development):

STATUS=$(grep -A 3 "^### $MODULE_NAME$" MODULES.md | grep "Status:" | awk '{print $2}')

if [[ "$STATUS" == "🚧" ]]; then
  echo "Cannot reset module that is still in development"
  echo "Complete or cancel the workflow first with /continue"
  exit 1
fi

3. Create backup before reset:

BACKUP_DIR="backups/$MODULE_NAME-reset-$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S)"
mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR"
cp -r "modules/$MODULE_NAME" "$BACKUP_DIR/"
echo "✓ Backup created: $BACKUP_DIR"

4. Preserve ideation artifacts:

# Keep these directories/files
PRESERVE_FILES=(
  ".ideas/creative-brief.md"
  ".ideas/mockups/"
  ".ideas/parameter-spec.md"
  "res/*.svg"  # Panel designs
  "plugin.json"  # Basic module info
)

# Create temporary directory
TEMP_DIR=$(mktemp -d)
for file in "${PRESERVE_FILES[@]}"; do
  if [[ -e "modules/$MODULE_NAME/$file" ]]; then
    mkdir -p "$TEMP_DIR/$(dirname $file)"
    cp -r "modules/$MODULE_NAME/$file" "$TEMP_DIR/$file"
  fi
done

5. Remove implementation:

# Remove everything
rm -rf "modules/$MODULE_NAME"

# Restore preserved files
mkdir -p "modules/$MODULE_NAME"
cp -r "$TEMP_DIR/"* "modules/$MODULE_NAME/"
rm -rf "$TEMP_DIR"

echo "✓ Implementation removed, ideation artifacts preserved"

6. Uninstall from VCV Rack:

# Remove from plugins directory
PLUGINS_DIR="$HOME/Documents/Rack2/plugins-$RACK_PLATFORM"
find "$PLUGINS_DIR" -name "$MODULE_NAME-*" -exec rm -rf {} \;

7. Update MODULES.md:

**Status:** 💡 Ideated
**Version:** -
**Last Updated:** [YYYY-MM-DD]
**Note:** Reset to ideation - implementation removed, concept preserved

---

Destroy Workflow (Mode 4)

Complete removal with backup for abandoned modules:

What gets removed:

• Everything: source code, binaries, build artifacts, MODULES.md entry
• Optionally: troubleshooting docs mentioning the module

Safety features:

• Timestamped backup created before deletion
• Requires typing exact module name to confirm
• Blocks if status is 🚧 (protects in-progress work)

Use case: Abandoned experiment, complete failure, duplicate by mistake. Never using this module again.

See references/mode-4-destroy.md for complete implementation.

Destroy Steps

1. Verify module exists:

if [[ ! -d "modules/$MODULE_NAME" ]]; then
  echo "Module not found: $MODULE_NAME"
  exit 1
fi

2. Check status (block if in development):

STATUS=$(grep -A 3 "^### $MODULE_NAME$" MODULES.md | grep "Status:" | awk '{print $2}')

if [[ "$STATUS" == "🚧" ]]; then
  echo "Cannot destroy module that is still in development"
  echo "Complete or cancel the workflow first with /continue"
  exit 1
fi

3. Confirmation (require exact name):

echo "⚠️  WARNING: This will completely remove $MODULE_NAME"
echo ""
echo "This will delete:"
echo "- Source code (modules/$MODULE_NAME/)"
echo "- Installed plugin (if any)"
echo "- MODULES.md entry"
echo ""
echo "A timestamped backup will be created first."
echo ""
echo "To confirm, type the module name exactly: $MODULE_NAME"
read -p "> " confirmation

if [[ "$confirmation" != "$MODULE_NAME" ]]; then
  echo "Confirmation failed. Destruction cancelled."
  exit 0
fi

4. Create timestamped backup:

BACKUP_DIR="backups/$MODULE_NAME-destroyed-$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S)"
mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR"
cp -r "modules/$MODULE_NAME" "$BACKUP_DIR/"
echo "✓ Backup created: $BACKUP_DIR"

5. Remove everything:

# Remove source
rm -rf "modules/$MODULE_NAME"
echo "✓ Removed source code"

# Remove from plugins directory
PLUGINS_DIR="$HOME/Documents/Rack2/plugins-$RACK_PLATFORM"
find "$PLUGINS_DIR" -name "$MODULE_NAME-*" -exec rm -rf {} \;
echo "✓ Removed installed plugin"

# Remove from MODULES.md
sed -i.bak "/^### $MODULE_NAME$/,/^### /{ /^### $MODULE_NAME$/d; /^### /!d; }" MODULES.md
echo "✓ Removed MODULES.md entry"

6. Optional: Remove troubleshooting docs:

echo ""
echo "Remove troubleshooting docs mentioning this module?"
echo "1. Yes, clean up docs"
echo "2. No, keep docs for reference"
echo ""
read -p "Choose (1-2): " choice

if [[ "$choice" == "1" ]]; then
  # Find and remove docs mentioning this module
  grep -rl "$MODULE_NAME" troubleshooting/ | while read -r doc; do
    rm "$doc"
    echo "  Removed: $doc"
  done
fi

7. Final confirmation:

✓ Module destroyed: [ModuleName]

