skim

Skim Code Review Integration

Skim is a keyboard-driven TUI for code reviews. You can interact with running sessions to review code and add comments programmatically.

Interface Selection

Try MCP first, fall back to CLI:

1. Check if mcp__skim__list_clients tool exists
2. If yes: use MCP tools (direct, no shell needed)
3. If no or fails: use CLI commands via Bash

Quick Reference

Step 1: Find Sessions

MCP:

mcp__skim__list_clients {}

CLI:

skim session list

Output example:

Running sessions (1):

  PID:   12345
  CWD:   /path/to/project
  Diff:  working
  Files: 3

If no sessions: tell user to start skim (skim, skim --staged, skim main..feature)

Step 2: Get Diff (REQUIRED before commenting)

MCP: (use PID from list_clients as client_id)

mcp__skim__get_file_diff {
  "client_id": "12345",
  "file": "src/app.zig"
}

CLI:

skim session diff --file src/app.zig

Output format:

=== src/app.zig ===

@@ Hunk 0: -10,5 +10,6 @@
+       42 | const x = 1;        <- Added line: line_type="new", line=42
-  41      | const old = 2;      <- Deleted line: line_type="old", line=41
   41   42 | unchanged           <- Context: line_type="new", line=42

Step 3: Add Comments

MCP:

mcp__skim__add_comment {
  "client_id": "12345",
  "file": "src/app.zig",
  "line": 42,
  "line_type": "new",
  "text": "Consider adding error handling here"
}

CLI:

skim session comment add \
  --file src/app.zig \
  --line 42 \
  --type new \
  "Consider adding error handling here"

Line Type Rules

Diff marker	line_type	Use line from
+ (added)	"new"	NEW column
- (deleted)	"old"	OLD column
(context)	"new"	NEW column

For More Details

• mcp.md - Full MCP tool reference with all parameters
• cli.md - Full CLI command reference
• workflow.md - Step-by-step review workflow