abildtoft/kramme:docs:adr

Architecture Decision Record

Author an ADR for a significant, long-lived decision: state the problem, the choice, the alternatives rejected, and the consequences.

This skill writes ADR files and may update predecessor ADRs, so it runs only after explicit user invocation.

When to use

A decision warrants an ADR if any of these are true:

• It affects more than one module.
• It commits to a dependency (library, service, data store, cloud provider).
• It changes a public interface.
• It changes the data model.
• It rejects an alternative a future maintainer might reasonably re-propose.

Route elsewhere if:

• In-project decisions during a tracked SIW initiative → use /kramme:siw:close, which emits a project-scoped decisions.md. This skill handles repo-level ADRs that outlive any single initiative.
• Feature spec / scope decisions before implementation → use /kramme:docs:feature-spec.
• Agent-facing rules (commit style, package manager, conventions) → use /kramme:docs:update-agents-md.

Pre-flight: detect existing ADR format

Before drafting, check whether the project already has ADRs. If yes, preserve the existing style rather than imposing this template.

1. Look for an ADR directory. Common paths:
   • docs/decisions/
   • docs/adr/ or adr/
   • docs/architecture/decisions/
   • architecture/decisions/
2. If found, read 1–2 of the most recent ADRs. Identify:
   • Template style (Nygard, MADR, custom).
   • Status vocabulary (may differ from the four states below).
   • Numbering format (0001- vs 001- vs ADR-001- vs adr-001-).
   • Filename contract: literal prefix before the number, numeric zero-padding width, separator after the number, and slug convention.
   • Filename slug convention.
3. Treat the matched directory as ADR_DIR for the rest of the workflow.
4. Match that style for the new ADR. Only fall back to assets/adr-template.md when the directory does not exist or is empty.

If the existing style uses a vocabulary that conflicts with the four lifecycle states below, prefer the project's vocabulary — but surface the mismatch with a CONFUSION marker so the user can decide whether to reconcile.

Lifecycle states

Four states (use verbatim unless the project already uses a different vocabulary):

• PROPOSED — under discussion; not yet adopted.
• ACCEPTED — in effect.
• SUPERSEDED — replaced by a later ADR; still preserved as historical context.
• DEPRECATED — no longer applies; preserved for history.

Preservation rule

"Don't delete old ADRs. They capture historical context."

Even SUPERSEDED ADRs stay in the directory. They explain why the current approach was chosen over the previous one. Deleting them erases the reasoning that a future maintainer needs to avoid re-making a rejected choice.

Markers

Emit these markers as you draft. They are non-optional when the condition applies.

SIMPLICITY CHECK

Before expanding sections past the minimum, state the minimum viable ADR.

SIMPLICITY CHECK: minimum ADR = Context + Decision + one rejected alternative. Expanding Consequences because the decision has downstream effects on two services.

A minimum viable ADR has Context, Decision, and at least one rejected alternative. Expand only when a concrete reason forces it.

NOTICED BUT NOT TOUCHING

When drafting, you will spot prior decisions that were never documented. Do not backfill them silently.

NOTICED BUT NOT TOUCHING: caching strategy choice (Redis over Memcached, ~2024) was never captured as an ADR
Why skipping: out-of-scope for this ADR; log for a future backfill pass

Log the gap; do not retroactively invent ADRs for decisions you weren't present for.

UNVERIFIED

Any claim in Context or Consequences that rests on measurement, benchmark, or external source must be verified. If you cannot verify it now, mark it.

UNVERIFIED: "Postgres writes are ~3x slower than Redis for our workload"
Source needed: benchmark in #perf channel or ops dashboard

An ADR built on unverified claims misleads future readers more than no ADR at all.

MISSING REQUIREMENT

Gate drafting if any of these are absent:

• Deciders (at least one named person or role).
• Context framing (what problem forced the choice).
• At least one rejected alternative.

