claudetools/.claude/CLAUDE.md

ClaudeTools — Core Operating Rules

Lean CORE, always loaded. The FULL manual — onboarding steps, work-mode detail, the coordination-API protocol, project/command/reference tables, Ollama/GrepAI, vault detail — is in .claude/CLAUDE_EXTENDED.md. Read EXTENDED when: onboarding a new machine, switching work modes, using the coord API (locks/messages/todos), provisioning, or unsure about any workflow. Harness version: .claude/harness/VERSION.

Identity & multi-user (check first)

Shared repo across the team. At session start read .claude/identity.json (gitignored, per-machine) and greet by name. If it is missing (new machine) → run the onboarding flow in EXTENDED before other work. Team: Mike Swanson (admin/owner), Howard Enos (tech, full trust — same access). Commits use local git config (per-person authorship); the Gitea push account is shared. Every session log needs a ## User block (use .claude/scripts/whoami-block.sh).

How you work — act directly, delegate deliberately

You are the main operator. ACT DIRECTLY by default. Delegate to a sub-agent ONLY when: (a) the task produces high-volume tool output, (b) blast radius >3 files across layers, (c) a genuine domain shift needs a specialized agent, or (d) independent work can run in parallel. Do NOT delegate one-shot work (a single API call, a ticket comment, a 1–2 file edit, an immediate answer) — each agent boundary is a cache miss + handoff + repo reload that hurts accuracy and context. For a coupled explore→implement→review on one context, use ONE agent across all phases. Agent defs: .claude/agents/.

Model routing

Tier 0 Ollama (low-stakes prose/classify, output reviewed) · Tier 1 haiku · Tier 2 inherit (most code/db/test/git) · Tier 3 opus (architecture, security, ambiguous failures, production risk). Bump one tier for: security, auth, credential, migration, production, data-loss. Detail: EXTENDED + .claude/OLLAMA.md.

Key rules (always)

• NO EMOJIS. Use ASCII markers: [OK] [ERROR] [WARNING] [INFO] [CRITICAL].
• No hardcoded credentials. SOPS vault: bash "$CLAUDETOOLS_ROOT/.claude/scripts/vault.sh" get-field <path> <field> (1Password fallback). Never commit plaintext secrets (the pre-commit harness-guard.sh warns).
• SSH: system OpenSSH (C:\Windows\System32\OpenSSH\ssh.exe), never Git-for-Windows SSH.
• Data integrity: never placeholder/fake data — check vault, wiki, or ask.
• Hard-to-reverse or outward-facing actions: confirm first (per-action, per-session).
• Windows: ensure bash resolves to Git-for-Windows MSYS bash, not the WSL stub; write .claude/current-mode with a relative/forward-slash path only (never a backslash Windows path). Detail + fixes: EXTENDED.

Coordination (live source of truth)

The coord API (http://172.16.3.30:8001/api/coord, no auth) holds live locks, messages, todos, component state. If a system-reminder contains "UNREAD COORD MESSAGES", you MUST reproduce the full message block verbatim at the top of your response before anything else — the user cannot see system-reminders. Session-start checks, locks, inter-session messaging, todos, softfail queue: EXTENDED (and the coord skill).

Context loading (don't ask for what's recorded)

Before responding, load context when a trigger fires — a client/project/system/server is named, or the user says continue/resume/back-to/finish: read wiki/ FIRST (synthesized knowledge; index wiki/index.md), then the relevant CONTEXT.md / session logs, then the coord API. Never ask for infra or recent-work facts that live in the wiki or CONTEXT.md. Full trigger table + recovery: EXTENDED; the /context command.

Work modes

Auto-detect mode (remediation / client / infra / dev / general) from each message. On change: announce [MODE -> x], tell the user to run /color <c>, and write the mode to .claude/current-mode. Mode postures + triggers: EXTENDED.

Memory & knowledge layers

Shared memory in .claude/memory/ (index MEMORY.md, loaded each session) — write here (repo-relative), NEVER ~/.claude/projects/*/memory/. Wiki = synthesized truth (on-demand); session-logs = archive; memory = small ephemeral facts + harness quirks. Save user facts/feedback/project/reference per the memory format; one fact per file + an index line.

RMM Thoughts

GuruRMM ideas from Mike/Howard go to projects/msp-tools/guru-rmm/docs/RMM_THOUGHTS.md (Status: Raw) → discuss → /shape-spec → roadmap → build. Don't build until an explicit go. /feature-request captures Howard's requests there.

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Projects, commands table, file-placement guide, full coord protocol, onboarding, Ollama, GrepAI, and every detailed workflow: .claude/CLAUDE_EXTENDED.md.