Set Up SDLC Delegated Workflows

Install Archon, build the sdlc-worker:base + sdlc-worker:full Docker images, and copy SDLC workflow templates and command prompts into the project.

Arguments

• (no argument) or --with-docker (default) — full setup: host Archon + workflows + Docker images. Recommended — this is the state in which /sdlc-workflows:workflows-run will actually work.
• --workflows-only — host Archon + workflows, no Docker build. Only use this when you know you already have sdlc-worker:base and :full from an earlier setup; a fresh project that picks this will see workflows-run fail at the first node with "image not found".
• --health-check — run diagnostic checks only (skip steps 1-8).

When --health-check is passed, skip steps 1-8 and go directly to step 9.

Default behaviour (no args) is --with-docker so a first-time user ends up in a working state without having to know which flags to pass.

Steps

1. Check if Archon is already installed

The upstream installer (curl -fsSL https://archon.diy/install | bash) drops the binary at ~/.bun/bin/archon because Archon is a Bun runtime app. On macOS this directory is not on the default shell PATH — so the binary exists but command -v archon returns nothing unless the user already has ~/.bun/bin on PATH.

Detect both cases, because "not on PATH" is very different from "not installed" (running the installer again is wasted work):

if command -v archon >/dev/null 2>&1; then
    ARCHON_STATUS=on-path
    ARCHON_BIN=$(command -v archon)
elif [ -x "$HOME/.bun/bin/archon" ]; then
    ARCHON_STATUS=installed-not-on-path
    ARCHON_BIN="$HOME/.bun/bin/archon"
else
    ARCHON_STATUS=missing
fi

If on-path: report and skip to step 3:

Archon is already installed and on PATH (version X.Y.Z).

If installed-not-on-path: the binary exists but won't be found by /sdlc-workflows:workflows-run. Do NOT re-run the installer — that's wasted work. Tell the user explicitly and have them choose:

Archon is already installed at ~/.bun/bin/archon but that directory
is NOT on your PATH. /sdlc-workflows:workflows-run will fail to
find it unless you do ONE of the following:

  (a) Add ~/.bun/bin to your shell PATH (permanent fix — recommended):
        echo 'export BUN_INSTALL="$HOME/.bun"' >> ~/.zshrc
        echo 'export PATH="$BUN_INSTALL/bin:$PATH"' >> ~/.zshrc
        # then open a new terminal

  (b) Run this session with a prefixed PATH (one-shot):
        export PATH="$HOME/.bun/bin:$PATH"

Which would you like?

Do NOT edit the user's shell init files without confirmation.

If missing: proceed to step 2.

2. Install Archon

If Archon is not installed, inform the user and install. Prefer Homebrew — the compiled binary supports archon serve (web UI + REST API). The curl source installer produces a shell-script wrapper that cannot serve.

Archon is not installed. Installing...

macOS (recommended):

brew install coleam00/archon/archon

Fallback (Linux, or if brew unavailable):

curl -fsSL https://archon.diy/install | bash

Note: the curl installer drops a shell-script wrapper at ~/.bun/bin/archon that does not support archon serve. Workflow execution works, but the web UI and REST API will not be available.

Verify installation — in that order, both forms must be tried because the installer typically puts entries in ~/.zshrc / ~/.bashrc that do not take effect until a new shell is spawned:

if command -v archon >/dev/null 2>&1; then
    archon --version
    POST_INSTALL_STATE=on-path
elif [ -x "$HOME/.bun/bin/archon" ]; then
    "$HOME/.bun/bin/archon" --version
    POST_INSTALL_STATE=installed-not-on-path
else
    POST_INSTALL_STATE=installer-failed
fi

If on-path: all good, proceed.

If installed-not-on-path: this is the common case right after a fresh install — the installer added the PATH entry to the shell init file but the current shell hasn't reloaded it. Tell the user explicitly:

Archon installed at ~/.bun/bin/archon (version X.Y.Z).

IMPORTANT: the installer added ~/.bun/bin to your shell PATH, but the
change only takes effect in NEW shells. To use archon immediately in
THIS session, run:

  export PATH="$HOME/.bun/bin:$PATH"

Or open a new terminal. /sdlc-workflows:workflows-run will fail with
"archon not found" until you do one of these.

If installer-failed: report the error and suggest manual installation:

Archon installation failed. Please install manually:
  macOS/Linux: curl -fsSL https://archon.diy/install | bash
  Homebrew:    brew install coleam00/archon/archon
  See: https://archon.diy for other options

Then re-run this skill.

3. Create .archon directories

mkdir -p .archon/workflows .archon/commands

4. Copy SDLC workflows

Copy workflow YAML files from the plugin install directory into .archon/workflows/:

For each file in ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/workflows/:

• Check if destination exists in .archon/workflows/
• If exists, skip (don't overwrite user customisations)
• If not, copy

Report:

Copied SDLC workflows:
  copied: sdlc-parallel-review.yaml
  copied: sdlc-feature-development.yaml
  copied: sdlc-bulk-refactor.yaml
  copied: sdlc-commissioned-pipeline.yaml
  skipped: sdlc-parallel-review.yaml (already exists)

5. Copy SDLC command prompts

Copy command Markdown files from ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/commands/ into .archon/commands/:

Same skip-if-exists logic as step 4.

