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+# BigCommerce Developer Documentation
+
+BigCommerce developer documentation repository containing MDX documentation files and OpenAPI specification files that power the [BigCommerce Developer Center](https://developer.bigcommerce.com/docs).
+
+**Always reference these instructions first and fallback to search or bash commands only when you encounter unexpected information that does not match the info here.**
+
+## Working Effectively
+
+### Bootstrap and Validate the Repository
+
+**NEVER CANCEL builds or linting commands. Set timeouts of 60+ minutes for all operations.**
+
+1. **Prerequisites:**
+   - Node.js version 18+ (specified in `.nvmrc`)
+   - npm (comes with Node.js)
+
+2. **Setup:**
+   ```bash
+   npm ci
+   ```
+   - Takes ~2 seconds with dependencies cached, up to 30 seconds on first run
+   - NEVER CANCEL: Set timeout to 60+ seconds
+
+3. **Validate MDX documentation:**
+   ```bash
+   npm run lint
+   ```
+   - Lints 392+ MDX files using ESLint with mdx plugin
+   - Takes ~12 seconds for full repository scan
+   - NEVER CANCEL: Set timeout to 60+ seconds
+
+4. **Validate OpenAPI specifications:**
+   ```bash
+   npm install -g @stoplight/spectral-cli@latest
+   spectral lint './reference/**/*.yml' --ruleset '.spectral.yaml' --ignore-unknown-format
+   ```
+   - Lints 70+ OpenAPI specification files
+   - Takes ~32 seconds for full repository scan
+   - NEVER CANCEL: Set timeout to 60+ seconds
+
+5. **Style guide validation (runs automatically in CI):**
+   - Uses custom `bigcommerce/dev-docs-style-guide-linter`
+   - Runs via GitHub Actions using Docker container
+   - Cannot be run locally without Docker setup
+
+## No Traditional Build Process
+
+This repository contains documentation source files, not a web application:
+- **No `npm run build`** - files are processed by external systems
+- **No `npm run test`** - validation happens through linting
+- **No server to run** - content is published via separate build pipeline
+- **Production deployment** triggers via CircleCI when changes merge to `main`
+
+## Validation Requirements
+
+**ALWAYS run validation before committing changes:**
+
+1. **For MDX changes:** `npm run lint`
+2. **For OpenAPI changes:** `spectral lint './reference/**/*.yml' --ruleset '.spectral.yaml' --ignore-unknown-format`
+3. **Both commands must pass** for CI to succeed
+
+## Repository Structure
+
+### Key Directories
+```
+├── docs/                    # Main documentation content (MDX files)
+│   ├── api-docs/           # API documentation
+│   ├── storefront/         # Storefront development docs
+│   ├── store-operations/   # Store management docs
+│   └── start/              # Getting started guides
+├── reference/              # OpenAPI specification files (YAML)
+├── archive/                # Archived documentation (also MDX)
+├── assets/                 # Images, static files, translations
+├── models/                 # JSON schemas in YAML format
+├── examples/               # Example data for Stencil contexts
+└── .github/                # GitHub Actions workflows and configuration
+```
+
+### Important Files
+- **`.nvmrc`** - Node.js version requirement (18)
+- **`package.json`** - npm scripts and dependencies
+- **`.eslintrc.json`** - ESLint configuration for MDX linting
+- **`.spectral.yaml`** - Spectral rules for OpenAPI validation
+- **`.cspell.json`** - Spell check configuration with custom dictionaries
+- **`.style/core-glossary.txt`** - Approved terminology and BigCommerce-specific words
+- **`.style/skip-list.txt`** - Words to skip during spell checking
+- **`CONTRIBUTING.md`** - Contribution guidelines
+- **`package-lock.json`** - Required for `npm ci` command
+
+## Development Workflow
+
+1. **Make changes** to MDX files in `docs/` or `archive/` directories
+2. **Or make changes** to OpenAPI YAML files in `reference/` directory
+3. **Run validation:** `npm run lint` and/or `spectral lint` commands
+4. **Fix any linting errors** before committing
+5. **Submit pull request** - CI will run all validations automatically
+6. **Merge to main** triggers production rebuild via CircleCI
+
+## Common Tasks
+
+### Editing Documentation
+- **MDX files** in `docs/` and `archive/` directories
+- Use Markdown with React components
+- Always run `npm run lint` after changes
+
+### Editing API Specifications  
+- **YAML files** in `reference/` directory
+- Follow OpenAPI 3.0+ specification
+- Always run `spectral lint './reference/**/*.yml' --ruleset '.spectral.yaml' --ignore-unknown-format` after changes
+
+### Finding Files
+- **Documentation:** Search in `docs/` subdirectories by topic
+- **API specs:** Look in `reference/` directory by API name
+- **Examples:** Check `examples/` for Stencil context examples
+- **Images:** Located in `assets/images/` directory
+
+## Validation Scenarios
+
+**ALWAYS test these scenarios after making changes:**
+
+1. **For documentation changes:**
+   - Run `npm run lint` successfully
+   - Verify MDX syntax is valid
+   - Check that any code blocks have proper language tags
+
+2. **For API specification changes:**
+   - Run `spectral lint` successfully  
+   - Verify YAML syntax is valid
+   - Test spec rendering using BigCommerce spec tester: https://developer.bigcommerce.com/spec-tester
+
+3. **For any changes:**
+   - Check that links and references are valid
+   - Verify image paths exist in `assets/` directory
+   - Ensure proper spelling (checked by cspell automatically)
+
+## Timing Expectations
+
+**Set appropriate timeouts for all commands:**
+
+- **`npm ci`**: ~2-30 seconds (NEVER CANCEL - set 60+ second timeout)
+- **`npm run lint`**: ~12 seconds (NEVER CANCEL - set 60+ second timeout)  
+- **`spectral lint`**: ~32 seconds (NEVER CANCEL - set 60+ second timeout)
+- **Git operations**: Usually instant but set 30+ second timeouts
+
+## Troubleshooting
+
+### Linting Errors
+- **ESLint MDX errors:** Check MDX syntax and React component usage
+- **Spectral errors:** Verify OpenAPI specification format and required fields
+- **Spell check errors:** Add words to `.style/core-glossary.txt` or `.style/skip-list.txt`
+
+### Common Issues
+- **`npm ci` fails:** Ensure `package-lock.json` exists and is not corrupted
+- **Spectral not found:** Install globally with `npm install -g @stoplight/spectral-cli@latest`
+- **Linting timeout:** Normal for large repositories - wait for completion, do not cancel
+
+### Performance
+- Repository contains 392+ MDX files and 70+ YAML files
+- Linting scans all files - expect 10-30 second operation times
+- **Never cancel operations** - they will complete within reasonable timeframes
+
+## External Dependencies
+
+- **Production builds:** Managed by separate `developer-center` repository via CircleCI
+- **Style guide linting:** Uses `bigcommerce/dev-docs-style-guide-linter` npm package
+- **Spec testing:** Available at https://developer.bigcommerce.com/spec-tester
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