***

title: CLI overview
subtitle: 'The ast CLI — create, develop, and deploy agents from your terminal'
slug: cli
---------

The Astro AI CLI (`ast`) is the primary tool for working with agents locally and pushing them to the Astro AI platform. It handles project scaffolding, local development, building containers, and deploying to the registry.

## Installation

See [Install the CLI](/install-cli) for platform-specific installation instructions.

Verify your installation:

```bash
ast --version
```

## Configuration file

Most commands read `astroai.yml` in the current directory. This file defines your agent's spec — its name, interface, models, tools, knowledge bases, and other configuration.

Override the file path with the global `--file` flag:

```bash
ast --file path/to/astroai.yml <command>
```

Generate a JSON Schema for editor autocompletion:

```bash
ast schema > .ast/schema.json
```

## Global flags

These flags are available on all commands:

| Flag            | Short | Description                                |
| --------------- | ----- | ------------------------------------------ |
| `--file <path>` | `-f`  | Path to spec file (default: `astroai.yml`) |
| `--verbose`     | `-v`  | Verbose output                             |
| `--quiet`       | `-q`  | Minimal output                             |
| `--version`     |       | Print the CLI version                      |
| `--help`        | `-h`  | Help for the current command               |

## Workflow overview

A typical development workflow uses these commands in sequence:

1. **[`ast create`](/cli-reference#create)** — scaffold a new agent project
2. **[`ast dev`](/cli-reference#dev)** — run the agent locally with hot-reload
3. **[`ast validate`](/cli-reference#validate)** — check `astroai.yml` for errors
4. **[`ast push`](/cli-reference#push)** — build and push to the Astro AI platform

Authentication is handled separately with [`ast login`](/authentication).

## Next steps

* [CLI reference](/cli-reference) — full command and flag documentation
* [Your first project](/get-started) — step-by-step guide
* [Authentication](/authentication) — manage credentials