Glossary

Words you will see in codeTAC, in plain English.

Action : One thing you do in your app: a click, a form sent, a page opened. Each action gets a dossier.

Alert / warning : An alert is something to fix (for example a secret that reaches the browser). A warning is something worth a look. Neither stops your app.

Block : A group of files on the floor plan with the same job: Interface, Routes and API, Logic, Data access, External integrations, and so on.

Boundary (outside service) : A moment when your app talks to the outside world: the database, an email service, payments, an AI model, any outside address. Shown as coloured tags in the dossier.

Browser / server : The browser is the page your user sees; everything that runs there can be read by anyone. The server is the part of your app that runs on your (or your host's) computer, out of sight.

Dossier : The record of one action: what was clicked, which of your functions ran, which outside services were used, and what remained afterwards.

.env file : A file with your app's settings and keys (DATABASE_URL=…). It should never go to GitHub.

Floor plan (the plan) : The map of your whole project that Structure draws from the code: its files in blocks, and the arrows between them.

Jurisdiction : Where (which country or region) a service keeps the data you send it. You write it; codeTAC never guesses it.

Lasting effect : What remained after an action: rows written, emails sent, cookies set.

Minimal mode : When codeTAC cannot follow your functions, it still shows requests, outside services and the browser. A yellow strip says why.

Panel : The page, on your computer only, where codeTAC shows the dossiers (http://127.0.0.1:4000 by default).

Row level security (RLS) : A database rule (common in Supabase) that decides which rows each user may read or change. With it off, anyone with the public key can read or change the whole table.

Route : An address your server answers, such as POST /api/items.

Secret : A value that must stay private: a password, an API key, a token. codeTAC shows secrets by name only, never their value.

Snapshot : A saved copy of your project's structure at one moment, used to see what changed later. Kept on your computer, outside the project.

Structure : The part of codeTAC that reads your code (without running it) and draws the floor plan, with its views: What leaves the machine, Secrets and variables, Data model, Structure health, Changes, Quiz.

Unknown : The block for files codeTAC could not place. You can place them yourself with --reclassify.