CLI Reference

The vikit-cli (vk) is a fast, secure command-line tool for bootstrapping and managing Vikit-powered projects from private GitHub releases. Built with Bun and TypeScript, it handles project setup, updates, and maintenance.

Key features

Multi-tier GitHub authentication with secure credential storage
Streaming downloads with progress tracking
Smart file merging with conflict detection
Automatic skill-directory migration
Automatic system dependency installation
Smart update notifications (7-day cache)

Install

Install globally with your package manager, then verify:

# npm (recommended)
npm install -g vikit-cli

# bun / pnpm / yarn
bun add -g vikit-cli

vk --version

Installation — Prerequisites, authentication, and verification.

Available commands

vk new — create a new Vikit project
vk init — initialize or update Vikit in an existing project
vk doctor — run health checks and diagnostics
vk versions — list available package versions
vk update — update the CLI to the latest version
vk uninstall — remove a Vikit installation
vk backups — manage recovery backups for destructive operations

Create a project

Scaffold a new project interactively or with flags:

# Interactive (recommended)
vk new

# With options
vk new --kit engineer --dir my-project

# Include beta versions and auto-install skill dependencies
vk new --beta --install-skills

Initialize an existing project

Add Vikit to a project you already have:

cd my-existing-project

# Local (default) — installs to ./.claude/
vk init

# Non-interactive, accept defaults
vk init --yes

# Global — user-level config (~/.claude/)
vk init --global

Health check

Run diagnostics, auto-fix issues, or generate a shareable report:

vk doctor          # run diagnostics
vk doctor --fix    # auto-fix issues
vk doctor --report # generate a shareable report

Global vs local

Local (default) — installs to .claude/ in your project directory
Global — installs to the Claude user directory for user-level configuration
Global path: ~/.claude/ (macOS/Linux) or %USERPROFILE%\.claude (Windows)

Configuration

Configuration is stored in ~/.vikit/config.json; the GitHub token is kept in your OS keychain, never in the file:

{
  "github": { "token": "stored_in_keychain" },
  "defaults": { "kit": "engineer", "dir": "." }
}

Next steps

Installation — Detailed setup, authentication, and verification.
Quick Start — Ship your first feature fast.
Introduction — What Vikit is and how the packages fit together.