Commands
# Commands
## Authentication
For OAuth-enabled providers like Anthropic.
```bash
kit auth login [provider] # Start OAuth flow (e.g., anthropic)
kit auth login [provider] --set-default # Set provider's default model as system default
kit auth logout [provider] # Remove credentials for provider
kit auth status # Check authentication status
```
## Model database
Manage the local model database that maps provider names to API configurations.
```bash
kit models [provider] # List available models (optionally filter by provider)
kit models --all # Show all providers (not just LLM-compatible)
kit update-models [source] # Update model database
```
The `update-models` command accepts an optional source argument:
- *(none)* — update from [models.dev](https://models.dev)
- A URL — fetch from a custom endpoint
- A file path — load from a local file
- `embedded` — reset to the bundled database
## Extension management
```bash
kit extensions list # List discovered extensions
kit extensions validate # Validate extension files
kit extensions init # Generate example extension template
```
### Installing extensions from git
```bash
kit install
# Install extensions from git repositories
kit install -l # Install to project-local .kit/git/ directory
kit install -u # Update an already-installed package
kit install --uninstall # Remove an installed package
kit install --all # Install all extensions without prompting
```
## Skills
```bash
kit skill # Install the Kit extensions skill via skills.sh
```
### Skills CLI flags
Control which skills are loaded at startup:
```bash
# Load a specific skill file
kit --skill path/to/skill.md "prompt"
# Load multiple skill files or directories (flag is repeatable)
kit --skill ./skill1.md --skill ./skill2.md "prompt"
# Load all skills from a custom directory instead of the default locations
kit --skills-dir /path/to/skills "prompt"
# Disable all skill loading (auto-discovery and explicit)
kit --no-skills "prompt"
```
Skills are auto-discovered from `~/.config/kit/skills/`, `.kit/skills/`, and `.agents/skills/` by default. Use `--skills-dir` to override the project-local search root, or `--skill` to load files explicitly (which disables auto-discovery). `--no-skills` suppresses all skill loading regardless of other flags.
## Interactive slash commands
These commands are available inside the Kit TUI during an interactive session:
| Command | Description |
|---------|-------------|
| `/help` | Show available commands |
| `/tools` | List available MCP tools |
| `/servers` | Show connected MCP servers |
| `/model [name]` | Switch model or open model selector |
| `/theme [name]` | Switch color theme or list available themes |
| `/thinking [level]` | Set thinking level (off, none, minimal, low, medium, high) |
| `/compact [focus]` | Summarize older messages to free context |
| `/clear` | Clear conversation |
| `/clear-queue` | Clear queued messages |
| `/usage` | Show token usage |
| `/reset-usage` | Reset usage statistics |
| `/tree` | Navigate session tree |
| `/fork` | Fork to new session from an earlier message |
| `/new` | Start a new session (creates new session file) |
| `/name [name]` | Set or show session display name |
| `/resume` | Open session picker to switch sessions (alias: `/r`) |
| `/session` | Show session info |
| `/export [path]` | Export session as JSONL (default: auto-generated path) |
| `/import ` | Import a session from a JSONL file |
| `/share` | Upload session to GitHub Gist and get a shareable viewer URL |
| `/quit` | Exit Kit |
### Prompt history
Use **↑** and **↓** arrow keys to navigate through previously submitted prompts. Kit keeps the last 100 entries. Consecutive duplicates are skipped.
### Cancelling operations
Press **ESC twice** to cancel the current operation:
- During a tool call: rolls back the entire turn to maintain API message pairing
- During streaming: stops the response generation
This ensures that `tool_use` and `tool_result` messages are always sent to the API as matched pairs, avoiding errors from orphaned tool calls.
### External editor
Press **Ctrl+X e** to open your `$VISUAL` or `$EDITOR` in a temporary file pre-populated with the current input text. On save and quit, the edited content replaces the input textarea. On error exit (e.g., `:cq` in Vim), the original input is preserved.
### Mid-turn steering
Press **Ctrl+X s** during streaming to inject a system-level instruction mid-turn. This allows you to steer the conversation direction without waiting for the model to finish:
- Works during streaming output
- Sends a steering instruction as a system message
- Model continues from the interruption point with the new guidance
Example: While the model is writing code, press Ctrl+X s and type "Use async/await instead" to change the implementation approach.
### Image attachments
Attach images to your next prompt straight from the clipboard:
- Copy an image (e.g. a screenshot) to the system clipboard, then press **Ctrl+V** in the input to attach it.
- Press **Ctrl+U** to clear all pending image attachments.
- Attachments are sent alongside your text when you submit, and cleared afterward.
When a terminal supports color, Kit renders a small low-resolution **thumbnail preview** of each pending image directly in the input, below the `[N image(s) attached]` indicator, so you can confirm the right image was attached before sending.
The preview is drawn with Unicode half-block characters and ordinary terminal colors — not a graphics protocol — so it renders correctly inside terminal multiplexers like **tmux** and **zellij**. Thumbnails are capped to a small cell box for a glanceable, low-res look.
- Best fidelity needs a **truecolor** terminal (`COLORTERM=truecolor`); Kit degrades to 256-color where truecolor is unavailable.
- On terminals with neither, the preview is skipped and the `[N image(s) attached]` text indicator is shown alone.
You can also attach image files by referencing them with `@path/to/image.png` — binary files are auto-detected by MIME type. See [Quick Start](/quick-start) for the `@` attachment syntax.
## Prompt templates
### Creating templates
Templates use YAML frontmatter for metadata and support argument placeholders:
```markdown
---
description: Review code for issues
---
Review the following code for bugs and security issues.
Focus on $1 specifically.
```
Save to `~/.kit/prompts/review.md` or `.kit/prompts/review.md`.
### Using templates
Templates appear as slash commands:
```
/review error handling
```
### Argument placeholders
| Placeholder | Description |
|-------------|-------------|
| `$1`, `$2`, etc. | Individual arguments by position |
| `$@`, `$ARGUMENTS` | All arguments joined with spaces (zero or more) |
| `$+` | All arguments joined with spaces (one or more required) |
| `${@:N}` | Arguments from position N onwards |
| `${@:N:L}` | L arguments starting at position N |
Placeholders inside fenced code blocks (`` ``` ``) and inline code spans are ignored, so documentation examples won't be substituted.
### CLI flags
```bash
# Load a specific template by name
kit --prompt-template review
# Disable template loading
kit --no-prompt-templates
```
## ACP server
Run Kit as an [ACP (Agent Client Protocol)](https://agentclientprotocol.com) agent server. ACP-compatible clients communicate with Kit over JSON-RPC 2.0 on stdin/stdout.
```bash
kit acp # Start as ACP agent
kit acp --debug # With debug logging to stderr
```