> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.trysixth.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Sixth Rules

> Give Sixth persistent guidance for a project or for every conversation.

Sixth Rules are persistent instructions Sixth follows on every task: your conventions, architecture notes, testing standards, anything you'd otherwise repeat in every prompt. They can apply to one project (workspace rules) or to everything you do (global rules).

## The Rules, Workflows & Skills menu

Click the **scales icon** in the message box toolbar to open a menu with three tabs:

* **Rules** — your global and workspace rules.
* **Workflows** — reusable step-by-step [workflows](/features/slash-commands/workflows) you run with `/filename`.
* **Skills** — [skills](/features/skills) Sixth can load, plus **Create with AI** and **Create Manually**.

On the Rules and Workflows tabs, each file has an on/off switch, an **edit** button that opens it in the editor, and a **delete** button. Each section ends with a **New rule file...** (or **New workflow file...**) row: type a name (`.md`, `.txt` or no extension; no extension becomes `.md`) and press Enter to create it. Turned-off rules stay on disk but aren't sent to the model.

## Where rules live

| Kind | Location |
| - | - |
| **Workspace rules** | `.sixthrules` in your project root. Either a single file, or a folder of Markdown files. |
| **Global rules** | `Documents/Sixth/Rules` in your user folder (`~/Documents/Sixth/Rules` on macOS and Linux). |
| **Cursor rules** | `.cursorrules` or `.cursor/rules/` in your project, shown with a **Cursor** tag. |
| **Windsurf rules** | `.windsurfrules` in your project, shown with a **Windsurf** tag. |

Sixth reads Cursor and Windsurf rule files too, so a project that already has them works without changes. Turn them off from the menu if you don't want them applied.

You can also ask Sixth to write a rule for you from the current conversation with [`/newrule`](/features/slash-commands/new-rule).

## Using a `.sixthrules` folder

For more than one rule, make `.sixthrules` a folder. Sixth combines every Markdown file in it:

```
your-project/
├── .sixthrules/
│   ├── 01-coding.md
│   ├── 02-testing.md
│   └── current-sprint.md
├── src/
└── ...
```

Number prefixes are optional; they just keep the files in order. With a folder you can switch individual rules on and off from the menu, for example a `react.md` rule only for frontend work.

## Example rule

```markdown Example Sixth Rule [expandable] theme={"system"}
# Project Guidelines

## Code style

- TypeScript strict mode; no `any`.
- Prefer composition over inheritance.
- Follow the error handling pattern in src/utils/errors.ts.

## Testing

- Unit tests for business logic, integration tests for API endpoints.
- Run `npm test` before calling a task done.

## Documentation

- Update docs/ when a feature changes.
- Add a CHANGELOG.md entry for user-visible changes.
```

## Tips

* **Be specific.** "Use Zod for request validation in src/api" beats "validate inputs".
* **Describe outcomes,** not step-by-step procedures. Procedures belong in [workflows](/features/slash-commands/workflows) or [skills](/features/skills).
* **Commit workspace rules** so your whole team gets the same behaviour.
* **Keep them short.** Rules are sent with every request, so trim anything Sixth no longer needs.


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