@leanspec/ui 0.2.8 → 0.2.9-dev.20251205030455

package/.next/standalone/packages/ui/dist/standalone/specs/070-mcp-token-counting-tool/README.md

@@ -1,372 +0,0 @@
----
-status: complete
-created: '2025-11-13'
-tags:
-  - core
-  - mcp
-  - llm
-  - tooling
-priority: medium
-assignee: marvin
-created_at: '2025-11-13T02:56:09.580Z'
-depends_on:
-  - 069-token-counting-utils
-related:
-  - 059-programmatic-spec-management
-  - 066-context-economy-thresholds-refinement
-updated_at: '2025-11-13T08:55:34.796Z'
-completed_at: '2025-11-13T08:55:34.796Z'
-completed: '2025-11-13'
-transitions:
-  - status: complete
-    at: '2025-11-13T08:55:34.796Z'
----
-
-# MCP Token Counting Tool
-
-> **Status**: ✅ Complete · **Priority**: Medium · **Created**: 2025-11-13 · **Tags**: core, mcp, llm, tooling
-> **Assignee**: marvin · **Reviewer**: TBD
-
-**The Problem**: AI agents cannot query token counts programmatically. They need to make context-aware decisions about which specs to load, but have no way to check token sizes.
-
-**The Solution**: Add `mcp_lean-spec_tokens` tool to the MCP server, enabling AI agents to query token counts for specs and sub-specs before loading them into context.
-
-## Overview
-
-### Context
-
-From **Spec 069** (Token Counting Utilities):
-- ✅ Core infrastructure complete (`TokenCounter` class)
-- ✅ CLI commands working (`lean-spec tokens`)
-- ✅ Validation integrated (using tiktoken)
-- ❌ MCP tool not yet implemented
-
-This spec extracts the MCP tool implementation into focused, standalone work.
-
-### Why This Matters
-
-**For AI Agents**:
-1. **Context Budget Management** - Check if spec fits before loading
-2. **Smart Loading Decisions** - Load README.md vs full spec with sub-specs
-3. **Cost Awareness** - Understand token costs before operations
-4. **Performance Optimization** - Avoid context window overflow
-
-**Use Case Example**:
-```
-Agent: "I need to understand spec 059"
-Agent: [queries mcp_lean-spec_tokens("059", includeSubSpecs=true)]
-Response: { total: 8450, files: [...] }
-Agent: "Too large. Let me just load README.md"
-Agent: [queries mcp_lean-spec_tokens("059")]
-Response: { total: 2100 }
-Agent: "Perfect, I'll load that"
-Agent: [queries mcp_lean-spec_view("059")]
-```
-
-### What We're Building
-
-**Single MCP Tool**: `mcp_lean-spec_tokens`
-- Query token count for spec or sub-spec
-- Support for detailed breakdown
-- Integration with existing MCP server
-- Uses proven `TokenCounter` infrastructure from spec 069
-
-## Design
-
-### MCP Tool Interface
-
-```typescript
-{
-  name: "mcp_lean-spec_tokens",
-  description: "Count tokens in spec or sub-spec for LLM context management. Use this before loading specs to check if they fit in context budget.",
-  inputSchema: {
-    type: "object",
-    properties: {
-      specPath: {
-        type: "string",
-        description: "Spec name, number, or file path (e.g., '059', 'unified-dashboard', '059/DESIGN.md')"
-      },
-      includeSubSpecs: {
-        type: "boolean",
-        description: "Include all sub-spec files in count (default: false)",
-        default: false
-      },
-      detailed: {
-        type: "boolean",
-        description: "Return breakdown by content type (code, prose, tables, frontmatter)",
-        default: false
-      }
-    },
-    required: ["specPath"]
-  }
-}
-```
-
-### Response Format
-
-**Basic Response**:
-```json
-{
-  "spec": "059-programmatic-spec-management",
-  "total": 2100,
-  "files": [
-    { "path": "README.md", "tokens": 2100, "lines": 394 }
-  ]
-}
-```
-
-**With Sub-Specs**:
-```json
-{
-  "spec": "059-programmatic-spec-management",
-  "total": 8450,
-  "files": [
-    { "path": "README.md", "tokens": 2100, "lines": 394 },
