ask — AI Assistant

The ask command is the heart of Rawi — your direct interface to AI assistance. Use it to ask questions, get code reviews, analyze data, and much more.

Basic Usage

rawi ask [query] [options]

Simple Questions

# Basic question
rawi ask "What is TypeScript?"

# Multi-word questions (quotes recommended)
rawi ask "How do I deploy a Node.js application to AWS?"

# Code-related questions
rawi ask "Explain async/await in JavaScript with examples"

Options

Option	Alias	Description	Default
--profile <profile>	-p	Profile to use for AI configuration	default
--session <sessionId>	-s	Continue an existing chat session
--new-session	-n	Start a new chat session
--act <template>		Use an act template by ID
--file <path>	-f	Process content from a file
--files <paths...>	-F	Process content from multiple files
--batch <patterns...>	-b	Process files matching glob patterns
--file-type <type>		Override automatic file type detection
--parallel		Process multiple files in parallel
--max-concurrency <number>		Maximum concurrent files to process	5
--continue-on-error		Continue processing other files if one fails
--verbose		Show detailed status and debug information
--filter-sensitive		Filter sensitive information from prompts and responses
--filter-types <types>		Comma-separated list of information types to filter
--show-filtered		Show which information was filtered and display filtering statistics
--highlight-filtered		Show filtered content with highlighting in terminal output
--save-filter-config		Save current filtering configuration as default for future use
--reset-filter-config		Reset filtering configuration to defaults (enables all filter types)

File Processing Options

Supported File Types:

Category	Extensions	Description
Documents	pdf, docx, pptx, xlsx	PDF documents, Word docs, PowerPoint, Excel
OpenDocument	odt, odp, ods	OpenDocument text, presentations, spreadsheets
Text & Markup	txt, md, xml, html, htm	Plain text, Markdown, XML, HTML files
Web Technologies	js, jsx, ts, tsx, css, json	JavaScript, TypeScript, CSS, JSON
Programming Languages	py, java, cpp, c, h, go, rs	Python, Java, C/C++, Go, Rust
	rb, kt, swift, dart, scala	Ruby, Kotlin, Swift, Dart, Scala
	r, m, pl, lua, php	R, Objective-C, Perl, Lua, PHP
Configuration	yml, yaml, toml, env, ini	YAML, TOML, environment, config files
	conf, cfg	General configuration files
Scripts & Tools	sql, sh, bash, vim	SQL, shell scripts, Vim config
	dockerfile, makefile, gitignore	Docker, Make, Git ignore files
Logs	log	Log files and system output

File Type Override:

# Process unknown file as text
rawi ask --file data.unknown --file-type txt "Analyze this data"

# Force PDF processing
rawi ask --file document --file-type pdf "Extract text from this"

# Override auto-detection for config files
rawi ask --file config.custom --file-type yaml "Parse this YAML configuration"

Sensitive Information Filtering

Rawi includes built-in filtering to protect sensitive information in your prompts and AI responses.

Basic Filtering

# Enable sensitive information filtering
rawi ask --filter-sensitive "Review this log file with user data"

# Process files with filtering enabled
rawi ask --file user-data.txt --filter-sensitive "Analyze this data"

Custom Filter Types

# Filter specific types of information
rawi ask --filter-types "email,phone" "Process this customer contact list"

# Filter multiple types
rawi ask --filter-types "email,phone,creditcard,ssn" --file sensitive-data.csv "Analyze patterns"

# Combine with file processing
rawi ask --files logs/*.log --filter-types "ip,email" "Check for security issues"

Filter Visibility and Debugging

# Show what was filtered
rawi ask --filter-sensitive --show-filtered "Analyze this user database"

# Highlight filtered content in output
rawi ask --filter-sensitive --highlight-filtered "Review this authentication log"

# Combine visibility options
rawi ask --filter-types "email,phone" --show-filtered --highlight-filtered "Process contacts"

Filter Configuration Management

# Save current filter settings as default
rawi ask --filter-types "email,phone,creditcard" --save-filter-config "Set up my preferred filtering"

# Reset to default filter configuration
rawi ask --reset-filter-config "Reset filtering to defaults"

# Use saved configuration (automatic)
rawi ask "Process data with my saved filter settings"

Common Filter Types

Filter Type	Description	Examples
email	Email addresses	user@example.com, test@domain.org
phone	Phone numbers	(555) 123-4567, +1-800-555-0199
creditcard	Credit card numbers	4111-1111-1111-1111
ssn	Social Security Numbers	123-45-6789
ip	IP addresses	192.168.1.1, 10.0.0.1
url	URLs and web addresses	https://example.com/private
api_key	API keys and tokens	sk-1234567890abcdef
password	Password-like strings	password123, secretkey

Session Management

Sessions allow you to have continuous conversations where each question remembers the previous context.

