CLI

altimate provides subcommands for headless operation, automation, and integration.

Basic Usage

# Launch the TUI (default)
altimate

# Run a prompt non-interactively
altimate run "analyze my most expensive queries"

# Start with a specific agent
altimate --agent analyst

Note: altimate-code still works as a backward-compatible alias for all commands.

Subcommands

Command	Description
run	Run a prompt non-interactively
serve	Start the HTTP API server
web	Start the web UI
agent	Agent management
auth	Authentication
mcp	Model Context Protocol tools
acp	Agent Communication Protocol
models	List available models
stats	Usage statistics
export	Export session data
import	Import session data
session	Session management
trace	List and view session traces
github	GitHub integration
pr	Pull request tools
upgrade	Upgrade to latest version
uninstall	Uninstall altimate

Global Flags

Flag	Description
--model <provider/model>	Override the default model
--agent <name>	Start with a specific agent
--yolo	Auto-approve all permission prompts (explicit deny rules still enforced)
--print-logs	Print logs to stderr
--log-level <level>	Set log level: DEBUG, INFO, WARN, ERROR
--help, -h	Show help
--version, -v	Show version

Environment Variables

Configuration can be controlled via environment variables:

Core Configuration

Variable	Description
ALTIMATE_CLI_CONFIG	Path to custom config file
ALTIMATE_CLI_CONFIG_DIR	Custom config directory
ALTIMATE_CLI_CONFIG_CONTENT	Inline config as JSON string
ALTIMATE_CLI_GIT_BASH_PATH	Path to Git Bash (Windows)

Feature Toggles

Variable	Description
ALTIMATE_CLI_DISABLE_AUTOUPDATE	Disable automatic updates
ALTIMATE_CLI_DISABLE_LSP_DOWNLOAD	Don't auto-download LSP servers
ALTIMATE_CLI_DISABLE_AUTOCOMPACT	Disable automatic context compaction
ALTIMATE_CLI_DISABLE_DEFAULT_PLUGINS	Skip loading default plugins
ALTIMATE_CLI_DISABLE_EXTERNAL_SKILLS	Disable external skill discovery
ALTIMATE_CLI_DISABLE_PROJECT_CONFIG	Ignore project-level config files
ALTIMATE_CLI_DISABLE_TERMINAL_TITLE	Don't set terminal title
ALTIMATE_CLI_DISABLE_PRUNE	Disable database pruning
ALTIMATE_CLI_DISABLE_MODELS_FETCH	Don't fetch models from models.dev

Server & Security

Variable	Description
ALTIMATE_CLI_SERVER_USERNAME	Server HTTP basic auth username
ALTIMATE_CLI_SERVER_PASSWORD	Server HTTP basic auth password
ALTIMATE_CLI_PERMISSION	Permission config as JSON

Permissions & Safety

Variable	Description
ALTIMATE_CLI_YOLO	Auto-approve all permission prompts (true/false). Explicit deny rules still enforced.
OPENCODE_YOLO	Fallback for ALTIMATE_CLI_YOLO. When both are set, ALTIMATE_CLI_YOLO takes precedence.

Memory & Training

Variable	Description
ALTIMATE_DISABLE_MEMORY	Disable the persistent memory system
ALTIMATE_MEMORY_AUTO_EXTRACT	Auto-extract memories at session end
ALTIMATE_DISABLE_TRAINING	Disable the AI teammate training system

Experimental

Variable	Description
ALTIMATE_CLI_EXPERIMENTAL	Enable all experimental features
ALTIMATE_CLI_EXPERIMENTAL_FILEWATCHER	Enable file watcher
ALTIMATE_CLI_EXPERIMENTAL_BASH_DEFAULT_TIMEOUT_MS	Custom bash timeout (ms)
ALTIMATE_CLI_EXPERIMENTAL_OUTPUT_TOKEN_MAX	Max output tokens
ALTIMATE_CLI_EXPERIMENTAL_PLAN_MODE	Enable plan mode
ALTIMATE_CLI_ENABLE_EXA	Enable Exa web search
ALTIMATE_CALM_MODE	Enables all streaming optimizations: smooth rendering, line-at-a-time buffering, and 100-column width cap. Recommended for a Claude Code-like experience. Equivalent to setting ALTIMATE_SMOOTH_STREAMING=true ALTIMATE_LINE_STREAMING=true ALTIMATE_CONTENT_MAX_WIDTH=100.
ALTIMATE_SMOOTH_STREAMING	Uses lightweight <code> rendering during LLM streaming, then swaps to rich markdown after completion. Reduces text jumps and scroll jitter. Included in ALTIMATE_CALM_MODE.
ALTIMATE_LINE_STREAMING	Buffers LLM output and reveals one complete line at a time (on \n). Gives a calm, steady flow. Remaining text flushes on message completion or abort. Included in ALTIMATE_CALM_MODE.
ALTIMATE_CONTENT_MAX_WIDTH	Cap text content width in columns (e.g. 100). Improves readability on wide screens. Automatically disabled on small terminals. Set to 100 by ALTIMATE_CALM_MODE.

Calm Mode Quick Start

For a Claude Code-like streaming experience, add to your shell profile:

export ALTIMATE_CALM_MODE=true

Or use individual flags for fine-grained control:

# Smooth rendering only (no line buffering)
export ALTIMATE_SMOOTH_STREAMING=true

# Line buffering only (no rendering changes)
export ALTIMATE_LINE_STREAMING=true

# Custom width cap (e.g., 80 columns)
export ALTIMATE_CONTENT_MAX_WIDTH=80

Non-interactive Usage

# Pipe input
echo "explain this SQL" | altimate run

# With a specific model
altimate run --model anthropic/claude-sonnet-4-6 "optimize my warehouse"

# Print logs for debugging
altimate --print-logs --log-level DEBUG run "test query"

# Disable tracing for a single run
altimate run --no-trace "quick question"

For CI pipelines and headless automation, see CI & Automation.

Tracing

Every run command automatically saves a trace file with the full session details, including generations, tool calls, tokens, cost, and timing. See Tracing for configuration options.

# List recent traces
altimate trace list

# View a trace in the browser
altimate trace view <session-id>