Getting it into your agent
One page per mod, every tool's command on it. A separate URL per tool would split the same page into five that compete with each other.
git clone --depth 1 https://github.com/qwickapps/ai-sdlc-workflowsWrote this? Show the measurements
A badge with what this costs and how it scanned, read live from this page, so it follows the numbers instead of freezing them. Markdown for a README, HTML for a documentation site or a project page.
[](https://agentmods.dev/rules/qwickapps/ai-sdlc-workflows/investigation-methods)<a href="https://agentmods.dev/rules/qwickapps/ai-sdlc-workflows/investigation-methods"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/rules/qwickapps/ai-sdlc-workflows/investigation-methods/github.svg" alt="Measured on agentmods" height="20"></a>Or the 80×15 button, for a site that already has a row of RSS and ATOM ones. Only the verdict fits; the numbers stay here.
<a href="https://agentmods.dev/rules/qwickapps/ai-sdlc-workflows/investigation-methods"><img src="https://agentmods.dev/badge/rules/qwickapps/ai-sdlc-workflows/investigation-methods.svg" alt="Reviewed on agentmods" width="80" height="20"></a>What it costs to keep this loaded
Counted locally with the o200k_base tokenizer, which is exact for GPT models; Claude uses its own tokenizer and its counts differ. Treat this as one consistent yardstick across the catalogue rather than a bill. Prices are per million input tokens.
| Model | Per session | Once invoked |
|---|---|---|
| Fable 5.1 | $0.01689 | $0.01689 |
| Opus 5.5 | $0.00676 | $0.00676 |
| Sonnet 5.5 | $0.00338 | $0.00338 |
| Haiku 4.5 | $0.00169 | $0.00169 |
Grade A, and why
INVESTIGATION-METHODS scanned grade A with 0 findings against 26 rules in 11 categories — prompt injection, anti-refusal, data exfiltration, privilege escalation, supply chain, agent snooping, system-prompt leakage, SSRF and excessive agency — measured 2mo ago.
A static scan of the body, not an audit. Every finding is printed with the line that produced it so you can judge whether it matters here. A mod is markdown that instructs an agent; that is exactly why what it instructs is worth reading.
Nothing flagged
None of the 26 patterns this scan looks for appear in this file: no shell pipes, no recursive deletes, no credential paths, no hidden text, no instruction-override or anti-refusal phrasing, no agent-config snooping. That is not a guarantee, it is the absence of the things that are checkable.
How it starts
The opening of the file, as written. The whole thing — 239 lines — stays where its author put it; the contents beside it link to each section on GitHub.
Investigation Methods Checklist
When to apply: During any research, spike, or investigation task - especially before concluding "cannot verify" or "unknown".
Core Principle
Exhaust all available investigation methods before concluding something is unknowable.
Do not give up after hitting a dead end. Pivot to alternative methods.
Reference: See RESEARCH-DEPTH.md for tool selection and COMMON-PATTERNS.md for evidence requirements.
Investigation Methods Hierarchy
Try methods in order. Document which attempted and why others cannot be used.
Level 1: Local Codebase (ALWAYS TRY FIRST)
Before searching externally, check what exists locally:
- Search for files: Glob, find, ls
- Read source code: node_modules, plugins, vendor, lib directories
- Inspect configuration: plugin.xml, package.json, *.config files
- Check installed files: platforms/, www/, hooks/ directories
- Grep codebase: Search for usage, imports, references
Why this first: Source code is ground truth. Public docs may be outdated.
Level 2: Public Package Registries
If Level 1 insufficient:
- npm/yarn: npmjs.com for version history, dependencies, engine requirements
- PyPI: For Python packages
- Maven/Gradle: For Java packages
- RubyGems: For Ruby packages
- Other registries: Based on technology stack
What to check: Latest version, publish date, engine requirements, dependencies, download statistics.
Level 3: Code Repositories
- GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket: Last commit, open issues, PRs, contributors
- README, CHANGELOG: Compatibility mentions, breaking changes, deprecation
- Issue Trackers: Search "[package] [platform version]"
- Pull Requests: Check for pending compatibility fixes
Why repositories: Shows maintenance status, community activity, known problems.
Level 4: Official Documentation
- Official docs: Product documentation, API references (WebFetch)
- Release announcements: Breaking changes, new features, deprecations
- Migration guides: Compatibility requirements
What this file has done since we first saw it
Hashed on every crawl. A supply-chain change to an agent config is a question of when, not whether, so the history is kept rather than the latest state alone.
- 2mo ago First seen · 239 lines · 1,689 tokens per session scan A 5e8e4ced02b6
INVESTIGATION-METHODS is a cursor rule published in the GitHub repository qwickapps/ai-sdlc-workflows (2 stars, last pushed 7mo ago), licensed MIT. It adds 1,689 tokens to every session, about $0.0068 per session on Opus 5.5. A static security scan graded it A with 0 findings. No closer match exists in the catalogue, so it is treated as the original; first seen 2026-08-31.
Other cursor rules, from other repositories
ponytail
Ponytail, lazy senior dev mode. Always pick the simplest solution that works.
angular-20
This rule provides comprehensive best practices and coding standards for Angular development, focusing on modern TypeScript, standalone components, signals, and performance optimizations.
dev-standard
Apache Superset development standards and guidelines for Cursor IDE.
prefer-direct-imports-over-module-mocks
Prefer extracting a testable core over vi.mock / vi.resetModules when unit tests need to reach production logic entangled with config, env, or singletons.
config-validation-and-normalization
Config validation and normalization responsibilities (defineConfig normalizes, the orm section schema validates and resolves paths, the loader reports per-section diagnostics).
control-plane-descriptors
Control plane descriptor and instance implementation patterns.