Quick Start

Run all small commands from your repository root. If executed inside .small/, SMALL will still resolve the workspace automatically.

Initialize a SMALL Workspace

bash

small init --intent "My project description"

This creates a .small/ directory with the five canonical artifacts:

text

.small/
|-- intent.small.yml
|-- constraints.small.yml
|-- plan.small.yml
|-- progress.small.yml
`-- handoff.small.yml

Verify the Environment

bash

small selftest       # Confirm CLI binary and runtime are functional
small doctor         # Diagnose workspace health (read-only)

Run these before starting work. If either fails, fix the issue before proceeding.

Validate Artifacts

bash

small validate

Check Project Status

bash

small status

What a SMALL Project Looks Like

A SMALL project consists of five canonical artifacts plus workspace metadata. The set is fixed; growth happens inside the artifacts.

text

.small/
|-- intent.small.yml        # Stable: what the work is
|-- constraints.small.yml   # Stable: what must not change
|-- plan.small.yml          # Grows: tasks added and updated
|-- progress.small.yml      # Append-only execution log
|-- handoff.small.yml       # Regenerated resume checkpoint
`-- workspace.small.yml     # Workspace metadata (kind, version)

Artifact Evolution

Artifact	Behavior
intent	Set once, rarely edited
constraints	Set once, rarely edited
plan	Grows over time
progress	Append-only
handoff	Regenerated on handoff
workspace	Generated by init