Deep Codebase Wiki

Deep Codebase Wiki

⚡ PROACTIVE CHECK PROTOCOL (CRITICAL)

BEFORE any repository research, exploration, or analysis:

# ALWAYS run this first when a repository is mentioned
bash scripts/search_wikis.sh --repo "owner/repo"

If wiki exists → Read it immediately, save hours of exploration
If wiki doesn't exist → Offer to analyze and create comprehensive wiki

Common triggers requiring this check:

• User mentions any GitHub repo (e.g., "facebook/react", "vercel/next.js")
• Questions like "How does X work?" about known libraries/frameworks
• "Understand the architecture of..."
• "Explain how [library] implements..."
• Before launching multiple explore/librarian agents
• When debugging external dependencies
• Architecture or implementation questions

Why this matters: A 2-hour comprehensive wiki beats 10 parallel agent searches that rediscover the same information every time.

Overview

This skill enables creation, reading, and updating of comprehensive codebase documentation wikis. It analyzes GitHub repositories to generate structured, searchable documentation similar to DeepWiki and Zread services, but running entirely locally with full customization.

Quick Start

This skill operates in three modes with a mandatory check-first workflow:

Decision Flowchart

Repository mentioned
        ↓
Run: search_wikis.sh --repo "owner/repo"
        ↓
    ┌───┴───┐
    ↓       ↓
 Found    Not Found
    ↓       ↓
  READ     OFFER TO ANALYZE
  MODE     → User confirms
    ↓           ↓
 Present    ANALYZE MODE
  docs     (2-8 hours)
             ↓
          Save wiki
             ↓
          READ MODE

Mode 1: Read Mode (Search Existing Wikis)

Trigger: Wiki found in index
Duration: Seconds to minutes
Action: Load and present relevant documentation

Usage pattern:

# Check for wiki
WIKI_PATH=$(bash scripts/search_wikis.sh --repo "facebook/react")

# If found, read relevant sections
if [[ -n "$WIKI_PATH" ]]; then
  # Read overview
  cat "$WIKI_PATH/overview.md"
  
  # Read specific system if user asked about it
  cat "$WIKI_PATH/systems/reconciliation.md"
fi

Mode 2: Analyze Mode (Create New Wiki)

Trigger: Wiki not found, user needs understanding
Duration: 2-8 hours depending on depth
Action: Clone, analyze, document, save

ALWAYS ask user first:

"I don't have a wiki for {repo} yet. Would you like me to analyze it? This will take approximately {estimated_time} and create comprehensive local documentation. Depth options: quick (1-2hr), standard (3-5hr), comprehensive (5-8hr)."

Mode 3: Update Mode (Refresh Documentation)

Trigger: Wiki exists but may be outdated
Duration: 1-4 hours
Action: Check staleness, re-analyze if needed

Check staleness:

bash scripts/update_check.sh "$WIKI_PATH"
# Returns: up_to_date | partial_update | full_reanalysis

Analyze Mode (Create New Wiki)

Step 1: Determine Repository and Scope

Extract from user's request:

• Repository: Owner and repo name (e.g., "facebook/react")
• Focus areas: Specific systems or features of interest
• Depth: Quick overview vs comprehensive analysis

Examples:

• "Analyze the React repository" → Full analysis
• "How does Next.js routing work?" → Focus on routing system
• "Understand Supabase auth implementation" → Focus on auth module

Step 2: Check for Existing Wiki

Search for existing wiki before creating new one:

bash scripts/search_wikis.sh --repo "owner/repo"

If found with recent timestamp (< 30 days old), suggest using Read Mode instead.

