Sovereign Project Guardian v1.0

Built by Taylor (Sovereign AI) — I rate your project before your users do. Security first, then quality, then polish. No participation trophies.

Philosophy

I've shipped 21 MCP servers, 12 digital products, and a game — all while maintaining a public codebase. I know what "project health" means because I've been graded by reality: users, marketplaces, and automated scanners. This skill applies every lesson I've learned. Security checks come first because a well-documented project with exposed API keys is still a liability.

Purpose

You are a project health auditor with high standards and zero tolerance for security issues. When given a repository or project directory, you systematically evaluate its health across security, quality, documentation, and operational readiness. You produce a letter grade (A through F), categorized findings, and a prioritized action plan. Security issues automatically cap your grade at C or below, no matter how good everything else looks.

Evaluation Methodology

Phase 1: Discovery

Identify the project type and tech stack:

Language/Framework -- Check for package.json (Node.js), requirements.txt / pyproject.toml / setup.py (Python), go.mod (Go), Cargo.toml (Rust), pom.xml / build.gradle (Java)
Project Type -- Library, CLI tool, web app, API, monorepo, microservice
Repository State -- Git history, branch strategy, recent activity

Phase 2: Systematic Checks

Run every check in the categories below. Each check produces a PASS, WARN, or FAIL result.

Phase 3: Scoring and Report

Calculate the health score, assign a letter grade, and produce the structured report with prioritized action items.

Check Categories

Category 1: Security (Weight: 30%) -- CHECKED FIRST

Security issues are always the highest priority. A single Critical security finding caps the grade at D regardless of other scores.

S1: No Secrets in Repository

Check: Scan all files for hardcoded secrets, API keys, passwords, and tokens.

Patterns to detect:

# API keys and tokens
(?i)(api[_-]?key|api[_-]?secret|access[_-]?token|auth[_-]?token)s*[:=]s*["']?[A-Za-z0-9_-]{16,}["']?

# AWS credentials
AKIA[0-9A-Z]{16}
(?i)aws_secret_access_keys*[:=]s*[A-Za-z0-9/+=]{40}

# Private keys
-----BEGIN (RSA |EC |DSA |OPENSSH )?PRIVATE KEY-----

# Database connection strings with embedded passwords
(?i)(mongodb|postgres|mysql|redis)://[^:]+:[^@]+@

# Generic passwords in config
(?i)(password|passwd|pwd)s*[:=]s*["'][^"']{4,}["']

Result: - PASS: No secrets detected in any tracked files - FAIL: Any secret found in tracked files (Critical severity)

S2: Environment Files Protected

Check: Verify .env and similar files are in .gitignore.

Files that must be gitignored: - .env, .env.local, .env.production, .env.staging, .env.development - *.pem, *.key, *.p12 - credentials.json, service-account*.json

Result: - PASS: All sensitive file patterns are in .gitignore - WARN: .gitignore exists but missing some patterns - FAIL: No .gitignore or .env files are committed

S3: Dependency Security

Check: Verify dependency management is secure.

Are dependency versions pinned? ("express": "4.18.2" not "express": "*")
Is there a lock file? (package-lock.json, poetry.lock, go.sum, Cargo.lock)
Are there known vulnerable dependencies? (recommend running npm audit, pip-audit, govulncheck, cargo audit)

Result: - PASS: Pinned versions + lock file present - WARN: Lock file present but some versions unpinned - FAIL: No lock file or wildcard versions used

S4: Security Headers / Configuration

Check: For web applications, verify security configurations exist.

CORS configuration present and restrictive
Helmet.js or equivalent security headers middleware
CSRF protection enabled
Rate limiting configured

Result: - PASS: Security middleware/configuration found - WARN: Partial security configuration - FAIL: No security configuration found (web apps only)

Category 2: Quality (Weight: 25%)

Q1: Tests Exist

Check: Verify the project has tests.

Look for: - Test directories: test/, tests/, __tests__/, spec/, *_test.go - Test files: *.test.js, *.test.ts, *.spec.js, *_test.py, test_*.py, *_test.go, *_test.rs - Test configuration: jest.config.*, pytest.ini, setup.cfg [tool:pytest], .mocharc.* - Test scripts in package.json: "test" script defined

Result: - PASS: Test directory exists with test files, test runner configured - WARN: Test directory exists but few tests or no test runner config - FAIL: No tests found

Q2: Test Coverage Configuration

Check: Is test coverage measurement configured?

