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User Guide: Amplifier CLI

This guide covers everything you need to know to use amplifier-app-cli, the command-line application for Amplifier.

About This Guide

This guide is for using the Amplifier CLI (amplifier command). If you're:

Topics

CLI Reference

Complete reference for all Amplifier commands and options.

Bundles

Composable configuration packages for different use cases.

Agents

Specialized sub-agents for focused tasks.

Sessions

Session management, persistence, and resumption.

Quick Reference

Most Common Commands

# Run a single command
amplifier run "Your prompt"

# Single command via stdin (useful for scripts/pipelines)
echo "Summarize this spec" | amplifier run

# Interactive mode
amplifier

# Resume last session
amplifier continue

# Use specific bundle
amplifier run --bundle my-bundle "Your prompt"

# List sessions
amplifier session list

Configuration Commands

# Bundles
amplifier bundle list
amplifier bundle use my-bundle
amplifier bundle current

# Providers
amplifier provider list
amplifier provider use anthropic
amplifier provider current

# Modules
amplifier module list
amplifier module add tool-web
amplifier module show tool-web

Getting Help

# Command help
amplifier --help
amplifier run --help

# List agents
amplifier agents list

# Show agent details
amplifier agents show explorer

Common Workflows

Quick Task

# Single command execution
amplifier run "Analyze this code for security issues"

Multi-Turn Conversation

# Start interactive session
amplifier

# In session:
> Explain the authentication system
> Now add OAuth support
> Write tests for it
> /help  # Show available commands

Resume Previous Work

# Resume most recent
amplifier continue

# Resume specific session
amplifier session resume abc123

# Continue with new prompt
amplifier continue "Now add documentation"

Using Different Bundles

# List available bundles
amplifier bundle list

# Use specific bundle for one command
amplifier run --bundle dev-bundle "Your prompt"

# Set default bundle
amplifier bundle use dev-bundle

# Reset to default (foundation)
amplifier bundle clear

Configuration Hierarchy

Amplifier uses a three-level configuration system:

  1. Global (~/.amplifier/) - System-wide defaults
  2. Project (.amplifier/) - Project-specific settings
  3. Session - Runtime overrides

Later levels override earlier ones.

Setting Scope

Most commands support scope flags:

# Global scope (default)
amplifier bundle use my-bundle --global

# Project scope
amplifier bundle use my-bundle --project

# Local scope
amplifier bundle use my-bundle --local

Environment Variables

# API Keys (detected by init)
export ANTHROPIC_API_KEY="your-key"
export OPENAI_API_KEY="your-key"
export AZURE_OPENAI_API_KEY="your-key"
export GOOGLE_API_KEY="your-key"

# Override config location
export AMPLIFIER_CONFIG_DIR="~/.config/amplifier"

Tips and Tricks

Shell Completion

amplifier --install-completion
source ~/.bashrc  # or ~/.zshrc

Multi-line Input

In interactive mode: - Press Ctrl-J to insert newline - Press Enter to send message

Slash Commands

In interactive mode:

/help        - Show available commands
/mode        - Set or toggle modes
/status      - Show session status
/config      - Show configuration
/tools       - List available tools
/agents      - List available agents
/save        - Save transcript
/clear       - Clear context
/rename      - Rename session
/fork        - Fork session at turn N

Unix Piping

# Pipe input to amplifier
cat file.txt | amplifier run

# Continue session via pipe
echo "new prompt" | amplifier continue

JSON Output

# Get JSON response for scripting
amplifier run --output-format json "What is 2+2?"

# With execution trace
amplifier run --output-format json-trace "Your prompt"

Next Steps