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Adist uses block-based indexing by default, which provides more precise search results by splitting documents into semantic blocks (functions, sections, paragraphs). However, the legacy full-document indexing methods are still available for backward compatibility.
The default adist get and adist reindex commands use block-based indexing. Only use legacy commands if you need the older full-document indexing behavior.

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Legacy Commands Overview

Legacy commands maintain the original full-document indexing approach where entire files are indexed as single units:
  • legacy-get - Search using full-document indexing
  • legacy-reindex - Reindex using full-document method

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legacy-get

Search for documents in your project using the legacy full-document search method.

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Basic Usage

adist legacy-get "<query>"

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Examples

adist legacy-get "authentication"
Returns full documents that match your query with highlighted search terms.
adist legacy-get "auth.js"
When your query contains . or /, Adist treats it as a file search and shows matching file paths.
adist legacy-get "database" --debug
Shows additional debugging information including project ID, path, and total indexed files.

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Options

OptionAliasDescription
--debug-dShow debug information including project ID and indexed file count

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Search Behavior

File Search Mode If your query contains . or /, the command searches for matching file paths: 
adist legacy-get "src/utils"
Content Search Mode Otherwise, it searches through indexed document content and displays:
  • File path and location
  • Content preview (up to 15 lines)
  • Highlighted search terms
Summary Fallback If no results are found but your project has summaries, the command may display:
  • Project summary (for queries like “summary” or “overview”)
  • File summaries (up to 3 files)

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legacy-reindex

Reindex your project using the legacy full-document indexing method.

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Basic Usage

adist legacy-reindex
Reindexes the current project using full-document indexing.

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Reindex Specific Project

adist legacy-reindex <projectName>
Reindex a specific project by name.

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Options

OptionAliasDescription
--all-aReindex all projects
--summarize-sGenerate LLM summaries for files and project
--verbose-vShow verbose output during indexing

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Examples

adist legacy-reindex
Reindexes all files in the current project directory using the legacy method.
adist legacy-reindex --summarize
Reindexes and generates AI-powered summaries for each file and an overall project summary. This requires:
  • An LLM provider configured (adist llm-config)
  • API key set (ANTHROPIC_API_KEY, OPENAI_API_KEY, or Ollama running locally)
adist legacy-reindex --all
Reindexes every project in your Adist configuration.
adist legacy-reindex --verbose
Shows detailed progress information during the reindexing process.

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When to Use Legacy Commands

Legacy commands are maintained for backward compatibility only. For new projects, use the default block-based commands (get and reindex) for better search precision.
Consider using legacy commands if:
  • You need to maintain consistency with older Adist indexes
  • Your workflow depends on full-document search results
  • You’re migrating from an older version of Adist

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Migrating to Block-Based Commands

To switch from legacy to block-based indexing:
  1. Reindex your project using the new method: 
    adist reindex
  2. Test searches with the new command: 
    adist get "your query"
  3. Compare results - Block-based search provides:
    • More precise code snippets
    • Function-level granularity
    • Better context for AI interactions
Both indexing methods can coexist. Legacy and block-based indexes are stored separately, so you can use both command sets on the same project.
  • get - Default block-based search command
  • reindex - Default block-based reindexing command
  • query - AI-powered question answering
  • chat - Interactive AI chat about your codebase

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