Stream-Chain Skill

Execute sophisticated multi-step workflows where each agent's output flows into the next, enabling complex data transformations and sequential processing pipelines.

Overview

Stream-Chain provides two powerful modes for orchestrating multi-agent workflows:

•Custom Chains (run): Execute custom prompt sequences with full control
•Predefined Pipelines (pipeline): Use battle-tested workflows for common tasks

Each step in a chain receives the complete output from the previous step, enabling sophisticated multi-agent coordination through streaming data flow.

Quick Start

Run a Custom Chain

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Analyze codebase structure" \
  "Identify improvement areas" \
  "Generate action plan"

Execute a Pipeline

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline analysis

Custom Chains (`run`)

Execute custom stream chains with your own prompts for maximum flexibility.

Syntax

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run <prompt1> <prompt2> [...] [options]

Requirements:

•Minimum 2 prompts required
•Each prompt becomes a step in the chain
•Output flows sequentially through all steps

Options

Option	Description	Default
`--verbose`	Show detailed execution information	`false`
`--timeout <seconds>`	Timeout per step	`30`
`--debug`	Enable debug mode with full logging	`false`

How Context Flows

Each step receives the previous output as context:

code

Step 1: "Write a sorting function"
Output: [function implementation]

Step 2 receives:
  "Previous step output:
  [function implementation]

  Next task: Add comprehensive tests"

Step 3 receives:
  "Previous steps output:
  [function + tests]

  Next task: Optimize performance"

Examples

Basic Development Chain

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Write a user authentication function" \
  "Add input validation and error handling" \
  "Create unit tests with edge cases"

Security Audit Workflow

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Analyze authentication system for vulnerabilities" \
  "Identify and categorize security issues by severity" \
  "Propose fixes with implementation priority" \
  "Generate security test cases" \
  --timeout 45 \
  --verbose

Code Refactoring Chain

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Identify code smells in src/ directory" \
  "Create refactoring plan with specific changes" \
  "Apply refactoring to top 3 priority items" \
  "Verify refactored code maintains behavior" \
  --debug

Data Processing Pipeline

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Extract data from API responses" \
  "Transform data into normalized format" \
  "Validate data against schema" \
  "Generate data quality report"

Predefined Pipelines (`pipeline`)

Execute battle-tested workflows optimized for common development tasks.

Syntax

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline <type> [options]

Available Pipelines

1. Analysis Pipeline

Comprehensive codebase analysis and improvement identification.

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline analysis

Workflow Steps:

•Structure Analysis: Map directory structure and identify components
•Issue Detection: Find potential improvements and problems
•Recommendations: Generate actionable improvement report

Use Cases:

•New codebase onboarding
•Technical debt assessment
•Architecture review
•Code quality audits

2. Refactor Pipeline

Systematic code refactoring with prioritization.

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline refactor

Workflow Steps:

•Candidate Identification: Find code needing refactoring
•Prioritization: Create ranked refactoring plan
•Implementation: Provide refactored code for top priorities

Use Cases:

•Technical debt reduction
•Code quality improvement
•Legacy code modernization
•Design pattern implementation

3. Test Pipeline

Comprehensive test generation with coverage analysis.

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline test

Workflow Steps:

•Coverage Analysis: Identify areas lacking tests
•Test Design: Create test cases for critical functions
•Implementation: Generate unit tests with assertions

Use Cases:

•Increasing test coverage
•TDD workflow support
•Regression test creation
•Quality assurance

4. Optimize Pipeline

Performance optimization with profiling and implementation.

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline optimize

Workflow Steps:

•Profiling: Identify performance bottlenecks
•Strategy: Analyze and suggest optimization approaches
•Implementation: Provide optimized code

Use Cases:

•Performance improvement
•Resource optimization
•Scalability enhancement
•Latency reduction

Pipeline Options

Option	Description	Default
`--verbose`	Show detailed execution	`false`
`--timeout <seconds>`	Timeout per step	`30`
`--debug`	Enable debug mode	`false`

Pipeline Examples

Quick Analysis

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline analysis

Extended Refactoring

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline refactor --timeout 60 --verbose

Debug Test Generation

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline test --debug

Comprehensive Optimization

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline optimize --timeout 90 --verbose

Pipeline Output

Each pipeline execution provides:

•Progress: Step-by-step execution status
•Results: Success/failure per step
•Timing: Total and per-step execution time
•Summary: Consolidated results and recommendations

Custom Pipeline Definitions

Define reusable pipelines in .claude-flow/config.json:

Configuration Format

json

{
  "streamChain": {
    "pipelines": {
      "security": {
        "name": "Security Audit Pipeline",
        "description": "Comprehensive security analysis",
        "prompts": [
          "Scan codebase for security vulnerabilities",
          "Categorize issues by severity (critical/high/medium/low)",
          "Generate fixes with priority and implementation steps",
          "Create security test suite"
        ],
        "timeout": 45
      },
      "documentation": {
        "name": "Documentation Generation Pipeline",
        "prompts": [
          "Analyze code structure and identify undocumented areas",
          "Generate API documentation with examples",
          "Create usage guides and tutorials",
          "Build architecture diagrams and flow charts"
        ]
      }
    }
  }
}

Execute Custom Pipeline

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline security
claude-flow stream-chain pipeline documentation

Advanced Use Cases

Multi-Agent Coordination

Chain different agent types for complex workflows:

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Research best practices for API design" \
  "Design REST API with discovered patterns" \
  "Implement API endpoints with validation" \
  "Generate OpenAPI specification" \
  "Create integration tests" \
  "Write deployment documentation"

Data Transformation Pipeline

Process and transform data through multiple stages:

