Understand the structure. Prioritize the risk. Act inside the IDE.

Map the architecture

The structure you remember and the structure you have drift apart with every sprint. The Topology Graph and Package Matrix show the package or source-folder relationships in the selected analysis source; open one visible owner in Topology when you need its contained class or file relationships. The Composition view maps where the code mass actually sits as a treemap, sunburst, or circle pack.

Choose the Analysis Source you want to inspect. If the required JVM build output or TypeScript analysis evidence is unavailable, AtlasArc names the missing build or setup step instead of presenting a deceptively empty architecture.

Commit repository Analysis Scope when the IDE, authoritative metrics and cycle findings, reports, and CI must use the same evidence boundary. Current Focus, hierarchy roll-up, filters, and pins then make that model readable without changing what officially counts.

Expand and collapse the hierarchy inline, filter by coupling strength, lay a metric heatmap over the graph, and open one visible package/source folder as a contained class/file microscope when the local implementation tangle matters. Survey the whole map, or drop a pin on the package you are about to touch and turn the graph and matrix into a focused subject audit. You read the architecture as it is, not as the README claims. See handling large projects.

Expose complex, undertested code

Structure is only half of maintainability. AtlasArc reads cyclomatic and cognitive complexity down to the method, and overlays branch and line coverage from the reports your tests already produce. The Hotspots CC vs Coverage map shows the large, complex, weakly covered packages first, so you can add characterization tests before you refactor, not after something breaks in production.

Govern intentional exceptions

Not every cycle is a mistake: some dependencies are intentional, some are tracked debt. A zero-cycles rule that cannot record intent just gets switched off. AtlasArc gives you two controls with different reach. Safe Havens remember broad package or source-folder regions you want out of your workspace cycle view. Repository governance applies precise Intentional or Debt treatment to supported dependency evidence in .atlasarc/governance/cycles.json, with a reason and optional ticket you can search, review, and maintain as the code changes. That control is useful locally; commit the file when you also want the decisions versioned with the code, reviewed by other developers, and enforced in CI. Explicit decisions update only AtlasArc's governance file, refuse concurrent edits, and never change application source or build files; the headless evaluator applies the same Java, Kotlin, or TypeScript evidence rules as the IDE.