MCPInstall

modern-go

Modernize Go code by applying version-appropriate idioms and APIs (gofix-style transformations). Scans go.mod for the Go version, then transforms Go source files to use modern patterns—from Go 1.0 through 1.26+. Use when the user says "现代化","现代Go语言", "地道的", "idiomatic", "modernize", "modern-go", "update Go code", "gofix", or wants to upgrade Go idioms.

Installs
523
Last 24h
—
Trending rank
—
Security
Not audited

Install

Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.

npx skills add https://github.com/smallnest/goal-workflow --skill modern-go
  1. 01

    Install

    Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.

  2. 02

    Describe the task

    Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads modern-go automatically when relevant.

  3. 03

    Review the result

    The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.

SKILL.md

The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.

modern-go

Modernize Go source code by applying version-appropriate idioms, APIs, and language features. Works like go fix plus additional transformations curated from the Go team's modernize analysis passes and community best practices.

Usage

Invoke this skill when the user asks to modernize Go code. By default, modernize the entire project; the user may specify a file or directory instead.

When invoked:

  1. Detect the project's Go version from go.mod (the go directive).
  2. Find all .go files in the target scope (excluding vendor/, .git/, testdata/).
  3. For each file, apply all transformations for versions ≤ the project's Go version, starting from the oldest to the newest.
  4. After all transformations, print a summary of what was changed and what was skipped.

If the user specifies a file or directory, limit the scope to that path.

Transformation Catalog

Each transformation includes a Go version gate—only apply when the project's go.mod version ≥ that version. Never apply a transformation that requires a version higher than the project declares.

Go 1.0+ — time.Since

BeforeAfter
time.Now().Sub(start)time.Since(start)
// before
elapsed := time.Now().Sub(start)
// after
elapsed := time.Since(start)

Go 1.8+ — time.Until

BeforeAfter
deadline.Sub(time.Now())time.Until(deadline)
// before
remaining := deadline.Sub(time.Now())
// after
remaining := time.Until(deadline)

Go 1.10+ — strings.Builder (loop concatenation)

BeforeAfter
s += item in a loopvar b strings.Builder; b.WriteString(item)
// before
s := ""
for _, item := range items {
    s += item
}
// after
var b strings.Builder
for _, item := range items {
    b.WriteString(item)
}
s := b.String()

Only when += concatenation happens inside a loop.

Go 1.13+ — errors.Is

BeforeAfter
err == io.EOFerrors.Is(err, io.EOF)
// before
if err == io.EOF {
    return
}
// after
if errors.Is(err, io.EOF) {
    return
}

Go 1.17+ — //go:build constraints (plusbuild)

BeforeAfter
// +build linux + //go:build linux (both present)keep only //go:build linux
// before
//go:build linux && amd64
// +build linux,amd64

package foo
// after
//go:build linux && amd64

package foo

The plusbuild modernizer removes obsolete // +build constraint lines once the equivalent //go:build line is present (the //go:build syntax landed in Go 1.17). Only strip the old line when a matching //go:build already exists — never drop the sole constraint.

Go 1.17+ — unsafe.Add / unsafe.Slice (unsafefuncs)

BeforeAfter
unsafe.Pointer(uintptr(ptr) + uintptr(n))unsafe.Add(ptr, n)
(*[n]T)(unsafe.Pointer(p))[:] slice constructionunsafe.Slice(p, n)
// before — pointer arithmetic via uintptr
p2 := unsafe.Pointer(uintptr(ptr) + uintptr(offset))
// after
p2 := unsafe.Add(ptr, offset)
// before — building a slice from a base pointer
s := (*[1 << 30]byte)(unsafe.Pointer(p))[:n:n]
// after
s := unsafe.Slice(p, n)

The unsafefuncs modernizer (gopls v0.22.0) rewrites error-prone uintptr pointer math into unsafe.Add / unsafe.Slice, which the compiler and go vet understand as GC-safe.

