msd-core/gsd-core/workflows/reapply-patches.md

Reapply Local Patches Workflow

Invoked by /gsd:update --reapply (commands/gsd/update.md).

After a GSD update wipes and reinstalls files, this workflow merges user's previously saved local modifications back into the new version. Uses three-way comparison (pristine baseline, user-modified backup, newly installed version) to reliably distinguish user customizations from version drift.

Critical invariant: Every file in gsd-local-patches/ was backed up because the installer's hash comparison detected it was modified. The workflow must NEVER conclude "no custom content" for any backed-up file — that is a logical contradiction. When in doubt, classify as CONFLICT requiring user review, not SKIP.

Step 1: Detect backed-up patches

Check for local patches directory:

expand_home() {
  case "$1" in
    "~/"*) printf '%s/%s\n' "$HOME" "${1#~/}" ;;
    *) printf '%s\n' "$1" ;;
  esac
}

PATCHES_DIR=""

# Env overrides first — covers custom config directories used with --config-dir
if [ -n "$KILO_CONFIG_DIR" ]; then
  candidate="$(expand_home "$KILO_CONFIG_DIR")/gsd-local-patches"
  if [ -d "$candidate" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$candidate"
  fi
elif [ -n "$KILO_CONFIG" ]; then
  candidate="$(dirname "$(expand_home "$KILO_CONFIG")")/gsd-local-patches"
  if [ -d "$candidate" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$candidate"
  fi
elif [ -n "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME" ]; then
  candidate="$(expand_home "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME")/kilo/gsd-local-patches"
  if [ -d "$candidate" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$candidate"
  fi
fi

if [ -z "$PATCHES_DIR" ] && [ -n "$OPENCODE_CONFIG_DIR" ]; then
  candidate="$(expand_home "$OPENCODE_CONFIG_DIR")/gsd-local-patches"
  if [ -d "$candidate" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$candidate"
  fi
elif [ -z "$PATCHES_DIR" ] && [ -n "$OPENCODE_CONFIG" ]; then
  candidate="$(dirname "$(expand_home "$OPENCODE_CONFIG")")/gsd-local-patches"
  if [ -d "$candidate" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$candidate"
  fi
elif [ -z "$PATCHES_DIR" ] && [ -n "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME" ]; then
  candidate="$(expand_home "$XDG_CONFIG_HOME")/opencode/gsd-local-patches"
  if [ -d "$candidate" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$candidate"
  fi
fi

if [ -z "$PATCHES_DIR" ] && [ -n "$GEMINI_CONFIG_DIR" ]; then
  candidate="$(expand_home "$GEMINI_CONFIG_DIR")/gsd-local-patches"
  if [ -d "$candidate" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$candidate"
  fi
fi

if [ -z "$PATCHES_DIR" ] && [ -n "$CODEX_HOME" ]; then
  candidate="$(expand_home "$CODEX_HOME")/gsd-local-patches"
  if [ -d "$candidate" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$candidate"
  fi
fi

if [ -z "$PATCHES_DIR" ] && [ -n "$CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR" ]; then
  candidate="$(expand_home "$CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR")/gsd-local-patches"
  if [ -d "$candidate" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$candidate"
  fi
fi

# Global install — detect runtime config directory defaults
if [ -z "$PATCHES_DIR" ]; then
  if [ -d "$HOME/.config/kilo/gsd-local-patches" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$HOME/.config/kilo/gsd-local-patches"
  elif [ -d "$HOME/.config/opencode/gsd-local-patches" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$HOME/.config/opencode/gsd-local-patches"
  elif [ -d "$HOME/.opencode/gsd-local-patches" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$HOME/.opencode/gsd-local-patches"
  elif [ -d "$HOME/.gemini/gsd-local-patches" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$HOME/.gemini/gsd-local-patches"
  elif [ -d "$HOME/.codex/gsd-local-patches" ]; then
    PATCHES_DIR="$HOME/.codex/gsd-local-patches"
  else
    PATCHES_DIR="$HOME/.claude/gsd-local-patches"
  fi
fi
# Local install fallback — check all runtime directories
if [ ! -d "$PATCHES_DIR" ]; then
  for dir in .config/kilo .kilo .config/opencode .opencode .gemini .codex .claude; do
    if [ -d "./$dir/gsd-local-patches" ]; then
      PATCHES_DIR="./$dir/gsd-local-patches"
      break
    fi
  done
fi

Read backup-meta.json from the patches directory.

If no patches found:

No local patches found. Nothing to reapply.

Local patches are automatically saved when you run /gsd:update
after modifying any GSD workflow, command, or agent files.

Exit.

