Use for "how does X work", code walkthroughs before changing something, and placement / ownership / layering questions ("where should this live", "which package owns this", "is this the right layer"). Explains subsystem architecture, runtime flow, onboarding mental models. Use why for motivation.
Collected from public GitHub. Every version is saved exactly as it was and never changes. Install it at an exact version with the mdr tool, and every file is checked before it reaches your agent. The main file is checked against the SHA-256 fingerprint recorded here, and the others against the fingerprints GitHub keeps for its source commit. The automatic checks below grade the latest version, and the same checks always give the same file the same grade.
What the file says
# How
In Claude Code, read [the Claude Code adapter](../../docs/harness/claude-code.md) once per session before you follow this skill. It maps the Cursor names in pstack skills to Claude Code.
Explore the codebase to answer "how does X work?" questions. Produce architectural explanations at the level of a senior engineer onboarding onto a subsystem, enough to build a working mental model, not so much that it reads like annotated source code.
Every spawn is a Task subagent with `subagent_type: generalPurpose` and `readonly: true`. Explorers use the `how explorer` line in the `pstack-models.mdc` rule (default `grok-4.7-xhigh-fast`), and every explainer uses the `how explainer` line (default `claude-opus-5-5-xhigh`). Set `model` to that line's value, or to the default if the rule or the line is missing. Leave `model` unset when the value is `auto` or `inherit-parent`. If the Task tool rejects a slug, use the default and say so. If it rejects the default, use the closest valid slug of the same family from its error message. Pick each subagent's reasoning level and fast or standard speed for the job, per the Subagents section of the **poteto-mode** skill.
## 1. Assess complexity
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The line at the top of this page pins the label git:20261016.182f2ce, which is what most people want. This one pins the sha256 fingerprint of the contents instead, so it survives a label being moved. Either way the exact version is written to mdr.lock, and mdr install downloads and checks those contents again, so it installs them exactly or stops with an error.
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/artifacts/art_zlv5w6cnkp7f5bcd
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/resolve?ref=cursor/plugins/how
GET https://markdownregistry.com/api/v1/blob/f2aad836aa83cac7385e734ab888d573e1736def5b061aa8a72b1717f085606c
Your AI assistant does the legwork. You hear about the deals worth your word. Hand yours the standing instructions at modelranch.com and it joins the network that reads files like this one.
cursor/plugins · advisor/skills/advisor/SKILL.md · Advisor mode. Consult a stronger (or different) model at key checkpoints: before major decisions, when stuck on an…
cursor/plugins · agent-compatibility/skills/check-agent-compatibility/SKILL.md · Run the full repository compatibility pass: scanner score, startup path, validation loop, and docs reliability.
cursor/plugins · cli-for-agent/skills/cli-for-agents/SKILL.md · Designs or reviews CLIs so coding agents can run them reliably: non-interactive flags, layered --help with examples…
cursor/plugins · create-plugin/skills/create-plugin-scaffold/SKILL.md · Create a new Cursor plugin scaffold with a valid manifest, component directories, and marketplace wiring. Use when…
cursor/plugins · create-plugin/skills/review-plugin-submission/SKILL.md · Audit a Cursor plugin for marketplace readiness. Use when validating manifests, component metadata, discovery paths…
cursor/plugins · cursor-sdk/skills/cursor-sdk/SKILL.md · Guide users building apps, scripts, CI pipelines, or automations on top of the Cursor TypeScript SDK (`@cursor/sdk`)…
cursor/plugins · cursor-team-kit/skills/control-cli/SKILL.md · Build or adapt a local harness to drive, inspect, and profile an interactive CLI or TUI without external services. Use…
cursor/plugins · cursor-team-kit/skills/control-ui/SKILL.md · Build or adapt a local browser/CDP harness to drive and inspect a web, IDE, or Electron UI. Use for local UI…
cursor/plugins · pstack/skills/how/SKILL.md · Use for "how does X work", code walkthroughs before changing something, and placement / ownership / layering questions…
michael-denyer/pstack-claude · plugins/pstack/skills/how/SKILL.md · Use for "how does X work", code walkthroughs before changing something, and placement / ownership / layering questions…
backnotprop/pstack · skills/how/SKILL.md · Use for "how does X work", code walkthroughs before changing something, and placement / ownership / layering questions…
bastani-inc/atomic · packages/workflows/skills/how/SKILL.md · Use for "how does X work", code walkthroughs before changing something, and placement / ownership / layering questions…
j-star-films-studios/vibecode-protocol-suite · assets/.agent/skills/code-intelligence/how/SKILL.md · Use for "how does X work", code walkthroughs before changing something, and placement / ownership / layering questions…
creedants/pstack-t3 · skills/how/SKILL.md · Use for "how does X work", code walkthroughs before changing something, and placement / ownership / layering questions…
creedants/pstack-t3 · t3/overrides/how/SKILL.md · Use for "how does X work", code walkthroughs before changing something, and placement / ownership / layering questions…
arjitj2/open-pstack · plugins/pstack/skills/how/SKILL.md · Use for "how does X work", code walkthroughs before changing something, and placement / ownership / layering questions…
