cursor/principle-make-operations-idempotent
pstack/skills/principle-make-operations-idempotent/SKILL.md
Apply when designing commands, lifecycle steps, or processing loops that run amid crashes, restarts, and retries. Converge to the same end state regardless of partial prior runs.
$ install --global
skillsauthnpx skillsauth add cursor/plugins principle-make-operations-idempotentInstall this skill globally with one command. Works with Claude Code, Cursor, and Windsurf.
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Last scanned: May 24, 2026, 2:37 AM146.4s1 file scanned
SKILL.md
- name:
- principle-make-operations-idempotent
- description:
- Apply when designing commands, lifecycle steps, or processing loops that run amid crashes, restarts, and retries. Converge to the same end state regardless of partial prior runs.
- disable-model-invocation:
- true
Make Operations Idempotent
Design operations so they converge to the correct state regardless of how many times they run or where they start from. Every state-mutating operation should answer: "What happens if this runs twice? What happens if the previous run crashed halfway?"
Why: Commands, lifecycle operations, and processing loops run where crashes, restarts, and retries are normal. If partial state changes the next run's outcome, every restart becomes a debugging session.
The pattern:
- Convergent startup: scan for existing state, clean stale artifacts, adopt live sessions
- Content-based cleanup: compare by content equivalence, not creation order
- Self-healing locks: use PID-based stale lock detection
- Idempotent scheduling: failed work respawns cleanly, fresh input regenerated after each cycle
The test:
- What happens if this runs twice in a row?
- What happens if the previous run crashed at every possible point?
- Does re-execution converge to the same end state?
If any answer is "it depends on what state was left behind," the operation needs a reconciliation step.
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