/configure:dead-code

Check and configure dead code detection tools.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when...	Use another approach when...
Setting up dead code detection for a new project	Running an existing dead code scan (`knip`, `vulture`)
Auditing whether Knip, Vulture, or cargo-machete is configured correctly	Manually removing specific unused exports or imports
Migrating between dead code detection tools	Debugging why a specific file is flagged as unused
Adding dead code checks to CI/CD pipelines	Reviewing dead code findings one by one
Standardizing dead code detection across a monorepo	Configuring linting rules (`/configure:linting` instead)

Context

Project root: !pwd
Package files: !find . -maxdepth 1 \( -name 'package.json' -o -name 'pyproject.toml' -o -name 'Cargo.toml' \)
Knip config: !find . -maxdepth 1 \( -name 'knip.json' -o -name 'knip.config.*' \)
Vulture config: !find . -maxdepth 1 \( -name '.vulture' -o -name 'vulture.ini' \)
Pre-commit: !find . -maxdepth 1 -name '.pre-commit-config.yaml'
Project standards: !find . -maxdepth 1 -name '.project-standards.yaml'

Parameters

Parse from command arguments:

--check-only: Report compliance status without modifications (CI/CD mode)
--fix: Apply fixes automatically without prompting
--tool <knip|vulture|deadcode|machete>: Override tool detection

Dead code detection tools:

JavaScript/TypeScript: Knip (finds unused files, exports, dependencies)
Python: Vulture or deadcode (finds unused code)
Rust: cargo-machete (finds unused dependencies)

Execution

Execute this dead code detection compliance check:

Step 1: Detect project language and existing tools

Check for language and tool indicators:

Indicator	Language	Tool
`knip.json` or `knip.config.*`	JavaScript/TypeScript	Knip
`package.json` with knip	JavaScript/TypeScript	Knip
`pyproject.toml` [tool.vulture]	Python	Vulture
`.vulture` or `vulture.ini`	Python	Vulture
`Cargo.toml`	Rust	cargo-machete

Use WebSearch or WebFetch to verify latest versions before configuring.

Step 2: Analyze current configuration

For the detected tool, check configuration completeness:

Knip:

Vulture:

cargo-machete:

Installed as cargo subcommand
Workspace configuration
CI integration

Step 3: Generate compliance report

Print a formatted compliance report:

Dead Code Detection Compliance Report
======================================
Project: [name]
Language: [TypeScript | Python | Rust]
Tool: [Knip 5.x | Vulture 2.x | cargo-machete 0.6.x]

Configuration:
  Config file             knip.json                  [EXISTS | MISSING]
  Entry points            configured                 [CONFIGURED | AUTO-DETECTED]
  Ignore patterns         node_modules, dist         [CONFIGURED | INCOMPLETE]
  Plugin support          enabled                    [ENABLED | N/A]

Detection Scope:
  Unused files            enabled                    [ENABLED | DISABLED]
  Unused exports          enabled                    [ENABLED | DISABLED]
  Unused dependencies     enabled                    [ENABLED | DISABLED]
  Unused types            enabled                    [ENABLED | DISABLED]

Scripts:
  dead-code command       package.json scripts       [CONFIGURED | MISSING]

Integration:
  Pre-commit hook         .pre-commit-config.yaml    [OPTIONAL | MISSING]
  CI/CD check             .github/workflows/         [CONFIGURED | MISSING]

Overall: [X issues found]

If --check-only, stop here.

Step 4: Configure dead code detection (if --fix or user confirms)

Apply configuration based on detected language. Use templates from REFERENCE.md:

Install tool (e.g., bun add --dev knip, uv add --group dev vulture)
Create config file with entry points, exclusions, and plugins
Add scripts to package.json or create run commands
Add CI workflow step (warning mode, not blocking)

Step 5: Update standards tracking

Update .project-standards.yaml:

standards_version: "2025.1"
last_configured: "[timestamp]"
components:
  dead_code: "2025.1"
  dead_code_tool: "[knip|vulture|deadcode|machete]"
  dead_code_ci: true

Step 6: Print final report

Print a summary of changes applied, run an initial scan if possible, and provide next steps for reviewing findings.

For detailed configuration templates and usage examples, see REFERENCE.md.

Agentic Optimizations

Context	Command
Quick compliance check	`/configure:dead-code --check-only`
Auto-fix all issues	`/configure:dead-code --fix`
Run Knip scan (JS/TS)	`npx knip --reporter compact`
Run Vulture scan (Python)	`vulture . --min-confidence 80`
Run cargo-machete (Rust)	`cargo machete`
CI mode (JSON output)	`npx knip --reporter json`

Flags

Flag	Description
`--check-only`	Report status without offering fixes
`--fix`	Apply all fixes automatically without prompting
`--tool <tool>`	Override tool detection (knip, vulture, deadcode, machete)

Examples

# Check compliance and offer fixes
/configure:dead-code

# Check only, no modifications
/configure:dead-code --check-only

# Auto-fix with Knip
/configure:dead-code --fix --tool knip

Error Handling

No language detected: Cannot determine appropriate tool, error
Tool installation fails: Report error, suggest manual installation
Configuration conflicts: Warn about multiple tools, suggest consolidation
High number of findings: Suggest starting with allowlist

configure-dead-code