feat: support cli for dev mode

CONTRIBUTING.md

@@ -259,25 +259,20 @@ Our aim is to make the developer setup as straightforward as possible. If you en
 
 ## Quick Start 🚀
 
+### Local Development
+
 ```bash
 git clone https://github.com/eigent-ai/eigent.git
 cd eigent
 npm install
 npm run dev
-
-# In a separate terminal, start the backend server
-cd server
-docker compose up -d
-# Stream the logs if you needed
-docker compose logs -f
 ```
 
-To run the application locally in developer mode:
+Then go to settings to specify your model key and model type.
+
+### CLI
 
-1. Configure `.env.development`:
-   - Set `VITE_USE_LOCAL_PROXY=true`
-   - Set `VITE_PROXY_URL=http://localhost:3001`
-1. Go to the settings to specify your model key and model type.
+See [cli/README.md](cli/README.md) for CLI installation and usage.
 
 ## Common Actions 🔄
 

backend/app/controller/chat_controller.py

@@ -186,6 +186,10 @@ async def post(data: Chat, request: Request):
 
     os.environ["file_save_path"] = data.file_save_path()
     os.environ["browser_port"] = str(data.browser_port)
+
+    # Store workspace on task_lock so follow-up tasks preserve it
+    if data.workspace:
+        task_lock.workspace = data.workspace
     os.environ["OPENAI_API_KEY"] = data.api_key
     os.environ["OPENAI_API_BASE_URL"] = (
         data.api_url or "https://api.openai.com/v1"
@@ -290,18 +294,28 @@ def improve(id: str, data: SupplementChat):
             # Get current environment values needed to construct new path
             current_email = None
 
-            # Extract email from current file_save_path if available
-            current_file_save_path = os.environ.get("file_save_path", "")
-            if current_file_save_path:
-                path_parts = Path(current_file_save_path).parts
-                if len(path_parts) >= 3 and "eigent" in path_parts:
-                    eigent_index = path_parts.index("eigent")
-                    if eigent_index + 1 < len(path_parts):
-                        current_email = path_parts[eigent_index + 1]
-
-            # If we have the necessary info, update
-            # the file_save_path
-            if current_email and id:
+            # If using a custom workspace, keep it as-is
+            if hasattr(task_lock, "workspace") and task_lock.workspace:
+                new_folder_path = Path(task_lock.workspace)
+                new_folder_path.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+                task_lock.new_folder_path = new_folder_path
+                os.environ["file_save_path"] = str(new_folder_path)
+                current_email = "__workspace__"
+            else:
+                # Extract email from current file_save_path if available
+                current_file_save_path = os.environ.get("file_save_path", "")
+                if current_file_save_path:
+                    path_parts = Path(current_file_save_path).parts
+                    if len(path_parts) >= 3 and "eigent" in path_parts:
+                        eigent_index = path_parts.index("eigent")
+                        if eigent_index + 1 < len(path_parts):
+                            current_email = path_parts[eigent_index + 1]
+
+            # Only rewrite file_save_path for web-app users (real email).
+            # CLI (dev mode only) sets email to "__workspace__" so files
+            # stay in the local workspace directory instead of the
+            # ~/eigent/{email}/... structure used by the web app.
+            if current_email and current_email != "__workspace__" and id:
                 # Create new path using the existing
                 # pattern: email/project_{id}/task_{id}
                 new_folder_path = (

backend/app/model/chat.py

@@ -78,6 +78,9 @@ class Chat(BaseModel):
     search_config: dict[str, str] | None = None
     # User identifier for user-specific skill configurations
     user_id: str | None = None
+    # Optional workspace directory — when set, agents work in this
+    # directory instead of the default ~/eigent/<email>/... path
+    workspace: str | None = None
 
