/setup — Project Onboarding

Progressive setup for new projects using this starter kit. Starts with infrastructure, then hands off to gStack for product planning.

When to use

Run /setup when cloning this starter kit for a new project.

Instructions

You are helping a solo developer set up a new project from the agStack starter kit. The setup is split into two phases:

• Phase A (this skill): Get the project RUNNABLE — infra, deps, dev server.
• Phase B (gStack): Plan the product and build features via /office-hours.

Phase A should be fast — get to a working npm run dev ASAP. Phase B is where the real product decisions happen.

Before Phase A: check the stack profile. If .agstack/stack.json does not exist, run /tech-stack-consult first. Without a profile, /setup assumes nestjs-only (NestJS + BullMQ, no Rust). See Step 0.5 below.

CRITICAL — DO NOT regenerate boilerplate code. COPY + REPLACE only.

The starter kit ships with EVERYTHING pre-built and tested, including pinned dependency versions. /setup should NOT write any file from scratch. The ONLY things /setup does:

1. Copy .template files → real files (package.json.template → package.json)
2. Replace __PROJECT_NAME__ placeholder with actual project name
3. Install Shadcn components (npm-installed, not in boilerplate)
4. Fix Sonner next-themes import (Shadcn bug)
5. Run prisma migrate

Pre-built files that MUST NOT be regenerated (saves ~5000 tokens each run):

• API: main.ts, app.module.ts, prisma.service.ts, base-crud.service/controller, health module, interceptors, filters, DTOs
• Frontend: main.tsx, providers.tsx, router.tsx, layout.tsx, home.tsx, api-client.ts, form-utils.ts, query-keys.ts, utils.ts, globals.css, use-paginated-query.ts, use-api-mutation.ts, use-debounce.ts, test utils
• Config: vite.config.ts, tailwind.config.ts, postcss.config.js, components.json, tsconfig.json (root, frontend, api, shared), vitest.config.ts, jest.config.ts, jest.e2e.config.ts, nest-cli.json, biome.json, lefthook.yml, docker-compose.yml, .env.example
• Shared: types/job-envelope.ts, constants/job-types.ts

If /setup rewrites ANY of these, it's wasting tokens and risking regressions.

Phase A: Get Runnable

Follow these steps IN ORDER. Ask one section at a time. Wait for user confirmation before proceeding.

Step 0: Trust But Verify + Install gStack

Before writing any code, help the user verify the repo and install required tools.

Security scan — "don't trust, verify":

Tell the user:

"Before we start, let's verify this repo is safe. Run a quick security scan:"

# Scan for secrets, credentials, or suspicious content
npx @anthropic-ai/claude-code-security-scanner . 2>/dev/null || echo "Scanner not available — manual review recommended"

# Quick manual checks
grep -r "eval(" --include="*.ts" --include="*.js" . | head -20
grep -r "exec(" --include="*.ts" --include="*.js" . | head -20
grep -rn "password\|secret\|token\|api_key" .env* 2>/dev/null

If the security scanner is not available, suggest manual review:

"No automated scanner found. You can review the repo yourself:

• Check scripts/ for anything unexpected
• Check .claude/ for suspicious hooks or skills
• Check package.json for unknown dependencies
• Run git log --oneline -20 to see recent commit history

When you're satisfied, confirm and we'll continue."

Wait for user confirmation before proceeding.

Install gStack globally:

First, check if gStack is already installed globally:

# Check global install location
ls ~/.claude/skills/gstack/SKILL.md 2>/dev/null && echo "FOUND" || echo "NOT_FOUND"

If FOUND — skip installation, tell the user:

"gStack is already installed globally. Skipping installation."

If NOT_FOUND — install globally:

mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills
cd ~/.claude/skills && git clone https://github.com/garrytan/gstack.git && cd gstack && ./setup

Tell the user:

"gStack is now installed globally at ~/.claude/skills/gstack/. It will be available across all your projects — not just this one. This gives you product planning (/office-hours), code review (/review), QA (/qa), and deployment (/ship) skills."

If the install fails, suggest:

"gStack install failed. Try manually:

mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills
cd ~/.claude/skills && git clone https://github.com/garrytan/gstack.git && cd gstack && ./setup

Or check https://github.com/garrytan/gstack for instructions."

