Understanding index state

cix is explicit about how much it knows. Reading those signals is the difference between trusting an answer and double-checking it.

Fresh vs. stale

The index reflects a specific commit. When that matches your current code, the index is fresh. When your code has moved ahead — you have pushed or edited since the last index — it is stale, and reads may not reflect your newest changes. cix doctor reports which state you are in, and cix index brings a stale index current.

Confidence and coverage

Not every answer is equally certain. cix surfaces:

• Confidence signals on answers, so the assistant knows when a result is solid versus best-effort.
• Parse errors, when a file could not be read — those symbols are missing from the index until the parse succeeds.
• Coverage, the share of your project the parser understands. Languages without a parser are reported honestly rather than guessed at.

Why this matters

An index that hides its limits is worse than no index — it invites confident, wrong answers. cix would rather tell you "stale," "partial," or "unsupported" so you know exactly when to verify. If something looks off, start with cix doctor.