investigate

name	investigate
description	Debug and investigate code issues using search and AI analysis. Use when stuck on bugs, tracing execution flow, or understanding complex code.

Investigation Toolkit

Debug issues through systematic search and AI-powered analysis.

Prerequisites

# ripgrep for fast search
brew install ripgrep

# Gemini for analysis
pip install google-generativeai
export GEMINI_API_KEY=your_api_key

Search Commands

ripgrep Basics

# Search for pattern
rg "pattern" src/

# Case insensitive
rg -i "error" src/

# Whole word
rg -w "user" src/

# File types
rg -t ts "function" src/
rg -t py "def " src/

# Exclude patterns
rg "TODO" --glob "!node_modules"

# Show context
rg -C 3 "error" src/  # 3 lines before and after
rg -B 5 "crash" src/  # 5 lines before
rg -A 5 "crash" src/  # 5 lines after

# Just filenames
rg -l "pattern" src/

# Count matches
rg -c "pattern" src/

Finding Definitions

# Function definitions (TypeScript)
rg "function\s+functionName" src/
rg "(const|let|var)\s+functionName\s*=" src/
rg "export\s+(async\s+)?function\s+\w+" src/

# Class definitions
rg "class\s+ClassName" src/

# Interface/Type definitions
rg "(interface|type)\s+TypeName" src/

Tracing Usage

# Where is this function called?
rg "functionName\(" src/

# Where is this imported?
rg "import.*functionName" src/

# Where is this exported?
rg "export.*functionName" src/

Investigation Patterns

Bug Investigation

# 1. Search for error message
rg "exact error message" .

# 2. Find where error is thrown
rg "throw.*Error" src/ -C 3

# 3. Trace the function
rg "functionThatFails" src/ -C 5

# 4. Check recent changes
git log --oneline -20 --all -- src/problematic-file.ts
git diff HEAD~5 -- src/problematic-file.ts

Trace Execution Flow

#!/bin/bash
ENTRY_POINT=$1

echo "=== Entry Point ==="
rg -A 10 "export.*$ENTRY_POINT" src/

echo "=== Called Functions ==="
rg -o "\w+\(" src/$ENTRY_POINT*.ts | sort -u

echo "=== Dependencies ==="
rg "^import" src/$ENTRY_POINT*.ts

AI-Assisted Debugging

# Analyze error with context
ERROR="Your error message here"
CODE=$(cat problematic-file.ts)

gemini -m pro -o text -e "" "Debug this error:

ERROR: $ERROR

CODE:
$CODE

Provide:
1. Most likely cause
2. How to verify
3. How to fix
4. How to prevent in future"

Hypothesis Testing

# Generate hypotheses
gemini -m pro -o text -e "" "Given this bug symptom:

SYMPTOM: [describe what's happening]
CONTEXT: [relevant code/system info]

Generate 5 hypotheses ranked by likelihood, with a test for each."

# Then test each hypothesis
rg "hypothesis-related-pattern" src/

Common Investigations

Find All Error Handling

rg "catch|\.catch|try\s*{" src/ -t ts
rg "throw\s+new" src/ -t ts

Find API Endpoints

rg "(get|post|put|delete|patch)\s*\(" src/ -i
rg "router\.(get|post|put|delete)" src/
rg "@(Get|Post|Put|Delete)" src/

Find Database Queries

rg "(SELECT|INSERT|UPDATE|DELETE)" src/ -i
rg "\.query\(|\.execute\(" src/
rg "prisma\.\w+\.(find|create|update|delete)" src/

Find Configuration

rg "process\.env\." src/
rg "(config|settings)\[" src/
rg "getenv|os\.environ" src/ -t py

Find Security Issues

# SQL injection potential
rg "query.*\+.*\"|'.*\+" src/

# Hardcoded secrets
rg "(password|secret|key|token)\s*=\s*['\"]" src/ -i

# Unsafe eval
rg "eval\(" src/

Deep Investigation Script

#!/bin/bash
# investigate.sh - Comprehensive code investigation

TERM=$1
echo "=== Investigating: $TERM ==="

echo ""
echo "### Definitions ###"
rg "^(export\s+)?(function|const|class|interface|type)\s+$TERM" src/

echo ""
echo "### Usage ###"
rg "$TERM" src/ --stats | head -50

echo ""
echo "### Recent Changes ###"
git log --oneline -10 -S "$TERM"

echo ""
echo "### Blame ###"
for f in $(rg -l "$TERM" src/); do
  echo "--- $f ---"
  git blame -L "/$TERM/,+5" "$f" 2>/dev/null | head -10
done

Best Practices

1. Start with the error - Search for exact message first
2. Expand context - Use -C, -B, -A for surrounding code
3. Check history - git log -S finds when code was introduced
4. Use AI for complex - When pattern matching isn't enough
5. Document findings - Note what you discover
6. Test hypotheses - Verify before assuming