What is optimize?

The optimize command calls CIAK's context optimizer to assemble relevant files within a token budget.

ciak optimize [OPTIONS] <TASK>

Behavior and options

Option	Description
<TASK>	Task description (required, positional)
-f, --files <FILES>	Optional current working files
-m, --max-tokens <N>	Maximum token budget (default: 4000)
--include-tests	Include tests/specs in ranking
--strategy <NAME>	adaptive, text, vector, hybrid, dependency, recency (default: adaptive)
--path-patterns <PATTERNS>	Comma-separated include globs (e.g. packages/core/**,packages/common/**)
--exclude-patterns <PATTERNS>	Comma-separated exclude globs (e.g. **/tests/**,integration/**)
--symbol-types <TYPES>	Comma-separated symbol types (e.g. method,class)
--prefer-implementation-over-tests	Prefer implementation files over tests/specs
--include-diagnostics	Include per-file ranking diagnostics in response metadata

Notes

• If --include-tests is not set, CLI defaults to implementation-focused ranking.
• If both --include-tests and --prefer-implementation-over-tests are set, --include-tests wins.

Examples

Example 1 — Basic optimize request

ciak optimize "trace request lifecycle from controller to response"

Example 2 — Focus on core/common implementation files

ciak optimize "method init typescript" \
  --strategy text \
  --path-patterns "packages/core/**,packages/common/**" \
  --exclude-patterns "**/tests/**,integration/**,packages/microservices/**" \
  --prefer-implementation-over-tests

Example 3 — Request diagnostics for ranking explanations

ciak optimize "class RoutesResolver typescript" \
  --strategy text \
  --include-diagnostics \
  --symbol-types "class,method"

Related concepts

• MCP Tools — optimize_context — MCP equivalent with the same filtering concepts.
• search — broad code search before narrowing context.
• related-files — dependency-driven neighborhood exploration.