@native-sdk/cli

The command line for Native SDK: the complete toolkit for building native desktop applications.

Apps are authored in TypeScript + declarative Native markup by default. The TypeScript core compiles ahead of time to native code, and Native SDK's own engine draws every pixel into real OS windows — no browser, WebView, JS runtime, or interpreter in the binary. Zig is a first-class app-core alternative by explicit choice and the language the toolkit itself is built in.

Install

npm install -g @native-sdk/cli

The install runs no scripts: the native binary arrives as a per-platform optional dependency (@native-sdk/cli-<platform>), and this package carries the SDK source your apps build against, so native init and native dev work offline after install. The pinned Zig toolchain is fetched into ~/.native/toolchains/ on first build unless a compatible zig is already on your PATH.

Use

native init my_app
cd my_app
native dev

A native window opens with a working counter. The primary scaffold is three files of truth and no build config: src/core.ts (Model, Msg, update), src/app.native (the UI), and app.json (the manifest, with JSON Schema completion). Existing app.zon manifests remain supported. native dev|build|test own the generated build; src/app.native hot-reloads while the app runs, keeping your state; native dev --core runs the TypeScript logic loop under node; and native check validates the core and every view in milliseconds without building. Prefer a Zig core? Use native init my_app --template zig-core.

When part of your product is the web, WebView surfaces coexist with the native canvas; web-frontend scaffolds (--frontend next, --frontend vite, and more) install their generated frontend dependencies automatically on first run.

Read the full guide at native-sdk.dev/quick-start.

Commands

| Command | Description | |---------|-------------| | native init [path] [--template <ts-core\|zig-core>] [--frontend <native\|next\|vite\|react\|svelte\|vue>] [--full] | Scaffold a new Native SDK app (TypeScript core + Native markup by default) | | native dev [dir] | Build and run the app (markup hot reload; managed frontend dev server when configured) | | native build [dir] | Build a ReleaseFast binary into zig-out/bin/ | | native test [dir] | Run the app's test suite | | native check [dir] | Validate src/**.native markup and app.json/app.zon against the model contract | | native markup check\|lsp | Check individual markup files, or serve diagnostics, completion, and hover to your editor | | native eject [dir] | Write an owned build.zig/build.zig.zon into the app | | native doctor | Check host environment, WebView, manifest, and CEF | | native validate | Validate app.json (or app.zon) against the manifest schema | | native package | Package the app for distribution | | native bundle-assets | Copy frontend assets into the build output | | native automate | Drive a running app: snapshots, widgets, assertions, screenshots, record/replay | | native skills list\|get <name> | List or print the built-in AI agent skills | | native version | Print the native version |

More

The full documentation is at native-sdk.dev — the quick start, TypeScript cores, native UI authoring, app model, components, testing, automation, capabilities, packaging, and platform support.

Native SDK is pre-1.0 and Apache-2.0 licensed; the source lives at github.com/vercel-labs/native.