Step 0.5: Stack Profile

Check whether the user has run /tech-stack-consult:

cat .agstack/stack.json 2>/dev/null || echo "NO_PROFILE"

If .agstack/stack.json exists — load the profile field and hold it in memory for the rest of setup. Tell the user:

"Using stack profile: <profile>. I'll scaffold based on your tech-stack-consult decision."

Valid profiles:

• nestjs-only — default, NestJS + BullMQ worker inside NestJS for jobs
• nestjs-rust — NestJS + separate Rust worker for CPU-heavy jobs
• go-only — frontend only; remove /api, /jobs, /shared. User writes Go backend.
• python-only — frontend only; remove /api, /jobs, /shared. User writes Python backend.

If it doesn't exist — surface the tradeoff:

"No stack profile found. /setup will default to nestjs-only (NestJS + BullMQ worker — no Rust). This is the simplest full-stack option: 1 Node runtime, 1 Dockerfile, 1 CI pipeline.

Options:

1. Run /tech-stack-consult first (5 questions, ~2 min) to evaluate all profiles, then re-run /setup
2. Proceed with nestjs-only default

Which do you want?"

Wait for user response. If they pick (1), stop the skill and ask them to run /tech-stack-consult. If they pick (2), set profile = "nestjs-only" in memory and continue.

Record the active profile in the session — you'll apply it in Step 2.5.

Step 1: Project Identity

Ask the user:

• Project name (kebab-case, for package.json)
• One-line description (what does this product do?)
• Team mode: Solo (1 dev + AI agents) or Team (multiple devs + AI agents)?

Then update CLAUDE.md:

• Replace ## Team Mode: [solo | team] with the user's choice
• If Team: main branch will be protected, PRs required, file claims enabled
• If Solo: lightweight workflow, direct push to main OK

Then:

1. Update CLAUDE.md — replace [Project Name] with actual name, replace [Brief description] with actual description

2. Create package.json files from templates (DO NOT write from scratch): The boilerplate ships .template files with ALL versions already pinned. You only need to copy and replace __PROJECT_NAME__:

   # Copy templates → real files
   cp package.json.template package.json
   cp frontend/package.json.template frontend/package.json
   cp api/package.json.template api/package.json
   
   # Replace project name placeholder in all three
   sed -i "s/__PROJECT_NAME__/<actual-project-name>/g" package.json frontend/package.json api/package.json
   

   That's it. All dependency versions are pre-resolved and tested in the templates. DO NOT run npm view or change any version numbers. Version upgrades are managed centrally through agStack releases.

3. Create shared/package.json (no template needed — it's tiny):

   {
     "name": "<project-name>-shared",
     "version": "0.1.0",
     "private": true,
     "main": "./types/index.ts",
     "types": "./types/index.ts"
   }
   

4. Set up .env: .env.example and docker-compose.yml already exist with __PROJECT_NAME__ placeholder. Replace it:

   sed -i "s/__PROJECT_NAME__/<actual-project-name>/g" .env.example docker-compose.yml \
     frontend/index.html frontend/src/app/layout.tsx frontend/src/pages/home.tsx
   

   Then auto-copy .env.example → .env if .env does not exist.

5. Tell the user: ".env has been created with dev defaults. Review and adjust if needed, then confirm when ready." Wait for user confirmation before proceeding.

6. Run npm install from root to link workspaces and install all dependencies.

Step 2: Infrastructure

All infrastructure files are pre-existing in the boilerplate. Verify — do NOT regenerate:

1. docker-compose.yml — ALREADY EXISTS. Reads POSTGRES_DB from .env. DO NOT regenerate. Only verify it's present.

2. api/prisma/schema.prisma — ALREADY EXISTS (empty, no models yet). DO NOT regenerate. Domain models come from sprint tasks in Phase B.

   Prisma 7+ compatibility (only if template pinning failed): After npm install, check npx prisma --version. If somehow Prisma 7+ got installed: a. Remove url line from datasource db {} in schema.prisma b. Create api/prisma/prisma.config.ts with defineConfig pointing to env DATABASE_URL c. Add output = "../node_modules/.prisma/client" to generator client {} If Prisma 6 (expected) — no changes needed.

3. frontend/vite.config.ts — ALREADY EXISTS with @ and @shared resolve aliases. frontend/tailwind.config.ts, postcss.config.js, components.json — ALL pre-existing. DO NOT regenerate any of these.

