Keyboard shortcuts

Press ← or → to navigate between chapters

Press S or / to search in the book

Press ? to show this help

Press Esc to hide this help

Installation

Unix-like Systems (Linux/macOS)

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/swissarmyhammer/swissarmyhammer/main/install.sh | sh

This script will:

  • Detect your platform automatically
  • Download the latest release
  • Install to /usr/local/bin
  • Verify the installation

Clone and Build

If you are installing from source:

  • Rust 1.70 or later - Install from rustup.rs
  • Git - For cloning the repository

If you want to build from source or contribute to development:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/wballard/swissarmyhammer.git
cd swissarmyhammer

# Build the CLI (debug mode for development)
cargo build

# Build optimized release version
cargo build --release

# Install from the local source
cargo install --path swissarmyhammer-cli

# Or run directly without installing
cargo run --bin swissarmyhammer -- --help

Future Installation Methods

Pre-built binaries and package manager support are planned for future releases:

  • macOS: Homebrew formula
  • Linux: DEB and RPM packages
  • Windows: MSI installer and Chocolatey package
  • crates.io: Published crate for cargo install swissarmyhammer-cli

Check the releases page for updates.

Verification

After installation, verify that SwissArmyHammer is working correctly:

# Check version
swissarmyhammer --version

# Run diagnostics
swissarmyhammer doctor

# Show help
swissarmyhammer --help

# List available commands
swissarmyhammer list

The doctor command will check your installation and provide helpful diagnostics if anything needs attention.

Shell Completions

Generate and install shell completions for better CLI experience:

# Bash
swissarmyhammer completion bash > ~/.local/share/bash-completion/completions/swissarmyhammer

# Zsh (add to fpath)
swissarmyhammer completion zsh > ~/.zfunc/_swissarmyhammer

# Fish
swissarmyhammer completion fish > ~/.config/fish/completions/swissarmyhammer.fish

# PowerShell
swissarmyhammer completion powershell >> $PROFILE

Remember to reload your shell or start a new terminal session for completions to take effect.

Updating

To update SwissArmyHammer to the latest version:

# Update from git repository
cargo install --git https://github.com/wballard/swissarmyhammer.git swissarmyhammer-cli --force

The --force flag will overwrite the existing installation.

Next Steps

Once installed, continue to the Quick Start guide to set up SwissArmyHammer with Claude Code and create your first prompt.

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Command not found: Make sure ~/.cargo/bin is in your PATH.

Build failures: Ensure you have Rust 1.70+ installed and try updating Rust:

rustup update

Permission errors: Don’t use sudo with cargo install - it installs to your user directory.

For more help, check the Troubleshooting guide or run:

swissarmyhammer doctor