Vercel Deploy

---
name: vercel-deploy
preamble-tier: 2
version: 1.0.0
description: >
  Deploy to Vercel — link project, configure environment variables, trigger deploy
  (preview or production), fetch logs, and validate health check.
  Use when: "deploy to vercel", "vercel deploy", "vercel env vars",
  "vercel link", "vercel production", "vercel preview".
  Purpose: End-to-end Vercel deployment — detect existing setup, authenticate,
  link or create the project, sync env vars, trigger a preview or production build,
  pull deploy logs, and verify the deployment is live. When to trigger: (1) User types
  /vercel-deploy or says "deploy to vercel". (2) Deploying a Next.js, Nuxt, Astro,
  SvelteKit, or other Vercel-supported framework. (3) Linking a local project to
  Vercel or creating a new Vercel project. (4) Syncing environment variables between
  local .env files and Vercel environments. (5) Switching between preview and production
  deploys. (6) Diagnosing a failed deploy by reading build or runtime logs.
  (7) Validating that a new deploy is live at the expected URL. Key capabilities:
  Auto-detects framework (Next.js, Nuxt, Astro, SvelteKit, Rust, Go). Handles CLI-
  and Git-triggered deploys. Pulls and pushes env vars without exposing secret values.
  Health-checks the deployment URL post-deploy. Idempotent — re-running triggers a new
  deploy. Also for: Custom domain configuration, Vercel MCP setup, build error triage.
  Ideal for: Developers who want one command to go from local code to a live URL.
allowed-tools:
  - Bash
  - Read
  - Write
  - Edit
  - Glob
  - Grep
  - Agent
  - AskUserQuestion
  - WebSearch
---
<!-- AUTO-GENERATED from SKILL.md.tmpl — do not edit directly -->
<!-- Regenerate: bun run gen:skill-docs -->

## Preamble (run first)

```bash
_UPD=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-update-check 2>/dev/null || .claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-update-check 2>/dev/null || true)
[ -n "$_UPD" ] && echo "$_UPD" || true
mkdir -p ~/.gstack/sessions
touch ~/.gstack/sessions/"$PPID"
_SESSIONS=$(find ~/.gstack/sessions -mmin -120 -type f 2>/dev/null | wc -l | tr -d " ")
find ~/.gstack/sessions -mmin +120 -type f -delete 2>/dev/null || true
_CONTRIB=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get gstack_contributor 2>/dev/null || true)
_PROACTIVE=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get proactive 2>/dev/null || echo "true")
_BRANCH=$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
echo "BRANCH: $_BRANCH"
echo "PROACTIVE: $_PROACTIVE"
source <(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-repo-mode 2>/dev/null) || true
REPO_MODE=${REPO_MODE:-unknown}
echo "REPO_MODE: $REPO_MODE"
_LAKE_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
echo "LAKE_INTRO: $_LAKE_SEEN"
_TEL=$(~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config get telemetry 2>/dev/null || true)
_TEL_PROMPTED=$([ -f ~/.gstack/.telemetry-prompted ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
_TEL_START=$(date +%s)
_SESSION_ID="$$-$(date +%s)"
echo "TELEMETRY: ${_TEL:-off}"
echo "TEL_PROMPTED: $_TEL_PROMPTED"
mkdir -p ~/.gstack/analytics
echo "{\"skill\":\"vercel-deploy\",\"ts\":\"$(date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)\",\"repo\":\"$(basename "$(git rev-parse --show-toplevel 2>/dev/null)" 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")\"}"  >> ~/.gstack/analytics/skill-usage.jsonl 2>/dev/null || true
for _PF in $(find ~/.gstack/analytics -maxdepth 1 -name ".pending-*" 2>/dev/null); do [ -f "$_PF" ] && ~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-telemetry-log --event-type skill_run --skill _pending_finalize --outcome unknown --session-id "$_SESSION_ID" 2>/dev/null || true; break; done
```

If `PROACTIVE` is `"false"`, do not proactively suggest gstack skills — only invoke
them when the user explicitly asks. The user opted out of proactive suggestions.

If output shows `UPGRADE_AVAILABLE <old> <new>`: read `~/.claude/skills/gstack/gstack-upgrade/SKILL.md` and follow the "Inline upgrade flow" (auto-upgrade if configured, otherwise AskUserQuestion with 4 options, write snooze state if declined). If `JUST_UPGRADED <from> <to>`: tell user "Running gstack v{to} (just updated!)" and continue.

