Overview
Spec First generates a technical specification before any code is written. You review and approve the spec, then the agent implements against it. This is ideal for medium-sized features where you want to validate the approach before committing to it.When to Use
- Medium features and improvements
- Tasks where the technical approach isn’t obvious
- When you want to review architecture decisions before coding
- When multiple implementation paths exist and you need to choose
How It Works
Technical Specification
The agent creates a detailed technical spec (
spec.md) covering architecture, contracts, and verification strategy.Review the spec
Review
spec.md in the task view. Provide feedback or approve. The agent refines until the spec is accepted.Implementation Plan
Based on the approved spec, the agent breaks the work into ordered implementation steps in
plan.md.Artifacts
| Artifact | Description |
|---|---|
plan.md | Workflow: Specification → Implementation Plan → Implementation |
spec.md | Architecture, contracts, dependencies, and verification strategy |
Tips
Provide constraints in the task description
Provide constraints in the task description
Mention technology preferences, performance requirements, or architectural constraints upfront so they appear in the spec.
Use the spec as a review artifact
Use the spec as a review artifact
Share
spec.md with teammates before approving. It’s a lightweight design doc that captures the agent’s proposed approach.Enable Auto-start for hands-off execution
Enable Auto-start for hands-off execution
After approving the spec, enable Auto-start steps so the agent moves through implementation without manual triggers.
Related
All Workflows
Compare all available workflows
Requirements First
Full SDD with PRD and stakeholder alignment