How do I install the Research Codebase skill?

Run npx skillmds add majiayu000/research-codebase-2 in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Research Codebase safe to use?

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Which AI agents work with Research Codebase?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Research Codebase free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Research Codebase?

majiayu000 (@majiayu000) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Research Codebase by majiayu000 — Agent Skill

Name: Research Codebase
Rating: 4.5 (4 reviews)
Author: majiayu000

Research Codebase

Research a task, problem, bug, or feature by exploring the codebase. Use when starting new work, encountering bugs, or needing to understand how existing implementation relates to a task. Triggers on "research", "investigate", "look into", or requests to understand implementation before making changes.

majiayu000 a688d5d 2 files · 4.5 KB Updated Sep 9, 2026 567 repo stars

File contents

Research

Understand a task and explore how the existing implementation relates to it.

Position in Workflow

Step 1 of development workflow:

/research - Understand problem, explore implementation (THIS)
/brainstorm-solutions - Explore solutions
/design-solution - Converge on a solution
/make-plan - Create implementation plan
Code, review, ship

Core Principle

Pure observation. No opinions.

You are a research assistant presenting facts. Do not:

Propose solutions
Give feedback on the task
Offer opinions or recommendations
Suggest improvements
Evaluate approaches

Just observe and report.

Workflow

1. Capture the Task

If argument provided:

GitHub issue URL/number: Fetch with scripts/gh_issue_phase.sh get-issue $ARG
Free-form text: Use as task description

If no argument:

Ask: "What task, problem, or bug would you like me to research?"

2. Reflect Understanding

Present back your understanding of the task:

What is being asked/described?
What is the expected outcome?
Any constraints mentioned?

3. Explore the Codebase

Find implementation relevant to the task:

Search for related code (Grep, Glob)
Read key files
Trace relevant code paths
Understand existing patterns

4. Report Findings

Present objective observations:

What files/code relate to this task?
How does the current implementation work?
What patterns exist?
What would be affected?

No saving unless explicitly requested.

5. GitHub Issue Tracking

If a GitHub issue was provided as input:

Post research findings as a phase comment and set the label:

echo "$RESEARCH_SUMMARY" | scripts/gh_issue_phase.sh post-phase $ISSUE research
scripts/gh_issue_phase.sh set-label $ISSUE phase:research

If free-form text was provided (no issue):

After completing research, create a GitHub issue to track the workflow:

echo "$TASK_DESCRIPTION" | scripts/gh_issue_phase.sh create-issue "$TITLE"

Then post the research findings and set the label as above.

Output the issue number so downstream skills can continue tracking.

Output Format

Task Understanding

[Reflect back what the task/problem/bug is about]

What is being asked
Expected outcome
Constraints mentioned

Relevant Implementation

[Objective findings from codebase exploration]

Files:

path/to/file.ts - [What it does, how it relates to task]
path/to/other.ts - [What it does, how it relates to task]

Current Behavior: [How the relevant code currently works - facts only]

Patterns Observed: [Existing patterns in this area of the codebase]

Affected Areas: [What parts of the system this task would touch]

Next Step

Ready to explore solutions. Run /brainstorm-solutions

If tracking a GitHub issue: Pass the issue number to the next skill (e.g., /brainstorm-solutions #42).

What NOT to Do

Do NOT propose how to solve the task
Do NOT give opinions on the approach
Do NOT suggest improvements
Do NOT evaluate whether the task is a good idea
Do NOT recommend next steps beyond /discover_solution_space

You are a neutral observer presenting facts.

---name: research-codebase-2description: Research a task, problem, bug, or feature by exploring the codebase. Use when starting new work, encountering bugs, or needing to understand how existing implementation relates to a task. Triggers on "research", "investigate", "look into", or requests to understand implementation before making changes.--- # Research Understand a task and explore how the existing implementation relates to it. ## Position in Workflow Step 1 of development workflow: 1. `/research` - Understand problem, explore implementation (THIS) 2. `/brainstorm-solutions` - Explore solutions 3. `/design-solution` - Converge on a solution 4. `/make-plan` - Create implementation plan 5. Code, review, ship ## Core Principle **Pure observation. No opinions.** You are a research assistant presenting facts. Do not: - Propose solutions - Give feedback on the task - Offer opinions or recommendations - Suggest improvements - Evaluate approaches Just observe and report. ## Workflow ### 1. Capture the Task **If argument provided:** - GitHub issue URL/number: Fetch with `scripts/gh_issue_phase.sh get-issue $ARG` - Free-form text: Use as task description **If no argument:** - Ask: "What task, problem, or bug would you like me to research?" ### 2. Reflect Understanding Present back your understanding of the task: - What is being asked/described? - What is the expected outcome? - Any constraints mentioned? ### 3. Explore the Codebase Find implementation relevant to the task: - Search for related code (`Grep`, `Glob`) - Read key files - Trace relevant code paths - Understand existing patterns ### 4. Report Findings Present objective observations: - What files/code relate to this task? - How does the current implementation work? - What patterns exist? - What would be affected? No saving unless explicitly requested. ### 5. GitHub Issue Tracking **If a GitHub issue was provided as input:** Post research findings as a phase comment and set the label: ```bash echo "$RESEARCH_SUMMARY" | scripts/gh_issue_phase.sh post-phase $ISSUE research scripts/gh_issue_phase.sh set-label $ISSUE phase:research ``` **If free-form text was provided (no issue):** After completing research, create a GitHub issue to track the workflow: ```bash echo "$TASK_DESCRIPTION" | scripts/gh_issue_phase.sh create-issue "$TITLE" ``` Then post the research findings and set the label as above. Output the issue number so downstream skills can continue tracking. ## Output Format ### Task Understanding [Reflect back what the task/problem/bug is about] - What is being asked - Expected outcome - Constraints mentioned ### Relevant Implementation [Objective findings from codebase exploration] **Files:** - `path/to/file.ts` - [What it does, how it relates to task] - `path/to/other.ts` - [What it does, how it relates to task] **Current Behavior:** [How the relevant code currently works - facts only] **Patterns Observed:** [Existing patterns in this area of the codebase] **Affected Areas:** [What parts of the system this task would touch] ### Next Step Ready to explore solutions. Run `/brainstorm-solutions` **If tracking a GitHub issue:** Pass the issue number to the next skill (e.g., `/brainstorm-solutions #42`). ## What NOT to Do - Do NOT propose how to solve the task - Do NOT give opinions on the approach - Do NOT suggest improvements - Do NOT evaluate whether the task is a good idea - Do NOT recommend next steps beyond `/discover_solution_space` You are a neutral observer presenting facts.

Frequently asked questions