Setup Pre-Commit

Pack: engineering Source: engineering/setup-pre-commit/SKILL.md Use this skill when the user wants commit-time checks without overloading the hook.

Scope

• Husky setup
• lint-staged configuration
• Prettier or existing formatter integration
• package-manager-aware hook commands
• choosing what belongs in pre-commit versus CI

Default path

1. Detect the package manager and current scripts.
2. Install the minimum hook dependencies.
3. Initialize Husky if the repo does not already use it.
4. Configure lint-staged for staged-file formatting or linting.
5. Keep the pre-commit hook fast:
   • staged formatting or linting first
   • lightweight checks second
   • heavy suites in CI unless the repo explicitly wants them locally
6. Verify the hook against the current scripts instead of inventing missing commands.

When to deviate

• Keep the hook even smaller when the repo already struggles with slow local tooling.
• Add more checks only if the repo already runs them reliably and the team explicitly wants them before commit.
• Skip formatter or lint changes if the repo already has a working hook stack that only needs a small fix.

Guardrails

• Do not add typecheck or test to the hook if the repo does not already support them cleanly.
• Prefer staged-file checks over whole-repo checks in pre-commit.
• Keep the hook deterministic and package-manager-aware.
• Do not introduce a formatter config if the repo already has one.

Avoid

• turning pre-commit into a slow mini-CI pipeline
• inventing scripts the repo does not actually have
• running whole-repo checks when staged-file checks are enough
• overwriting an existing formatter setup without reason

Verification checklist

• the package manager and current scripts were detected first
• hook commands are fast enough for normal commit flow
• checks operate on staged files where possible
• CI-only work stays out of pre-commit unless explicitly desired
• the hook matches the repo’s real tooling, not imagined tooling

Output Shape

When answering with this skill, prefer:

• packages to install
• files to create or update
• exact hook content
• what should stay in CI instead

Good Triggers

• pre-commit, Husky, lint-staged, commit hooks, run formatter on commit