Project instructions

Keep stable repository knowledge in files rather than repeating it in every prompt. Use instructions for broad conventions, rules for specific paths, skills for workflows, and memory for durable project facts.

Repository instructions

Codai uses the first nonempty readable instruction file from the project root:

AGENTS.md
CLAUDE.md
CODAI.md
.codai/instructions.md
.github/copilot-instructions.md

Files are not concatenated. Keep the chosen file focused; content beyond 32 KB is truncated.

AGENTS.md


# Working in this repository
 
- Keep changes limited to the requested behavior.
- Follow the existing public error-response format.
- Add a regression test for bug fixes.
- Run `dotnet test` before reporting completion.

Document commands that actually work in your repository. Guidance is most useful when it states constraints and verification, not a long history of the project.

Conditional rules

Place Markdown files in .codai/rules. Optional applyTo frontmatter narrows when a rule is relevant:

.codai/rules/api.md


---
applyTo: "src/Api/**/*.cs"
---
 
Preserve the existing error envelope.
Add endpoint tests when changing response status or shape.

Rules without patterns always apply. Patterns may be comma-, semicolon-, or whitespace-separated. Global rules live under rules in the selected global configuration directory; project rules with the same relative path take precedence.

Rule loading is bounded to 100 rules, 8 KB per rule, and 32 patterns per rule. Keep rules small and scoped rather than treating them as source-file attachments.

Durable project memory

Use Markdown under .codai/memory for facts worth keeping between sessions:

.codai/memory/auth.md


# Authentication
 
The web app uses session cookies. API clients use bearer tokens.
Keep the two error-response formats distinct.

Memory loading is bounded to 12 documents, 12 KB per document, and 48 KB total. Store stable knowledge, not secrets, raw logs, or transient task state.

Inspect what Codai sees


codai config rules
codai config skills
codai config commands

Inside a session, use the same targets with :config. Inspect configuration paths when global content is not being found.

Instructions are model guidance, not executable policy. They cannot enable a disabled tool, bypass Plan mode, or approve a write.

Choose the right mechanism

Need	Use
Repository-wide conventions	An instruction file
Conventions for matching paths	Conditional rules
A reusable multi-step workflow	Skills
A short prompt invoked by name	Custom commands
Facts that should survive a session	Project memory