Interactive Mode Guide

Complete guide for using the AWS Knowledge Query interactive chat interface.

🎯 Overview

The interactive mode (interactive_aws.py) provides a chat-style interface for exploring AWS documentation. Perfect for:

Learning and exploration
Trying different queries quickly
Switching between topics easily
Viewing AWS regions and availability

🚀 Starting Interactive Mode

venv/bin/python cli/interactive_aws.py

You'll see:

🔗 Connecting to AWS Knowledge MCP Server...
✅ Connected!

================================================================================
🤖 AWS Knowledge Assistant - Interactive Mode
================================================================================

Commands:
  ask <question>              - Ask about AWS services
  topic <name>                - Change topic (current: general)
  regions                     - List all AWS regions
  available <service>         - Check service availability
  topics                      - Show available topics
  help                        - Show this help
  quit / exit                 - Exit the assistant

================================================================================

💬 You:

📖 Commands

Asking Questions

You can ask questions in two ways:

1. Direct (no command needed):

💬 You: How to create a Lambda function

2. Using the ask command:

💬 You: ask Lambda best practices

Both work the same way. The assistant will search using the current topic.

Changing Topics

💬 You: topic reference_documentation
✅ Topic changed to: reference_documentation

💬 You: boto3 S3 upload

To see current topic:

💬 You: topic
📌 Current topic: general

Listing Topics

💬 You: topics

📚 Available Topics:
  • general                  - Best practices, architecture
  • reference_documentation  - API/SDK/CLI docs
  • troubleshooting         - Error messages, debugging
  • cdk_docs                - CDK concepts
  • cdk_constructs          - CDK code examples
  • cloudformation          - CloudFormation templates
  • current_awareness       - New features
  • amplify_docs            - Amplify framework

Viewing AWS Regions

💬 You: regions

🌍 Fetching AWS regions...

📍 AWS Regions:
   • us-east-1              - US East (N. Virginia)
   • us-east-2              - US East (Ohio)
   • us-west-1              - US West (N. California)
   • us-west-2              - US West (Oregon)
   • eu-west-1              - Europe (Ireland)
   • eu-central-1           - Europe (Frankfurt)
   • ap-southeast-1         - Asia Pacific (Singapore)
   • ap-northeast-1         - Asia Pacific (Tokyo)
   • ap-south-1             - Asia Pacific (Mumbai)
   • sa-east-1              - South America (São Paulo)
   ... and 23 more regions

Checking Service Availability

💬 You: available AWS Lambda

🔍 Checking availability for: AWS Lambda
✅ Found availability data:
   [availability information]

Getting Help

💬 You: help

Commands:
  ask <question>              - Ask about AWS services
  topic <name>                - Change topic
  regions                     - List all AWS regions
  available <service>         - Check service availability
  topics                      - Show available topics
  quit / exit                 - Exit

Exiting

💬 You: quit
👋 Goodbye!

Or use: exit, q, or press Ctrl+C

💡 Example Sessions

Session 1: Learning Lambda

💬 You: What is Lambda

🔍 Searching for: What is Lambda
   Topic: general

================================================================================
📚 RESULTS
================================================================================

1. AWS Lambda - Overview
   🔗 https://docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/...
   📝 AWS Lambda is a serverless compute service...

2. Getting Started with Lambda
   🔗 https://docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/...
   📝 Create your first Lambda function...

================================================================================

💬 You: Lambda best practices

🔍 Searching for: Lambda best practices
   Topic: general

[Results displayed...]

💬 You: topic reference_documentation
✅ Topic changed to: reference_documentation

💬 You: boto3 Lambda invoke

🔍 Searching for: boto3 Lambda invoke
   Topic: reference_documentation

[Results displayed...]

💬 You: quit
👋 Goodbye!

Session 2: Troubleshooting

💬 You: topic troubleshooting
✅ Topic changed to: troubleshooting

💬 You: Lambda timeout error

🔍 Searching for: Lambda timeout error
   Topic: troubleshooting

================================================================================
📚 RESULTS
================================================================================

1. Troubleshooting Lambda Timeouts
   🔗 https://docs.aws.amazon.com/lambda/...
   📝 Lambda functions have a maximum execution time...

[More results...]

💬 You: S3 access denied

🔍 Searching for: S3 access denied
   Topic: troubleshooting

[Results displayed...]

Session 3: CDK Development

💬 You: topic cdk_constructs
✅ Topic changed to: cdk_constructs

💬 You: Lambda function CDK Python

🔍 Searching for: Lambda function CDK Python
   Topic: cdk_constructs

================================================================================
📚 RESULTS
================================================================================

1. Lambda Function Construct - Python
   🔗 https://docs.aws.amazon.com/cdk/...
   📝 from aws_cdk import aws_lambda as lambda_...

[Code examples displayed...]

💬 You: API Gateway Lambda CDK

[Results displayed...]

💬 You: regions

🌍 Fetching AWS regions...
[Regions displayed...]

