Getting started

What you get

Coven supervises a coding-agent CLI in a project boundary, then keeps its session record and event log locally. Your harness keeps its own provider login; Coven keeps the lifecycle, replay, and local API consistent.

1. Verify Coven

Use the package without a global install:

npx @opencoven/cli doctor

Or install it globally:

npm install -g @opencoven/cli
coven doctor

doctor reports the next setup action when the local store, project detection, daemon, or a harness is not ready.

2. Connect a harness

Install and authenticate the harness you want Coven to launch. For example:

npm install -g @openai/codex
codex login

npm install -g @anthropic-ai/claude-code
claude doctor

npm install -g @github/copilot
copilot login

See Harnesses for supported harnesses, adapter setup, and credential boundaries.

3. Run a session

From the repository you want to work in:

coven daemon start
coven run codex "fix the failing tests" --title "Fix tests"

The daemon rejects a missing project root or a working directory outside that root. This is the core distinction: a harness runs the task; Coven enforces and records the session around it.

4. Inspect the result

coven sessions
coven attach <session-id>

Inspect a record without attaching:

coven sessions show <session-id>
coven sessions events <session-id> --limit 100
coven sessions log <session-id>

Unique session-id prefixes are accepted when they identify exactly one session. Use coven sessions search "query" for full-text search over recorded event payloads.

Archive a completed record when it is no longer active; sacrifice it only when you intend to delete its events permanently.

coven archive <session-id>
coven sacrifice <session-id> --yes

For a cross-surface summary of the daemon, open sessions, familiars, skills, research, and hub state:

coven status

Continue

• Install options
• Core concepts
• CLI session commands
• Troubleshooting