OpenAPI Endpoint Documentation Lab
This skill runs an end-to-end lab: discover → audit schemas → create supplement → verify. Execute all 6 phases autonomously. The spec is generated in two passes: (1) a filesystem scanner auto-infers schemas from handler factories, (2) a merge script overlays human-authored metadata from supplement files.
Execution Loop
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4 Phase 5 Phase 6 DISCOVER → SCHEMA AUDIT → SUPPLEMENT → BARREL → VERIFY SPEC → VERIFY UI ↑ | └──────────── fix and retry if any verification fails ─────────┘
Phase 1 — Discover
Gather all context autonomously. Never ask the caller for file paths.
Find the route handler
Glob src/app/api/**/<endpoint-name>/route.ts
Read it. Identify:
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Factory: which of the 4 factories from src/lib/api-helpers/create-handler.ts ?
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createGetApiHandlerWithAuth / createPostApiHandlerWithAuth (auth required)
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createGetApiHandler / createPostApiHandler (no auth)
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Method: GET or POST (from the factory name and the export: export const GET or export const POST )
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ROUTE constant: the kebab-case identifier (used for Sentry, not the URL path)
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Schemas: inline InputSchema /OutputSchema , or imported from ./schema
Find the schema
Check for colocated schema.ts first:
Glob src/app/api/**/<endpoint-name>/schema.ts
If no schema.ts exists, schemas are inline in route.ts . Note this for Phase 2.
Find the domain barrel
The domain is the first path segment after /api/ (e.g., instagram , profiles , twitter ):
Read src/lib/openapi/endpoints/<domain>/index.ts
Read a sibling supplement for pattern reference
Pick any existing supplement in the same domain directory:
Glob src/lib/openapi/endpoints/<domain>/*.ts
Read one (not index.ts , not *-examples.ts , not edge-process-imports.ts ). This shows the exact pattern to follow — tags, security, example format.
Determine naming
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Export name: <camelCaseDomainAndEndpoint>Supplement (e.g., instagramLastSyncedIdSupplement )
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File name: <endpoint-name>.ts matching the route directory name
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Path: /<domain>/<endpoint-name> (relative to /api , no /api prefix, no trailing slash)
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Tags: capitalized domain name matching siblings (e.g., ["Instagram"] , ["Profiles"] )
Phase 2 — Schema Audit & Fix
Every Zod schema field must have .meta({ description: "..." }) . This maps directly to field descriptions in the generated OpenAPI spec via @asteasolutions/zod-to-openapi . Without it, fields appear in the spec with no description — bad developer experience.
Check all fields
Read the schema (from schema.ts or inline in route.ts ). For every field in both InputSchema and OutputSchema, check for .meta({ description: "..." }) .
Add missing .meta()
For any field without .meta() , add it:
// Before z.string()
// After z.string().meta({ description: "The ID of the last synced Instagram bookmark" })
For nested objects and arrays:
z.array(z.int()).meta({ description: "Updated ordered list of favorite category IDs" }) z.object({ id: z.string().meta({ description: "Tag identifier" }), name: z.string().meta({ description: "Tag display name" }), }).meta({ description: "The newly created tag" })
Extract inline schemas to schema.ts if needed
If schemas are defined inline in route.ts and don't already have a schema.ts file, extract them to a colocated schema.ts . Follow this pattern:
// src/app/api/<domain>/<endpoint>/schema.ts import { z } from "zod";
export const <PascalCase>InputSchema = z.object({ field: z.string().meta({ description: "Field description" }), });
export const <PascalCase>OutputSchema = z.object({ field: z.string().meta({ description: "Field description" }), });
Then update route.ts to import from ./schema instead of defining inline.
Reference examples for .meta() style
Read these files for well-documented schema patterns:
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src/app/api/category/delete-user-category/schema.ts — 11-field response, boolean default
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src/app/api/tags/create-and-assign-tag/schema.ts — nested sub-schemas with independent .meta()
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src/app/api/bookmark/fetch-discoverable-by-id/schema.ts — deeply nested with MetadataSchema
Phase 3 — Create Supplement
Template
Use this template. Fill in applicable fields, delete inapplicable ones:
/**
- @module Build-time only */ import { type EndpointSupplement } from "@/lib/openapi/supplement-types"; import { bearerAuth } from "@/lib/openapi/registry";
export const <camelCaseName>Supplement = { path: "/<domain>/<endpoint-name>", method: "<get|post>", tags: ["<Domain>"], summary: "<One-line summary for Scalar heading>", description: "<Detailed explanation. Supports markdown.>", security: [{ [bearerAuth.name]: [] }, {}], // --- Request examples (POST only) --- // Single: requestExample: { field: "value" }, // Named: requestExamples: { "key": { summary, description, value } }, // --- Response examples --- // Single: responseExample: { data: { ... }, error: null }, // Named: responseExamples: { "key": { summary, description, value } }, // --- Error examples --- // response400Examples: { "key": { summary, description, value: { data: null, error: "..." } } }, // --- Additional response codes --- // additionalResponses: { 400: { description: "..." } }, // --- Parameter examples (GET only) --- // parameterExamples: { paramName: { "key": { summary, description, value } } }, } satisfies EndpointSupplement;
Rules
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path relative to /api — NOT /api/bookmarks/check-url , just /bookmarks/check-url
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method lowercase: "get" or "post"
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Tags capitalized: "Bookmarks" , "Categories" , "Twitter" , "iPhone"
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Security: [{ [bearerAuth.name]: [] }, {}] — {} means cookie auth also accepted
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No-auth endpoints: security: []
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Export name: <camelCaseName>Supplement
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File header: /** @module Build-time only */
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Use realistic example data (actual IDs, realistic strings — not "test-123")
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Response examples must include the { data: ..., error: null } wrapper
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Named example keys: kebab-case, both summary and description required
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When supplement exceeds 250 lines, extract examples to <endpoint-name>-examples.ts with as const
Choosing single vs named examples
Scenario Use
One obvious happy path responseExample (singular)
Multiple success scenarios responseExamples (named, creates dropdown in Scalar)
Endpoint can return validation errors Add response400Examples
- additionalResponses: { 400 }
GET with query params Add parameterExamples (creates dropdown per param in "Try It")
Phase 4 — Barrel Export
Read the domain barrel at src/lib/openapi/endpoints/<domain>/index.ts . Add the new export in alphabetical order among existing exports:
export { <camelCaseName>Supplement } from "./<endpoint-name>";
The collectSupplements() function in the merge script auto-discovers any export with path
and method properties from these barrels — no registration needed beyond the barrel export.
