Context Forge

Context Forge

Context Forge massively speeds the development of large projects with AI agents while maintaining high quality.

It multiplies your cognitive abilities and doesn't try to replace them. Not another "Hey AI, build me an app" framework, and it may be overkill for building simple gadgets. Development is managed through a structured process, starting with broad initiatives and breaking functionality into vertical slices and individual tasks. It maintains traceable, hierarchical project state so that every AI session starts with full awareness of where things stand and what's next.

It's designed to be easy for AIs as well. Every command can output structured JSON. Easily readable by AI, and usable in pipelines. The MCP server provides an agent_quickstart to simplify use by AIs.

What It Looks Like

CLI

Everything is discoverable under the cf command. Start with cf --help. Easily manage multiple projects. cf knows which one based on your current directory. cf init to start a new one. Ideally it will feel similar to git.

Obtain brief status with cf status, detailed with cf project get. Use the MCP or slash-commands if you prefer.

Your AI assistant sees this too — through MCP tools, through slash commands, through the CLI. It knows the project structure, the methodology phase, the active slice, and (very soon) exactly which task to work on next. No "let me catch you up." No re-reading CLAUDE.md. No guessing.

Visualizer

Context Forge builds big projects fast. Visualizer is a separate tool to help humans maintain an overview. Available at: https://github.com/ecorkran/context-visualizer

Get Started

# 1. Install globally (one package gets you everything)
npm install -g @context-forge/context-forge

# 2. Add the MCP server (strongly recommended)
claude mcp add --transport stdio context-forge -- npx @context-forge/mcp

# 3. Set up your project — pick one:
cf init                   # CLI: creates project, installs guides, configures IDE, installs slash commands
cf init --ide copilot     # Same, but configured for VS Code Copilot instead of Claude Code
cf init --ide codex       # Same, but configured for OpenAI Codex (also: cursor, agents, openai)
# — or —
/cf:onboard               # Slash command: AI-guided setup — walks you through everything conversationally

That's it. cf status works. Your AI assistant can call Context Forge tools. /cf:build assembles context. /cf:onboard can take a new user from zero to their first concept discussion.

MCP server JSON config (for Cursor, Perplexity, Windsurf, etc.)

{
  "context-forge": {
    "command": "npx",
    "args": ["@context-forge/mcp"],
    "env": {}
  }
}

Manual setup (if you prefer step-by-step control)

cf guides install          # Install methodology guides into your project
cf setup-ide claude        # Install Claude rules and create CLAUDE.md
cf setup-ide copilot       # Install rules/skills for VS Code Copilot
cf setup-ide cursor        # Install scoped rules for Cursor, always-on rules in AGENTS.md
cf setup-ide codex         # Write AGENTS.md + skills for OpenAI Codex (aliases: openai, agents)
cf install-commands        # Install Claude Code slash commands

Each target writes a different file layout:

cf setup-ide claude              # CLAUDE.md, .claude/{rules,agents,skills}/
cf setup-ide copilot             # AGENTS.md, .github/copilot-instructions.md,
                                  # .github/{instructions,prompts}/
cf setup-ide cursor              # AGENTS.md (always-on), .cursor/rules/*.mdc (scoped)
cf setup-ide codex|openai|agents # AGENTS.md, .agents/skills//SKILL.md

Requirements: Node.js 18+.

How It Works

Context Forge is built around a structured development methodology called ai-project-guide.

Projects progress through phases: Concept → Initiative Plan → Architecture → Slice Planning → Slice Design → Task Breakdown → Implementation → Integration

Each phase produces documents. Documents reference each other. Slices decompose into tasks. Tasks track completion. The whole thing is a hierarchy you can navigate, introspect, and hand off between humans and agents without losing state.

Context Forge is the engine that:

• Knows where you are — parses your project artifacts, reads completion states, understands methodology phase
• Knows what's next — workflow navigation recommends the next action with rationale
• Generates session context — assembles everything an AI agent needs into a structured prompt, automatically
• Tracks everything — persistent project state, two-tier configuration, artifact introspection across all your projects

It manages multiple projects simultaneously. Each one has its own slice plan, its own task state, its own methodology position.

