@tryglen/cli

Glen CLI — shared team memory for coding agents.

Install

npm install -g @tryglen/cli
glen login

Commands

| Command | Description | |---|---| | glen login | Connect via browser sign-in; writes credentials and initial session state. | | glen logout | Sign out and remove credentials + session state. | | glen status | Show connection status, active org, incognito state, and CLI version. | | glen search "<query>" | Search the team's shared glen memory. | | glen incognito on\|off | Toggle incognito mode: while on, nothing is recorded (recall keeps working). | | glen org list | List your organizations; active one is marked with ✓. | | glen org switch [slug] | Switch the active organization for this machine (interactive picker without slug). | | glen ingest [--agent <name>] | Ingest a turn from stdin — used by agent hooks (claude-code or codex). | | glen install [--agent <claude\|codex>] | Set up or update glen for detected coding agents (plugin + hooks); idempotent, so re-running repairs a broken setup. --claude-path <path> / --codex-path <path> point at a binary when auto-detection fails. | | glen update | Update the glen CLI and any installed glen plugins, and re-verify the Codex hook registration. Never installs a plugin that isn't already installed — that's glen install's job. | | glen doctor [--auto] | Print machine-readable status: lines (CLI version/latest/channel, login + org, per-agent plugin + hook state) plus → remedy lines — the setup skill branches on them. --auto runs background updates silently (used by hooks). | | glen statusline | Output a single status line for the agent's UI status bar — used by hooks. | | glen session-start [--agent <name>] | Output hook JSON for the agent's SessionStart event — used by hooks. | | glen version | Print the CLI version. |

Files

| File | Description | |---|---| | ~/.glen/credentials.json | API key credential — mode 0600, never logged or sent to anyone but tryglen.com. | | ~/.glen/state.json | Client-owned session state: { activeOrgId, activeOrgSlug, activeOrgName, incognito }. Non-secret. |

The state file is what the CLI sends as x-glen-org-id / x-glen-incognito headers on every request. The server validates org membership on every call — no state is stored server-side.

Environment variables

| Variable | Default | Description | |---|---|---| | GLEN_BASE_URL | https://app.tryglen.com | Override the glen server URL (useful for local dev). | | GLEN_CREDENTIALS_PATH | ~/.glen/credentials.json | Override credentials file location. | | GLEN_STATE_PATH | ~/.glen/state.json | Override state file location. | | GLEN_NO_AUTO_UPDATE | unset | Set to 1 to disable automatic background updates. Also disabled when CI=true. |

Update behavior

The CLI uses layered silent auto-update so you stay current without thinking about it:

1. Background TTL check (daily): once per 24 hours, when installed via npm globally, the CLI spawns a detached npm install -g @tryglen/cli@latest process that doesn't block your turn. A ~/.glen/update-check.json timestamp controls the cadence.
2. SessionStart hook (glen doctor --auto): on every agent session start, the hook also triggers background update + plugin upgrade hints. Same detached, non-blocking approach.
3. Server-driven 426 floor: if the server requires a newer CLI version (breaking API change), it responds with HTTP 426 Upgrade Required. The CLI then runs a synchronous self-update and re-execs your original command with GLEN_REEXEC=1 set to prevent infinite loops. If the update fails or you are below the minimum after re-exec, it exits with a message to run npm i -g @tryglen/cli@latest manually.

Escape hatches:

• GLEN_NO_AUTO_UPDATE=1 disables all background update attempts.
• CI=true (set automatically in GitHub Actions and most CI systems) also disables them.
• The CLI only self-updates when installed globally via npm (it detects this by comparing the binary's real path against npm prefix -g). If you installed via another package manager, you get a hint to update with your own tooling instead.

Troubleshooting

glen status shows "not connected" Run glen login to authenticate via browser.

glen search / glen ingest prints "no active organization" Run glen org switch (or glen login if you've never connected) to pick an organization.

426 error in CI or non-npm installs The server requires a newer CLI version. Run npm i -g @tryglen/cli@latest (or equivalent for your package manager) and retry.

Stuck update lock If a previous update was interrupted, a stale lock can prevent future auto-updates:

rm -rf ~/.glen/update.lock

glen doctor for a full picture Run glen doctor to see your version, the latest available, install channel, and session state in one place.