code-research

Research open-source repositories to understand how something is built or works.

Code Research

Use github_codebase_search to explore external open-source repositories and understand their implementation details.

When To Use

• The user asks how an open-source library or framework implements something.
• You need to understand an external dependency's internals before integrating with it.
• The user wants to compare how different repos solve a problem.
• You need to find usage examples or patterns in a public GitHub repo.

Steps

1. Identify the GitHub repository (e.g. vercel/next.js, facebook/react).
2. Break the user's question into multiple focused search angles (e.g. entry points, data flow, config, tests).
3. Fire multiple github_codebase_search calls in parallel — one per angle. Do not run them sequentially.
4. Read and cross-reference the returned files/sections from all queries.
5. Summarize findings with concrete file paths and code references.

Parallel Queries

Always decompose the research into 2-4 concurrent searches. For example, to understand how a repo handles authentication:

• Query 1: "Find the authentication middleware and session handling"
• Query 2: "Find the login/signup API routes and handlers"
• Query 3: "Find the auth configuration and token validation"

Run all queries at the same time to minimize latency.

Query Template

"Find how implements . Include entry points, key functions, and data flow."