# AGENTS.md — Build guide for WordPress

## Project scope
Build a single-author Markdown CMS with one authenticated administrator, image uploads and server-rendered public pages. Include preview, RSS, redirects for deliberate slug changes and a complete source export.

Catalogue verdict: kinda. The thing people actually use WordPress for on a personal site, write posts, upload images, publish, have an RSS feed, is a weekend build and always has been. An agent can hand you a SQLite-backed CMS with a markdown editor, media uploads, drafts, tags, and a sitemap in one sitting, and it will be faster and less hackable than the real thing. What you cannot one-shot is the other 90 percent of WordPress: 60,000 plugins, WooCommerce, Yoast, Elementor, the block editor, and the fact that any freelancer on earth can pick up your site. Also worth noting that core WordPress is already free and self-hostable, so the honest question is whether you want to maintain your own CMS instead of someone else's. If your site has a contact form, a store, or a client who needs to log in, stop reading and just install WordPress.
Use the implementation prompt below to define the deliverable. Complete each phase's acceptance checks before extending the scope.

## Working agreement
- Inspect the repository and its existing instructions before choosing paths, dependencies or commands. Keep one coherent stack and explain changes to the proposed architecture.
- Plan a vertical slice that accepts a real input and produces the useful output described below. Persist only the state the prompt calls for; respect memory-only and upstream-managed workflows. Use fixtures only when they are clearly labelled.
- After scaffolding, document the actual install, development, check and build commands in README and keep them synchronized with the package or project manifest. Do not report commands as successful unless they ran.
- Work in small steps. At handoff, list implemented flows, checks actually performed, remaining blockers, and any credentials or provider setup the owner must supply.
- Do not publish, spend money, contact customers, delete source data or run irreversible migrations without the project owner's authorization.

## Prerequisites
- Node, persistent local database/uploads, public HTTPS hosting and a generated administrator password hash kept outside source. No WordPress runtime or plugin compatibility is implied.
- Implementation components: Node.js, TypeScript and Fastify with Eta server-rendered HTML. SQLite via better-sqlite3, sanitized markdown-it rendering, Sharp media processing and authenticated administrator cookie sessions.
- Scope boundary: The plugin ecosystem: SEO, forms, caching, memberships, analytics, backups, all one click away in WordPress and all your problem in the DIY build; WooCommerce and anything resembling commerce

## Stack and architecture
- Node.js, TypeScript and Fastify with Eta server-rendered HTML.
- SQLite via better-sqlite3, sanitized markdown-it rendering, Sharp media processing and authenticated administrator cookie sessions.
- Domain model: posts, unique slugs, draft/published revisions, media assets, tags and RSS publication state

## Security and data integrity
- Public routes accept only their documented inputs with rate/size limits. Protect every owner/customer action with authenticated authorization and CSRF checks; keep secrets outside exports and redact personal data from logs.
- Correctness boundary: Markdown and uploads cannot execute scripts; publishing is an explicit action and deleted/draft posts cannot leak through feeds or search.
- Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them.
- Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data.

## Agent implementation rules
- Project rule — data model: posts, unique slugs, draft/published revisions, media assets, tags and RSS publication state
- Project rule — preserve this invariant: Markdown and uploads cannot execute scripts; publishing is an explicit action and deleted/draft posts cannot leak through feeds or search.
- Project rule — acceptance evidence: Save a draft and confirm it is absent from RSS and public routes; change a published slug with a deliberate redirect and preserve the original revision.

## Optional agent skills and references
- Optional external skill: [web-design-guidelines](https://github.com/vercel-labs/agent-skills/blob/main/skills/web-design-guidelines/SKILL.md) — Review web interfaces for accessibility, keyboard focus, forms, navigation and interaction quality. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
- Optional external skill: [sharp-edges](https://github.com/trailofbits/skills/blob/main/plugins/sharp-edges/skills/sharp-edges/SKILL.md) — Review security-sensitive APIs and configuration for dangerous defaults and easy-to-misuse interfaces. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.

