How to verify an agent has loaded SpecDD skills correctly

How-To Set up your agent Beginner 1021013HOWTO-1021013

HOWTO-1021013Set up your agentBeginner

This guide shows you how to verify that an agent has loaded SpecDD skills for a spec-driven development workflow or is otherwise following SpecDD project context correctly.

Do this after installing a dedicated plugin, deploying universal Agent Skills, or switching to a new agent.

What good behavior looks like

A SpecDD-ready agent should:

recognize the project bootstrap files
identify relevant .sdd specs for a task
distinguish read context from write authority
plan before broad implementation work
preserve Must not and Forbids constraints
run useful checks or explain why it could not
update Tasks only after verification

Steps

1. Check the setup files

For any SpecDD project, confirm:

AGENTS.md
.specdd/bootstrap.md
<root-name>.sdd

For universal Agent Skills, confirm that the skills exist in the directory your client reads:

.agents/skills

or:

~/.agents/skills

For dedicated plugins, check the agent’s plugin or skills list according to that agent’s install system.

2. Ask for orientation

Use:

Orient in this SpecDD project.

A good answer should mention SpecDD bootstrap context and explain what it inspected.

3. Ask for a spec explanation

Use a real spec or feature name:

Explain the Itinerary spec.

A good answer should summarize the spec’s purpose, allowed modification scope, required behavior, prohibited behavior, and open tasks if present.

4. Ask for a plan before implementation

Use:

Plan the Itinerary validation change.

A good plan should identify:

the governing specs
the paths likely to change
constraints that must be preserved
checks to run
uncertainty or missing authority

5. Check a small implementation

Use a narrow task:

Implement the open validation task.

Review the result against the local spec. The agent should stay inside Can modify or Owns, satisfy Must, avoid Must not and Forbids, and report verification.

Warning signs

The agent gives generic repository advice and never mentions .sdd specs.
The agent treats sibling specs as automatically applicable.
The agent edits files listed only under Can read or References.
The agent marks a task done before running or explaining checks.
The agent expands the work into unrelated cleanup.

Common mistakes

Verifying only that an install command succeeded.
Testing with a project that has no local spec for the requested work.
Asking for a large feature as the first verification test.
Ignoring a vague plan because the final code happens to compile.

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