/nw-update
Queues a deferred self-update of nwave-ai. Writes a PendingUpdateFlag that the SessionStart hook replays on the next Claude Code launch, so the current session is not interrupted. Falls back to manual instructions when the package manager cannot be detected.
$ npx -y skills add nWave-ai/nWave --skill nw-update --agent claude-codeHow it fires
How this skill gets triggered: by you, by Claude, or both.
- Fires itselfAuto-invocation. Claude auto-loads it when your prompt matches the work.Auto-invocation is when the right skill fires by itself at the right moment, driven by a FLOW.md router and a hook, instead of you invoking it by name. It is the difference between a skill being installed and a skill actually getting used.Read the full definition →
- You can call itInvoke it directly when you want it.
- Slash command
/nw-update
Context preview
The summary Claude sees to decide when to auto-load this skill.
Queues a deferred self-update of nwave-ai. Writes a PendingUpdateFlag that the SessionStart hook replays on the next Claude Code launch, so the current session is not interrupted. Falls back to manual instructions when the package manager cannot be detected.
SKILL.md
nw-update.SKILL.mdname: nw-update
description: "Queues a deferred self-update of nwave-ai. Writes a PendingUpdateFlag that the SessionStart hook replays on the next Claude Code launch, so the current session is not interrupted. Falls back to manual instructions when the package manager cannot be detected."
user-invocable: true
argument-hint: '[target-version] - Optional explicit version (e.g. 1.4.2). Defaults to the latest version discovered by the periodic update check.'
NW-UPDATE: Queue Deferred nWave Self-Update
**Wave**: CROSS_WAVE | **Agent**: Main Instance (self) | **Command**: `/nw-update`
Overview
`/nw-update` records a `PendingUpdateFlag` on disk. The actual upgrade is performed by the SessionStart hook on the next Claude Code launch, so the user can keep working in the current session and apply the new version whenever they restart.
You (the main Claude instance) run this command directly — no subagent delegation. Do NOT attempt to upgrade nwave-ai in the current session.
Behavior Flow
Step 1: Resolve target version
1. If the user passed an argument (`$ARGUMENTS`), treat it as the target version after stripping a leading `v`. 2. Otherwise read the latest version discovered by the periodic update check from the global config (`update_check.latest_available`):
python3 -c "
import sys, os
sys.path.insert(0, os.path.expanduser('~/.claude/lib/python'))
from des.adapters.driven.config.des_config import DESConfig
print(DESConfig().update_check_latest_available or '')"3. If no argument AND no discovered version (empty output): ask the user for the target version explicitly. Do not guess.
Step 2: Detect the package manager and its binary
Invoke the detector and resolve the PM binary absolute path in a single Bash call.
This runs under whatever `python3` the shell provides, which is NOT the interpreter nwave-ai was installed under — so `sys.executable` is the wrong anchor for detection. Use `resolve_nwave_pm`, which prefers the value the installer recorded at install time (`install.package_manager` in the global config) and only falls back to live path detection:
python3 -c "
import sys, os
sys.path.insert(0, os.path.expanduser('~/.claude/lib/python'))
import shutil
from pathlib import Path
from des.adapters.driven.config.des_config import DESConfig
from des.adapters.driven.package_managers.package_manager_detector import (
resolve_nwave_pm,
)
pm = resolve_nwave_pm(DESConfig().installed_package_manager, Path(sys.executable))
binary = shutil.which(pm) if pm in ('pipx', 'uv') else ''
print(f'{pm}|{binary or \"\"}')"Parse the output as `pm|binary_abspath`.
Step 3: Handle non-auto-updatable PM
If `pm == "unknown"` OR `pm == "pip"` OR `binary_abspath` is empty:
(`detect_pm` returns `pip` only when forced via `NWAVE_INSTALLER=pip`; pip installs are not auto-updatable through the deferred-upgrade flow, so they take the manual path alongside `unknown`.)
1. Do NOT call `PendingUpdateService.request_update`. 2. Print the manual fallback and stop:
nwave-ai was not installed via an auto-updatable package manager.
