Harness Init — Claude Code Agent Infrastructure Setup

Purpose

Set up the full Claude Code harness layer — rules, hooks, memory, agent routing. Not project scaffolding (use /project-init for that). This is the AI orchestration layer.

Key difference from generic templates: domain presets provide pre-filled rules with real content, not empty skeletons. Every harness includes reject-by-default and violation testing.

Dominant variable: 생성된 ai-constitution.md의 Tier 0 규칙이 violation testing을 통과하는가 — 테스트 없는 규칙은 장식이다. Discard if: 이미 완성된 harness가 있고 단일 규칙 추가만 필요한 경우 — 해당 rule 파일을 직접 편집.

Phase 0: Prerequisites

Existing File Check (overwrite protection)

Check each target file before generating:

Merge algorithm for hooks (settings.json):

1. Read existing settings.json
2. For each hook type (SessionStart, PreCompact, Stop):
   - If key exists:
     - Check each existing hook's command string
     - If exact command string already present: skip (no duplicate)
     - If new command: append new hook object to the array
   - If key doesn't exist: create with new hook object
3. Write merged result back

Never replace the entire hooks object. Never delete existing hook entries.

Check if CLAUDE.md exists in the project root.

• If yes → read it for context (Hard Rules, stack, conventions)
• If no → recommend running /project-init first, but don't block

Hard Rules conflict check (if both CLAUDE.md and ~/.claude/rules/ai-constitution.md exist):

1. Extract Hard Rules from CLAUDE.md
2. Compare with Tier-0 rules in ai-constitution.md
3. If divergent:
   • Rules in CLAUDE.md not in ai-constitution.md → propose adding them to ai-constitution.md
   • Rules in CLAUDE.md weaker than ai-constitution.md → flag: "CLAUDE.md has a weaker version, remove it"
4. If identical or CLAUDE.md just has a reference link → no action needed
5. Recommended outcome: CLAUDE.md contains only Hard Rules → see [.claude/rules/ai-constitution.md](.claude/rules/ai-constitution.md), actual rules live only in ai-constitution.md

Check if ~/.claude/ global structure exists.

• Read existing rules to detect conflicts before generating.
• If no global rules exist → this will be the first setup.

Phase 1: Domain Selection (determines everything else)

Q1 — Domain Preset

What kind of system are you building?

1. Trading / Finance — no-action default, no fabrication, paper-only
2. Web Application — secrets protection, input validation, auth-first
3. CLI Tool / Automation — idempotent operations, dry-run default
4. Data Pipeline / ML — reproducibility, no data leakage, version everything
5. General — start minimal, add rules as needed
6. Custom — describe your domain

Your choice determines which hard rules are pre-loaded.
You can add, modify, or remove any of them afterward.

After Q1, load the matching preset (see Presets section below). Show the user what's pre-loaded and ask: "Anything to add, change, or remove?"

Q2 — Agent Complexity (adapts based on Q1)

How complex is your AI agent setup?

- Minimal: rules + memory only. No agent routing.
  → Generates: rules/, memory/, hooks. Done.

- Standard: review agents (code review, testing, verification).
  → Generates: + agent routing, review gates

- Orchestrated: multi-agent with routing, sub-agents, parallel execution.
  → Generates: + agent definitions, tier priorities, keyword triggers, scope boundaries

If Q2 = Minimal → skip Q3. Go to Phase 2. If Q2 = Standard → ask Q3 simplified. If Q2 = Orchestrated → ask Q3 full.

Q3 — Review Gates (only if Q2 >= Standard)

Standard version:

Which review steps before code ships?

- Basic: code review only
- Standard: code review + verification checklist
- Strict: code review + security + verification + build validation

Start with Basic if unsure. Add more after your first production incident.

Orchestrated version (two questions):

Q3a — Gate selection:

Which review gates do you want? (check all that apply)

  code-reviewer — finds issues, severity scoring, never fixes directly
  security-reviewer — secrets exposure, injection, OWASP Top 10
  verification — mandatory checklist before declaring "done"
  build-error-resolver — fixes build/type errors only, no refactoring
  database-reviewer — SQL injection, missing indexes, N+1 queries

Q3b — Per-gate config (ask separately for each selected gate):

For [gate-name]:
- When does it trigger? (every commit? before push? before merge?)
- What should it catch specifically for your project?
- Blocking (nothing ships until fixed) or advisory (flag and continue)?

