How to update/improve plan after updating an existing spec (without receating plan from scratch)

[armujahid]

I’ve noticed that when we update the spec and re-plan, even with explicit instructions to modify the existing plan, it gets overwritten with the plan template (using setup-plan.sh) and recreated. Is there a recommended way to update the plan without fully recreating it, or is this behavior intentional? Similar to how /clarify updates the spec, it would be useful to have a command that allows updating or improving the existing plan (without conflicting with spec).

[NunoMiguelVeloso]

I have the same question too. I've tried to quickly revert the file changes once they are made, just before the agent read the file and that worked for me, it actually updated the file instead of recreating it. I'm wondering if there is a better way tho.

[MDean-Slalom]

I was see the same need. I proposed something in this issue: #1063

[arctouch-paulagueiros]

Same here!

[MomoChenisMe]

My approach is to adjust the slash command prompt in plan.md and modify the Setup step as follows:

1. **Setup**:
   - First, **Must** check if `plan.md` already exists in the current feature directory
   - If `plan.md` exists: **Must** Run `.specify/scripts/powershell/setup-plan.ps1 -Json -SkipTemplate` from repo root
   - If `plan.md` does not exist: **Must** Run `.specify/scripts/powershell/setup-plan.ps1 -Json` from repo root
   - Parse JSON output for FEATURE_SPEC, IMPL_PLAN, SPECS_DIR, BRANCH
   - For single quotes in args like "I'm Groot", use escape syntax: e.g 'I'\''m Groot' (or double-quote if possible: "I'm Groot")

However, even with this adjustment, we occasionally encounter situations where the LLM doesn't follow the instructions and recreates plan.md. So if anyone has a better or more precise prompt or approach, we'd really love to hear it!