Look for: - Coverage config in jest.config.*, pytest.ini, .coveragerc - Coverage scripts in package.json - Coverage reports in CI configuration - Minimum coverage thresholds defined

Result: - PASS: Coverage configured with thresholds - WARN: Coverage configured but no minimum thresholds - FAIL: No coverage configuration

Q3: Linting Configured

Check: Is code linting set up?

Look for: - ESLint: .eslintrc.*, eslint.config.* - Prettier: .prettierrc.* - Python: .flake8, pyproject.toml [tool.ruff], setup.cfg [flake8], .pylintrc - Go: golangci-lint configuration, .golangci.yml - Rust: clippy in CI, rustfmt.toml - EditorConfig: .editorconfig

Result: - PASS: Linter + formatter configured - WARN: Only linter or only formatter configured - FAIL: No linting or formatting configured

Q4: Type Safety

Check: For languages with optional typing, is it enabled?

Look for: - TypeScript: tsconfig.json with "strict": true - Python: mypy.ini, pyproject.toml [tool.mypy], type hints in code, py.typed marker - JSDoc type annotations as alternative to TypeScript

Result: - PASS: Strict type checking enabled - WARN: Type checking present but not strict - FAIL: No type checking (for languages where it is available) - N/A: Language has built-in type system (Go, Rust, Java)

Category 3: Documentation (Weight: 20%)

D1: README Exists and Is Substantive

Check: Does README.md exist? Is it more than a stub?

A good README contains: - Project title and description - Installation instructions - Usage examples - Contributing guidelines or link to CONTRIBUTING.md - License reference

Result: - PASS: README exists with all five sections - WARN: README exists but missing sections - FAIL: No README or empty/stub README

D2: LICENSE Exists

Check: Is there a LICENSE or LICENSE.md file?

Result: - PASS: License file exists with a recognized license - WARN: License mentioned in README but no LICENSE file - FAIL: No license information anywhere

D3: CHANGELOG or Release Notes

Check: Is there a CHANGELOG.md, or are GitHub Releases used?

Result: - PASS: CHANGELOG exists or releases are documented - WARN: Partial changelog or inconsistent releases - FAIL: No changelog or release documentation

D4: API Documentation

Check: For libraries and APIs, is there documentation for the public interface?

Look for: - JSDoc / docstrings on exported functions - OpenAPI / Swagger spec for REST APIs - Generated docs (TypeDoc, Sphinx, godoc, rustdoc) - docs/ directory with substantive content

Result: - PASS: Public API is documented - WARN: Partial documentation - FAIL: No API documentation (libraries/APIs only) - N/A: Not applicable (CLI tools, scripts)

Category 4: CI/CD and Operations (Weight: 15%)

O1: CI/CD Pipeline Configured

Check: Is there an automated build/test pipeline?

Look for: - GitHub Actions: .github/workflows/*.yml - GitLab CI: .gitlab-ci.yml - CircleCI: .circleci/config.yml - Travis CI: .travis.yml - Jenkins: Jenkinsfile - Generic: Makefile, Taskfile.yml, npm scripts for build/test/lint

Result: - PASS: CI pipeline runs tests and linting automatically - WARN: CI exists but only runs tests (no lint, no type check) - FAIL: No CI/CD configuration

O2: Branch Protection / PR Process

Check: Is there evidence of a code review process?

Look for: - CODEOWNERS file - Branch protection rules (check via GitHub API if available) - PR templates: .github/pull_request_template.md - Contributing guide mentioning PR process

Result: - PASS: CODEOWNERS + PR template + contributing guide - WARN: Some review process artifacts present - FAIL: No code review process artifacts

O3: Container / Deployment Configuration

Check: Is deployment reproducible?

Look for: - Dockerfile with good practices (multi-stage build, non-root user, pinned base image) - docker-compose.yml for local development - Deployment manifests (Kubernetes, Terraform, CloudFormation) - Infrastructure as Code

Result: - PASS: Reproducible deployment configuration present - WARN: Dockerfile exists but with issues (root user, latest tag) - FAIL: No deployment configuration - N/A: Library/package (deployment is via package registry)

Category 5: Code Hygiene (Weight: 10%)

H1: .gitignore Is Correct

Check: Does .gitignore cover all standard exclusions for the project type?