Report:

Copied SDLC commands:
  copied: sdlc-security-review.md
  copied: sdlc-plan.md
  ... (list all)

6. Verify workflow discovery

Run: archon workflow list 2>/dev/null

Check that SDLC workflows appear in the output. If they don't, check that .archon/workflows/ is in Archon's workflow discovery path.

Report:

Archon workflow discovery:
  found: sdlc-parallel-review
  found: sdlc-feature-development
  found: sdlc-bulk-refactor
  found: sdlc-commissioned-pipeline

7. Build Docker images (--with-docker only)

If --with-docker argument was provided:

Check if Docker is available:

docker --version 2>/dev/null && docker info >/dev/null 2>&1

If Docker is not available:

Docker is not installed or not running. Skipping Docker image build.

IMPORTANT: the sdlc-workflows delivery is container-based. Every
workflow node runs inside sdlc-worker:<team> containers. Without
the images, /sdlc-workflows:workflows-run will fail at the first
node.

To finish setup later:
  1. Install and start Docker Desktop: https://docker.com/products/docker-desktop
  2. Re-run: /sdlc-workflows:workflows-setup --with-docker

If Docker is available, build the base and full images:

bash ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/docker/build-base.sh
bash ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/docker/build-full.sh

The base build includes a CLI verification step — a broken archon inside the image fails the build immediately (repair plan phase B2). Report the final image sizes so the user can sanity-check:

docker image inspect sdlc-worker:base --format '{{.Size}}' | \
  awk '{printf "sdlc-worker:base  %.1f GB\n", $1/1024/1024/1024}'
docker image inspect sdlc-worker:full --format '{{.Size}}' | \
  awk '{printf "sdlc-worker:full  %.1f GB\n", $1/1024/1024/1024}'

Then verify end-to-end that the runtime archon inside the image also works (defence in depth — the build-time check plus this runtime check together ensure a released image is never broken):

docker run --rm --entrypoint archon sdlc-worker:base --help \
  >/dev/null 2>&1 && echo OK || echo FAIL

If FAIL, the image is corrupt — report to the user and ask them to rebuild.

8. Report next steps

Before telling the user setup is done, verify the three things workflows-run will actually need, so the "next steps" list is honest:

# a. Host archon reachable
archon --version >/dev/null 2>&1 && echo HOST_ARCHON=ok || echo HOST_ARCHON=missing

# b. Base image present and its archon CLI works
if docker image inspect sdlc-worker:base >/dev/null 2>&1 && \
   docker run --rm --entrypoint archon sdlc-worker:base --help >/dev/null 2>&1; then
    echo BASE_IMAGE=ok
else
    echo BASE_IMAGE=missing-or-broken
fi

# c. Workflows visible
test -d .archon/workflows && \
   ls .archon/workflows/sdlc-*.yaml >/dev/null 2>&1 && \
   echo WORKFLOWS=ok || echo WORKFLOWS=missing

If all three report ok, tell the user:

SDLC delegated workflows are configured and verified.

Next steps:
  1. Run a parallel review:
       /sdlc-workflows:workflows-run sdlc-parallel-review
  2. View available workflows:
       archon workflow list
  3. Customise workflows:
       edit .archon/workflows/sdlc-*.yaml
  4. Re-check health anytime:
       /sdlc-workflows:workflows-setup --health-check
  5. Watch workflows run (Archon-native monitoring):
       archon workflow status            # live CLI snapshot
       archon serve                       # start web UI on :3090
       open http://localhost:3090         # full dashboard
       /sdlc-workflows:workflows-status   # REST + SQLite, works either way

For the full design, see:
  docs/superpowers/specs/2026-04-10-containerised-delegation-design.md

If any check failed, tell the user exactly what to fix — do NOT leave them to discover the broken state via a failing workflow run. Example:

SDLC setup is incomplete:
  HOST_ARCHON:  missing    → re-run this skill without --workflows-only
  BASE_IMAGE:   missing    → /sdlc-workflows:workflows-setup --with-docker
  WORKFLOWS:    ok

Resolve the above before running /sdlc-workflows:workflows-run.

9. Delegation health check

Run a comprehensive health check to verify all delegation infrastructure is ready.

9a. Archon status

if command -v archon >/dev/null 2>&1; then
    archon --version
    echo "Archon: OK (on PATH at $(command -v archon))"
elif [ -x "$HOME/.bun/bin/archon" ]; then
    "$HOME/.bun/bin/archon" --version
    echo "Archon: INSTALLED BUT NOT ON PATH"
    echo "  Binary: $HOME/.bun/bin/archon"
    echo "  Fix:    export PATH=\"\$HOME/.bun/bin:\$PATH\""
    echo "          (persist in ~/.zshrc for future shells)"
else
    echo "Archon: NOT INSTALLED"
    echo "  Fix:    re-run /sdlc-workflows:workflows-setup (step 2)"
fi

Include the "installed but not on PATH" state in the final summary — it is the most common failure mode right after a fresh install, and silencing it sets the user up for "archon not found" the next time they try to run a workflow.

