Work Update Command

November 12, 2025 · View on GitHub

Usage: /sk:work-update <work_item_id> <field>

Description: Update a specific field of an existing work item using interactive UI.

Overview

The work-update command allows you to modify work item properties:

Priority
Milestone assignment
Dependencies (add or remove)

Note: Status changes are NOT allowed via this command. Status is managed automatically by the session workflow (/sk:start sets to in_progress, /sk:end sets to completed).

Usage

/sk:work-update <work_item_id> <field>

Required arguments:

work_item_id - ID of the work item to update
field - Field to update (priority, milestone, add-dependency, remove-dependency, clear-urgent)

Available Fields

priority

Update work item priority level

/sk:work-update feature_auth priority

milestone

Assign work item to a milestone

/sk:work-update feature_auth milestone

add-dependency

Add a dependency to the work item

/sk:work-update feature_auth add-dependency

remove-dependency

Remove an existing dependency

/sk:work-update feature_auth remove-dependency

clear-urgent

Clear the urgent flag from a work item

/sk:work-update bug_hotfix clear-urgent

⚠️ About Urgent Flag:

Only ONE work item can be urgent at a time
Urgent items override all priority and are worked on first
The urgent flag is automatically cleared when a work item is completed
Use this command to manually clear the urgent flag before completion

Interactive Flow

Step 1: Fast Metadata Lookup

The command quickly displays current work item details:

Current: feature_auth
- Type: feature
- Status: not_started
- Priority: high
- Milestone: (none)
- Dependencies: feature_database

Uses optimized metadata-only lookup (doesn't read full spec file) for fast response.

Step 2: Interactive Selection

Based on the field specified, you'll be prompted to select the new value.

Examples

Update Priority

/sk:work-update bug_timeout priority

Interactive flow:

Current: bug_timeout
- Type: bug
- Status: in_progress
- Priority: medium
- Milestone: sprint_1
- Dependencies: (none)

Select new priority for bug_timeout:

○ critical
  Blocking issue or urgent requirement

● high
  Important work to be done soon

○ medium
  Normal priority work

○ low
  Nice to have, can be deferred

→ Selected: high

Updated bug_timeout priority: medium → high

Assign Milestone

/sk:work-update feature_search milestone

Interactive flow:

Current: feature_search
- Type: feature
- Status: not_started
- Priority: high
- Milestone: (none)
- Dependencies: feature_auth

Enter milestone name for feature_search:

○ Sprint 1
  Example milestone

○ Q1 2025
  Example milestone

● Type something...

→ Enter custom: sprint_2

Updated feature_search milestone: (none) → sprint_2

Add Dependency

/sk:work-update feature_dashboard add-dependency

Interactive flow:

Current: feature_dashboard
- Type: feature
- Status: not_started
- Priority: medium
- Milestone: sprint_2
- Dependencies: (none)

Select dependency to add for feature_dashboard:

□ feature_auth: [high] [feature] Add authentication (in_progress)
□ feature_search: [high] [feature] Implement search (not_started)
□ refactor_api: [medium] [refactor] Refactor API (not_started)

→ Selected: feature_auth

Added dependency: feature_dashboard → feature_auth

Status updated: not_started → blocked
(Work item is now blocked until feature_auth completes)

Smart filtering: Shows only relevant, incomplete work items. Excludes:

Completed work items
The work item itself
Items that would create circular dependencies

Remove Dependency

/sk:work-update feature_dashboard remove-dependency

Interactive flow:

Current: feature_dashboard
- Type: feature
- Status: blocked
- Priority: medium
- Milestone: sprint_2
- Dependencies: feature_auth, feature_search

Select dependency to remove from feature_dashboard:

○ feature_auth: [high] [feature] Add authentication (in_progress)
○ feature_search: [high] [feature] Implement search (not_started)

→ Selected: feature_search

Removed dependency: feature_dashboard ↛ feature_search

Remaining dependencies: feature_auth
Status: blocked (still waiting on feature_auth)

Clear Urgent Flag

/sk:work-update bug_hotfix clear-urgent

Interactive flow:

Current: bug_hotfix
- Type: bug
- Status: not_started
- Priority: critical
- Milestone: (none)
- Dependencies: (none)
- ⚠️ Urgent: YES

Clear urgent flag from bug_hotfix? (y/N): y

Updated bug_hotfix:
  urgent flag: cleared

The work item will now follow normal priority ordering.

