CLI Reference

All Vant CLI commands.

Core Commands

Command	Description
`vant start`	Full startup (health → sync → load → run)
`vant health`	System diagnostics
`vant sync`	Pull/push brain from GitHub
`vant load`	Load brain from models/public
`vant run`	Start runtime loop

Core Details

Core CLI commands.

vant start

Full startup sequence:

health - Run diagnostics
sync - Pull/push brain from GitHub
load - Load brain files
run - Start runtime loop

vant start           # Full startup
vant start --no-sync # Skip sync
vant start --local  # Skip GitHub

vant health

Run system diagnostics:

Check config files
Verify GitHub connection
Check brain files
Validate .env

vant health          # Full check
vant health --quiet # Minimal output

vant sync

Sync brain with GitHub:

Pull remote changes
Commit local changes
Push to remote

vant sync              # Pull + push
vant sync --pull      # Pull only
vant sync --push      # Push only
vant sync --force     # Force push

vant load

Load brain from models/public/:

Load all .md files
Parse _succession.json
Update memory

vant load            # Load all
vant load identity  # Reload identity only

vant run

Start runtime loop:

Wait for input
Process and respond
Auto-save brain

vant run             # Interactive loop
vant run --mcp      # MCP mode
vant run --websocket # WebSocket mode

Development

Command	Description
`vant test`	Run build/tests
`vant watch`	Monitor GitHub for changes
`vant bot`	Run Telegram bot

Development Details

Development commands.

vant test

Build and test:

Lint code
Run tests
Build dist/

vant test           # Run all
vant test --lint   # Lint only
vant test --build  # Build only

vant watch

File watcher for changes:

Watch bin/, lib/
Auto-reload on changes

vant watch             # Watch + reload
vant watch --no-reload # Watch only

vant bot

Telegram bot for brain queries:

TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN=xxx vant bot
# Commands:
#   /start - Welcome
#   /status - VANT status
#   /brain - Brain version
#   /health - Health check
#   /sync - Trigger sync

Setup & Config

Command	Description
`vant setup`	Interactive setup wizard
`vant update`	Check for new releases
`vant test`	Run test suite
`vant build-test`	Run build validation

Setup Details

Initial setup.

vant setup

Interactive setup:

Create config.ini
Create .env
Optionally create settings.ini, mood.ini

vant setup          # Interactive
vant setup --force # Overwrite existing

vant update

Check for updates:

Compare local to remote
Show changelog
Prompt to upgrade

vant update           # Check
vant update --install # Install if available

vant test

Run test suite:

vant test              # Run all tests
vant test --coverage  # With coverage
vant test lib/        # Specific path

vant build-test

Run build validation tests:

vant build-test       # Validate all scripts load

Help & Info

Command	Description
`vant help`	Show all commands
`vant help <cmd>`	Help for specific command
`vant changelog`	View recent changes
`vant summary`	Session summary
`vant rate`	GitHub API rate limit

Help Details

Help commands.

vant help

Show help:

vant help           # All commands
vant help start    # Start command
vant help --json  # JSON output

vant changelog

View recent commits:

vant changelog           # Last 10
vant changelog --full    # Full history
vant changelog v0.8.0   # Since version

vant summary

Session statistics:

vant summary       # This session
vant summary all  # All time

vant rate

GitHub API rate status:

vant rate         # Current limit
vant rate reset  # Time until reset

Node & MCP

Command	Description
`vant node`	Run as persistent node
`vant node --mcp`	Node + MCP server
`vant mcp`	Run MCP server

Node Details

Run as node.

vant node

Persistent node - runs Vant continuously with brain loaded.

vant node              # Persistent mode (manual sync)
vant node --mcp        # Node + MCP server
vant node --mcp-port 3457  # Custom MCP port

⚠️ Auto-Polling Opt-In (for Self-Hosted): By default, vant node does NOT poll GitHub. To enable background sync:

Flag: --enable-polling

Env var: VANT_AGREE_AUTO_SYNC=true

Or type “AGREE” when prompted

⚠️ This violates GitHub.com ToS - intended for self-hosted GitLab/Gitea only. Use vant sync for manual brain sync with GitHub.com.

vant mcp

Standalone MCP server:

vant mcp              # Default port
vant mcp --stdio      # STDIO mode
vant mcp --websocket # WebSocket

Advanced

Command	Description
`vant onboard`	Browse knowledge base
`vant succession`	Brain version/trust
`vant resolution`	Mark thoughts resolved
`vant bump`	Bump version & tag

Advanced Details

Advanced commands.

vant onboard

Browse knowledge base:

vant onboard          # Interactive browse
vant onboard identity # Query identity
vant onboard --list   # List files

vant succession

Brain version tracking:

vant succession      # Current version
vant succession trust # Mark trusted
vant succession diff # vs previous

vant resolution

Mark thoughts resolved:

vant resolution          # Interactive
vant resolution resolve # Mark resolved
vant resolution list     # List unresolved

vant bump

Bump version:

vant bump         # Patch (0.8.4 → 0.8.5)
vant bump minor  # Minor (0.8.4 → 0.9.0)
vant bump major  # Major (0.8.4 → 1.0.0)

Docs

Command	Description
`vant docs`	Build docs for release
`vant docs serve`	Serve docs locally

Docs Details

Docs commands.

vant docs

Build documentation:

vant docs build           # Build for release
vant docs build --version # Specific version
vant docs serve          # Local server

See also: Configuration, API, Entropy-Patch

compress

Entropy encoder for Vant brain files. Creates .vpatch files from markdown.

vant compress

vant compress <input> [options]

Option	Alias	Description
`--output`	`-o`	Output directory (default: models/latent)
`--window`	`-w`	Window size (default: 8)
`--threshold`	`-t`	Entropy threshold 0-1 (default: 0.85)
`--adaptive`	`-a`	Enable adaptive threshold (auto μ + k×σ)
`--sensitivity`	`-k`	k-factor for threshold (default: 1.5)
`--stats`	`-s`	Show entropy statistics only
`--decompress`	`-d`	Decompress .vpatch to original

Examples

# Compress a file
vant compress models/public/goals.md

# View entropy stats
vant compress models/public/goals.md --stats

# Adaptive mode (self-calibrating threshold)
vant compress models/public/goals.md --adaptive
vant compress models/public/goals.md -a -k 2.0

# Decompress
vant compress models/latent/goals.vpatch --decompress

FAQ

Frequently asked questions answered.

Which command do I start with?

vant start - Full startup (health → sync → load → run)

How do I check if everything is working?

vant health - Runs diagnostics

How do I save my brain?

vant sync - Pulls latest + pushes changes

How do I see my rate limit?

vant rate - Shows GitHub API remaining

How do I update Vant?

vant update - Checks for new versions

How do I run tests?

vant test - Runs build tests