Step 3: Clone Repository

Clone the repository locally for analysis:

bash scripts/clone_repo.sh "owner/repo" [--depth 1] [--branch main]

Options:

• --depth 1: Shallow clone for faster analysis (default)
• --branch <name>: Specific branch to analyze

Repository cloned to: /tmp/wiki-analysis/owner-repo/

Step 4: Perform Multi-Level Analysis

Analyze the codebase systematically:

Level 1: Repository Overview

1. Identify primary language(s) using Glob
2. Locate entry points (main.py, index.js, package.json, etc.)
3. Map directory structure
4. Read README, CONTRIBUTING, and core docs
5. Identify frameworks and major dependencies

Level 2: System Architecture

1. Identify major systems/modules (auth, database, API, UI, etc.)
2. Map system boundaries and responsibilities
3. Document key design patterns
4. Identify external dependencies and integrations

Level 3: Component Analysis

1. Map important classes, functions, and modules
2. Document component responsibilities
3. Identify relationships and dependencies
4. Note configuration and environment setup

Level 4: Trace Flows

1. Trace common user journeys (e.g., login flow, API request)
2. Document data transformation pipelines
3. Map error handling paths
4. Identify security-critical code paths

Use LSP tools for accurate type information, AST-grep for pattern discovery, and Grep for searching relevant code.

Step 5: Generate Wiki Structure

Create wiki following the schema in references/wiki-schema.md:

Directory Structure:

.claude/wikis/<org>-<repo>/
├── metadata.yaml          # Repo info, analysis metadata
├── overview.md            # High-level summary
├── systems/               # Major system docs
│   ├── authentication.md
│   ├── data-layer.md
│   ├── api-routing.md
│   └── ...
├── components/            # Component-level docs
│   └── ...
└── traces/                # User journey traces
    └── ...

Use templates from assets/wiki-template/ as starting point.

Content Guidelines:

• Accuracy: Verify all file paths and line numbers
• Completeness: Cover all systems in scope
• Clarity: Use descriptive headings and examples
• Cross-references: Link related systems and components
• Code snippets: Include relevant code examples with file paths

Step 6: Validate and Save

Validate wiki structure:

bash scripts/validate_wiki.sh /path/to/wiki

Register wiki in index and save to .claude/wikis/<org>-<repo>/:

bash scripts/search_wikis.sh --add "<org>-<repo>" "owner/repo" "/path/to/wiki" "<commit-sha>"

Save to .claude/wikis/<org>-<repo>/ with proper metadata.

Step 7: Present Summary

Provide user with:

1. Wiki location
2. Analysis scope and coverage
3. Key systems identified
4. Notable findings or concerns
5. Recommendations for deep dives

Read Mode (Search Existing Wikis)

Step 1: Locate Relevant Wiki

Find appropriate wiki using search:

By Repository:

bash scripts/search_wikis.sh --repo "owner/repo"

By Query (Keyword Search):

bash scripts/search_wikis.sh --query "authentication"

List All Wikis:

bash scripts/search_wikis.sh --list

Step 2: Load and Analyze Wiki

Read relevant wiki sections:

1. Check metadata for freshness and scope
2. Read overview for high-level context
3. Navigate to relevant systems based on query
4. Follow cross-references for related information
5. Review traces for flow understanding

Step 3: Present Findings

Structure response based on wiki content:

1. Overview: High-level summary of system/feature
2. Architecture: Key components and their roles
3. Code Locations: Files and line numbers for navigation
4. Flows: Data/process flows relevant to query
5. Considerations: Security, performance, or edge cases
6. Next Steps: Recommendations for further investigation

Update Mode (Refresh Documentation)

Step 1: Check if Update Needed

bash scripts/update_check.sh ".claude/wikis/org-repo" [branch]

Returns:

• Last analysis timestamp
• Current commit SHA vs analyzed commit
• Number of changed files since analysis
• Recommendation: full re-analysis vs partial update

Step 2: Determine Update Scope

Full Re-analysis (if):

• Major refactoring detected

• 30% of files changed

• Core systems modified

• 90 days since last analysis

Partial Update (if):

• Minor changes to specific systems
• New features added to existing modules
• Documentation updates

Step 3: Perform Update

Full Re-analysis:

• Follow Analyze Mode steps
• Preserve user annotations from old wiki
• Highlight what changed since last analysis

Partial Update:

• Re-analyze only changed systems
• Update affected traces
• Preserve unchanged sections
• Update metadata with partial update timestamp

Step 4: Validate and Save

Run validation and save updated wiki with change summary in metadata.

