CLI Reference

Complete reference for every skene-growth command and flag (version 0.2.0).

For in-depth usage of individual commands, see the guides. This page is a lookup reference.

Global Options

Flag	Description
`--version`, `-V`	Show version and exit
`--help`	Show help message and exit

When invoked with no arguments, skene-growth prints help and exits. The shorthand skene (without -growth) defaults to the chat command instead.

`analyze`

Analyze a codebase and generate growth-manifest.json.

Scans your codebase to detect the technology stack, current growth features, and new growth opportunities. Requires an LLM provider (or falls back to a sample preview if no API key is set).

skene-growth analyze [PATH] [OPTIONS]

Arguments

Argument	Default	Description
`PATH`	`.`	Path to codebase directory to analyze (must exist)

Options

Flag	Short	Default	Description
`--output PATH`	`-o`	`./skene-context/growth-manifest.json`	Output path for the manifest file. If a directory is given, `growth-manifest.json` is appended automatically.
`--api-key TEXT`		`$SKENE_API_KEY` or config	API key for the LLM provider
`--provider TEXT`	`-p`	config value	LLM provider: `openai`, `gemini`, `anthropic` (or `claude`), `lmstudio`, `ollama`, `generic` (aliases: `openai-compatible`, `openai_compatible`)
`--model TEXT`	`-m`	provider default	LLM model name (e.g. `gpt-4o`, `gemini-3-flash-preview`)
`--base-url TEXT`		`$SKENE_BASE_URL` or config	Base URL for OpenAI-compatible API endpoint. Required when provider is `generic`.
`--verbose`	`-v`	`false`	Enable verbose output
`--business-type TEXT`	`-b`	LLM-inferred	Business type for the growth template (e.g. `design-agency`, `b2b-saas`). If omitted, the LLM infers it from your codebase.
`--product-docs`		`false`	Also generate `product-docs.md` with user-facing feature documentation
`--exclude TEXT`	`-e`	config value	Folder names to exclude from analysis. Repeatable: `--exclude tests --exclude vendor`. Merged with `exclude_folders` from config.
`--debug`		`false`	Log all LLM input/output to `.skene-growth/debug/`

Behavior notes

When no API key is provided and the provider is not local (lmstudio, ollama, generic), the command falls back to a sample preview (same as audit).
Local providers (lmstudio, ollama, generic) do not require an API key.
The generic provider requires --base-url.

See the analyze guide for detailed usage.

`audit`

Show a sample growth analysis preview without requiring an API key.

skene-growth audit [PATH] [OPTIONS]

Arguments

Argument	Default	Description
`PATH`	`.`	Path to codebase directory

Options

Flag	Short	Description
`--output PATH`	`-o`	Output path (not used in sample mode)
`--exclude TEXT`	`-e`	Folder names to exclude (not used in sample mode)

Behavior notes

Always shows the sample report regardless of API key status.
Useful for previewing the kind of insights a full analysis produces before configuring an LLM provider.

`plan`

Generate a growth plan using the Council of Growth Engineers methodology.

Reads the manifest and template produced by analyze, then uses an LLM to create a prioritized growth plan with implementation tasks.

skene-growth plan [OPTIONS]

Options

Flag	Short	Default	Description
`--manifest PATH`		auto-detected	Path to `growth-manifest.json`. Auto-detected from `./skene-context/`, `./`, or the context directory.
`--template PATH`		auto-detected	Path to `growth-template.json`. Auto-detected using the same search order.
`--context PATH`	`-c`	auto-detected	Directory containing manifest and template files. Checked before default paths.
`--output PATH`	`-o`	`./skene-context/growth-plan.md`	Output path for the growth plan (markdown). If a directory is given, `growth-plan.md` is appended.
`--api-key TEXT`		`$SKENE_API_KEY` or config	API key for the LLM provider
`--provider TEXT`	`-p`	config value	LLM provider: `openai`, `gemini`, `anthropic`/`claude`, `lmstudio`, `ollama`, `generic`
`--model TEXT`	`-m`	provider default	LLM model name
`--verbose`	`-v`	`false`	Enable verbose output
`--onboarding`		`false`	Generate an onboarding-focused plan using a Senior Onboarding Engineer perspective
`--debug`		`false`	Log all LLM input/output to `.skene-growth/debug/`

Auto-detection order

Both --manifest and --template are auto-detected by searching these paths in order:

<context>/growth-manifest.json (if --context is set)
./skene-context/growth-manifest.json
./growth-manifest.json

Neither file is strictly required; the plan command works with whatever context is available.

See the plan guide for detailed usage.

`build`

Build an AI-ready implementation prompt from your growth plan, then choose where to send it.

Extracts the Technical Execution section from the growth plan, uses an LLM to generate a focused implementation prompt, and offers interactive delivery options (Cursor deep link, Claude CLI, or display).

skene-growth build [OPTIONS]

Options

Flag	Short	Default	Description
`--plan PATH`		auto-detected	Path to the growth plan markdown file. Auto-detected from `./skene-context/growth-plan.md` or `./growth-plan.md`.
`--context PATH`	`-c`	auto-detected	Directory containing `growth-plan.md`
`--api-key TEXT`		`$SKENE_API_KEY` or config	API key for the LLM provider
`--provider TEXT`	`-p`	config value	LLM provider: `openai`, `gemini`, `anthropic`/`claude`, `lmstudio`, `ollama`, `generic`
`--model TEXT`	`-m`	provider default	LLM model name
`--debug`		`false`	Log all LLM input/output to `.skene-growth/debug/`

Delivery targets

After generating the prompt, an interactive menu asks where to send it:

Cursor -- opens the prompt via a Cursor deep link
Claude -- launches the Claude CLI with the prompt file
Show -- prints the full prompt to the terminal

The prompt is always saved to a file in the plan's parent directory regardless of target selection.

