The biggest fear when writing code with an AI agent is losing control: the agent runs off on its own, quality is inconsistent, you don’t know what stage it’s in, and it messes up halfway through. AWS has just open-sourced a set of development lifecycle workflow rules specifically for AI coding agents—AI-DLC. It makes the agent follow the methodology step by step—requirements analysis, design, and implementation—automatically adapting to your project, maintaining quality standards, and keeping you in control throughout the entire process.
GitHub: https://github.com/awslabs/aidlc-workflows…
Cross-platform support is comprehensive: Claude Code, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Kiro (using Steering Files), Amazon Q Developer, and Cline are all supported. Deployment is minimal—download the release zip, extract the aidlc-rules directory, place it in the corresponding location for your agent platform, and the rules take effect immediately. The more powerful the AI agent, the more it needs a reliable workflow to keep it in check.

awslabs/aidlc-workflows

Source: https://github.com/awslabs/aidlc-workflows

AI-DLC (AI-Driven Development Life Cycle)

Generative AI can make mistakes. You should consider reviewing all output and costs generated by your chosen AI model and agentic coding assistant. See AWS Responsible AI Policy (https://aws.amazon.com/ai/responsible-ai/policy/).

AI-DLC is an intelligent software development workflow that adapts to your needs, maintains quality standards, and keeps you in control of the process. For learning more about AI-DLC Methodology, read this blog (https://aws.amazon.com/blogs/devops/ai-driven-development-life-cycle/) and the Method Definition Paper (https://prod.d13rzhkk8cj2z0.amplifyapp.com/) referred in it.

Table of Contents

• Common
• Platform-Specific Setup
• Usage
• Three-Phase Adaptive Workflow
• Key Features
• Extensions
• Supporting Tools
• Tenets
• Prerequisites
• Troubleshooting
• Version Control Recommendations
• Additional Resources
• Generated aidlc-docs/ Reference
• Experimental: AI-Assisted Setup (Release Download)
• Contributing
• License

Common

1. Download the latest release zip file named ai-dlc-rules-v<version>.zip from the Releases page to a folder outside your project directory (e.g., ~/Downloads).
2. Extract the zip. It contains an aidlc-rules/ folder with two subdirectories:
   • aws-aidlc-rules/ — the core AI-DLC workflow rules
   • aws-aidlc-rule-details/ — detailed rules conditionally referenced by the core rules
3. Follow the setup instructions for your coding agent and platform below.

Platform-Specific Setup

• Kiro
• Amazon Q Developer IDE Plugin
• Cursor IDE
• Cline
• Claude Code
• GitHub Copilot

Kiro

AI-DLC uses Kiro Steering Files (https://kiro.dev/docs/cli/steering/) within your project workspace.

The commands below assume you extracted the zip to your Downloads folder so that the resulting path is Downloads/aidlc-rules/. If you used a different location, replace Downloads with your actual folder path.

Windows users: if you used File Explorer’s Extract All… dialog, it defaults to creating a wrapper folder named after the zip (e.g., ai-dlc-rules-v0.1.8\aidlc-rules\...). Either uncheck/edit that destination so the contents land directly in Downloads\aidlc-rules\ (matching the commands below), or prepend ai-dlc-rules-v<version>\ to each Downloads\ path in the commands — substituting <version> with the release you downloaded.

On macOS/Linux:

mkdir -p .kiro/steering
cp -R ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rules .kiro/steering/
cp -R ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rule-details .kiro/

On Windows (PowerShell):

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".kiro\steering"
Copy-Item -Recurse "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules" ".kiro\steering\"
Copy-Item -Recurse "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details" ".kiro\"

On Windows (CMD):

mkdir .kiro\steering
xcopy %USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules .kiro\steering\aws-aidlc-rules\ /E /I
xcopy %USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details .kiro\aws-aidlc-rule-details\ /E /I

Your project should look like:

/
├── .kiro/
│   ├── steering/
│   │   ├── aws-aidlc-rules/
│   ├── aws-aidlc-rule-details/

To verify the rules are loaded:

Verify in Kiro IDE

Open the steering files panel and confirm you see an entry for core-workflow under Workspace as shown in the screenshot below. We use Kiro IDE in Vibe mode to run the AI-DLC workflow. This ensures that AI-DLC workflow guides the development workflow in Kiro. At times, Kiro may nudge you to switch to spec mode. Select No to such prompts to stay in Vibe mode.

Verify in Kiro CLI

Run kiro-cli, then /context show, and confirm entries for .kiro/steering/aws-aidlc-rules.

Amazon Q Developer IDE Plugin/Extension

AI-DLC uses Amazon Q Rules (https://docs.aws.amazon.com/amazonq/latest/qdeveloper-ug/context-project-rules.html) within your project workspace.