If `LAKE_INTRO` is `no`: Before continuing, introduce the Completeness Principle.
Tell the user: "gstack follows the **Boil the Lake** principle — always do the complete
thing when AI makes the marginal cost near-zero. Read more: https://garryslist.org/posts/boil-the-ocean"
Then offer to open the essay in their default browser:

```bash
open https://garryslist.org/posts/boil-the-ocean
touch ~/.gstack/.completeness-intro-seen
```

Only run `open` if the user says yes. Always run `touch` to mark as seen. This only happens once.

If `TEL_PROMPTED` is `no` AND `LAKE_INTRO` is `yes`: After the lake intro is handled,
ask the user about telemetry. Use AskUserQuestion:

> Help gstack get better! Community mode shares usage data (which skills you use, how long
> they take, crash info) with a stable device ID so we can track trends and fix bugs faster.
> No code, file paths, or repo names are ever sent.
> Change anytime with `gstack-config set telemetry off`.

Options:
- A) Help gstack get better! (recommended)
- B) No thanks

If A: run `~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set telemetry community`

If B: ask a follow-up AskUserQuestion:

> How about anonymous mode? We just learn that *someone* used gstack — no unique ID,
> no way to connect sessions. Just a counter that helps us know if anyone is out there.

Options:
- A) Sure, anonymous is fine
- B) No thanks, fully off

If B→A: run `~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set telemetry anonymous`
If B→B: run `~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-config set telemetry off`

Always run:
```bash
touch ~/.gstack/.telemetry-prompted
```

This only happens once. If `TEL_PROMPTED` is `yes`, skip this entirely.

## AskUserQuestion Format

**ALWAYS follow this structure for every AskUserQuestion call:**
1. **Re-ground:** State the project, the current branch (use the `_BRANCH` value printed by the preamble — NOT any branch from conversation history or gitStatus), and the current plan/task. (1-2 sentences)
2. **Simplify:** Explain the problem in plain English a smart 16-year-old could follow. No raw function names, no internal jargon, no implementation details. Use concrete examples and analogies. Say what it DOES, not what it is called.
3. **Recommend:** `RECOMMENDATION: Choose [X] because [one-line reason]` — always prefer the complete option over shortcuts (see Completeness Principle). Include `Completeness: X/10` for each option. Calibration: 10 = complete implementation (all edge cases, full coverage), 7 = covers happy path but skips some edges, 3 = shortcut that defers significant work. If both options are 8+, pick the higher; if one is ≤5, flag it.
4. **Options:** Lettered options: `A) ... B) ... C) ...` — when an option involves effort, show both scales: `(human: ~X / CC: ~Y)`
5. **One decision per question:** NEVER combine multiple independent decisions into a single AskUserQuestion. Each decision gets its own call with its own recommendation and focused options. Batching multiple AskUserQuestion calls in rapid succession is fine and often preferred. Only after all individual taste decisions are resolved should a final "Approve / Revise / Reject" gate be presented.

Assume the user has not looked at this window in 20 minutes and does not have the code open. If you would need to read the source to understand your own explanation, it is too complex.

Per-skill instructions may add additional formatting rules on top of this baseline.

## Completeness Principle — Boil the Lake

AI-assisted coding makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero. When you present options:

- If Option A is the complete implementation (full parity, all edge cases, 100% coverage) and Option B is a shortcut that saves modest effort — **always recommend A**. The delta between 80 lines and 150 lines is meaningless with CC+gstack. "Good enough" is the wrong instinct when "complete" costs minutes more.
- **Lake vs. ocean:** A "lake" is boilable — 100% test coverage for a module, full feature implementation, handling all edge cases, complete error paths. An "ocean" is not — rewriting an entire system from scratch, adding features to dependencies you do not control, multi-quarter platform migrations. Recommend boiling lakes. Flag oceans as out of scope.
- **When estimating effort**, always show both scales: human team time and CC+gstack time. The compression ratio varies by task type — use this reference:

| Task type | Human team | CC+gstack | Compression |
|-----------|-----------|-----------|-------------|
| Boilerplate / scaffolding | 2 days | 15 min | ~100x |
| Test writing | 1 day | 15 min | ~50x |
| Feature implementation | 1 week | 30 min | ~30x |
| Bug fix + regression test | 4 hours | 15 min | ~20x |
| Architecture / design | 2 days | 4 hours | ~5x |
| Research / exploration | 1 day | 3 hours | ~3x |

- This principle applies to test coverage, error handling, documentation, edge cases, and feature completeness. Do not skip the last 10% to "save time" — with AI, that 10% costs seconds.

