# Argos

> Web search and page fetch.

- **MCP server name:** `argos` (runs on `miranda.incus` in the lab)
- **Prompt snippet:** [prompts/tools/argos.md](../../prompts/tools/argos.md)

## What It Is

Argos is the agent's window onto the outside world: web search and webpage fetching. Named for the many-eyed giant of Greek myth, fitting for something that watches everywhere.

## What It's Good For

- General web search ("how do I…", "what is…", "current state of…")
- Fetching a specific URL when the agent already knows where to look
- Documentation lookups for libraries, frameworks, APIs (though Context7 is often better for these)
- CVE references, vendor status pages, upstream incident announcements
- Quick reality checks — "did this thing actually ship", "is this service up"

## What It's Not Good For

- Library/framework documentation when **Context7** is configured — Context7 is purpose-built for that and returns better-structured results
- Anything inside the Agathos lab — use Kernos, not Argos, for internal services
- Deep research with many follow-up queries — the agent should delegate to a research subagent rather than burning its own context window on long Argos chains
- Code search inside a known repo — use Gitea or GitHub MCP for repo-scoped lookups

## Known Gotchas

- **Quotes and operators matter** — Argos respects search-engine query syntax. Bad quoting → bad results.
- **Cached pages can mislead.** If a page's "last updated" matters (e.g., status pages, release notes), confirm by checking the page itself, not just the search snippet.
- **Rate limits exist.** Burning Argos on a tight loop will eventually get throttled.