| name | documentation-guidelines |
| description | Write or update backend feature documentation that follows a repo's DOCUMENTATION_GUIDELINES.md (or equivalent) across any project. Use when asked to create/update module docs, API contracts, or backend documentation that must include architecture, endpoints, payloads, Mermaid diagrams, and seeding instructions. |
| author | Community |
Documentation Guidelines
Overview
Produce a single, canonical module doc that matches the repository's documentation rules and keeps backend/API contracts consistent and skimmable.
Workflow
- Locate the repo's documentation rules (prefer
docs/memories/DOCUMENTATION_GUIDELINES.md). If missing, loadreferences/documentation-guidelines.md. - Determine the correct documentation path for the current project. Use the repo's conventions; if no zones exist, default to
docs/features/<module>.md(or the project's documented location). - Create or update the module doc before changing logic. Remove outdated content instead of appending.
- Follow the required section order from the guidelines and keep the doc in English.
Required Content Checklist
- Add the metadata header (Version, Last Updated, Maintained By).
- Include Mermaid ERD and Mermaid flowchart.
- Document controllers/routes, requests, resources, models, services, jobs, and providers.
- Provide endpoint table, headers, payloads, response examples, and error dictionary.
- State permissions, feature flags, and client consumption rules.
- Add local development + seeding commands and troubleshooting/log hints.
Style Rules
- Describe contracts and behavior, not UI.
- Use tables for endpoints and business rules.
- Keep Mermaid labels short and safe; wrap special characters in quotes if needed.
- Delete obsolete text to keep the doc clean and non-duplicative.
Frontend API Documentation
If the user explicitly asks for frontend-facing API docs, load the repo's frontend guideline file (typically docs/memories/FRONTEND_API_DOCUMENTATION_GUIDELINES.md) and follow it.
Resources
references/documentation-guidelines.md: Canonical structure and ordering for backend feature documentation.