ralph-build-base

ralph-build-base — build ralph-base:v1 from the bundled plugin sources

The loop runner (ralph.sh, until_reset.py) ships inside this plugin under base/, alongside the root Makefile. So ralph-base:v1 can be built directly from the installed plugin — the user does not need to clone keep-on-ralphing. Use this skill on first setup, and again after a /plugin update that changed the runner (the image is otherwise stale and the loop keeps running the old runner).

Why a skill (not a documented command)

$CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT only resolves inside the plugin execution context, and the plugin cache is version-pinned and orphan-pruned — a path like ~/.claude/plugins/cache/.../0.2.0/base stops existing after the next update. So the build must resolve the plugin root fresh each time it runs, which is exactly what invoking this skill does. Never hand the user a frozen cache path to reuse.

Steps

1. Resolve the bundled sources. Confirm $CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT is set and that $CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT/base/Containerfile and $CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT/Makefile exist. If $CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT is unset, find the plugin install path the same way other Ralph skills do.

2. Preconditions. Check that make and the container runtime (podman, or the RUNTIME the user set) are on PATH. If a prerequisite is missing, STOP and tell the user exactly what's unmet — do not silently skip; a missing image only surfaces later as a failure at make loop.

3. Build. Run, from the plugin root so the Makefile's relative paths resolve:

   make -C "$CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT" build-base
   

   This tags ralph-base:v1, registry-free, passing the host UID/GID as build args (--build-arg USER_UID=$(id -u) --build-arg USER_GID=$(id -g)) so files the loop writes under the bind-mounted /workspace come out host-owned under rootless podman. The make-free equivalent (e.g. a non-default runtime) is:

   podman build --build-arg USER_UID=$(id -u) --build-arg USER_GID=$(id -g) \
     -t ralph-base:v1 \
     -f "$CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT/base/Containerfile" "$CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT/base"
   

4. Report. Confirm the image built and is tagged ralph-base:v1 (podman images ralph-base:v1). Remind the user that a consuming project still needs make build there (rebuilds its thin image FROM ralph-base:v1 and installs the gate hook) to pick up the new base.

Guardrails

• This reads the plugin's bundled base/ as build context only — it copies nothing into any project. Do NOT vendor base/, the base Containerfile, or the runner scripts into a consumer repo; the single source stays the plugin's base/.
• Resolve $CLAUDE_PLUGIN_ROOT at build time; never persist a version-pinned plugin cache path anywhere — it is pruned after an update.
• Building from a keep-on-ralphing source checkout (make build-base there) stays valid for contributors and CI; this skill is the clone-free path for plugin users.
• Do not run a project's make loop from this skill — building the image is its only job.
• If you ever present the user with a choice (e.g. a non-default runtime), follow the Ralph recommended-option convention: mark one option "(recommended)" first with a one-line, repo-specific reason; state the risk and require confirmation for any high-stakes choice.