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fix(presets): seed constitution from preset constitution-template (#3272)#3276

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fix(presets): seed constitution from preset constitution-template (#3272)#3276
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@BenBtg

@BenBtg BenBtg commented Jun 30, 2026

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Summary

Fixes #3272. A preset that ships a type: template constitution-template entry (e.g. strategy: replace with a ratified constitution) was never applied to .specify/memory/constitution.md. The constitution is the only template materialized to a live file rather than resolved on demand, yet ensure_constitution_from_template hardcoded a copy from the core template and bypassed PresetResolver. Combined with init seeding the constitution before preset installation, a preset's constitution could never go live.

This is a provenance fix (resolve through the same priority stack every other template uses), not a copy-into-core fix.

Changes

  • commands/init.py — ensure_constitution_from_template now resolves constitution-template through PresetResolver (project overrides → installed presets → extensions → core). Core remains the fallback when nothing overrides it. Skip-if-exists / not-found behavior preserved.
  • commands/init.py — reordered so the constitution is seeded after preset installation, so specify init --preset seeds from the resolved stack. No-op for non-preset init.
  • presets/__init__.py — install_from_directory re-seeds .specify/memory/constitution.md from the resolved preset template, only when the memory file is missing or still contains generic placeholder tokens ([PROJECT_NAME] / [PRINCIPLE_1_NAME]). Authored constitutions are never overwritten. Covers specify preset add and install_from_zip (which delegates here).
  • Tests — preset seeds memory; placeholder memory re-seeded; authored constitution preserved; CORE_TEMPLATE_NAMES override resolves constitution-template to the preset file; resolver-aware init seeding (core fallback, preset override, existing-file preservation).

Key guard

Placeholder-token detection (_constitution_is_placeholder) prevents clobbering legitimately authored constitutions during preset add on an existing project.

Testing

  • pytest tests/test_presets.py — 333 passed (7 new)
  • Full suite — 3853 passed, 4 skipped

This PR was authored autonomously by GitHub Copilot (model: Claude Opus 4.8). Each commit carries an Assisted-by: trailer.

@BenBtg
fix(presets): seed constitution from preset constitution-template (#3272
ccf8dc2 
)

The constitution is the only template materialized to a live file
(.specify/memory/constitution.md) rather than resolved on demand, yet
ensure_constitution_from_template hardcoded a copy from the core template
and ignored PresetResolver. Combined with init seeding the constitution
before preset installation, a preset's constitution-template (e.g.
strategy: replace with a ratified constitution) could never go live.

Changes:
- ensure_constitution_from_template now resolves constitution-template
  through PresetResolver, so a preset/override/extension wins and core is
  the fallback.
- init seeds the constitution after preset installation so init --preset
  uses the resolved stack.
- install_from_directory re-seeds memory/constitution.md from the resolved
  preset template, guarded to only act when the memory file is missing or
  still contains generic placeholder tokens — authored constitutions are
  never overwritten. Covers preset add and install_from_zip.
- Tests for preset seeding, placeholder re-seed, authored-constitution
  preservation, override resolution, and resolver-aware init seeding.

Assisted-by: GitHub Copilot (model: Claude Opus 4.8, autonomous)
Co-authored-by: Copilot App <223556219+Copilot@users.noreply.github.com>
Copilot AI review requested due to automatic review settings June 30, 2026 18:54
Copilot AI reviewed Jun 30, 2026

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Copilot encountered an error and was unable to review this pull request. You can try again by re-requesting a review.

@gglachant

gglachant commented Jul 1, 2026

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+1 — we hit this independently. We maintain a spec-kit harness for a team with a fixed, ratified constitution authored upstream in a canonical repo and installed verbatim downstream. /speckit.constitution treating .specify/memory/constitution.md as a template to (re-)author from placeholders is exactly the hazard #3272 names: for us an AI-authored variant is a governance violation, not a convenience.

We read #3276's diff against our use case, and it handles our edge cases correctly:

  • Deferred-value markers are preserved. Our authored constitution carries a few intentional spec-kit-style TODO(FIELD) deferred values (e.g. TODO(RATIFICATION_DATE)) that resolve at a later milestone. Because _constitution_is_placeholder keys on the stock template's specific sentinels ([PROJECT_NAME], [PRINCIPLE_1_NAME]) rather than any generic TODO( / [...], such a constitution is correctly classified authored and preserved. 👍 (That was our one worry from the summary; the diff resolves it.)
  • Byte-faithful install. shutil.copy2(resolved, memory_constitution) materializes the preset's replace template unchanged — exactly what a ratified constitution needs (no reformatting, token-fill, or version recompute).

One small maintainability suggestion: _CONSTITUTION_PLACEHOLDER_TOKENS is a fixed pair — worth a test pinning it to the actual [ALL_CAPS] tokens in the stock constitution-template.md, so the guard can't silently drift out of sync if that template's placeholders ever change.

Our current stopgap is cp canonical → diff (confirm byte-identical) → run the command report-only plus disabling the auto-authoring path; #3276's preset-aware replace path would let us ship the constitution as a preset template and retire that entirely. Thanks for picking this up.

(Disclosure, per CONTRIBUTING: this comment was drafted with the assistance of Claude Code (an AI coding agent) and reviewed by a human before posting.)

@BenBtg BenBtg requested a review from Copilot July 1, 2026 16:18
Copilot AI reviewed Jul 1, 2026
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Review details

  • Files reviewed: 3/3 changed files
  • Comments generated: 2
  • Review effort level: Low

Comment thread src/specify_cli/commands/init.py
Comment on lines +47 to 49
template_constitution = PresetResolver(project_path).resolve(
"constitution-template", "template"
)
Comment thread src/specify_cli/presets/__init__.py
Comment on lines +1667 to +1675
resolved = PresetResolver(self.project_root).resolve(
"constitution-template", "template"
)
if resolved is None or not resolved.exists():
return

try:
memory_constitution.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
shutil.copy2(resolved, memory_constitution)
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Successfully merging this pull request may close these issues.

Preset constitution-template (strategy: replace) is not installed, and speckit.constitution is not preset-aware

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@BenBtg @gglachant @mnriem