CLI Reference

Complete reference for all cortex commands. Commands are organized into nested domain groups.

Command Tree

Command	Description
agent	Agent management, chat, and execution
`agent chat`	Interactive streaming chat session (TUI)
`agent tui`	Full-featured terminal UI with tool panel
`agent exec <prompt>`	One-shot non-interactive agent execution
`agent list`	List all registered agents
`agent show <id>`	Show agent configuration details
`agent create <name>`	Create a new agent
`agent update <id>`	Update an existing agent
`agent delete <id>`	Delete an agent
`agent select <id>`	Set as default/active agent
`agent inspect <id>`	Inspect agent identity (soul/user/memory)
`agent clone <source> <name>`	Clone an existing agent
`agent import <source>`	Import from URL or marketplace
`agent sessions`	List recent chat sessions
`agent eval`	Run agent evaluation suites
`agent reflect`	Inspect consolidation patterns
`agent lint`	Audit agent configs, tools, plugins, prompts
`agent voice`	Manage voice mode
server	HTTP server management
`server start`	Start HTTP + WebSocket server with Web UI
`server stop`	Stop background server
`server restart`	Restart background server
sandbox	Code execution sandbox
`sandbox run <file>`	Execute a code file with optional LLM auto-fix
daemon	Background process management
`daemon start`	Start supervisor daemon in background
`daemon stop`	Stop daemon processes
`daemon restart`	Restart daemon processes
`daemon run`	Run supervisor in foreground
`daemon status`	Show daemon health
config	Configuration management
`config get <key>`	Read a dot-notation config key
`config set <key> <value>`	Set a config value (JSON5 auto-parsed)
`config unset <key>`	Remove a config key
`config list`	Pretty-print full config (secrets redacted)
`config validate`	Validate config against schema
db	Database management
`db migrate`	Initialize or migrate all databases
self	Self-management
`self update`	Check for and apply updates
setup	Run the setup wizard
memory	Search and manage memory
vault	Encrypted credential vault
policy	Security policy rules
soul	Agent identity and personality templates
plugins	Install and manage plugins
marketplace	Browse plugin/agent marketplace
models	List and configure LLM models
jobs	Manage scheduled jobs
git	Git workspace operations
github	GitHub integration
mcp	MCP server management
`mcp chrome`	Manage Chrome Bridge browser automation
`mcp a2a`	A2A Protocol agent card, skills, connections
`mcp gateway`	MCP Gateway management
service	Micro-service CRUD and system service install
`service list`	List micro-services
`service show <id>`	Show service details
`service create <name>`	Create a new service
`service update <id>`	Update service configuration
`service delete <id>`	Delete a service
`service start <name>`	Start a service
`service stop <name>`	Stop a service
`service install`	Install as system service
`service uninstall`	Remove system service
node	Manage distributed nodes
swarm	Manage distributed agent swarm
channels	Manage channel adapters
hooks	Manage pipeline hooks
triggers	Manage event triggers
workflow	Workflow engine operations
import	Import data from other platforms
qm	Quartermaster tool orchestration learning
mqm	Model Quartermaster (MQM) intelligence
eval	Run agent evaluation suites
eval memory	Run memory benchmark suite
projects	Project management
desktop	Desktop automation
login	Authenticate with username+password or API token
logout	Clear stored authentication
whoami	Show current authenticated user and teams
users	Manage instance users (list/create/disable/enable)
teams	Manage teams (list/create)
debug	Live introspection: sessions, health, metrics, memory
log	Logging configuration and viewing
compliance	Compliance management
memori	Persistent checkpointing and agent-state survival

Backward compatibility: Old flat commands (cortex chat, cortex serve, cortex restart, cortex start, cortex stop) have been removed as of v0.51.0. Use cortex agent chat, cortex server start, cortex daemon start|stop|restart directly.

`cortex agent`

cortex agent chat                          # Start a new chat session (TUI)
cortex agent chat --model gpt-4o           # Override the active model
cortex agent chat --agent my-agent         # Use a specific agent
cortex agent chat --resume sess_abc123     # Resume an existing session
cortex agent chat --no-stream              # Disable streaming output

cortex agent tui                           # Full-featured terminal UI

cortex agent exec "fix the eslint config"  # One-shot non-interactive
cortex agent exec --json "summarize"       # JSON output for CI/scripting
cortex agent exec --max-turns 5 "..."      # Limit tool-call rounds
cortex agent exec -o result.md "..."       # Write response to file

cortex agent list                          # List all agents
cortex agent show my-agent                 # Show agent details
cortex agent create "Security Auditor"     # Create a new agent
cortex agent update my-agent               # Update an existing agent
cortex agent delete my-agent               # Delete an agent
cortex agent select my-agent               # Set as default agent
cortex agent inspect my-agent              # Inspect agent identity
cortex agent clone my-agent "Clone"        # Clone an existing agent
cortex agent import https://...           # Import from marketplace/URL

cortex agent sessions                      # List recent sessions
cortex agent eval                          # Run evaluation suites
cortex agent reflect                       # Inspect consolidation
cortex agent lint                          # Audit agent config
cortex agent voice                         # Manage voice settings