Start a New Session

# Explicitly start a new session
rawi ask "I'm building a React application" --new-session

# Shorter version
rawi ask "I'm building a React application" -n

Continue a Conversation

# Continue current session (automatic)
rawi ask "How should I structure my components?"

# Continue specific session
rawi ask "What about state management?" --session abc123-def456

Session Workflow Example

# Start a project conversation
$ rawi ask "I'm building a REST API with Node.js and Express" --new-session
🤖 Great! I'd be happy to help you build a REST API with Node.js and Express.
What specific aspects would you like to focus on? Here are some areas I can assist with:
...

# Continue the conversation
$ rawi ask "How should I structure my project folders?"
🤖 Based on our discussion about your REST API, here's a recommended folder structure:
...

# Add more context
$ rawi ask "What about database integration with MongoDB?"
🤖 For your Express REST API, here's how to integrate MongoDB effectively:
...

Act Templates

Act templates transform the AI into specialized experts for different domains.

Using Templates

# Use template with question
rawi ask --act code-reviewer "Review this function for performance issues"

# Combine with file input
cat server.js | rawi ask --act security-expert "Analyze for vulnerabilities"

# Use with profile
rawi ask --act database-admin "Optimize this query" --profile work

Popular Templates

Development

# Code review
rawi ask --act code-reviewer "Review this Python function"

# Linux terminal simulation
rawi ask --act linux-terminal "list files in /home with details"

# Software engineering
rawi ask --act software-engineer "Design a scalable authentication system"

Security

# Security analysis
rawi ask --act security-expert "Audit this authentication code"

# Cybersecurity specialist
rawi ask --act cybersecurity-specialist "Assess web application vulnerabilities"

Documentation

# Technical writing
rawi ask --act technical-writer "Document this API endpoint"

# API documentation
rawi ask --act api-documentation-expert "Create docs for these REST endpoints"

Database

# Database administration
rawi ask --act database-expert "Optimize this SQL query"

# Data analysis
rawi ask --act data-scientist "Analyze trends in this dataset"

Browse Templates

# List all available templates
rawi act --list

# Show template details
rawi act --show code-reviewer

Profile Usage

Profiles let you use different AI providers and configurations for different tasks.

Using Specific Profiles

# Use work profile
rawi ask "Review this code" --profile work

# Use local profile (e.g., Ollama)
rawi ask "Quick question" --profile local

# Use analysis profile (e.g., Claude)
rawi ask "Analyze this data" --profile analysis

Profile + Template Combinations

# Use Claude for deep code analysis
rawi ask --act code-reviewer "Analyze architecture" --profile claude

# Use local AI for quick questions
rawi ask --act linux-terminal "ls -la" --profile local

# Use GPT-4 for documentation
rawi ask --act technical-writer "Create README" --profile openai

Shell Integration

Rawi integrates seamlessly with shell commands and pipes.

Input from Pipes

# Analyze code files
cat app.js | rawi ask --act code-reviewer "Review this JavaScript code"

# Process command output
ps aux | rawi ask "Which processes are using the most memory?"

# Analyze logs
tail -f error.log | rawi ask "Monitor for critical issues"

# Git integration
git diff | rawi ask "Summarize these changes"

Chaining Commands

# Save AI responses
rawi ask "Explain Docker containers" > docker-notes.txt

# Process AI output
rawi ask "List popular Python libraries" | grep -i "data"

# Complex pipelines
cat data.csv | rawi ask --act data-scientist "Analyze this data" | tee analysis.txt

Advanced Usage

File Processing with Filtering

# Process sensitive documents safely
rawi ask --file employee-data.xlsx --filter-sensitive "Create summary statistics"

# Analyze logs with IP and email filtering
rawi ask --file access.log --filter-types "ip,email" --show-filtered "Find unusual access patterns"

