---
name: Build
slug: build-3
category: DevOps
description: Build detects the project toolchain and runs the appropriate build command for Node, Python, Flutter, Go, Rust, or Docker projects. Use it when you need compiled artifacts or packaged outputs.
github: "https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit/tree/main/app/skills/build"
language: Python
stars: 170
forks: 20
install: "npx degit https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit/tree/main/app/skills/build ~/.claude/skills/build"
installs_to: ~/.claude/skills/build
source_path: app/skills/build/SKILL.md
collection_size: 25
category_size: 1075
collection_url: "https://dirskills.com/collections/softspark/ai-toolkit"
added: 2026-09-08T05:33:47.896Z
last_synced: 2026-09-08T05:33:47.896Z
canonical_url: "https://dirskills.com/skills/build-3"
---

# Build

Build detects the project toolchain and runs the appropriate build command for Node, Python, Flutter, Go, Rust, or Docker projects. Use it when you need compiled artifacts or packaged outputs.

**Install:**

```bash
npx degit https://github.com/softspark/ai-toolkit/tree/main/app/skills/build ~/.claude/skills/build
```

## README

# Build Project

$ARGUMENTS

Build the current project.

## Project context

- Project config: !`cat package.json 2>/dev/null || cat pyproject.toml 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown"`

## Auto-Detection

Run the bundled script to detect build system:

```bash
python3 ${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/scripts/detect-build.py [dev|prod|docker]
```

## Usage

```
/build [target]
```

## What This Command Does

1. **Detects** project type
2. **Runs** appropriate build command
3. **Reports** build status

## Build Commands by Project Type

| Project Type | Build Command |
|--------------|---------------|
| Node.js | `npm run build` or `pnpm build` |
| Python | `poetry build` or `pip install -e .` |
| Flutter | `flutter build` |
| Go | `go build ./...` |
| Rust | `cargo build --release` |
| Docker | `docker compose build` |

## Output Format

```markdown
## Build Report

### Status: Success / Failed

### Build Details
- **Project**: [name]
- **Type**: [type]
- **Command**: [command used]
- **Duration**: [time]

### Artifacts
- [artifact 1]
- [artifact 2]

### Warnings
- [warning if any]

### Errors
- [error if any]
```

## Targets

| Target | Description |
|--------|-------------|
| `dev` | Development build |
| `prod` | Production build |
| `docker` | Docker image build |
| `all` | Build all targets |

## MANDATORY: Documentation Update

After build configuration changes, update documentation:

### When to Update
- Build config changes -> Update build docs
- New dependencies -> Update requirements docs
- Docker changes -> Update Docker docs
- CI changes -> Update CI/CD docs

### Post-Build Changes Checklist
- [ ] Build successful
- [ ] **README build instructions updated** (if changed)
- [ ] **CI/CD config documented**

## Rules

- **MUST** detect the build system automatically (`detect-build.py`) before invoking any command
- **NEVER** run a `clean` build when incremental works — clean only on explicit user request
- **CRITICAL**: surface the first build error literally, including the stack trace and file:line. Paraphrasing loses the diagnostic.
- **MANDATORY**: on success, report the artifact paths (compiled binaries, bundled output, built images) — callers downstream need them

## Gotchas

- `npm run build` does not refresh `node_modules`. If `package-lock.json` is out of sync, the build runs against stale dependencies and "succeeds" with wrong versions. In CI always precede with `npm ci`.
- `cargo build --release` takes 5-10× longer than debug. Never use `--release` in a dev loop; reserve it for CI artifacts and benchmarks.
- `docker compose build` keys layer cache per service. A change to a shared context file (e.g., root `COPY . .`) invalidates every service's cache. Structure Dockerfiles to copy dependency manifests first, source last.
- `flutter build apk` without `--split-per-abi` produces a fat APK ~3× larger than needed. Production builds should always split unless explicitly bundling.
- `go build ./...` succeeds with a warning when a package has no Go files (e.g., pure-doc subdir). Downstream tools that expect every listed package to compile a binary fail silently — check `go build -v` for the list of built packages.

## When NOT to Use

- For running tests — use `/test`
- For deployment or artifact push — use `/deploy`
- For scaffolding a new build system — use `/app-builder` or `/ci`
- For CI pipeline generation — use `/ci`
- When the project has no build step (interpreted code, pure docs) — this skill has nothing to do