home / skills / vadimcomanescu / codex-skills / error-resolver

error-resolver skill

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/skills/.experimental/quality/error-resolver

This skill helps you diagnose errors methodically, reproduce issues, and validate safe, minimal fixes with clear verification steps.

npx playbooks add skill vadimcomanescu/codex-skills --skill error-resolver

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SKILL.md

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---
name: error-resolver
description: Use when debugging errors, crashes, or failing commands. Focus on reproducing the issue, isolating the root cause, and producing a minimal, safe fix with validation steps.
---

# Error Resolver

Diagnose failures methodically and propose safe, verified fixes.

## Quick Start
1) Reproduce and capture the exact error message.
2) Isolate the smallest repro or failing test.
3) Identify root cause before proposing changes.
4) Apply the smallest fix and re-verify.

## Debugging Checklist
- Read stack traces top-to-bottom.
- Check recent changes (diff, dependency updates).
- Validate environment (versions, env vars, config).
- Confirm inputs and assumptions.

## Fix Criteria
- Fix targets the root cause, not the symptom.
- Tests or manual verification are specified.
- Any side effects or trade-offs are called out.

## Guardrails
- Don’t apply changes without confirming the root cause.
- For production issues, include rollback steps.

## References
- Extended examples: `references/examples.md`

Overview

This skill helps debug errors, crashes, and failing commands by guiding a methodical diagnosis and producing minimal, safe fixes. It emphasizes reproducing the issue, isolating a minimal repro, and validating fixes with clear verification steps. The goal is to resolve the root cause while limiting risk and side effects.

How this skill works

The skill walks you through capturing exact error messages and stack traces, then reducing the problem to the smallest failing test or reproduction. It prompts checks for recent changes, dependency and environment mismatches, and incorrect inputs or assumptions. Once the root cause is identified, the skill proposes the smallest corrective change and specifies verification and rollback steps.

When to use it

When a test, command, or process consistently fails and you need a reproducible diagnosis.
When production errors occur and you must minimize risk while restoring functionality.
When a crash or exception stack trace is unclear and root cause needs isolation.
When making a targeted fix that must include verification and rollback instructions.
When preparing a bug report or patch that must include a minimal repro and validation steps.

Best practices

Always reproduce the error locally or in a safe staging environment before changing code.
Create the smallest possible failing test or script that demonstrates the issue.
Read stack traces from top to bottom and correlate frames with recent code changes.
Check environment details: interpreter/runtime version, dependency versions, env vars, and config.
Document verification steps and any rollback plan for production fixes.

Example use cases

A unit test started failing after a dependency update — isolate the change, reproduce, and propose a minimal patch.
A web endpoint intermittently returns 500 — collect logs, reproduce with a small script, and fix input validation or race condition.
A CLI command crashes on some systems — verify environment differences, add defensive checks, and provide tests.
A deployment causes an application error in production — identify the offending release, apply a hotfix with rollback steps, and add a regression test.

FAQ

What if I cannot reproduce the issue?

Collect as much context as possible: logs, environment details, user steps, and sample inputs. Create lightweight instrumentation or additional logging to capture the failing path and retry reproduction.

How large should the fix be?

Aim for the minimal change that addresses the root cause. Avoid broad refactors in hotfixes; instead, implement a small, well-tested fix and schedule larger improvements separately.