Code Comments Auditor
Audit code comments and docstrings quality. Universal for any tech stack.
Purpose
- •Verify comments explain WHY, not obvious WHAT
- •Check comment density (15-20% ratio)
- •Detect forbidden content (dates, author names, historical notes)
- •Validate docstrings match function signatures
- •Ensure comments match current code state
- •Identify legacy comments and commented-out code
Invocation
- •Direct: User invokes for code comment quality review
- •Pipeline: Called by ln-100-documents-pipeline (Phase 5, if auditComments=true)
Workflow
- •Scan: Find all source files (auto-detect tech stack)
- •Extract: Parse inline comments + docstrings/JSDoc
- •Audit: Run 6 category checks (see Audit Categories below)
- •Score: Calculate X/10 per category
- •Report: Output findings and recommended actions
Audit Categories
| # | Category | What to Check |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | WHY not WHAT | Comments explain rationale, not obvious code behavior; no restating code |
| 2 | Density (15-20%) | Comment-to-code ratio within range; not over/under-commented |
| 3 | No Forbidden Content | No dates/authors; no historical notes; no code examples in comments |
| 4 | Docstrings Quality | Match function signatures; parameters documented; return types accurate |
| 5 | Actuality | Comments match code behavior; no stale references; examples runnable |
| 6 | Legacy Cleanup | No TODO without context; no commented-out code; no deprecated notes |
Output Format
markdown
## Code Comments Audit Report - [DATE] ### Compliance Score | Category | Score | Issues | |----------|-------|--------| | WHY not WHAT | X/10 | N obvious comments | | Density (15-20%) | X/10 | X% actual (target: 15-20%) | | No Forbidden Content | X/10 | N forbidden items | | Docstrings Quality | X/10 | N mismatches | | Actuality | X/10 | N stale comments | | Legacy Cleanup | X/10 | N legacy items | | **Overall** | **X/10** | | ### Critical Findings - [ ] **[Category]** `path/file:line` - Issue description. **Action:** Fix suggestion. ### Recommended Actions | Priority | Action | Location | Category | |----------|--------|----------|----------| | High | Remove author name | src/X:45 | Forbidden | | Medium | Update stale docstring | lib/Y:120 | Actuality |
Scoring Rules
| Score | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 10/10 | No issues |
| 8-9/10 | Minor issues (small density deviation, few obvious comments) |
| 6-7/10 | Moderate issues (stale docstrings, some forbidden content) |
| 4-5/10 | Significant issues (major density problems, outdated comments) |
| 1-3/10 | Critical issues (author names, commented-out code blocks, broken docstrings) |
Reference Files
- •Comment rules and patterns: references/comments_rules.md
Critical Notes
- •Fix code, not rules: NEVER modify rules files (*_rules.md, *_standards.md) to make violations pass. Always fix the code instead.
- •Code is truth: When comment contradicts code, flag comment for update
- •WHY > WHAT: Comments explaining obvious behavior should be removed
- •Task IDs OK: Task/Story IDs in comments help with code traceability
- •Universal: Works with any language; detect comment syntax automatically
- •Based on: Claude Code comment-analyzer agent patterns
Version: 3.0.0 Last Updated: 2025-12-23