-    { "path": "ARCHITECTURE.md", "tokens": 1850, "lines": 411 },
-    { "path": "CONTEXT-ENGINEERING.md", "tokens": 3200, "lines": 799 },
-    { "path": "COMMANDS.md", "tokens": 560, "lines": 156 },
-    { "path": "ALGORITHMS.md", "tokens": 240, "lines": 62 },
-    { "path": "IMPLEMENTATION.md", "tokens": 310, "lines": 88 },
-    { "path": "TESTING.md", "tokens": 190, "lines": 54 }
-  ],
-  "recommendation": "⚠️ Total >5K tokens - consider loading README.md only"
-}
-```
-
-**With Detailed Breakdown**:
-```json
-{
-  "spec": "066-context-economy-thresholds-refinement",
-  "total": 8073,
-  "files": [...],
-  "breakdown": {
-    "prose": 4200,
-    "code": 2100,
-    "tables": 800,
-    "frontmatter": 207
-  },
-  "performance": {
-    "level": "problem",
-    "costMultiplier": 6.7,
-    "effectiveness": 70,
-    "recommendation": "🔴 Should split - elevated token count"
-  }
-}
-```
-
-### Implementation Location
-
-Add to existing MCP server at `packages/cli/src/mcp-server.ts`:
-
-```typescript
-// Add near other tool registrations (after mcp_lean-spec_view, etc.)
-server.addTool({
-  name: 'mcp_lean-spec_tokens',
-  description: 'Count tokens in spec or sub-spec for LLM context management',
-  inputSchema: zodToJsonSchema(
-    z.object({
-      specPath: z.string().describe('Spec name, number, or file path'),
-      includeSubSpecs: z.boolean().optional().describe('Include all sub-spec files'),
-      detailed: z.boolean().optional().describe('Return breakdown by content type'),
-    })
-  ),
-  handler: async ({ specPath, includeSubSpecs, detailed }) => {
-    // Implementation using TokenCounter
-  }
-});
-```
-
-### Error Handling
-
-```typescript
-// Spec not found
-{
-  "error": "Spec not found: invalid-spec",
-  "code": "SPEC_NOT_FOUND"
-}
-
-// File access error
-{
-  "error": "Cannot read spec file: permission denied",
-  "code": "FILE_ACCESS_ERROR"
-}
-
-// Token counting error
-{
-  "error": "Token counting failed: encoding error",
-  "code": "TOKEN_COUNT_ERROR"
-}
-```
-
-## Plan
-
-### Phase 1: Implementation (v0.3.0 - Week 1)
-- [ ] Add `mcp_lean-spec_tokens` tool to MCP server
-- [ ] Implement handler using existing `TokenCounter` class
-- [ ] Support `specPath` resolution (name, number, file path)
-- [ ] Support `includeSubSpecs` flag
-- [ ] Support `detailed` flag for breakdown
-- [ ] Add error handling (spec not found, file access, etc.)
-- [ ] Ensure proper resource cleanup (TokenCounter.dispose())
-
-### Phase 2: Testing (v0.3.0 - Week 1)
-- [ ] Unit tests for MCP tool handler
-- [ ] Integration tests with MCP client
-- [ ] Test all parameter combinations
-- [ ] Test error scenarios
-- [ ] Verify memory cleanup
-
-### Phase 3: Documentation (v0.3.0 - Week 1)
-- [ ] Add to MCP tool catalog in README
-- [ ] Update AGENTS.md with token query examples
-- [ ] Add usage examples to docs site
-- [ ] Document in MCP server help text
-
-## Test
-
-### Functional Tests
-
-**Basic Token Counting**:
-- [ ] Query single spec returns total token count
-- [ ] Query with sub-specs aggregates correctly
-- [ ] Query specific sub-spec file works
-- [ ] Detailed breakdown includes all content types
-
-**Path Resolution**:
-- [ ] Spec number resolves correctly (e.g., "59" or "059")
-- [ ] Spec name resolves correctly (e.g., "unified-dashboard")
-- [ ] Full spec folder name works (e.g., "059-programmatic-spec-management")
-- [ ] Sub-spec file path works (e.g., "059/DESIGN.md")
-
-**Error Cases**:
-- [ ] Invalid spec returns proper error
-- [ ] Missing file returns proper error
-- [ ] Invalid parameters return validation error
-
-### Integration Tests
-
-**With Real Specs**:
-- [ ] Matches CLI output for same spec
