# Ask mode

Ask mode is a read-only mode for understanding your codebase. Agent answers questions and explores code without making any edits.

## How do I use Ask mode?

1. Open the Agent panel (Cmd + I on Mac, Ctrl + I on Windows/Linux)
2. Switch to Ask mode by pressing Shift + Tab to cycle modes, or use the mode picker dropdown
3. Type your question and press Return

## When should I use Ask mode?

Use Ask mode when you want to understand code without changing it:

- "How does the authentication flow work?"
- "What does this function do?"
- "Where is the database connection configured?"
- "Explain the relationship between these two modules"

For questions that lead to code changes, switch back to Agent mode.

## Related

- [Agent mode](https://cursor.com/help/ai-features/agent.md)
- [Agent reference](https://cursor.com/docs/agent/overview.md)


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