Step 2: Determine baseline for three-way comparison

The quality of the merge depends on having a pristine baseline — the original unmodified version of each file from the pre-update GSD release. This enables three-way comparison:

• Pristine baseline (original GSD file before any user edits)
• User's version (backed up in gsd-local-patches/)
• New version (freshly installed after update)

Check for baseline sources in priority order:

Option A: Pristine hash from backup-meta.json + git history (most reliable)

If the config directory is a git repository:

CONFIG_DIR=$(dirname "$PATCHES_DIR")
if git -C "$CONFIG_DIR" rev-parse --git-dir >/dev/null 2>&1; then
  HAS_GIT=true
fi

When HAS_GIT=true, use the pristine_hashes recorded in backup-meta.json to locate the correct baseline commit. For each file, iterate commits that touched it and find the one whose blob SHA-256 matches the recorded pristine hash:

# Get the expected pristine SHA-256 from backup-meta.json
PRISTINE_HASH=$(jq -r ".pristine_hashes[\"${file_path}\"] // empty" "$PATCHES_DIR/backup-meta.json")

BASELINE_COMMIT=""
if [ -n "$PRISTINE_HASH" ]; then
  # Walk commits that touched this file, pick the one matching the pristine hash
  while IFS= read -r commit_hash; do
    blob_hash=$(git -C "$CONFIG_DIR" show "${commit_hash}:${file_path}" 2>/dev/null | sha256sum | cut -d' ' -f1)
    if [ "$blob_hash" = "$PRISTINE_HASH" ]; then
      BASELINE_COMMIT="$commit_hash"
      break
    fi
  done < <(git -C "$CONFIG_DIR" log --format="%H" -- "${file_path}")
fi

# Fallback: if no pristine hash in backup-meta (older installer), use first-add commit
if [ -z "$BASELINE_COMMIT" ]; then
  BASELINE_COMMIT=$(git -C "$CONFIG_DIR" log --diff-filter=A --format="%H" -- "${file_path}" | tail -1)
fi

Extract the pristine version from the matched commit:

git -C "$CONFIG_DIR" show "${BASELINE_COMMIT}:${file_path}"

Why this matters: git log --diff-filter=A returns the commit that first added the file, which is the wrong baseline on repos that have been through multiple GSD update cycles. The pristine_hashes field in backup-meta.json records the SHA-256 of the file as it existed in the pre-update GSD release — matching against it finds the correct baseline regardless of how many updates have occurred.

Option B: Pristine snapshot directory

Check if a gsd-pristine/ directory exists alongside gsd-local-patches/:

PRISTINE_DIR="$CONFIG_DIR/gsd-pristine"

If it exists, the installer saved pristine copies at install time. Use these as the baseline.

Option C: No baseline available (two-way fallback)

If neither git history nor pristine snapshots are available, fall back to two-way comparison — but with strengthened heuristics (see Step 3).

Step 3: Show patch summary

## Local Patches to Reapply

**Backed up from:** v{from_version}
**Current version:** {read VERSION file}
**Files modified:** {count}
**Merge strategy:** {three-way (git) | three-way (pristine) | two-way (enhanced)}

| # | File | Status |
|---|------|--------|
| 1 | {file_path} | Pending |
| 2 | {file_path} | Pending |

Step 4: Merge each file

For each file in backup-meta.json:

1. Read the backed-up version (user's modified copy from gsd-local-patches/)
2. Read the newly installed version (current file after update)
3. If available, read the pristine baseline (from git history or gsd-pristine/)

Three-way merge (when baseline is available)

Compare the three versions to isolate changes:

• User changes = diff(pristine → user's version) — these are the customizations to preserve
• Upstream changes = diff(pristine → new version) — these are version updates to accept

Merge rules:

• Sections changed only by user → apply user's version
• Sections changed only by upstream → accept upstream version
• Sections changed by both → flag as CONFLICT, show both, ask user
• Sections unchanged by either → use new version (identical to all three)

Two-way merge (fallback when no baseline)

When no pristine baseline is available, use these strengthened heuristics:

CRITICAL RULE: Every file in this backup directory was explicitly detected as modified by the installer's SHA-256 hash comparison. "No custom content" is never a valid conclusion.

For each file: a. Read both versions completely b. Identify ALL differences, then classify each as:

• Mechanical drift — path substitutions (e.g. /Users/xxx/.claude/ → $HOME/.claude/), variable additions (${GSD_WS}, ${AGENT_SKILLS_*}), error handling additions (|| true)
• User customization — added steps/sections, removed sections, reordered content, changed behavior, added frontmatter fields, modified instructions

c. If ANY differences remain after filtering out mechanical drift → those are user customizations. Merge them. d. If ALL differences appear to be mechanical drift → still flag as CONFLICT. The installer's hash check already proved this file was modified. Ask the user: "This file appears to only have path/variable differences. Were there intentional customizations?" Do NOT silently skip.

