GitNexus/AGENTS.md

Last reviewed: 2026-04-16

Project: GitNexus · Environment: dev · Maintainer: repository maintainers (see GitHub)

Scope

Boundary	Rule
Reads	gitnexus/, gitnexus-web/, eval/, plugin packages, .github/, .gitnexus/, docs.
Writes	Only paths required for the change; keep diffs minimal. Update lockfiles when deps change.
Executes	npm, npx, node under gitnexus/ and gitnexus-web/; uv run for Python under eval/; documented CI/dev workflows.
Off-limits	Real .env / secrets, production credentials, unrelated repos, destructive git ops without confirmation.

Model Configuration

• Primary: Use a named model (e.g. Claude Sonnet 4.x). Avoid Auto or unversioned latest when reproducibility matters.
• Notes: The GitNexus CLI indexer does not call an LLM.

Execution Sequence (complex tasks)

For multi-step work, state up front:

1. Which rules in this file and GUARDRAILS.md apply (and any relevant Signs).
2. Current Scope boundaries.
3. Which validation commands you will run (cd gitnexus && npm test, npx tsc --noEmit).

On long threads, "Remember: apply all AGENTS.md rules" re-weights these instructions against context dilution.

Claude Code hooks

PreToolUse hooks can block tools (e.g. git_commit) until checks pass. Adapt to this repo: cd gitnexus && npm test before commit.

Context budget

Commands and gotchas live under Repo reference below and in CONTRIBUTING.md. If always-on rules grow, split into .cursor/rules/*.mdc (globs). Cursor: project-wide rules in .cursor/index.mdc. Claude Code: load STANDARDS.md only when needed.

Reference docs

• ARCHITECTURE.md, CONTRIBUTING.md, GUARDRAILS.md
• Call-resolution DAG: See ARCHITECTURE.md § Call-Resolution DAG. Typed 6-stage DAG inside the parse phase; language-specific behavior behind inferImplicitReceiver / selectDispatch hooks on LanguageProvider. Shared code in gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/ must not name languages. Types: gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/call-types.ts.
• Cursor: .cursor/index.mdc (always-on); .cursor/rules/*.mdc (glob-scoped). Legacy .cursorrules deprecated.
• GitNexus: skills in .claude/skills/gitnexus/; MCP rules in gitnexus:start block below.

Changelog

Date	Version	Change
2026-04-16	1.4.0	Fixed: web UI description, pre-commit behavior, MCP tools (7->16), added gitnexus-shared, removed stale vite-plugin-wasm gotcha.
2026-04-13	1.3.0	Updated GitNexus index stats after DAG refactor.
2026-03-24	1.2.0	Fixed gitnexus:start block duplication.
2026-03-23	1.1.0	Updated agent instructions, references, Cursor layout.
2026-03-22	1.0.0	Initial structured header and changelog.

---

GitNexus — Code Intelligence

Indexed as GitNexus (4325 symbols, 10556 relationships, 300 execution flows). Use MCP tools to understand code, assess impact, and navigate safely.

If any tool warns the index is stale, run npx gitnexus analyze first.

Always Do

• MUST run impact analysis before editing any symbol. gitnexus_impact({target: "symbolName", direction: "upstream"}) — report blast radius to the user.
• MUST run gitnexus_detect_changes() before committing — verify only expected symbols and flows are affected.
• MUST warn the user if impact returns HIGH or CRITICAL risk.
• Explore unfamiliar code with gitnexus_query({query: "concept"}) (process-grouped, ranked) instead of grepping.
• Full context on a symbol: gitnexus_context({name: "symbolName"}).

When Debugging

1. gitnexus_query({query: "<error or symptom>"}) — find related execution flows
2. gitnexus_context({name: "<suspect function>"}) — callers, callees, process participation
3. READ gitnexus://repo/GitNexus/process/{processName} — trace flow step by step
4. Regressions: gitnexus_detect_changes({scope: "compare", base_ref: "main"})

When Refactoring

• Rename: gitnexus_rename({symbol_name: "old", new_name: "new", dry_run: true}) first. Graph edits are safe; text_search edits need manual review.
• Extract/Split: gitnexus_context (incoming/outgoing refs) then gitnexus_impact (upstream callers) before moving code.
• After any refactor: gitnexus_detect_changes({scope: "all"}) to verify scope.

Never Do

• Edit a symbol without running gitnexus_impact first.
• Ignore HIGH/CRITICAL risk warnings.
• Rename with find-and-replace — use gitnexus_rename.
• Commit without gitnexus_detect_changes().
• Add language-specific behavior to shared ingestion code (gitnexus/src/core/ingestion/) — use a LanguageProvider hook. Seeing provider.mroStrategy === 'xxx' or an import from languages/xxx.ts in shared code means stop and add a hook.