-- [ ] Matches validation complexity scores
-- [ ] Performance indicators are correct
-- [ ] Recommendations are actionable
-
-**MCP Protocol**:
-- [ ] Tool appears in MCP tool list
-- [ ] Schema validation works
-- [ ] Response format matches MCP spec
-- [ ] Error responses follow MCP conventions
-
-### AI Agent Workflows
-
-**Context Budget Planning**:
-```typescript
-// Agent checks token count before loading
-const result = await callTool('mcp_lean-spec_tokens', { 
-  specPath: '059',
-  includeSubSpecs: true 
-});
-
-if (result.total > 5000) {
-  // Load just README instead
-  await callTool('mcp_lean-spec_tokens', { specPath: '059' });
-}
-```
-
-**Smart Loading**:
-```typescript
-// Agent decides what to load based on tokens
-const tokens = await callTool('mcp_lean-spec_tokens', { specPath: '066' });
-
-if (tokens.total < 3500) {
-  // Load full spec
-  await callTool('mcp_lean-spec_view', { specPath: '066' });
-} else {
-  // Load just overview
-  await callTool('mcp_lean-spec_view', { 
-    specPath: '066',
-    section: 'overview' 
-  });
-}
-```
-
-## Success Metrics
-
-### Quantitative
-
-**Performance**:
-- [ ] Token counting via MCP takes <100ms per request
-- [ ] No memory leaks (TokenCounter properly disposed)
-- [ ] MCP server startup time unaffected (<2s)
-
-**Reliability**:
-- [ ] Matches CLI token counts exactly
-- [ ] Error handling covers all edge cases
-- [ ] Schema validation prevents invalid requests
-
-### Qualitative
-
-**AI Agent Experience**:
-- [ ] "Can query token counts programmatically" ✅
-- [ ] "Makes informed context budget decisions" ✅
-- [ ] "Avoids overloading context windows" ✅
-- [ ] "Understands which specs fit in context" ✅
-
-**Developer Experience**:
-- [ ] MCP tool is discoverable (shows in tool list)
-- [ ] Error messages are clear and actionable
-- [ ] Documentation with examples is complete
-
-## Notes
-
-### Why Separate Spec?
-
-**Separated from Spec 069** because:
-1. **Different scope**: MCP integration vs core utilities
-2. **Different stakeholder**: AI agents vs developers
-3. **Can be deferred**: Core infrastructure works without it
-4. **Clear dependency**: Builds on completed spec 069
-
-**Dependency**: Spec 069 must be complete (✅ it is!)
-
-### Implementation Strategy
-
-**Reuse, Don't Rebuild**:
-- Use existing `TokenCounter` class (proven, tested)
-- Use existing path resolution (from `resolveSpecPath`)
-- Use existing spec loading (from `getSpec`)
-- Just add thin MCP wrapper around existing logic
-
-**Estimated Effort**: 4-6 hours (simple integration)
-
-### Future Enhancements (v0.4.0+)
-
-**Context Budget Planning**:
-- [ ] `--budget` flag to check "will this fit in X tokens?"
-- [ ] Multi-spec budget planning (e.g., "can I load specs 59, 66, 69?")
-- [ ] Cost estimation ($/1M tokens by model)
-
-**Advanced Queries**:
-- [ ] "Find specs under 2K tokens"
-- [ ] "What's the largest spec in the project?"
-- [ ] Token trends over time (git history)
-
-### Open Questions
-
-1. **Should we cache token counts?** 
-   - Pro: Faster repeated queries
-   - Con: Need invalidation strategy
-   - **Decision**: No caching for v0.3.0 (YAGNI)
-
-2. **Should we add token count to other MCP tools?**
-   - E.g., `mcp_lean-spec_list` shows token counts
-   - E.g., `mcp_lean-spec_view` includes token info in response
-   - **Decision**: Start with dedicated tool, expand later if needed
-
-3. **Should we support token budgets directly?**
-   - E.g., `maxTokens` parameter returns error if exceeded
-   - **Decision**: Defer to Phase 5 / v0.4.0
-
----
-
-**Remember**: This is a thin MCP wrapper around proven infrastructure (spec 069). Keep it simple, reuse existing code, ship fast.