shapefile

Inspect, explain, validate, and convert ESRI Shapefile datasets, including `.shp/.shx/.dbf/.prj` sidecar requirements, CRS detection, field-name/type limits,...

Security Scan

The skill is an instruction-only Shapefile troubleshooting and migration guide that requests no credentials, installs nothing, and stays within its stated scope.

Purpose & Capability

The name/description (Shapefile inspection, validation, conversion guidance) match the content. The skill requests no binaries, no env vars, and only recommends using external tools like QGIS for actual file operations — which is proportionate to the stated purpose.

Instruction Scope

SKILL.md and references/patterns.md limit the agent to inspection, validation guidance, and migration planning. The skill explicitly avoids in-place mutation and defers file-based conversions to QGIS. It does not instruct the agent to read arbitrary system files, credentials, or external endpoints.

Install Mechanism

No install spec and no code files are present (instruction-only), so nothing is written to disk or fetched during install.

Credentials

No environment variables, credentials, or config paths are required. That is appropriate for a guidance-only Shapefile skill.

Persistence & Privilege

always:false and no install-time persistence are set. The agent policy file allows implicit invocation (normal); the skill does not request elevated or persistent privileges and does not modify other skills or system settings.

Assessment

This skill is instruction-only and coherent with its description: it provides checklist-style inspection, troubleshooting patterns, and recommends using QGIS for actual conversions. It does not request credentials or install code, so it has a small attack surface. Before using, confirm you will not let any agent perform destructive operations on your local files — the skill recommends avoiding in-place edits unless you explicitly ask. If you expect the skill to run conversions automatically, note it defers to external tools (e.g., QGIS) which must be present and invoked separately. If you plan to publish or share datasets, follow the packaging advice in references/patterns.md included with the skill.

Use this skill for practical Shapefile handling, debugging, and migration planning.

Workflow

1. Confirm whether the task is inspection, repair, conversion, schema explanation, or batch cleanup.
2. Identify which companion files are present: .shp, .shx, .dbf, .prj, and optionally .cpg.
3. Check CRS, encoding, geometry type, and field-name limits before suggesting edits or conversions.
4. Prefer writing outputs to a new path; avoid in-place mutation unless the user explicitly asks.
5. If the dataset is large or the workflow is repeated, prefer a deterministic CLI path through qgis.

Core Rules

• Treat a Shapefile as a multi-file dataset, not a single .shp file.
• Missing .shx or .dbf usually means the dataset is incomplete.
• Missing .prj means CRS is unknown, not automatically WGS84.
• DBF field names are short and legacy-oriented; watch for truncation and type loss.
• Text encoding may depend on .cpg; without it, non-ASCII text can decode incorrectly.
• Shapefile is poor for long field names, rich types, large text, and modern metadata needs.

Common Failure Checks

• File opens but attributes are broken: verify .dbf exists and encoding is correct.
• Features draw in the wrong place: verify .prj exists and the CRS was not guessed incorrectly.
• Import succeeds but schema looks wrong: check field-name truncation and DBF type limitations.
• Multipart or invalid geometry surprises: inspect geometry type before conversion or editing.
• One file was copied alone: remind that the full sidecar set must travel together.

Preferred Outcomes

• For interchange with legacy systems, preserve the Shapefile but document its CRS and encoding explicitly.
• For ongoing editing or richer schema, migrate to GPKG.
• For lightweight web interchange, convert to GeoJSON only when the CRS and precision tradeoffs are acceptable.
• For deterministic file conversion or batch fixes, hand off execution to qgis.

Task Boundaries

• Use this skill for Shapefile structure, limitations, troubleshooting, and migration guidance.
• For general CRS selection, use project or wgs84.
• For actual file-based conversion, reprojection, clipping, or repair commands, use qgis.
• For web map rendering or tiles, use mapbox or cesium as appropriate.

OpenClaw + ClawHub Notes

• Keep examples generic and portable.
• Do not hardcode private data paths, private datasets, or machine-specific environments.
• For clawhub.ai publication, keep the skill concise, reproducible, and semver-friendly; keep detailed patterns in references.

Reference Docs In This Skill

• Read {baseDir}/references/patterns.md when you need concrete Shapefile validation, packaging, or conversion guidance.