Go 1.18+ — any

BeforeAfter
interface{}any
// before
func decode(v interface{}) error { ... }
// after
func decode(v any) error { ... }

Go 1.18+ — strings.Cut

BeforeAfter
i := strings.Index(s, sep); ... s[:i], s[i+len(sep):]key, val, found := strings.Cut(s, sep)
// before
if i := strings.Index(s, "="); i >= 0 {
    key, val := s[:i], s[i+1:]
}
// after
if key, val, found := strings.Cut(s, "="); found {
    ...
}

Go 1.18+ — bytes.Cut

BeforeAfter
i := bytes.Index(b, sep); ... b[:i], b[i+len(sep):]before, after, found := bytes.Cut(b, sep)
// before
if i := bytes.Index(b, sep); i >= 0 {
    before, after := b[:i], b[i+len(sep):]
}
// after
before, after, found := bytes.Cut(b, sep)

Go 1.19+ — fmt.Appendf

BeforeAfter
buf = append(buf, fmt.Sprintf(...)...)buf = fmt.Appendf(buf, ...)
// before
buf = append(buf, fmt.Sprintf("x=%d", x)...)
// after
buf = fmt.Appendf(buf, "x=%d", x)

Go 1.19+ — Type-safe atomics (atomictypes)

BeforeAfter
atomic.StoreInt32(&v, 1) / atomic.LoadInt32(&v)var v atomic.Int32; v.Store(1); v.Load()
atomic.AddInt64(&v, 1)var v atomic.Int64; v.Add(1)
atomic.Value + type assertionatomic.Pointer[T]
// before
var ready int32
atomic.StoreInt32(&ready, 1)
if atomic.LoadInt32(&ready) == 1 { ... }

// after
var ready atomic.Int32
ready.Store(1)
if ready.Load() == 1 { ... }
// before
var cache atomic.Value
cache.Store(&Config{})
cfg := cache.Load().(*Config)

// after
var cache atomic.Pointer[Config]
cache.Store(&Config{})
cfg := cache.Load()

The atomictypes modernizer (gopls v0.22.0, AtomicTypesAnalyzer) rewrites both the variable declaration and every call site. Typed wrappers (atomic.Int32/Int64/Uint32/Uint64/Bool/Pointer[T]) have identical performance but prevent accidental non-atomic access and fix 64-bit alignment crashes on 32-bit architectures.

Go 1.20+ — strings.Clone

BeforeAfter
string([]byte(s))strings.Clone(s)
// before
s2 := string([]byte(s)) // force copy
// after
s2 := strings.Clone(s)

Go 1.20+ — bytes.Clone

BeforeAfter
make([]byte, len(src)); copy(dst, src)bytes.Clone(src)
// before
dst := make([]byte, len(src))
copy(dst, src)
// after
dst := bytes.Clone(src)

Go 1.20+ — strings.CutPrefix / strings.CutSuffix

BeforeAfter
if strings.HasPrefix(s, p) { s = s[len(p):] }if rest, ok := strings.CutPrefix(s, p); ok { s = rest }
if strings.HasSuffix(s, sf) { s = s[:len(s)-len(sf)] }if rest, ok := strings.CutSuffix(s, sf); ok { s = rest }
// before
if strings.HasPrefix(s, "pre_") {
    s = s[len("pre_"):]
}
// after
if rest, ok := strings.CutPrefix(s, "pre_"); ok {
    s = rest
}
// before
if strings.HasSuffix(s, ".txt") {
    s = s[:len(s)-len(".txt")]
}
// after
if rest, ok := strings.CutSuffix(s, ".txt"); ok {
    s = rest
}

Go 1.20+ — errors.Join

BeforeAfter
fmt.Errorf("...: %w: %w", err1, err2)errors.Join(err1, err2)
// before
return fmt.Errorf("load config: %w: %w", err1, err2)
// after
return errors.Join(fmt.Errorf("load config"), err1, err2)

Go 1.20+ — context.WithCancelCause

BeforeAfter
ctx, cancel := context.WithCancel(parent) + bare cancel()ctx, cancel := context.WithCancelCause(parent) + cancel(err)
// before
ctx, cancel := context.WithCancel(parent)
// ... somewhere ...
cancel()

// after
ctx, cancel := context.WithCancelCause(parent)
cancel(ErrShutdown)
// caller: context.Cause(ctx) → ErrShutdown

Go 1.21+ — min / max

BeforeAfter
if a < b { v = a } else { v = b }v = min(a, b)
if a > b { v = a } else { v = b }v = max(a, b)
if x < lo { x = lo }; if x > hi { x = hi }x = min(max(x, lo), hi)
// before
lo := a
if b < lo {
    lo = b
}
// after
lo := min(a, b)
// before
if x < 0 {
    x = 0
}
if x > 100 {
    x = 100
}
// after
x = min(max(x, 0), 100)

Go 1.21+ — clear

BeforeAfter
for k := range m { delete(m, k) }clear(m)
for i := range s { s[i] = zero }clear(s)
// before
for k := range m {
    delete(m, k)
}
// after
clear(m)
// before
for i := range s {
    s[i] = 0
}
// after
clear(s)

