Below are some examples of prompts that can be used with the branch-thinking MCP tool. You should prepend instructions for Claude to explicitly use branch-thinking if your system prompt or Claude profile settings do not do so already. See the README.
Analyze security from multiple perspectives, tracking attack vectors and defenses:
// Main branch - system description
{
"content": "Proposed system: Users can reset passwords via email link plus answering two security questions.",
"type": "system_design",
"keyPoints": ["email verification", "security questions", "password reset"]
}
// Attack branch - examining vulnerabilities
{
"content": "Examining potential social engineering vectors targeting the security question system.",
"type": "threat_analysis",
"branchId": "attack-vectors",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "main-[timestamp]",
"type": "analyzes",
"reason": "Identifying vulnerabilities in security questions",
"strength": 0.9
}],
"keyPoints": ["social media mining", "phishing risks", "question predictability"]
}
// Defense branch - countermeasures
{
"content": "Implement ML-based anomaly detection for suspicious reset patterns.",
"type": "mitigation",
"branchId": "defense-ml",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "attack-vectors",
"type": "counters",
"reason": "Detects automated social engineering attempts",
"strength": 0.85
}]
}Apply scientific method to problem investigation:
// Main observation
{
"content": "System exhibits 2-3 second delays during peak hours despite hardware upgrades.",
"type": "observation",
"keyPoints": ["peak hours", "latency", "hardware sufficient"]
}
// First hypothesis
{
"content": "Network congestion at the load balancer level is causing request queuing.",
"type": "hypothesis",
"branchId": "network-hypothesis",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "main-[timestamp]",
"type": "explains",
"reason": "Network bottleneck could explain timing correlation",
"strength": 0.75
}]
}
// Experiment design
{
"content": "Deploy network monitoring at load balancer with packet analysis during peak hours.",
"type": "experiment",
"branchId": "network-test",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "network-hypothesis",
"type": "tests",
"reason": "Will verify network congestion theory",
"strength": 0.9
}]
}Compare and combine different design patterns:
// Main requirement
{
"content": "Need to design a plugin system that allows third-party developers to extend application functionality.",
"type": "requirement",
"keyPoints": ["extensibility", "third-party", "plugin interface"]
}
// Strategy Pattern approach
{
"content": "Implement using Strategy pattern: define plugin interface, allow runtime loading of implementations.",
"type": "pattern_analysis",
"branchId": "strategy-pattern",
"keyPoints": ["interface definition", "runtime loading", "loose coupling"]
}
// Observer Pattern combination
{
"content": "Use Observer pattern for plugins to react to application events without tight coupling.",
"type": "pattern_analysis",
"branchId": "observer-pattern",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "strategy-pattern",
"type": "complements",
"reason": "Can combine with Strategy for event-driven plugins",
"strength": 0.85
}]
}Map out complex debates and positions:
// Central claim
{
"content": "AI monitoring systems should be mandatory in all production code deployments.",
"type": "claim",
"keyPoints": ["AI monitoring", "mandatory implementation", "production code"]
}
// Supporting argument
{
"content": "AI systems can detect anomalies and potential failures faster than human monitoring.",
"type": "argument_pro",
"branchId": "pro-detection",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "main-[timestamp]",
"type": "supports",
"reason": "Demonstrates clear technical advantage",
"strength": 0.9
}]
}
// Counter argument
{
"content": "False positives from AI systems could lead to unnecessary downtime and team fatigue.",
"type": "argument_con",
"branchId": "con-reliability",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "pro-detection",
"type": "challenges",
"reason": "Questions reliability assumption",
"strength": 0.8
}]
}Develop strategic plans with scenarios and responses:
// Main strategy
{
"content": "Propose migrating our on-premise systems to cloud infrastructure over 18 months.",
"type": "strategy",
"keyPoints": ["cloud migration", "18-month timeline", "on-premise transition"]
}
// Risk scenario
{
"content": "What if we experience data sovereignty issues in key markets?",
"type": "scenario",
"branchId": "sovereignty-risk",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "main-[timestamp]",
"type": "risk_analysis",
"reason": "Critical regulatory consideration",
"strength": 0.9
}]
}
// Response plan
{
"content": "Hybrid cloud approach using local data centers for affected regions.",
"type": "response",
"branchId": "hybrid-solution",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "sovereignty-risk",
"type": "addresses",
"reason": "Provides regulatory compliance solution",
"strength": 0.95
}]
}Navigate complex debugging scenarios:
// Bug description
{
"content": "Users report random session terminations during file uploads larger than 100MB.",
"type": "bug_report",
"keyPoints": ["session termination", "large uploads", "intermittent"]
}
// First hypothesis
{
"content": "Timeout settings in load balancer might be too aggressive for large uploads.",
"type": "hypothesis",
"branchId": "timeout-theory",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "main-[timestamp]",
"type": "explains",
"reason": "Would account for size correlation",
"strength": 0.8
}]
}
// Test plan
{
"content": "Monitor timeout events in load balancer logs during large file uploads.",
"type": "test",
"branchId": "timeout-test",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "timeout-theory",
"type": "validates",
"reason": "Will confirm timeout hypothesis",
"strength": 0.9
}]
}Break down complex requirements:
// Main requirements
{
"content": "Need secure but user-friendly authentication for mobile banking app.",
"type": "requirement",
"keyPoints": ["security", "user experience", "mobile context"]
}
// User needs branch
{
"content": "Users want quick access without remembering complex passwords.",
"type": "user_requirement",