Before running docker, check for port conflicts:

lsof -i :5432 2>/dev/null | head -5    # check if postgres port is in use
lsof -i :6379 2>/dev/null | head -5    # check if redis port is in use

If ports are in use, warn the user:

"Port 5432 (or 6379) is already in use — you may have a local postgres/redis running. Either stop it or change the port in .env and docker-compose.yml."

Then ask user to run:

docker-compose up -d
docker compose ps                       # verify both services are running

# Prisma reads .env from its own directory (api/), but .env lives at root.
# Symlink it so Prisma can find DATABASE_URL:
cd api && ln -sf ../.env .env

npx prisma migrate dev --name init      # from api/ folder

If prisma migrate fails, check:

1. P1012: Environment variable not found: DATABASE_URL? → Prisma reads .env from api/, not root. Symlink: cd api && ln -sf ../.env .env
2. Is .env present in root? (cp .env.example .env if not)
3. Does DATABASE_URL in .env match docker-compose credentials?
4. Is postgres actually ready? (docker compose logs postgres | tail -5)
5. Prisma 7 error "datasource property url is no longer supported"? → Follow the Prisma 7 compatibility steps above (remove url from schema, create prisma.config.ts)

Step 2.5: Apply Stack Profile

Now apply the profile chosen in Step 0.5. This adjusts the scaffold BEFORE installing npm deps for frontend/api, so nothing that depends on the removed parts gets installed.

If profile == nestjs-only — this is the default. No /jobs folder exists in the repo, so there's nothing to remove. Just set up the BullMQ worker:

Tell the user:

"Applying nestjs-only profile (default): setting up BullMQ worker inside NestJS."

Then:

1. Copy the BullMQ worker template into the NestJS app:

   cp -r templates/worker-bullmq/src/workers api/src/workers
   

   Then register WorkersModule in AppModule. The user can follow the typescript-nestjs skill's BullMQ section to add real processors.

2. Remove Rust-specific env vars from .env.example and .env (if present):

   • RUST_LOG
   • WORKER_CONCURRENCY

3. Update CLAUDE.md Project Structure: remove the - /jobs line if present.

If profile == nestjs-rust:

Tell the user:

"Applying nestjs-rust profile: copying Rust worker from templates."

Then:

1. Copy the Rust worker template to project root:

   cp -r templates/jobs-rust jobs
   

2. Add Rust-specific env vars to .env and .env.example (if not already present):

   • RUST_LOG=info
   • WORKER_CONCURRENCY=4

3. Add a jobs: service to docker-compose.yml if not already present (build from jobs/, depends on redis + postgres).

4. Verify Rust toolchain is installed:

   rustc --version || echo "Rust not installed — run: curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh"
   

If profile == go-only OR python-only:

The team is not writing a NestJS backend. agStack ships the React frontend; you own the backend in Go or Python.

Let LANG = "Go" if profile == go-only, otherwise "Python". Let WORKDIR = backend-go if profile == go-only, otherwise backend-python.

Tell the user:

"Applying <profile> profile: keeping /frontend only. Removing /api (NestJS), /jobs (Rust), and /shared (TS types) — you'll write your backend in . I'll leave a README in <WORKDIR>/ with the suggested layout."

Then:

1. Remove TS-backend folders:

   rm -rf api/ jobs/ shared/
   

2. Remove TS-backend references from docker-compose.yml:

   • Delete the jobs: service (if present)
   • Keep postgres: and redis: — user's backend will use them
   • Do NOT add a service for the user's backend — they run it outside Docker until they decide how to package it.

3. Remove TS-backend env vars from .env.example and .env:

   • JWT_SECRET, JWT_EXPIRES_IN (NestJS-specific)
   • RUST_LOG, WORKER_CONCURRENCY
   • KEEP DATABASE_URL and REDIS_URL — user's backend needs these

4. Create <WORKDIR>/README.md with a suggested layout. Use exactly this template:

   For go-only (backend-go/README.md):

   # Backend (Go)
   
   agStack provides the React frontend. You own this Go backend.
   