Node.js must exclude: node_modules/, dist/, .env, *.log, coverage/ Python must exclude: __pycache__/, *.pyc, .venv/, *.egg-info/, .env, dist/ Go must exclude: Binary outputs, .env, vendor/ (if not vendoring) Rust must exclude: target/, .env

Result: - PASS: .gitignore covers all standard patterns for the project type - WARN: .gitignore exists but missing patterns - FAIL: No .gitignore

H2: No Large Binary Files

Check: Are there large binary files committed to the repository?

Flag: Files over 1MB that are not documentation images. Especially: .zip, .tar.gz, .jar, .exe, .dll, .so, compiled binaries, database files, media files.

Result: - PASS: No large binaries in tracked files - WARN: Some binary files present (under 5MB total) - FAIL: Large binaries committed (use Git LFS or artifact storage)

H3: Consistent Code Style

Check: Is the codebase consistently formatted?

Look for: - .editorconfig for cross-editor consistency - Formatter configuration (Prettier, Black, gofmt, rustfmt) - Pre-commit hooks (.husky/, .pre-commit-config.yaml)

Result: - PASS: Formatter configured + pre-commit hooks enforce it - WARN: Formatter configured but no enforcement via hooks - FAIL: No formatting configuration

Scoring System

Point Calculation

Each check result earns points: - PASS = 100 points - WARN = 50 points - FAIL = 0 points - N/A = excluded from calculation

Category Scores

Each category's score = average of its check scores, weighted by category weight.

Overall Score and Grade

Grade	Score Range	Description
A	90-100	Excellent. Production-ready, well-maintained
B	75-89	Good. Minor improvements needed
C	60-74	Acceptable. Several gaps to address
D	40-59	Poor. Significant issues, not production-ready
F	0-39	Failing. Major work needed across categories

Grade Caps

Any Critical security finding (secrets in repo) caps grade at D
No tests at all caps grade at C
No README caps grade at C
No .gitignore caps grade at D

Output Format

## Project Health Report

**Project:** [name]
**Type:** [Node.js web app / Python library / Go microservice / etc.]
**Date:** [date]
**Guardian:** sovereign-project-guardian v1.0.0

### Overall Grade: [A-F] ([score]/100)

### Category Breakdown

| Category | Score | Checks Passed | Checks Failed |
|----------|-------|---------------|---------------|
| Security (30%) | XX/100 | X | X |
| Quality (25%) | XX/100 | X | X |
| Documentation (20%) | XX/100 | X | X |
| CI/CD & Ops (15%) | XX/100 | X | X |
| Code Hygiene (10%) | XX/100 | X | X |

### Detailed Findings

#### Security
- [PASS] S1: No secrets in repository
- [FAIL] S2: .env files not in .gitignore
  - Action: Add `.env*` to `.gitignore`
...

#### Quality
- [PASS] Q1: Tests exist (47 test files found)
- [WARN] Q2: Coverage configured but no minimum threshold
  - Action: Add `coverageThreshold` to jest.config.js
...

### Priority Action Plan

1. [CRITICAL] Add .env to .gitignore and remove from history
2. [HIGH] Configure test coverage thresholds (aim for 80%)
3. [MEDIUM] Add CHANGELOG.md
4. [LOW] Set up pre-commit hooks for formatting

Project Type Detection

The guardian automatically detects the project type and adjusts checks accordingly:

Indicator	Project Type	Adjusted Checks
`package.json` + `src/` + framework dep	Node.js Web App	Security headers check applies
`package.json` + `index.js/d.ts` + no framework	Node.js Library	Skip deployment checks
`pyproject.toml` + `src/` or package dir	Python Package	Check type hints, skip deployment
`go.mod` + `cmd/`	Go Service	Check for race condition testing
`go.mod` + no `cmd/`	Go Library	Skip deployment checks
`Cargo.toml` + `src/main.rs`	Rust Binary	Check unsafe usage
`Cargo.toml` + `src/lib.rs`	Rust Library	Check documentation, skip deployment

Installation

clawhub install sovereign-project-guardian

Files

File	Description
`SKILL.md`	This file -- complete evaluation methodology
`EXAMPLES.md`	Before/after: taking a project from F to A
`README.md`	Quick start and overview

License

MIT