**Anti-patterns — DO NOT do this:**
- BAD: "Choose B — it covers 90% of the value with less code." (If A is only 70 lines more, choose A.)
- BAD: "We can skip edge case handling to save time." (Edge case handling costs minutes with CC.)
- BAD: "Let us defer test coverage to a follow-up PR." (Tests are the cheapest lake to boil.)
- BAD: Quoting only human-team effort: "This would take 2 weeks." (Say: "2 weeks human / ~1 hour CC.")

## Repo Ownership Mode — See Something, Say Something

`REPO_MODE` from the preamble tells you who owns issues in this repo:

- **`solo`** — One person does 80%+ of the work. They own everything. When you notice issues outside the current branch change scope (test failures, deprecation warnings, security advisories, linting errors, dead code, env problems), **investigate and offer to fix proactively**. The solo dev is the only person who will fix it. Default to action.
- **`collaborative`** — Multiple active contributors. When you notice issues outside the branch change scope, **flag them via AskUserQuestion** — it may be someone else responsibility. Default to asking, not fixing.
- **`unknown`** — Treat as collaborative (safer default — ask before fixing).

**See Something, Say Something:** Whenever you notice something that looks wrong during ANY workflow step — not just test failures — flag it briefly. One sentence: what you noticed and its impact. In solo mode, follow up with "Want me to fix it?" In collaborative mode, just flag it and move on.

Never let a noticed issue silently pass. The whole point is proactive communication.

## Search Before Building

Before building infrastructure, unfamiliar patterns, or anything the runtime might have a built-in — **search first.** Read `~/.claude/skills/gstack/ETHOS.md` for the full philosophy.

**Three layers of knowledge:**
- **Layer 1** (tried and true — in distribution). Do not reinvent the wheel. But the cost of checking is near-zero, and once in a while, questioning the tried-and-true is where brilliance occurs.
- **Layer 2** (new and popular — search for these). But scrutinize: humans are subject to mania. Search results are inputs to your thinking, not answers.
- **Layer 3** (first principles — prize these above all). Original observations derived from reasoning about the specific problem. The most valuable of all.

**Eureka moment:** When first-principles reasoning reveals conventional wisdom is wrong, name it:
"EUREKA: Everyone does X because [assumption]. But [evidence] shows this is wrong. Y is better because [reasoning]."

Log eureka moments:
```bash
jq -n --arg ts "$(date -u +%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ)" --arg skill "SKILL_NAME" --arg branch "$(git branch --show-current 2>/dev/null)" --arg insight "ONE_LINE_SUMMARY" "{ts:$ts,skill:$skill,branch:$branch,insight:$insight}" >> ~/.gstack/analytics/eureka.jsonl 2>/dev/null || true
```
Replace SKILL_NAME and ONE_LINE_SUMMARY. Runs inline — do not stop the workflow.

**WebSearch fallback:** If WebSearch is unavailable, skip the search step and note: "Search unavailable — proceeding with in-distribution knowledge only."

## Contributor Mode

If `_CONTRIB` is `true`: you are in **contributor mode**. You are a gstack user who also helps make it better.

**At the end of each major workflow step** (not after every single command), reflect on the gstack tooling you used. Rate your experience 0 to 10. If it was not a 10, think about why. If there is an obvious, actionable bug OR an insightful, interesting thing that could have been done better by gstack code or skill markdown — file a field report. Maybe our contributor will help make us better!

**Calibration — this is the bar:** For example, `$B js "await fetch(...)"` used to fail with `SyntaxError: await is only valid in async functions` because gstack did not wrap expressions in async context. Small, but the input was reasonable and gstack should have handled it — that is the kind of thing worth filing. Things less consequential than this, ignore.

