openspec-archive

Archive a completed change in the experimental workflow.

Input: Optionally specify a change name. If omitted, check if it can be inferred from conversation context. If vague or ambiguous you MUST prompt for available changes.

Steps

1. If no change name provided, prompt for selection

Run openspec list --json to get available changes. Use the AskUserQuestion tool to let the user select.

Show only active changes (not already archived). Include the schema used for each change if available.

IMPORTANT: Do NOT guess or auto-select a change. Always let the user choose.

1. Check artifact completion status

Run openspec status --change "<name>" --json to check artifact completion.

Parse the JSON to understand:

• schemaName: The workflow being used
• planningHome, changeRoot, artifactPaths, and actionContext: path and scope context
• artifacts: List of artifacts with their status (done or other)

If status reports actionContext.mode: "workspace-planning", explain that workspace archive is not supported in this slice and STOP. Do not move workspace changes into repo-local archives or edit linked repos.

If any artifacts are not `done`:

• Display warning listing incomplete artifacts
• Use AskUserQuestion tool to confirm user wants to proceed
• Proceed if user confirms

1. Check task completion status

Read the tasks file (typically tasks.md) to check for incomplete tasks.

Count tasks marked with - [ ] (incomplete) vs - [x] (complete).

If incomplete tasks found:

• Display warning showing count of incomplete tasks
• Use AskUserQuestion tool to confirm user wants to proceed
• Proceed if user confirms

If no tasks file exists: Proceed without task-related warning.

1. Verify build gate (fail-soft)

A change should not be archived on a broken branch. Before archiving:

• Run openspec status --change "<name>" --json and check whether a /opsx:verify session completed successfully within the conversation (look for a Verification Report section or a status: "done" marker for affected modules).
• If no verify report exists or the last report shows failures, prompt the user:
• "Run `/opsx:verify` first (recommended)" - compile + lint + unit tests before archiving
• "Skip verify and archive anyway (record risk)" - archive but note in the summary that verification was not completed

This gate exists because iteration and bugfix workflows commonly skip the final check — the archive becomes the last record, and a broken branch archived this way silently contaminates future work.

1. Assess delta spec sync state

Use artifactPaths.specs.existingOutputPaths from status JSON to check for delta specs. If none exist, proceed without sync prompt.

If delta specs exist:

• Compare each delta spec with its corresponding main spec at openspec/specs/<capability>/spec.md
• Determine what changes would be applied (adds, modifications, removals, renames)
• Show a combined summary before prompting

Prompt options:

• If changes needed: "Sync now (recommended)", "Archive without syncing"
• If already synced: "Archive now", "Sync anyway", "Cancel"

If user chooses sync, use Task tool (subagent_type: "general-purpose", prompt: "Use Skill tool to invoke openspec-sync-specs for change '<name>'. Delta spec analysis: <include the analyzed delta spec summary>"). Proceed to archive regardless of choice.

1. Capture CodeGraph snapshot of affected code

Before archiving, use CodeGraph to capture what code was affected by this change:

a. Extract key terms from the change artifacts (proposal, design) and task descriptions

b. Run codegraph explore to get a final snapshot of related code:

      codegraph explore "<key terms>"

c. Include key findings in the archive summary:

• Main files/modules affected by the change
• Architecture context for future reference
• This helps anyone looking at the archive understand what code areas were involved

The codegraph snapshot is included in the archive summary to preserve context about what code was affected.

1. Generate PR summary and optionally create PR

Archive is the final record of a change. Generate a pull-request-ready summary from the OpenSpec artifacts:

a. Collect change metadata:

• Read proposal.md for the motivation and scope
• Read design.md for technical decisions
• Read tasks.md for what was implemented
• Run git log --oneline main..HEAD (or the base branch) to list commits on the feature branch

b. Generate a PR description and write it to <changeRoot>/PR.md:

      ## <Change Title>

      **OpenSpec change:** <change-name>
      **Schema:** <schema-name>
      **Branch:** opsx/<change-name>

      ### What
      <one-paragraph summary from proposal.md>

      ### Why
      <motivation from proposal.md>

      ### How
      <brief technical approach from design.md>

      ### Changes
      - <file>: <what changed>
      - ...

      ### Verification
      - [ ] Unit tests added / updated
      - [ ] `/opsx:verify` passed (compile + lint + tests)
      - [ ] Bug: reproduction steps no longer trigger
      - [ ] Bug: regression test added

      ### Commits
      <output of git log --oneline base..HEAD>

      ### OpenSpec Artifacts
      - proposal: <path>
      - design: <path>
      - tasks: <path>
      - Archive: <archive-location>

c. Optionally create the PR if gh CLI is available:

      gh pr create --title "<change title>" --body-file <changeRoot>/PR.md --base main

If the user declines or gh is unavailable, just inform them the PR description is at <changeRoot>/PR.md.

1. Perform the archive

Create an archive directory under planningHome.changesDir if it doesn't exist:

   mkdir -p "<planningHome.changesDir>/archive"

Generate target name using current date: YYYY-MM-DD-<change-name>

Check if target already exists:

• If yes: Fail with error, suggest renaming existing archive or using different date
• If no: Move changeRoot to the archive directory

   mv "<changeRoot>" "<planningHome.changesDir>/archive/YYYY-MM-DD-<name>"

1. Display summary with CodeGraph context

Show archive completion summary including:

• Change name
• Schema that was used
• Archive location
• CodeGraph affected area (key files/modules discovered)
• Spec sync status (synced / sync skipped / no delta specs)
• Note about any warnings (incomplete artifacts/tasks)

Output On Success

## Archive Complete

**Change:** <change-name>
**Schema:** <schema-name>
**Archived to:** the archive path derived from `planningHome.changesDir`/YYYY-MM-DD-<name>/
**Specs:** ✓ Synced to main specs (or "No delta specs" or "Sync skipped")
**Affected CodeArea:** <key files/modules from CodeGraph>

All artifacts complete. All tasks complete.

Guardrails

• Always prompt for change selection if not provided
• Use artifact graph (openspec status --json) for completion checking
• Don't block archive on warnings - just inform and confirm
• Preserve .openspec.yaml when moving to archive (it moves with the directory)
• Show clear summary of what happened
• If sync is requested, use openspec-sync-specs approach (agent-driven)
• If delta specs exist, always run the sync assessment and show the combined summary before prompting
• If codegraph explore returns no meaningful results, proceed without it — CodeGraph is an enhancement, not a blocker. Fall back to rg/grep for manual code search.