@simplecyon/pi-context-inspector

Context-usage diagnostics for Pi through the /context command.

The extension makes fixed prompt overhead visible—system instructions, context files, skill metadata, and tool schemas—alongside conversation messages, thinking, and the largest tool results. It helps answer whether a session needs compaction or a smaller set of loaded resources.

What /context shows

• Total context usage relative to the model's context window.
• Fixed prompt overhead grouped by system prompt, context files, skills, and active tool schemas.
• Conversation usage grouped by user, assistant, thinking, and tool-result content.
• Expandable top contributors for context files and tool results.
• Practical warnings when one category consumes a disproportionate share.

In interactive mode, /context opens a navigable TUI panel. In print or other non-TUI modes, it emits a compact notification and does not instantiate TUI components.

Install

Install only this package:

pi install npm:@simplecyon/pi-context-inspector

For a trusted project-local installation:

pi install npm:@simplecyon/pi-context-inspector -l --approve

For local development:

pi install -l --approve /absolute/path/to/pi-packages/packages/pi-context-inspector

The complete suite remains available as git:github.com/simplecyon/pi-packages.

Then run:

/context

Measurement model

• Token estimates use Pi's own estimateTokens approximation.
• When provider usage is available, total input is anchored to input + cacheRead + cacheWrite; output tokens are excluded.
• Category shares are estimates. Active tool schemas are measured separately, and remaining unmatched input is displayed as estimation residual.
• Character-based estimates can undercount Chinese text, so category proportions are directional rather than billing-grade measurements.
• Base memory already present in the system prompt is not counted again when @simplecyon/pi-memory records its session metadata.

See RESEARCH.md for source-level research and REQUIREMENTS.md for the product specification.

Known limitations

• Transient context-event rewrites that are never persisted may not appear as a separate category.
• Recommendation thresholds are currently built in.
• There is no JSON export mode.

Compatibility

Targets Pi 0.82.x and integrates with @simplecyon/pi-memory.

Development

From the monorepo root:

pnpm --filter @simplecyon/pi-context-inspector check

See the repository README for suite installation and workspace conventions.