5-Phase Workflow

A systematic, AI-assisted feature development workflow for Claude Code that works with any tech stack.

What is This?

The 5-Phase Workflow is a structured approach to feature development that breaks down the process into clear, manageable phases:

1. Feature Planning - Understand requirements through intensive Q&A
2. Implementation Planning - Map requirements to technical components
3. Orchestrated Implementation - Execute with state tracking and parallel processing
4. Verify Implementation - Automated verification of completeness and correctness
5. Code Review - AI-powered review and quality improvements

Why Use It?

• Systematic: Clear phases prevent missing requirements or skipping validation
• Efficient: Parallel execution and smart agents minimize context usage
• Resumable: State tracking allows pausing and continuing work across sessions
• Technology-Agnostic: Works with JavaScript, Python, Java, Go, Rust, and more
• Transparent: Visible progress tracking and clear handoffs between phases

Installation

Install the workflow in your project using npx:

# Install locally in current project
npx 5-phase-workflow

# Or install globally for all projects
npx 5-phase-workflow --global

The installer will:

• Copy workflow commands, agents, and skills to .claude/
• Set up hooks and settings
• Create .5/features/ directory for feature tracking

After installation, you must configure your project:

Required: Configure Your Project

# Open Claude Code in your project
/5:configure

This will:

• Auto-detect your project type (JavaScript, Python, Java, etc.)
• Set up build and test commands
• Configure ticket tracking patterns
• Generate comprehensive CLAUDE.md documentation
• Create project-specific skills (create-component, create-service, etc.)

Follow the standard workflow after /5:configure:

1. /5:plan-implementation CONFIGURE - Plan the configuration
2. /5:implement-feature CONFIGURE - Execute configuration
3. /5:verify-implementation - Verify setup

The workflow is ready to use after completing configuration.

Start Your First Feature

After configuration is complete, start your first feature:

# Phase 1: Plan the feature
/5:plan-feature

# Phase 2: Create implementation plan
/5:plan-implementation {ticket-id}-{description}

# Phase 3: Execute implementation
/5:implement-feature {ticket-id}-{description}

# Phase 4: Verify implementation
/5:verify-implementation

# Phase 5: Review code
/5:review-code

Tip: Running /clear between phases resets context and keeps conversations focused. Each phase reads necessary artifacts from previous phases, so no context is lost.

Supported Tech Stacks

The workflow auto-detects and supports:

JavaScript/TypeScript:

• Node.js (npm, yarn, pnpm)
• Next.js
• NestJS
• Express
• React
• Vue

Python:

• Django
• Flask
• FastAPI
• Generic Python projects

Java:

• Gradle
• Maven
• Spring Boot

Other:

• Rust (Cargo)
• Go
• Ruby on Rails
• Custom projects (via manual config)

Available Commands

All commands are available under the /5: namespace:

| Command | Phase | Purpose | |---------|-------|---------| | /5:configure | Setup | Interactive project configuration | | /5:plan-feature | 1 | Create feature specification with Q&A | | /5:discuss-feature | 1 | Refine existing feature spec | | /5:plan-implementation | 2 | Map feature to technical components | | /5:implement-feature | 3 | Execute implementation with agents | | /5:verify-implementation | 4 | Verify completeness and correctness | | /5:review-code | 5 | AI-powered code review (CodeRabbit) | | /5:quick-implement | Fast | Streamlined workflow for small tasks | | /5:unlock | Utility | Remove planning guard lock |

Configuration

The workflow is configured via .5/config.json. Here's an example:

{
  "projectType": "nextjs",
  "ticket": {
    "pattern": "[A-Z]+-\\d+",
    "extractFromBranch": true
  },
  "build": {
    "command": "npm run build",
    "testCommand": "npm test"
  },
  "steps": [
    { "name": "foundation", "mode": "parallel" },
    { "name": "logic", "mode": "sequential" },
    { "name": "integration", "mode": "sequential" }
  ],
  "reviewTool": "coderabbit"
}

Configuration Options

Required Fields

• projectType: Detected project type (e.g., "nextjs", "django", "rust")
• build.command: Command to build the project
• build.testCommand: Command to run tests

Optional Fields

• ticket.pattern: Regex pattern for ticket IDs (e.g., "PROJ-\\d+")
• ticket.extractFromBranch: Auto-extract ticket from branch name
• steps: Implementation step configuration
• framework: Framework-specific patterns (routes, models, etc.)
• integration: Integration point configuration
• tools: Available development tools (CodeRabbit, IDE, etc.)

Run /5:configure to set up or update your configuration.

How It Works

Phase 1: Feature Planning

Claude asks 5-10 clarifying questions to understand your requirements:

• What exactly should this feature do?
• What are the edge cases?
• How will we verify it works?
• Are there simpler alternatives?

The output is a comprehensive feature spec at .5/features/{ticket-id}/feature.md.

