codehub-exploring

name	codehub-exploring
description	Use when the user asks how code works, wants to understand architecture, trace execution flows, or explore unfamiliar parts of a codebase. Examples: "How does X work?", "What calls this function?", "Show me the auth flow", "Where does the request enter the system?".

Exploring Codebases with OpenCodeHub

When to Use

• "How does authentication work?"
• "What's the project structure?"
• "Where is the database logic?"
• "Show me the request lifecycle."
• Onboarding to a codebase you have not seen before.

Workflow

1. mcp__codehub__list_repos                              → Pick the repo name
2. READ codehub://repo/{name}/context                        → Stats + staleness envelope
3. mcp__codehub__query({query: "<concept>", repo})       → Hybrid BM25 + vector hits, grouped by process
4. mcp__codehub__context({name: "<symbol>", repo})       → 360-degree view, categorised edges, cochange side-section
5. mcp__codehub__sql for process traces                  → Step ordering from the relations table
6. Read source files only after the graph has pointed you at the hot spots

If the context envelope warns the index is stale, run codehub analyze in the terminal first.

Checklist

- [ ] mcp__codehub__list_repos — confirm the repo
- [ ] READ codehub://repo/{name}/context — check freshness
- [ ] mcp__codehub__query for the concept
- [ ] Scan returned processes (execution flows) before scanning files
- [ ] mcp__codehub__context on the strongest hit
- [ ] Inspect confidenceBreakdown — prefer confirmed edges for architectural claims
- [ ] Review cochanges as a secondary signal (git history, NOT call deps)
- [ ] Follow PROCESS_STEP edges via mcp__codehub__sql to trace the flow end-to-end
- [ ] Read source files for implementation detail only

Tools

mcp__codehub__query — hybrid BM25 + vector search, grouped by process

mcp__codehub__query({ query: "payment processing", repo: "my-app", limit: 20 })

→ results: ranked symbols with file path, kind, score
→ processes: execution flows that contain the top hits (populated when PROCESS_STEP edges exist)
→ next_steps: pointer to the next tool

Use it as the first broad read after the context resource. Prefer it over Grep for concept-level questions.

mcp__codehub__context — 360-degree view of a symbol

mcp__codehub__context({ name: "validateUser", repo: "my-app" })

→ target: {uid, kind, filePath, startLine}
→ incoming: categorised by edge type (CALLS, REFERENCES, IMPORTS, METHOD_OVERRIDES, ...)
→ outgoing: same, in the other direction
→ processes: [{process, step}]
→ cochanges: files historically edited with target's file (git history, NOT call deps)
→ confidenceBreakdown: {confirmed, heuristic, unknown}

Always read confidenceBreakdown before making an architectural claim. If confirmed is zero and unknown is non-zero, the edges are contradicted by the LSP oracle — report that caveat.

When a name is ambiguous, context returns a ranked candidate list instead of silently picking one. Disambiguate by passing uid (preferred) or {name, file_path, kind}.

mcp__codehub__sql — trace a named process end-to-end

SELECT r.step, callee.name, callee.file_path, callee.start_line
FROM relations r
JOIN nodes proc   ON proc.id = r.from_id
JOIN nodes callee ON callee.id = r.to_id
WHERE r.type = 'PROCESS_STEP'
  AND proc.kind = 'Process'
  AND proc.name = 'CheckoutFlow'
ORDER BY r.step ASC;

Cross-repo exploration

When the concept crosses repo boundaries (e.g. a microservice calls another), use the group tools:

• mcp__codehub__group_list — discover named groups.
• mcp__codehub__group_query({ group, query, limit }) — BM25 fan-out across every repo in the group, results tagged with _repo.
• mcp__codehub__group_contracts({ group }) — HTTP contract cross-links (consumer FETCHES edge → producer Route).

Example: "How does payment processing work?"

1. mcp__codehub__list_repos
   → [{name: "my-app", root: "/Users/.../my-app", nodes: 918}]

2. READ codehub://repo/my-app/context
   → 918 symbols, 45 processes, index fresh.

3. mcp__codehub__query({ query: "payment processing", repo: "my-app" })
   → results: processPayment (Function, src/payments/processor.ts),
              chargeStripe, validateCard, handleRefund
   → processes: CheckoutFlow (step_count=7), RefundFlow (step_count=5)

4. mcp__codehub__context({ name: "processPayment", repo: "my-app" })
   → incoming.CALLS: [checkoutHandler, webhookHandler]
   → outgoing.CALLS: [validateCard, chargeStripe, saveTransaction]
   → processes: [{process: "CheckoutFlow", step: 3}]
   → confidenceBreakdown: {confirmed: 4, heuristic: 1, unknown: 0}
   → cochanges: [src/payments/refund.ts (lift 4.2), src/webhooks/stripe.ts (lift 3.1)]
                (git history signal — files often edited together, NOT call deps.)

5. mcp__codehub__sql to dump the ordered CheckoutFlow.

6. Read src/payments/processor.ts for the actual implementation.