Read the linked SKILL.md and its dependencies before adding a skill. Select only the skills matching this project's runtime and task; their documentation does not supply API access, credentials or approval to perform external actions. Pin the reviewed revision where the tool supports it. Follow the chosen agent's documented project-level installation mechanism.

## Distribution ideas
These are optional planning notes. Obtain the owner's approval before publishing or contacting anyone.
- Demonstrate the actual WordPress-inspired workflow with owned or clearly labeled sample data: Build a single-author Markdown CMS with one authenticated administrator, image uploads and server-rendered public pages. Include preview, RSS, redirects for deliberate slug changes and a complete source export.
- Publish a reproducible walkthrough with this observable result: Save a draft and confirm it is absent from RSS and public routes; change a published slug with a deliberate redirect and preserve the original revision.
- Explain who can operate this scoped tool, its setup and ongoing costs, and these remaining product gaps: The plugin ecosystem: SEO, forms, caching, memberships, analytics, backups, all one click away in WordPress and all your problem in the DIY build; WooCommerce and anything resembling commerce Avoid guaranteed savings, performance scores or implied endorsement.

## Engineering roadmap
1. Phase 1 — Scope and fixtures. Implement this bounded workflow: Build a single-author Markdown CMS with one authenticated administrator, image uploads and server-rendered public pages. Include preview, RSS, redirects for deliberate slug changes and a complete source export. Record prerequisites, select representative user-owned fixtures and document the unsupported features: The plugin ecosystem: SEO, forms, caching, memberships, analytics, backups, all one click away in WordPress and all your problem in the DIY build; WooCommerce and anything resembling commerce
2. Phase 2 — Durable model. Model posts, unique slugs, draft/published revisions, media assets, tags and RSS publication state Add migrations or a versioned document format, explicit validation, stable IDs and a visible import-error report. Preserve this rule: Markdown and uploads cannot execute scripts; publishing is an explicit action and deleted/draft posts cannot leak through feeds or search.
3. Phase 3 — Complete the first useful path. Implement the workflow's input, review and output interface, with clear controls and explicit empty/error states. Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them.
4. Phase 4 — Permissions and integration failure. Public routes accept only their documented inputs with rate/size limits. Protect every owner/customer action with authenticated authorization and CSRF checks; keep secrets outside exports and redact personal data from logs. Request integration credentials and permissions only for the enabled feature; show a disconnected state instead of mock results.
5. Phase 5 — Portable handoff. Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data. Include setup, operating limits, fixture walkthrough and shutdown/restart instructions in the README.
6. Phase 6 — Acceptance scenarios. Save a draft and confirm it is absent from RSS and public routes; change a published slug with a deliberate redirect and preserve the original revision. Repeat the workflow after restart and with a denied permission or unavailable dependency; show recoverable failure rather than a success placeholder.

## Paid-product capabilities outside this build
- The plugin ecosystem: SEO, forms, caching, memberships, analytics, backups, all one click away in WordPress and all your problem in the DIY build
- WooCommerce and anything resembling commerce
- Gutenberg block editing and the visual page builders non-technical people actually like
- A theme marketplace, so your site looks like whatever the agent felt like that day
- Any hope of handing the site to a developer who already knows the stack
- Security updates and managed hosting done by someone who is not you

## Implementation prompt
WORKING SLICE
Build a single-author Markdown CMS with one authenticated administrator, image uploads and server-rendered public pages. Include preview, RSS, redirects for deliberate slug changes and a complete source export.

Build this scoped WordPress-inspired workflow with a documented data model and visible failure states.

Architecture
- Node.js, TypeScript and Fastify with Eta server-rendered HTML.
- SQLite via better-sqlite3, sanitized markdown-it rendering, Sharp media processing and authenticated administrator cookie sessions.

Prerequisites and limits
Node, persistent local database/uploads, public HTTPS hosting and a generated administrator password hash kept outside source. No WordPress runtime or plugin compatibility is implied.
Outside this release: The plugin ecosystem: SEO, forms, caching, memberships, analytics, backups, all one click away in WordPress and all your problem in the DIY build; WooCommerce and anything resembling commerce

Data model and correctness
posts, unique slugs, draft/published revisions, media assets, tags and RSS publication state
Invariant: Markdown and uploads cannot execute scripts; publishing is an explicit action and deleted/draft posts cannot leak through feeds or search.
Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them.

