knip_skill

Overview

This skill runs knip to detect and remove unused files, dependencies, exports, and types in a JavaScript/TypeScript codebase. It helps automate dead-code cleanup, reduce bundle size, and keep package.json accurate. Use it to iterate safely: detect, confirm uncertain items, and apply fixes with verification.

How this skill works

The skill executes knip to produce a categorized report: unused files, unused dependencies, unused devDependencies, unused exports, and unused types. It classifies issues into high-confidence items that can be removed automatically and lower-confidence items that require human confirmation (entry points, public API exports, dynamic imports). After changes, it re-runs knip to verify the cleanup.

When to use it

• Before a release to trim unused dependencies and shrink package size
• During refactoring to remove orphaned files and exports
• When package.json grows stale and contains unused packages
• As part of a cleanup sprint for legacy or monorepo codebases
• After dependency upgrades to catch leftover, unused packages

Best practices

• Run npx knip first and capture full output before making changes
• Create a minimal knip.json if many false positives appear for your framework
• Auto-delete only clearly internal items; ask about anything that looks public or dynamic
• Use --fix and --allow-remove-files for high-confidence removals, but re-run knip to confirm
• Respect existing knip ignore patterns and monorepo workspace flags when relevant

Example use cases

• Remove orphaned utility files and unused components discovered by knip
• Clean package.json by removing dependencies reported as unused
• Prune exported functions and types that are no longer consumed
• Run automated fixes for internal unused exports and types with --fix
• Batch-confirm ambiguous items (entry points, public exports) before deletion