ARCH context architect

Turn a vague app idea into context a coding agent can execute.

ARCH is a local agent skill that interviews the developer, narrows v1, locks the architecture decisions, and writes the context folder before Codex, Claude Code, or Cursor starts building.

v0.8.0

release

context files

choice layout

Question 01

Which boundary should ARCH lock before any implementation starts?

Why I recommend 1

Option 1 keeps the coding agent from building a platform before the first valuable workflow works.

Architecture impact

Defines the product boundary, MVP success action, and first feature spec.

Reply with 1, 2, or 3. If 3, write one sentence.

Context folder contract

context/project-overview.md

context/architecture-context.md

context/ui-context.md

context/code-standards.md

context/ai-workflow-rules.md

context/progress-tracker.md

context/feature-specs/01-first-slice.md

Generated context preview

This is the durable state after the selected answer is confirmed.

# Value proof

## Confirmed decision
Recommended: One target user, one painful job, and one completed workflow that proves v1 is valuable.

## Architecture impact
Defines the product boundary, MVP success action, and first feature spec.

## Files updated
- context/project-overview.md
- context/progress-tracker.md
- context/feature-specs/01-first-slice.md

## Agent invariant
Future coding agents must preserve this boundary before adding optional surfaces.

Install for Codex

ARCH installs as a local skill and writes versioned context files inside the project being architected.

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/fhajjej-ship-it/ARCH/v0.8.0/scripts/install_codex_skill.sh | bash -s -- v0.8.0

Use in a project

Start from a new app idea or an existing repo. ARCH inspects the project, asks the next unresolved architecture decision, and updates context after confirmation.

Use $arch to interview me about this project and create the context folder.

Primary proof

A useful context folder exists before code is generated.

Release state

Public GitHub release with installer and validation scripts.

One question at a time

ARCH asks one architecture decision, recommends the best default, and waits for confirmation before moving on.

Context becomes state

Confirmed decisions are written into context files instead of being left as fragile chat history.

Agent-ready scope

Each first slice includes boundaries, source of truth, validation, and verification steps for coding assistants.