1 min lesson
How rules and AGENTS.md shape the slice
Work through the cases in "How rules and AGENTS.md shape the slice", pairing each signal with the move that fits.
Step 1 of 2
How rules and AGENTS.md shape the slice
Retrieval is automatic, but you are not powerless over it. Cursor gives developers explicit levers to bias what lands in context and a DX Engineer should be able to teach when to reach for each.
Persistent instructions and pointers the agent should always honor for this project or path.
Use them to encode conventions and steer the agent toward the right files and patterns.
A project-level brief the agent reads: how the codebase is laid out, how to build and test, what to avoid.
Good for the orienting context every task needs - the README written for an agent.
Explicitly pull a file, folder or symbol into the current request's context.
The most direct fix when retrieval missed something you know is relevant.
Implicit signals that bias retrieval toward what you're working on.
Why keeping the relevant file open often quietly fixes a 'wrong context' problem.
The model isn't reading your repo. It's reading a small slice the harness retrieved for this request. If the agent missed a file, the question to ask isn't 'why is it dumb' - it's 'was that file in context?' Open it, @-mention it or add a rule and you've fixed it.
Learn more
Optional practice