Diff Analysis Methodology

Overview

Structured method for analyzing changesets: categorize changes, assess risks, generate insights. Works for git diffs, configuration changes, API migrations, schema updates, or document revisions.

When To Use

Extracting insights from raw change data
Categorizing and prioritizing changes before code reviews
Preparing release notes or changelogs
Assessing migration scope and risk

When NOT To Use

Quick context catchup - use catchup instead
Full PR review - use review-core with pensive skills

Activation Patterns

Trigger Keywords: diff, changes, release notes, changelog, migration, impact, risk assessment

Auto-Load When: Git diffs present, change analysis requested, impact assessment needed.

Progressive Loading

Load modules based on workflow stage:

Always Load

modules/semantic-categorization.md for change categorization workflow

Conditional Loading

modules/risk-assessment-framework.md when risk assessment is needed
modules/git-diff-patterns.md when working with git repositories

Integration

Use sanctum:git-workspace-review for git data gathering
Use imbue:proof-of-work for capturing analysis evidence
Use imbue:structured-output for formatting final deliverables

Required TodoWrite Items

diff-analysis:baseline-established
diff-analysis:changes-categorized
diff-analysis:risks-assessed
diff-analysis:summary-prepared

Mark each item complete as you finish the corresponding step.

4-Step Methodology

Step 1: Establish Baseline (`diff-analysis:baseline-established`)

Define comparison scope: what states are being compared, boundary of analysis, and scale metrics.

For git contexts, load modules/git-diff-patterns.md. For other contexts, compare relevant artifacts.

Step 2: Categorize Changes (`diff-analysis:changes-categorized`)

Group changes by semantic type. Load modules/semantic-categorization.md for change categories, semantic categories, and prioritization.

Step 3: Assess Risks (`diff-analysis:risks-assessed`)

Evaluate impact. Load modules/risk-assessment-framework.md for risk indicators, levels, and scoring methodology.

Step 4: Prepare Summary (`diff-analysis:summary-prepared`)

Synthesize findings: theme, scope with counts, risk level, review focus, dependencies. Format for downstream consumption (PR descriptions, release notes, reviews).

Exit Criteria

All TodoWrite items completed with categorized changes and risk assessment
Downstream workflows have semantic understanding of the changeset
Summary ready for appropriate consumption (review, release notes, planning)

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Command not found Ensure all dependencies are installed and in PATH

Permission errors Check file permissions and run with appropriate privileges

Unexpected behavior Enable verbose logging with --verbose flag

diff-analysis

Table of Contents