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Extract user data from CSV files" \
  "Normalize and validate data format" \
  "Enrich data with external API calls" \
  "Generate analytics report" \
  "Create visualization code"

Code Migration Workflow

Systematic code migration with validation:

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Analyze legacy codebase dependencies" \
  "Create migration plan with risk assessment" \
  "Generate modernized code for high-priority modules" \
  "Create migration tests" \
  "Document migration steps and rollback procedures"

Quality Assurance Chain

Comprehensive code quality workflow:

bash

claude-flow stream-chain pipeline analysis
claude-flow stream-chain pipeline refactor
claude-flow stream-chain pipeline test
claude-flow stream-chain pipeline optimize

Best Practices

1. Clear and Specific Prompts

Good:

bash

"Analyze authentication.js for SQL injection vulnerabilities"

Avoid:

bash

"Check security"

2. Logical Progression

Order prompts to build on previous outputs:

bash

1. "Identify the problem"
2. "Analyze root causes"
3. "Design solution"
4. "Implement solution"
5. "Verify implementation"

3. Appropriate Timeouts

•Simple tasks: 30 seconds (default)
•Analysis tasks: 45-60 seconds
•Implementation tasks: 60-90 seconds
•Complex workflows: 90-120 seconds

4. Verification Steps

Include validation in your chains:

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Implement feature X" \
  "Write tests for feature X" \
  "Verify tests pass and cover edge cases"

5. Iterative Refinement

Use chains for iterative improvement:

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Generate initial implementation" \
  "Review and identify issues" \
  "Refine based on issues found" \
  "Final quality check"

Integration with Claude Flow

Combine with Swarm Coordination

bash

# Initialize swarm for coordination
claude-flow swarm init --topology mesh

# Execute stream chain with swarm agents
claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Agent 1: Research task" \
  "Agent 2: Implement solution" \
  "Agent 3: Test implementation" \
  "Agent 4: Review and refine"

Memory Integration

Stream chains automatically store context in memory for cross-session persistence:

bash

# Execute chain with memory
claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Analyze requirements" \
  "Design architecture" \
  --verbose

# Results stored in .claude-flow/memory/stream-chain/

Neural Pattern Training

Successful chains train neural patterns for improved performance:

bash

# Enable neural training
claude-flow stream-chain pipeline optimize --debug

# Patterns learned and stored for future optimizations

Troubleshooting

Chain Timeout

If steps timeout, increase timeout value:

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run "complex task" --timeout 120

Context Loss

If context not flowing properly, use --debug:

bash

claude-flow stream-chain run "step 1" "step 2" --debug

Pipeline Not Found

Verify pipeline name and custom definitions:

bash

# Check available pipelines
cat .claude-flow/config.json | grep -A 10 "streamChain"

Performance Characteristics

•Throughput: 2-5 steps per minute (varies by complexity)
•Context Size: Up to 100K tokens per step
•Memory Usage: ~50MB per active chain
•Concurrency: Supports parallel chain execution

Related Skills

•SPARC Methodology: Systematic development workflow
•Swarm Coordination: Multi-agent orchestration
•Memory Management: Persistent context storage
•Neural Patterns: Adaptive learning

Examples Repository

Complete Development Workflow

bash

# Full feature development chain
claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Analyze requirements for user profile feature" \
  "Design database schema and API endpoints" \
  "Implement backend with validation" \
  "Create frontend components" \
  "Write comprehensive tests" \
  "Generate API documentation" \
  --timeout 60 \
  --verbose

Code Review Pipeline

bash

# Automated code review workflow
claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Analyze recent git changes" \
  "Identify code quality issues" \
  "Check for security vulnerabilities" \
  "Verify test coverage" \
  "Generate code review report with recommendations"

Migration Assistant

bash

# Framework migration helper
claude-flow stream-chain run \
  "Analyze current Vue 2 codebase" \
  "Identify Vue 3 breaking changes" \
  "Create migration checklist" \
  "Generate migration scripts" \
  "Provide updated code examples"

Conclusion

Stream-Chain enables sophisticated multi-step workflows by:

•Sequential Processing: Each step builds on previous results
•Context Preservation: Full output history flows through chain
•Flexible Orchestration: Custom chains or predefined pipelines
•Agent Coordination: Natural multi-agent collaboration pattern
•Data Transformation: Complex processing through simple steps

Use run for custom workflows and pipeline for battle-tested solutions.

Stream-Chain Skill

Overview

Quick Start

Run a Custom Chain

Execute a Pipeline

Custom Chains (run)

Syntax

Options

How Context Flows

Examples

Basic Development Chain

Security Audit Workflow

Code Refactoring Chain

Data Processing Pipeline

Predefined Pipelines (pipeline)

Syntax

Available Pipelines

1. Analysis Pipeline

2. Refactor Pipeline

3. Test Pipeline

4. Optimize Pipeline

Pipeline Options

Pipeline Examples

Quick Analysis

Extended Refactoring

Debug Test Generation

Comprehensive Optimization

Pipeline Output

Custom Pipeline Definitions

Configuration Format

Execute Custom Pipeline

Advanced Use Cases

Multi-Agent Coordination

Data Transformation Pipeline

Code Migration Workflow

Quality Assurance Chain

Best Practices

1. Clear and Specific Prompts

2. Logical Progression

3. Appropriate Timeouts

4. Verification Steps

5. Iterative Refinement

Integration with Claude Flow

Combine with Swarm Coordination

Memory Integration

Neural Pattern Training

Troubleshooting

Chain Timeout

Context Loss

Pipeline Not Found

Performance Characteristics

Related Skills

Examples Repository

Complete Development Workflow

Code Review Pipeline

Migration Assistant

Conclusion

Custom Chains (`run`)

Predefined Pipelines (`pipeline`)