/refactor - Refactoring Workflow
Safe refactoring with review gates.
When to Use
- "Refactor X"
- "Clean up this code"
- "Extract this into a module"
- "Improve the architecture of Y"
- Large-scale code restructuring
- Technical debt reduction
Workflow Overview
┌──────────┐ ┌────────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌──────────┐ ┌───────────┐
│ phoenix │───▶│ plan- │───▶│ kraken │───▶│plan-reviewer│───▶│ arbiter │
│ │ │ agent │ │ │ │ │ │ │
└──────────┘ └────────────┘ └──────────┘ └──────────┘ └───────────┘
Analyze Plan Implement Review Verify
current changes refactor changes tests passAgent Sequence
| # | Agent | Role | Output |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | phoenix | Analyze current code, identify improvement areas | Analysis report |
| 2 | plan-agent | Create safe refactoring plan | Step-by-step plan |
| 3 | kraken | Implement the refactoring | Code changes |
| 4 | plan-reviewer | Review changes for correctness | Review report |
| 5 | arbiter | Verify all tests still pass | Test report |
Refactoring Principles
- Tests first: Ensure adequate test coverage before refactoring
- Small steps: Each change should be independently verifiable
- Behavior preserved: No functional changes during refactor
- Reviewable: Changes should be easy to review
Execution
Phase 1: Analyze
Task(
subagent_type="phoenix",
prompt="""
Analyze for refactoring: [TARGET_CODE]
Identify:
- Current pain points
- Code smells
- Improvement opportunities
- Risk areas
- Test coverage gaps
"""
)Phase 2: Plan
Task(
subagent_type="plan-agent",
prompt="""
Plan refactoring: [TARGET_CODE]
Analysis: [from phoenix]
Create:
- Step-by-step refactoring plan
- Each step should be:
- Small and focused
- Independently testable
- Reversible
- Identify files affected
- Risk mitigation strategy
"""
)Phase 3: Implement
Task(
subagent_type="kraken",
prompt="""
Implement refactoring: [TARGET_CODE]
Plan: [from plan-agent]
Requirements:
- Follow plan exactly
- Run tests after each step
- Stop if tests fail
- NO behavior changes
"""
)Phase 4: Review
Task(
subagent_type="plan-reviewer",
prompt="""
Review refactoring: [TARGET_CODE]
Changes: [git diff from kraken]
Check:
- Behavior preserved
- No unintended changes
- Code quality improved
- Patterns consistent
"""
)Phase 5: Validate
Task(
subagent_type="arbiter",
prompt="""
Validate refactoring: [TARGET_CODE]
- Run full test suite
- Verify no regressions
- Check type errors
- Run linting
"""
)Refactoring Types
Extract Module
phoenix → plan-agent → kraken → plan-reviewer → arbiterRename/Restructure
phoenix → kraken → arbiter (simpler, skip detailed planning)Architecture Change
phoenix → plan-agent → [kraken → plan-reviewer] × N phases → arbiterExample
User: /refactor Extract the validation logic into a separate module
Claude: Starting /refactor workflow...
Phase 1: Analyzing current structure...
[Spawns phoenix]
Found: Validation logic spread across 4 files
- form.ts (lines 45-120)
- api.ts (lines 200-280)
- user.ts (lines 15-45)
- order.ts (lines 88-130)
Phase 2: Planning extraction...
[Spawns plan-agent]
Plan:
1. Create src/validation/index.ts
2. Extract common validators
3. Update imports one file at a time
4. Run tests after each change
Phase 3: Implementing...
[Spawns kraken]
Completed all 4 steps, tests green after each
Phase 4: Reviewing changes...
[Spawns plan-reviewer]
✅ All behavior preserved
✅ DRY improved (removed 45 duplicate lines)
✅ New structure consistent
Phase 5: Final validation...
[Spawns arbiter]
✅ 312 tests passing, 0 regressions
Refactoring complete!Safety Flags
--dry-run: Plan but don't implement--step-by-step: Pause after each change for approval--coverage-check: Require >80% coverage before proceeding