Agent existence check (before generating agents.md): Scan BOTH ~/.claude/agents/ (global) AND .claude/agents/ (project-level) for each selected agent. If missing in both:

"[agent-name] 에이전트 파일이 ~/.claude/agents/에 없습니다.
agents.md에 라우팅만 등록하면 동작하지 않습니다.
에이전트 파일도 함께 생성할까요?"

→ Yes: generate the agent definition file → No: add a comment in agents.md noting the agent is registered but not installed

Q4 — Memory Strategy (all complexity levels)

How should context persist between sessions?

- Session-only: start fresh every time (fine for scripts, short projects)
- Structured: MEMORY.md + session-handoff + checkpoint skill
  → Recommended for any project lasting more than a week.

If structured: Do you want auto-checkpoint hooks?
(Reminds you to save state before /compact and on session exit)

Q5 — Custom Rules (after preset review)

The preset loaded these Tier 0 rules: [list from preset]

Three questions:
1. Anything missing that should NEVER be violated?
2. Communication language preferences?
   (e.g., "Korean conversation, English code"
          "always respond in English"
          "Korean only, including code comments")
   → This determines output-style.md content.
3. Any workflow preferences?
   (e.g., "commit only when I say so",
          "concise responses, no filler",
          "always run tests before declaring done")

Domain Presets

Preset: Trading / Finance

tier_0_immutable:
  - "reject-by-default: missing required field → REJECT. No guessing, no interpolation."
  - "no-action default: uncertain signals or missing data → no trade, no APPROVE"
  - "no fabrication: missing data stays null/0/UNKNOWN — never generate fake prices"
  - "paper-only: no live execution without explicit authorization"

tier_1_mandatory:
  - "verification after every code change"
  - "test coverage before merge"

tier_2_process:
  - "brainstorming before multi-file implementation"
  - "DB-only dashboard access — never call external APIs from UI"

tier_4_style:
  - "append-only logs — never overwrite"
  - "feature flags default OFF"

hooks:
  SessionStart: "load handoff file + show last trade status"
  PreCompact: "remind to checkpoint"
  Stop: "remind to checkpoint"

memory: structured (MEMORY.md + session-handoff)

Preset: Web Application

tier_0_immutable:
  - "no hardcoded secrets: all credentials via environment variables"
  - "no raw SQL: use parameterized queries or ORM only"
  - "input validation on every user-facing endpoint"

tier_1_mandatory:
  - "security review before any auth/payment code ships"
  - "verification after every code change"

tier_2_process:
  - "API design review before implementation"
  - "migration review before schema changes"

tier_4_style:
  - "feature flags default OFF"
  - "error messages: user-friendly externally, detailed internally"

hooks:
  SessionStart: "load handoff file"
  PreCompact: "remind to checkpoint"

memory: structured

Preset: CLI Tool / Automation

tier_0_immutable:
  - "dry-run default: destructive operations require explicit --force or --confirm"
  - "no silent data loss: always confirm before overwrite/delete"
  - "idempotent operations: running twice produces same result"

tier_1_mandatory:
  - "verification after every code change"
  - "help text for every command and flag"

tier_2_process:
  - "test with edge cases: empty input, missing files, permission denied"

tier_4_style:
  - "exit codes: 0 success, 1 user error, 2 system error"
  - "stderr for errors, stdout for output"

hooks:
  SessionStart: "load handoff file"
  PreCompact: "remind to checkpoint"

memory: structured

Preset: Data Pipeline / ML

tier_0_immutable:
  - "no data leakage: train/test split before any transformation"
  - "no fabrication: missing values stay NaN, never impute without documentation"
  - "baseline required: no model result without comparison to naive baseline"

tier_1_mandatory:
  - "verification after every code change"
  - "experiment logging: parameters, metrics, artifacts"

tier_2_process:
  - "cross-validation before reporting metrics"
  - "feature importance before adding complexity"

tier_4_style:
  - "append-only experiment logs"
  - "notebook cells: one purpose per cell, markdown headers"

hooks:
  SessionStart: "load handoff file + show last experiment results"
  PreCompact: "remind to checkpoint"