# Batch process with filtering
rawi ask --batch "logs/**/*.log" --filter-sensitive --parallel "Analyze all logs for security issues"

# Review code with API key filtering
rawi ask --files src/**/*.js --filter-types "api_key,password" --act code-reviewer "Security review"

Security-Focused Analysis

# Audit configuration files
rawi ask --file .env --filter-types "password,api_key" --act security-expert "Review configuration security"

# Process database dumps safely
rawi ask --file backup.sql --filter-sensitive --show-filtered "Analyze schema structure"

# Review application logs
rawi ask --file app.log --filter-types "email,ip,creditcard" --highlight-filtered "Check for data leaks"

File Analysis

# Code review entire files
cat src/server.js | rawi ask --act code-reviewer "Comprehensive code review focusing on security and performance"

# Documentation generation
cat api/routes.js | rawi ask --act technical-writer "Generate API documentation for these routes"

# Error analysis
cat error.log | rawi ask --act debugging-expert "Identify and categorize these errors"

Multi-Step Workflows

# Development workflow
rawi ask --new-session --act software-engineer "I'm building a user authentication system"
rawi ask "What are the security considerations?"
rawi ask "Show me the database schema"
rawi ask "How should I handle password reset?"

Batch Processing

# Review multiple files
for file in src/*.js; do
    echo "Reviewing $file..."
    cat "$file" | rawi ask --act code-reviewer "Quick review of this file"
done

# Analyze logs from multiple servers
for log in logs/*.log; do
    cat "$log" | rawi ask --act system-administrator "Summarize issues in this log"
done

Tips and Best Practices

Effective Prompting

1. Be Specific: Include context and requirements

   rawi ask --act code-reviewer "Review this React component for performance issues and accessibility compliance"

2. Provide Context: Mention your tech stack and constraints

   rawi ask "How do I implement caching in a Node.js Express API using Redis?"

3. Use Templates: Choose appropriate expertise for your task

   rawi ask --act database-expert "Optimize this PostgreSQL query for large datasets"

Session Management

1. Start Sessions for Related Work: Group related questions together
2. Use Descriptive First Messages: Set clear context
3. Reference Previous Discussion: Build on earlier conversation points

Performance Optimization

1. Choose Appropriate Models: Use lighter models for simple tasks
2. Limit Input Size: Process large files in chunks if needed
3. Use Local Providers: For speed and privacy when possible

Security and Privacy

1. Filter Sensitive Data: Use --filter-sensitive when processing sensitive files

   rawi ask --file user-data.csv --filter-sensitive "Analyze user behavior patterns"

2. Custom Filtering: Specify exactly what to filter for better control

   rawi ask --filter-types "email,phone,ssn" --file contacts.txt "Process contact information"

3. Verify Filtering: Use --show-filtered to see what was filtered

   rawi ask --filter-sensitive --show-filtered --file logs.txt "Review application logs"

Error Handling

Common Issues

Session not found:

# List available sessions
rawi history --sessions

# Start new session if old one expired
rawi ask --new-session "Continuing previous work on authentication"

Large input errors:

# Process in chunks for large files
head -100 large-file.txt | rawi ask "Analyze this sample"

Network issues:

# Check configuration
rawi info

# Try different profile/provider
rawi ask --profile backup "Test question"

Integration Examples

Git Workflows

# Pre-commit code review
git diff --cached | rawi ask --act code-reviewer "Review staged changes"

# Commit message generation
git diff --cached | rawi ask "Generate a conventional commit message"

# Release notes
git log --oneline v1.0..HEAD | rawi ask --act technical-writer "Create release notes"

Development Automation

# API testing
curl -s https://api.example.com/users | rawi ask --act api-tester "Analyze this API response"

# Log monitoring
tail -f /var/log/app.log | rawi ask --act incident-responder "Monitor for critical alerts"

# Documentation updates
find . -name "*.js" -newer docs/ | while read file; do
    cat "$file" | rawi ask --act technical-writer "Update documentation for changes in this file"
done

Show details of a specific act template:

$ rawi ask --act ethereum-developer --show

---

For more information, see the Rawi documentation or run rawi ask --help.