How to Read a Codebase Like an Acquirer Does

In a compressed engagement nobody reads a codebase line by line. They sample it in the places where risk clusters, and they read history as much as source.

Where a reviewer starts

• Commit distribution across authors and files
• The largest and most frequently changed modules
• Test coverage in the revenue-critical path only
• Configuration and secrets handling

The goal is to predict what the first six months of ownership will feel like, not to grade the work.