Slash Commands in Chat

Available during interactive chat sessions:

Command	Description
`/model <name>`	Switch model mid-session
`/compact`	Trigger context compaction
`/status`	Show session info
`/clear`	Clear chat history
`/save [file]`	Save transcript to file
`/load <file>`	Load transcript from file
`/export`	Export session as markdown
`/theme <name>`	Switch theme (dark/light/contrast)
`/diff`	Show last file change as diff
`/review`	Review pending tool approvals
`/plan`	Enter planning mode
`/help`	List all commands and keybindings
`/! <cmd>`	Execute bash command in sandbox
`/exit`, `/quit`	Exit chat session

`cortex server`

cortex server start                         # http://127.0.0.1:3000 (foreground)
cortex server start --port 8080 --host 0.0.0.0
cortex server start -d                      # Run in background (daemon mode)
cortex server start -d -r                   # Restart background server
cortex server start -s                      # Stop background server
cortex server stop                          # Stop background server
cortex server restart                        # Restart background server

`cortex daemon`

cortex daemon start                  # Start supervisor in background
cortex daemon stop                   # Stop all daemon processes
cortex daemon restart                # Restart daemon processes
cortex daemon run                    # Run supervisor in foreground
cortex daemon status                 # Show daemon health

Three daemon processes: Validator (policy enforcement), Executor (tool execution), Scheduler (cron + memory consolidation). Auto-restart with exponential backoff (min(2^n × 1s, 30s)).

`cortex sandbox`

cortex sandbox run script.py                 # Execute with language inference
cortex sandbox run script.sh --lang bash      # Explicit language
cortex sandbox run broken.py --fix            # Auto-fix loop on failure
cortex sandbox run broken.py --fix --max-fix 10
cortex sandbox run script.py --no-sandbox     # Skip Docker, use subprocess

`cortex config`

cortex config get defaultAgent              # Read a config value
cortex config set defaultAgent "assistant"  # Set a config value
cortex config set agents.myAgent.model "gpt-4"  # Dot-notation nesting
cortex config set providers.openai.apiKey "sk-..."  # Auto-encrypted storage
cortex config unset agents.oldAgent         # Remove a key
cortex config list                          # Pretty-print (secrets redacted)
cortex config validate                      # Check schema compliance

`cortex self`

cortex self update --check                  # Check for available updates
cortex self update                          # Apply latest update
cortex self update --channel pre-release    # Use pre-release channel
cortex self update --status                 # Show current/latest version
cortex self update --rollback               # Rollback to previous version

`cortex db`

cortex db migrate                           # Initialize or migrate databases

`cortex mcp`

cortex mcp chrome start                     # Start Chrome Bridge (browser automation)
cortex mcp chrome stop                      # Stop Chrome Bridge
cortex mcp chrome status                    # Show Chrome Bridge status
cortex mcp chrome tools                     # List available browser tools

cortex mcp a2a card                         # Show A2A agent card
cortex mcp a2a skills                       # List A2A skills
cortex mcp a2a remote                       # List remote A2A agents

cortex mcp gateway status                   # MCP Gateway health
cortex mcp gateway health                   # MCP Gateway health check

`cortex setup`

cortex setup                                # Re-run the setup wizard

Configures provider credentials, default model, agent identity, and optional features (embedding, voice, channels).

`cortex login`

cortex login                              # Interactive username+password login
cortex login --token <token>              # Login with an API token
cortex login --host http://localhost:11434  # Specify server URL

Auth token stored in ~/.cortex/auth.json.