Security and privacy
Public routes accept only their documented inputs with rate/size limits. Protect every owner/customer action with authenticated authorization and CSRF checks; keep secrets outside exports and redact personal data from logs.

Recovery and export
Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data.

Implementation order
1. Phase 1 — Scope and fixtures. Implement this bounded workflow: Build a single-author Markdown CMS with one authenticated administrator, image uploads and server-rendered public pages. Include preview, RSS, redirects for deliberate slug changes and a complete source export. Record prerequisites, select representative user-owned fixtures and document the unsupported features: The plugin ecosystem: SEO, forms, caching, memberships, analytics, backups, all one click away in WordPress and all your problem in the DIY build; WooCommerce and anything resembling commerce
2. Phase 2 — Durable model. Model posts, unique slugs, draft/published revisions, media assets, tags and RSS publication state Add migrations or a versioned document format, explicit validation, stable IDs and a visible import-error report. Preserve this rule: Markdown and uploads cannot execute scripts; publishing is an explicit action and deleted/draft posts cannot leak through feeds or search.
3. Phase 3 — Complete the first useful path. Implement the workflow's input, review and output interface, with clear controls and explicit empty/error states. Use short SQLite transactions and persist job state before starting work. Give retries stable operation IDs; report incomplete or unknown results instead of silently repeating them.
4. Phase 4 — Permissions and integration failure. Public routes accept only their documented inputs with rate/size limits. Protect every owner/customer action with authenticated authorization and CSRF checks; keep secrets outside exports and redact personal data from logs. Request integration credentials and permissions only for the enabled feature; show a disconnected state instead of mock results.
5. Phase 5 — Portable handoff. Use a consistent SQLite backup and an attachment manifest. Export portable JSON/CSV, then restore to a new directory without overwriting the original data. Include setup, operating limits, fixture walkthrough and shutdown/restart instructions in the README.
6. Phase 6 — Acceptance scenarios. Save a draft and confirm it is absent from RSS and public routes; change a published slug with a deliberate redirect and preserve the original revision. Repeat the workflow after restart and with a denied permission or unavailable dependency; show recoverable failure rather than a success placeholder.

Acceptance
Save a draft and confirm it is absent from RSS and public routes; change a published slug with a deliberate redirect and preserve the original revision.
Use real source data or clearly labeled fixtures. Explain unsupported input and provider failures; do not fabricate analytics, delivery receipts, accuracy claims or security guarantees.

Optional agent guidance
Optional external skill: [web-design-guidelines](https://github.com/vercel-labs/agent-skills/blob/main/skills/web-design-guidelines/SKILL.md) — Review web interfaces for accessibility, keyboard focus, forms, navigation and interaction quality. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
Optional external skill: [sharp-edges](https://github.com/trailofbits/skills/blob/main/plugins/sharp-edges/skills/sharp-edges/SKILL.md) — Review security-sensitive APIs and configuration for dangerous defaults and easy-to-misuse interfaces. Review its instructions and compatibility before use; it does not grant deployment, data-access or publication permission.
Project rule — data model: posts, unique slugs, draft/published revisions, media assets, tags and RSS publication state
Project rule — preserve this invariant: Markdown and uploads cannot execute scripts; publishing is an explicit action and deleted/draft posts cannot leak through feeds or search.
Project rule — acceptance evidence: Save a draft and confirm it is absent from RSS and public routes; change a published slug with a deliberate redirect and preserve the original revision.

## Completion evidence
Demonstrate the prompt's acceptance scenarios against the scoped workflow. Include setup from a clean checkout and failure recovery. Check persistence across restart and export/restore only for the state the prompt says to store; for memory-only tools, confirm that temporary content is discarded as specified. Record actual results and remaining limitations. A detailed plan alone does not establish a working replacement.