Manage References Skill

Manage references.json files with field-level access and list management. Tracks files, branches, and external references for a plan.

What This Skill Provides

•Read/write references.json (JSON storage, TOON output)
•Field-level get/set operations
•List management (add/remove items)
•File tracking for modified files

When to Activate This Skill

Activate this skill when:

•Setting branch or issue references
•Adding modified files to tracking
•Managing external documentation references

Storage Location

References are stored in the plan directory:

code

.plan/plans/{plan_id}/references.json

File Format

JSON format for storage:

json

{
  "branch": "feature/my-feature",
  "base_branch": "main",
  "issue_url": "https://github.com/org/repo/issues/123",
  "build_system": "maven",
  "modified_files": [
    "src/main/java/Foo.java",
    "src/main/java/Bar.java",
    "src/test/java/FooTest.java"
  ],
  "domains": ["java"],
  "affected_files": [
    "src/main/java/Foo.java"
  ]
}

Schema Fields

Field	Type	Description
`branch`	string	Git branch name
`base_branch`	string	Base branch for PR (e.g., main)
`issue_url`	string	GitHub issue URL
`build_system`	string	Build system (maven, gradle, npm, none)
`modified_files`	list	Files modified during implementation
`domains`	list	Plan domains (e.g., java, documentation)
`affected_files`	list	Files affected during outline phase (for execution tracking)
`external_docs`	table	External documentation references

Operations

Script: pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references

create

Create references.json with basic fields.

bash

python3 .plan/execute-script.py pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references create \
  --plan-id {plan_id} \
  --branch {branch_name} \
  [--issue-url {url}] \
  [--build-system {maven|gradle|npm}] \
  [--domains {java,documentation}]

Parameters:

•--plan-id (required): Plan identifier (kebab-case)
•--branch (required): Git branch name
•--issue-url: GitHub issue URL
•--build-system: Build system (maven, gradle, npm)
•--domains: Comma-separated domain list (e.g., java,documentation)

Output (TOON):

toon

status: success
plan_id: my-feature
file: references.json
created: true
fields[3]:
  - branch
  - base_branch
  - modified_files

Note: Basic fields are created during plan-init. Additional reference fields are added as needed during execution.

read

Read entire references.json content.

bash

python3 .plan/execute-script.py pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references read \
  --plan-id {plan_id}

Output (TOON):

toon

status: success
plan_id: my-feature

references:
  branch: feature/my-feature
  issue_url: https://github.com/org/repo/issues/123
  modified_files: 3 items

get

Get a specific field value.

bash

python3 .plan/execute-script.py pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references get \
  --plan-id {plan_id} \
  --field branch

Output (TOON):

toon

status: success
plan_id: my-feature
field: branch
value: feature/my-feature

set

Set a specific field value.

bash

python3 .plan/execute-script.py pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references set \
  --plan-id {plan_id} \
  --field branch \
  --value feature/new-branch

Output (TOON):

toon

status: success
plan_id: my-feature
field: branch
value: feature/new-branch
previous: feature/my-feature

add-file

Add a file to modified_files list.

bash

python3 .plan/execute-script.py pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references add-file \
  --plan-id {plan_id} \
  --file src/main/java/NewClass.java

Output (TOON):

toon

status: success
plan_id: my-feature
section: modified_files
added: src/main/java/NewClass.java
total: 4

remove-file

Remove a file from modified_files list.

bash

python3 .plan/execute-script.py pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references remove-file \
  --plan-id {plan_id} \
  --file src/main/java/OldClass.java

Output (TOON):

toon

status: success
plan_id: my-feature
section: modified_files
removed: src/main/java/OldClass.java
total: 2

add-list

Add multiple values to a list field.

bash

python3 .plan/execute-script.py pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references add-list \
  --plan-id {plan_id} \
  --field affected_files \
  --values "path/to/file1.md,path/to/file2.md,path/to/file3.md"

Parameters:

•--plan-id (required): Plan identifier
•--field (required): List field name (e.g., affected_files, modified_files)
•--values (required): Comma-separated values to add

Output (TOON):

toon

status: success
plan_id: my-feature
field: affected_files
added_count: 3
total: 3

Notes:

•Creates the field as an empty list if it doesn't exist
•Skips values that already exist in the list (no duplicates)
•Returns error if the field exists but is not a list

set-list

Set a list field to new values, replacing any existing content.

bash

python3 .plan/execute-script.py pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references set-list \
  --plan-id {plan_id} \
  --field affected_files \
  --values "path/to/file1.md,path/to/file2.md"

Parameters:

•--plan-id (required): Plan identifier
•--field (required): List field name (e.g., affected_files, modified_files)
•--values (required): Comma-separated values

Output (TOON):

toon

status: success
plan_id: my-feature
field: affected_files
previous_count: 5
count: 2

Notes:

•Replaces the entire list (does not append like add-list)
•Empty --values "" clears the list
•Returns previous_count showing how many items were replaced

When to use set-list vs add-list:

•Use set-list when you have the complete list of values to store
•Use add-list when appending to an existing list without knowing its contents

get-context

Get all references context in one call. Useful for getting comprehensive plan context.

bash

python3 .plan/execute-script.py pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references get-context \
  --plan-id {plan_id} \
  [--include-files]

Parameters:

•--plan-id (required): Plan identifier
•--include-files: Include full file lists in output (default: only counts)

Output (TOON):

toon

status: success
plan_id: my-feature
branch: feature/my-feature
base_branch: main
modified_files_count: 3
issue_url: https://github.com/org/repo/issues/123
build_system: maven

With --include-files:

toon

status: success
plan_id: my-feature
branch: feature/my-feature
base_branch: main
modified_files_count: 3
modified_files[3]:
  - src/main/java/Foo.java
  - src/main/java/Bar.java
  - src/main/java/Baz.java

Scripts

Script: pm-workflow:manage-references:manage-references

Command	Parameters	Description
`create`	`--plan-id --branch [--issue-url] [--build-system] [--domains]`	Create references.json
`read`	`--plan-id`	Read entire references
`get`	`--plan-id --field`	Get specific field value
`set`	`--plan-id --field --value`	Set specific field value
`add-file`	`--plan-id --file`	Add file to modified_files
`remove-file`	`--plan-id --file`	Remove file from modified_files
`add-list`	`--plan-id --field --values`	Add multiple values to a list field
`set-list`	`--plan-id --field --values`	Set a list field (replaces existing)
`get-context`	`--plan-id [--include-files]`	Get all references context

Error Handling

toon

status: error
plan_id: my-feature
error: file_not_found
message: references.json not found

manage-references

Manage References Skill

What This Skill Provides

When to Activate This Skill

Storage Location

File Format

Schema Fields

Operations

create

read

get

set

add-file

remove-file

add-list

set-list

get-context

Scripts

Error Handling

Integration Points

With plan-execute

With plan-finalize