Spring Boot Scanner Skill

Spring Boot Scanner

Smart pattern detection and skill routing for Spring Boot projects.

Core Behavior

Trigger Conditions:

Editing *.java or *.kt files in a project with spring-boot-starter dependencies
Working with pom.xml or build.gradle* containing Spring Boot
User mentions "Spring Boot", "Spring Security", "Spring Data", etc.

Action: Scan code → Detect patterns → Route to appropriate skill

Detection Algorithm

Phase 1: Project Detection

1. Check for Spring Boot indicators:
   - Glob: **/pom.xml → grep spring-boot-starter
   - Glob: **/build.gradle* → grep org.springframework.boot

2. If Spring Boot detected → Continue to Phase 2
   If not → Exit (not a Spring Boot project)

Phase 2: Annotation Scanning

Scan current file or changed files for these annotation patterns:

| Annotation Pattern | Detected Skill | Risk Level | |-------------------|----------------|------------| | @RestController, @GetMapping, @PostMapping, @RequestMapping | spring-boot-web-api | LOW | | @Entity, @Repository, @Aggregate, @MappedSuperclass | spring-boot-data-ddd | LOW | | @Service in **/domain/** or **/service/** | domain-driven-design | LOW | | @ApplicationModule, @ApplicationModuleListener | spring-boot-modulith | LOW | | @Timed, @Counted, HealthIndicator, MeterRegistry | spring-boot-observability | LOW | | @EnableWebSecurity, @PreAuthorize, @Secured, SecurityFilterChain | spring-boot-security | HIGH | | @SpringBootTest, @WebMvcTest, @DataJpaTest, @MockitoBean | spring-boot-testing | HIGH | | @MockBean (deprecated) | spring-boot-testing | HIGH + WARNING | | Build file with version < 4.0 | spring-boot-verify | HIGH |

Phase 3: Risk-Based Routing

LOW RISK (Auto-Invoke):

Provide skill guidance immediately
No confirmation required
Skills: web-api, data-ddd, domain-driven-design, modulith, observability

HIGH RISK (Suggest + Confirm):

Present recommendation to user
Wait for confirmation before loading full skill
Skills: security, testing, verify

Routing Workflow

ON detecting patterns:

1. LOW RISK patterns detected:
   → "I notice you're working with [pattern]. Here's guidance from spring-boot-[skill]:"
   → Load skill's Quick Reference section
   → Provide contextual tips

2. HIGH RISK patterns detected:
   → Use AskUserQuestion:
     "I detected [security/testing/migration] patterns. Would you like me to:
     - Load spring-boot-[skill] for detailed guidance
     - Run a verification scan
     - Continue without skill guidance"
   → Wait for user choice
   → Route accordingly

3. Multiple patterns detected:
   → Prioritize HIGH RISK (always ask)
   → Batch LOW RISK (summarize all)
   → Example: "Detected REST controller and security config. Loading web-api guidance. For security patterns, would you like detailed review?"

Quick Reference: Annotation → Skill Map

Use this script to detect patterns:

# Run from project root
python3 scripts/detect_patterns.py /path/to/file.java

Or use Grep directly:

# Web API detection
grep -l "@RestController\|@GetMapping\|@PostMapping" **/*.java

# Security detection
grep -l "@EnableWebSecurity\|@PreAuthorize\|SecurityFilterChain" **/*.java

# Testing detection
grep -l "@SpringBootTest\|@WebMvcTest\|@MockitoBean\|@MockBean" **/*.java

Escalation Triggers

Always confirm before proceeding when detecting:

| Pattern | Reason | Action | |---------|--------|--------| | @EnableGlobalMethodSecurity | Deprecated in Security 6+ | Confirm + Migration guidance | | @MockBean | Deprecated in Boot 3.4+ | Confirm + Show @MockitoBean | | spring-boot-starter-parent < 3.0 | Major migration needed | Confirm + Suggest verify-upgrade | | .and() in security config | Removed in Security 7 | Confirm + Lambda DSL guidance | | com.fasterxml.jackson | Jackson 3 migration | Confirm + Namespace change |

Integration with Existing Components

Delegates to Skills:

spring-boot-web-api → REST patterns
spring-boot-data-ddd → Repository/Entity patterns
spring-boot-security → Security configuration
spring-boot-testing → Test patterns
spring-boot-modulith → Module structure
spring-boot-observability → Metrics/Health
spring-boot-verify → Dependencies/Config
domain-driven-design → DDD architecture

Delegates to Agents (for comprehensive review):

spring-boot-reviewer → Full codebase review
spring-boot-upgrade-verifier → Migration analysis

When to delegate to agents:

User asks for "review" or "scan" of entire project
Multiple HIGH RISK patterns across many files
Explicit /spring-review or /verify-upgrade command

Known Limitations

Annotation-based only: Detects standard Spring annotations, not custom/meta-annotations or XML configuration
Java and Kotlin only: Scans *.java and *.kt files; no Groovy/Scala support
Spring Boot 3.x+ optimized: Escalation patterns focus on Boot 3.x → 4.x migration; older versions may have gaps
No AST parsing: Uses regex matching, so patterns in comments/strings may cause false positives

Model Tier Performance

The scanner is designed for reliability across all model tiers:

| Aspect | Behavior | |--------|----------| | Haiku/Sonnet/Opus | All fully supported | | Determinism | Python script ensures consistent results regardless of model | | Single file scan | <100ms typical | | Project scan | 1-2s for typical projects (recursive) |

The Python detection script handles heavy lifting, making results model-independent.

Escape Hatch

If scanner guidance isn't helpful for the current context:

| Scenario | Action | |----------|--------| | Skip LOW RISK guidance | Ignore suggestions and continue working | | Skip HIGH RISK confirmation | Select "Continue without guidance" option | | Need comprehensive review | Use /spring-review command instead | | Disable temporarily | Remove spring-boot-scanner from active skills |

The scanner is advisory—it suggests skills but never blocks your workflow.

Detailed References

Workflow: See WORKFLOW.md for step-by-step detection flow
Examples: See EXAMPLES.md for trigger scenarios
Troubleshooting: See TROUBLESHOOTING.md for common issues
Detection Script: See scripts/detect_patterns.py for programmatic detection

Critical Reminders

Always check project type first — Only activate for Spring Boot projects
Respect risk levels — Never auto-invoke security/testing/verify without confirmation
Batch notifications — Don't spam user with multiple skill suggestions
Delegate to agents for scale — Use reviewer agent for multi-file analysis
Preserve user flow — Guidance should assist, not interrupt

Agent Skills: Spring Boot Scanner

Install this agent skill to your local

Skill Files