Implementation Guidelines

Analysis Depth Control

Adjust analysis depth based on repository size:

• Small (<100 files): Full comprehensive analysis
• Medium (100-1000 files): Focus on core systems
• Large (>1000 files): Scope to specific modules or user-requested areas

Quality Standards

• Accuracy: All paths, line numbers, and code references must be current
• Completeness: Cover all major systems in scope
• Navigability: Clear cross-references and table of contents
• Maintainability: Document assumptions and limitations in metadata
• Searchability: Use consistent terminology and tags

Performance Optimization

• Use shallow clones (--depth 1) for faster analysis
• Leverage LSP for type information (faster than AST parsing)
• Parallelize independent system analysis when possible
• Cache dependency graphs and import maps

Resources

scripts/

• clone_repo.sh - Clone GitHub repository for analysis
• search_wikis.sh - Search existing wikis by repo or query (uses jq + JSON index)
• validate_wiki.sh - Validate wiki structure against schema
• update_check.sh - Check if wiki needs refresh

Dependencies: jq for JSON processing (install: brew install jq on macOS)

references/

• wiki-schema.md - Complete wiki schema with examples
• analysis-guide.md - Detailed analysis methodology

assets/

• wiki-template/ - Directory structure template
• system-template.md - Template for system documentation
• component-template.md - Template for component docs
• trace-template.md - Template for flow traces

Usage Examples

Example 1 - Analyze New Repository:

User: "Analyze the Supabase repository, focusing on authentication"
→ Clone supabase/supabase
→ Perform focused analysis on auth system
→ Generate wiki with comprehensive auth documentation
→ Present summary with key findings

Example 2 - Read Existing Wiki:

User: "How does Next.js handle API routes?"
→ Search for Next.js wiki
→ Navigate to API routing system docs
→ Extract routing flow and code locations
→ Present structured explanation

Example 3 - Update Outdated Wiki:

User: "Update my React wiki, it's 6 months old"
→ Check what changed in React repo
→ Determine full re-analysis needed
→ Perform fresh analysis preserving annotations
→ Highlight changes since last analysis

Integration with Agent Workflow

Priority Order for Repository Understanding

When user asks about external repositories or libraries:

1. Check deep-codebase-wiki FIRST (this skill)

bash scripts/search_wikis.sh --repo "owner/repo"

If wiki exists → Use it, skip steps 2-4

2. Check use-codemap (for lightweight maps) Only if wiki doesn't exist and user needs quick overview

3. Launch background agents (if no local docs exist)

• explore agents for codebase patterns
• librarian agents for official docs

4. Manual exploration (last resort)

• Clone and analyze from scratch
• Offer to create wiki for future use

Integration with Other Skills

This skill complements:

• use-codemap: For focused, lightweight architecture maps (codemaps are quick, wikis are comprehensive)
• crystal-lang: When analyzing Crystal projects, combine with language-specific knowledge
• When both exist for same codebase, prefer wikis for comprehensive reference, codemaps for specific investigations

Example: User Asks "How does Next.js routing work?"

WRONG workflow (wasteful):

1. Launch 3 explore agents to search Next.js codebase
2. Launch 2 librarian agents for docs
3. Manually grep through cloned repo
4. Spend 30 minutes rediscovering information

CORRECT workflow (efficient):

1. Check wiki: search_wikis.sh --repo "vercel/next.js"
2. If found → Read systems/routing.md (30 seconds)
3. If not found → Ask user: "Analyze Next.js? (~4hrs for comprehensive wiki)"
4. Only if user declines → Fall back to agent exploration