graphify

name	graphify
description	Use when navigating an unfamiliar codebase, tracing how code connects (callers, dependencies, the blast radius of a change), or whenever the repo ships a graphify-out/graph.json knowledge graph. Query the graph before grepping/reading raw source for orientation.
license	MIT
metadata	{"author":"ai-playbook","version":"1.0"}

graphify — knowledge-graph code navigation

graphify (safishamsi/graphify, PyPI graphifyy) parses a repo into a structured knowledge graph — nodes are files/functions/classes, edges are imports/calls/inheritance — plus community clustering and a semantic label layer. Querying the graph returns a small, structurally-precise subgraph instead of a pile of raw file reads, so orientation costs far fewer tokens and round-trips.

When to use

Act only when graphify-out/graph.json exists in the repo. Reach for graphify FIRST (before grep/read) when the task is orientation or structure:

• "How does work / where is handled?"
• "Who calls / what depends on ?" — blast radius before a change.
• "What is the path between and ?"
• Onboarding to an unfamiliar area of the repo.

If graphify-out/graph.json is absent, graphify is not set up here — fall back to normal search.

Commands

• graphify query "<question>" — scoped subgraph for a natural-language question. The default entry point.
• graphify explain "<concept>" — focused view of one concept/community.
• graphify path "<A>" "<B>" — the relationship chain between two symbols.
• graphify update . — re-parse changed files into the graph (AST-only, no API/token cost). Run after editing code so the graph stays fresh.
• graphify-out/wiki/index.md, if present, is good for broad navigation.
• graphify-out/GRAPH_REPORT.md — read only for a broad architecture pass when query/path/explain do not surface enough.

Discipline

• Query-first. On a code-exploration task, run graphify query before raw grep/read. Grep AFTER the graph has oriented you, or to modify/debug specific lines.
• Pass it down. Include the query-first instruction in any subagent prompt that explores code.
• Update-after-edit. After changing code, run graphify update . so the next session's map is correct. A stale graph misleads.

When NOT to use

• Editing a file you already know — go straight to it; graphify adds overhead.
• Prose/document Q&A with no code structure — graphify is structural, not a text-similarity RAG.
• The graph is stale or absent — regenerate (graphify update .) or fall back to grep; never trust a stale map.

Boundaries

• graphify is a navigation aid, not a source of truth — verify a claim against the actual code before asserting it (the graph can lag the working tree).
• It complements, not replaces, grep/read for line-level work.

Setup

Once per clone: uv tool install "graphifyy>=0.8.31" (or pipx) + graphify hook install. See docs/runbooks/graphify-setup.md. The graphify-adoption rule enforces the gitignore + merge-driver hygiene that keeps the committed graph portable across machines.

See also

• docs/concepts/graphify.md — what the graph is + graphify vs RAG.
• docs/rules/graphify-adoption.rule.md — multi-dev portability invariants.
• docs/runbooks/graphify-setup.md — install / hook install / troubleshoot.