SPEC Authoring Skill

Skill Metadata

What It Does

Comprehensive guide for authoring SPEC documents in MoAI-ADK. Provides YAML metadata structure (7 required + 9 optional fields), official EARS requirement syntax (5 patterns including Unwanted Behaviors), version management lifecycle, TAG integration, and validation strategies.

Key capabilities:

• Step-by-step SPEC creation workflow
• Complete metadata field reference with lifecycle rules
• EARS syntax templates and real-world patterns
• Pre-submission validation checklist
• Common pitfalls prevention guide
• /alfred:1-plan workflow integration

When to Use

Automatic triggers:

• /alfred:1-plan command execution
• SPEC document creation requests
• Requirements clarification discussions
• Feature planning sessions

Manual invocation:

• Learn SPEC authoring best practices
• Validate existing SPEC documents
• Troubleshoot metadata issues
• Understand EARS syntax patterns

Quick Start: 5-Step SPEC Creation

Step 1: Initialize SPEC Directory

mkdir -p .moai/specs/SPEC-{DOMAIN}-{NUMBER}
# Example: Authentication feature
mkdir -p .moai/specs/SPEC-AUTH-001

Step 2: Write YAML Front Matter

---
id: AUTH-001
version: 0.0.1
status: draft
created: 2025-10-29
updated: 2025-10-29
author: @YourGitHubHandle
priority: high
---

Step 3: Add SPEC Title & HISTORY

# @SPEC:AUTH-001: JWT Authentication System

## HISTORY

### v0.0.1 (2025-10-29)
- **INITIAL**: JWT authentication SPEC draft created
- **AUTHOR**: @YourHandle

Step 4: Define Environment & Assumptions

## Environment

**Runtime**: Node.js 20.x or later
**Framework**: Express.js
**Database**: PostgreSQL 15+

## Assumptions

1. User credentials stored in PostgreSQL
2. JWT secrets managed via environment variables
3. Server clock synchronized with NTP

Step 5: Write EARS Requirements

## Requirements

### Ubiquitous Requirements
**UR-001**: The system shall provide JWT-based authentication.

### Event-driven Requirements
**ER-001**: WHEN the user submits valid credentials, the system shall issue a JWT token with 15-minute expiration.

### State-driven Requirements
**SR-001**: WHILE the user is in an authenticated state, the system shall permit access to protected resources.

### Optional Features
**OF-001**: WHERE multi-factor authentication is enabled, the system can require OTP verification after password confirmation.

### Unwanted Behaviors
**UB-001**: IF a token has expired, THEN the system shall deny access and return HTTP 401.

Five EARS Pattern Overview

Seven Required Metadata Fields

1. id: <DOMAIN>-<NUMBER> (e.g., AUTH-001) - Immutable identifier
2. version: MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH (e.g., 0.0.1) - Semantic versioning
3. status: draft | active | completed | deprecated
4. created: YYYY-MM-DD - Initial creation date
5. updated: YYYY-MM-DD - Final modification date
6. author: @GitHubHandle - Primary author (@ prefix required)
7. priority: critical | high | medium | low

Version Lifecycle:

• 0.0.x → draft (authoring phase)
• 0.1.0 → completed (implementation done)
• 1.0.0 → stable (production-ready)

Validation Checklist

Metadata Validation

• All 7 required fields present
• author field includes @ prefix
• version format is 0.x.y
• id is not duplicated (rg "@SPEC:AUTH-001" -n .moai/specs/)

Content Validation

• YAML Front Matter complete
• Title includes @SPEC:{ID} TAG block
• HISTORY section has v0.0.1 INITIAL entry
• Environment section defined
• Assumptions section defined (minimum 3 items)
• Requirements section uses EARS patterns
• Traceability section shows TAG chain structure

EARS Syntax Validation

• Ubiquitous: "shall" + capability
• Event-driven: Starts with "WHEN [trigger]"
• State-driven: Starts with "WHILE [state]"
• Optional: Starts with "WHERE [feature]", uses "can"
• Unwanted Behaviors: "IF-THEN" or direct constraint expression

Common Pitfalls

1. ❌ Changing SPEC ID after assignment → Breaks TAG chain
2. ❌ Skipping HISTORY updates → Content changes without audit trail
3. ❌ Jumping version numbers → v0.0.1 → v1.0.0 without intermediate steps
4. ❌ Ambiguous requirements → "Fast and user-friendly" (unmeasurable)
5. ❌ Missing @ prefix in author → author: Goos instead of author: @Goos
6. ❌ Mixing EARS patterns → Multiple keywords in single requirement

Related Skills

• moai-foundation-ears - Official EARS syntax patterns
• moai-foundation-specs - Metadata validation automation
• moai-foundation-tags - TAG system integration
• moai-alfred-spec-metadata-validation - Automated validation

Detailed Reference

• Full Metadata Reference: reference.md
• Practical Examples: examples.md

Last Updated: 2025-10-29 Version: 1.2.0 Maintained By: MoAI-ADK Team Support: Use /alfred:1-plan command for guided SPEC creation