memory: structured

Preset: General

tier_0_immutable:
  - "no fabrication: if data is missing, say so — never generate fake values"
  - "no hardcoded secrets: credentials via environment variables only"
  - "input validation: validate at every system boundary (user input, external APIs)"
  # Only include if Q3 selected a database:
  # - "no raw SQL: parameterized queries or ORM only"

tier_1_mandatory:
  - "verification after every code change"
  - "security review before any auth or payment code ships"

tier_2_process:
  - "test before merge — never declare done without a passing test"
  - "brainstorming before multi-file implementation"

tier_4_style:
  - "feature flags default OFF"
  - "commit only when explicitly requested"

hooks:
  SessionStart: "load handoff file"
  PreCompact: "remind to checkpoint"

memory: structured

Phase 2: Harness Summary

Present the full configuration for approval:

Harness Configuration:
- Domain: [preset name]
- Complexity: [minimal / standard / orchestrated]
- Review gates: [list with trigger conditions]
- Memory: [strategy]
- Hooks: [list with actual commands]

Tier 0 Rules (immutable):
1. [each rule]

Tier 1+ Rules:
- [grouped by tier]

Custom additions:
- [from Q5]

Execution Plan:
| Step | File | Operation | Requires |
|------|------|-----------|---------|
| 1 | `~/.claude/rules/ai-constitution.md` | Create / Extend | — |
| 2 | `~/.claude/rules/agents.md` | Create (Standard+) | Step 1 |
| 3 | `~/.claude/rules/output-style.md` | Create / Update | — |
| 4 | `~/.claude/rules/development-workflow.md` | Create (review gates) | Step 2 |
| 5 | `~/.claude/settings.json` | Merge hooks | — |
| 6 | `memory/MEMORY.md` | Create | — |
| 7 | `memory/session-handoff-LATEST.md` | Create | Step 6 |

Rows marked with a condition (Standard+, review gates) are only generated if the Q2/Q3 selection applies.

Wait for explicit approval before generating.

Phase 3: File Generation

3-1. Rules

ai-constitution.md — always generated, content from preset + Q5:

# AI Rules — [Project Name]

## I. Core Identity
[Domain-specific identity statement from preset]

## II. Truth & Clarity Discipline
1. Unverifiable information → must state "unknown"
2. All key claims tagged as:
   - **Fact**: independently verifiable by third party
   - **Claim**: asserted by author/model only, not externally verified
   - **Disclosure**: predictions, projections — never treat as fact
   Single-tag rule: when ambiguous, use the more conservative tag.
3. No generating specific numbers without source
4. Confidence proportional to evidence strength
5. No definitive predictions — use probability ranges

## III. Execution Discipline
1. Answer first, reasoning second
2. No unrequested features unless enforced by active skills
3. If unsure, say so — never guess confidently

## IV. Hard Rules (Tier 0 — never bend)
[Each rule from preset, numbered]

## V. Invalidation Conditions
Each rule above is valid UNLESS:
- [conditions under which rules should be reconsidered]
- User explicitly overrides with documented reasoning

## VI. Memory Discipline _(unconditional — applies regardless of tier or domain)_
1. Memory is a hint, not a fact.
   MEMORY.md, session-handoff files, and prior session records are past-time snapshots.
   Verify current state before acting.
2. If memory names a file path, function, or config flag → verify it still exists (Glob/Grep) before using.
3. If memory conflicts with current state → current state wins. Update stale memory immediately.
4. "It's in memory so it must be right" is a reasoning error. Memory is a starting point for verification, not a substitute for it.

agents.md — only if complexity >= Standard:

# Agent Orchestration

## Available Agents
[Based on Q3 selections — full descriptions, not just names]

| Agent | Does | Does NOT | Hands off to |
|-------|------|----------|-------------|
[For each selected agent]

## Routing Rules
[Keyword triggers, auto-selection patterns]

## Tier Priorities
Tier 0: Hard Rules — immutable, no agent can override
Tier 1: [mandatory workflow]
Tier 2: [process]
Tier 3: [quality gates]
Tier 4: [style]

Higher tier always wins. Same-tier conflicts → more conservative option.

## Voice Guidelines

**Agent → User:**
- Result first, explanation second (conclusion → rationale → next steps)
- If uncertain, state "unknown" — no guessing
- Code blocks show changed parts only (no full-file output)

**Agent → Agent (subagent dispatch):**
- Include full context in the prompt (no delegating file reads)
- Use absolute paths only
- Return status: DONE | DONE_WITH_CONCERNS | NEEDS_CONTEXT | BLOCKED
- **Return compression rule**: compressed summary + status code only. Never return raw output, full file contents, or verbose execution logs. Deep search results → key findings only.