For larger projects with parallel initiatives — running architecture and a feature slice at the same time, for example — worktrees let you run multiple AI sessions in separate git worktrees, each with its own phase/slice/task context, without conflicts.

Review Gating

Optionally require a review artifact (with a clearing verdict) before Context Forge recommends advancing past a lifecycle boundary — deterministic, AI-free routing with zero behavior change unless you turn it on:

cf config set workflow.review_enabled true

Off by default. To exempt a single slice from its review requirement:

cf check --set-review-none     # writes review: none to that slice's design doc

See the [Review Gating reference](docs/REVIEW-GATING.md) for the full config-key surface, decision matrix, and other escape hatches (grandfathering old work, exempting docs-only slices).

Design Philosophy

Context Forge resists the urge to be clever on your behalf.

We added compound commands — cf implement instead of cf set phase 6 && cf build. Then we cut them all. They bloated the command surface, cluttered the slash commands, and obscured what was actually happening. The low-level commands were better. They composed. They were transparent. So we went back.

This is a pattern, not an accident. The tool stays close to the metal:

• No magic. You can do everything through MCP if you want, but cf set phase 6 is a hundred times faster and you should just type it. The MCP tools exist so agents can operate autonomously, not so humans can burn tokens setting a property.
• No opinions about your stack. Context Forge doesn't care if you're writing Python, TypeScript, C++, or all three. It manages project state and generates context. Your agents do the rest.
• No hand-holding. There's an onboarding flow if you want it (/cf:onboard). There's cf next if you want guidance. But the tool doesn't gate your progress or force you through ceremonies. You're the architect. Act like it.

Naming Things

Started as a simple Electron utility called Context Builder, it's long since outgrown its name. We haven't picked a new one yet. Naming things is hard. One of the only two hard things, together with cache invalidation and off-by-one errors.

Access Points

Three interfaces — use whichever fits your workflow (a fourth, the Electron desktop app, is deprecated; see below):

MCP Server (@context-forge/mcp)

34 tools for project management, context generation, artifact introspection, workflow navigation, worktree management, guide management, and configuration. Works with Claude Code, Cursor, or any MCP-compatible client. This is what your AI assistant talks to.

| Category | Tools | |----------|-------| | Project | project_list, project_get, project_create, project_update, project_schema, project_structure | | Context | context_build, context_summarize, template_preview, prompt_list, prompt_get | | Workflow | workflow_status, workflow_next, workflow_check, workflow_future | | Worktrees | worktree_list, worktree_get, worktree_init, worktree_update, worktree_rm | | Introspection | introspection_documents, introspection_frontmatter, introspection_slice_plan, introspection_tasks, introspection_future_work | | Configuration | config_get, config_set | | Guides | guide_install, guide_status, guide_update | | Storage | storage_backup | | Meta | agent_onboard, agent_quickstart, server_version |

CLI (@context-forge/cli)

cf works like git — install it globally and it detects your project from the current directory. --json on every read command for scripting.

| Command | Description | |---------|-------------| | cf init | Initialize project: git, guides, IDE config, slash commands | | cf status | Workflow status (phase, slice, task progress) | | cf next | Recommended next action with rationale | | cf build | Assemble context prompt for AI session (--embed inlines artifact files for non-SDK models) | | cf set | Set a project field | | cf unset | Clear an optional project field (distinct from setting it empty) | | cf get | Show all project fields | | cf check | Run consistency checks (--fix, --slice, --set-review-none to exempt a slice from review) | | Listing | Browse project artifacts | | cf list projects | All registered projects | | cf list initiatives | Architecture initiatives with slice counts (alias: cf list arch) | | cf list plans | Slice plan files with progress | | cf list slices | Slices from the active plan with status | | cf list tasks | Task files with completion counts | | cf list items | Individual tasks from the active task file | | Management | | | cf project list\|get\|set\|unset\|rm | Manage projects | | cf worktree init\|list\|get\|update\|rm | Manage git worktree contexts | | cf config get\|set\|unset | Two-tier configuration (migrate-personal moves personal keys out of the shared file) | | cf future | Consolidated future work across all plans | | cf prompt list\|get | Prompt templates with variable substitution | | cf guides install\|info\|update\|uninstall | ai-project-guide template management | | cf setup-ide claude | Configure Claude Code integration | | cf setup-ide copilot | Configure VS Code Copilot integration | | cf setup-ide cursor | Configure Cursor integration (scoped rules + AGENTS.md) | | cf setup-ide codex | Configure OpenAI Codex integration (aliases: openai, agents) | | cf install-commands / cf uninstall-commands | Install or remove Claude Code slash commands | | cf backup | Versioned project data backup (keeps last 10) | | cf update | Update the CLI to the latest published version |

