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PromptScript vs Manual Configuration

The Manual Approach

Without PromptScript, teams maintain separate configuration files for each AI tool in every repository. Even with just 2–3 tools, this quickly becomes unmanageable across many repos:

.github/copilot-instructions.md   # GitHub Copilot
CLAUDE.md                          # Claude Code
.cursor/rules/project.mdc         # Cursor
AGENTS.md                          # Codex / Factory AI
GEMINI.md                          # Gemini CLI
... one file per tool
Problem Impact
No single source of truth Instructions drift between tools
No validation Errors go undetected until runtime
No inheritance Copy-paste across repos
No audit trail Who changed what and when?
Manual updates One policy change = PRs in every repo, for every tool
Vendor lock-in Switching tools means rewriting instructions, READMEs, and docs

The PromptScript Approach

With PromptScript, you write one .prs file and compile to all 48 targets:

@meta { id: "my-project" syntax: "1.0.0" }

@inherit @company/backend-standards

@identity {
  """
  You are an expert developer working on the API service.
  """
}

@standards {
  code: { languages: ["TypeScript"], testing: ["Vitest"] }
}

@restrictions {
  - "Never expose API keys"
  - "Always validate input"
}

prs compile

Generates all output files automatically:

.github/copilot-instructions.md
CLAUDE.md
.cursor/rules/project.mdc
.windsurf/rules/project.md
.clinerules
AGENTS.md
GEMINI.md
... all configured targets
Benefit How
Single source of truth One .prs file, up to 48 target outputs
Compile-time validation Errors caught before deployment
Hierarchical inheritance Org → Team → Project
Full audit trail Git history on .prs files
Controlled updates Change registry, then run prs update and recompile in each repo
Tool-agnostic Switch tools without rewriting

Side-by-Side Comparison

Aspect Manual PromptScript
Files per repo 5-48 2 source files plus generated outputs
Update a policy 100+ manual edits Registry update, dependency update, recompile
Add new tool Write new file format prs compile
Validation None Compile-time + CI/CD
Inheritance Copy-paste @inherit / @use
Consistency Hope for the best Validated in CI
Onboarding time Hours per tool Minutes

Getting Started

Ready to switch? See the Migration Guide to convert existing configs, or start fresh with the Getting Started guide.