**NOT worth filing:** user app bugs, network errors to user URL, auth failures on user site, user own JS logic bugs.

**To file:** write `~/.gstack/contributor-logs/{slug}.md` with **all sections below** (do not truncate — include every section through the Date/Version footer):

```
# {Title}

Hey gstack team — ran into this while using /{skill-name}:

**What I was trying to do:** {what the user/agent was attempting}
**What happened instead:** {what actually happened}
**My rating:** {0-10} — {one sentence on why it was not a 10}

## Steps to reproduce
1. {step}

## Raw output
```
{paste the actual error or unexpected output here}
```

## What would make this a 10
{one sentence: what gstack should have done differently}

**Date:** {YYYY-MM-DD} | **Version:** {gstack version} | **Skill:** /{skill}
```

Slug: lowercase, hyphens, max 60 chars (e.g. `browse-js-no-await`). Skip if file already exists. Max 3 reports per session. File inline and continue — do not stop the workflow. Tell user: "Filed gstack field report: {title}"

## Completion Status Protocol

When completing a skill workflow, report status using one of:
- **DONE** — All steps completed successfully. Evidence provided for each claim.
- **DONE_WITH_CONCERNS** — Completed, but with issues the user should know about. List each concern.
- **BLOCKED** — Cannot proceed. State what is blocking and what was tried.
- **NEEDS_CONTEXT** — Missing information required to continue. State exactly what you need.

### Escalation

It is always OK to stop and say "this is too hard for me" or "I am not confident in this result."

Bad work is worse than no work. You will not be penalized for escalating.
- If you have attempted a task 3 times without success, STOP and escalate.
- If you are uncertain about a security-sensitive change, STOP and escalate.
- If the scope of work exceeds what you can verify, STOP and escalate.

Escalation format:
```
STATUS: BLOCKED | NEEDS_CONTEXT
REASON: [1-2 sentences]
ATTEMPTED: [what you tried]
RECOMMENDATION: [what the user should do next]
```

## Telemetry (run last)

After the skill workflow completes (success, error, or abort), log the telemetry event.
Determine the skill name from the `name:` field in this file YAML frontmatter.
Determine the outcome from the workflow result (success if completed normally, error
if it failed, abort if the user interrupted).

**PLAN MODE EXCEPTION — ALWAYS RUN:** This command writes telemetry to
`~/.gstack/analytics/` (user config directory, not project files). The skill
preamble already writes to the same directory — this is the same pattern.
Skipping this command loses session duration and outcome data.

Run this bash:

```bash
_TEL_END=$(date +%s)
_TEL_DUR=$(( _TEL_END - _TEL_START ))
rm -f ~/.gstack/analytics/.pending-"$_SESSION_ID" 2>/dev/null || true
~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-telemetry-log \
  --skill "SKILL_NAME" --duration "$_TEL_DUR" --outcome "OUTCOME" \
  --used-browse "USED_BROWSE" --session-id "$_SESSION_ID" 2>/dev/null &
```

Replace `SKILL_NAME` with the actual skill name from frontmatter, `OUTCOME` with
success/error/abort, and `USED_BROWSE` with true/false based on whether `$B` was used.
If you cannot determine the outcome, use "unknown". This runs in the background and
never blocks the user.

## Plan Status Footer

When you are in plan mode and about to call ExitPlanMode:

1. Check if the plan file already has a `## GSTACK REVIEW REPORT` section.
2. If it DOES — skip (a review skill already wrote a richer report).
3. If it does NOT — run this command:

```bash
~/.claude/skills/gstack/bin/gstack-review-read
```

Then write a `## GSTACK REVIEW REPORT` section to the end of the plan file:

- If the output contains review entries (JSONL lines before `---CONFIG---`): format the
  standard report table with runs/status/findings per skill, same format as the review
  skills use.
- If the output is `NO_REVIEWS` or empty: write this placeholder table:

```markdown
## GSTACK REVIEW REPORT

| Review | Trigger | Why | Runs | Status | Findings |
|--------|---------|-----|------|--------|----------|
| CEO Review | `/plan-ceo-review` | Scope & strategy | 0 | — | — |
| Codex Review | `/codex review` | Independent 2nd opinion | 0 | — | — |
| Eng Review | `/plan-eng-review` | Architecture & tests (required) | 0 | — | — |
| Design Review | `/plan-design-review` | UI/UX gaps | 0 | — | — |

**VERDICT:** NO REVIEWS YET — run `/autoplan` for full review pipeline, or individual reviews above.
```

**PLAN MODE EXCEPTION — ALWAYS RUN:** This writes to the plan file, which is the one
file you are allowed to edit in plan mode. The plan file review report is part of the
plan living status.

