Skip to content

Quick Start

Installation

From Source

git clone https://github.com/charliek/codely.git
cd codely
make build
make install

This installs the codely binary to ~/.local/bin/. Make sure this directory is in your PATH.

Prerequisites

  • Go 1.24+ — required to build from source
  • tmux — required at runtime for pane management

First Launch

Start codely from any terminal:

codely

If you're not already inside a tmux session, codely creates one and attaches to it. The TUI appears in a narrow left pane.

Create a Project

  1. Press n to open the new project dialog
  2. Select Local Directory
  3. Browse your workspace roots and pick a directory
  4. Select a command to launch (e.g., Claude Code)

Codely splits a new tmux pane, starts your command in the selected directory, and focuses it.

Add More Sessions

With a project selected in the tree, press t to add another terminal session. Each session runs independently in its own tmux pane.

Choose a Skin

Codely ships with two UI skins. The default tree skin shows a hierarchical project/session view. The flat skin shows projects as scrollable cards.

codely --skin flat

You can also set the default skin in your config file under ui.skin.

Key Action
j / k Move selection up/down
Enter Focus session pane or toggle project expand
Space Toggle project expand/collapse
x Close selected session
q Quit codely

Use tmux zoom (prefix + z) to toggle fullscreen on the active pane.

What Happens on Restart

Projects persist across codely restarts. When you relaunch codely, it reconnects to any tmux panes that are still alive and cleans up dead sessions. Projects with zero sessions are kept so you can quickly add new terminals.

Next Steps

  • Configuration — customize workspace roots, commands, and UI settings
  • TUI Reference — full keybinding reference and status icons