Log Error

---
name: log-error
description: Records a recurring failure into ERRORS.md — classifies it (hallucination, instruction-ignored, context-lost, wrong-tool, incomplete, external), captures the goal, exact error, attempts tried, root cause, and lesson, then commits it; also logs wins on request. Use when the same error keeps recurring, an approach repeatedly fails, the user says "log this error", "document this failure", "this keeps happening", or "log that as a win" after a success.
---

When the user runs /log-error, do the following:

1. Ask (if not obvious from context): What were you trying to do? What error kept appearing?
2. Classify the failure into one of these categories:
   - **Hallucination** — Claude generated false information (wrong API, nonexistent method, fabricated docs)
   - **Instruction ignored** — Claude neglected an explicit directive in CLAUDE.md or the conversation
   - **Context lost** — Claude forgot prior conversation context or repeated earlier mistakes
   - **Wrong tool** — Claude applied the wrong methodology or tool for the task
   - **Incomplete execution** — Claude started a task but abandoned it partway through
   - **External** — The error came from tooling, environment, or dependencies (not Claude's fault)

3. Create or append to `ERRORS.md` in the project root with this format:

```markdown
## [date] — Short description of the error

**Category:** hallucination | instruction-ignored | context-lost | wrong-tool | incomplete | external
**Goal:** What we were trying to accomplish
**Error:** The exact error message or behavior
**What we tried:**
- Attempt 1 — result
- Attempt 2 — result

**Root cause:** (if found)
**Fix:** (if resolved)
**Status:** resolved | unresolved | workaround in place
**Lesson:** One sentence on what to do differently next time
```

4. If the error is unresolved, suggest: rephrase the goal, try a different approach, or flag it for a fresh session.
5. If the error reveals a pattern that should prevent future mistakes, suggest adding it to the project's CLAUDE.md or saving it as a feedback memory.
6. Commit the error log.

### Success logging

If the user says something like "that worked great" or "log that as a win", append to `ERRORS.md` under a `## Wins` section:

```markdown
### [date] — Short description
**What worked:** The approach or prompt that produced a reliable result
**Why it worked:** Best guess at what made this successful
```