---
title: "CLI reference"
description: "Technical reference for the ralphy binary: global flags, verb groups, error catalog, end-to-end flows."
---

This section documents the `ralphy` binary itself — the global flags every verb honors, the JSON / pretty / quiet output modes, the full error code catalog, and end-to-end flows that span multiple verbs. Per-verb flag detail (every option, every argument) is auto-generated from the source under [Verbs (auto-generated)](/reference/cli/setup) — link out from any narrative page when you need exhaustive flag coverage.

## Start here

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="CLI overview" href="/cli/overview" icon="terminal">
    Global flags, TTY auto-detection, project auto-detection, the bare-`ralphy` dashboard, cancellation.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Output modes" href="/cli/output-modes" icon="rectangle-terminal">
    Pretty / JSON / NDJSON / quiet — when each fires and how to pipe to `jq`.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Setup + doctor" href="/cli/setup-doctor" icon="stethoscope">
    First-run wizard, env health check, common remediation paths.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Error catalog" href="/cli/error-catalog" icon="circle-exclamation">
    Every `E_` code, exit-code class, and the post-v1.0 append-only contract.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Verb groups

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Project verbs" href="/cli/project-verbs" icon="folder-tree">
    `new`, `clone`, `project create/list/show/update/delete`, log + timeline.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Resource CRUD" href="/cli/resource-crud" icon="database">
    The unified `<resource> create/list/show/update/delete` shape — brand, persona, ref, template, batch, asset, workspace, profile, config.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Generation verbs" href="/cli/generation-verbs" icon="wand-magic-sparkles">
    `generate {image|video|voiceover|music|sfx|captions}` — slot format, ref gate, append-only versioning, dry-run.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Rendering verbs" href="/cli/rendering-verbs" icon="film">
    `render`, `editor`, `voice`, `audio`, `video` — HyperFrames pipeline + ffmpeg recipes.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Skills + playbooks" href="/cli/skills-playbooks" icon="puzzle-piece">
    `skill install` for Claude / Cursor / Codex / Copilot, sentinel merges, scaffolding new skills.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Assets" href="/cli/assets" icon="boxes-stacked">
    Pull from the `ralphy-assets` companion repo: required, pool, examples.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Templates" href="/cli/templates" icon="layer-group">
    `template list`, `suggest`, `use`, `show` — slug resolution and kinds.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Examples" href="/cli/examples" icon="box-archive">
    Pull a complete reference project from the companion repo.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Eval + research" href="/cli/eval-research" icon="microscope">
    `eval video <path>` post-render QA and `research start/add-source/synthesize` topic-level deep research.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Models" href="/cli/models" icon="table-list">
    `models list`, `show`, `alias` — inspect the OpenRouter catalog the CLI ships against.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Env + config" href="/cli/env-config" icon="gear">
    Required env vars, `.env` precedence, `ralphy config` keys.
  </Card>
  <Card title="Verbs (auto-generated)" href="/reference/cli/setup" icon="book">
    Per-verb pages with every flag, argument, and example — generated from `cli/commands/`.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Related

- [Architecture](/concepts/architecture) — where `ralphy` fits in the larger pipeline
- [Quickstart: install](/quickstart/install) — first-time bootstrap
- [AGENTS.md](https://github.com/alecs5am/ralphy/blob/main/AGENTS.md) — playbook router the agent reads on every request
