Claude Code Prompts

prompts.ts:175

Identity & Introduction

The identity section is deliberately minimal — a single sentence that establishes role (interactive agent), domain (software engineering), and deference to the rest of the prompt ('use the instructions below'). This avoids over-constraining the persona early, which research shows can cause the model to ignore later instructions. The CYBER_RISK_INSTRUCTION is inlined immediately to establish security boundaries before any task-specific guidance. The URL guardrail prevents a common failure mode where models hallucinate plausible-looking links.

role-settingguardrailsscope-limiting

prompt.ts

Bash Tool

The Bash tool prompt is one of the most elaborate in Claude Code, combining tool-use guidance with extensive guardrails. It steers the model away from shell commands when dedicated tools exist (Glob, Grep, Read, Edit, Write), uses priority-ordering to list preferred alternatives, and includes detailed behavioral constraints for git safety. The sandbox section uses conditional logic to adapt restrictions based on configuration. The sleep guidance prevents common anti-patterns like polling loops and unnecessary delays.

tool-use-guidancebehavioral-constraintspriority-ordering

exploreAgent.ts

Explore Agent — Read-Only Codebase Search Specialist

The explore agent is a speed-optimized, read-only search specialist. The prompt uses an exhaustive deny-list of prohibited operations to enforce immutability — listing every way a file could be modified rather than just saying 'read-only.' This negative-example technique is more robust against creative workarounds. The performance note at the end nudges the model toward parallel tool calls.

role-settingbehavioral-constraintsnegative-examples

coordinatorMode.ts

Coordinator System Prompt

The coordinator prompt is the most architecturally significant prompt in Claude Code, defining a multi-agent orchestration pattern. It establishes a four-phase workflow (Research → Synthesis → Implementation → Verification) and makes synthesis the coordinator's 'most important job.' The anti-patterns section ('based on your findings' is banned) prevents lazy delegation. The continue-vs-spawn decision table teaches context-aware worker management. The full example session demonstrates the complete lifecycle from bug report to fix.

role-settingbehavioral-constraintsfew-shot-examples

prompts.ts:255

Action Safety & Reversibility

This section introduces a 'reversibility and blast radius' framework that gives the model a principled mental model for evaluating risk without exhaustively enumerating every dangerous action. The asymmetric cost framing ('cost of pausing is low, cost of unwanted action is high') creates a strong prior toward caution. The explicit note that 'approving once does NOT mean approving in all contexts' prevents the model from over-generalizing permissions — a subtle but critical safety boundary. The concrete examples serve as few-shot calibration for what 'risky' means in practice, and the closing 'measure twice, cut once' aphorism reinforces the spirit of the rules.

guardrailsconditional-logicbehavioral-constraints

prompt.ts

Agent Tool

The Agent tool prompt is a masterclass in meta-prompting — it teaches the model how to write good prompts for sub-agents. The 'Writing the prompt' section uses persona-based framing ('brief like a smart colleague') and includes negative examples of what not to do ('never delegate understanding'). The fork semantics section introduces a qualitative decision framework for when to fork vs. spawn fresh agents. The 'Don't peek' and 'Don't race' directives are critical guardrails preventing the model from fabricating results or polluting its context with fork output.

meta-promptingnegative-examplestool-use-guidance

⚙️

System Prompt

The core identity, behavioral rules, and task guidance that define how Claude Code operates

🔧

Tool Prompts

Instructions given to the model for each of the 36+ built-in tools

🤖

Agent Prompts

System prompts for built-in sub-agent types like Explore, Plan, and Verification

🎯

Coordinator

The multi-worker orchestration system that manages parallel task execution

🧠

Memory System

How Claude Code stores and retrieves long-term memories across sessions

🎨

Output Styles

Configurable response modes like Explanatory and Learning that change Claude's behavior

✨

Special Features

Autonomous mode, scratchpad, proactive behavior, and other advanced capabilities

🔌

Services & Utilities

Background pipelines: compaction, Chrome, permissions, hooks, bundled skills, and other service-level LLM prompts

⌨️

Commands & CLI

Slash commands and CLI handlers such as /init, /insights, auto-mode critique, and session naming