Rules

Rules let you provide durable instructions that shape agent behavior.

The primary rules file is AGENTS.md.

Create Rules

Use /init to generate a starter AGENTS.md, or create it manually.

Recommended location:

• Project: ./AGENTS.md

Optional global location:

• ~/.config/alphabase/AGENTS.md

Example AGENTS.md

AGENTS.md

# Project Context

This is a TypeScript monorepo using workspace packages.

## Standards

- Prefer small, testable changes.
- Add tests for behavioral fixes.
- Keep public APIs backward compatible unless explicitly approved.

## Workflow

- Run lint and tests before finalizing edits.
- Document user-visible changes in release notes.

Layering and Precedence

AlphaBase loads instruction context from nearest to broadest scope.

1. Project-local AGENTS.md discovered from current directory upward
2. Global ~/.config/alphabase/AGENTS.md
3. Additional files defined in instructions config

Additional Instruction Files

You can include extra rule files in config.

alphabase.jsonc

{
  "$schema": "https://alphabase.ai/config.json",
  "instructions": [
    "docs/development-standards.md",
    "packages/*/AGENTS.md"
  ]
}

Remote instruction URLs are supported, but keep them versioned and stable.

Claude-Compatible Fallbacks

For teams migrating from Claude-style setups, AlphaBase can also discover:

• CLAUDE.md
• ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md
• .claude/skills/*/SKILL.md

Disable compatibility with:

export ALPHABASE_DISABLE_CLAUDE_CODE=1

Best Practices

1. Keep rules short, concrete, and enforceable.
2. Separate universal standards from project-specific conventions.
3. Avoid secrets, private keys, or credentials in rules files.
4. Commit project rules so behavior is consistent across teammates.