Behavior notes

Requires a configured LLM (API key + provider). Falls back to a template-based prompt if the LLM call fails.
Also generates and saves a growth loop definition JSON alongside the prompt.

See the build guide for detailed usage.

`chat`

Interactive terminal chat with access to skene-growth analysis tools.

skene-growth chat [PATH] [OPTIONS]

Arguments

Argument	Default	Description
`PATH`	`.`	Path to codebase directory

Options

Flag	Short	Default	Description
`--api-key TEXT`		`$SKENE_API_KEY` or config	API key for the LLM provider
`--provider TEXT`	`-p`	config value	LLM provider: `openai`, `gemini`, `anthropic`/`claude`, `lmstudio`, `ollama`, `generic`
`--model TEXT`	`-m`	provider default	LLM model name
`--max-steps INT`		`4`	Maximum number of tool calls the LLM can make per user request
`--tool-output-limit INT`		`4000`	Maximum characters of tool output kept in conversation context
`--debug`		`false`	Log all LLM input/output to `.skene-growth/debug/`

Behavior notes

When using the skene shorthand (not skene-growth), running without a subcommand defaults to chat.
Requires an API key unless using a local provider.

See the chat guide for detailed usage.

`validate`

Validate a growth-manifest.json file against the GrowthManifest schema.

skene-growth validate MANIFEST

Arguments

Argument	Required	Description
`MANIFEST`	Yes	Path to the `growth-manifest.json` file to validate (must exist)

Behavior notes

Parses the file as JSON, then validates it against the Pydantic GrowthManifest model.
On success, prints a summary table showing project name, version, tech stack, and feature counts.
On failure, prints the validation error and exits with code 1.

`config`

Manage skene-growth configuration files.

skene-growth config [OPTIONS]

Options

Flag	Default	Description
`--init`	`false`	Create a sample `.skene-growth.config` file in the current directory
`--show`	`false`	Show current configuration values and exit (no interactive editing)

Default behavior (no flags)

When invoked without --init or --show:

Displays current configuration values (same as --show)
Asks whether you want to edit the configuration
If yes, launches an interactive setup flow to select provider, model, and enter an API key

Configuration load order

Configuration is resolved in this order (later sources override earlier ones):

User config: ~/.config/skene-growth/config
Project config: ./.skene-growth.config
Environment variables: SKENE_API_KEY, SKENE_PROVIDER
CLI flags

See the configuration guide for file format and all supported options.

`generate` (deprecated)

This command is deprecated and will be removed. Use analyze --product-docs instead.

skene-growth generate [OPTIONS]

Flag	Short	Description
`--manifest PATH`	`-m`	Path to `growth-manifest.json`
`--output PATH`	`-o`	Output directory (default: `./skene-docs`)

The command prints a deprecation warning and exits with code 1.

Environment Variables

Variable	Used by	Description
`SKENE_API_KEY`	`analyze`, `plan`, `build`, `chat`	API key for the LLM provider. Equivalent to `--api-key`.
`SKENE_BASE_URL`	`analyze`	Base URL for OpenAI-compatible endpoints. Equivalent to `--base-url`.
`SKENE_PROVIDER`	config loading	LLM provider override at the environment level.

Exit Codes

Code	Meaning
`0`	Success
`1`	Error (invalid input, missing API key, validation failure, or deprecated command)

Examples

# Full workflow
uvx skene-growth config --init
uvx skene-growth config
uvx skene-growth analyze .
uvx skene-growth plan
uvx skene-growth build

# Analyze with explicit provider settings
uvx skene-growth analyze ./my-app -p gemini -m gemini-3-flash-preview --api-key "YOUR_KEY"

# Analyze with a local LLM (no API key needed)
uvx skene-growth analyze . -p ollama -m llama3

# Analyze with OpenAI-compatible endpoint
uvx skene-growth analyze . -p generic --base-url http://localhost:8080/v1

# Generate onboarding-focused plan
uvx skene-growth plan --onboarding

# Validate a manifest
uvx skene-growth validate ./skene-context/growth-manifest.json

# Interactive chat
uvx skene-growth chat . -p openai -m gpt-4o

# Quick preview (no API key)
uvx skene-growth audit .

skene-growth CLI documentation

CLI Reference

Global Options

analyze

Arguments

Options

Behavior notes

audit

Arguments

Options

Behavior notes

plan

Options

Auto-detection order

build

Options

Delivery targets

Behavior notes

chat

Arguments

Options

Behavior notes

validate

Arguments

Behavior notes

config

Options

Default behavior (no flags)

Configuration load order

generate (deprecated)

Environment Variables

Exit Codes

Examples

`analyze`

`audit`

`plan`

`build`

`chat`

`validate`

`config`

`generate` (deprecated)