# Workflows

> Typical tasks with the Context Atlas MCP server, from detecting a project's stack to fetching a vendor's llms.txt.

Each workflow starts with a prompt you can paste as is. The steps show what a well-behaved agent does with it, so you can tell when it skips one.

## Detect a project's stack and load the docs

```text
Use contextatlas to detect the stack of this repository. Tell me what you found and which file proves it, then load the matching sources and follow their conventions.
```

1. The agent reads `package.json` (and every workspace `package.json` in a monorepo), the lockfile and config files such as `vercel.json`, `wrangler.jsonc` or `drizzle.config.ts`.
2. It calls `search` for each dependency or file it is unsure about, for example `search("drizzle.config.ts")`. A match on a topic's signals means the topic is part of the stack.
3. It reports the stack: each tool with the file that proves it, and anything the catalog does not cover.
4. It calls `get_topic` for each detected tool and fetches the `llms` or `rules` source first, then only the docs pages the task needs.
5. If a topic has an MCP server, skill or CLI, it lists them and asks before installing anything.

Add the prompt to your project's `AGENTS.md` or `CLAUDE.md` if every session should start this way.

## Fetch a vendor's llms.txt

```text
Get the llms.txt for Supabase from contextatlas and use it to answer: how do I enable row level security?
```

1. `search("supabase", kind: "llms")` or `get_topic("supabase")` returns the vendor's llms.txt URL, here `https://supabase.com/llms.txt`.
2. The agent fetches that URL, follows the links in it to the relevant pages and answers from them.

If you only need the links, the topic file works without MCP too: [/llms/supabase.txt](https://contextatlas.dev/llms/supabase.txt) lists every Supabase source as plain text.

## Find a vendor's MCP server or skills

```text
Does Neon have an MCP server or agent skills? Use contextatlas, and ask me before you install anything.
```

The agent calls `search("neon", kind: "mcp")` and `search("neon", kind: "skill")`, shows you what exists and waits for your answer. To connect a vendor's MCP server, it follows the instructions on the linked page.

## Propose a stack for a new project

```text
Use contextatlas to propose a stack for a booking app for a small climbing gym, with payments and a staff dashboard. One tool per role, with trade-offs. Wait for my approval before setting anything up.
```

1. The agent asks about anything the description leaves open: traffic, budget, where it should run.
2. It calls `list_topics` (optionally per region, such as `cloud` or `frameworks`) and groups the tools by role, then reads the sources of the candidates with `get_topic`.
3. It proposes one tool per role (hosting, framework, database, auth, payments) and names a close alternative where there is one.
4. After you agree, it calls `get_topic` for each chosen tool and sets the project up with the vendors' own CLIs and conventions.

## Check what changed in the catalog

Every answer contains `updatedAt`, the date of the last catalog change. Ask "When was contextatlas last updated?" to see whether your agent is working from current data.