gemini-assistant

name

gemini-assistant

description

Coordinate between Claude and Gemini for complex tasks. Gemini excels at ingesting large codebases (100KB+), finding patterns across many files, and verification queries. Use when context would overflow Claude, for codebase-wide analysis, or implementation verification. Invoke via 'gemini -p' CLI with @ syntax for file inclusion. Always critically review Gemini's output. Falls back to Claude if Gemini is unavailable.

Skill: Gemini Assistant

Purpose

Delegate large-context analysis tasks to Gemini CLI when Claude's context window is insufficient or when you need rapid pattern-matching across entire codebases.

When to Use This Skill

Use Gemini when:

• Analyzing entire codebases or large directories (100KB+ of files)
• Comparing multiple large files simultaneously
• Need to understand project-wide patterns or architecture
• Verifying if specific features, patterns, or security measures exist
• Checking for coding patterns across the entire codebase
• Current context would overflow with the required files

When NOT to Use

• Small, focused tasks that fit in current context
• Tasks requiring execution, code changes, or file modifications
• When you need precise, step-by-step reasoning
• For tasks where accuracy is more important than breadth

Fallback Protocol

If Gemini is unavailable (rate limits, errors, not installed), fall back to Claude:

1. Check for Gemini errors:

   • "API rate limit exceeded" → Wait or fall back
   • "command not found: gemini" → Gemini CLI not installed
   • Connection errors → Network issue, fall back
   • Empty or garbled response → Retry once, then fall back

2. Claude fallback strategy:

   • Break the task into smaller chunks that fit Claude's context
   • Use targeted file reads instead of directory-wide analysis
   • Prioritize most critical files first
   • Use grep/glob to narrow scope before reading

3. Inform the user:

   • Explain Gemini is unavailable
   • Describe the adapted approach
   • Note any limitations of the fallback

See workflows/fallback-to-claude.md for detailed fallback procedures.

Routing Logic

Analyze user intent and route to appropriate workflow:

Codebase Analysis → workflows/analyze-codebase.md

• "Summarize the architecture"
• "What does this codebase do?"
• "Give me an overview of the project"
• "Analyze the project structure"

Implementation Verification → workflows/verify-implementation.md

• "Has [feature] been implemented?"
• "Is [pattern] used in the codebase?"
• "Check if [security measure] exists"
• "Verify [functionality] is present"

Pattern Search → workflows/search-patterns.md

• "Find all [pattern] in the code"
• "Search for [usage] across files"
• "Locate [specific code pattern]"
• "List all [type of code]"

File Comparison → workflows/compare-files.md

• "Compare [file1] and [file2]"
• "What's the difference between these implementations?"
• "Analyze dependencies between files"

Dependency Audit → workflows/audit-dependencies.md

• "Find unused dependencies"
• "Which packages aren't being used?"
• "Audit the package.json"

Duplication Detection → workflows/detect-duplication.md

• "Find duplicated code"
• "What code is copy-pasted?"
• "Find repeated patterns to refactor"

Documentation Drafts → workflows/draft-documentation.md

• "Generate API documentation"
• "Write an architecture doc"
• "Create onboarding guide"

Migration Analysis → workflows/migration-analysis.md

• "What breaks if we upgrade [library]?"
• "Impact of migrating to [framework]?"
• "Analyze migration from X to Y"

CLI Syntax Reference

Basic invocation:

gemini -p "Your prompt here"

File/directory inclusion with @ syntax (paths relative to CWD):

# Single file
gemini -p "@src/main.py Explain this file"

# Multiple files
gemini -p "@package.json @src/index.js Analyze dependencies"

# Entire directory
gemini -p "@src/ Summarize the architecture"

# Multiple directories
gemini -p "@src/ @tests/ Analyze test coverage"

# Current directory
gemini -p "@./ Give me an overview"

# All files flag
gemini --all_files -p "Analyze project structure"

Context Files

• context/gemini-capabilities.md - What Gemini excels at and limitations
• context/cli-reference.md - Complete CLI syntax and options

Issue Tracking

Log problems encountered with Gemini in ISSUES.md to improve this skill over time. Include:

• The command that failed
• What went wrong (accuracy, timeout, rate limit, etc.)
• How it was resolved
• Suggestions for improvement

Critical Notes

1. Always review Gemini's output - It's good at breadth, Claude is better at precision
2. Paths are relative - The @ syntax uses paths relative to where gemini command runs
3. Read-only tool - Gemini CLI is for analysis, not execution or modification
4. Claude orchestrates - Results come back to Claude for final processing and action
5. Fallback ready - If Gemini fails, Claude can handle the task with adapted strategy