Phase 2: Implementation Planning

Claude maps your feature to technical components:

• Analyzes your codebase structure
• Identifies affected modules
• Maps components to implementation steps
• Creates dependency graph

The output is an atomic plan structure at .5/features/{ticket-id}/:

• feature.md - Feature specification (Phase 1)
• plan.md - Implementation plan (Phase 2)
• state.json - Implementation state tracking (Phase 3)

Each step file is self-contained and independently loadable, making large plans manageable and improving agent efficiency.

Phase 3: Orchestrated Implementation

Claude executes the plan using specialized agents:

• step-executor: Creates each component using skills or direct file creation
• step-verifier: Compiles and checks for errors after each step
• integration-agent: Wires components and registers routes

State is tracked in .5/features/{ticket-id}/state.json for resumability.

Phase 4: Verify Implementation

An agent performs comprehensive verification:

• All planned files exist
• No compilation/build errors
• Tests pass
• IDE diagnostics clean

Results are saved to a verification report.

Phase 5: Code Review

Automated review using CodeRabbit (if installed):

• Finds code smells and potential issues
• Suggests improvements
• Applies approved fixes
• Re-verifies after changes

Project Structure

After installation, your .claude/ directory will contain:

.5/
├── config.json               # Project configuration
├── version.json              # Version tracking
└── features/                 # Feature tracking

.claude/
├── commands/5/               # Workflow commands
│   ├── plan-feature.md
│   ├── plan-implementation.md
│   ├── implement-feature.md
│   ├── verify-implementation.md
│   ├── review-code.md
│   ├── discuss-feature.md
│   ├── quick-implement.md
│   ├── configure.md
│   └── unlock.md
├── skills/                   # Atomic operations
│   ├── build-project/
│   ├── run-tests/
│   └── generate-readme/
├── hooks/
│   ├── statusline.js         # Status line integration
│   ├── check-updates.js      # Update notifications
│   ├── plan-guard.js         # Planning phase edit guard
│   └── config-guard.js       # Configuration guard
└── settings.json             # Claude Code settings

Examples

Example 1: Adding a REST API endpoint

/5:plan-feature
# Claude asks about the endpoint: path, methods, request/response format, validation, etc.
# Creates feature spec

/5:plan-implementation PROJ-1234-add-user-endpoint
# Claude maps to: route file, controller, service, tests
# Creates technical plan

/5:implement-feature PROJ-1234-add-user-endpoint
# Creates route, controller, service, tests
# Registers route in app
# Runs build and tests

/5:verify-implementation
# Verifies all files created
# Checks build passes
# Confirms tests pass

Example 2: Small bug fix

/5:quick-implement
# Describe the fix
# Claude implements, builds, tests in one step

Troubleshooting

Build/Test commands not working

1. Run /5:configure to verify configuration
2. Test commands manually in terminal
3. Update .5/config.json with correct commands

"Cannot find project type"

The auto-detection failed. Run /5:configure and manually select your project type.

State file issues

If implementation gets stuck:

1. Check .5/features/{ticket-id}/state.json
2. Note the currentStep value
3. Run /5:implement-feature again - it will resume from that step

CodeRabbit not working

1. Install: https://docs.coderabbit.ai/cli/installation
2. Authenticate: coderabbit auth login
3. Run /5:configure to update config

Updating

The workflow automatically detects when a new version is available.

Automatic Update (Recommended)

# Interactive upgrade (shows prompt)
npx 5-phase-workflow

# Force upgrade (no prompts)
npx 5-phase-workflow --upgrade

# Check version without updating
npx 5-phase-workflow --check

Legacy Upgrade Method

npx 5-phase-workflow --uninstall
npx 5-phase-workflow

Note: During updates:

• Config files in .5/ are preserved
• User-created commands, agents, skills, hooks, and templates are preserved
• Only workflow-managed files are updated

Development

Running Tests

The project includes automated verification to ensure all workflow files are properly configured:

# Run verification tests
npm test

# Or run directly
bash test/verify-install-js.sh

This verifies that all workflow files (commands, agents, skills, hooks, templates) are properly listed in bin/install.js for selective updates.

Continuous Integration

A GitHub Actions workflow runs on every push to verify the install.js configuration. The workflow:

• Checks that all workflow files are listed in getWorkflowManagedFiles()
• Ensures selective updates will work correctly
• Prevents accidental omissions that could break user upgrades

See .github/workflows/test.yml for details.

Adding New Workflow Files

When adding new commands, agents, skills, hooks, or templates:

1. Create the file in the appropriate src/ directory
2. Update bin/install.js - Add the file to getWorkflowManagedFiles()
3. Run npm test to verify
4. Commit only if tests pass

See CLAUDE.md for detailed development guidelines.

License

MIT

Learn More

• Full Workflow Guide - Detailed documentation
• Claude Code Docs - Claude Code features