Context and Specs

Context and Specs

Harness combines context engineering (which files the model sees) and Spec-Driven Development (how the agent should behave) in one workflow — regardless of whether you use Copilot, Claude, Cursor, or another provider.

Context files

Add files or folders to the agent context:

• Right-click in Explorer → Add to Harness Context
• Or command Harness: Add to Context

Context chips appear above the composer. Click a chip to open the file; × removes one item.

Clear context removes all chips and clears the input field.

Context paths are sent to the CLI on each message — the daemon reads file contents (never the extension host).

Provider-agnostic: attach context once, then switch from Copilot to Claude (or Auto) — the same files are still included. You do not re-upload context in another IDE.

Spec Manager

Ctrl+Shift+P → Harness: Open Spec Manager

Browse, create, and edit spec files in .harness/specs/.

Specs are used automatically in Spec+Agent Copilot mode. See SDD Specs.

Workspace layout

your-project/
├── .harness/
│   ├── config.yaml
│   └── specs/
│       ├── my-skill.yaml
│       └── review-workflow.yaml
└── ...