Key configuration

cf config reads and writes two scopes — shared keys (safe to commit; team-wide policy) and personal keys (per-developer, git-ignored). Run cf config get with no key to list everything. The keys you're most likely to set:

| Key | Scope | Purpose | |-----|-------|---------| | git.integration_branch | personal | Long-lived branch that work branches fork from and merge into instead of main (e.g. dev/erik). Changes git topology, not just names. | | workflow.review_enabled | shared | Turn on review gating (off by default). | | workflow.review_threshold | shared | Verdict floor that clears a gate (pass \| concerns). | | workflow.review_gate_effective_date | shared | Grandfather work designed before YYYYMMDD past the gate. | | workflow.auto_advance | shared | Auto-advance to the next slice when the current one completes. | | guide.auto_update | shared | Auto-update the AI project guide. |

Full key reference and precedence rules: [Review Gating](docs/REVIEW-GATING.md) and cf config --help.

Claude Code Slash Commands

Installed via cf install-commands. Available directly in Claude Code sessions:

| Command | Description | |---------|-------------| | /cf:onboard | AI-guided project setup and first-phase walkthrough | | /cf:build | Build context prompt (accepts --phase, --slice) | | /cf:status | Show workflow status | | /cf:get | Show all project fields | | /cf:set | Set a project field | | /cf:next | Recommended next action | | /cf:check | Run consistency checks on project artifacts | | /cf:prompt | Get or list prompt templates | | /cf:project | Manage projects |

Electron Desktop App

> Deprecated — scheduled for removal. The Electron app is no longer maintained, built, or shipped, and will be removed from the repo in an upcoming release. All functionality is available through the CLI, MCP server, and slash commands.

Architecture

pnpm monorepo, four packages:

packages/
  context-forge/ @context-forge/context-forge — meta-package (installs cli + mcp)
  core/          @context-forge/core          — context engine, project state, introspection, workflow
  mcp-server/    @context-forge/mcp           — MCP protocol server (34 tools)
  cli/           @context-forge/cli           — terminal interface (cf command)
  electron/      @context-forge/electron      — desktop app (deprecated, scheduled for removal)

All interfaces consume @context-forge/core directly. The MCP server and CLI produce identical results for the same operations — they're different access patterns to the same engine.

1345 tests across all packages. TypeScript, strict mode, no any.

Related

context-visualizer — React app that visualizes project structure through the MCP server. See your slice plans, task completion, and project hierarchy rendered visually.

ai-project-guide — The methodology framework. Phases, guides, prompt templates, review rules, IDE configuration. This is what Context Forge's structure is built on. Install it with cf guides install.

[Agent Integration Guide](docs/AGENT-INTEGRATION.md) — How to integrate with Context Forge from an AI agent, orchestrator, or CI pipeline. Covers MCP tools, CLI --json mode, structured errors, and command discovery.

[Review Gating](docs/REVIEW-GATING.md) — Config-key reference, decision matrix, workflow states, and escape hatches for the optional review-gate feature.

Published Packages

• @context-forge/context-forge — meta-package (installs cli + mcp)
• @context-forge/mcp
• @context-forge/cli
• @context-forge/core

License

MIT

Source & license

This open-source MCP server is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: ecorkran
• Source: ecorkran/context-forge
• License: MIT

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.