Go 1.21+ — slices package

BeforeAfter
Manual loop to find elementslices.Contains(items, target)
Loop returning index or -1slices.Index(items, target)
sort.Slice(items, func(i,j int) bool { return items[i] < items[j] })slices.SortFunc(items, cmp.Compare)
Max/min finding loopslices.Max(items) / slices.Min(items)
Reverse swap loopslices.Reverse(s)
Remove consecutive duplicates loopslices.Compact(s)
s[:len(s):len(s)]slices.Clip(s)
make([]T, len(src)); copy(dst, src)slices.Clone(src)
// before → after: slices.Contains(items, target)
found := false
for _, x := range items {
    if x == target {
        found = true
        break
    }
}
// before → after: slices.Index(items, target)
for i, x := range items {
    if x == target {
        return i
    }
}
return -1
// before → after: slices.SortFunc(items, cmp.Compare)
sort.Slice(items, func(i, j int) bool { return items[i] < items[j] })
// before → after: slices.Max(items) / slices.Min(items)
max := items[0]
for _, v := range items[1:] {
    if v > max {
        max = v
    }
}
// before → after: slices.Reverse(s)
for i, j := 0, len(s)-1; i < j; i, j = i+1, j-1 {
    s[i], s[j] = s[j], s[i]
}
// before → after: slices.Compact(s)
i := 0
for j := 1; j < len(s); j++ {
    if s[j] != s[i] {
        i++
        s[i] = s[j]
    }
}
s = s[:i+1]
// before → after: slices.Clip(s)
s = s[:len(s):len(s)]
// before → after: slices.Clone(src)
dst := make([]T, len(src))
copy(dst, src)

Requires importing "slices" and "cmp" (for SortFunc).

Go 1.21+ — slices.Delete / slices.Insert

BeforeAfter
append(s[:i], s[i+1:]...)slices.Delete(s, i, i+1)
append(s[:i:i], append([]T{x}, s[i:]...)...)slices.Insert(s, i, x)
// before — element removal (classic aliasing/leak footgun)
s = append(s[:i], s[i+1:]...)
// after
s = slices.Delete(s, i, i+1)
// before — insert at index i
s = append(s[:i], append([]T{v}, s[i:]...)...)
// after
s = slices.Insert(s, i, v)

slices.Delete zeroes the tail elements to avoid retaining pointers (the manual append form leaks). Requires importing "slices".

Go 1.21+ — slices.Equal / maps.Equal

BeforeAfter
reflect.DeepEqual(a, b) for comparable slicesslices.Equal(a, b)
reflect.DeepEqual(m1, m2) for comparable mapsmaps.Equal(m1, m2)
// before
if reflect.DeepEqual(got, want) { ... }   // got, want are []string
// after
if slices.Equal(got, want) { ... }

Faster and type-safe, with no reflection. Only for element types that are directly comparable (use slices.EqualFunc / maps.EqualFunc otherwise). Requires importing "slices" or "maps".

Go 1.21+ — maps package

BeforeAfter
Manual loop to copy a mapmaps.Clone(m)
for k, v := range src { dst[k] = v }maps.Copy(dst, src)
Loop + conditional deletemaps.DeleteFunc(m, predicate)
// before → after: maps.Clone(m)
dst := make(map[K]V)
for k, v := range src {
    dst[k] = v
}
// before → after: maps.Copy(dst, src)
for k, v := range src {
    dst[k] = v
}
// before → after: maps.DeleteFunc(m, func(k K, v V) bool { return v == 0 })
for k, v := range m {
    if v == 0 {
        delete(m, k)
    }
}

Requires importing "maps".

Go 1.22+ — slices.Concat (appendclipped)

BeforeAfter
append(append([]T(nil), s1...), s2...)slices.Concat(s1, s2)
append(slices.Clip(s1), s2...) for a fresh resultslices.Concat(s1, s2)
// before
all := append(append([]int(nil), a...), b...)
// after
all := slices.Concat(a, b)
// before — three-way concat
merged := append(append(append([]string(nil), x...), y...), z...)
// after
merged := slices.Concat(x, y, z)

The appendclipped modernizer replaces nested append concatenation of multiple slices with slices.Concat, which allocates a fresh, correctly-sized result. slices.Concat was added in Go 1.22. Requires importing "slices". Only apply when the pattern builds a new slice (starts from []T(nil) or a clipped base) — not when it appends in place to an existing slice.

