@luan.sh/pi-tool-search  

@luan.sh/pi-tool-search adds tool_search, a normal Pi tool that finds and activates tools which are currently inactive. It searches only the scope assigned to it. It does not inspect or modify the global tool hierarchy.

Preview

Watch the demo.

Install

pi install npm:@luan.sh/pi-tool-search

Requires a Rust toolchain (https://rustup.rs). The code-mode-host binary builds itself on first use under Pi's agent directory (native/code-mode-host/<version>/). Set PI_CODE_MODE_HOST_BINARY to use a prebuilt binary.

Optional companion: pi install npm:@luan.sh/pi-xsettings adds the /xsettings editor for the deferred-tool picker described below; without it the default (no deferred tools) applies.

The package registers no keybindings and no commands. It uses Pi's dynamic tool APIs (getAllTools, getActiveTools, setActiveTools).

Direct use and use under exec

Code Mode owns placement. @luan.sh/pi-tool-search never decides whether tool_search is direct or under exec.

• When tool_search is direct, its assigned scope is the other tools that were active in Pi at session start. Loading a match calls pi.setActiveTools() in that direct scope.
• When Code Mode puts tool_search under exec, its assigned scope is the sibling tools that Code Mode put under exec. Loading a match keeps the newly active tool under exec; it does not move the tool to Pi's direct list.

The Code Mode bridge is an execution adapter only. It gives Tool Search the current sibling scope when Code Mode asks for it. Code Mode still owns the direct-versus-exec decision and its settings. This is the only information Tool Search receives about Code Mode.

Deferred scope

All tools remain registered with Pi, but checked tools start inactive. At session start, the package builds the deferred-tool picker from its assigned scope. It does not use every tool returned by pi.getAllTools() as a global search index.

The assigned scope is the boundary for both the picker and the search:

• A direct scope contains only the active direct tools that Tool Search was assigned.
• A nested scope contains only the other tools currently under exec.
• Registered tools outside that scope are invisible to tool_search.
• Disabled tools, tools omitted by a strict --tools selection, and tools outside the current scope are not deferred and do not appear in the picker.

Checked names are removed from that scope before the first model request. tool_search itself stays active so the model can load a capability later. When a query matches, activation is additive: existing active tools stay active and only the matching tools are added. A no-match query changes nothing. Loaded tools stay active for the rest of the session unless another owner changes the scope.

Settings

Settings live in the @luan.sh/pi-tool-search namespace (label "Tool Search", category tools). Edit them with /xsettings when @luan.sh/pi-xsettings is installed; otherwise the defaults apply.

Key	Type	Default	Meaning
tools	unordered multi-select	[]	Checked tools are hidden until tool_search loads them.

The selection is stored in ~/.pi/agent/xsettings.toml:

[tools]
pi-tool-search.tools = ["exec_command", "web__run"]

The options are rebuilt from the assigned scope at session start and include each tool's name and description. Reopen the session after changing the selection so the initial deferred set is applied. The setting does not create or enable a tool that Pi did not already make available.

Use the tool

The input is an object with a required query and an optional result limit (integer, 1 to 8):

{"query":"search the web","limit":3}

Search covers tool names, descriptions, parameter names, and parameter descriptions, ranked with BM25 over stemmed tokens with prefix matching for terms of three or more characters. It returns at most eight ranked matches. A successful result reports Loaded tools: ...; a no-match result reports that no inactive tool matched. Tool Search activates matches on the next model request, using Pi's normal dynamic-tool loading behavior.

If tool_search is under exec, call it as a nested method:

const result = await tools.tool_search({ query: "search the web" });
text(result);

tool_search is not a parallel-call helper. There is no multi_tool_use.parallel tool unless another package has separately registered one. Use normal JavaScript such as Promise.all when calling independent nested tools from exec.

API contract

The package's Pi entry point is src/extension.ts. The module entry (src/index.ts) exports createToolSearchResult for consumers that need to build the same model-visible result shape, plus the stable result types ToolSearchDetails and ToolSearchRankedMatch.

The result details are JSON-serializable and versioned:

type ToolSearchDetails = {
  version: 2;
  tool: "tool_search";
  status: "loaded" | "no_match";
  input: { query: string; normalizedQuery: string; limit: number };
  rankedMatches: Array<{ name: string; description: string; score: number }>;
  activation: { before: string[]; added: string[]; after: string[] };
  counts: { registered: number; searchable: number; matches: number; added: number };
  timing: { durationMs: number };
};

A scope passed to the tool has these operations:

type ToolSearchScope = {
  tools(): readonly { name: string; description: string; parameters?: unknown }[];
  active(): readonly string[];
  setActive(names: readonly string[]): void;
};

The scope owner remains responsible for deciding which names are available. Tool Search only ranks inactive entries and asks that owner to add matches.

Troubleshooting

• A tool is not in the picker: it was inactive before Tool Search built its scope, disabled by Pi's tool selection, outside the current exec sibling set, or has not been registered yet. Tool Search does not make it deferred.
• A checked tool still appears direct: confirm tool_search is direct or under exec as intended, then restart the session. Placement belongs to Code Mode; Tool Search cannot change it.
• A nested search cannot find a direct tool: that is expected. A nested Tool Search can see only its sibling tools under exec.
• A direct search cannot load a tool under exec: that is also expected. Use a tool_search instance assigned to that nested scope.
• A query returns no matches: search is limited to inactive tools in the assigned scope. Check the exact name and description exposed by the picker.

Layout

Responsibility	File
Extension entry, scope selection, deferred activation	src/extension.ts
Tool definition and execution	src/tools/tool-search/definition.ts
Result shape (createToolSearchResult)	src/tools/tool-search/result.ts
Transcript rendering	src/tools/tool-search/presentation.ts
Search and ranking	src/search.ts
Code Mode execution bridge	src/code-mode-adapter.ts
Settings definitions	src/contributions/xsettings.ts
Module exports	src/index.ts

Develop

Source: https://github.com/luan/agents, directory harnesses/pi/agent/packages/pi-tool-search. Run bun run typecheck and bun test test in that directory.