Agent Config Files

Configuration files like CLAUDE.md, .cursorrules, and .github/copilot-instructions.md give agents persistent context about your project's conventions, architecture, and constraints, loading automatically at the start of each session so you do not have to re-explain the same rules every time. These files live in your repository alongside the code they describe, which means the context compounds across every interaction and stays in sync as the codebase evolves. The best config files encode the implicit knowledge that experienced developers carry mentally: naming conventions, architectural boundaries, forbidden patterns, and file organization rules, converting that tacit knowledge into machine-readable instructions that any team member can read and update.