---

name: clean-codebase locale: caveman-ultra source_locale: en source_commit: 82c77053 fence_basis_commit: 82c77053 translator: "Julius Brussee homage — caveman" translation_date: "2026-04-19" description: > Remove dead code, unused imports, fix lint warnings, and normalize formatting across a codebase without changing business logic or architecture. Use when lint warnings have piled up during rapid development, unused imports and variables clutter files, dead code paths were never removed, formatting is inconsistent, or static analysis tools report fixable hygiene issues. license: MIT allowed-tools: Read Write Edit Bash Grep Glob metadata: author: Philipp Thoss version: "1.0" domain: maintenance complexity: intermediate language: multi tags: maintenance, cleanup, lint, dead-code, formatting

clean-codebase

Use When

Codebase has hygiene debt:

• Lint warns piled up during rapid dev
• Unused imports + vars clutter files
• Dead code paths never removed
• Formatting inconsistent across files
• Static analysis reports fixable issues

Do NOT use for architectural refactor, bug fixes, or business logic changes. This = hygiene + automated cleanup only.

In

Param	Type	Required	Description
codebase_path	string	Yes	Absolute path to codebase root
language	string	Yes	Primary language (js, python, r, rust, etc.)
cleanup_mode	enum	No	safe (default) or aggressive
run_tests	boolean	No	Run test suite after cleanup (default: true)
backup	boolean	No	Create backup before deletion (default: true)

Do

Step 1: Pre-Cleanup Assessment

Measure current state → quantify gains later.

# Count lint warnings by severity
lint_tool --format json > lint_before.json

# Count lines of code
cloc . --json > cloc_before.json

# List unused symbols (language-dependent)
# JavaScript/TypeScript: ts-prune or depcheck
# Python: vulture
# R: lintr unused function checks

→ Baseline metrics saved to lint_before.json + cloc_before.json

If err: Lint tool not found → skip automated fixes, manual review

Step 2: Fix Automated Lint Warnings

Apply safe auto fixes (spacing, quotes, semis, trailing ws).

JavaScript/TypeScript:

eslint --fix .
prettier --write .

Python:

black .
isort .
ruff check --fix .

R:

Rscript -e "styler::style_dir('.')"

Rust:

cargo fmt
cargo clippy --fix --allow-dirty

→ All safe lint warns resolved; files formatted consistent

If err: Auto fixes break tests → revert, escalate

Step 3: Identify Dead Code Paths

Static analysis → unreferenced fns, unused vars, orphaned files.

JavaScript/TypeScript:

ts-prune | tee dead_code.txt
depcheck | tee unused_deps.txt

Python:

vulture . | tee dead_code.txt

R:

Rscript -e "lintr::lint_dir('.', linters = lintr::unused_function_linter())"

General approach:

1. Grep fn defs
2. Grep fn calls
3. Report fns defined but never called

→ dead_code.txt lists unused fns, vars, files

If err: Static analysis tool unavail → manual review recent commit history for orphans

Step 4: Remove Unused Imports

Clean import blocks → drop refs to pkgs never used.

JavaScript:

eslint --fix --rule 'no-unused-vars: error'

Python:

autoflake --remove-all-unused-imports --in-place --recursive .

R:

# Manual review: grep for library() calls, check if package used
grep -r "library(" . | cut -d: -f2 | sort | uniq

→ All unused imports removed

If err: Removing imports breaks build → used indirectly → restore + doc

Step 5: Remove Dead Code (Mode-Dependent)

Safe Mode (default):

• Remove code explicit marked deprecated
• Remove commented-out blocks (>10 lines + >6 months old)
• Remove TODO comments for completed issues

Aggressive Mode (opt-in):

• Remove all unused fns from Step 3
• Remove private methods w/ zero refs
• Remove feature flags for deprecated features

Each candidate deletion:

1. Valid. zero refs in codebase
2. Check git history → skip if modified last 30 days
3. Remove + add entry to CLEANUP_LOG.md

→ Dead code removed; CLEANUP_LOG.md documents all deletions

If err: Uncertain code truly dead → move to archive/ dir vs. delete

Step 6: Normalize Formatting

Consistent formatting all files (even if linters miss).

1. Normalize line endings (LF vs CRLF)
2. Single newline at EOF
3. Remove trailing ws
4. Normalize indentation (spaces vs tabs, width)

# Example: Fix line endings and trailing whitespace
find . -type f -name "*.js" -exec sed -i 's/\r$//' {} +
find . -type f -name "*.js" -exec sed -i 's/[[:space:]]*$//' {} +

→ All files follow consistent formatting conventions

If err: sed breaks binary files → skip + doc

Step 7: Run Tests

Valid. cleanup didn't break functionality.

# Language-specific test command
npm test              # JavaScript
pytest                # Python
R CMD check           # R
cargo test            # Rust

→ All tests pass (or same fails as pre-cleanup)

If err: Revert incrementally → identify breaking change → escalate

Step 8: Generate Cleanup Report

Doc all changes for review.

# Codebase Cleanup Report

**Date**: YYYY-MM-DD
**Mode**: safe | aggressive
**Language**: <language>

## Metrics

| Metric | Before | After | Change |
|--------|--------|-------|--------|
| Lint warnings | X | Y | -Z |
| Lines of code | A | B | -C |
| Unused imports | D | 0 | -D |
| Dead functions | E | F | -G |

## Changes Applied

1. Fixed X lint warnings (automated)
2. Removed Y unused imports
3. Deleted Z lines of dead code (see CLEANUP_LOG.md)
4. Normalized formatting across W files

## Escalations

- [Issue description requiring human review]
- [Uncertain deletion moved to archive/]

## Validation

- [x] All tests pass
- [x] Backup created: backup_YYYYMMDD/
- [x] CLEANUP_LOG.md updated

→ Report saved to CLEANUP_REPORT.md in project root

If err: (N/A — generate report regardless)

Check

Post-cleanup:

• All tests pass (or same fails as before)
• No new lint warns introduced
• Backup created pre-delete
• CLEANUP_LOG.md documents all removed code
• Cleanup report generated w/ metrics
• Git diff reviewed for unexpected changes
• CI pipeline passes

Traps

1. Remove Code Still Used via Reflection: Static analysis misses dynamic calls (e.g., eval(), metaprogramming). Always check git history.

2. Break Implicit Deps: Removing imports used by deps. Run tests after every import removal.

3. Delete Feature Flags for Active Features: Unused in current branch, but maybe active in other envs. Check deployment configs.

4. Over-Aggressive Formatting: Tools like black / prettier reformat → unnecessary diffs. Configure tools → project style.

5. Ignore Test Coverage: Can't safely clean codebases w/o tests. Low coverage → escalate for test additions first.

6. No Backup: Always create backup_YYYYMMDD/ dir pre-delete, even w/ git.

7. Wrong R binary on hybrid systems: WSL / Docker, Rscript maybe resolves to cross-platform wrapper vs. native R. Check w/ which Rscript && Rscript --version. Prefer native R binary (e.g., /usr/local/bin/Rscript Linux/WSL) for reliability. See Setting Up Your Environment for R path config.

→

• tidy-project-structure — Organize dir layout, update READMEs
• repair-broken-references — Fix dead links + imports
• escalate-issues — Route complex problems to specialists
• r-packages/run-r-cmd-check — Full R pkg checks
• devops/dependency-audit — Check outdated deps