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Prerequisites
  • Pulse installed and serving? If not → Install
  • Agent connected via MCP? If not → MCP Setup
This walkthrough uses a concrete example — adding user authentication — so every step has a visible output. The CLI path uses Claude Code; the UI path works for any browser.
1

Create a board

okto-pulse init already created a default board when you installed. Verify it’s there:Via MCP (Claude Code):
Claude Code calls okto_pulse_list_my_boards and returns:
Via UI:Open localhost:8100. The board is already selected in the sidebar. You don’t need to create one.If you want a dedicated board for this project:
2

Create an ideation

Ideations are where raw requests land before anything gets built.Via MCP (Claude Code):
Pulse calls okto_pulse_create_ideation and returns:
Via UI:Ideations tab → New Ideation → paste your raw request → Save.The ideation is now in draft state. Pulse has not made any decisions yet.
3

Watch Pulse ask the ambiguity-killer questions

This is the step that makes Pulse different from a rules file.Pulse analyzes your ideation and surfaces every material gap before you write a line of spec. Ask it to evaluate:
Pulse runs okto_pulse_evaluate_ideation and returns a scope assessment:
Ambiguity is 4/5 — Pulse won’t let this become a spec yet. It asks:
Pulse calls okto_pulse_ask_ideation_choice_question:
You (or the agent) answers:
Pulse records the answer via okto_pulse_answer_ideation_question:
Pulse continues for each gap. When ambiguity drops below the threshold, it marks the ideation ready_for_refinement.
You can ask all the questions in one shot: > run the ambiguity-killer protocol on ideation 9c64cdacPulse will call ask_ideation_question for each gap, accept your answers, and re-evaluate. Typical ideation takes 4–7 questions.
4

Move to spec — derived, not typed

Once the ideation is evaluated, derive the spec. Pulse builds it from your answers — you don’t type a spec from scratch.
Pulse calls okto_pulse_derive_spec_from_ideation and returns a populated spec:
The spec is pre-populated from your ideation answers. The acceptance criteria came from your answer to Q1 and Pulse’s domain knowledge. You didn’t write them.Review and refine in the UI (Specs tab → open spec → edit inline), or via MCP:
When the spec looks right:
Pulse calls okto_pulse_submit_spec_evaluation. If coverage meets thresholds (acceptance criteria ≥ 80%, test scenarios linked), the spec moves to approved.
5

Create the first card and move it to in-progress

Cards are execution units. Each one traces back to the spec you just created.
Pulse calls okto_pulse_suggest_sprints and proposes a sprint slice. Accept it:
Then create the first card:
Pulse calls okto_pulse_create_card. The card is created in pending state, linked to the spec and sprint.Move it to active work:
Via UI:Drag the card from the Pending column to In Progress on the board.The board now shows one active card, a sprint, a spec, and an ideation — all connected.

What just happened

You went from a vague idea to a tracked, traceable card in 5 minutes. Here’s what Pulse actually did:
  • The KG now contains a Decision node. The answer “email + password with bcrypt” was written to the knowledge graph as a Decision with type AuthStrategy. Any future ideation about login, session management, or password reset will surface this decision automatically — before a new agent accidentally decides something contradictory.
  • Your agent can query that decision mid-task. At any point during implementation, Claude Code (or Cursor, or Cline) can call okto_pulse_kg_query_natural("What auth approach did we decide?") and get the answer back from the graph — not from context window memory. The answer is there whether the session is 2 minutes old or 2 months old.
  • Everything survives the next session. The ideation, Q&A, spec, sprint, and KG decision nodes are stored in SQLite + the embedded graph at ~/.okto-pulse/boards/{id}/graph.lbug. Start a new Claude Code session tomorrow, point it at the same board, and it has full context — without you re-explaining anything.

Knowledge Graph

What Pulse wrote to the graph just now, and how your agent queries it mid-task.

MCP Setup

Full agent configuration for Claude Code, Cursor, Cline, Windsurf, Goose, and Codex.
Last modified on May 8, 2026