`cortex logout`

cortex logout                             # Clear stored authentication token

`cortex whoami`

cortex whoami                             # Show current user, teams, and role

`cortex users`

cortex users list                         # List all users (instance admin)
cortex users create <username> <password>  # Create a new user (instance admin)
cortex users disable <userId>             # Disable a user (instance admin)
cortex users enable <userId>              # Enable a disabled user (instance admin)

`cortex teams`

cortex teams list                         # List your teams
cortex teams create <name>                # Create a team (instance admin)

`cortex debug`

Live introspection tools for debugging active agent sessions and system health:

cortex debug sessions                    # List all active sessions
cortex debug memory                      # Show memory subsystem metrics
cortex debug health                      # Show system health overview
cortex debug metrics                     # Show performance metrics
cortex debug tools                       # List all tools an agent can access
cortex debug daemons                     # Show daemon process status

`cortex memory`

cortex memory search "pattern"              # Search memory
cortex memory add "fact" --type semantic    # Add memory entry
cortex memory health                        # Show memory system health
cortex memory heuristics                    # Show consolidation heuristics

`cortex jobs`

cortex jobs list                            # List all scheduled jobs
cortex jobs add --name "backup" --cron "0 0 * * *" --command "..."
cortex jobs cancel <job-id>                 # Cancel a scheduled job
cortex jobs run-due                         # Run all due jobs immediately

`cortex vault`

cortex vault list                           # List stored secrets
cortex vault set <key> <value>              # Store encrypted secret
cortex vault get <key>                      # Decrypt and retrieve
cortex vault delete <key>                   # Remove a stored secret

`cortex policy`

cortex policy list                          # List security policy rules
cortex policy add --rule "..."              # Add a policy rule
cortex policy delete <rule-id>              # Remove a policy rule
cortex policy enable <rule-id>              # Enable a disabled rule
cortex policy disable <rule-id>             # Disable (without deleting)

`cortex plugins`

cortex plugins list                         # List installed plugins
cortex plugins install <name>               # Install from marketplace
cortex plugins uninstall <name>             # Uninstall a plugin
cortex plugins enable <name>                # Enable a disabled plugin
cortex plugins disable <name>               # Disable (without uninstalling)
cortex plugins info <name>                  # Show plugin details

`cortex marketplace`

cortex marketplace list                     # List available plugins/agents
cortex marketplace search <query>           # Search marketplace
cortex marketplace info <name>              # Show item details
cortex marketplace install <name>           # Install from marketplace

`cortex models`

cortex models list                          # List configured LLM models
cortex models set <provider> <model>        # Set active model for provider
cortex models test <provider>               # Test provider connectivity

`cortex git`

cortex git status                           # Show workspace status
cortex git diff                             # Show workspace diff
cortex git commit -m "message"              # Commit changes
cortex git log                              # Show commit history

`cortex github`

cortex github pr list                       # List open pull requests
cortex github pr create                     # Create a new PR
cortex github issue list                    # List open issues
cortex github issue create                  # Create a new issue
cortex github repo list                     # List repos

`cortex node`

cortex node connect <url>                   # Connect to a hub node
cortex node disconnect                      # Disconnect from hub
cortex node status                          # Show node connection status

`cortex channels`

cortex channels list                        # List configured channels
cortex channels enable <name>               # Enable a channel
cortex channels disable <name>              # Disable a channel
cortex channels config <name>               # Configure channel settings

`cortex triggers`

cortex triggers list                        # List event triggers
cortex triggers add --event "..."" --action "..."
cortex triggers delete <trigger-id>
cortex triggers enable <trigger-id>
cortex triggers disable <trigger-id>

`cortex workflow`

cortex workflow list                        # List workflows
cortex workflow run <name>                  # Execute a workflow
cortex workflow status <run-id>             # Check run status

`cortex import`

Import data from other agent platforms and formats:

cortex import openclaw                       # Import from OpenClaw (config, sessions, memory)
cortex import openclaw --config-only         # Import only config (providers, agents, model pool)
cortex import openclaw --sessions-only       # Import only session transcripts
cortex import openclaw --memory-only         # Import only memory files (MEMORY.md, SOUL.md, USER.md)
cortex import openclaw --dry-run              # Preview what would be imported

cortex import hermes                         # Import from Hermes (config, state.db, memory)
cortex import hermes --config-only            # Import only config.yaml
cortex import hermes --sessions-only          # Import from state.db or JSONL exports
cortex import hermes --memory-only            # Import SOUL.md, MEMORY.md, USER.md, skills/

cortex import zeroclaw                        # Import from ZeroClaw

cortex import transcripts <dir>              # Import from JSONL transcript directory

cortex import config openclaw <path>         # Convert OpenClaw config to Cortex format
cortex import config openclaw --dry-run       # Preview config conversion

Supports --dry-run for all sources. Auto-discovers config files, state databases, and memory files from detected directories.

