help

Show available GSD commands and usage guide

Overview

The help command displays the complete GSD command reference with descriptions and usage examples. It provides a quick reference guide to all available commands without any project-specific analysis.

Syntax

/gsd:help

How It Works

Displays the complete GSD command reference from the help workflow. Output includes:

• Command categories (Project, Phase, Session, Utilities)
• Command syntax and arguments
• Brief descriptions
• Common usage patterns
• Links to detailed documentation

Important: The help command outputs ONLY the reference content with no additions:

• ❌ No project-specific analysis
• ❌ No git status or file context
• ❌ No next-step suggestions
• ❌ No commentary beyond the reference

Command Categories

GSD commands are organized into logical categories:

Project Management

• new-project - Initialize new project with goals and roadmap
• map-codebase - Analyze existing codebase
• discuss - Explore ideas and capture decisions

Phase Workflow

• plan-phase - Create detailed phase plan
• execute - Execute phase plan
• finalize - Review and complete phase

Session Management

• resume-work - Resume from previous session
• pause-work - Create checkpoint before pausing
• progress - Check progress and route to next action

Utilities

• quick - Execute quick tasks
• debug - Systematic debugging
• add-todo - Capture ideas as todos
• check-todos - List and work on todos
• settings - Configure GSD options
• set-profile - Switch model profile
• health - Diagnose and repair issues
• help - Show this help
• update - Update GSD to latest version

Usage Examples

Basic help

/gsd:help

Output:

GSD Command Reference
═══════════════════════════════════════════

## Project Management

/gsd:new-project
  Initialize new project with goals and roadmap.
  Creates .planning/ directory with STATE.md and ROADMAP.md.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:new-project

/gsd:map-codebase [focus-area]
  Analyze existing codebase with parallel mapper agents.
  Produces 7 documents in .planning/codebase/.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:map-codebase          # Map entire codebase
    /gsd:map-codebase api      # Focus on API subsystem

/gsd:discuss [topic]
  Explore ideas and capture decisions in CONTEXT.md.
  Lightweight discussion before planning.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:discuss
    /gsd:discuss "caching strategy"

## Phase Workflow

/gsd:plan-phase [--no-research] [--gaps]
  Create detailed phase plan with research and breakdown.
  
  Flags:
    --no-research   Skip research agent
    --gaps          Plan addresses specific gap or issue
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:plan-phase
    /gsd:plan-phase --no-research
    /gsd:plan-phase --gaps

/gsd:execute <phase-number> [--no-verify] [--branch]
  Execute phase plan with optional verification.
  
  Arguments:
    phase-number    Phase number to execute (required)
  
  Flags:
    --no-verify     Skip post-execution verification
    --branch        Create feature branch for this phase
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:execute 3
    /gsd:execute 5 --branch

/gsd:finalize [phase-number]
  Review implementation and complete phase.
  Creates SUMMARY.md and updates STATE.md.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:finalize
    /gsd:finalize 3

## Session Management

/gsd:resume-work
  Resume from previous session with full context restoration.
  Detects checkpoints and incomplete work.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:resume-work

/gsd:pause-work
  Create checkpoint before pausing mid-phase.
  Saves complete work state to .continue-here.md.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:pause-work

/gsd:progress
  Check project progress and route to next action.
  Analyzes recent work and upcoming tasks.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:progress

## Utilities

/gsd:quick [--discuss] [--full]
  Execute quick tasks with GSD guarantees.
  
  Flags:
    --discuss       Enable discussion phase
    --full          Enable plan-checking and verification
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:quick
    /gsd:quick --discuss
    /gsd:quick --full

/gsd:debug [issue-description]
  Systematic debugging with persistent state.
  Uses subagents for deep investigation.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:debug                           # List active sessions
    /gsd:debug "login fails with OAuth" # New session

/gsd:add-todo [description]
  Capture idea or task as structured todo.
  Extracts context from conversation if no description.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:add-todo Add rate limiting
    /gsd:add-todo                  # Extract from context

/gsd:check-todos [area]
  List pending todos and select one to work on.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:check-todos              # All todos
    /gsd:check-todos api          # Filter by area

/gsd:settings
  Configure GSD workflow agents and model profile.
  Interactive 5-question prompt.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:settings

/gsd:set-profile <profile>
  Quick switch model profile.
  
  Arguments:
    profile    quality | balanced | budget (required)
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:set-profile balanced
    /gsd:set-profile quality

/gsd:health [--repair]
  Diagnose and optionally repair planning directory issues.
  
  Flags:
    --repair        Automatically fix detected issues
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:health
    /gsd:health --repair

/gsd:help
  Show this command reference.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:help

/gsd:update
  Update GSD to latest version with changelog.
  
  Usage:
    /gsd:update

## Common Workflows

**New Project (Greenfield)**
  /gsd:new-project
  /gsd:plan-phase
  /gsd:execute 1

**New Project (Brownfield)**
  /gsd:map-codebase
  /gsd:new-project
  /gsd:plan-phase

**Daily Work Cycle**
  /gsd:resume-work
  /gsd:progress
  [work]
  /gsd:pause-work

**Quick Fix**
  /gsd:quick
  [describe task]

**Complex Investigation**
  /gsd:debug
  [gather symptoms]
  [agent investigates]
  [fix or plan]

**Idea Management**
  /gsd:add-todo [idea]
  [accumulate todos]
  /gsd:check-todos
  [work on selected]

═══════════════════════════════════════════

For detailed documentation: https://gsd-docs.example.com
For issues or feedback: https://github.com/gsd/issues

When to Use

Use help command

• Forgot command syntax
• New to GSD framework
• Need quick reference
• Exploring available commands
• Looking for appropriate command
• Sharing GSD with teammates

Use documentation

• Detailed command behavior
• Workflow explanations
• Best practices
• Troubleshooting
• Advanced usage
• Configuration details

Output Characteristics

What help includes:

• ✅ Command list with syntax
• ✅ Brief descriptions
• ✅ Common usage examples
• ✅ Workflow patterns
• ✅ Links to documentation

What help excludes:

• ❌ Project-specific information
• ❌ Current git status
• ❌ File context or analysis
• ❌ Suggestions based on project state
• ❌ Commentary or explanations beyond reference

Quick Command Lookup

Need to…	Command
Start new project	/gsd:new-project
Understand existing code	/gsd:map-codebase
Plan next feature	/gsd:plan-phase
Implement plan	/gsd:execute N
Quick bug fix	/gsd:quick
Debug issue	/gsd:debug
Resume work	/gsd:resume-work
Check progress	/gsd:progress
Save and pause	/gsd:pause-work
Capture idea	/gsd:add-todo
Review todos	/gsd:check-todos
Configure GSD	/gsd:settings
Change models	/gsd:set-profile
Fix issues	/gsd:health --repair
Update GSD	/gsd:update

Related Commands

• settings - Configure GSD behavior
• progress - Get project-specific guidance
• resume-work - Context-aware resumption
• update - Get latest GSD version