🎯 Workflow Tips

Exploring a New Service

Start with general topic
Ask "What is [service]"
Ask about best practices
Switch to reference_documentation for API details
Switch to cdk_constructs for code examples

Example:

💬 You: What is DynamoDB
💬 You: DynamoDB best practices
💬 You: topic reference_documentation
💬 You: boto3 DynamoDB PutItem
💬 You: topic cdk_constructs
💬 You: DynamoDB table CDK Python

Debugging an Issue

Switch to troubleshooting topic
Paste the error message
Ask follow-up questions
Switch to reference_documentation for API details

Example:

💬 You: topic troubleshooting
💬 You: Lambda timeout error
💬 You: How to increase Lambda timeout
💬 You: topic reference_documentation
💬 You: Lambda timeout configuration

Learning CDK

Start with cdk_docs for concepts
Switch to cdk_constructs for examples
Ask about specific constructs

Example:

💬 You: topic cdk_docs
💬 You: CDK getting started
💬 You: CDK stack construct
💬 You: topic cdk_constructs
💬 You: Lambda function CDK Python
💬 You: S3 bucket CDK TypeScript

🔧 Advanced Features

Quick Topic Switching

You can switch topics and ask in one session:

💬 You: topic troubleshooting
💬 You: Lambda timeout
💬 You: topic reference_documentation
💬 You: boto3 Lambda configuration
💬 You: topic cdk_constructs
💬 You: Lambda CDK example

Combining Commands

While you can't combine commands in one line, you can quickly execute them in sequence:

💬 You: topics
💬 You: topic cdk_constructs
💬 You: Lambda CDK Python

Using with Shell History

Use your shell's history (↑ arrow) to repeat or modify previous queries:

💬 You: Lambda best practices
[Results...]

💬 You: ↑ (edit to) S3 best practices
[Results...]

🐛 Troubleshooting

Connection Issues

Problem: Cannot connect to MCP server

Solution:

Check internet connection
Verify endpoint accessibility
Try again later

No Results

Problem: Search returns no results

Solutions:

Try a different topic
Rephrase your question
Be more specific
Use service names explicitly

Keyboard Interrupt

Problem: Accidentally pressed Ctrl+C

Solution: The assistant will exit gracefully. Just restart:

venv/bin/python cli/interactive_aws.py

Command Not Recognized

Problem: Command not working

Solution: Check available commands with:

💬 You: help

Valid commands:

ask <question> (or just type the question)
topic <name>
topics
regions
available <service>
help
quit / exit

💡 Tips & Best Practices

For Best Results

Start broad, then narrow - Begin with general questions, then get specific
Use the right topic - Switch topics based on what you need
Be specific - Include service names and specific terms
Try different phrasings - If no results, rephrase your question
Use regions command - Check which regions support your service

Keyboard Shortcuts

↑/↓ arrows - Navigate command history
Ctrl+C - Exit (gracefully)
Ctrl+D - Exit (EOF)
Tab - (depends on your shell's autocomplete)

Efficient Exploration

Use topics to see all categories
Switch topics frequently as you explore
Use regions to understand AWS global infrastructure
Keep questions concise but specific

📊 Output Format

Results are displayed in this format:

🔍 Searching for: Your question
   Topic: current_topic

================================================================================
📚 RESULTS
================================================================================

1. Document Title
   🔗 https://docs.aws.amazon.com/...
   📝 Context snippet (first 250 characters)...

2. Another Document
   🔗 https://docs.aws.amazon.com/...
   📝 More context...

3. Third Document
   🔗 https://docs.aws.amazon.com/...
   📝 Additional context...

================================================================================

🎓 Learning Paths

Beginner Path

💬 You: What is AWS Lambda
💬 You: Lambda getting started
💬 You: How to create Lambda function
💬 You: Lambda pricing

Intermediate Path

💬 You: Lambda best practices
💬 You: topic reference_documentation
💬 You: boto3 Lambda invoke
💬 You: topic cdk_constructs
💬 You: Lambda CDK Python

Advanced Path

💬 You: Lambda performance optimization
💬 You: Lambda cold start reduction
💬 You: Lambda VPC configuration
💬 You: Lambda layers best practices

🔗 Related Guides

CLI Guide - Command-line tool
Web UI Guide - Web interface
API Reference - Use in Python code
Troubleshooting - Common issues

Happy exploring! 🚀

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Interactive Mode Guide

🎯 Overview

🚀 Starting Interactive Mode

📖 Commands

Asking Questions

Changing Topics

Listing Topics

Viewing AWS Regions

Checking Service Availability

Getting Help

Exiting

💡 Example Sessions

Session 1: Learning Lambda

Session 2: Troubleshooting

Session 3: CDK Development

🎯 Workflow Tips

Exploring a New Service

Debugging an Issue

Learning CDK

🔧 Advanced Features

Quick Topic Switching

Combining Commands

Using with Shell History

🐛 Troubleshooting

Connection Issues

No Results

Keyboard Interrupt

Command Not Recognized

💡 Tips & Best Practices

For Best Results

Keyboard Shortcuts

Efficient Exploration

📊 Output Format

🎓 Learning Paths

Beginner Path

Intermediate Path

Advanced Path

🔗 Related Guides