`cortex qm`

Quartermaster tool orchestration learning — analyze and manage tool selection patterns:

cortex qm patterns                           # Show learned tool selection patterns
cortex qm weights                            # Show current tool weights
cortex qm stats                              # Show orchestration statistics
cortex qm decisions                          # Show recent tool decisions
cortex qm accuracy                           # Show prediction accuracy metrics
cortex qm reset                              # Reset all learned patterns and weights

`cortex mqm`

Model Quartermaster (MQM) — analyze and manage model selection intelligence:

cortex mqm stats                             # Show MQM statistics
cortex mqm decisions                         # Show recent model selection decisions
cortex mqm weights                           # Show signal weights
cortex mqm accuracy                          # Show model selection accuracy

`cortex eval`

Run agent evaluation suites and manage baselines:

cortex eval list                             # List available evaluation suites
cortex eval run <name>                       # Run a specific evaluation suite
cortex eval baselines                        # Show evaluation baselines and scores

`cortex projects`

cortex projects list                        # List projects
cortex projects create <name>               # Create a new project
cortex projects use <name>                  # Set active project
cortex projects delete <name>               # Delete a project

`cortex log`

cortex log show                             # Show recent log entries
cortex log tail                             # Follow log output
cortex log clear                            # Clear log file
cortex log set-level <level>                # Set log level (debug/info/warn/error)
cortex log path                             # Show log file path
cortex log status                           # Show logging configuration

`cortex memori`

cortex memori list <session-id>             # List checkpoints for session
cortex memori create <session-id>           # Create a manual checkpoint
cortex memori restore <checkpoint-id>       # Restore session to checkpoint
cortex memori delete <checkpoint-id>        # Delete a checkpoint

`cortex install` / `cortex uninstall`

cortex install                          # Install daemon + server as system services
cortex install --port 8080 --host 0.0.0.0
cortex install --daemon-only            # Install only the daemon service
cortex install --server-only            # Install only the server service
cortex install --no-start               # Create service files without starting
cortex uninstall                        # Remove all system services
cortex uninstall --daemon-only          # Remove only the daemon service
cortex uninstall --server-only          # Remove only the server service

Manages Cortex as system services via systemd (Linux), launchd (macOS), or NSSM (Windows).

`cortex agent lint`

cortex agent lint check <agent-id>          # Audit agent config, tools, plugins
cortex agent lint config                    # Show lint configuration

`cortex compliance`

cortex compliance check                     # Run compliance checks
cortex compliance report                    # Generate compliance report

`cortex desktop`

cortex desktop install                      # Install desktop app dependencies
cortex desktop build                        # Build desktop app
cortex desktop run                          # Run desktop app in dev mode

`cortex service`

cortex service list                         # List micro-services
cortex service show <name>                  # Show service details
cortex service create <name>                # Create a new service
cortex service update <name>                # Update service configuration
cortex service delete <name>                # Delete a service
cortex service start <name>                 # Start a service
cortex service stop <name>                  # Stop a service
cortex service status <name>                # Show service status
cortex service install                      # Install as system service
cortex service uninstall                    # Remove system service

Global Flags

All commands support these global flags:

Flag	Description
`--json`	Machine-readable JSON output
`-v, --verbose`	Enable verbose debug logging
`--no-color`	Disable ANSI color output
`--config <path>`	Override config file path
`-m, --model <model>`	Override default model
`--profile <name>`	Config profile to use

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CLI Reference

CLI Reference

Command Tree

cortex agent

Slash Commands in Chat

cortex server

cortex daemon

cortex sandbox

cortex config

cortex self

cortex db

cortex mcp

cortex setup

cortex login

cortex logout

cortex whoami

cortex users

cortex teams

cortex debug

cortex memory

cortex jobs

cortex vault

cortex policy

cortex plugins

cortex marketplace

cortex models

cortex git

cortex github

cortex node

cortex channels

cortex triggers

cortex workflow

cortex import

cortex qm

cortex mqm

cortex eval

cortex projects

cortex log

cortex memori

cortex install / cortex uninstall

cortex agent lint

cortex compliance

cortex desktop

cortex service

Global Flags

See Also

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`cortex agent`

`cortex server`

`cortex daemon`

`cortex sandbox`

`cortex config`

`cortex self`

`cortex db`

`cortex mcp`

`cortex setup`

`cortex login`

`cortex logout`

`cortex whoami`

`cortex users`

`cortex teams`

`cortex debug`

`cortex memory`

`cortex jobs`

`cortex vault`

`cortex policy`

`cortex plugins`

`cortex marketplace`

`cortex models`

`cortex git`

`cortex github`

`cortex node`

`cortex channels`

`cortex triggers`

`cortex workflow`

`cortex import`

`cortex qm`

`cortex mqm`

`cortex eval`

`cortex projects`

`cortex log`

`cortex memori`

`cortex install` / `cortex uninstall`

`cortex agent lint`

`cortex compliance`

`cortex desktop`

`cortex service`