analyzing-projects

# Analyzing Projects ### When to Load - **Trigger**: Onboarding to a new project, "how does this work" questions, codebase exploration, understanding unfamiliar code - **Skip**: Already familiar with the project structure and patterns ## Project Analysis Workflow Copy this checklist and track progress: ``` Project Analysis Progress: - [ ] Step 1: Quick overview (README, root files) - [ ] Step 2: Detect tech stack - [ ] Step 3: Map project structure - [ ] Step 4: Identify key patterns - [ ] Step 5: Find development workflow - [ ] Step 6: Generate summary report ``` ## Step 1: Quick Overview ```bash # Check for common project markers ls -la cat README.md 2>/dev/null | head -50 ``` ## Step 2: Tech Stack Detection ### Package Managers & Dependencies - `package.json` → Node.js/JavaScript/TypeScript - `requirements.txt` / `pyproject.toml` / `setup.py` → Python - `go.mod` → Go - `Cargo.toml` → Rust - `pom.xml` / `build.gradle` → Java - `Gemfile` → Ruby ### Frameworks (from dependencies) - React, Vue, Angular, Next.js, Nuxt - Express, FastAPI, Django, Flask, Rails - Spring Boot, Gin, Echo ### Infrastructure - `Dockerfile`, `docker-compose.yml` → Containerized - `kubernetes/`, `k8s/` → Kubernetes - `terraform/`, `.tf` files → IaC - `serverless.yml` → Serverless Framework - `.github/workflows/` → GitHub Actions ## Step 3: Project Structure Analysis Present as a tree with annotations: ``` project/ ├── src/ # Source code │ ├── components/ # UI components (React/Vue) │ ├── services/ # Business logic │ ├── models/ # Data models │ └── utils/ # Shared utilities ├── tests/ # Test files ├── docs/ # Documentation └── config/ # Configuration ``` ## Step 4: Key Patterns Identification Look for and report: - **Architecture**: Monolith, Microservices, Serverless, Monorepo - **API Style**: REST, GraphQL, gRPC, tRPC - **State Management**: Redux, Zustand, MobX, Context - **Database**: SQL, NoSQL, ORM used - **Authentication**: JWT, OAuth, Sessions - **Testing**: Jest, Pytest, Go test, etc. ## Step 5: Development Workflow Check for: - `.eslintrc`, `.prettierrc` → Linting/Formatting - `.husky/` → Git hooks - `Makefile` → Build commands - `scripts/` in package.json → NPM scripts ## Step 6: Output Format Generate a summary using this template: ```markdown # Project: [Name] ## Overview [1-2 sentence description] ## Tech Stack | Category | Technology | | --------- | ---------- | | Language | TypeScript | | Framework | Next.js 14 | | Database | PostgreSQL | | ... | ... | ## Architecture [Description with simple ASCII diagram if helpful] ## Key Directories - `src/` - [purpose] - `lib/` - [purpose] ## Entry Points - Main: `src/index.ts` - API: `src/api/` - Tests: `npm test` ## Conventions - [Naming conventions] - [File organization patterns] - [Code style preferences] ## Quick Commands | Action | Command | | ------- | --------------- | | Install | `npm install` | | Dev | `npm run dev` | | Test | `npm test` | | Build | `npm run build` | ``` ## Analysis Validation After completing analysis, verify: ``` Analysis Validation: - [ ] All major directories explained - [ ] Tech stack accurately identified - [ ] Entry points documented - [ ] Development commands verified working - [ ] No assumptions made without evidence ``` If any items cannot be verified, note them as "needs clarification" in the report.