code-explore

Code Explore Skill

Trigger

• Keywords: code explore, code investigation, research code, trace code, feature understanding, quick investigation, code exploration

When to Use

• Quickly understand how a feature works
• Trace execution paths / data flow
• Diagnose problem root causes
• No dual confirmation needed (no Codex cross-validation)

When NOT to Use

Scenario	Alternative
Need dual confirmation	/code-investigate (Claude + Codex)
Git history tracking	/git-investigate
System verification	/feature-verify
Code review	/codex-review-fast

Workflow

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Phase 1: Locate Entry Point                                │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 1. Grep keywords -> find related files                     │
│ 2. Identify entry points (Controller / Service / Provider) │
│ 3. Build file list                                         │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                          ↓
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Phase 2: Trace Path                                        │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 1. Start from entry point, Read                            │
│ 2. Identify dependencies -> continue tracing               │
│ 3. Map call chain (A -> B -> C)                            │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                          ↓
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Phase 3: Understand Logic                                  │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 1. What is the core logic?                                 │
│ 2. How does data flow?                                     │
│ 3. Error handling mechanisms?                              │
│ 4. Key decision points?                                    │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
                          ↓
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Phase 4: Output Report                                     │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 1. Architecture overview (diagram / table)                 │
│ 2. Key files list                                          │
│ 3. Execution flow                                          │
│ 4. Findings / notes                                        │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Search Strategy

Target	Strategy
Feature entry	Grep "export class.*Controller" / Grep "@Get|@Post"
Service layer	Grep "export class.*Service"
Provider layer	Glob "src/provider/**/*.ts"
Configuration	Read {CONFIG_FILE}
Data models	Glob "src/model/**/*.ts"

Output Format

## Investigation Report: {Topic}

### Architecture Overview

{ASCII or Mermaid diagram}

### Key Files

| File              | Responsibility |
| ----------------- | -------------- |
| `path/to/file.ts` | Description   |

### Execution Flow

1. {Step 1}
2. {Step 2}
3. ...

### Data Flow

{Describe how data flows}

### Findings

- {Important finding 1}
- {Important finding 2}

### Notes

- {Potential issue / edge case}

Verification

• Entry points identified and listed
• Execution flow traced end-to-end
• Key files table includes all relevant files
• Findings section has actionable insights

References

• references/search-patterns.md — Common search patterns for codebase exploration (read when building search strategy)

Examples

Feature Understanding

Input: Investigate how user data queries work
Phase 1: Grep "balance" -> find UserService, UserController
Phase 2: Controller -> Service -> Provider call chain
Phase 3: Understand query + cache mechanism
Phase 4: Output report + flow diagram

Problem Diagnosis

Input: Why does this API sometimes return empty?
Phase 1: Grep "getData" + "cache" -> related files
Phase 2: Trace data retrieval path
Phase 3: Identify fallback logic + timeout handling
Phase 4: List possible causes + recommendations

Architecture Understanding

Input: What is the overall architecture of the user module?
Phase 1: Glob "src/**/*user*" -> list all related files
Phase 2: Identify layer relationships (Controller -> Service -> Provider)
Phase 3: Understand each layer's responsibilities
Phase 4: Output architecture diagram + module description

Difference from code-investigate

Dimension	code-explore	code-investigate
Speed	Fast (single view)	Slow (dual view)
Confirmation	Single perspective	Cross-validation
Tools	Pure Claude	Claude + Codex
Use case	Quick investigation	Important decisions