Git-enhanced two-way merge

When the config directory is a git repo but the pristine install commit can't be found, use commit history to identify user changes:

# Find non-update commits that touched this file
git -C "$CONFIG_DIR" log --oneline --no-merges -- "{file_path}" | grep -v "gsd:update\|gsd-update\|GSD update\|gsd-install"

Each matching commit represents an intentional user modification. Use the commit messages and diffs to understand what was changed and why.

4. Write merged result to the installed location

Post-merge verification

After writing each merged file, verify that user modifications survived the merge:

1. Line-count check: Count lines in the backup and the merged result. If the merged result has fewer lines than the backup minus the expected upstream removals, flag for review.

2. Hunk presence check: For each user-added section identified during diff analysis, search the merged output for at least the first significant line (non-blank, non-comment) of each addition. Missing signature lines indicate a dropped hunk.

3. Report warnings inline (do not block):

   ⚠ Potential dropped content in {file_path}:
     - Missing hunk near line {N}: "{first_line_preview}..." ({line_count} lines)
     - Backup available: {patches_dir}/{file_path}
   

4. Produce a Hunk Verification Table — one row per hunk per file. This table is mandatory output and must be produced before Step 5 can proceed. Format:

   file	hunk_id	signature_line	line_count	verified
   {file_path}	{N}	{first_significant_line}	{count}	yes
   {file_path}	{N}	{first_significant_line}	{count}	no

   • hunk_id — sequential integer per file (1, 2, 3…)
   • signature_line — first non-blank, non-comment line of the user-added section
   • line_count — total lines in the hunk
   • verified — yes if the signature_line is present in the merged output, no otherwise

5. Track verification status — add to per-file report: Merged (verified) vs Merged (⚠ {N} hunks may be missing)

6. Report status per file:

   • Merged — user modifications applied cleanly (show summary of what was preserved)
   • Conflict — user reviewed and chose resolution
   • Incorporated — user's modification was already adopted upstream (only valid when pristine baseline confirms this)

Never report Skipped — no custom content. If a file is in the backup, it has custom content.

Step 5: Hunk Verification Gate

Two layered gates. Both must pass before proceeding to cleanup.

5a: Deterministic verifier (binding gate, #2969)

Run the deterministic verifier script. Do NOT rely solely on the free-text verified: yes/no Hunk Verification Table from Step 4 — bug #2969 traced repeated false-positive verified: yes reports to that table being filled in without an actual content-presence check. The script performs the check structurally and exits non-zero on any miss.

Run the verifier as a child process (the gsd-tools binary directory is not required — the script ships under gsd-core/bin/ in the source repo and is installed to ${GSD_HOME}/gsd-core/bin/; it is also exposed via the SDK at sdk/dist/cli.js verify-reapply when present):

PRISTINE_DIR="${CONFIG_DIR}/gsd-pristine"

# Build args as a bash array so paths with spaces survive expansion intact
# (string-concat + unquoted expansion would split incorrectly on whitespace).
VERIFY_ARGS=(
  --patches-dir "$PATCHES_DIR"
  --config-dir  "$CONFIG_DIR"
)
if [ -d "$PRISTINE_DIR" ]; then
  VERIFY_ARGS+=(--pristine-dir "$PRISTINE_DIR")
fi
VERIFY_ARGS+=(--json)

# Capture stdout (the structured JSON report) separately from stderr so that
# Node warnings, deprecation notices, or stack traces do not corrupt the
# JSON parse downstream. Stderr is preserved on the controlling terminal
# for operator visibility.
VERIFY_OUTPUT="$(node "${GSD_HOME}/gsd-core/bin/verify-reapply-patches.cjs" "${VERIFY_ARGS[@]}")"
VERIFY_STATUS=$?

Step 5a: drift check — even when VERIFY_STATUS is 0, the report may signal that one or more files were skipped due to pristine-snapshot drift (Bug #3657). Parse the JSON and check:

DRIFTED_COUNT="$(echo "$VERIFY_OUTPUT" | node -e "const d=JSON.parse(require('fs').readFileSync('/dev/stdin','utf8'));process.stdout.write(String(d.drifted||0))")"
DRIFTED_FILES="$(echo "$VERIFY_OUTPUT"  | node -e "const d=JSON.parse(require('fs').readFileSync('/dev/stdin','utf8'));(d.drifted_files||[]).forEach(f=>process.stdout.write(f+'\n'))")"

If DRIFTED_COUNT is greater than 0, STOP and report to the user, then set DRIFT_DETECTED=true and halt — do not proceed to 5b or cleanup:

HALT: {DRIFTED_COUNT} file(s) were skipped by the deterministic verifier because the
gsd-pristine/ snapshot on disk does not match the hash recorded in backup-meta.json
(pristine drift — the snapshot was refreshed to a newer GSD version after the backup
was captured).  These files were NOT diff-verified; their user customisations may or
may not have survived the merge.

