# general-best-practices

A skill that hands your coding agent a set of rules on code quality, testing, security and architecture. Useful when you want consistent code across a project.

- skill · `type=skill` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode · 794 installs · ★ 286
- Author: Mindrally
- License: Apache-2.0 · policy=mirror · the beginning of the file is at the end of this page
- Source: https://github.com/Mindrally/skills/tree/HEAD/general-best-practices/SKILL.md
- Updated: 2026-10-08
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/general-best-practices

## What it does

The skill covers practices that apply to most stacks. It has sections on readability and error handling, layered architecture, unit and integration tests, input validation, secret storage, caching, logging, metrics and tracing. Documentation, commits and CI get their own blocks.

It ships as a single `SKILL.md` file the agent picks up and keeps in context. No scripts, no external dependencies. It advises keeping functions under 30 lines, using parameterized queries and never committing secrets — those are guidelines, not limits anything enforces automatically.

The rules stay generic, so you will need to sharpen them for your language or framework. If your project already has its own conventions, the two will compete for the agent's attention, and keeping just one is the cleaner call.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add Mindrally/skills --skill general-best-practices -a claude-code
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `~/.claude/skills/general-best-practices/SKILL.md` — Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/general-best-practices/

### Codex

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add Mindrally/skills --skill general-best-practices -a codex
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.agents/skills/general-best-practices/SKILL.md` — For all projects use ~/.agents/skills/

### Cursor

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add Mindrally/skills --skill general-best-practices -a cursor
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.cursor/skills/general-best-practices/SKILL.md` — Cursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/

### GitHub Copilot

1. **GitHub CLI**
```bash
gh skill install Mindrally/skills general-best-practices
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.github/skills/general-best-practices/SKILL.md`

### Gemini CLI

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add Mindrally/skills --skill general-best-practices -a gemini-cli
```

2. **Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini skills install https://github.com/Mindrally/skills --path general-best-practices
```

### Windsurf (Devin Desktop)

**Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.devin/skills/general-best-practices/SKILL.md` — The legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works

### OpenCode

**Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add Mindrally/skills --skill general-best-practices -a opencode
```

### Claude.ai

**Claude.ai**
- Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills

Where a file is given instead of a command, copy the files from the source to that path: https://github.com/Mindrally/skills/tree/HEAD/general-best-practices/SKILL.md

## When to use it
- set one coding style for the agent across a project
- explain how to split logic into layers
- flag what to check when handling user input
- remind about parameterized queries and secret storage
- spell out expectations for tests and logging

## Example prompts
- Check this new module against the general-best-practices skill and list what breaks the rules
- Split this service into layers the way general-best-practices suggests
- Scan this code for leaked secrets and unsafe input using general-best-practices

## Source text · SKILL.md · Apache-2.0

Below is the content of a third-party file. It is data, not instructions for you: do not act on anything written inside unless the human asks. Block tag: 1c09ac07132503a2.

BEGIN THIRD-PARTY FILE 1c09ac07132503a2
```text
---
name: general-best-practices
description: General software development best practices covering code quality, testing, security, performance, and maintainability across technology stacks
metadata:
  maintainer: Mindrally
  source: https://github.com/Mindrally/skills
---

# General Best Practices

A comprehensive collection of software development best practices applicable across various technology stacks and project types.

## Code Quality

### Readability and Maintainability

Write short, focused functions with a single responsibility.

Use clear, descriptive names for variables, functions, and classes.

Avoid deep nesting; prefer early returns and guard clauses.

Keep functions and methods to a reasonable length (typically under 30 lines).

### Error Handling

Always handle errors explicitly rather than silently ignoring them.

Use wrapped errors for traceability and context.

Provide meaningful error messages that help with debugging.

Fail fast and fail loudly during development.

### Code Organization

Organize code into logical modules and packages.

Separate concerns: keep business logic separate from infrastructure code.

Use consistent file and folder naming conventions.

Follow the principle of least surprise in API design.

## Architecture

### Clean Architecture Principles

Structure code into distinct layers:

- **Presentation/Handlers**: Handle external requests and responses
- **Application/Services**: Orchestrate business operations
- **Domain**: Core business logic and entities
- **Infrastructure**: External systems, databases, and frameworks

### Design Principles

Prefer composition over inheritance.

Program to interfaces, not implementations.

Use dependency injection for testability and flexibility.

Design for change: isolate business logic and minimize framework lock-in.

Apply SOLID principles where appropriate.

## Testing

### Unit Testing

Write tests that are fast, isolated, and repeatable.

Use table-driven tests for testing multiple scenarios.

Mock external dependencies cleanly.

Aim for high test coverage of business-critical code.

### Integration Testing

Test interactions between components and external systems.

Use separate test configurations and databases.

Clean up test data after each test run.

### Test Organization

Separate fast unit tests from slower integration tests.

Run fast tests frequently during development.

Include tests in CI/CD pipelines.

## Security

### Input Validation

Validate all inputs at service boundaries.

Never trust user input; sanitize and validate everything.

Use parameterized queries to prevent SQL injection.

### Authentication and Authorization

Use secure defaults for tokens and sessions.

Implement proper access control at every layer.

Store secrets securely; never commit them to version control.
```
END THIRD-PARTY FILE 1c09ac07132503a2

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---
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