BMAD-METHOD/SETUP-INSTRUCTIONS.md

7.6 KiB

BMad Multi-Project Setup Instructions

This guide explains how to use the centralized BMad installation across all your projects.

🎯 Architecture Overview

Central Hub (One Installation)

/Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/bmad/
├── core/           ← Shared BMad engine
├── bmm/            ← Shared agents & workflows
│   ├── agents/     ← All agent definitions
│   ├── workflows/  ← All workflow definitions
│   └── tasks/      ← Reusable tasks
└── _cfg/           ← BMad configuration

Per-Project Workspaces (Isolated Artifacts)

/Users/hbl/Documents/your-project/
└── .bmad/          ← Project-specific workspace
    ├── analysis/   ← Project research
    ├── planning/   ← PRDs, architecture
    ├── stories/    ← Dev stories
    ├── sprints/    ← Sprint tracking
    ├── retrospectives/ ← Learnings
    ├── context/    ← Story context
    └── .bmadrc     ← Links to central BMad

Key Benefit: Install BMad once, use everywhere. Each project keeps its own notes isolated.


🚀 Setup Instructions

For Pages Health (Already Done )

The Pages Health project already has BMad workspace set up at: /Users/hbl/Documents/pages-health/.bmad/

For All Other Projects

Use the automated setup script:

# General syntax
/Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/setup-project-bmad.sh /path/to/your/project

# Examples
/Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/setup-project-bmad.sh /Users/hbl/Documents/my-app
/Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/setup-project-bmad.sh /Users/hbl/Documents/another-project

What the script does:

  1. Creates .bmad/ workspace in your project
  2. Creates all required subdirectories
  3. Links to central BMad installation
  4. Generates project-specific configuration
  5. Creates README with usage instructions

📋 Using BMad in Claude Code

Step 1: Open Project in Claude Code

cd /Users/hbl/Documents/your-project
claude-code .

Step 2: Access BMad Agents

Type / to see all available commands. BMad commands follow this pattern:

/bmad:bmm:agents:{agent-name}
/bmad:bmm:workflows:{workflow-name}

Step 3: Common Agent Commands

Planning & Architecture:

  • /bmad:bmm:agents:analyst - Research & analysis agent
  • /bmad:bmm:agents:pm - Product manager agent
  • /bmad:bmm:agents:architect - Technical architect agent

Development:

  • /bmad:bmm:agents:sm - Scrum master (story management)
  • /bmad:bmm:agents:dev - Developer agent
  • /bmad:bmm:agents:sr - Senior reviewer agent

Specialized:

  • /bmad:bmm:agents:ux - UX design agent
  • /bmad:bmm:agents:qa - QA testing agent

Step 4: Common Workflow Commands

Analysis Phase (Optional):

  • /bmad:bmm:workflows:brainstorm-project - Project ideation
  • /bmad:bmm:workflows:research - Market/tech research
  • /bmad:bmm:workflows:product-brief - Product strategy

Planning Phase (Required):

  • /bmad:bmm:workflows:plan-project - Creates PRD & architecture

Implementation Phase (Iterative):

  • /bmad:bmm:workflows:create-story - Generate dev stories
  • /bmad:bmm:workflows:story-context - Add technical context
  • /bmad:bmm:workflows:dev-story - Implement story
  • /bmad:bmm:workflows:review-story - Code review
  • /bmad:bmm:workflows:retrospective - Sprint retro

🔄 Typical BMad Workflow

1. Start New Project or Feature

# Open project in Claude Code
cd /Users/hbl/Documents/your-project

# If .bmad doesn't exist yet:
/Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/setup-project-bmad.sh $(pwd)

# Start Claude Code
claude-code .

2. Planning Phase

/bmad:bmm:workflows:plan-project

This will:

  • Guide you through project planning
  • Create PRD in .bmad/planning/
  • Generate architecture docs
  • Auto-scale based on project size

3. Implementation Phase

# Create stories from PRD
/bmad:bmm:workflows:create-story

# Add technical context to story
/bmad:bmm:workflows:story-context

# Implement the story
/bmad:bmm:workflows:dev-story

# Review implementation
/bmad:bmm:workflows:review-story

4. Continuous Improvement

# After each sprint
/bmad:bmm:workflows:retrospective

📁 Where Files Are Stored

Project-Specific (In .bmad/)

All artifacts stay in your project's .bmad/ folder:

your-project/.bmad/
├── analysis/
│   └── project-research-2025-10-07.md
├── planning/
│   ├── PRD-feature-name.md
│   └── architecture-v1.md
├── stories/
│   ├── STORY-001-user-auth.md
│   └── STORY-002-dashboard.md
└── sprints/
    └── sprint-1-planning.md

Shared (In Central BMad)

Agents and workflows are never duplicated:

/Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/bmad/
└── bmm/
    ├── agents/      ← Shared by all projects
    └── workflows/   ← Shared by all projects

🔧 Configuration File

Each project has .bmad/.bmadrc:

# Central BMad installation path
BMAD_HOME="/Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/bmad"

# Project information
PROJECT_NAME="your-project"
PROJECT_ROOT="/Users/hbl/Documents/your-project"

# Workspace directories
WORKSPACE_ROOT=".bmad"
ANALYSIS_DIR="${WORKSPACE_ROOT}/analysis"
PLANNING_DIR="${WORKSPACE_ROOT}/planning"
# ... etc

You can customize this per project if needed.


Verification Checklist

After setting up a project:

  • .bmad/ folder exists in project root
  • .bmad/.bmadrc points to central BMad
  • All subdirectories created (analysis, planning, stories, etc.)
  • /bmad: commands autocomplete in Claude Code
  • Agent commands work: /bmad:bmm:agents:pm
  • Workflow commands work: /bmad:bmm:workflows:plan-project

🆘 Troubleshooting

Issue: BMad commands not showing in Claude Code

Solution:

  1. Verify central BMad is installed:
    ls /Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/bmad
    
  2. Verify project workspace exists:
    ls /Users/hbl/Documents/your-project/.bmad
    
  3. Check .bmadrc points to correct path
  4. Restart Claude Code

Issue: Can't find agents or workflows

Solution: Check central BMad has all modules:

ls /Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/bmad/bmm/agents
ls /Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/bmad/bmm/workflows

Issue: Multiple projects mixing documentation

Solution: This shouldn't happen! Each project has isolated .bmad/ workspace. Verify each project has its own:

ls /Users/hbl/Documents/project-a/.bmad
ls /Users/hbl/Documents/project-b/.bmad

📚 Quick Reference

Setup New Project

/Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/setup-project-bmad.sh /path/to/project

Most Used Commands

/bmad:bmm:workflows:plan-project     ← Start here
/bmad:bmm:workflows:create-story     ← Generate stories
/bmad:bmm:workflows:dev-story        ← Implement
/bmad:bmm:workflows:review-story     ← Review

File Locations

  • Central BMad: /Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/bmad/
  • Project Workspace: <your-project>/.bmad/
  • Setup Script: /Users/hbl/Documents/BMAD-METHOD/setup-project-bmad.sh

🎓 BMad Method Scale Levels

BMad automatically adapts to project size:

  • Level 0: Single atomic change (no docs needed)
  • Level 1: 1-10 stories (minimal docs)
  • Level 2: 5-15 stories (focused PRD)
  • Level 3: 12-40 stories (full architecture)
  • Level 4: 40+ stories (enterprise scale)

The plan-project workflow will ask about scale and create appropriate documentation.


You're all set! Install once, use everywhere. Each project stays organized in its own workspace.