Initialize Smalltalk Development Session

Start a Pharo Smalltalk development session: verify project structure, confirm Pharo connection, and orient to the development workflow.

Initialization Sequence

1. Check Project Structure

if [ ! -f ".project" ] && [ ! -d "src" ]; then
  echo "No Pharo project structure detected"
fi

• ✅ .project OR src/ found → continue
• ⚠️ Neither found → recommend smalltalk-dev:st-setup-project skill

If no project exists, offer to create one:

⚠️  No Pharo project structure detected in current directory.

Use /st-setup-project MyProjectName to set up:
  • .project configuration file
  • src/ directory with package structure
  • BaselineOf class and Core/Tests packages

Would you like to run /st-setup-project now?

• User says yes: Invoke smalltalk-dev:st-setup-project skill, then continue with steps 2–4.
• User says no / continue anyway: Proceed directly to step 2 (load smalltalk-developer) without project setup. Note in the status report that project structure is missing.

2. Load smalltalk-developer Skill

Use the Skill tool to load smalltalk-dev:smalltalk-developer. This activates the full development workflow guidance.

3. Verify Pharo Connection

Run Smalltalk version via eval:

mcp__smalltalk-interop__eval: 'Smalltalk version'

• ✅ Returns version string → connected, proceed
• ❌ Fails or times out → follow Connection Setup below

4. Confirm Ready

Report status to user:

✅ Pharo connected: Pharo X.Y (...)
✅ smalltalk-developer skill loaded
📋 Development workflow: Edit → Lint → Import → Test

Connection Setup

If Pharo is not connected, check Docker availability first:

docker --version

Docker Setup (Recommended)

Generate compose.yml in the project root:

services:
  sis-pharo:
    image: mumez/smalltalk-interop-docker
    ports:
      - "5900:5900"
      - "6901:6901"
      - "8086:8086"
    environment:
      PHARO_SIS_PORT: 8086
    volumes:
      - /tmp:/root/screenshots
      - .:/root/repos

Then instruct the user:

docker compose up -d

Re-verify connection after startup.

Local Pharo Installation

If Docker is not available or not preferred:

1. Install Pharo:

mkdir pharo-stable
cd pharo-stable
curl https://get.pharo.org | bash

2. Load PharoSmalltalkInteropServer:

./pharo Pharo.image metacello install github://mumez/PharoSmalltalkInteropServer:main/src BaselineOfPharoSmalltalkInteropServer

3. Start Pharo (SisServer starts automatically):

./pharo-ui

Re-verify connection after Pharo is running.

Manual Start (Pharo already installed)

If Pharo is installed but server not running, ask user to execute in Pharo:

SisServer current start

Development Workflow Overview

The core cycle (full details in smalltalk-dev:smalltalk-developer):

Edit .st file
    ↓
Lint (/st-lint)
    ↓
Import package (absolute path)
    ↓
Run tests
    ↓
Pass? → Done  |  Fail? → Debug → Fix → Repeat

Available Skills and Commands

Command	Purpose
/st-import PackageName /abs/path	Import Tonel package to Pharo
/st-test TestClass	Run SUnit tests
/st-eval code	Execute Smalltalk snippet
/st-export PackageName	Export package from Pharo
/st-lint src/PackageName	Validate Smalltalk best practices

Troubleshooting

Problem	Solution
Connection timeout	Check if Pharo image is running
Server not started	Run SisServer current start in Pharo
Port mismatch	Check PHARO_SIS_PORT env var (default: 8086)
MCP issues	Verify pharo-smalltalk-interop-mcp-server is installed
Docker path issues	Check volume mounts in compose.yml

Related Skills

• smalltalk-dev:st-setup-project — Create project structure if missing
• smalltalk-dev:smalltalk-developer — Full development workflow
• smalltalk-dev:smalltalk-debugger — Debug test failures and errors