   ## Suggested layout
   - `cmd/api/main.go` — HTTP server entry point
   - `internal/handlers/` — HTTP handlers
   - `internal/models/` — domain types
   - `internal/db/` — Postgres access (pgx or sqlx)
   - `internal/queue/` — Redis queue consumer (optional)
   
   ## Suggested libraries
   - Router: chi, gin, or net/http
   - DB: pgx or sqlx
   - Queue: asynq (Redis-backed job queue — matches frontend expectations)
   
   ## Frontend integration
   The frontend expects `VITE_API_URL` (see `frontend/.env`) to point at this
   service. Default: `http://localhost:3000/api/v1`.
   
   ## Docker
   `docker-compose.yml` in the repo root provides Postgres + Redis. Run:
   

   docker-compose up -d

   Then start your Go service separately on port 3000 (or change `VITE_API_URL`).
   

   For python-only (backend-python/README.md):

   # Backend (Python)
   
   agStack provides the React frontend. You own this Python backend.
   
   ## Suggested layout
   - `app/main.py` — FastAPI/Django entry point
   - `app/routers/` or `app/views/` — HTTP routes
   - `app/models/` — Pydantic / Django models
   - `app/db/` — Postgres access (SQLAlchemy / Django ORM)
   - `app/workers/` — Celery / RQ / Dramatiq tasks (optional)
   
   ## Suggested stacks
   - FastAPI + SQLAlchemy + Celery
   - Django + Django REST + RQ
   
   ## Frontend integration
   The frontend expects `VITE_API_URL` (see `frontend/.env`) to point at this
   service. Default: `http://localhost:3000/api/v1`.
   
   ## Docker
   `docker-compose.yml` in the repo root provides Postgres + Redis. Run:
   

   docker-compose up -d

   Then start your Python service separately on port 3000 (or change `VITE_API_URL`).
   

5. Update frontend/.env (or .env.example for frontend) so VITE_API_URL is clearly a placeholder — prepend a comment:

   # Your <LANG> backend URL. agStack does not scaffold this backend.
   VITE_API_URL=http://localhost:3000/api/v1
   

6. Update CLAUDE.md — major surgery since the TS backend is gone:

   • Delete the ### Backend API (/api) subsection from ## Tech Stack
   • Delete the ### Job Worker (/jobs) subsection from ## Tech Stack
   • In ## Project Structure:
     • Delete - /api, - /jobs, - /shared bullets
     • Add - /<WORKDIR> — YOUR <LANG> backend (not scaffolded by agStack)
   • Delete the ### Backend NestJS section from ## Coding Conventions
   • Delete the ### Backend NestJS — Shared Code Map table
   • Delete the ### Rust Jobs — Shared Code Map table
   • Delete the ### Rust Jobs (/jobs) section
   • Delete the ## API Conventions section (user defines their own)
   • Delete the ## Job Queue Conventions section
   • In ## Multi-Agent Rules → Spawn order: note that agent-api and agent-jobs do not apply here
   • In ## Key Decisions: delete references to ADR 002 (Rust) and leave a note pointing to docs/decisions/000-tech-stack.md
   • Leave .claude/agents/agent-api.md and agent-jobs.md on disk (inert) but add a line at the top of CLAUDE.md's agents section:

     > Note: agent-api and agent-jobs are disabled for this project (non-TS backend).
     

7. Scaffold step — after removing everything, the repo still needs to be runnable for frontend-only development. Run the frontend npm install ONLY (skip api/jobs steps below in later /setup sections):

   cd frontend && npm install
   

   Then install backend dependencies for the user's stack:

   • go-only: cd backend-go && go mod tidy (generates go.sum)
   • python-only: cd backend-python && pip install -e ".[dev]"

   Do NOT run npx prisma migrate or any NestJS-related steps — they no longer apply. Skip Step 2's Prisma section entirely if profile is go-only or python-only.

Flag for the user:

"Your backend is OUT OF SCOPE for agStack skills — /review, /qa, /ship assume a NestJS API. Those skills will still work for the frontend, but any backend QA/review is on you."

After applying the profile, run git status and show the user what changed before continuing to Step 3.

