CLI Reference
betterspec impact
Show what specs and capabilities reference a file or path
betterspec impact
Show what specs and capabilities reference a given file or directory path. Useful before refactoring — quickly see which changes and capabilities are connected to what you're about to touch.
Usage
betterspec impact <path> [options]Arguments
| Argument | Description |
|---|---|
path | File or directory path to search for references |
Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
-C, --cwd <path> | Run as if betterspec was started in the given path |
How it works
A fast, deterministic scan — no AI required:
- Searches all spec files for each active and archived change (
proposal.md,specs/requirements.md,specs/scenarios.md,design.md,tasks.md) - Searches all registered capabilities for file references
- Reports exactly which changes and spec files mention the path, and which capabilities list it
Example
$ betterspec impact src/auth/jwt.ts
╭─ Impact: src/auth/jwt.ts ──────────────────────────────────────────╮
│ Changes (2) │
│ add-jwt-auth (archived) │
│ ↳ proposal.md │
│ ↳ design.md │
│ add-refresh-tokens (in-progress) │
│ ↳ specs/requirements.md │
│ ↳ tasks.md │
│ │
│ Capabilities (1) │
│ auth — JWT token generation and validation │
│ ↳ src/auth/jwt.ts │
╰─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯No references found:
$ betterspec impact src/utils/format.ts
╭─ Impact: src/utils/format.ts ──────────────────────────────────────╮
│ No references found in specs or capabilities. │
╰─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯Tip
betterspec impact tells you what knows about a file. Your AI tool can then use that context to reason about what might break and what docs to update.