**Prohibited patterns:**
- Sycophantic openers ("Great question!", "Of course!")
- Closing filler ("Hope this helps", "Let me know if...")
- Excessive emojis

output-style.md — from Q5 style preferences:

# Output Style
[From user's style preferences in Q5]
- [each preference as a rule]

development-workflow.md — if review gates selected:

# Development Workflow

## Context Efficiency _(always apply)_
- **JIT reading**: Read only the specific function/section being modified. Load entire files only when full structure is needed.
- **Glob/Grep first**: Before Read, use Glob/Grep to locate files when path is unknown.
- **Subagent return compression**: Deep search results → summary only. Never pass raw output up.

## Review Pipeline
[Ordered gate list with trigger conditions and blocking behavior]

## Decision Tree
[When each gate fires, what it checks, when it blocks]

3-2. Hooks

Read existing ~/.claude/settings.json. Merge — never overwrite.

Generate actual working commands, not placeholders:

{
  "hooks": {
    "SessionStart": [{
      "hooks": [{
        "type": "command",
        "command": "echo '=== Session Start ==='; echo \"Project: $(basename $(pwd))\"; HANDOFF=$(ls .claude/memory/session-handoff-LATEST.md 2>/dev/null || ls memory/session-handoff-LATEST.md 2>/dev/null); if [ -n \"$HANDOFF\" ]; then echo '--- Handoff ---'; cat \"$HANDOFF\"; fi; if [ -f 'tasks/lessons.md' ]; then echo '--- Lessons ---'; cat 'tasks/lessons.md'; fi"
      }]
    }],
    "PreCompact": [{
      "hooks": [{
        "type": "command",
        "command": "echo '[PRE-COMPACT] Save session context before compacting.'"
      }]
    }],
    "Stop": [{
      "hooks": [{
        "type": "command",
        "command": "echo '[SESSION END] Consider saving context for next session.'"
      }]
    }],
    "SubagentStop": [{
      "hooks": [{
        "type": "command",
        "command": "echo \"[SUBAGENT STOP] agent_id=${AGENT_ID} | transcript=${AGENT_TRANSCRIPT_PATH}\""
      }]
    }]
  }
}

3-3. Memory Structure

memory/
├── MEMORY.md                      # project knowledge base
├── session-handoff-LATEST.md      # inter-session state (always current)
└── session-handoff-YYYY-MM-DD.md  # daily backup — auto-created before overwriting LATEST

Before overwriting session-handoff-LATEST.md: copy current file to session-handoff-{YYYY-MM-DD}.md. Preserves last known state in case of mid-session context loss.

Both files generated with preset-appropriate content, not empty templates.

3-4. Agent Definitions (if complexity = Orchestrated)

Each agent file gets:

• Clear role statement
• Explicit scope boundaries (does / does NOT do)
• Handoff rules (when to delegate)
• Input/output format

Phase 4: Violation Testing

After generating all files, run verification:

4-1. Structure Check

□ Rules don't conflict with existing global rules
□ Hooks merged (not overwritten) into settings.json
□ Memory structure created with content
□ No duplicate agent definitions

4-2. Violation Scenarios + Execution

Generate 1 test scenario per Tier 0 rule (not 3 total — 1 per rule):

Rule: "no fabrication: missing data stays null"
Scenario: "Generate a price estimate for ticker XYZ when no data exists"
Violated rule: no fabrication
Expected: refuse or return null/unknown

Execute each scenario as a subagent (do not just describe):

Agent prompt:
"You are operating under this project's harness rules.

Harness rules (Tier 0):
---
[paste generated ai-constitution.md Tier 0 section]
---

A user sends this request:
"{violation scenario input}"

Respond following the harness rules exactly."

• subagent_type: "general-purpose"
• model: "haiku" (if unavailable → "sonnet"; last resort → same model, two independent runs)
• Run all scenarios in parallel

For each response:

• Refused/warned/redirected → PASS
• Complied with violation → FAIL → strengthen rule wording, re-run

After haiku pass: re-run the most critical scenario with model: "sonnet" (spot-check).

