How do I try Cortex with my existing development process?

Cortex gives the agent you already use your approved knowledge before implementation begins. Connect the agent through the Socra CLI or a compatible MCP client. Before it plans or edits code, have it flash the Module that owns the subject. Cortex returns that Module and every declared dependency, with foundations first.

A Module describes what should be true and why. The repository shows the current implementation. The agent still reads the repository instructions, inspects the code and history, runs the repository’s checks, and verifies current behavior.

You can use Modules without moving work into Cortex Issues. A flash needs only a Module name. If you use Cortex Issues, each Issue describes one piece of work and names its owning Module. This gives the agent a direct route from the work to the knowledge it needs. Cortex does not automatically synchronize Cortex Issues with an external tracker.

Your existing tests, CI checks, branch protections, review requirements, and deployment approvals continue to control what ships. Cortex does not run those checks or approve a merge. Builders and reviewers can flash the same Module before they inspect the change.

Module history records each saved version. Flash history records which Module versions Cortex delivered. It does not automatically link a flash to a commit, CI run, or deployment.

A low-risk pilot

1. Choose one repository and one recurring decision that agents need to apply. Use a reversible change in an area already covered by tests.
2. Create one Module at cortex.socra.com or with the Socra CLI. State what should be true and why. Keep its dependencies small. Review the Module and everything it depends on before granting access.
3. Connect one agent through the CLI or MCP. Limit its Cortex access to the knowledge selected for the pilot. If the agent uses a separate Cortex identity, the Viewer role is enough to flash the Module.
4. Put the flash step in the instructions that the agent reads for the repository. For example: “Before changing this area, flash <module-name> in Cortex and read the complete result.”
5. Leave the agent’s repository, merge, and deployment permissions unchanged. Run the change through the same branch, CI, and review process you already use.
6. Have the reviewer flash the same Module. Confirm that Cortex recorded the flash. Review the change and its evidence as usual.
7. If the pilot uncovers knowledge that will matter again, let the agent propose the exact Module change. The owner approves, revises, or rejects the proposal before the agent saves it.

Repeat the pilot with real work. Check whether the agent used the Module, applied the knowledge correctly, and produced the evidence the reviewer needed. Expand to another subject after your existing checks continue to catch implementation problems and the Module changes the agent’s work as intended.