Install Cody CLI

Learn how to install the cody command-line tool and using the cody chat subcommand.

Cody CLI is the same technology that powers the Cody IDE plugins but available from the command-line. Use Cody CLI for ad-hoc exploration in your terminal or as part of scripts to automate your workflows.

Cody CLI

Install Cody's command-line interface from npm

Prerequisites

• You have Node.js v20 or newer installed
• You have npm, yarn, pnpm, or an equivalent package manager installed

Install CLI from npm

Run the following command to install the Cody CLI:

SHELL
npm install -g @sourcegraph/cody

Confirm that the installation was successful by running the following command:

SHELL
cody help

Authenticate with cody auth login

To start using the Cody CLI, you need to authenticate it with your Sourcegraph account.

When using cody auth login, the access token is stored in the secure storage of your operating system or equivalent security tool. If you prefer not to let Cody store your access token, authenticate with environment variables instead.

First, make sure you have installed the necessary tools to use cody auth login.

Run the following command to authenticate the Cody CLI:

SHELL
cody auth login --web

Confirm that the authentication was successful by running the following command:

SHELL
cody auth whoami
# ✔ Authenticated as USERNAME on ENDPOINT

Authenticate with only environment variables

Skip this step if you have already authenticated with the cody auth login command.

If you prefer not to let Cody CLI store your access token, you can also pass the endpoint URL and access token through the environment variables SRC_ENDPOINT and SRC_ACCESS_TOKEN.

SHELL
export SRC_ENDPOINT=ENDPOINT
export SRC_ACCESS_TOKEN=ACCESS_TOKEN

It's recommended to store these access tokens in a secure location. For example, you can store them with a password manager like 1Password or Bitwarden.

It is not recommended to export these variables in your shell startup script because it will expose your access token to all commands you run from the terminal. Instead, consider sourcing these environment variables on-demand when you need to authenticate with the Cody CLI.

Sign out with cody auth logout

To sign out of the Cody CLI, run the following command:

SHELL
cody auth logout

Running this command wil remove the access token from the secure storage of your operating system.

Run cody auth whoami to confirm that the Cody CLI is no longer authenticated.

Chat with basic message

Once you've authenticated the Cody CLI, you can start using it to chat with Cody.

To start a new chat, run the following command:

SHELL
cody chat -m 'Explain React hooks'

The following commands are equivalent to the above:

SHELL
# use --message instead of -m
cody chat --message 'Explain React hooks'
 
# space separated arguments
cody chat Explain React hooks

Chat with --context-file to add context from local files

Use --context-file to provide context from local files

SHELL
cody chat --context-file src/controller.ts -m 'Are there code smells in this file?'

Chat with --context-repo to add context from remote repositories

Use --context-repo to provide context from remote repositories.

SHELL
cody chat --context-repo github.com/sourcegraph/cody -m 'What is the agent?'

Chat with --stdin to read message from standard input

Use --stdin to provide context from standard input

SHELL
echo 'Explain React hooks' | cody chat --stdin

Combine --stdin with --message to send a concatenated message. The --message string appears at the top of the prompt and the --stdin text appears at the bottom.

SHELL
git diff | cody chat --stdin -m 'Write a commit message for this diff'

Use the - trailing argument as an alternative to --stdin to read the diff from standard input.

SHELL
git diff | cody chat -m 'Write a commit message for this diff' -