/dead-code

description: Report unreachable files, unused exports, and zombie packages, tiered by confidence.
allowed-tools: Bash(repowise dead-code:*), Read
disable-model-invocation: true

Repowise Dead Code

Find dead code through graph reachability + git context. No LLM — works in index-only mode. Findings are tiered by confidence; only `safe_to_delete` ones should be proposed for removal.

Steps

1. If `.repowise/` doesn't exist: "This repo isn't indexed yet. Run `/repowise:init` first." Stop. 2. Run `repowise dead-code` (with any filters from `$ARGUMENTS`). 3. Present findings grouped by confidence. Mark which are `safe_to_delete`. For lower-confidence ones, frame them as "candidates to investigate," not deletions.

Filters from `$ARGUMENTS`

• A path → `repowise dead-code <path>`
• "safe" → `--safe-only` (only safe_to_delete findings)
• "files" → `--kind unreachable_file`
• "exports" → `--kind unused_export`
• "packages" / "zombie" → `--kind zombie_package`
• "strict" → `--min-confidence 0.7` (default is 0.4)

Other flags: `--format json`, `--include-internals` (aggressive, private-symbol scan; higher false-positive rate), `--include-zombie-packages` / `--no-include-zombie-packages`, `--no-unreachable`, `--no-unused-exports`, `--repo <alias>` / `--no-workspace`.

For per-directory or per-owner rollups, use the `get_dead_code` MCP tool with `group_by="directory"` or `group_by="owner"` (these are tool params, not CLI flags). If your client does not list `get_dead_code`, add `+get_dead_code` to `mcp.tools` in `.repowise/config.yaml` and restart the MCP server.

Before suggesting any deletion

• Confirm with the user; show the name, confidence, and why it looks dead.
• Recently-touched "dead" code is more likely a false positive — flag it.
• Dynamically-loaded patterns (plugins, handlers, adapters, framework routes)

can look unused but aren't. Repowise filters the common cases; edge cases remain.

• Double-check blast radius with `repowise risk --target <path>` before removing files

or exported symbols.