ln-711-npm-upgrader

Paths: File paths (shared/, references/, ../ln-*) are relative to skills repo root. If not found at CWD, locate this SKILL.md directory and go up one level for repo root.

ln-711-npm-upgrader

Type: L3 Worker Category: 7XX Project Bootstrap Parent: ln-710-dependency-upgrader

Upgrades Node.js dependencies using npm, yarn, or pnpm with automatic breaking change detection and migration.

---

Overview

Aspect	Details
Input	Project path, package manager type
Output	Updated package.json, lock file, migration report
Supports	npm, yarn (classic & berry), pnpm

---

Workflow

See diagram.html for visual workflow.

Phases: Pre-flight → Analyze → Security Audit → Check Outdated → Identify Breaking → Apply Upgrades → Apply Migrations → Verify Build → Report

---

Phase 0: Pre-flight Checks

Check	Required	Action if Missing
Lock file (package-lock.json, yarn.lock, pnpm-lock.yaml)	Yes	Warn and run npm install first
package.json	Yes	Block upgrade

Workers assume coordinator (ln-710) already verified git state and created backup.

---

Phase 1: Analyze Dependencies

Read package.json and categorize dependencies for upgrade priority.

Dependency Categories

Category	Examples	Priority
framework	react, vue, angular	2 (after peer deps)
build	vite, webpack, esbuild	3
ui	@radix-ui/*, tailwindcss	4
state	@tanstack/react-query, zustand	5
utils	lodash, date-fns	6
dev	eslint, prettier, typescript	7
peer	@types/*, typescript	1 (first)

---

Phase 2: Security Audit

Commands

Manager	Command
npm	npm audit --audit-level=high
yarn	yarn audit --level high
pnpm	pnpm audit --audit-level high

Actions

Severity	Action
Critical	Block upgrade, report
High	Warn, continue
Moderate/Low	Log only

---

Phase 3: Check Outdated

Commands

Manager	Command
npm	npm outdated --json
yarn	yarn outdated --json
pnpm	pnpm outdated --json

---

Phase 4: Identify Breaking Changes

Detection

MANDATORY READ: Load breaking_changes_patterns.md for full patterns.

1. Compare current vs latest major versions
2. Check breaking_changes_patterns.md for known patterns
3. Query Context7/Ref for migration guides

Common Breaking Changes

Package	Breaking Version	Key Changes
react	18 → 19	JSX Transform, ref as prop
vite	5 → 6	ESM only, Node 18+
eslint	8 → 9	Flat config required
tailwindcss	3 → 4	CSS-based config
typescript	5.4 → 5.5+	Stricter inference

---

Phase 5: Apply Upgrades

Upgrade Order

1. Peer dependencies (TypeScript, @types/*)
2. Framework packages (React, Vue core)
3. Build tools (Vite, webpack)
4. UI libraries (after framework)
5. Utilities (lodash, date-fns)
6. Dev dependencies (testing, linting)

Commands

Manager	Command
npm	npm install <package>@latest --save
yarn	yarn add <package>@latest
pnpm	pnpm add <package>@latest

Peer Dependency Conflicts

Situation	Solution
ERESOLVE error	npm install --legacy-peer-deps
Still fails	npm install --force (last resort)

---

MCP Tools for Migration Search

Priority Order (Fallback Strategy)

Priority	Tool	When to Use
1	mcp__context7__query-docs	First choice for library docs
2	mcp__Ref__ref_search_documentation	Official docs and GitHub
3	WebSearch	Latest info, community solutions

Context7 Usage

Step	Tool	Parameters
1. Find library	mcp__context7__resolve-library-id	libraryName: "react", query: "migration guide"
2. Query docs	mcp__context7__query-docs	libraryId: "/facebook/react", query: "react 18 to 19 migration"

MCP Ref Usage

Action	Tool	Query Example
Search	mcp__Ref__ref_search_documentation	"react 19 migration guide breaking changes"
Read	mcp__Ref__ref_read_url	URL from search results

WebSearch Fallback

Use when Context7/Ref return no results:

• "<package> <version> breaking changes migration {current_year}"
• "<package> <error message> fix stackoverflow"

---

Phase 6: Apply Migrations

Process

1. Use MCP tools (see section above) to find migration guide
2. Apply automated code transforms via Edit tool
3. Log manual migration steps for user

Do NOT apply hardcoded migrations. Always fetch current guides via MCP tools.

---

Phase 7: Verify Build

Commands

Check	Command
TypeScript	npm run check or npx tsc --noEmit
Build	npm run build
Tests	npm test (if available)

On Failure

1. Identify failing package from error
2. Search Context7/Ref for fix
3. If unresolved: rollback package, continue with others

---

Phase 8: Report Results

Report Schema

Field	Description
project	Project path
packageManager	npm, yarn, or pnpm
duration	Total time
upgrades.major[]	Breaking changes applied
upgrades.minor[]	Feature updates
upgrades.patch[]	Bug fixes
migrations[]	Applied migrations
skipped[]	Already latest
buildVerification	PASSED or FAILED
warnings[]	Non-blocking issues

---

Configuration

Options:
  # Upgrade scope
  upgradeType: major          # major | minor | patch

  # Breaking changes
  allowBreaking: true
  autoMigrate: true
  queryMigrationGuides: true  # Use Context7/Ref

  # Security
  auditLevel: high            # none | low | moderate | high | critical
  minimumReleaseAge: 14       # days

  # Peer dependencies
  legacyPeerDeps: false
  force: false

  # Verification
  runBuild: true
  runTests: false
  runTypeCheck: true

  # Rollback
  createBackup: true
  rollbackOnFailure: true

---

Error Handling

Error	Cause	Solution
ERESOLVE	Peer dep conflict	--legacy-peer-deps
ENOENT	Missing lock file	npm install first
Build fail	Breaking change	Apply migration via Context7
Type errors	Version mismatch	Update @types/*

Rollback

Restore package.json and lock file from git, then run clean install to restore previous state.

---

References

• breaking_changes_patterns.md
• npm_peer_resolution.md

---

Definition of Done

• Lock file and package.json verified present
• Dependencies categorized and prioritized (peer deps first)
• Security audit completed (critical blocks upgrade)
• Outdated packages identified via npm/yarn/pnpm outdated
• Breaking changes detected via breaking_changes_patterns.md and MCP tools
• Upgrades applied in priority order with rollback on failure
• Build and type checks pass after upgrades
• Report returned with major/minor/patch counts, migrations, and build status

---

Version: 1.1.0 Last Updated: 2026-01-10