Drifted files:
  {each path in DRIFTED_FILES, one per line, indented two spaces}

Resolve before re-running:
  (a) Re-anchor the pristine snapshot to the version recorded in backup-meta.json, or
  (b) Restore the affected file(s) from backup and re-merge manually:
        cp {patches_dir}/{file} {installed_path}  # then re-apply customisations
  (c) If the upstream changes are acceptable, update the backup-meta.json
      pristine_hashes entry for each drifted file to the current on-disk hash, then
      re-run /gsd:update --reapply to re-verify with the refreshed baseline.

Then re-run /gsd:update --reapply to re-verify.

DRIFT_DETECTED=true
# Abort — subsequent steps must not execute when drift is unresolved.
exit 1

If VERIFY_STATUS is non-zero, STOP and report to the user, parsing the JSON output:

ERROR: {failures} file(s) failed deterministic post-merge verification (#2969 gate).

The verifier compared user-added lines (computed from the diff between
the backup and the pristine baseline) against the merged installed file.
Lines listed below are present in the backup but absent from the merged result.

For each failed file:
  {file}
    missing: {first significant missing line, up to 5 per file}
    backup:  {patches_dir}/{file}

Resolve before proceeding:
  (a) Re-merge the missing content into the installed file by hand, or
  (b) Restore from backup: cp {patches_dir}/{file} {installed_path}

Then re-run /gsd:update --reapply to re-verify.

Do not proceed to cleanup until the verifier exits 0.

Only when VERIFY_STATUS is 0 (or when all files had zero significant user-added lines, which the verifier reports as Failures: 0) may execution continue to gate 5b.

5b: Hunk Verification Table review (advisory gate, #1999)

The Hunk Verification Table produced in Step 4 must also be reviewed before proceeding. This is advisory after the script gate but is preserved as a defense-in-depth check — if the script ever has a bug or the pristine baseline is unavailable, the table-based gate still catches obvious regressions.

If the Hunk Verification Table is absent (Step 4 silently produced nothing), STOP and report:

ERROR: Hunk Verification Table is missing — Step 4 did not produce it.
The deterministic verifier (5a) may still have passed, but a missing table
means post-merge verification was not fully completed. Rerun
/gsd:update --reapply to retry with full verification.

A missing table absent from the workflow output cannot bypass this gate.

If any row in the Hunk Verification Table shows verified: no, STOP and report:

ERROR: {N} hunk(s) failed Step 5b verification — content may have been dropped during merge.

Unverified hunks:
  {file} hunk {hunk_id}: signature line "{signature_line}" not found in merged output

The backup is preserved at: {patches_dir}/{file}
Review the merged file manually, then either:
  (a) Re-merge the missing content by hand, or
  (b) Restore from backup: cp {patches_dir}/{file} {installed_path}

Do not proceed to cleanup until both gates (5a and 5b) pass.

Why both gates? 5a (the script) is the binding gate — it does the actual substring check structurally and cannot be shortcut by the LLM. 5b (the table review) is the advisory gate — it provides a redundant safety net via the Step 4 prose summary, ensuring that even a script regression or absent pristine baseline cannot silently allow a verified: no row to slip past, nor can a missing table go unnoticed. Layered gates favour false-positive halts (recoverable) over silent successes on lost content (unrecoverable).

Step 6: Cleanup option

Ask user:

• "Keep patch backups for reference?" → preserve gsd-local-patches/
• "Clean up patch backups?" → remove gsd-local-patches/ directory

Step 7: Report

## Patches Reapplied

| # | File | Result | User Changes Preserved |
|---|------|--------|----------------------|
| 1 | {file_path} | Merged | Added step X, modified section Y |
| 2 | {file_path} | Incorporated | Already in upstream v{version} |
| 3 | {file_path} | Conflict resolved | User chose: keep custom section |

{count} file(s) updated. Your local modifications are active again.

<success_criteria>

• All backed-up patches processed — zero files left unhandled
• No file classified as "no custom content" or "SKIP" — every backed-up file is definitionally modified
• Three-way merge used when pristine baseline available (git history or gsd-pristine/)
• User modifications identified and merged into new version
• Conflicts surfaced to user with both versions shown
• Status reported for each file with summary of what was preserved
• Post-merge verification checks each file for dropped hunks and warns if content appears missing </success_criteria>