MISSING REQUIREMENT: no deciders named
Cannot proceed past draft until resolved

CONFUSION

If the decision scope is unclear — "is this one ADR or three?" — stop and clarify with the user before drafting.

CONFUSION: proposed ADR covers both session storage AND session encryption. These are separable decisions with different alternatives. Split into two ADRs?

PLAN

Superseding produces a multi-file change (new ADR + predecessor update). State the plan before editing.

PLAN:
1. Write the new ADR in ADR_DIR using the detected filename convention (for example `0007-title.md`, `ADR-007-title.md`, or `adr-007-title.md`) with status PROPOSED unless the decision is already adopted
2. If the new ADR is already ACCEPTED, update #MMMM: change status to "SUPERSEDED by #NNNN", add forward-reference
3. Do not edit any other content of #MMMM

ASK FIRST

These are Tier-2 decisions — ask the user before proceeding:

• Deprecating a live ADR.
• Changing the project's established ADR format.
• Superseding an ADR authored by someone else.

ASK FIRST: about to supersede #0003 (ACCEPTED, authored by @alice 2024-06). Confirm before writing new ADR?

Core workflow

Five steps. Do not skip steps.

1. Detect significance

Apply the When to use criteria. If the decision affects only one function or is a purely tactical choice, emit a NOTICED BUT NOT TOUCHING marker (or nothing) and stop — this is not ADR-worthy.

2. Find next ADR number

Use ADR_DIR from pre-flight. Scan that directory for the highest existing ADR number and increment it. Match the project's detected filename contract, including any literal prefix, zero-padding, separator, and slug style. Do not silently normalize the project onto ADR- or bare-number filenames.

While scanning, also check existing ADR titles and slugs for one that already records this decision. If a match exists, emit CONFUSION ("an ADR for this decision may already exist: #NNNN — supersede it instead of creating a duplicate?") and resolve with the user before numbering a new file.

If the existing ADR filenames do not follow a sequential integer scheme you can increment safely (for example they are date-based or prose-only), emit CONFUSION and ask whether to preserve that non-sequential scheme or bootstrap a new ADR log.

For the common prefix + integer + separator + slug shapes, extract the integer with a pattern adjusted to the detected prefix and separator. Example starting point:

find "$ADR_DIR" -maxdepth 1 -type f -print \
  | sed 's#.*/##' \
  | sed -nE 's/^[^0-9]*([0-9]+)([-_].*)$/\1/p' \
  | sort -n \
  | tail -1

Treat that snippet as an example, not a universal regex: tighten it to the exact convention you detected in pre-flight (for example ADR-, adr-, bare digits, or another fixed prefix) before trusting the result.

If no ADR directory exists, create docs/decisions/, set ADR_DIR=docs/decisions/, and start at 0001.

3. Draft using the detected or default template

• If a project template was detected in pre-flight, match it.
• Otherwise, use assets/adr-template.md verbatim.

Populate: Status (PROPOSED to start), Date (today, not the decision date — see Rationalizations), Deciders, Context, Decision, Consequences (positive / negative / neutral-or-follow-on), Alternatives considered (at least one).

Emit SIMPLICITY CHECK before expanding Consequences or Alternatives past the minimum.

4. Set status

Start as PROPOSED. Transition to ACCEPTED only when the decision is adopted (e.g. PR merged, team consensus recorded, external approval granted). Do not mark ACCEPTED pre-emptively.

5. If superseding

Emit a PLAN marker first. Then:

1. In the new ADR's header, set Status to PROPOSED by default and add a line noting the intended predecessor, such as Proposed successor to #MMMM.
2. If the decision is already adopted, set the new ADR's Status to ACCEPTED and replace that note with Supersedes #MMMM.
3. Once the new ADR is ACCEPTED, update the old ADR (#MMMM): change Status to SUPERSEDED by #NNNN and add a line referencing the successor. Do not edit any other content of the predecessor.
4. Keep both files (see Preservation rule).

If the predecessor was authored by someone else, emit ASK FIRST before proceeding.

