/configure:makefile

Check and configure project Makefile against project standards.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when... Use another approach when...

Setting up a new Makefile for a project that requires Make Project can use Just instead — use /configure:justfile (preferred)

Auditing existing Makefile for missing standard targets Writing complex build rules with dependencies — consult GNU Make documentation

Ensuring Makefile follows team conventions (help target, PHONY, colors) Project uses a language-native build system (cargo, go build) exclusively

Running CI/CD compliance checks on Makefile structure Migrating from Makefile to Justfile — use /configure:justfile which handles migration

Adding language-specific build/test/lint targets to existing Makefile Debugging a specific Make target — run make -n <target> directly

Context

• Project root: !pwd

• Makefile exists: !find . -maxdepth 1 -name 'Makefile'

• Makefile targets: !grep -E '^[a-zA-Z_-]+:' Makefile

• Package files: !find . -maxdepth 1 ( -name 'package.json' -o -name 'pyproject.toml' -o -name 'Cargo.toml' -o -name 'go.mod' )

• Docker files: !find . -maxdepth 1 ( -name 'Dockerfile' -o -name 'docker-compose.yml' -o -name 'compose.yml' )

• Server files: !find src -maxdepth 1 ( -name 'server.' -o -name 'main.' )

Parameters

Parse from $ARGUMENTS :

• --check-only : Report Makefile compliance status without modifications

• --fix : Apply fixes automatically without prompting

Required Makefile targets: help , test , build , clean , lint

Execution

Execute this Makefile compliance check:

Step 1: Detect project type

Read the context values and determine project type (in order):

• Python: pyproject.toml or requirements.txt present

• Node: package.json present

• Rust: Cargo.toml present

• Go: go.mod present

• Generic: None of the above

Check for service indicators (start/stop needed):

• Has docker-compose.yml or compose.yml -> Docker Compose service

• Has Dockerfile

• HTTP server code -> Container service

• Has src/server.* or src/main.* -> Application service

Step 2: Analyze existing Makefile targets

If Makefile exists, check against required targets:

Required targets for all projects:

Target Purpose

help

Display available targets (default goal)

test

Run test suite

build

Build project artifacts

clean

Remove temporary files and build artifacts

lint

Run linters

Additional targets (context-dependent):

Target When Required

start

If project has runnable service

stop

If project has background service

format

If project uses auto-formatters

Step 3: Run compliance checks

Check Standard Severity

File exists Makefile present FAIL if missing

Default goal .DEFAULT_GOAL := help

WARN if missing

PHONY declarations All targets marked .PHONY

WARN if missing

Colored output Color variables defined INFO

Help target Auto-generated from comments WARN if missing

Language-specific Commands match project type FAIL if mismatched

Step 4: Generate compliance report

Print a report showing:

• Project type (detected)

• Each target with PASS/FAIL status and the command used

• Makefile structural checks (default goal, PHONY, colors, help)

• Missing targets list

• Issue count

If --check-only is set, stop here.

Step 5: Create or update Makefile (if --fix or user confirms)

• Missing Makefile: Create from standard template using the detected project type

• Missing targets: Add targets with appropriate language-specific commands

• Missing defaults: Add .DEFAULT_GOAL , .PHONY , color variables

• Missing help: Add auto-generated help target using awk comment parsing

Use the language-specific commands below:

Python (uv-based):

• lint : @uv run ruff check .

• format : @uv run ruff format .

• test : @uv run pytest

• build : @docker build -t {{PROJECT_NAME}} .

• clean : @find . -type f -name "*.pyc" -delete

• remove cache dirs

Node.js:

• lint : @npm run lint

• format : @npm run format

• test : @npm test

• build : @npm run build

• clean : @rm -rf node_modules/ dist/ .next/ .turbo/

Rust:

• lint : @cargo clippy -- -D warnings

• format : @cargo fmt

• test : @cargo nextest run

• build : @cargo build --release

• clean : @cargo clean

Go:

• lint : @golangci-lint run

• format : @gofmt -s -w .

• test : @go test ./...

• build : @go build -o bin/{{PROJECT_NAME}}

• clean : @rm -rf bin/ dist/

• @go clean

Step 6: Update standards tracking

Update .project-standards.yaml :

components: makefile: "2025.1"

Step 7: Print final report

Print a summary of changes applied, targets added, and suggest running make help to verify.

For the universal Makefile template structure, see REFERENCE.md.

Agentic Optimizations

Context Command

Quick compliance check /configure:makefile --check-only

Auto-fix all issues /configure:makefile --fix

List existing targets grep -E '^[a-zA-Z_-]+:' Makefile

Dry-run a target make -n <target>

Show default goal make -p | grep '.DEFAULT_GOAL'

Flags

Flag Description

--check-only

Report status without offering fixes

--fix

Apply fixes automatically

Examples

Check current Makefile compliance

/configure:makefile --check-only

Create/update Makefile for Python project

/configure:makefile --fix

Check compliance and prompt for fixes

/configure:makefile

See Also

• /configure:all

• Run all compliance checks

• /configure:workflows

• GitHub Actions workflows

• /configure:dockerfile

• Docker configuration