Quickstart - Finish

Finish CLI (finish) is a terminal-based coding agent. It can edit files, run commands, and work through multi-step tasks — the same agent that powers the Finish IDE extensions, running in your terminal.

Install

macOS / Linux
Windows
from the repo

curl -fsSL https://codeberg.org/idstudios/finish/raw/branch/main/scripts/install-from-codeberg.sh | bash

iwr https://codeberg.org/idstudios/finish/raw/branch/main/scripts/install-from-codeberg.ps1 -useb | iex

Ensure we are using Node.js 24+:

nvm use
node --version
v24.21.0

Install the core dependencies:

./install-deps.sh

Then build the CLI and link it:

cd extensions/cli
npm install
npm run build
npm link

Verify the installation:

finish --version

Requirements

Node.js 24+ — needed for the npm install path. The shell installer bundles its own runtime.

First run

cd your-project
cn

On first launch you’ll be asked to log in, but please ignore this it is soon to be deprecated and you can ignore that. It is easier to setup a proper config.yaml in the ~/.finish directory and use the models configured in the file.

Headless Usage)

For automation environments where there’s no browser, set your API keys and then execute the CLI:

export SOME_API_KEY=your-key-here
finish -p "your prompt"

Two modes

TUI mode — run finish to start an interactive session. You type messages, reference files with @, approve tool calls, and iterate with the agent. This is the default. Headless mode — run finish -p "your prompt" for single-shot automation. The agent runs to completion and prints its response to stdout. Use this in scripts, CI/CD, and git hooks.

Common flags

Flag	Effect
`-p "prompt"`	Headless mode — run prompt and exit
`--config <path or slug>`	Use a specific config file or assistant
`--resume`	Resume the most recent session
`--auto`	Allow all tools without prompting
`--readonly`	Plan mode — read-only tools only
`--allow <tool>`	Allow a specific tool (repeatable)
`--exclude <tool>`	Exclude a specific tool (repeatable)
`--rule <rule>`	Add a rule — file path or string (repeatable)
`--mcp <slug>`	Add an MCP server by slug (repeatable)
`--model <slug>`	Add a model by slug (repeatable)
`--agent <slug>`	Load an agent file by slug
`--verbose`	Enable verbose logging

Run finish --help for the full list.

​Install

​Requirements

​First run

​Headless Usage)

​Two modes

​Common flags