Go 1.21+ — sync.OnceFunc / sync.OnceValue

BeforeAfter
var once sync.Once; once.Do(func() { ... })f := sync.OnceFunc(func() { ... }); f()
sync.Once + stored result variablesync.OnceValue(func() T { return val })
// before
var once sync.Once
func init() { once.Do(func() { setup() }) }

// after
var initOnce = sync.OnceFunc(func() { setup() })
// before
var once sync.Once
var cfg *Config
func getConfig() *Config {
    once.Do(func() { cfg = loadConfig() })
    return cfg
}
// after
var getConfig = sync.OnceValue(func() *Config { return loadConfig() })

Go 1.21+ — context.AfterFunc

BeforeAfter
go func() { <-ctx.Done(); cleanup() }()stop := context.AfterFunc(ctx, cleanup)
// before
go func() {
    <-ctx.Done()
    conn.Close()
}()
// after
stop := context.AfterFunc(ctx, func() { conn.Close() })

Go 1.21+ — context.WithTimeoutCause / WithDeadlineCause

BeforeAfter
context.WithTimeout(parent, d)context.WithTimeoutCause(parent, d, err)
// before
ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(parent, 5*time.Second)
// after
ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeoutCause(parent, 5*time.Second, ErrTimeout)

Only apply when a meaningful cause error is available.

Go 1.22+ — Range over integer

BeforeAfter
for i := 0; i < n; i++ { ... }for i := range n { ... }
for i := 0; i < n; i++ { ... } (i unused)for range n { ... }
// before
for i := 0; i < len(items); i++ {
    process(i, items[i])
}
// after
for i := range len(items) {
    process(i, items[i])
}
// before
for i := 0; i < n; i++ {
    doWork()
}
// after
for range n {
    doWork()
}

Go 1.22+ — Loop variable shadowing removal

BeforeAfter
for _, x := range items { x := x; ... }for _, x := range items { ... }
// before
for _, x := range items {
    x := x          // capture for goroutine
    go func() { use(x) }()
}
// after
for _, x := range items {
    go func() { use(x) }()
}

The x := x capture idiom is redundant since Go 1.22.

Go 1.22+ — cmp.Or

BeforeAfter
Chain of if v == "" { v = fallback }v := cmp.Or(val, fallback1, fallback2, ...)
// before
name := os.Getenv("NAME")
if name == "" {
    name = os.Getenv("USER")
}
if name == "" {
    name = "anonymous"
}
// after
name := cmp.Or(os.Getenv("NAME"), os.Getenv("USER"), "anonymous")

Requires importing "cmp".

Go 1.22+ — reflect.TypeFor

BeforeAfter
reflect.TypeOf((*T)(nil)).Elem()reflect.TypeFor[T]()
// before
t := reflect.TypeOf((*MyType)(nil)).Elem()
// after
t := reflect.TypeFor[MyType]()

Go 1.22+ — Enhanced http.ServeMux

BeforeAfter
mux.HandleFunc("/api/", h) + manual path parsingmux.HandleFunc("GET /api/{id}", h) + r.PathValue("id")
// before
mux.HandleFunc("/api/", func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
    id := strings.TrimPrefix(r.URL.Path, "/api/")
    ...
})
// after
mux.HandleFunc("GET /api/{id}", func(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
    id := r.PathValue("id")
    ...
})

Go 1.22+ — math/rand/v2

BeforeAfter
rand.Intn(n)rand.IntN(n)
rand.Int63n(n) / rand.Int31n(n)rand.Int64N(n) / rand.Int32N(n)
rand.Seed(...) + global funcsdrop Seed; use auto-seeded top-level funcs or rand.N[T]
// before
import "math/rand"
n := rand.Intn(100)
// after
import "math/rand/v2"
n := rand.IntN(100)
// before — type-specific bound
d := time.Duration(rand.Int63n(int64(max)))
// after — generic N works for any integer type
d := rand.N(max)

math/rand/v2 (Go 1.22) drops the deprecated global Seed (top-level funcs are auto-seeded) and adds generic rand.N[T]. Semantic migration: the random stream differs from math/rand, so do not apply where reproducibility from a fixed seed matters. Flag as a suggestion, not auto-apply.

Go 1.23+ — Range over function (iterators)

BeforeAfter
Custom func Walk(yield func(T) bool) callback traversalfunc Walk() iter.Seq[T] returning an iterator
// before — callback-based iteration
func (t *Tree) Each(fn func(v int)) {
    for _, v := range t.values {
        fn(v)
    }
}
// caller: t.Each(func(v int) { use(v) })

// after — standard iterator, usable with range
func (t *Tree) All() iter.Seq[int] {
    return func(yield func(int) bool) {
        for _, v := range t.values {
            if !yield(v) { return }
        }
    }
}
// caller: for v := range t.All() { use(v) }

Adopt the iter.Seq[T] / iter.Seq2[K,V] protocol (Go 1.23) so custom containers compose with range, slices.Collect, maps.Keys, etc. Requires importing "iter". Flag as a suggestion — it reshapes the API surface.