The commands below assume you extracted the zip to your Downloads folder so that the resulting path is Downloads/aidlc-rules/. If you used a different location, replace Downloads with your actual folder path.

Windows users: if you used File Explorer’s Extract All… dialog, it defaults to creating a wrapper folder named after the zip (e.g., ai-dlc-rules-v0.1.8\aidlc-rules\...). Either uncheck/edit that destination so the contents land directly in Downloads\aidlc-rules\ (matching the commands below), or prepend ai-dlc-rules-v<version>\ to each Downloads\ path in the commands — substituting <version> with the release you downloaded.

On macOS/Linux:

mkdir -p .amazonq/rules
cp -R ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rules .amazonq/rules/
cp -R ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rule-details .amazonq/

On Windows (PowerShell):

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".amazonq\rules"
Copy-Item -Recurse "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules" ".amazonq\rules\"
Copy-Item -Recurse "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details" ".amazonq\"

On Windows (CMD):

mkdir .amazonq\rules
xcopy %USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules .amazonq\rules\aws-aidlc-rules\ /E /I
xcopy %USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details .amazonq\aws-aidlc-rule-details\ /E /I

Your project should look like:

/
├── .amazonq/
│   ├── rules/
│   │   ├── aws-aidlc-rules/
│   ├── aws-aidlc-rule-details/

To verify the rules are loaded:

1. In the Amazon Q Chat window, click the Rules button in the lower right corner.
2. Confirm you see entries for .amazonq/rules/aws-aidlc-rules.

Cursor IDE

AI-DLC uses Cursor Rules (https://cursor.com/docs/context/rules) to implement its intelligent workflow.

The commands below assume you extracted the zip to your Downloads folder so that the resulting path is Downloads/aidlc-rules/. If you used a different location, replace Downloads with your actual folder path.

Windows users: if you used File Explorer’s Extract All… dialog, it defaults to creating a wrapper folder named after the zip (e.g., ai-dlc-rules-v0.1.8\aidlc-rules\...). Either uncheck/edit that destination so the contents land directly in Downloads\aidlc-rules\ (matching the commands below), or prepend ai-dlc-rules-v<version>\ to each Downloads\ path in the commands — substituting <version> with the release you downloaded.

Option 1: Project Rules (Recommended)

Unix/Linux/macOS:

mkdir -p .cursor/rules
cat > .cursor/rules/ai-dlc-workflow.mdc << 'EOF'
---
description: "AI-DLC (AI-Driven Development Life Cycle) adaptive workflow for software development"
alwaysApply: true
---
EOF
cat ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rules/core-workflow.md >> .cursor/rules/ai-dlc-workflow.mdc
mkdir -p .aidlc-rule-details
cp -R ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rule-details/* .aidlc-rule-details/

Windows PowerShell:

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".cursor\rules"
$frontmatter = @"
---
description: "AI-DLC (AI-Driven Development Life Cycle) adaptive workflow for software development"
alwaysApply: true
---
"@
$frontmatter | Out-File -FilePath ".cursor\rules\ai-dlc-workflow.mdc" -Encoding utf8
Get-Content "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" | Add-Content ".cursor\rules\ai-dlc-workflow.mdc"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".aidlc-rule-details"
Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details\*" ".aidlc-rule-details\" -Recurse

Windows CMD:

mkdir .cursor\rules
( echo ---
echo description: "AI-DLC (AI-Driven Development Life Cycle) adaptive workflow for software development"
echo alwaysApply: true
echo ---
echo. ) > .cursor\rules\ai-dlc-workflow.mdc
type "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" >> .cursor\rules\ai-dlc-workflow.mdc
mkdir .aidlc-rule-details
xcopy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details" ".aidlc-rule-details\" /E /I

Option 2: AGENTS.md (Simple Alternative)

Unix/Linux/macOS:

cp ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rules/core-workflow.md ./AGENTS.md
mkdir -p .aidlc-rule-details
cp -R ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rule-details/* .aidlc-rule-details/

Windows PowerShell:

Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" ".\AGENTS.md"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".aidlc-rule-details"
Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details\*" ".aidlc-rule-details\" -Recurse

Windows CMD:

copy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" ".\AGENTS.md"
mkdir .aidlc-rule-details
xcopy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details" ".aidlc-rule-details\" /E /I

Verify Setup:

1. Open Cursor Settings → Rules, Commands
2. Under Project Rules, you should see ai-dlc-workflow listed
3. For AGENTS.md, it will be automatically detected and applied

AI-DLC Rules in Cursor

Directory Structure (Option 1):

/
├── .cursor/
│   └── rules/
│       └── ai-dlc-workflow.mdc
└── .aidlc-rule-details/
    ├── common/
    ├── inception/
    ├── construction/
    ├── extensions/
    └── operations/

Cline

AI-DLC uses Cline Rules to implement its intelligent workflow.