Phase 5 — Verify (Script-Based)
This phase does NOT require a running dev server. These are all build-time operations.
5a. Regenerate the spec
npx tsx scripts/generate-openapi.ts
Check the output line: Supplements applied: X/Y . Verify X increased by 1 compared to before. If X < Y, a supplement path or method doesn't match — check Phase 3 rules.
5b. Verify in JSON
cat public/openapi.json | jq '.paths["/<domain>/<endpoint-name>"].<method> | {summary, tags, description}'
All three fields should be non-null and match what you wrote in the supplement.
5c. Auto-fix formatting
pnpm fix
5d. Type check
pnpm lint:types
If either fails, fix and re-run from 5a.
Phase 6 — Verify (Browser-Based)
6a. Ensure dev server is running
lsof -i :3000
If no process on port 3000, start the dev server:
pnpm dev &
Wait for it to be ready (check with curl -s http://localhost:3000 > /dev/null ).
6b. Check Scalar UI
Use Chrome MCP to navigate to http://localhost:3000/api-docs . Search or scroll to find the endpoint under its tag group. Confirm:
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Endpoint appears with correct summary
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Tag grouping matches (e.g., under "Instagram")
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Examples render in the "Try It" panel
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Field descriptions from .meta() appear in the schema viewer
If the endpoint doesn't appear, re-run Phase 5a and check for merge warnings.
Updating an Existing Endpoint
For updates, start at Phase 2 (schema audit) and run through Phase 6. Common updates:
Schema changes
Modify Zod schema in schema.ts — scanner picks it up automatically. Ensure all new fields have .meta({ description }) .
Adding/updating examples
Edit the supplement file. Use named examples for multiple scenarios.
Adding error examples
Add response400Examples and additionalResponses: { 400: { description } } .
Supplement Reference
EndpointSupplement fields
Field Type When to use
path
string
Always (required)
method
string
Always (required)
tags
string[]
Always — groups endpoint in Scalar sidebar
summary
string
Always — one-line heading
description
string
Always — detailed explanation, supports markdown
security
Array<Record<string, string[]>>
Always — auth requirements
requestExample
Record<string, unknown>
POST with one obvious request body
requestExamples
Named examples POST with multiple request scenarios
responseExample
Record<string, unknown>
One obvious success response
responseExamples
Named examples Multiple success scenarios (dropdown in Scalar)
response400Example
Record<string, unknown>
One obvious validation error
response400Examples
Named examples Multiple validation error scenarios
additionalResponses
Record<number, { description }>
Custom descriptions for 400/403/404/409/500
parameterExamples
Record<string, NamedExamples>
GET endpoints with query params (dropdown per param)
Response components (auto-registered by scanner)
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ValidationError (400) — { data: null, error: string }
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Unauthorized (401) — { data: null, error: "Not authenticated" }
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InternalError (500) — { data: null, error: "Failed to process request" }
additionalResponses overrides the 400 description while preserving the schema.
Naming conventions
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Export: <camelCaseName>Supplement (e.g., checkUrlSupplement )
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Example keys: kebab-case ("single-tweet" , "validation-error" )
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Example files: <endpoint-name>-examples.ts (use as const )
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Tags: capitalized ("Bookmarks" , "iPhone" )
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Named examples require both summary and description
Edge Functions
Edge functions use a different workflow (manual registerPath() with raw SchemaObject ). See reference.md for the complete pattern.
Troubleshooting
Supplement not appearing in spec
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Exported from domain index.ts barrel?
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path matches route exactly (relative to /api , no trailing slash)?
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method matches handler export ("get" for GET , "post" for POST )?
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Check console — mergeSupplements prints warnings for unmatched supplements
400 examples not showing
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Has additionalResponses: { 400: { description } } ?
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Using response400Examples (not responseExamples )?
Common mistakes
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/api/bookmarks/check-url instead of /bookmarks/check-url
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Forgetting as const on example data in -examples.ts files
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responseExample (singular) when you need responseExamples (named)
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Missing summary or description on named examples
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Forgetting .meta({ description }) on schema fields — run Phase 2 again