Agent skill · Code Review & Quality

root-cause-analysis

Performs systematic root cause analysis to identify the true source of bugs, errors, and unexpected behavior through structured investigation phases — not just treating symptoms. Use when a user reports a bug, crash, error, or broken behavior and needs to debug, troubleshoot, or investigate why something is not working; especially for complex or intermittent issues across multiple components. Applies the Five Whys method, hypothesis-driven testing, stack trace analysis, git blame/log evidence gathering, and causal chain documentation to isolate and confirm root causes before applying any fix.

Rohit Ghumare73,165★ · +3,601/wk · 3 repos on radarProfile →
codexcursorApache-2.0
Install
npx skills add rohitg00/skillkit --skill root-cause-analysis --agent codex

Same command for any agent — swap --agent for claude-code, cursor, copilot.

Facts
Files in the skill folder: 1
SKILL.md size: 5 KB
Bundled scripts: none
Version: 1.0.0
Path: packages/core/src/methodology/packs/debugging/root-cause-analysis/SKILL.md
Open the folder on GitHub →
Where it comes from
Stars: 1,422
Language: TypeScript

Weekly change comes from our own snapshots, not the repository page — it measures attention, not adoption.

From the SKILL.md

# Root Cause Analysis You are performing systematic root cause analysis to find the true source of a bug. Do not apply fixes until you understand WHY the bug exists. ## Core Principle **Never fix a symptom. Always find and fix the root cause.** ## The Five Whys Method Ask "Why?" repeatedly to drill down to the root cause: 1. **Why** did the API return an error? → The database query failed 2. **Why** did the database query fail? → The connection pool was exhausted 3. **Why** was the pool exhausted? → **ROOT CAUSE:** Missing `finally` block to close connections ## Investigation Phases ### Phase 1: Reproduce the Bug Before investigating: 1. **Reproduce consistently** - If you can't reproduce it, you can't verify a fix 2. **Document reproduction steps** - Exact sequence of actions 3. **Note environment details** - OS, versions, configuration 4. **Identify minimal reproduction** - Smallest case that shows the bug Questions to answer: - Does it happen every time or intermittently? - Does it happen in all environments? - When did it start happening? (recent changes) ### Phase 2: Gather Evidence Collect information before forming theories: - Error messages and stack traces - Log files (app

What's inside
Steps it walks through
  1. Core Principle
  2. The Five Whys Method
  3. Investigation Phases
  4. Phase 1: Reproduce the Bug
  5. Phase 2: Gather Evidence
  6. Phase 3: Form Hypotheses
  7. Phase 4: Test Hypotheses
  8. Phase 5: Verify Root Cause
  9. Common Root Cause Categories
  10. Evidence Collection Commands
  11. Red Flags - You Haven't Found Root Cause
  12. Documentation Template
  13. Integration with Other Skills
Commands it runs
Recent changes to relevant files
git log --oneline -20 -- path/to/file
Who changed this line
git blame path/to/file
Changes since last working version
git diff v1.2.3..HEAD -- src/
Search for related error handling
grep -r "catch\|error\|throw" --include="*.ts" src/
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About this skill
What does the root-cause-analysis skill do?

Performs systematic root cause analysis to identify the true source of bugs, errors, and unexpected behavior through structured investigation phases — not just treating symptoms. Use when a user reports a bug, crash, error, or broken behavior and needs to debug, troubleshoot, or investigate why something is not working; especially for complex or intermittent issues across multiple components. Applies the Five Whys method, hypothesis-driven testing, stack trace analysis, git blame/log evidence gathering, and causal chain documentation to isolate and confirm root causes before applying any fix.

How do I install it?

Run `npx skills add rohitg00/skillkit --skill root-cause-analysis --agent claude-code` — it drops the skill into your project so the agent can pick it up. Swap the --agent value for codex, cursor or copilot if you use one of those.

Where does this skill come from?

From rohitg00/skillkit, a repository with 1,422 stars. We read it straight from the repository tree rather than a submitted listing, so what you see here is what is actually published.

Is a popular skill a good skill?

Not necessarily. Stars measure attention, not adoption — a repository can trend for a week and be abandoned. That is why we show the weekly change from our own snapshots next to the total, instead of a single flattering number.

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