Tools Quick Reference

Tool	When to use	Example
list_repos	Discover indexed repos	gitnexus_list_repos({})
query	Find code by concept	gitnexus_query({query: "auth validation"})
context	360-degree view of one symbol	gitnexus_context({name: "validateUser"})
impact	Blast radius before editing	gitnexus_impact({target: "X", direction: "upstream"})
detect_changes	Pre-commit scope check	gitnexus_detect_changes({scope: "staged"})
rename	Safe multi-file rename	gitnexus_rename({symbol_name: "old", new_name: "new", dry_run: true})
cypher	Custom graph queries	gitnexus_cypher({query: "MATCH ..."})
api_impact	Pre-change API route impact	gitnexus_api_impact({route: "/api/users", method: "GET"})
route_map	Route → handler → consumer map	gitnexus_route_map({})
tool_map	MCP/RPC tool definitions	gitnexus_tool_map({})
shape_check	Response shape vs consumer access	gitnexus_shape_check({route: "/api/users"})
group_list	List repo groups	gitnexus_group_list({})
group_query	Cross-repo search in a group	gitnexus_group_query({name: "myGroup", query: "auth"})
group_sync	Rebuild group Contract Registry	gitnexus_group_sync({name: "myGroup"})
group_contracts	Inspect group contracts	gitnexus_group_contracts({name: "myGroup"})
group_status	Group staleness report	gitnexus_group_status({name: "myGroup"})

Impact Risk Levels

Depth	Meaning	Action
d=1	WILL BREAK — direct callers/importers	MUST update
d=2	LIKELY AFFECTED — indirect deps	Should test
d=3	MAY NEED TESTING — transitive	Test if critical path

Resources

Resource	Use for
gitnexus://repo/GitNexus/context	Codebase overview, index freshness
gitnexus://repo/GitNexus/clusters	All functional areas
gitnexus://repo/GitNexus/processes	All execution flows
gitnexus://repo/GitNexus/process/{name}	Step-by-step execution trace

Self-Check Before Finishing

1. gitnexus_impact was run for all modified symbols
2. No HIGH/CRITICAL warnings were ignored
3. gitnexus_detect_changes() confirms expected scope
4. All d=1 dependents were updated

Keeping the Index Fresh

npx gitnexus analyze              # basic refresh
npx gitnexus analyze --embeddings # preserve embeddings

Check .gitnexus/meta.json stats.embeddings (0 = none). Running without --embeddings deletes existing vectors.

Claude Code: PostToolUse hook handles this after git commit and git merge.

CLI Skills

Task	Skill file
Architecture / "How does X work?"	.claude/skills/gitnexus/gitnexus-exploring/SKILL.md
Blast radius / "What breaks?"	.claude/skills/gitnexus/gitnexus-impact-analysis/SKILL.md
Debugging / "Why is X failing?"	.claude/skills/gitnexus/gitnexus-debugging/SKILL.md
Refactoring	.claude/skills/gitnexus/gitnexus-refactoring/SKILL.md
Tools/resources/schema reference	.claude/skills/gitnexus/gitnexus-guide/SKILL.md
CLI commands (index, status, clean, wiki)	.claude/skills/gitnexus/gitnexus-cli/SKILL.md

Repo reference

Packages

Package	Path	Purpose
CLI/Core	gitnexus/	TypeScript CLI, indexing pipeline, MCP server. Published to npm.
Web UI	gitnexus-web/	React/Vite thin client. All queries via gitnexus serve HTTP API.
Shared	gitnexus-shared/	Shared TypeScript types and constants.
Claude Plugin	gitnexus-claude-plugin/	Static config for Claude marketplace.
Cursor Integration	gitnexus-cursor-integration/	Static config for Cursor editor.
Eval	eval/	Python evaluation harness (Docker + LLM API keys).

Running services

cd gitnexus && npm run dev                 # CLI: tsx watch mode
cd gitnexus-web && npm run dev             # Web UI: Vite on port 5173
npx gitnexus serve                         # HTTP API on port 4747 (from any indexed repo)

Testing

CLI / Core (gitnexus/)

• npm test — full vitest suite (~2000 tests)
• npm run test:unit — unit tests only
• npm run test:integration — integration (~1850 tests). LadybugDB file-locking tests may fail in containers (known env issue).
• npx tsc --noEmit — typecheck

Web UI (gitnexus-web/)

• npm test — vitest (~200 tests)
• npm run test:e2e — Playwright (7 spec files; requires gitnexus serve + npm run dev)
• npx tsc -b --noEmit — typecheck

Pre-commit hook (.husky/pre-commit): formatting (prettier via lint-staged) + typecheck for staged packages. Tests do not run in pre-commit — CI only.

Gotchas

• npm install in gitnexus/ triggers prepare (builds via tsc) and postinstall (patches tree-sitter-swift, builds tree-sitter-proto). Native bindings need python3, make, g++.
• tree-sitter-kotlin and tree-sitter-swift are optional — install warnings expected.
• ESLint configured via eslint.config.mjs (TS, React Hooks, unused-imports). No npm run lint script; use npx eslint .. Prettier runs via lint-staged. CI checks both in ci-quality.yml.