Please upgrade manually:
uv tool install nwave-ai@latest && nwave-ai install
— or —
pipx upgrade nwave-ai && nwave-ai install
— or, if you installed with pip —
pip install -U nwave-ai && nwave-ai install
Then restart Claude Code.Step 4: Queue the pending update
Call the driving port `PendingUpdateService.request_update`:
Reuse the `pm` and `binary` already resolved in Step 2 — do NOT re-detect from `sys.executable` here (that interpreter is not the install anchor). Construct `DESConfig()` directly; there is no `DESConfig.load()`.
python3 -c "
import sys, os
sys.path.insert(0, os.path.expanduser('~/.claude/lib/python'))
from des.application.pending_update_service import PendingUpdateService
from des.adapters.driven.config.des_config import DESConfig
pm = '${PM}'
binary = '${PM_BINARY}'
target = '${TARGET_VERSION}'
config = DESConfig()
# PM adapter is only used by apply(); request_update() does not invoke it.
svc = PendingUpdateService(config=config, pm=None) # type: ignore[arg-type]
svc.request_update(pm=pm, pm_binary_abspath=binary, target_version=target)
print(f'queued:{pm}:{target}')"Substitute `${PM}` and `${PM_BINARY}` with the Step 2 values, and `${TARGET_VERSION}` with the Step 1 value (no leading `v`).
Step 5: Confirm to the user
On success, print:
Update to vX.Y.Z queued. It will be applied the next time you restart Claude Code.
Package manager: <pipx|uv> (<binary_abspath>)
Error Handling
| Condition | Response | |-----------|----------| | No target version provided and none discovered | Ask the user for an explicit version | | PM detection returns `unknown` | Print manual fallback (Step 3), do not write flag | | `shutil.which(pm)` returns empty | Same as `unknown` — print fallback | | `request_update` raises | Surface the exception, do not claim success |
Progress Tracking
This command is synchronous and fast (< 1s). Do not create a task list; print progress inline.
Success Criteria
- [ ] Target version resolved (explicit arg, discovered, or asked)
- [ ] PM detected and PM binary absolute path obtained
- [ ] Either pending-update flag written OR manual fallback printed
- [ ] User sees confirmation of the queued version and PM used
Examples
Example 1: Discovered version, pipx install
/nw-update
Reads `update_check.latest_available = "1.4.2"`, detects `pipx` at `/home/alex/.local/bin/pipx`, queues flag, prints: `Update to v1.4.2 queued. It will be applied the next time you restart Claude Code.`
Example 2: Explicit version, uv install
/nw-update 1.5.0
Detects `uv` at `/home/alex/.cargo/bin/uv`, queues flag for `1.5.0`.
Example 3: Unknown PM
/nw-update 1.4.2
Detector returns `unknown` (e.g. pip venv install). Prints manual fallback instructions and exits without writing the flag.
Read more
name: nw-update description: "Queues a deferred self-update of nwave-ai. Writes a PendingUpdateFlag that the SessionStart hook replays on the next Claude Code launch, so the current session is not interrupted. Falls back to manual instructions when the package manager cannot be detected." user-invocable: true argument-hint: '[target-version] - Optional explicit version (e.g. 1.4.2). Defaults to the latest version discovered by the periodic update check.'
NW-UPDATE: Queue Deferred nWave Self-Update
**Wave**: CROSS_WAVE | **Agent**: Main Instance (self) | **Command**: `/nw-update`
Overview
`/nw-update` records a `PendingUpdateFlag` on disk. The actual upgrade is performed by the SessionStart hook on the next Claude Code launch, so the user can keep working in the current session and apply the new version whenever they restart.
You (the main Claude instance) run this command directly — no subagent delegation. Do NOT attempt to upgrade nwave-ai in the current session.
Behavior Flow
Step 1: Resolve target version
1. If the user passed an argument (`$ARGUMENTS`), treat it as the target version after stripping a leading `v`. 2. Otherwise read the latest version discovered by the periodic update check from the global config (`update_check.latest_available`):
python3 -c "
import sys, os
sys.path.insert(0, os.path.expanduser('~/.claude/lib/python'))
from des.adapters.driven.config.des_config import DESConfig
print(DESConfig().update_check_latest_available or '')"3. If no argument AND no discovered version (empty output): ask the user for the target version explicitly. Do not guess.
Step 2: Detect the package manager and its binary
Invoke the detector and resolve the PM binary absolute path in a single Bash call.