Integration with other skills

• Sibling — API surface decisions: kramme:code:api-design often surfaces choices that warrant an ADR (public surface shape, backwards-compatibility policy, versioning).
• Sibling — migration strategy: kramme:code:migrate frequently produces an ADR recording the chosen migration path and what alternatives were rejected.
• Sibling — in-project decisions: kramme:siw:init / kramme:siw:close handle decisions that live within a single tracked initiative via a project-scoped decisions.md. Do not double-log those here.
• Upstream discipline: kramme:code:incremental — when an ADR accompanies code changes, each slice stays scoped to its own decision. Do not bundle multiple ADR-worthy decisions into one slice.

Inline-offer pattern (for other skills)

Skills that resolve decisions during their own workflow (discovery interviews, refactor explorations, architecture critiques) can surface an ADR opportunity and hand off here rather than authoring inline. The offer contract — the three-criterion test, the canonical offer message, the handoff rule, and session de-duplication — lives in references/inline-offer-pattern.md. Read it only when implementing that handoff in another skill.

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Common Rationalizations

These are the lies you will tell yourself to skip or distort the ADR. Each has a correct response:

• "It's just a tactical choice, not worth an ADR." → Apply the When to use significance test. If any criterion there matches, it warrants an ADR.
• "We'll capture the reasoning in the README." → READMEs rot and get edited without attribution. ADRs are dated, numbered, and preserved.
• "I'll backdate the ADR to when we actually decided." → Date the writing, not the decision. Honesty beats revisionism. Backdated ADRs erode trust in the whole log.
• "Everyone already knows why." → Nobody who joins next year knows why. The ADR is for them, not you.
• "I'll skip Alternatives — we never really considered any." → Every decision rejected alternatives, even implicit ones ("do nothing", "keep what we have"). Name at least one.
• "I'll backfill the three prior undocumented decisions while I'm here." → Emit NOTICED BUT NOT TOUCHING for each. Backfilling decisions you weren't present for invents history.

Red Flags

Rejection criteria. If any of these are true, revert the ADR (delete a newly created file, or undo the predecessor edit when superseding) and re-plan:

• Decision paragraph longer than the Context paragraph. A decision without problem framing is a preference, not an ADR.
• Editing a SUPERSEDED ADR's content instead of writing a new one. The predecessor is frozen; capture the new thinking in a new ADR.
• Claims in Context or Consequences with no UNVERIFIED marker and no source. Build on evidence or mark the gap.
• Anything the Verification checklist below would reject — deleted predecessors, missing deciders, missing alternatives, or multiple separable decisions bundled into one ADR.

Verification

Before declaring the ADR done, self-check:

• [ ] ADR numbered sequentially — the numeric portion is the highest existing ADR number + 1, with the project's filename prefix and padding convention.
• [ ] Status set (PROPOSED or ACCEPTED), not blank.
• [ ] Date filled with today's date (the date of writing, not the decision).
• [ ] At least one decider listed.
• [ ] Context explains the problem or constraint that forced the decision.
• [ ] Decision stated in one clear paragraph.
• [ ] Consequences cover positive and negative effects (neutral/follow-on optional).
• [ ] At least one rejected alternative with a reason.
• [ ] Exactly one decision covered — separable decisions split into separate ADRs.
• [ ] If superseding: predecessor marked SUPERSEDED by #NNNN with forward-reference; predecessor content otherwise untouched.
• [ ] No prior ADR deleted.
• [ ] Every unverifiable claim carries an UNVERIFIED marker.
• [ ] ADR lives in the detected ADR directory (ADR_DIR), or docs/decisions/ when bootstrapping a new log.
• [ ] If the project already uses a non-default ADR filename prefix or separator (for example adr-001-), the new ADR preserves that contract and increments from the highest matching entry instead of restarting at 0001.

If any box is unchecked, finish the gap or revert (delete the new file, or undo the predecessor edit) before declaring done.