Range Anchor

Definition

A Range Anchor groups a whole section of code under a single named node, with #name start opening the range and @ghost end closing it.

Example

// @ghost #payments-refactor start description: split this service into 3 microservices | status: in-progress

class PaymentService {
  charge() {}
  refund() {}

  // @ghost description: pending move to billing-service | status: todo
  reconcile() {}

  generateInvoice() {}
}

// @ghost end

payments-refactor      (in-progress): split this service into 3 microservices
└── PaymentService
    ├── charge
    ├── refund
    ├── reconcile        (todo): pending move to billing-service
    └── generateInvoice

Important: the name is required for the range to show

A @ghost ... start without #name is syntactically valid, but with no name it does not render as a node in the tree. If you want a visible range in the Ghost Tree, you always need #name:

// Creates a visible node "payments-refactor"
// @ghost #payments-refactor start description: ... | status: ...

// Valid, but does not appear as a node in the tree
// @ghost start description: ... | status: ...

Before / after example

Before: a large file with no structure, where a new dev does not know where to start or which parts are "under construction":

class PaymentService {
  charge() {}
  refund() {}
  reconcile() {}
  generateInvoice() {}
}

PaymentService
├── charge
├── refund
├── reconcile
└── generateInvoice

After: with a Range Anchor grouping the in-flight work:

// @ghost #payments-refactor start description: split this service into 3 microservices | status: in-progress

class PaymentService {
  charge() {}
  refund() {}

  // @ghost description: pending move to billing-service | status: todo
  reconcile() {}

  generateInvoice() {}
}

// @ghost end

payments-refactor      (in-progress): split this service into 3 microservices
└── PaymentService
    ├── charge
    ├── refund
    ├── reconcile        (todo): pending move to billing-service
    └── generateInvoice

At a glance, anyone can tell: this whole file is in the middle of a refactor, and reconcile is specifically the next thing to move.

Typical use cases: large refactors, module migrations, or "hot zones" of the code that need extra context before being touched.

Next step

Continue with Ownership Radius to understand how GhostMap decides which symbol a Contextual Anchor attaches to.