Anthracode

A local-first AI coding agent for your terminal.

Read, edit, refactor, run commands, manage context, use specialized agents, and ship code from a fast TUI, with native macOS, Windows, and Linux binaries.

npm install -g anthracode-ai
anthracode

Website · Docs · npm · Report an issue

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Contents

• What is Anthracode?
• What's different
• Preview
• Highlights
• Install
• Quick start
• Supported platforms
• Core tools
• Agent modes
• Configuration
• Privacy
• Updating
• Troubleshooting
• Project status
• Legal & community

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What is Anthracode?

Anthracode is an AI coding assistant that runs in your terminal as a full-screen TUI. Connect it to the model and provider you already use, then ask it to inspect, edit, test, refactor, and explain your codebase.

Anthracode works on your local files and local tools. There is no required cloud workspace and no required Anthracode account to use the terminal agent.

It started as a fork of OpenCode and took a different bet: keep OpenCode's freedom to use any provider, then add the memory, recall, and real terminal sessions that the other terminal agents leave out.

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What's different

The honest comparison, current as of the latest release. These are the rows that actually change how the agent feels day to day, not an exhaustive feature dump.

Capability	Anthracode	OpenCode	Claude Code	Codex CLI
Reversible compaction (/uncompact restores the full conversation)	✅	❌	one-way only	❌
Full-history recall (search even compacted-away turns)	✅	❌	❌	❌
Persistent 4-tier memory (session · espace · account · skill)	✅	AGENTS.md	single tier	AGENTS.md
Interactive terminal sessions (real keystrokes, crash-isolated PTY)	✅	❌	background shell	❌
Background process manager (dev servers, watchers)	first class	❌	partial	❌
Specialized subagents with scoped permissions	5 built-in	generic	configure yourself	❌
Background subagents: steer mid-flight, auto-notified on finish, run on a cheaper/stronger model per task	✅	❌	✅	partial
Native Windows TUI (ConPTY, alternate screen, no WSL)	first class	rough	✅	WSL recommended
Any model provider, your keys, local LLMs included	✅	✅	Anthropic only	OpenAI only
Free to start, no subscription required	yes, your keys	✅	sub or API	ChatGPT sub
Source code	MIT releases, source private	MIT	proprietary	Apache-2.0

Claude Code does run native on Windows and has a background shell; Codex CLI is Apache-2.0. The point is the combination: Anthracode is the only one of the four with reversible compaction, full-history recall, and crash-isolated interactive sessions in one any-provider agent.

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Preview

Short demos from the Anthracode web presentation, rendered inline so the README feels closer to the website experience.

Native Windows terminal

Run Anthracode directly in PowerShell or Windows Terminal, no WSL required.

Background process manager

Start long-running commands, keep them visible, and reconnect to their output without losing control of your session. Background subagents live in the same panel: watch them work, open their live output, stop them with a key — and send them course corrections mid-flight instead of killing and restarting.

Memory for decisions

Anthracode remembers important project knowledge so you do not have to explain the same decisions again next week.

Drop-in skills

Add reusable workflows as skills and load the right process when the task needs it.

Type-aware and internet-aware

Use code intelligence and web context together: definitions, references, symbols, docs, and current information in one terminal workflow.

Safe git workflows

Anthracode warns before irreversible actions and keeps repo changes visible.

Git init without leaving the prompt

Initialize project instructions and repo context from inside the TUI.

Per-invocation overrides

Override model, agent, permissions, or behavior for a single run without changing your project defaults.

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Highlights

• Terminal-native workflow. Ask, plan, build, review, and run commands from one TUI.
• Local-first by default. Your code stays on your machine and is sent only to the model provider you configure.
• Native macOS support. Apple Silicon (arm64) and Intel (x64) binaries.
• Native Windows support. Real Windows x64 binary, PowerShell-friendly paths, ConPTY-backed terminal handling tuned for broad Windows-version compatibility, hardened background-process reliability.
• Linux support. Native binaries for x64 and arm64, glibc and musl — bare metal, WSL, Docker, and Alpine containers.
• Persistent, searchable memory. Preserve useful context and project knowledge across sessions, and search back through it on demand — including entries that have aged out of the active view.
• Specialized agents. Use focused agents for planning, building, testing, security review, refactoring, and architecture.
• Rich tool system. Files, shell, PTY sessions, code search, LSP, notebooks, web search, MCP, checkpoints, and worktrees.
• Safer autonomous work. Permission gates, timeouts, checkpoints, type checks, and test runners.
• Choose your own pace. Confirm every switch between Ask, Plan, and Build modes by default — or opt in to seamless automatic mode switching when you want the agent to move without waiting on you.

