handbook-sync
Sync central handbook from ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/ to current project's resources/handbook/
When & Why to Use This Skill
The Handbook Sync Claude skill automates the process of keeping project-specific documentation in sync with a central source of truth. By facilitating a one-way sync from a global handbook to local project directories, it ensures that developers always have immediate access to the latest Amplify Gen 2 patterns, best practices, and technical guidelines directly within their workspace.
Use Cases
- Project Onboarding: Quickly set up a new project with the latest team standards and documentation by syncing the central handbook to the local resources folder.
- Standardization Maintenance: Ensure all active projects are following the most recent architectural patterns and best practices by refreshing local documentation from the central repository.
- Offline Documentation Access: Provide developers with a local, searchable copy of the central knowledge base within their IDE for faster reference without leaving the coding environment.
| name | handbook-sync |
|---|---|
| description | Sync central handbook from ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/ to current project's resources/handbook/ |
Handbook Sync - Update Project Handbook
Purpose
Syncs the central handbook from ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/ to the current project's resources/handbook/ folder.
This ensures your project has the latest Amplify Gen 2 documentation, patterns, and best practices.
When to Use
User says:
- "Sync the handbook"
- "Update the handbook"
- "Pull latest handbook"
- "Refresh handbook docs"
- "Get latest handbook"
Workflow
Step 1: Verify Central Handbook Exists
Check that ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/ directory exists and has content:
ls ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/README.md
If it doesn't exist, tell the user:
❌ Central handbook not found at ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/
Please clone the AmplifyHandbook repo:
git clone https://github.com/ChinchillaEnterprises/AmplifyHandbook.git ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook
Step 2: Create Project Handbook Directory
mkdir -p resources/handbook
Step 3: Sync Everything
Copy everything from central handbook to project:
cp -r ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/* ./resources/handbook/
Important: This overwrites everything in the project's handbook with the latest from the central source.
What gets copied:
- All markdown documentation files
- All code examples
- Complete folder structure (auth/, data/, functions/, webhooks/, frontend/, troubleshooting/)
- README.md and navigation files
Note: AmplifyHandbook repo contains only documentation (no SKILL.md)
Step 4: Verify Success
ls -la resources/handbook/README.md
Step 5: Confirm to User
Tell the user:
✅ Handbook synced successfully!
- Source: ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/
- Destination: ./resources/handbook/
- All documentation is now up to date
What This Does
ONE-WAY sync: Central → Project
~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/ (central, source of truth)
↓
↓ cp -r command
↓
./resources/handbook/ (project, local copy)
This is NOT a two-way sync. Changes in the project's resources/handbook/ are NOT pushed back to central.
Important Notes
To Get Latest Central Handbook
Before syncing to a project, ensure your central handbook is up to date:
cd ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/
git pull
This gets the latest handbook updates from the AmplifyHandbook repo.
To Contribute New Patterns
If you want to add new patterns to the central handbook, use the handbook-updater skill instead. It will:
- Update files in
~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/ - Commit and push to GitHub
- Make updates available to the whole team
Complete Example
User: "Sync the handbook"
Claude:
# Step 1: Verify central handbook exists
ls ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/README.md
# Step 2: Create project directory
mkdir -p resources/handbook
# Step 3: Copy everything
cp -r ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/* ./resources/handbook/
# Step 4: Verify
ls -la resources/handbook/README.md
Output:
✅ Handbook synced successfully!
- Source: ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/
- Destination: ./resources/handbook/
- All documentation is now up to date
Troubleshooting
"No such file or directory" for central handbook
Problem: ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/ doesn't exist
Solution:
git clone https://github.com/ChinchillaEnterprises/AmplifyHandbook.git ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook
If it exists but is out of date:
cd ~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/
git pull
"Permission denied"
Problem: Can't write to resources/handbook/
Solution: Check you're in a project directory where you have write permissions.
Remember
- This skill does a full overwrite of
resources/handbook/ - Always pulls from
~/.claude/AmplifyHandbook/(central) - To update central handbook, use
handbook-updaterskill - To read handbook, use
handbookskill