Command reference

Complete command reference

Everything the CLI does, grouped by what you are trying to find out. --json works on every read.

Setting up and looking around

Command	What it does
`kanbanr init <name>`	data folder + git repo + identity + project, in one step
`kanbanr project init/edit/list/use/delete`	create, rename, select (writes the `.kanbanr` marker)
`kanbanr where [--json]`	which board folder this directory uses, and why
`kanbanr whoami` / `kanbanr identity`	the commit identity this data folder writes as
`kanbanr config show / set-transition / displayed-states / default-state / no-op-states / workflow`	the workflow; `config workflow --preset <name>`, `--from-file`, `--export`, `--write-agreement` (Processes)
`kanbanr config rename-status <OLD> <NEW>`	rename a status and move every item in it
`kanbanr config cadence [--sprints on\|off] [--releases on\|off] [--unit points\|days]`	switch sprints, releases and the estimate unit on or off for a project
`kanbanr hooks install / status / uninstall`	the Claude Code hooks (session start, stop nudge, test capture, commit guard)
`kanbanr serve [--ui-dir …]`	the read-only monitor over this board
`kanbanr open`	open the running monitor in a browser
`kanbanr self-update [--check]`	replace this binary with the release’s, checksum-verified

The work

Command	What it does
`kanbanr board` / `kanbanr feature list / show / add / edit`	the kanban and its items
`kanbanr move <CODE> <STATUS> [--override "…"]`	a status change, validated against the workflow and the stage’s gate; `--override` passes a gate and records why
`kanbanr start <CODE>` / `kanbanr finish <CODE>`	begin (branch, active stage) and end an item, each through its gate
`kanbanr milestone add / list / edit / delete`	milestones (a dependency DAG; cycles rejected)
`kanbanr todo add / list`, `kanbanr task add / state / list`	persistent todo-lists on an item
`kanbanr export <CODE> --format md\|json`	one item, rendered for a human or a machine
`kanbanr query "text" [--goal G-1] [--gap …] [--all-projects]`	rich filters plus full text, across projects
`kanbanr activity` / `kanbanr events`	the changelog, and the notification event log
`kanbanr doc folder / add / tree / list / show / rm`	the documentation tree

Process: definitions, agreement and sign-off

Command	What it does
`kanbanr charter show / set`	why the project exists: purpose, goals, non-goals, constraints
`kanbanr feature define <CODE> [--file …] [--template]`	an item’s definition: statement, goals, Zachman, requirements and their tests
`kanbanr signoff <CODE> <name>`	record a named sign-off a stage’s gate asks for, pinned to the current definition
`kanbanr ratify <CODE>`	agree after the fact to work started under a recorded override
`kanbanr test <CODE> <R-n> <test> planned\|red\|green` / `kanbanr tests`	move a test along its lifecycle; list tracked tests and check each still exists
`kanbanr defect <CODE> …`	what a defect cost and where it came from

Sprints and releases (projects with cadence switched on)

Command	What it does
`kanbanr sprint add / list / show / plan / start / close`	timeboxes: add one, list them, see one with its burndown, plan items in, start, close (carrying unfinished work)
`kanbanr release add / list / plan / cut`	releases: add one, list them, plan items in, cut it (ship what is finished, write notes, carry the rest)
`kanbanr retro --sprint <SP-…>`	how a sprint went

Dependencies and scheduling

Command	What it does
`kanbanr ready` / `kanbanr blocked`	what can be started now, and what is waiting on something
`kanbanr impact <CODE>`	everything downstream of an item — what breaks if it slips
`kanbanr graph [--format dot\|json]`	the dependency graph
`kanbanr critical-path` / `kanbanr gantt`	the longest chain, and a Mermaid schedule
`kanbanr portfolio …`	cross-project rollups for a program of several boards

Keeping it honest

Command	What it does
`kanbanr doctor`	every broken reference and every gap, across the board
`kanbanr check [CODE]`	what one item has not said, and what it cannot yet show
`kanbanr review [CODE] [--pending] [--ui]`	the decision brief — one item, all of them, or in the browser
`kanbanr approve <CODE> [--by …]`	records agreement, attributed to the board’s commit identity
`kanbanr unapprove <CODE> --reason "…"`	takes an agreement back; the record of having given it stays
`kanbanr capture`	reads a test run’s output (run by the hook; you never call it)
`kanbanr split-from <CODE> <PARENT>`	records that an item was sliced out of another
`kanbanr sources [--write]`	imported items whose source file has gone
`kanbanr index`	rebuild the per-project cache from the source-of-truth files

Reasoning and evidence

Command	What it does
`kanbanr why <file>:<line>`	the item, requirement and goal behind a line of code
`kanbanr trace <G-…\|CODE\|CODE/R-n>`	what hangs off a goal, an item or a requirement, and what is missing
`kanbanr adr new / list / supersede / history`	architecture decisions, linked to the items they affect
`kanbanr lessons [--for CODE]` / `kanbanr lesson add / affirm / contradict`	what the project has learned, and judging it
`kanbanr retro <MS-…>` / `kanbanr report`	how a milestone went; flow and quality derived from the record

Code and Claude Code

Command	What it does
`kanbanr git install-hooks / uninstall-hooks / status`	the commit hooks that require each commit to name its item
`kanbanr commit -m "…"`	commit with the board reference filled in from the branch
`kanbanr claude sync`	write the project’s charter and stages into `CLAUDE.md`
`kanbanr git guard` / `kanbanr claude guard` / `kanbanr git check-msg` / `kanbanr git check-branch`	the checks the hooks run (you never call them)

Sharing

Command	What it does
`kanbanr remote add / list / remove`, `kanbanr sync`	git remotes for the board, and an immediate push
`kanbanr mirror enable / disable / status / sync / link / pull`	one-way mirror of items to GitHub issues
`kanbanr batch [--dry-run] [--file …]`	many changes in one call and one commit