Lsp Impact

Requires the agent-lsp MCP server.

lsp-impact

Blast-radius analysis for any symbol or file. Discovers all direct references, callers (via call hierarchy), and type relationships before you touch anything. Read-only — does not modify any files.

Run this skill before lsp-edit-export: impact tells you what exists and how widespread the change is; lsp-edit-export tells you how to execute the change safely.

Invocation:

• File path (e.g. "internal/lsp/client.go") → use the File-level entry (Step 0) to surface all exported-symbol impact at once.
• Symbol name in dot notation (e.g. "codec.Encode", "Buffer.Reset") → skip Step 0; start at Prerequisites, then Step 1.

Step 0 — File-level entry (when user provides a file path)

Use this shortcut when the user is changing or auditing an entire file rather than a single symbol. blast_radius enumerates all exported symbols in the file, resolves their references, and returns test callers (with enclosing test function names) and non-test callers in a single call.

mcp__lsp__blast_radius({
  "changed_files": ["/abs/path/to/file.go"],
  "include_transitive": false   // set true to surface second-order callers
})

Returns:

• affected_symbols — each exported symbol with its reference count
• test_callers — test files + enclosing test function names
• non_test_callers — production call sites

Decision after Step 0:

Skip Steps 1–5 if the file-level summary is sufficient.

Prerequisites (for symbol-level Steps 1–5)

If LSP is not yet initialized, call mcp__lsp__start_lsp with the workspace root first.

Check what the server supports before proceeding — find_callers and type_hierarchy are optional LSP features not implemented by all servers:

mcp__lsp__get_server_capabilities()

Note which tools appear in supported_tools. Steps 3 and 4 below depend on this result.

Step 1 — Locate the symbol

Use go_to_symbol with the symbol name provided by the user:

mcp__lsp__go_to_symbol({
  "symbol_path": "Package.SymbolName",
  "workspace_root": "/abs/path"   // optional, narrows scope
})
→ returns: file, line, column (1-indexed)

symbol_path uses dot notation. For a top-level function Encode in package codec, use "codec.Encode". For a method Reset on type Buffer, use "Buffer.Reset".

Record the returned file, line, and column — you will pass them to every subsequent step.

Step 2 — Enumerate all direct references (always available)

Call find_references with include_declaration: false to find every usage site across the workspace:

mcp__lsp__find_references({
  "file_path": "<file from Step 1>",
  "position_pattern": "func @@SymbolName(",   // adjust prefix for symbol kind
  "include_declaration": false
})

Collect all reference locations. Group results by file. Record the total count and list of files — these feed the Impact Report.

See references/patterns.md for position_pattern examples by language and symbol kind.

Step 3 — Call hierarchy (callers and callees)

Only if find_callers appears in supported_tools from Step 0.

mcp__lsp__find_callers({
  "file_path": "<file from Step 1>",
  "line": <line from Step 1>,
  "column": <column from Step 1>,
  "direction": "incoming"   // use "both" if callees are also needed
})

If find_callers is not in supported_tools, skip this step entirely. Note "call hierarchy not supported by this server" in the Impact Report.

Step 4 — Type hierarchy (supertypes and subtypes)

Only applicable when the symbol is a type, interface, or class (not a plain function or method). Only if type_hierarchy appears in supported_tools.

mcp__lsp__type_hierarchy({
  "file_path": "<file from Step 1>",
  "line": <line from Step 1>,
  "column": <column from Step 1>,
  "direction": "both"
})

If the symbol is a function or method: skip this step; note "not applicable (function)" in the report.

If type_hierarchy is not in supported_tools: skip this step; note "not supported by this server" in the report.

Step 5 — Report impact surface

Produce the Impact Report using the format defined in references/patterns.md.

Include:

• Symbol name, kind, and definition location
• Reference count and list of files containing references
• Callers from find_callers incoming (or skip note)
• Supertypes and subtypes from type_hierarchy (or skip note)
• Blast radius: count of distinct files affected

Then apply the decision guide:

Example

Goal: assess blast radius of exported function `ParseConfig` in pkg/config

Prerequisites — get_server_capabilities:
  → supported_tools: [go_to_symbol, find_references, find_callers, ...]
  → type_hierarchy: not in supported_tools

Step 1 — go_to_symbol: symbol_path="config.ParseConfig"
  → pkg/config/parser.go:42:6

Step 2 — find_references: position_pattern="func @@ParseConfig("
  → 7 references in 4 files
  → cmd/main.go, internal/app.go, internal/loader.go, pkg/config/parser_test.go

Step 3 — find_callers: direction="incoming"
  → callers: cmd.main (cmd/main.go:14), app.Start (internal/app.go:31), ...

Step 4 — type_hierarchy: skipped (function), also not supported by server

Step 5 — Impact Report:
  ## Impact Report: ParseConfig
  - Kind:         function
  - Definition:   pkg/config/parser.go:42:6
  - References:   7 across 4 files
  ...
  - Risk level:   low

Note on position_pattern

position_pattern with @@ is a agent-lsp extension. If your MCP client does not support it, fall back to explicit line and column parameters from the location returned by go_to_symbol in Step 1.