---
name: document-release
preamble-tier: 2
version: 1.0.0
description: |
Post-ship documentation update. Reads all project docs, cross-references the
diff, builds a Diataxis coverage map (reference/how-to/tutorial/explanation),
updates README/ARCHITECTURE/CONTRIBUTING/CLAUDE.md to match what shipped,
detects architecture diagram drift, polishes CHANGELOG voice with a sell-test
rubric, cleans up TODOS, and optionally bumps VERSION. Surfaces documentation
debt in the PR body. Use when asked to "update the docs", "sync documentation",
or "post-ship docs". Proactively suggest after a PR is merged or code is shipped. (gstack)
allowed-tools:
- Bash
- Read
- Write
- Edit
- Grep
- Glob
- AskUserQuestion
triggers:
- update docs after ship
- document what changed
- post-ship docs
---
{{PREAMBLE}}
{{BASE_BRANCH_DETECT}}
# Document Release: Post-Ship Documentation Update
You are running the `/document-release` workflow. This runs **after `/ship`** (code committed, PR
exists or about to exist) but **before the PR merges**. Your job: ensure every documentation file
in the project is accurate, up to date, and written in a friendly, user-forward voice.
You are mostly automated. Make obvious factual updates directly. Stop and ask only for risky or
subjective decisions.
**Only stop for:**
- Risky/questionable doc changes (narrative, philosophy, security, removals, large rewrites)
- VERSION bump decision (if not already bumped)
- New TODOS items to add
- Cross-doc contradictions that are narrative (not factual)
**Never stop for:**
- Factual corrections clearly from the diff
- Adding items to tables/lists
- Updating paths, counts, version numbers
- Fixing stale cross-references
- CHANGELOG voice polish (minor wording adjustments)
- Marking TODOS complete
- Cross-doc factual inconsistencies (e.g., version number mismatch)
**NEVER do:**
- Overwrite, replace, or regenerate CHANGELOG entries — polish wording only, preserve all content
- Bump VERSION without asking — always use AskUserQuestion for version changes
- Use `Write` tool on CHANGELOG.md — always use `Edit` with exact `old_string` matches
---
{{SECTION_INDEX:document-release}}
---
## Step 1: Pre-flight & Diff Analysis
1. Check the current branch. If on the base branch, **abort**: "You're on the base branch. Run from a feature branch."
2. Gather context about what changed:
```bash
git diff ...HEAD --stat
```
```bash
git log ..HEAD --oneline
```
```bash
git diff ...HEAD --name-only
```
3. Discover all documentation files in the repo:
```bash
find . -maxdepth 2 -name "*.md" -not -path "./.git/*" -not -path "./node_modules/*" -not -path "./.gstack/*" -not -path "./.context/*" | sort
```
4. Classify the changes into categories relevant to documentation:
- **New features** — new files, new commands, new skills, new capabilities
- **Changed behavior** — modified services, updated APIs, config changes
- **Removed functionality** — deleted files, removed commands
- **Infrastructure** — build system, test infrastructure, CI
5. Output a brief summary: "Analyzing N files changed across M commits. Found K documentation files to review."
---
## Step 1.5: Coverage Map (Blast-Radius Analysis)
Before touching any documentation file, build a **coverage map** of what shipped vs what's
documented. This is inspired by the Diataxis framework (tutorial / how-to / reference / explanation)
— but applied as an audit lens, not a generation tool.
1. **Extract public surface changes from the diff.** Scan `git diff ...HEAD` for:
- New exported functions, classes, commands, CLI flags, config options, API endpoints
- New skills, workflows, or user-facing capabilities
- Renamed or removed public surface (modules, commands, features)
- New environment variables, feature flags, or configuration knobs
2. **For each new/changed public surface item, assess documentation coverage:**
```
Coverage map:
[entity] [reference?] [how-to?] [tutorial?] [explanation?]
/new-skill ✅ AGENTS.md ❌ ❌ ❌
--new-flag ✅ README ✅ README ❌ ❌
FooProcessor ❌ ❌ ❌ ❌
```
Use these definitions:
- **Reference** — factual description of what it is, its API, its options (README tables, AGENTS.md skill lists, API docs)
- **How-to** — task-oriented: "how to do X with this" (README examples, CONTRIBUTING workflows)
- **Tutorial** — learning-oriented: step-by-step walkthrough for newcomers (getting started guides)
- **Explanation** — understanding-oriented: "why this works this way" (ARCHITECTURE decisions, design rationale)
3. **Output the coverage map.** Items with zero coverage are **critical gaps** — flag them for
Step 3. Items with reference-only coverage are **common gaps** — note them for the PR body.
4. **Architecture diagram drift detection.** If ARCHITECTURE.md (or any doc) contains ASCII
diagrams or Mermaid blocks, extract entity names (modules, services, data flows) from the
diagrams. Cross-reference against the diff. Flag any diagram entities that were renamed,
split, removed, or moved in the code.
The coverage map feeds into Steps 2-3 (what to audit and fix) and Step 9 (documentation debt
summary in the PR body). Do NOT auto-generate missing documentation pages — flag gaps only.
When significant gaps are found, suggest running `/document-generate` to fill them.
---
{{SECTION:release-body}}
---
## Important Rules
- **Read before editing.** Always read the full content of a file before modifying it.
- **Never clobber CHANGELOG.** Polish wording only. Never delete, replace, or regenerate entries.
- **Never bump VERSION silently.** Always ask. Even if already bumped, check whether it covers the full scope of changes.
- **Be explicit about what changed.** Every edit gets a one-line summary.
- **Generic heuristics, not project-specific.** The audit checks work on any repo.
- **Discoverability matters.** Every doc file should be reachable from README or CLAUDE.md.
- **Coverage map informs, never generates.** The Diataxis coverage map flags gaps for the PR body
and future work. It does NOT auto-generate missing documentation pages or sections. When gaps
are found, suggest `/document-generate` as the follow-up skill.
- **Diagram drift is advisory.** Flag stale architecture diagrams in the PR body but do not
auto-edit ASCII art or Mermaid blocks — they require human judgment to update correctly.
- **Voice: friendly, user-forward, not obscure.** Write like you're explaining to a smart person
who hasn't seen the code.