Rules Eval

Rules Evaluation Framework

When NOT To Use

• Evaluating skills (use abstract:skills-eval)
• Evaluating hooks (use abstract:hooks-eval)
• Writing a new rule (use hookify:writing-rules)

Table of Contents

• Overview
• Quick Start
• Evaluation Workflow
• Scoring
• Resources

Overview

This skill evaluates Claude Code rules in .claude/rules/ directories against quality standards. It validates YAML frontmatter, glob pattern syntax, content quality, and directory organization. Rules files support path-scoped conditional loading via paths frontmatter and unconditional rules (no paths field).

Key validations: YAML syntax errors, unquoted glob patterns, Cursor-specific fields (alwaysApply, globs), overly broad patterns, content verbosity, and naming conventions.

Quick Start

# Evaluate rules in current project
/rules-eval

# Evaluate specific directory
/rules-eval .claude/rules/

# Detailed analysis with recommendations
/rules-eval --detailed

Evaluation Workflow

• Scan .claude/rules/ for all .md files (including subdirectories)
• Validate YAML frontmatter syntax and fields
• Analyze glob patterns for correctness and specificity
• Assess content quality (actionable, concise, non-conflicting)
• Check organization (naming, structure, symlinks)
• Measure token efficiency and redundancy

Scoring

| Category | Points | Focus |

|----------|--------|-------|

| Frontmatter Validity | 25 | YAML syntax, required fields, correct field names |

| Glob Pattern Quality | 20 | Syntax, specificity, quoting |

| Content Quality | 25 | Actionable, concise, non-conflicting |

| Organization | 15 | Naming, structure, symlink usage |

| Token Efficiency | 15 | Rule size, redundancy detection |

| Score | Level |

|-------|-------|

| 91-100 | Excellent - Production-ready |

| 76-90 | Good - Minor improvements possible |

| 51-75 | Basic - Needs optimization |

| 26-50 | Below Standards - Significant issues |

| 0-25 | Critical - Invalid or broken rules |

Resources

Skill-Specific Modules

• Frontmatter Validation: See modules/frontmatter-validation.md
• Glob Pattern Analysis: See modules/glob-pattern-analysis.md
• Content Quality Metrics: See modules/content-quality-metrics.md
• Organization Patterns: See modules/organization-patterns.md

Tools

• Rules Validator: scripts/rules_validator.py

Related Skills

• abstract:skills-eval - Skill evaluation framework
• abstract:hooks-eval - Hook evaluation framework

Exit Criteria

• [ ] Every .md file under .claude/rules/ (including subdirectories) receives a quality score

(0-100) with per-category breakdown across the five dimensions.

• [ ] YAML frontmatter syntax errors and unquoted glob patterns are listed as blocking findings

before any score is reported.

• [ ] Rules using Cursor-specific fields (alwaysApply, globs) are flagged as

non-compliant with the expected Claude Code schema.

• [ ] Any rule scoring below 26 (Critical tier) is reported with at least one concrete

corrective action, not just a score.