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05.02

Claude Code standards

Consistent, safe, effective use of Claude Code across all repos.

Updated
Oct 3, 2026
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Purpose

Consistent, safe, effective use of Claude Code across all repos.

The standard

  • Every repo has a CLAUDE.md at the root (from the template) with: purpose, stack, how to run/test, conventions that differ from defaults, and "do not touch" areas. Keep it under ~150 lines; link to wiki pages instead of restating them.

  • Start non-trivial work in plan mode (Shift+Tab to cycle modes): agree the plan, then execute. Do not let Claude run unplanned across a large change.

  • Effort level: default for everyday work; higher effort for architecture, debugging hairy issues, and security-sensitive code; lower for boilerplate.

  • Permissions: allow read/edit in the repo; deny by default for rm -rf, git push --force, anything touching .env*, and production commands. Configure in .claude/settings.json, committed.

  • Review every diff before committing. Claude writes the commit message (03.04 format); you own it.

  • Use /clear between unrelated tasks and /compact when context is long (see 05.04).

  • Sub-agents for research or parallel exploration, not for making unreviewed changes.

Useful shortcuts

Shift+Tab mode cycle · Esc interrupt · /clear · /compact · /help · # to add a note to CLAUDE.md · @file to reference.

Anti-patterns

Pasting an entire codebase into the prompt; accepting large diffs without reading; running Claude with --dangerously-skip-permissions on anything but a throwaway sandbox.

Owner: Matt · Last reviewed: 2026-09