| name | cercano-init |
| description | Initialize Cercano for a project by scanning the repo and building a context file. Makes all Cercano tools project-aware with domain-specific knowledge. Run this once per project for dramatically better local AI responses. |
| compatibility | Requires Cercano server running with Ollama available. |
Cercano Init
Initialize Cercano for the current project. Scans the repo, feeds key files through a local model, and writes .cercano/context.md — a concise reference document that gets automatically prepended to all future Cercano tool calls in this project.
MCP Tool
Tool name: cercano_init
Parameters
| Parameter | Type | Required | Description |
|---|
project_dir | string | Yes | The project root directory (where .git/ lives). |
context | string | No | Domain knowledge you already have about this project. IMPORTANT: Only provide knowledge you already have. Do NOT read files or research the project to populate this field. Cercano will scan the repo itself. If you don't have context yet, omit this parameter entirely. |
What It Does
- Scans
project_dir for key files: README, CLAUDE.md, .claude/memory/*, .proto, .h, config files, manifests
- Feeds discovered files through a local model to extract domain knowledge
- Merges with any host-provided context
- Writes
.cercano/context.md with sections for: Overview, Architecture, Key Data Structures, APIs & Protocols, Conventions, File Layout
- All subsequent Cercano tool calls that include
project_dir automatically get this context prepended
Examples
Basic init (no prior context):
{
"project_dir": "/Users/me/my-project"
}
Init with host context:
{
"project_dir": "/Users/me/my-project",
"context": "This project uses a custom binary protocol over SPI between an STM32 and ESP32. The key struct is espcp_configuration_t with the message queue at offset 0x14."
}
When To Use
- First time using Cercano tools in a project
- When you see the "Cercano hasn't been initialized" message
- After major project changes (re-run to rebuild context)