# /vercel-deploy — Deploy to Vercel

You are helping the user deploy to Vercel. Vercel deploys can be:
- **Git-triggered** — push to main and Vercel auto-deploys (recommended)
- **CLI-triggered** — use `vercel` or `vercel --prod` directly
- **Preview** — per-branch preview URLs on every push
- **Production** — merges to main trigger production deploy

Your job is to link the project, sync env vars, trigger a deploy, and confirm the URL.

## User-invocable
When the user types `/vercel-deploy` or says "deploy to vercel", run this skill.

## Instructions

### Step 1: Detect Vercel setup

```bash
# Vercel config
[ -f vercel.json ] && echo "VERCEL_CONFIG:found" && cat vercel.json
[ -d .vercel ] && echo "VERCEL_LINKED:yes" || echo "VERCEL_LINKED:no"

# Vercel CLI
which vercel 2>/dev/null && echo "VERCEL_CLI:installed" || echo "VERCEL_CLI:missing"
vercel --version 2>/dev/null || true

# Project type
[ -f package.json ] && grep -q '"next"' package.json 2>/dev/null && echo "FRAMEWORK:next.js"
[ -f package.json ] && grep -q '"nuxt"' package.json 2>/dev/null && echo "FRAMEWORK:nuxt"
[ -f package.json ] && grep -q '"astro"' package.json 2>/dev/null && echo "FRAMEWORK:astro"
[ -f package.json ] && grep -q '"svelte"' package.json 2>/dev/null && echo "FRAMEWORK:sveltekit"
[ -f Cargo.toml ] && echo "FRAMEWORK:rust"
[ -f go.mod ] && echo "FRAMEWORK:go"
```

Also check for the Vercel MCP in your tool list.

### Step 2: Authenticate and link project

If Vercel CLI is not installed:

1. Offer to install: `npm install -g vercel`
2. Run `vercel login` to authenticate

If not linked (no `.vercel/` directory):

1. Run `vercel link` to connect to an existing Vercel project
2. If the project does not exist on Vercel yet, run `vercel` (without --prod) to create it interactively
3. Show the linked project name

### Step 3: Configure environment variables

If `.env`, `.env.local`, `.env.production`, or `.env.example` exists:

1. List the env var keys (never expose values)
2. Ask which environment to sync to: Production / Preview / Development
3. Offer to pull existing vars from Vercel:

```bash
vercel env pull .env.local          # pull Production vars to .env.local
vercel env pull .env.production      # pull Production vars to .env.production
```

Or push local vars:
```bash
vercel env add {VAR_NAME}           # interactive add
```

### Step 4: Trigger deploy

**Preview deploy (recommended for branches):**
```bash
vercel --yes
```
Returns a preview URL like `https://project-abc123.vercel.app`

**Production deploy:**
```bash
vercel --prod --yes
```
Returns the production URL after deploy completes.

**Custom scope:**
```bash
vercel --prod --yes --scope <team-or-user>
```

**Git-triggered:**
If the project is Git-linked, Vercel deploys automatically on push to connected branches.
No CLI needed — just: `git push` and Vercel picks it up.

### Step 5: Fetch deploy logs

While deploying or after:
```bash
vercel logs {deployment-url}
```

Watch for build errors, missing env vars, or runtime crashes.

### Step 6: Validate health check

Do an HTTP health check on the deployment URL:

```bash
curl -sf "{deployment_url}" -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" 2>/dev/null || \
curl -sf "{deployment_url}/api/health" -o /dev/null -w "%{http_code}" 2>/dev/null || \
echo "UNREACHABLE"
```

For production deploys, also check the custom domain if one is configured.
Report the HTTP status and confirm the deploy is live.

### Step 7: Summary

```
VERCEL DEPLOY — COMPLETE
══════════════════════════════
Project:   {project-name}
URL:       {deployment-url}
Type:      {preview / production}
Framework: {framework}
Status:    {HTTP status or "LIVE"}

Preview deploys: https://vercel.com/{username}/{project}/_/previews
Production:     https://{custom-domain}

Next steps:
- Merge to main branch for automatic production deploy
- Configure custom domain in Vercel dashboard
- Run /vercel-deploy --prod to redeploy production
```

## Important Rules

- **Never expose secrets.** Do not print env var values or Vercel tokens.
- **`--prod` is irreversible.** Production deploys are live immediately — confirm before running.
- **Preview first.** Prefer `vercel` (without `--prod`) for non-production deploys.
- **.vercel/ is gitignored.** Do not commit it — it contains local deploy metadata.
- **Idempotent.** Running `/vercel-deploy` multiple times triggers a new deploy each time.