Agents — overview

This section is the consume-side contract: how an AI coding agent uses DevSnips to satisfy a UI requirement. The skill is the operational instruction layer — it tells an agent what to do step by step. The pages here explain the system behind those steps: what surfaces exist, why each stage is structured the way it is, and what can go wrong.

The lifecycle

User request
    ↓
1. Understand the UI requirement          (type: component / section / template?)
    ↓
2. Discover DevSnips                      (registry + indexes — see Discovery)
    ↓
3. Search and match candidates            (tags, searchTerms, features, files)
    ↓
4. Evaluate candidates via metadata       (see Resource selection)
    ↓
5. Select the smallest sufficient resource
    ↓
6. Install                                npx devsnips add <path>
    ↓
7. Verify the installation                (mandatory — see Installation)
    ↓
8. Inspect the installed implementation   (README, metadata, code)
    ↓
9. Adapt to the host project              (see Adaptation)
    ↓
10. Validate the result                   (see Validation)
    ↓
11. Report what was used and what changed

Ground rules

These rules come from the skill and are restated here because they define how every page in this section should be read:

1. The current registry is authoritative for what exists. Never answer "does DevSnips have X" or quote inventory counts from memory or from any documentation, including this one. Fetch snippets-index.json and read it.
2. The repository filesystem is authoritative for what files contain. Registry descriptions are indexed copies and can lag the source files.
3. Never guess paths. Resolve them against the registry. A path that is not in the registry cannot be installed.
4. Match the host project's stack. Do not introduce React or Tailwind into a project that does not use them just to consume a resource.
5. Select the smallest sufficient resource type. Do not install a template for a one-section request; do not upscale a component request into a template.
6. Verify every installation independently. Command success plus expected files on disk, every time.
7. Never claim success for a failed install, failed build, or unverified integration. If DevSnips cannot be reached or nothing fits, say so and continue with a normal implementation.

Section pages

When DevSnips is not the answer

The skill treats DevSnips as a source for reusable UI, not an obligation. If no suitable resource exists for the request — after checking the current registry, not memory — the correct behavior is to build the UI normally and say so. Do not force a near-miss resource into the project and do not claim DevSnips was used when it was not.