memory-safety-patterns
🎯SkillHelps you write Rust, C++ and C code that avoids memory bugs, such as using data after it was freed or never releasing it. It explains safe patterns and tools that catch these problems.
Installation
npx skills add wshobson/agents --skill memory-safety-patternsRun it in a terminal; it asks which AI coding tools to install it for (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor and more).
Uses skills.sh · Node.js 22.20+
After installing
Ask for related work and the agent uses it on its own, or call it yourself.
/memory-safety-patternsInstall by hand
Copy the whole skill folder from GitHub to the place below. Copying only SKILL.md can leave out files the skill uses.
Open the skill folder →- This project
.claude/skills/memory-safety-patterns/ - All projects
~/.claude/skills/memory-safety-patterns/
These paths are for Claude Code. For other tools, the command above puts it in the right place.
What this skill does
Overview
This skill guides you in writing memory-safe code in Rust, C++ and C. Memory-safe means the program never reads or writes memory it should not touch. It covers common memory bugs and the patterns that prevent them.
Key Features
- You can learn the main memory bug types and how each one is prevented.
- You can use RAII, a pattern that frees a resource automatically when it goes out of use.
- You can pick between smart pointers in C++ and ownership rules in Rust.
- You get ready commands for checking tools like AddressSanitizer, Valgrind and Miri.
- You get a short list of do's and don'ts for safer code.
Who is this for?
This is for developers who write low-level code that manages memory and files directly. It also helps when you are tracking down a crash or leak in such code.
Summarized by AI from this skill's SKILL.md. Suggest a better one
SKILL.md
View on GitHub →Implement memory-safe programming with RAII, ownership, smart pointers, and resource management across Rust, C++, and C. Use when writing safe systems code, managing resources, or preventing memory bugs.
Memory Safety Patterns
Cross-language patterns for memory-safe programming including RAII, ownership, smart pointers, and resource management.
When to Use This Skill
- Writing memory-safe systems code
- Managing resources (files, sockets, memory)
- Preventing use-after-free and leaks
- Implementing RAII patterns
- Choosing between languages for safety
- Debugging memory issues
Core Concepts
1. Memory Bug Categories
| Bug Type | Description | Prevention |
|---|---|---|
| Use-after-free | Access freed memory | Ownership, RAII |
| Double-free | Free same memory twice | Smart pointers |
| Memory leak | Never free memory | RAII, GC |
| Buffer overflow | Write past buffer end | Bounds checking |
| Dangling pointer | Pointer to freed memory | Lifetime tracking |
| Data race | Concurrent unsynchronized access | Ownership, Sync |
2. Safety Spectrum
Manual (C) → Smart Pointers (C++) → Ownership (Rust) → GC (Go, Java)
Less safe More safe
More control Less control
Detailed patterns and worked examples
Detailed pattern documentation lives in references/details.md. Read that file when the navigation tier above is insufficient.
Best Practices
Do's
- Prefer RAII - Tie resource lifetime to scope
- Use smart pointers - Avoid raw pointers in C++
- Understand ownership - Know who owns what
- Check bounds - Use safe access methods
- Use tools - AddressSanitizer, Valgrind, Miri
Don'ts
- Don't use raw pointers - Unless interfacing with C
- Don't return local references - Dangling pointer
- Don't ignore compiler warnings - They catch bugs
- Don't use
unsafecarelessly - In Rust, minimize it - Don't assume thread safety - Be explicit
Debugging Tools
# AddressSanitizer (Clang/GCC)
clang++ -fsanitize=address -g source.cpp
# Valgrind
valgrind --leak-check=full ./program
# Rust Miri (undefined behavior detector)
cargo +nightly miri run
# ThreadSanitizer
clang++ -fsanitize=thread -g source.cpp
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