Go 1.23+ — Iterator helpers

BeforeAfter
var keys []K; for k := range m { keys = append(keys, k) }slices.Collect(maps.Keys(m))
var vals []V; for _, v := range m { vals = append(vals, v) }slices.Collect(maps.Values(m))
// before
var keys []string
for k := range m {
    keys = append(keys, k)
}
// after
keys := slices.Collect(maps.Keys(m))
// before
var vals []int
for _, v := range m {
    vals = append(vals, v)
}
// after
vals := slices.Collect(maps.Values(m))

Requires importing "slices" and "maps".

Go 1.23+ — strings.SplitSeq / strings.FieldsSeq

BeforeAfter
for _, part := range strings.Split(s, sep)for part := range strings.SplitSeq(s, sep)
for _, field := range strings.Fields(s)for field := range strings.FieldsSeq(s)
// before
for _, part := range strings.Split(line, ",") {
    process(part)
}
// after
for part := range strings.SplitSeq(line, ",") {
    process(part)
}

Only when the loop body does not need the index or the full slice.

Go 1.23+ — bytes.SplitSeq / bytes.FieldsSeq

BeforeAfter
for _, part := range bytes.Split(b, sep)for part := range bytes.SplitSeq(b, sep)
// before
for _, part := range bytes.Split(data, sep) {
    process(part)
}
// after
for part := range bytes.SplitSeq(data, sep) {
    process(part)
}

Go 1.23+ — slices.Backward (slicesbackward)

BeforeAfter
for i := len(s) - 1; i >= 0; i-- { use(s[i]) }for _, v := range slices.Backward(s) { use(v) }
reverse loop needing the index toofor i, v := range slices.Backward(s) { ... }
// before
for i := len(items) - 1; i >= 0; i-- {
    process(items[i])
}
// after
for _, v := range slices.Backward(items) {
    process(v)
}
// before — index still needed
for i := len(items) - 1; i >= 0; i-- {
    fmt.Println(i, items[i])
}
// after
for i, v := range slices.Backward(items) {
    fmt.Println(i, v)
}

The slicesbackward modernizer (gopls v0.22.0) replaces manual descending-index loops with the slices.Backward iterator. Requires importing "slices". Caveat: the rewrite preserves exact semantics in normal cases, but do not apply it when the loop body mutates the slice length or the index is used for out-of-band arithmetic — those edge cases can become unsound.

Go 1.24+ — t.Context() in tests

BeforeAfter
ctx, cancel := context.WithCancel(context.Background()); defer cancel()ctx := t.Context()
// before
func TestFetch(t *testing.T) {
    ctx, cancel := context.WithCancel(context.Background())
    defer cancel()
    result := fetch(ctx)
}
// after
func TestFetch(t *testing.T) {
    result := fetch(t.Context())
}

Go 1.24+ — strings.Lines / bytes.Lines

BeforeAfter
bufio.Scanner line loop over a string/bufferfor line := range strings.Lines(s)
// before
sc := bufio.NewScanner(strings.NewReader(s))
for sc.Scan() {
    process(sc.Text())
}
// after
for line := range strings.Lines(s) {
    process(strings.TrimSuffix(line, "\n"))
}

strings.Lines / bytes.Lines (Go 1.24) return line iterators — no Scanner setup, no default 64KB token-size limit. Note the yielded line retains its trailing \n, unlike Scanner.Text(); trim it if the old code relied on stripped lines. Only apply for in-memory strings/buffers, not streaming io.Readers.

Go 1.24+ — os.Root (directory-scoped filesystem access)

BeforeAfter
manual filepath.Clean + prefix check to block traversalroot, _ := os.OpenRoot(dir); root.Open(name)
// before — hand-rolled path-traversal guard
p := filepath.Join(base, name)
if !strings.HasPrefix(filepath.Clean(p), filepath.Clean(base)+string(os.PathSeparator)) {
    return errUnsafePath
}
f, err := os.Open(p)
// after — the OS enforces the boundary
root, err := os.OpenRoot(base)
if err != nil { return err }
defer root.Close()
f, err := root.Open(name) // symlinks/".." escaping base are rejected

os.Root (Go 1.24) confines all operations to a directory tree, rejecting .. and symlink escapes at the syscall layer — far more robust than string prefix checks. Security hardening: flag as a strong suggestion wherever user-controlled paths are joined to a base directory.