Step 3: App Shell + Shadcn Components

EVERYTHING below is pre-existing in the boilerplate. DO NOT regenerate ANY of these files:

Backend (all pre-built):

• api/src/main.ts — NestJS bootstrap with Swagger, CORS, global pipes/filters
• api/src/app.module.ts — Root module importing HealthModule
• api/src/common/prisma.service.ts — NestJS-managed PrismaClient
• api/nest-cli.json — NestJS CLI config
• All common infrastructure, health module, DTOs, filters, interceptors

Frontend (all pre-built):

• frontend/index.html — Vite entry HTML (has __PROJECT_NAME__ in title)
• frontend/src/app/main.tsx — React entry point
• frontend/src/app/providers.tsx — QueryClient provider
• frontend/src/app/router.tsx — React Router (home + 404)
• frontend/src/app/layout.tsx — Layout shell (has __PROJECT_NAME__ in header)
• frontend/src/pages/home.tsx — Home page (has __PROJECT_NAME__ in heading)
• frontend/src/lib/utils.ts — Shadcn cn() utility
• frontend/src/styles/globals.css — Tailwind base + CSS variables
• frontend/src/lib/form-utils.ts, api-client.ts, all hooks, all features

The ONLY things /setup does here are:

(__PROJECT_NAME__ replacement is already done in Step 1 via the sed command.)

1. Install Shadcn components (these are npm-installed, not in boilerplate):

   cd frontend && npx shadcn@latest add button input label separator sonner
   

2. Fix Sonner component — Shadcn's default sonner.tsx imports useTheme from next-themes which does NOT exist in Vite projects. After installing, edit frontend/src/components/ui/sonner.tsx:

   • Remove the import { useTheme } from "next-themes" line
   • Remove the const { theme = "system" } = useTheme() line
   • Replace theme={theme as ToasterProps["theme"]} with theme="light" This is a known Shadcn issue — their default template assumes Next.js.

3. Run bash scripts/sync-components.sh to update COMPONENTS.md

Ask user to run npm run dev and verify both frontend (:5173) and API (:3000) are working.

Step 4: Verify & Hand Off

Once everything runs:

1. Run npx @biomejs/biome check . to verify code quality
2. Run TypeScript typecheck on frontend + api
3. Summarize what's been set up

Then tell the user (in their preferred language):

Setup complete! Project is up and running.

If you have existing research, prototypes, or reference code, drop them in the materials/ folder now. Claude will review them during /office-hours so you don't have to explain everything from scratch.

Next step: run /office-hours to plan your product. gStack will scan materials/ and ask about your product vision, target users, and core features, then generate a PRD. From there:

/office-hours → /plan-ceo-review → /plan-eng-review → /plan-sprint

/plan-sprint converts your eng review into Epics, Tasks, and a Sprint backlog so Claude knows exactly what to build and in what order.

Useful gStack skills:

• /office-hours — define product, create PRD
• /plan-eng-review — validate architecture
• /plan-sprint — create epics, tasks, sprint backlog
• /design-consultation — discuss UX/UI approach
• /review → /qa → /ship — daily dev workflow

Phase B: Build Product (via gStack)

Phase B is NOT part of this skill. It happens organically through gStack skills. But here's the expected flow for reference:

/office-hours          → Define product, create PRD
/plan-ceo-review       → Validate product direction
/plan-eng-review       → Validate architecture for the features planned
/plan-sprint           → Create Epics + Tasks in BACKLOG.md, populate SPRINT.md
/plan-design-review    → Validate UX approach

Then sprint by sprint:

code feature           → Follow patterns in skills (typescript-nestjs, frontend-ui)
/review                → Code review
/qa                    → Test
/ship                  → Ship to staging/production
/retro                 → Sprint retrospective

Common product decisions handled in Phase B

These are decisions that /office-hours and sprint planning will resolve:

gStack Integration

Use gStack skills throughout the process:

Rules for this skill

1. ALWAYS ask ONE section at a time. Never dump all questions at once.
2. After generating files, ALWAYS ask user to verify they work before proceeding.
3. If something fails, use /investigate to debug, then fix before moving on.
4. Communicate in the user's preferred language. All generated code, comments, and docs MUST be in English.
5. Reference existing conventions — don't invent new patterns.
6. If user says "skip" for any step, skip it and move to next.
7. Phase A should be FAST — max 4 steps to a running dev server.
8. DO NOT make product decisions (auth, schema, layout) — that's Phase B via /office-hours.
9. DO NOT generate business features — real features come from sprint plan. Skills teach the patterns.

Source: anicdh/agstack — distributed by TomeVault.