     @field_validator("model_type")
     @classmethod
@@ -119,17 +122,20 @@ def is_cloud(self):
         return self.api_url is not None and "44.247.171.124" in self.api_url
 
     def file_save_path(self, path: str | None = None):
-        email = re.sub(r'[\\/*?:"<>|\s]', "_", self.email.split("@")[0]).strip(
-            "."
-        )
-        # Use project-based structure: project_{project_id}/task_{task_id}
-        save_path = (
-            Path.home()
-            / "eigent"
-            / email
-            / f"project_{self.project_id}"
-            / f"task_{self.task_id}"
-        )
+        if self.workspace:
+            save_path = Path(self.workspace)
+        else:
+            email = re.sub(
+                r'[\\/*?:"<>|\s]', "_", self.email.split("@")[0]
+            ).strip(".")
+            # Use project-based structure: project_{project_id}/task_{task_id}
+            save_path = (
+                Path.home()
+                / "eigent"
+                / email
+                / f"project_{self.project_id}"
+                / f"task_{self.task_id}"
+            )
         if path is not None:
             save_path = save_path / path
         save_path.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)

cli/.env.example

@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+EIGENT_API_URL=http://localhost:5001
+EIGENT_API_KEY=sk-...
+EIGENT_MODEL_PLATFORM=openai
+EIGENT_MODEL_TYPE=gpt-4o
+EIGENT_EMAIL=cli@eigent.ai
+# Optional: custom OpenAI-compatible endpoint
+# EIGENT_API_ENDPOINT=https://api.openai.com/v1

cli/README.md

@@ -0,0 +1,99 @@
+# Eigent CLI
+
+Command-line interface for the Eigent AI coding agent.
+
+## Prerequisites
+
+- Node.js >= 18
+- Eigent backend running (default: `http://localhost:5001`)
+
+## Installation
+
+```bash
+# From the repo root
+cd cli
+npm install
+npm run build
+npm install -g .
+```
+
+After installation, the `eigent` command is available globally.
+
+## Configuration
+
+Run the config wizard to set your API key, model, and backend URL:
+
+```bash
+eigent config
+```
+
+Config is stored at `~/.eigent/cli-config.json`.
+
+You can also use environment variables (or `.env.development` at the repo root):
+
+```
+EIGENT_API_URL=http://localhost:5001
+EIGENT_API_KEY=sk-...
+EIGENT_MODEL_PLATFORM=openai
+EIGENT_MODEL_TYPE=gpt-4o
+EIGENT_EMAIL=you@example.com
+```
+
+## Usage
+
+### Interactive mode (REPL)
+
+```bash
+eigent
+```
+
+### One-shot mode
+
+```bash
+eigent "search for YC W2026 companies and save one to w26.json"
+```
+
+### CLI options
+
+```
+eigent [question]          Ask a question (one-shot mode)
+eigent config              Configure API key, model, backend URL
+eigent --help              Show help
+eigent --version           Show version
+```
+
+### REPL commands
+
+| Command              | Description                          |
+|----------------------|--------------------------------------|
+| `/new`               | Start a new conversation             |
+| `/project`           | Show current project ID              |
+| `/workspace`         | Show current workspace path          |
+| `/workspace <path>`  | Change workspace directory           |
+| `/stop`              | Stop the current task                |
+| `/quit` or `/exit`   | Exit the CLI                         |
+| `Ctrl+C`             | Stop streaming / exit                |
+| `Ctrl+E`             | Expand last collapsed output         |
+
+## Development
+
+```bash
+# Watch mode (auto-rebuild on changes)
+npm run dev
+
+# Manual build
+npm run build
+
+# Run without global install
+node dist/index.js
+```
+
+## Updating
+
+After pulling changes:
+
+```bash
+cd cli
+npm run build
+npm install -g .
+```

cli/package.json

@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+{
+  "name": "@eigent/cli",
+  "version": "0.1.0",
+  "description": "Eigent AI coding agent CLI",
+  "type": "module",
+  "bin": {
+    "eigent": "./dist/index.js"
+  },
+  "scripts": {
+    "build": "tsc",
+    "dev": "tsc --watch",
+    "start": "node dist/index.js"
+  },
+  "dependencies": {
+    "chalk": "^5.4.1",
+    "commander": "^13.1.0",
+    "dotenv": "^17.3.1",
+    "marked": "^15.0.7",
+    "marked-terminal": "^7.3.0",
+    "uuid": "^11.1.0"
+  },
+  "devDependencies": {
+    "@types/node": "^22.15.0",
+    "@types/uuid": "^10.0.0",
+    "typescript": "^5.7.0"
+  },
+  "engines": {
+    "node": ">=18.0.0"
+  }
+}