Agent skill

backlog

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Install this agent skill to your Project

npx add-skill https://github.com/majiayu000/claude-skill-registry/tree/main/skills/data/backlog

SKILL.md

Backlog Increment Command

Usage: /sw:backlog <increment-id> --reason="<reason>"


Purpose

Move an increment to backlog when:

  • Planned but not ready to start yet
  • Low priority compared to other work
  • Waiting for decisions or approvals before starting
  • Multiple ideas you want to plan without violating WIP limits

Key Difference:

  • Backlog = Never started, planned for future (does NOT count towards WIP)
  • Paused = Started but blocked (does NOT count towards WIP)

Behavior

  1. Validates increment exists and is "active"
  2. Prompts for reason if not provided via --reason flag
  3. Updates metadata.json:
    • status: "active" β†’ "backlog"
    • backlogReason: User-provided reason
    • backlogAt: Current timestamp
  4. Displays confirmation message
  5. Suggests next actions (/sw:resume to start work)

Examples

Move to backlog with reason

bash
/sw:backlog 0032 --reason="Low priority, focus on 0031 first"

βœ… Increment 0032 moved to backlog
πŸ“ Reason: Low priority, focus on 0031 first
πŸ—‚οΈ  No longer counts toward WIP limits
πŸ’‘ Start work with: /sw:resume 0032

Move to backlog without reason (prompts)

bash
/sw:backlog 0032

❓ Why are you moving this to backlog?
   1. Low priority
   2. Waiting for decisions/approvals
   3. Multiple planned ideas
   4. Other (type reason)

> 1

βœ… Increment 0032 moved to backlog
πŸ“ Reason: Low priority
πŸ’‘ Start work with: /sw:resume 0032

Edge Cases

Already in Backlog

bash
/sw:backlog 0032 --reason="Different reason"

⚠️  Increment 0032 is already in backlog
   Previous reason: Low priority
   New reason: Different reason

Update reason? [Y/n]: y

βœ… Reason updated
πŸ“ New reason: Different reason

Cannot Backlog Completed

bash
/sw:backlog 0005

❌ Cannot move increment 0005 to backlog
   Status: completed
   Completed increments cannot be moved to backlog

Cannot Backlog Paused

bash
/sw:backlog 0008

❌ Cannot move increment 0008 to backlog
   Status: paused
   Paused work should be resumed or abandoned, not moved to backlog
   Resume it: /sw:resume 0008

Increment Not Found

bash
/sw:backlog 9999

❌ Increment not found: 9999
πŸ’‘ Check available increments: /sw:status

Implementation

This command uses the MetadataManager to update increment status:

typescript
import { MetadataManager, IncrementStatus } from '../src/core/increment/metadata-manager';

// Read current metadata
const metadata = MetadataManager.read(incrementId);

// Validate can move to backlog
if (metadata.status !== IncrementStatus.ACTIVE) {
  throw new Error(`Cannot move increment with status: ${metadata.status}`);
}

// Update status
MetadataManager.updateStatus(incrementId, IncrementStatus.BACKLOG, reason);

Status Flow

active ──backlog──> backlog
   β”‚
   └──resume──> active

Related Commands

  • /sw:resume <id> - Move from backlog to active (start work)
  • /sw:pause <id> - Pause active work (different from backlog)
  • /sw:status - Show all increment statuses including backlog
  • /sw:abandon <id> - Abandon increment (permanent)

Best Practices

βœ… Use backlog for planning - Plan multiple increments without violating WIP

βœ… Prioritize backlog regularly - Review and reorder based on value

βœ… Clear reasons - Helps with prioritization decisions

βœ… Start when ready - Use /sw:resume to move from backlog to active

❌ Don't confuse with paused - Backlog = never started, Paused = started but blocked

❌ Don't let backlog grow unbounded - Review and abandon obsolete items


Backlog vs Paused

Aspect Backlog Paused
Definition Planned but not started Started but blocked
WIP Count NO NO
Use Case Low priority, future work Blocked, deprioritized
Resume Start from beginning Continue where left off

Warning: Large Backlog

If your backlog grows too large (10+ increments), /sw:status will warn:

bash
/sw:status

πŸ—‚οΈ  Backlog (12):
  πŸ“¦ 0032-feature-a [feature] - Low priority
  πŸ“¦ 0033-feature-b [feature] - Waiting for decisions
  πŸ“¦ 0034-feature-c [feature] - Multiple planned ideas
  ... (9 more)

⚠️  Large backlog! Consider:
   - Abandoning obsolete items
   - Consolidating similar features
   - Reviewing priorities

πŸ’‘ Actions:
   /sw:resume <id>  # Start work on highest priority
   /sw:abandon <id> # Remove obsolete items

Command: /sw:backlog Plugin: specweave (core) Version: v0.19.0 Part of: Backlog Support Feature

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