This runs under whatever `python3` the shell provides, which is NOT the interpreter nwave-ai was installed under — so `sys.executable` is the wrong anchor for detection. Use `resolve_nwave_pm`, which prefers the value the installer recorded at install time (`install.package_manager` in the global config) and only falls back to live path detection:
python3 -c "
import sys, os
sys.path.insert(0, os.path.expanduser('~/.claude/lib/python'))
import shutil
from pathlib import Path
from des.adapters.driven.config.des_config import DESConfig
from des.adapters.driven.package_managers.package_manager_detector import (
resolve_nwave_pm,
)
pm = resolve_nwave_pm(DESConfig().installed_package_manager, Path(sys.executable))
binary = shutil.which(pm) if pm in ('pipx', 'uv') else ''
print(f'{pm}|{binary or \"\"}')"Parse the output as `pm|binary_abspath`.
Step 3: Handle non-auto-updatable PM
If `pm == "unknown"` OR `pm == "pip"` OR `binary_abspath` is empty:
(`detect_pm` returns `pip` only when forced via `NWAVE_INSTALLER=pip`; pip installs are not auto-updatable through the deferred-upgrade flow, so they take the manual path alongside `unknown`.)
1. Do NOT call `PendingUpdateService.request_update`. 2. Print the manual fallback and stop:
nwave-ai was not installed via an auto-updatable package manager.
Please upgrade manually:
uv tool install nwave-ai@latest && nwave-ai install
— or —
pipx upgrade nwave-ai && nwave-ai install
— or, if you installed with pip —
pip install -U nwave-ai && nwave-ai install
Then restart Claude Code.Step 4: Queue the pending update
Call the driving port `PendingUpdateService.request_update`:
Reuse the `pm` and `binary` already resolved in Step 2 — do NOT re-detect from `sys.executable` here (that interpreter is not the install anchor). Construct `DESConfig()` directly; there is no `DESConfig.load()`.
python3 -c "
import sys, os
sys.path.insert(0, os.path.expanduser('~/.claude/lib/python'))
from des.application.pending_update_service import PendingUpdateService
from des.adapters.driven.config.des_config import DESConfig
pm = '${PM}'
binary = '${PM_BINARY}'
target = '${TARGET_VERSION}'
config = DESConfig()
# PM adapter is only used by apply(); request_update() does not invoke it.
svc = PendingUpdateService(config=config, pm=None) # type: ignore[arg-type]
svc.request_update(pm=pm, pm_binary_abspath=binary, target_version=target)
print(f'queued:{pm}:{target}')"Substitute `${PM}` and `${PM_BINARY}` with the Step 2 values, and `${TARGET_VERSION}` with the Step 1 value (no leading `v`).
Step 5: Confirm to the user
On success, print:
Update to vX.Y.Z queued. It will be applied the next time you restart Claude Code. Package manager: <pipx|uv> (<binary_abspath>)
Error Handling
| Condition | Response | |-----------|----------| | No target version provided and none discovered | Ask the user for an explicit version | | PM detection returns `unknown` | Print manual fallback (Step 3), do not write flag | | `shutil.which(pm)` returns empty | Same as `unknown` — print fallback | | `request_update` raises | Surface the exception, do not claim success |
Progress Tracking
This command is synchronous and fast (< 1s). Do not create a task list; print progress inline.
Success Criteria
- [ ] Target version resolved (explicit arg, discovered, or asked)
- [ ] PM detected and PM binary absolute path obtained
- [ ] Either pending-update flag written OR manual fallback printed
- [ ] User sees confirmation of the queued version and PM used
Examples
Example 1: Discovered version, pipx install
/nw-update
Reads `update_check.latest_available = "1.4.2"`, detects `pipx` at `/home/alex/.local/bin/pipx`, queues flag, prints: `Update to v1.4.2 queued. It will be applied the next time you restart Claude Code.`
Example 2: Explicit version, uv install
/nw-update 1.5.0
Detects `uv` at `/home/alex/.cargo/bin/uv`, queues flag for `1.5.0`.
Example 3: Unknown PM
/nw-update 1.4.2
Detector returns `unknown` (e.g. pip venv install). Prints manual fallback instructions and exits without writing the flag.
AI agents that guide you from idea to working code, with human judgment at every gate. nWave runs inside Claude Code. It breaks feature delivery into seven waves (discover, diverge, discuss, design, devops, distill, deliver).
Repo: nWave-ai/nWave
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