Note: If the work item is not marked as urgent, you'll see:

⚠️ Work item is not marked as urgent (no change made)

Status Management

Important: You cannot change work item status using this command.

If you try:

/sk:work-update feature_auth status

Output:

ERROR: Status changes are not allowed via /work-update.

Status is managed by session workflow:
  - /sk:start → Sets to "in_progress"
  - /sk:end → Sets to "completed" or keeps "in_progress"

Use these commands to change status.

Status transitions are automatic:

not_started → in_progress when you run /sk:start
not_started → blocked when you add an incomplete dependency
blocked → not_started when all dependencies complete
in_progress → completed when you run /sk:end and select "Yes"
in_progress → in_progress when you run /sk:end and select "No"

Validation

The command validates:

Priority Updates

Must be one of: critical, high, medium, low
Can update at any time regardless of status

Milestone Updates

Can be any string (no validation)
Can be empty to remove milestone assignment
Can update at any time

Add Dependency

Dependency must exist
Dependency cannot be completed (no point depending on completed work)
Dependency cannot be the work item itself (no self-dependencies)
Dependency cannot create circular dependencies
Automatically blocks work item if dependency is not completed

Remove Dependency

Dependency must currently exist for the work item
Automatically unblocks work item if it was the last incomplete dependency

Error Handling

Missing Arguments

/sk:work-update feature_auth

Output:

ERROR: Usage: /sk:work-update <work_item_id> <field>

Valid fields: priority, milestone, add-dependency, remove-dependency

Example:
  /sk:work-update feature_auth priority
  /sk:work-update feature_auth milestone

Work Item Not Found

/sk:work-update nonexistent_item priority

Output:

ERROR: Work item 'nonexistent_item' not found

Use /sk:work-list to see all available work items.

Invalid Field

/sk:work-update feature_auth invalid_field

Output:

ERROR: Invalid field 'invalid_field'

Valid fields: priority, milestone, add-dependency, remove-dependency

Circular Dependency

/sk:work-update feature_auth add-dependency
# Select feature_search (which already depends on feature_auth)

Output:

ERROR: Circular dependency detected

Cannot add feature_search as dependency because:
  feature_search → feature_auth (already exists)
  feature_auth → feature_search (would create cycle)

This would create an unresolvable dependency chain.

Completed Dependency

/sk:work-update feature_dashboard add-dependency
# Try to select feature_auth (which is completed)

Output:

ERROR: Cannot add completed work item as dependency

feature_auth is already completed. There's no point in depending on
completed work items.

Only incomplete work items (not_started, in_progress, blocked) can be
added as dependencies.

Optimized Performance

The command uses fast metadata-only lookup:

Reads only work_items.json metadata
Does NOT read full spec files
Provides instant response for current values
Only loads spec when absolutely necessary

Automatic Status Updates

When you modify dependencies, status is automatically updated:

Adding incomplete dependency:

Before: feature_dashboard (not_started, no dependencies)
Add dependency: feature_auth (in_progress)
After: feature_dashboard (blocked, depends on feature_auth)

Removing last incomplete dependency:

Before: feature_dashboard (blocked, depends on feature_auth)
Remove dependency: feature_auth
After: feature_dashboard (not_started, no dependencies)

Removing one of multiple dependencies:

Before: feature_dashboard (blocked, depends on feature_auth, feature_search)
Remove dependency: feature_search
After: feature_dashboard (blocked, depends on feature_auth)
Status: Still blocked because feature_auth is incomplete

Integration with Other Commands

After updating priority:

/sk:work-update feature_auth priority
/sk:work-list --type feature  # See updated priority
/sk:work-next  # New priority affects recommendations

After updating milestone:

/sk:work-update feature_auth milestone
/sk:work-list --milestone sprint_1  # See items in milestone

After updating dependencies:

/sk:work-update feature_dashboard add-dependency
/sk:work-show feature_dashboard  # Verify dependencies
/sk:work-graph  # Visualize dependency graph