Setup

Relies on BDK foundation (STARTUP_INSTRUCTIONS.md). Assumes environment discovery has already run (language, test runner, build tool are known).

BDK Setup

Initializes .bdk/settings.json for this project. Probes project files to detect languages, test commands, lint commands, and build commands, then confirms with the user before writing.

Workflow

Phase 1: Check existing config

If .bdk/settings.json already exists and --force was not passed:

• Read the file and show current values
• Ask user: "Settings already exist. Overwrite?" — if no, stop

Phase 2: Probe project files

Read the following files if they exist and extract command/tool hints:

Command resolution priority — always prefer running tools via the package manager over direct binary invocation:

• package.json scripts → npm run <script> / yarn <script> / pnpm <script> (detect manager by lockfile: package-lock.json → npm, yarn.lock → yarn, pnpm-lock.yaml → pnpm)
• Python with pyproject.toml → poetry run <tool> if poetry.lock exists, else direct
• Ruby → bundle exec <tool> always
• Direct binary only as last resort (no package manager detected)

JavaScript/TypeScript (package.json):

• Scan scripts for keys: test, test:unit, test:e2e, test:integration, lint, lint:fix, build, typecheck, compile
• Emit as npm run <key> (or yarn/pnpm equivalent per lockfile)
• Check devDependencies/dependencies for: vitest, jest, @playwright/test, cypress, eslint, prettier, typescript — only as fallback if no matching script key found
• Presence of next.config.* → add next to languages
• Presence of react in deps → add react to languages

Python (pyproject.toml, setup.py, requirements*.txt):

• Detect pytest, ruff, mypy, black, flake8
• If poetry.lock present → poetry run pytest, poetry run ruff, etc.
• Else direct: pytest, ruff, etc.
• Language: python

Go (go.mod):

• Test: go test ./...
• Check for .golangci.yml or .golangci.toml → lint: golangci-lint run
• Else lint: go vet ./...
• Language: go

Rust (Cargo.toml):

• Test: cargo test
• Lint: cargo clippy
• Build: cargo build
• Language: rust

Java (pom.xml or build.gradle):

• Maven: mvn test, mvn package
• Gradle: ./gradlew test, ./gradlew build
• Language: java

PHP (composer.json):

• Check scripts for test key; else detect phpunit or artisan test
• Check for phpcs or pint for lint
• Language: php

Ruby (Gemfile):

• Test: bundle exec rspec (if rspec in Gemfile) or bundle exec rake test
• Lint: bundle exec rubocop
• Language: ruby

C# (*.csproj or *.sln):

• Test: dotnet test
• Build: dotnet build
• Language: csharp

Dart/Flutter (pubspec.yaml):

• Test: flutter test (if flutter sdk) or dart test
• Language: dart

Phase 3: Confirm settings via AskUserQuestion

Use the AskUserQuestion tool with up to 4 questions in a single call:

1. Test commands — multiSelect: true, options: each detected command as its own option + "None". User can add unlisted commands via "Other".
2. Lint commands — multiSelect: true, same pattern
3. Features — multiSelect: true, question: "Which features do you want to disable?", options: "Serena MCP", "CodeGraph MCP", "Caveman mode". Empty selection = all enabled.
4. Build command — only include if a build tool was detected or the language typically has one (e.g. TypeScript, Java, Rust); skip otherwise to stay under 4 questions

If more than 4 confirmation categories exist, prioritize: test → lint → features → build. Handle remaining categories with a follow-up AskUserQuestion call after writing.

"Other" is automatically appended by the UI — user can type any custom command there.

Phase 4: Write .bdk/settings.json

Create directory and file:

.bdk/
├── settings.json
├── plans/
└── brainstorming/

Write settings.json with confirmed values using the schema:

{
  "$schema": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/broneq/bdk/main/hooks/check-bdk-config/settings.schema.json",
  "languages": ["..."],
  "test-tools": [{"type": "...", "command": "..."}],
  "lint-tools": [{"type": "...", "command": "..."}],
  "build-tools": [{"type": "...", "command": "..."}],
  "features": {
    "caveman": true,
    "serena": false,
    "code-review-graph": false
  }
}

Omit empty arrays (e.g. no build-tools key if none detected/provided).

Phase 5: Initialize MCP tools

Run after writing settings.json.

code-review-graph — only if both conditions met:

1. features.code-review-graph is not false in written settings
2. .mcp.json (project or ~/.claude/mcp.json) contains a code-review-graph server entry

Call mcp__plugin_bdk_code-review-graph__build_or_update_graph_tool (the MCP server itself is the source of truth — no need to check .code-review-graph/graph.db from the filesystem; the tool is incremental and skips work when the index is current).

• Success → print [setup] code-review-graph: index built.
• Failure (MCP not reachable / tool error) → print warning and continue — do not abort setup:

  [setup] code-review-graph: build failed. Call `mcp__plugin_bdk_code-review-graph__build_or_update_graph_tool` manually once MCP is reachable.
  

Prefer the MCP tool over shelling out to uvx code-review-graph build — same binary under the hood, but the MCP path uses the already-running server and works inside sandboxed/restricted environments where uvx may not be available.

Serena — no manual action needed at setup time. Serena's active-project state is in-memory only (resets every Claude Code session), so per-session activation is handled by the hooks/activate-serena/activate.py SessionStart hook. The hook emits an instruction telling Claude to call mcp__plugin_bdk_serena__activate_project whenever both features.serena is enabled and .mcp.json declares a serena server. No setup-time call required.

Phase 6: Git guidance

Recommend:

• Commit .bdk/settings.json (shared with team — consistent commands for all contributors)
• Add to .gitignore: .bdk/plans/ and .bdk/brainstorming/ (personal artifacts)

Show the gitignore lines to add:

.bdk/plans/
.bdk/brainstorming/

Ask: "Add these to .gitignore now? [y/n]"

Completion

Print:

[setup] .bdk/settings.json created.
[setup] Directories created: .bdk/plans/, .bdk/brainstorming/
[setup] Restart your Claude Code session — BDK will inject project settings on startup.