managing-database-replication
Process use when you need to work with database scalability. This skill provides replication and sharding with comprehensive guidance and automation. Trigger with phrases like "set up replication", "implement sharding", or "scale database".
74
69%
Does it follow best practices?
Impact
Pending
No eval scenarios have been run
Risky
Do not use without reviewing
Optimize this skill with Tessl
npx tessl skill review --optimize ./plugins/database/database-replication-manager/skills/managing-database-replication/SKILL.mdQuality
Discovery
82%Based on the skill's description, can an agent find and select it at the right time? Clear, specific descriptions lead to better discovery.
The description covers the basics adequately with explicit trigger phrases and a clear 'when' clause, which is a strength. However, the opening sentence is awkwardly phrased ('Process use when you need to...'), the specific capabilities beyond 'replication and sharding' are vague ('comprehensive guidance and automation' is fluff), and the domain could overlap with adjacent database skills.
Suggestions
List more concrete actions beyond 'replication and sharding' — e.g., 'configure replica sets, define shard keys, set up read replicas, partition tables' to improve specificity.
Fix the awkward opening phrasing ('Process use when you need to...') and use proper third-person voice like 'Configures database replication and sharding for horizontal scalability.'
Add more trigger term variations such as 'horizontal scaling', 'read replicas', 'partition', 'shard key', 'distributed database' to reduce conflict risk and improve keyword coverage.
| Dimension | Reasoning | Score |
|---|---|---|
Specificity | The description names the domain (database scalability) and mentions two specific actions (replication and sharding), but doesn't list concrete sub-actions like configuring replica sets, partitioning strategies, or monitoring. It remains somewhat surface-level. | 2 / 3 |
Completeness | The description answers both 'what' (replication and sharding with guidance and automation for database scalability) and 'when' (explicit trigger phrases like 'set up replication', 'implement sharding', 'scale database'). | 3 / 3 |
Trigger Term Quality | Includes natural trigger phrases users would say: 'set up replication', 'implement sharding', 'scale database'. These are realistic phrases a user would type when needing this skill. | 3 / 3 |
Distinctiveness Conflict Risk | While 'replication' and 'sharding' are fairly specific to database scalability, the phrase 'scale database' is broad enough to potentially overlap with skills covering database performance tuning, indexing, or general database optimization. | 2 / 3 |
Total | 10 / 12 Passed |
Implementation
57%Reviews the quality of instructions and guidance provided to agents. Good implementation is clear, handles edge cases, and produces reliable results.
This skill provides highly actionable, concrete guidance for database replication across three major systems with executable commands and useful error handling. However, it suffers from being monolithic — cramming three database systems' worth of configuration into one file hurts both conciseness and progressive disclosure. Adding validation checkpoints between critical steps (e.g., verifying replication is active before configuring routing) would significantly improve workflow safety.
Suggestions
Split database-specific instructions into separate referenced files (e.g., POSTGRESQL_REPLICATION.md, MYSQL_REPLICATION.md, MONGODB_REPLICATION.md) and keep SKILL.md as a concise overview with navigation links.
Add explicit validation checkpoints after key steps, such as 'Verify replication status: SELECT * FROM pg_stat_replication' after initializing the replica, before proceeding to monitoring or failover setup.
Move the error handling table and detailed examples into a separate TROUBLESHOOTING.md or EXAMPLES.md file to reduce the main skill's token footprint.
| Dimension | Reasoning | Score |
|---|---|---|
Conciseness | The skill covers three databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB) which adds breadth but also significant length. Some sections like the scenario-based examples and the overview of topology choices are useful but could be tightened. The content doesn't explain basic concepts Claude already knows, but the sheer volume of inline detail (especially covering three databases in one skill) makes it less token-efficient than it could be. | 2 / 3 |
Actionability | The skill provides specific, executable commands and SQL statements for each database system — pg_basebackup commands with flags explained, CREATE ROLE statements, CHANGE REPLICATION SOURCE syntax, rs.initiate() calls, and monitoring queries. These are copy-paste ready and include concrete configuration parameters. | 3 / 3 |
Workflow Clarity | Steps are numbered and sequenced, but there are no explicit validation checkpoints between steps. For example, after step 3 (initializing the replica), there's no 'verify replication is working' step before proceeding. For operations involving replication setup (which can be destructive if misconfigured), the lack of validate-then-proceed feedback loops caps this at 2. | 2 / 3 |
Progressive Disclosure | All content is in a single monolithic file with no references to external files for detailed topics. The PostgreSQL, MySQL, and MongoDB configurations could each be separate referenced files. The error handling table, examples, and resources are all inline, making this a wall of text that would benefit significantly from splitting into focused sub-documents. | 1 / 3 |
Total | 8 / 12 Passed |
Validation
81%Checks the skill against the spec for correct structure and formatting. All validation checks must pass before discovery and implementation can be scored.
Validation — 9 / 11 Passed
Validation for skill structure
| Criteria | Description | Result |
|---|---|---|
allowed_tools_field | 'allowed-tools' contains unusual tool name(s) | Warning |
frontmatter_unknown_keys | Unknown frontmatter key(s) found; consider removing or moving to metadata | Warning |
Total | 9 / 11 Passed | |
- Commit
3e83543
- Reviewed
Table of Contents
Is this your skill?
If you maintain this skill, you can claim it as your own. Once claimed, you can manage eval scenarios, bundle related skills, attach documentation or rules, and ensure cross-agent compatibility.