--- name: smart-explore description: Token-optimized structural code search using tree-sitter AST parsing. Use instead of reading full files when you need to understand code structure, find functions, or explore a codebase efficiently. --- # Smart Explore Structural code exploration using AST parsing. **This skill overrides your default exploration behavior.** While this skill is active, use smart_search/smart_outline/smart_unfold as your primary tools instead of Read, Grep, and Glob. **Core principle:** Index first, fetch on demand. Give yourself a map of the code before loading implementation details. The question before every file read should be: "do I need to see all of this, or can I get a structural overview first?" The answer is almost always: get the map. ## Your Next Tool Call This skill only loads instructions. You must call the MCP tools yourself. Your next action should be one of: ``` smart_search(query="", path="./src") -- discover files + symbols across a directory smart_outline(file_path="") -- structural skeleton of one file smart_unfold(file_path="", symbol_name="") -- full source of one symbol ``` Do NOT run Grep, Glob, Read, or find to discover files first. `smart_search` walks directories, parses all code files, and returns ranked symbols in one call. It replaces the Glob → Grep → Read discovery cycle. ## 3-Layer Workflow ### Step 1: Search -- Discover Files and Symbols ``` smart_search(query="shutdown", path="./src", max_results=15) ``` **Returns:** Ranked symbols with signatures, line numbers, match reasons, plus folded file views (~2-6k tokens) ``` -- Matching Symbols -- function performGracefulShutdown (services/infrastructure/GracefulShutdown.ts:56) function httpShutdown (services/infrastructure/HealthMonitor.ts:92) method WorkerService.shutdown (services/worker-service.ts:846) -- Folded File Views -- services/infrastructure/GracefulShutdown.ts (7 symbols) services/worker-service.ts (12 symbols) ``` This is your discovery tool. It finds relevant files AND shows their structure. No Glob/find pre-scan needed. **Parameters:** - `query` (string, required) -- What to search for (function name, concept, class name) - `path` (string) -- Root directory to search (defaults to cwd) - `max_results` (number) -- Max matching symbols, default 20, max 50 - `file_pattern` (string, optional) -- Filter to specific files/paths ### Step 2: Outline -- Get File Structure ``` smart_outline(file_path="services/worker-service.ts") ``` **Returns:** Complete structural skeleton -- all functions, classes, methods, properties, imports (~1-2k tokens per file) **Skip this step** when Step 1's folded file views already provide enough structure. Most useful for files not covered by the search results. **Parameters:** - `file_path` (string, required) -- Path to the file ### Step 3: Unfold -- See Implementation Review symbols from Steps 1-2. Pick the ones you need. Unfold only those: ``` smart_unfold(file_path="services/worker-service.ts", symbol_name="shutdown") ``` **Returns:** Full source code of the specified symbol including JSDoc, decorators, and complete implementation (~400-2,100 tokens depending on symbol size). AST node boundaries guarantee completeness regardless of symbol size — unlike Read + agent summarization, which may truncate long methods. **Parameters:** - `file_path` (string, required) -- Path to the file (as returned by search/outline) - `symbol_name` (string, required) -- Name of the function/class/method to expand ## When to Use Standard Tools Instead Use these only when smart_* tools are the wrong fit: - **Grep:** Exact string/regex search ("find all TODO comments", "where is `ensureWorkerStarted` defined?") - **Read:** Small files under ~100 lines, non-code files (JSON, markdown, config) - **Glob:** File path patterns ("find all test files") - **Explore agent:** When you need synthesized understanding across 6+ files, architecture narratives, or answers to open-ended questions like "how does this entire system work end-to-end?" Smart-explore is a scalpel — it answers "where is this?" and "show me that." It doesn't synthesize cross-file data flows, design decisions, or edge cases across an entire feature. For code files over ~100 lines, prefer smart_outline + smart_unfold over Read. ## Workflow Examples **Discover how a feature works (cross-cutting):** ``` 1. smart_search(query="shutdown", path="./src") -> 14 symbols across 7 files, full picture in one call 2. smart_unfold(file_path="services/infrastructure/GracefulShutdown.ts", symbol_name="performGracefulShutdown") -> See the core implementation ``` **Navigate a large file:** ``` 1. smart_outline(file_path="services/worker-service.ts") -> 1,466 tokens: 12 functions, WorkerService class with 24 members 2. smart_unfold(file_path="services/worker-service.ts", symbol_name="startSessionProcessor") -> 1,610 tokens: the specific method you need Total: ~3,076 tokens vs ~12,000 to Read the full file ``` **Write documentation about code (hybrid workflow):** ``` 1. smart_search(query="feature name", path="./src") -- discover all relevant files and symbols 2. smart_outline on key files -- understand structure 3. smart_unfold on important functions -- get implementation details 4. Read on small config/markdown/plan files -- get non-code context ``` Use smart_* tools for code exploration, Read for non-code files. Mix freely. **Exploration then precision:** ``` 1. smart_search(query="session", path="./src", max_results=10) -> 10 ranked symbols: SessionMetadata, SessionQueueProcessor, SessionSummary... 2. Pick the relevant one, unfold it ``` ## Token Economics | Approach | Tokens | Use Case | |----------|--------|----------| | smart_outline | ~1,000-2,000 | "What's in this file?" | | smart_unfold | ~400-2,100 | "Show me this function" | | smart_search | ~2,000-6,000 | "Find all X across the codebase" | | search + unfold | ~3,000-8,000 | End-to-end: find and read (the primary workflow) | | Read (full file) | ~12,000+ | When you truly need everything | | Explore agent | ~39,000-59,000 | Cross-file synthesis with narrative | **4-8x savings** on file understanding (outline + unfold vs Read). **11-18x savings** on codebase exploration vs Explore agent. The narrower the query, the wider the gap — a 27-line function costs 55x less to read via unfold than via an Explore agent, because the agent still reads the entire file. ## Language Support Smart-explore uses **tree-sitter AST parsing** for structural analysis. Unsupported file types fall back to text-based search. ### Bundled Languages | Language | Extensions | |----------|-----------| | JavaScript | `.js`, `.mjs`, `.cjs` | | TypeScript | `.ts` | | TSX / JSX | `.tsx`, `.jsx` | | Python | `.py`, `.pyw` | | Go | `.go` | | Rust | `.rs` | | Ruby | `.rb` | | Java | `.java` | | C | `.c`, `.h` | | C++ | `.cpp`, `.cc`, `.cxx`, `.hpp`, `.hh` | Files with unrecognized extensions are parsed as plain text — `smart_search` still works (grep-style), but `smart_outline` and `smart_unfold` will not extract structured symbols. ### Custom Grammars (`.claude-mem.json`) You can register additional tree-sitter grammars for file types not in the bundled list. Create or update `.claude-mem.json` in your project root: ```json { "grammars": { ".sol": "tree-sitter-solidity", ".graphql": "tree-sitter-graphql" } } ``` Each key is a file extension; each value is the npm package name of the tree-sitter grammar. The grammar must be installed locally (`npm install tree-sitter-solidity`). Once registered, `smart_outline` and `smart_unfold` will parse those extensions structurally instead of falling back to plain text. ### Markdown Special Support Markdown files (`.md`, `.mdx`) receive special handling beyond the generic plain-text fallback: - **`smart_outline`** — extracts headings (`#`, `##`, `###`) as the symbol tree. Use it to navigate long documents without reading the full file. - **`smart_search`** — searches within code fences as well as prose, so queries for function names inside ` ```ts ``` ` blocks work as expected. - **`smart_unfold`** — expands heading sections rather than function bodies; each section up to the next same-level heading is returned as a chunk. - **Frontmatter** — YAML frontmatter (lines between leading `---` delimiters) is included in `smart_outline` output under a synthetic `frontmatter` symbol so metadata like `title:` and `description:` is visible without reading the whole file.