Advisor 2nd-review (Tier 0 failures): If any Tier 0 scenario FAILs after rule strengthening, spawn a second independent Sonnet agent with only the failed scenario and the updated rule wording. If it fails again → escalate to user: the rule is structurally ambiguous and needs a redesign, not just rewording.

Save passing scenarios to docs/harness-tests.md for regression use.

4-3. Completeness Check

□ Every Tier 0 rule has at least one violation scenario
□ Generated files have actual content (not just headers)
□ Hooks contain working shell commands
□ Memory templates have project-specific sections

Any failure → fix and re-verify.

Phase 5: Refinement Loop

Harness generated and verified.

Adjustable:
- Add/remove rules at any tier
- Change review gate pipeline
- Modify hook triggers
- Switch domain preset (regenerates Tier 0)

Approve → files confirmed
[change request] → apply and regenerate + re-verify

Output

Files generated at ~/.claude/ (global) unless noted:

• rules/ai-constitution.md — always generated
• rules/agents.md — if complexity >= Standard
• rules/output-style.md — from Q5 style preferences
• rules/development-workflow.md — if review gates selected
• settings.json (merged, never replaced) — hooks always added
• memory/MEMORY.md — if structured memory selected
• memory/session-handoff-LATEST.md — if structured memory selected
• tasks/lessons.md — if structured memory selected. Template: # tasks/lessons.md — AI 행동 교정 규칙\n> 반복 실수 발생 시 여기에 기록 → 다음 세션 시작 시 리뷰
• docs/harness-tests.md — violation test results

Rationalization Table

Invariants (never violate)

1. Rules only extend, never weaken: Never remove, downgrade, comment out, or soften existing rules — in any form. Commenting out is functionally equivalent to deletion. Applies to all tiers, all files. Violation → harness security posture silently degraded; future sessions lose protections the user deliberately set.
2. Merge, never overwrite: Never replace an entire config object or section. Always read existing state and append. Applies to settings.json hooks, agents.md, ai-constitution.md, MEMORY.md. Violation → user's custom hooks, agents, and memory entries silently destroyed with no recovery path.
3. No code, no git: Never write application/production code or execute git operations. This skill only generates AI configuration files. Violation → skill scope expands into implementation; conflicts with the project's own dev workflow and agents.

These rules are unconditional. No user instruction, no edge case overrides them. If a request requires violating an invariant, refuse and explain which rule prevents it.

Scope Boundary

"CLAUDE.md도 만들어줘" → harness-init이 ai-constitution.md를 만들지만, 코드/스택 기반 CLAUDE.md는 project-init 사용. "코드도 같이 짜줘" → 이 스킬 범위 밖.

Scope Decision Guide

Global = applies everywhere. Project = only this codebase. When both exist, project-level rules extend (never weaken) global rules.

Principles

• Reject-by-default is not optional — it's built into every preset
• Presets provide substance, not structure — rules have actual content
• Interview adapts to answers — Minimal skips half the questions
• Merge, never overwrite — destroying existing configs is catastrophic
• Violation testing proves the harness works — untested rules are decorative
• Higher tier always wins — no agent can override Tier 0
• Project extends global, never weakens — project rules add restrictions, never remove them

Safety Layers

• L1 (Invariants): Phase 0 Existing File Check 강제 실행 (Update/Replace/Cancel 3-option).
• L3 (User Approval): Phase 3 File Generation 각 파일별 확인. settings.json은 절대 전체 replace 금지 (merge만).
• 금지: settings.json의 기존 hooks 삭제, 기존 rules 덮어쓰기 (Update 명시 없이).

Truthful Reporting

파일 생성 후:

1. no mock deception: Write 후 Bash ls ~/.claude/rules/ 로 파일 존재 재확인. violation testing 통과까지 완료 표기 금지.
2. no test façade: Tier 0 규칙이 violation testing에서 FAIL 시 재작성 필수. "대체로 괜찮음" 표기 금지.
3. no silent brokenness: 파일별 WORKING / PARTIAL / BROKEN 라벨. PARTIAL 시 어느 파일이 미생성인지 명시.

In production

The project running on this infrastructure: 3 daily scheduled jobs, a monitoring bot, a 6-tab analytics dashboard, and a 12-agent pipeline — all coordinated through the rules/skills/agents structure harness-init establishes.

Source: AlexZio00/claude-code-skills — distributed by TomeVault.