Go 1.24+ — omitzero struct tag

BeforeAfter
json:"field,omitempty" (for time.Time, time.Duration, structs, slices, maps)json:"field,omitzero"
// before
type Config struct {
    Timeout time.Duration `json:"timeout,omitempty"`
    Labels  []string      `json:"labels,omitempty"`
}
// after
type Config struct {
    Timeout time.Duration `json:"timeout,omitzero"`
    Labels  []string      `json:"labels,omitzero"`
}

Only for types where omitempty fails: time.Time, time.Duration, structs, slices, maps. Flag as suggestion, not auto-apply.

Go 1.24+ — b.Loop() in benchmarks

BeforeAfter
for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ { ... }for b.Loop() { ... }
// before
func BenchmarkHash(b *testing.B) {
    for i := 0; i < b.N; i++ {
        hash(input)
    }
}
// after
func BenchmarkHash(b *testing.B) {
    for b.Loop() {
        hash(input)
    }
}

Go 1.25+ — sync.WaitGroup.Go

BeforeAfter
wg.Add(1); go func() { defer wg.Done(); fn() }()wg.Go(fn)
// before
var wg sync.WaitGroup
for _, item := range items {
    wg.Add(1)
    go func(item Item) {
        defer wg.Done()
        process(item)
    }(item)
}
wg.Wait()
// after
var wg sync.WaitGroup
for _, item := range items {
    wg.Go(func() { process(item) })
}
wg.Wait()

Go 1.26+ — new with expressions

BeforeAfter
v := val; &vnew(val)
Helper func ptr[T any](v T) *T { return &v }new(val) directly
// before
timeout := 30
debug := true
cfg := Config{
    Timeout: &timeout,
    Debug:   &debug,
}
// after
cfg := Config{
    Timeout: new(30),
    Debug:   new(true),
}
// before
func ptr[T any](v T) *T { return &v }
cfg := Config{Count: ptr(10)}

// after
cfg := Config{Count: new(10)}

Go 1.26+ — errors.AsType

BeforeAfter
var t *T; errors.As(err, &t)t, ok := errors.AsType[*T](err)
// before
var pathErr *os.PathError
if errors.As(err, &pathErr) {
    log.Println(pathErr.Path)
}
// after
if pathErr, ok := errors.AsType[*os.PathError](err); ok {
    log.Println(pathErr.Path)
}

Go 1.27+ — Embedded field literals (embedlit)

BeforeAfter
T{U: U{x: 1}} (redundant embedded-type specifier)T{x: 1}
type Base struct {
    ID   int
    Name string
}
type User struct {
    Base
    Age int
}

// before
u := User{
    Base: Base{ID: 1, Name: "alice"},
    Age:  30,
}
// after
u := User{
    ID:   1,
    Name: "alice",
    Age:  30,
}

The embedlit modernizer (gopls v0.22.0, EmbedLitAnalyzer) strips redundant embedded-struct field-type specifiers from composite literals. Go 1.27 lets you initialize promoted fields directly without the nested literal. Only apply when the promoted field names don't collide with the outer struct's own fields.

Operation Phases

Phase 1: Detect

Read go.mod to extract the Go version (go 1.xx line). If no go.mod is found, default to go 1.21.

Phase 2: Gather files

Find all .go files in the target scope (project root, or user-specified file/directory). Exclude vendor/, .git/, and testdata/ directories.

Phase 3: Apply transformations

For each .go file, apply all transformations for versions ≤ the detected Go version. Process files sequentially. For each file:

  1. Read the file content.
  2. Identify applicable transformations by scanning for the "Before" patterns.
  3. Apply each transformation using the Edit tool.
  4. Run goimports -w (or gofmt -w) on the file after all edits.

Never apply a transformation that requires a version higher than the project's Go version.