9b. Docker connectivity

docker info >/dev/null 2>&1

If Docker is not running or not installed, report:

Docker: NOT AVAILABLE
  Container-based delegation requires Docker.
  Install Docker Desktop: https://docker.com/products/docker-desktop

9c. Image CLI health

We do NOT patch Archon's schema. The preprocessor (preprocess_workflow.py) rewrites image: nodes into bash: docker run ... nodes before Archon ever sees the workflow, so Archon only processes its native field set. The earlier sed-based ContainerProvider patch was both wrong (wrong insertion point) and unnecessary — it has been removed (repair plan phase B).

What we DO verify: that the archon CLI inside sdlc-worker:base actually runs. A broken install would silently degrade the super-smoke to direct-docker-run mode without archon, which is how earlier "all green" runs hid real regressions. The image build itself now fails if archon --help does not work, and this check is the runtime counterpart.

docker run --rm --entrypoint archon sdlc-worker:base --help \
  >/dev/null 2>&1 && echo OK || echo FAIL
docker run --rm --entrypoint archon sdlc-worker:base workflow --help \
  >/dev/null 2>&1 && echo OK || echo FAIL

Report:

Archon CLI in image:  OK | FAIL (rebuild sdlc-worker:base)
Archon workflow CMD:  OK | FAIL (rebuild sdlc-worker:base)

9d. ARM64 patch status

docker run --rm sdlc-worker:base grep -q 'executable:' /opt/archon/packages/core/src/clients/claude.ts 2>/dev/null

Report:

ARM64 patch: applied (upstream fix not yet merged) | not needed

9e. Loop signal workaround

docker run --rm sdlc-worker:base bash /opt/sdlc-scripts/detect-loop-bug.sh 2>/dev/null

Report:

Loop workaround: active (Archon #1126 not yet fixed) | not needed (bug fixed)

9f. Team image verification

For each YAML file in .archon/teams/:

1. Read the manifest
2. Check if the corresponding Docker image exists: docker image inspect sdlc-worker:<team-name>
3. If the manifest has image_built and updated timestamps, check for staleness
4. Report agent and skill count from the manifest

Team images:
  sdlc-worker:security-review-team   OK (3 agents, 2 skills)
  sdlc-worker:dev-team-python        STALE (manifest updated after last build)
  sdlc-worker:test-team              NOT BUILT

If no team manifests exist:

Team images: none configured
  Create a team manifest in .archon/teams/ and run /sdlc-workflows:deploy-team

9g. Credential injection

Check which credential tier is available for containerised workflow execution:

python3 ${CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT}/scripts/resolve_credentials.py --project-dir . --json

Parse the JSON output and report:

Credential injection:
  Tier 1 (Keychain):     OK — Claude Code credentials found
  Tier 2 (Volume):       SKIP — Keychain succeeded
  Tier 3 (Config):       SKIP — Keychain succeeded
  Active tier:           Keychain

Or when Keychain fails:

Credential injection:
  Tier 1 (Keychain):     FAIL — not macOS or no keychain entry
  Tier 2 (Volume):       OK — sdlc-claude-credentials volume found
  Active tier:           Volume

Or when nothing works:

Credential injection:
  Tier 1 (Keychain):     FAIL — not macOS
  Tier 2 (Volume):       FAIL — volume not found
  Tier 3 (Config):       FAIL — .archon/credentials.yaml not found
  Active tier:           NONE

  Run: tests/integration/workforce-smoke/login.sh
  Or create: .archon/credentials.yaml with credential_path

Include the active tier in the summary report (step 9h).

9h. Summary report

Combine all checks into a single report:

Delegation health check:
  Archon (host):       OK (v0.4.2)
  Docker:              OK
  Archon CLI in image: OK
  ARM64 patch:         applied
  Loop workaround:     active
  Team images:         N/N present (M stale)
  Credentials:         OK (tier: Keychain)

  Ready for delegation.

Or if issues found:

Delegation health check:
  Archon (host):       OK (v0.4.2)
  Docker:              NOT AVAILABLE
  Archon CLI in image: FAIL (rebuild sdlc-worker:base)
  ...
  Credentials:         NONE

  Issues found. Resolve above before running delegated workflows.

Idempotency

This skill is safe to run multiple times. On second invocation:

• Archon already installed: skipped
• Existing workflow files: not overwritten
• Docker image: rebuilt if requested — note that since the default is now --with-docker, a re-run with no args will rebuild the images. Pass --workflows-only to skip the Docker step when you only want to refresh the workflow YAML copies.