{
  "instruction": "API endpoints returning lists must be paginated",
  "relevant_when": "Agent builds API endpoints that return lists of records from a database",
  "context": "Every API endpoint that returns a list must support pagination with limit and offset (or cursor). Never return all rows from a table without a limit. Always cap the maximum limit value.",
  "sources": [
    {
      "type": "file",
      "filename": "skills/web-performance/SKILL.md",
      "tile": "tessl-labs/web-performance"
    }
  ],
  "checklist": [
    {
      "name": "list-endpoints-paginated",
      "rule": "Every API endpoint that returns a list of records from the database uses LIMIT (or equivalent) in the query and accepts pagination parameters (page/limit, offset/limit, or cursor). Returning all rows without any limit is a failure.",
      "relevant_when": "Agent creates an API endpoint that queries a database table and returns multiple records"
    },
    {
      "name": "max-limit-capped",
      "rule": "The pagination limit is capped to a reasonable maximum (e.g. 100) so clients cannot request unbounded result sets",
      "relevant_when": "Agent implements pagination with a user-supplied limit parameter"
    },
    {
      "name": "pagination-metadata-returned",
      "rule": "Paginated responses include pagination metadata such as total count, current page, total pages, or next cursor so clients can navigate results",
      "relevant_when": "Agent returns paginated results from an API"
    }
  ]
}