"branchId": "user-needs",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "main-[timestamp]",
"type": "stakeholder_input",
"reason": "Primary user concern",
"strength": 0.9
}]
}
// Security requirements
{
"content": "Must meet FFIEC authentication guidelines and protect against common mobile attack vectors.",
"type": "security_requirement",
"branchId": "security-needs",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "user-needs",
"type": "constrains",
"reason": "May limit some quick-access options",
"strength": 0.7
}]
}Analyze complex trade-offs between different approaches:
// Main context
{
"content": "Need to choose a state management approach for a large-scale React application with real-time updates.",
"type": "context",
"keyPoints": ["large scale", "real-time", "React", "state management"]
}
// Redux analysis
{
"content": "Using Redux with middleware for real-time updates. Provides centralized store and clear data flow.",
"type": "solution",
"branchId": "redux-approach",
"keyPoints": ["centralized", "middleware", "predictable"],
"confidence": 0.85
}
// Context+Hooks alternative
{
"content": "Using React Context with custom hooks for local state. More flexible but potential prop drilling issues.",
"type": "solution",
"branchId": "context-approach",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "redux-approach",
"type": "alternative",
"reason": "Lighter weight solution with different trade-offs",
"strength": 0.8
}]
}Plan system evolution over time:
// Current state
{
"content": "Current logging system uses ELK stack with custom parsers, serving 100GB/day.",
"type": "analysis",
"keyPoints": ["ELK stack", "custom parsers", "100GB daily"]
}
// Short-term improvements
{
"content": "Optimize Elasticsearch indices and implement log rotation policies.",
"type": "plan",
"branchId": "short-term",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "main-[timestamp]",
"type": "enhances",
"reason": "Immediate optimizations for current system",
"strength": 0.9
}]
}
// Long-term vision
{
"content": "Transition to cloud-native observability platform with OpenTelemetry.",
"type": "vision",
"branchId": "long-term",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "short-term",
"type": "builds_upon",
"reason": "Evolution of logging architecture",
"strength": 0.7
}]
}Break down complex features:
// Feature request
{
"content": "Implement 'collaborative document editing' with real-time updates and conflict resolution.",
"type": "feature",
"keyPoints": ["collaboration", "real-time", "conflict resolution"]
}
// UI/UX component
{
"content": "Design user interface for concurrent editing and conflict visualization.",
"type": "ui_design",
"branchId": "ui-layer",
"keyPoints": ["cursor tracking", "change highlighting", "conflict indicators"]
}
// Data model
{
"content": "Implement CRDT data structure for text with vector clocks.",
"type": "technical",
"branchId": "data-layer",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "ui-layer",
"type": "supports",
"reason": "Provides data structure for real-time updates",
"strength": 0.9
}]
}Analyze and mitigate risks:
// Risk overview
{
"content": "Identify and assess risks in transitioning from monolith to microservices.",
"type": "assessment",
"keyPoints": ["architectural change", "service boundaries", "operational complexity"]
}
// Technical risks
{
"content": "Inter-service communication reliability, data consistency across services, deployment complexity.",
"type": "risk_category",
"branchId": "technical-risks",
"keyPoints": ["network reliability", "data consistency", "deployment"]
}
// Mitigation strategies
{
"content": "Implement circuit breakers, saga pattern for transactions, automated deployment pipeline.",
"type": "mitigation",
"branchId": "technical-mitigations",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "technical-risks",
"type": "addresses",
"reason": "Direct mitigation of identified risks",
"strength": 0.9
}]
}Analyze competitive positioning:
// Market overview
{
"content": "Developer productivity tools market analysis, focusing on CI/CD space.",
"type": "market_analysis",
"keyPoints": ["CI/CD", "developer tools", "market segments"]
}
// Competitor analysis
{
"content": "Market leader focuses on enterprise, strong integration ecosystem but complex pricing.",
"type": "competitor_analysis",
"branchId": "competitor-a",
"keyPoints": ["enterprise focus", "integrations", "complex pricing"]
}
// Differentiation strategy
{
"content": "Focus on developer experience with AI-assisted workflow optimization.",
"type": "strategy",
"branchId": "differentiation",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "competitor-a",
"type": "differentiates",
"reason": "Targets pain points in competitor offering",
"strength": 0.9
}]
}Plan API versioning and evolution:
// Current API
{
"content": "RESTful API serving mobile and web clients, considering breaking changes needed.",
"type": "context",
"keyPoints": ["REST", "multiple clients", "breaking changes"]
}
// URI versioning approach
{
"content": "Version in URI path (/v2/resources). Simple but leads to code duplication.",
"type": "approach",
"branchId": "uri-version",
"keyPoints": ["path versioning", "code duplication", "client simplicity"]
}
// Header versioning alternative
{
"content": "Version in Accept header. Cleaner URLs but more complex client handling.",
"type": "approach",
"branchId": "header-version",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "uri-version",
"type": "alternative",
"reason": "Different trade-offs in complexity vs. cleanliness",
"strength": 0.85
}]
}Plan technology migrations:
// Migration scope
{
"content": "Large Angular 8 application with 200+ components needs migration to React 18.",
"type": "context",
"keyPoints": ["Angular 8", "React 18", "large application"]
}
// Parallel approach
{
"content": "Run both frameworks simultaneously, migrate feature by feature.",
"type": "strategy",
"branchId": "parallel-migration",
"keyPoints": ["dual frameworks", "feature migration", "gradual transition"]
}
// State management bridge
{
"content": "Implement framework-agnostic state management using Redux.",
"type": "technical",
"branchId": "state-bridge",
"crossRefs": [{
"toBranch": "parallel-migration",
"type": "enables",
"reason": "Allows data sharing between frameworks",
"strength": 0.9
}]
}