/manifest-parser-reference

SYNAPSE Manifest & Domain File Format Reference

Reference for the KEY=VALUE format used by the SYN-1 domain-loader parser.

---

Manifest Format (`.synapse/manifest`)

The manifest is the central registry of all SYNAPSE domains. Each domain has entries with specific suffixes.

Domain Entry Suffixes

| Suffix | Required | Values | Description | |--------|----------|--------|-------------| | `_STATE` | Yes | `active`, `inactive` | Whether domain rules are loaded | | `_RECALL` | No | comma-separated keywords | Keywords that trigger domain loading via L6 | | `_EXCLUDE` | No | comma-separated keywords | Keywords that suppress domain loading | | `_ALWAYS_ON` | No | `true`, `false` | Domain loads on every prompt (L0, L1) | | `_NON_NEGOTIABLE` | No | `true`, `false` | Rules cannot be overridden (L0 only) | | `_AGENT_TRIGGER` | No | agent_id | Domain loads when agent is active (L2) | | `_WORKFLOW_TRIGGER` | No | workflow_id | Domain loads when workflow is active (L3) |

Global Keys

| Key | Values | Description | |-----|--------|-------------| | `DEVMODE` | `true`, `false` | Enable debug/development output | | `GLOBAL_EXCLUDE` | comma-separated | Global exclusion keywords |

Example Manifest

# SYNAPSE Manifest — Central Domain Registry
# Format: KEY=VALUE (parsed by domain-loader.js)

# Layer 0: Constitution (NON-NEGOTIABLE)
CONSTITUTION_STATE=active
CONSTITUTION_ALWAYS_ON=true
CONSTITUTION_NON_NEGOTIABLE=true

# Layer 1: Global
GLOBAL_STATE=active
GLOBAL_ALWAYS_ON=true

# Layer 1: Context brackets
CONTEXT_STATE=active
CONTEXT_ALWAYS_ON=true

# Layer 2: Agent domains
AGENT_DEV_STATE=active
AGENT_DEV_AGENT_TRIGGER=dev

AGENT_QA_STATE=active
AGENT_QA_AGENT_TRIGGER=qa

# Layer 3: Workflow domains
WORKFLOW_STORY_DEV_STATE=active
WORKFLOW_STORY_DEV_WORKFLOW_TRIGGER=story_development

# Layer 7: Star-commands
COMMANDS_STATE=active

# Global settings
DEVMODE=false
GLOBAL_EXCLUDE=

---

Domain File Format (`.synapse/{domain-name}`)

Domain files contain the actual rules. Two formats are supported.

Format 1: KEY=VALUE (Recommended)

# Domain: agent-dev
AGENT_DEV_RULE_0=Always use kebab-case for file names
AGENT_DEV_RULE_1=Follow conventional commits format
AGENT_DEV_RULE_2=Write tests for every feature

• Key format: `{DOMAIN_KEY}_RULE_{N}=text`
• `N` starts at 0 and auto-increments
• Domain key is UPPERCASE_SNAKE_CASE (e.g., `AGENT_DEV`)

Format 2: Plain Text

# Domain: agent-dev
Always use kebab-case for file names
Follow conventional commits format
Write tests for every feature

• Each non-empty, non-comment line is a rule
• Auto-detected by parser (no `_RULE_\d+` pattern found)

Parsing Rules

• Lines starting with `#` are comments (ignored)
• Empty lines are ignored
• Split on first `=` only (values may contain `=`)
• Windows CRLF and Unix LF both supported
• Malformed lines (no `=` in KEY=VALUE mode) are skipped

---

Naming Conventions

| Context | Format | Example | |---------|--------|---------| | Manifest keys | UPPERCASE_SNAKE_CASE | `AGENT_DEV_STATE` | | Domain file names | lowercase-kebab-case | `agent-dev` | | Domain key derivation | Remove suffix, keep prefix | `AGENT_DEV_STATE` -> domain key `AGENT_DEV` | | File name derivation | Key to kebab-case | `AGENT_DEV` -> file `agent-dev` |

---

Star-Command Block Format (`.synapse/commands`)

[*command-name] COMMAND:
COMMANDS_CMD_COMMAND_NAME_0=First instruction
COMMANDS_CMD_COMMAND_NAME_1=Second instruction

• Block header: `[*command-name] COMMAND:`
• Command rules use format: `COMMANDS_{CMD_KEY}_{N}=text` (note: no `_RULE_` suffix, unlike domain rules)
• Command key derived from name: `*dev` -> `CMD_DEV`, `*quick-fix` -> `CMD_QUICK_FIX`

---

*Reference for SYN-9 CRUD commands. Source: SYN-1 domain-loader.js parser.*