Migration Guide

Switch to CodeContext from other documentation tools

Moving to CodeContext is straightforward. This guide helps you migrate from popular documentation tools while preserving your existing content and improving your documentation workflow.

Why Teams Switch to CodeContext

Automation

Stop writing docs manually

Always Current

Docs stay in sync with code

Zero Lock-in

Keep your existing files

Migration Process Overview

Analyze Current Documentation

CodeContext scans your existing documentation to understand structure and content

Preserve Custom Content

Your manually written content is preserved and enhanced, not replaced

Generate Missing Documentation

CodeContext fills gaps by analyzing your code and generating what's missing

Set Up Automation

Configure automatic updates to keep documentation current going forward

Migrating from JSDoc/TSDoc

CodeContext understands and enhances your existing JSDoc/TSDoc comments:

Before (JSDoc only)

/**
 * Calculate the total price
 * @param {number} price - Item price
 * @param {number} quantity - Number of items
 * @returns {number} Total price
 */
function calculateTotal(price, quantity) {
  return price * quantity;
}

After (CodeContext enhanced)

## calculateTotal

Calculate the total price including tax and discounts.

### Parameters
- `price` (number): Item price in USD
- `quantity` (number): Number of items (min: 1)

### Returns
- `number`: Total price with 2 decimal precision

### Example
```javascript
const total = calculateTotal(29.99, 3);
console.log(total); // 89.97
```

### Notes
- Prices are in USD
- No validation for negative values

Migration command:

codecontext migrate --from jsdoc

Migrating from Docusaurus

Keep your Docusaurus site while automating content generation:

1. Install CodeContext

npm install -g codecontext

2. Configure for Docusaurus

{
  "output": {
    "readme": "./docs/api-reference.md",
    "changelog": "./docs/changelog.md",
    "api": "./docs/api/",
    "format": "docusaurus"
  }
}

3. Generate Documentation

codecontext update --format docusaurus

CodeContext generates Docusaurus-compatible markdown with proper frontmatter

Migrating from Sphinx (Python)

CodeContext works great with Python projects using Sphinx:

Sphinx Structure

docs/
├── conf.py
├── index.rst
├── api/
│   └── modules.rst
└── _build/

With CodeContext

docs/
├── conf.py          # Keep existing
├── index.rst        # Keep existing
├── api/            # Auto-generated
│   └── *.md        # By CodeContext
├── README.md       # Auto-generated
└── CHANGELOG.md    # Auto-generated

Migration Steps:

1. Keep your existing Sphinx configuration
2. Configure CodeContext to output to your docs directory
3. Use MyST parser to include Markdown in Sphinx
4. Set up CI/CD to run both tools

Migrating from Manual README

If you only have a basic README, CodeContext can expand it dramatically:

What CodeContext Adds

Enhanced README

• Detailed installation steps
• Usage examples from code
• API documentation
• Configuration options

New Documentation

• CHANGELOG.md
• CONTRIBUTING.md
• API.md
• Custom docs (Pro)

Quick Start:

# 1. Initialize CodeContext
codecontext init

# 2. Generate comprehensive docs
codecontext generate all

# 3. Review and customize
# Your original README content is preserved!

Preserving Your Content

CodeContext Never Deletes Your Content

Your existing documentation is sacred. CodeContext preserves and enhances:

Preserved Sections

Custom examples
Manual explanations
Special sections
Custom formatting

Protection Markers

<!-- CUSTOM-SECTION-START -->
Your custom content here
is always preserved
<!-- CUSTOM-SECTION-END -->

Common Migration Concerns

Will I lose my custom documentation?

No! CodeContext preserves all your existing content and only adds to it. Use protection markers for absolute safety.

Can I use my existing documentation site?

Yes! CodeContext outputs standard Markdown that works with any static site generator (Docusaurus, MkDocs, Jekyll, etc.).

What if I don't like the generated content?

You have full control! Edit templates, customize output, or exclude sections. CodeContext is a tool, not a replacement for human judgment.

Migration Success Story

“We migrated from manual README files to CodeContext in one afternoon. Our documentation went from 50 lines to 500+ lines of useful, accurate content. The best part? It updates automatically now!”
— Sarah Chen, Lead Developer at TechCorp

Ready to Migrate?

Start Your Migration

npm install -g codecontext && codecontext init