Backup location: backups/[ModuleName]-destroyed-[timestamp]/

To restore from backup:
  cp -r backups/[ModuleName]-destroyed-[timestamp]/[ModuleName] modules/
  # Then rebuild: make -C modules/[ModuleName]

---

Interactive Menu (Mode: Menu)

When invoked via /clean [ModuleName], present interactive menu:

Module cleanup options for [ModuleName]:

1. Uninstall - Remove from VCV Rack plugins folder (keep source code)
2. Reset to ideation - Remove implementation, keep idea/mockups
3. Destroy - Complete removal with backup (IRREVERSIBLE except via backup)
4. Cancel

Choose (1-4): _

Menu logic:

• Read current module status from MODULES.md
• Show appropriate options based on status
• Route to selected mode
• Handle cancellation gracefully

---

Error Handling

Common error scenarios with troubleshooting:

• Build Files Not Found: Guide to build module or check dist/ directory
• VCV Rack Not Installed: Check if ~/Documents/Rack2/ exists, suggest VCV Rack installation
• Permission Denied: Check file permissions, disk space
• Module Doesn't Appear in VCV Rack: Restart VCV Rack, check plugins directory, verify plugin.json

See references/error-handling.md for all error scenarios and fixes.

---

Decision Menu After Installation

After successful installation:

✓ [ModuleName] installed successfully

What's next?
1. Test in VCV Rack (recommended) → Launch VCV Rack and test module
2. Create another module → /dream
3. Document this module → Create user manual
4. Share module (export build) → Package for distribution
5. Other

Choose (1-5): _

Handle responses:

• Option 1: Provide VCV Rack testing guidance
• Option 2: Invoke module-ideation skill
• Option 3: Suggest creating user manual in .ideas/
• Option 4: Provide plugin distribution instructions
• Option 5: Ask what they'd like to do

---

Integration Points

Invoked by:

• /install-module [ModuleName] → Mode 1 (Installation)
• /uninstall [ModuleName] → Mode 2 (Uninstallation)
• /reset-to-ideation [ModuleName] → Mode 3 (Reset)
• /destroy [ModuleName] → Mode 4 (Destroy)
• /clean [ModuleName] → Interactive menu
• module-workflow skill → After Stage 6 (offers installation)
• module-improve skill → After successful changes (offers reinstallation)
• Natural language: "Install [ModuleName]", "Remove [ModuleName]", "Clean up [ModuleName]"

Invokes:

• None (terminal skill, doesn't invoke others)

Updates:

• MODULES.md → Status changes to 📦 Installed, adds installation metadata

Creates:

• Plugin installations (non-git-tracked):
  • ~/Documents/Rack2/plugins-[platform]-[arch]/[ModuleName]-[version]-[platform].vcvplugin

Blocks:

• None (installation is optional, modules can be tested without installing)

---

Success Criteria

Installation is successful when:

• ✅ Plugin file copied to VCV Rack plugins directory
• ✅ File is correct format (.vcvplugin)
• ✅ Verification shows recent timestamp (< 60 seconds ago)
• ✅ File size is reasonable (> 1 KB typically)
• ✅ MODULES.md updated with 📦 status and installation location
• ✅ User knows next steps (restart VCV Rack to see module)

NOT required for success:

• Module appearing in VCV Rack immediately (requires restart)
• Multiple platform builds (single platform is fine for development)

---

Notes for Claude

When executing this skill:

1. Always detect platform first - installation paths vary by platform
2. Check for built plugin in dist/ directory - offer to build if missing
3. Remove old versions before installing (prevents conflicts)
4. No cache clearing needed (VCV Rack auto-detects on launch)
5. Verification checks should be comprehensive (timestamp, size)
6. MODULES.md status update is part of success criteria
7. Provide clear next steps after installation

Common pitfalls:

• Forgetting platform detection (wrong plugins directory)
• Not removing old versions (VCV Rack may load wrong version)
• Not checking if VCV Rack is installed
• Missing MODULES.md update (state tracking incomplete)

Platform-Specific Notes

macOS (arm64 and x64)

• Plugins directory: ~/Documents/Rack2/plugins-mac-[arch]/
• Plugin format: .vcvplugin (ZIP archive)
• VCV Rack auto-extracts on launch
• No code signing required for development

Linux (x64)

• Plugins directory: ~/Documents/Rack2/plugins-linux-x64/
• Plugin format: .vcvplugin (ZIP archive)
• VCV Rack auto-extracts on launch
• No special permissions needed

Windows (x64)

• Plugins directory: %USERPROFILE%\Documents\Rack2\plugins-win-x64\
• Plugin format: .vcvplugin (ZIP archive)
• VCV Rack auto-extracts on launch
• May need to allow in Windows Defender

VCV Rack Plugin Structure

Plugin archive (.vcvplugin) contains:

ModuleName/
├── plugin.json          # Module metadata
├── plugin.so/.dylib/.dll # Compiled module
└── res/                 # Resources
    └── *.svg            # Panel designs

VCV Rack extracts on launch:

When VCV Rack launches, it automatically extracts .vcvplugin archives to the same directory, creating a folder with the module contents. Both the archive and extracted folder coexist.