The commands below assume you extracted the zip to your Downloads folder so that the resulting path is Downloads/aidlc-rules/. If you used a different location, replace Downloads with your actual folder path.

Windows users: if you used File Explorer’s Extract All… dialog, it defaults to creating a wrapper folder named after the zip (e.g., ai-dlc-rules-v0.1.8\aidlc-rules\...). Either uncheck/edit that destination so the contents land directly in Downloads\aidlc-rules\ (matching the commands below), or prepend ai-dlc-rules-v<version>\ to each Downloads\ path in the commands — substituting <version> with the release you downloaded.

Option 1: .clinerules Directory (Recommended)

Unix/Linux/macOS:

mkdir -p .clinerules
cp ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rules/core-workflow.md .clinerules/
mkdir -p .aidlc-rule-details
cp -R ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rule-details/* .aidlc-rule-details/

Windows PowerShell:

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".clinerules"
Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" ".clinerules\"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".aidlc-rule-details"
Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details\*" ".aidlc-rule-details\" -Recurse

Windows CMD:

mkdir .clinerules
copy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" ".clinerules\"
mkdir .aidlc-rule-details
xcopy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details" ".aidlc-rule-details\" /E /I

Option 2: AGENTS.md (Alternative)

Unix/Linux/macOS:

cp ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rules/core-workflow.md ./AGENTS.md
mkdir -p .aidlc-rule-details
cp -R ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rule-details/* .aidlc-rule-details/

Windows PowerShell:

Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" ".\AGENTS.md"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".aidlc-rule-details"
Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details\*" ".aidlc-rule-details\" -Recurse

Windows CMD:

copy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" ".\AGENTS.md"
mkdir .aidlc-rule-details
xcopy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details" ".aidlc-rule-details\" /E /I

Verify Setup:

1. In Cline’s chat interface, look for the Rules popover under the chat input field
2. Verify that core-workflow.md is listed and active
3. You can toggle the rule file on/off as needed

AI-DLC Rules in Cline

Directory Structure (Option 1):

/
├── .clinerules/
│   └── core-workflow.md
└── .aidlc-rule-details/
    ├── common/
    ├── inception/
    ├── construction/
    ├── extensions/
    └── operations/

Claude Code

AI-DLC uses Claude Code’s project memory file (CLAUDE.md) to implement its intelligent workflow.

The commands below assume you extracted the zip to your Downloads folder so that the resulting path is Downloads/aidlc-rules/. If you used a different location, replace Downloads with your actual folder path.

Windows users: if you used File Explorer’s Extract All… dialog, it defaults to creating a wrapper folder named after the zip (e.g., ai-dlc-rules-v0.1.8\aidlc-rules\...). Either uncheck/edit that destination so the contents land directly in Downloads\aidlc-rules\ (matching the commands below), or prepend ai-dlc-rules-v<version>\ to each Downloads\ path in the commands — substituting <version> with the release you downloaded.

Option 1: Project Root (Recommended)

Unix/Linux/macOS:

cp ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rules/core-workflow.md ./CLAUDE.md
mkdir -p .aidlc-rule-details
cp -R ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rule-details/* .aidlc-rule-details/

Windows PowerShell:

Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" ".\CLAUDE.md"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".aidlc-rule-details"
Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details\*" ".aidlc-rule-details\" -Recurse

Windows CMD:

copy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" ".\CLAUDE.md"
mkdir .aidlc-rule-details
xcopy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details" ".aidlc-rule-details\" /E /I

Option 2: .claude Directory

Unix/Linux/macOS:

mkdir -p .claude
cp ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rules/core-workflow.md .claude/CLAUDE.md
mkdir -p .aidlc-rule-details
cp -R ~/Downloads/aidlc-rules/aws-aidlc-rule-details/* .aidlc-rule-details/

Windows PowerShell:

New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".claude"
Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" ".claude\CLAUDE.md"
New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path ".aidlc-rule-details"
Copy-Item "$env:USERPROFILE\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details\*" ".aidlc-rule-details\" -Recurse

Windows CMD:

mkdir .claude
copy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rules\core-workflow.md" ".claude\CLAUDE.md"
mkdir .aidlc-rule-details
xcopy "%USERPROFILE%\Downloads\aidlc-rules\aws-aidlc-rule-details" ".aidlc-rule-details\" /E /I

Verify Setup:

1. Start Claude Code in your project directory (CLI: claude or VS Code extension)
2. Use the /config command to view current configuration
3. Ask Claude: “What instructions are currently active in this project?”

Directory Structure (Option 1):

/
├── CLAUDE.md
└── .aidlc-rule-details/
    ├── common/
    ├── inception/
    ├── construction/
    ├── extensions/
    └── operations/

GitHub Copilot

AI-DLC uses GitHub Copilot custom instru