Phase 4: Report

Print a summary table showing:

  • File: path relative to project root
  • Transformations applied: list of transformation names per file
  • Total files modified and total transformations applied
  • Skipped transformations (available but not applicable due to version constraints) and their required Go version

Example Summary Output

## Modernization Summary

| File | Transformations |
|---|---|
| main.go | any, strings.Cut, min/max (2 occurrences) |
| pkg/handler.go | range over int (3), slices.Contains, t.Context() |
| pkg/util.go | new(expr) (1), errors.AsType → errors.Is |

**3 files modified, 10 transformations applied**

Skipped (requires higher Go version):
- new(expr): requires go 1.26 (project is go 1.24)
- WaitGroup.Go: requires go 1.25 (project is go 1.24)

Safety Rules

  • Never apply transformations that change semantics in edge cases without the user's awareness.
  • Do not apply omitzero blindly—it changes JSON serialization behavior; flag it as a suggestion instead.
  • Treat semantic migrations as suggestions, not auto-applies: math/rand/v2 (changes the random stream), iter.Seq iterators (reshapes the API), os.Root (behavior/error-path change). Point them out and let the user opt in.
  • When replacing a bufio.Scanner loop with strings.Lines/bytes.Lines, remember the yielded line keeps its trailing \n; add a TrimSuffix if the old code relied on Scanner.Text() semantics.
  • Do not apply strings.SplitSeq or bytes.SplitSeq when the loop body references the index or the full slice elsewhere.
  • Do not apply strings.Builder if the concatenation happens outside a loop (single += is fine).
  • When a transformation requires a new import, ensure the import is added to the file.
  • After all edits, run goimports -w on each modified file to clean up imports.
  • If goimports is not available, fall back to gofmt -w.
  • If the project has no go.mod, ask the user for the target Go version before proceeding.

Automated tooling (Go 1.27+)

Many of these transformations are now shipped as official modernizers in gopls/go fix. On Go 1.27+ the whole set can be applied across a module with:

go fix ./...

gopls v0.22.0 added four notable passes covered above:

ModernizerMin GoTransformation
unsafefuncs1.17uintptr pointer math → unsafe.Add / unsafe.Slice
atomictypes1.19primitive atomic.* funcs → typed atomic.Int32/Pointer[T] wrappers
slicesbackward1.23descending-index loops → slices.Backward iterator
embedlit1.27redundant embedded-field literals → promoted-field init

Other modernizers in the same suite that this catalog covers: minmax, efaceany, fmtappendf, stringscut, stringsseq, sortslice/slicescontains, mapsloop, stditerators, forvar, rangeint, testingcontext, bloop, waitgroup, newexpr, errorsastype, appendclipped (→ slices.Concat), and plusbuild (→ drop obsolete // +build).

To disable an over-eager pass (e.g. slicesbackward rewriting loops that mutate the slice), scope the run with -fixes or exclude that analyzer in your editor's gopls settings.

FAQ

What does the modern-go skill do?

Modernize Go code by applying version-appropriate idioms and APIs (gofix-style transformations). Scans go.mod for the Go version, then transforms Go source files to use modern patterns—from Go 1.0 through 1.26+. Use when the user says "现代化","现代Go语言", "地道的", "idiomatic", "modernize", "modern-go", "update Go code", "gofix", or wants to upgrade Go idioms.

How do I install modern-go?

Run npx skills add https://github.com/smallnest/goal-workflow --skill modern-go in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/modern-go/ (personal) or .claude/skills/modern-go/ (project).

Which AI agents can use modern-go?

Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.

Is modern-go safe to install?

No partner security audit is available yet. Skills can run commands and scripts, so read the SKILL.md and any bundled files before installing.

Who maintains modern-go?

It is published by smallnest in smallnest/goal-workflow. It has 523 recorded installs.

More from smallnest/goal-workflow

View all →

smell

smallnest/goal-workflow

Detect software architecture bad smells, algorithmic complexity hotspots, and anti-patterns in a codebase. Produces a detailed markdown report identifying violations of architectural principles, design patterns, code quality, and performance complexity. Triggers on: smell, code smell, architecture smell, find anti-patterns, detect bad smells, complexity analysis, 代码坏味道, 架构坏味道, 反模式, 找出坏味道, 复杂度分析.

prd

smallnest/goal-workflow

Generate a Product Requirements Document (PRD) for a new feature. Use when planning a feature, starting a new project, or when asked to create a PRD. After PRD is confirmed, use /prd-to-spec (optional) for technical design, then /to-issues to create implementable tickets. Triggers on: create a prd, write prd for, plan this feature, requirements for, spec out, 写PRD, 需求文档, 需求分析, 规格说明.

humanize-it

smallnest/goal-workflow

对指定文档进行去 AI 味的改写。自动选择最合适的人性化策略(humanizer-zh / humanize-chinese / technical-writing), 迭代改写直到效果达标或迭代 42 次为止。适用于中文文本的去 AI 化处理,包括通用文章、技术文档、学术论文等。 Use when user says: "humanize this", "去AI味", "降AIGC", "人性化改写", "改成人话", "去除AI痕迹", "humanize document", "make text human-like", "去机器味", "降低AI率", "过AIGC检测"