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Install

npm

npm install -g anthracode-ai --include=optional
anthracode

pnpm

pnpm add -g anthracode-ai
anthracode

yarn

yarn global add anthracode-ai
anthracode

macOS / Linux / WSL curl installer

curl -fsSL https://www.anthracode.com/install | bash
anthracode

The curl installer uses your existing Node.js 18+ and npm if available. If Node is missing or too old, it installs a local Node.js runtime under ~/.local/share/anthracode/node, persists PATH, then installs anthracode-ai.

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Quick start

# Start Anthracode in the current project
anthracode

# Or start in a specific project
anthracode /path/to/project

Inside the TUI:

/connect   configure your provider/API key
/init      analyze the project and create project instructions
/help      list available commands
/model     pick a model

Example prompts:

Explain how authentication works in this repo.

Create a plan to add dark mode, then wait for approval.

Refactor the billing API route and run the tests after each change.

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Supported platforms

Platform	Status	Notes
macOS (Apple Silicon)	✅ Supported	Native arm64 binary.
macOS (Intel)	✅ Supported	Native x64 binary.
Windows x64	✅ Supported	Native binary. Works in PowerShell and Windows Terminal.
Linux x64	✅ Supported	Native optional npm binary. Works well in WSL too.
Linux arm64	✅ Supported	Native binary — AWS Graviton, Raspberry Pi, ARM servers.
Linux x64 (Alpine/musl)	✅ Supported	Native musl binary for Alpine-based containers.
Linux arm64 (Alpine/musl)	✅ Supported	Native musl binary — Alpine on ARM.

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Core tools

Tool area	What Anthracode can do
Files	Read, write, patch, and batch-edit files.
Search	Glob, grep, AST search, symbol lookup, LSP references.
Terminal	Run shell commands, stream output, manage PTY sessions.
Git	Detect diffs, use isolated worktrees, checkpoint and restore state.
Tests	Run type checks and test suites with structured failure output.
Runtime	Execute Python, Node.js, or Bun snippets.
Notebooks	Edit Jupyter notebook cells safely.
Web	Fetch pages and search the web when enabled.
MCP	Connect external MCP servers and tools; long-running calls run in the background instead of blocking your session.

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Agent modes

Mode / agent	Purpose
Ask	Read-only help, explanations, codebase questions.
Plan	Design an implementation before making changes.
Build	Edit files, run tools, and implement changes.
Tester	Write and run tests, report failures.
Security	Read-only OWASP-style review.
Refactor	Improve existing code while preserving behavior.
Architect	Produce structured implementation plans.

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Configuration

Anthracode can be configured globally or per project.

Common locations:

• Global config: ~/.config/anthracode/anthracode.jsonc
• Project config: .anthracode/anthracode.jsonc
• Project instructions: AGENTS.md

Minimal example:

{
  "model": "anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-5"
}

Supported provider types include Anthropic, OpenAI, Google Gemini, Groq, Mistral, Bedrock, Azure, Ollama, LM Studio, and OpenAI-compatible endpoints.

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Privacy

Anthracode is local-first.

• Your files are read from your local machine.
• Prompts and context are sent only to the model provider you configure.
• No Anthracode cloud account is required for the terminal agent.
• No analytics SDK is required for local CLI usage.

See PRIVACY.md for the full data-flow details.

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Updating

npm install -g anthracode-ai@latest --include=optional

Anthracode also checks for updates on launch and can prompt you when a newer version is available.

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Troubleshooting

The binary did not install

Re-run with optional dependencies enabled:

npm install -g anthracode-ai --include=optional

anthracode is not found after install

Check your global npm bin path:

npm bin -g

Then make sure that directory is in your PATH.

Windows terminal issues

Update to the latest package first:

npm install -g anthracode-ai@latest --include=optional

Use Windows Terminal or PowerShell for the best native experience.

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Project status

Area	Status
macOS binaries (Apple Silicon + Intel)	✅ Supported
Windows x64 CLI	✅ Supported
Linux x64 CLI	✅ Supported
Linux arm64 CLI	✅ Supported
Terminal TUI	✅ Supported
Memory / tools / agents	✅ Supported
Browser-hosted chat UI	❌ Not currently supported
Hosted model gateway / subscription	❌ Not currently supported

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Legal & community

Document	What it covers
LICENSE	Source license.
LEGAL_NOTICE.md	Publisher identity / mentions légales.
TERMS.md	Terms for distributed binaries.
PRIVACY.md	What data leaves your machine and when.
SECURITY.md	How to report a vulnerability.
TRADEMARK.md	Use of the Anthracode name and logo.
NOTICE	Third-party attributions.
CONTRIBUTING.md	How to report bugs and contribute.
CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md	Community standards.

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License

Anthracode source code is licensed under the MIT License. The Anthracode name and logo are trademarks; see TRADEMARK.md.