cli-anything

SKILL.md

CLI-Anything for Codex

Use this skill when the user wants Codex to act like the CLI-Anything builder.

If this skill is being used from inside the CLI-Anything repository, read ../cli-anything-plugin/HARNESS.md before implementation. That file is the full methodology source of truth. If it is not available, follow the condensed rules below.

Inputs

Accept either:

A local source path such as ./gimp or /path/to/software

A GitHub repository URL

Derive the software name from the local directory name after cloning if needed.

Modes

Build
Use when the user wants a new harness.

Produce this structure:

<software>/
└── agent-harness/
    ├── <SOFTWARE>.md
    ├── setup.py
    └── cli_anything/
        └── <software>/
            ├── README.md
            ├── __init__.py
            ├── __main__.py
            ├── <software>_cli.py
            ├── core/
            ├── utils/
            └── tests/

Implement a stateful Click CLI with:

one-shot subcommands

REPL mode as the default when no subcommand is given

--json machine-readable output

session state with undo/redo where the target software supports it

Refine

Use when the harness already exists.

First inventory current commands and tests, then do gap analysis against the target software. Prefer:

high-impact missing features

easy wrappers around existing backend APIs or CLIs

additions that compose well with existing commands

Do not remove existing commands unless the user explicitly asks for a breaking change.

Test

Plan tests before writing them. Keep both:

test_core.py for unit coverage

test_full_e2e.py for workflow and backend validation

When possible, test the installed command via subprocess using cli-anything-<software> rather than only module imports.

Validate

Check that the harness:

uses the cli_anything.<software> namespace package layout

has an installable setup.py entry point

supports JSON output

has a REPL default path

documents usage and tests

Backend Rules

Prefer the real software backend over reimplementation. Wrap the actual executable or scripting interface in utils/<software>_backend.py when possible. Use synthetic reimplementation only when the project explicitly requires it or no viable native backend exists.

Packaging Rules

Use find_namespace_packages(include=["cli_anything.*"])

Keep cli_anything/ as a namespace package without a top-level __init__.py

Expose cli-anything-<software> through console_scripts

Workflow

Acquire the source tree locally.

Analyze architecture, data model, existing CLIs, and GUI-to-API mappings.

Design command groups and state model.

Implement the harness.

Write TEST.md, then tests, then run them.

Update README usage docs.

Verify local installation with pip install -e .

Output Expectations

When reporting progress or final results, include:

target software and source path

files added or changed

validation commands run

open risks or backend limitations