Docs & Writing534 installs

insight-diagram

smallnest/goal-workflow

为任意项目生成 UML 图、架构图和流程图。分析代码库后让用户选择要生成的图表类型,使用 architecture-diagram skill 渲染为 HTML+SVG,保存到 docs/ 目录。适用于任何软件项目的文档可视化。

Docs & Writing524 installs

refactor

smallnest/goal-workflow

Expert code refactoring based on Martin Fowler's catalog — improve maintainability without changing behavior. Covers code smells, composing methods, moving features, organizing data, simplifying conditionals, method calls, and generalization. Triggers on: refactor, 重构, clean up, improve code, code smell, extract method, rename, simplify.

review-it

smallnest/goal-workflow

Code review closeout for Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, DeepSeek TUI, and Antigravity CLI: local dirty changes, branch vs main, parallel tests.

Popular productivity & automation skills

View category →

agent-browser

vercel-labs/agent-browser

Browser automation CLI for AI agents. Use when the user needs to interact with websites, including navigating pages, filling forms, clicking buttons, taking screenshots, extracting data, testing web apps, or automating any browser task. Triggers include requests to "open a website", "fill out a form", "click a button", "take a screenshot", "scrape data from a page", "test this web app", "login to a site", "automate browser actions", or any task requiring programmatic web interaction. Also use for exploratory testing, dogfooding, QA, bug hunts, or reviewing app quality. Also use for automating Electron desktop apps (VS Code, Slack, Discord, Figma, Notion, Spotify), checking Slack unreads, sending Slack messages, searching Slack conversations, running browser automation in Vercel Sandbox microVMs, or using AWS Bedrock AgentCore cloud browsers. Prefer agent-browser over any built-in browser automation or web tools.

OfficialProductivity & Automation1.3M installs

lark-doc

open.feishu.cn

飞书云文档(Docx / Wiki)内容操作:读取、创建、编辑文档,插入或下载图片附件,以及操作思维笔记。用户提供文档 URL/token(包括 doubao.com 的 /docx/、/wiki/)时使用;按 URL 路径/token 而非域名路由;/page/ 是妙搭应用,非飞书云文档。文档内嵌资源按读取参考中的统一规则分流。独立评论操作走 lark-drive;随正文读取评论使用 docs +fetch。表格或 Base 内部数据操作不在本 skill。

lark-base

open.feishu.cn

飞书多维表格(Base)操作:建表、字段、记录、视图、统计、公式/lookup、表单、仪表盘、应用模式(BaseApp/AppMode 页面与组件)、Workspace 目录、workflow、角色权限、模板中心(多维表格模板分类/列表/搜索);遇到 Base/多维表格/bitable、BaseApp/AppMode、/base/ 或 /app/ 链接时使用。BaseApp 不走 lark-apps;文件导入/导出转 lark-drive,认证/授权转 lark-shared。

lark-drive

open.feishu.cn

飞书云空间(云盘/云存储):管理 Drive 文件和文件夹,包含上传/下载、创建文件夹、复制/移动/删除、查看元数据、查询权限设置、评论/权限/订阅、标题、版本、飞书文档密级标签(secure labels)和本地文件导入。用户需要整理云盘目录、处理云空间资源 URL/token、判断链接类型/真实 token/标题,或导入 Word/Markdown/Excel/CSV/PPTX/.base 为 docx/sheet/bitable/slides 时使用;doubao.com 云空间 URL/token 也按资源路径和 token 路由,不回退 WebFetch。不负责:文档内容编辑(走 lark-doc)、表格/Base 表内数据操作(走 lark-sheets/lark-base)、知识空间节点/成员管理(走 lark-wiki)、原生 Markdown 文件读写/patch/diff(走 lark-markdown)。

lark-shared

open.feishu.cn

Use for lark-cli setup/auth tasks: auth login/status/logout, user vs bot identity, business-domain permissions (--domain, including all/docs/drive), missing scopes, revoking authorization, or handling notice JSON.

lark-im

open.feishu.cn

飞书即时通讯:收发消息和管理群聊。发送和回复消息、搜索聊天记录、管理群聊成员、上传下载图片和文件、管理表情回复、发送应用内/短信/电话加急、发送和处理交互卡片(Interactive Card)、监听卡片按钮回调(card.action.trigger)。当用户需要发消息、查看或搜索聊天记录、下载聊天中的文件、查看群成员、搜索群、创建群聊或话题群、管理标记数据、管理 Feed 置顶(添加/移除/查询置顶会话)、管理标签数据、处理卡片回调时使用。