Terminal UI (TUI)

Experimental native Rust review UI and read-only viewer.

Experimental. Interface, keymap, and on-disk mode: "tui" details may change in a minor release. The web UI is the supported path for production workflows.

Two surfaces

CommandRole
diffing view / --viewFocused read-only native diff browser (ergonomic git diff)
diffing --tuiFull review: comments, handoff, agent loop in-terminal
diffing mode tuiMake full TUI the interactive default

Native binaries ship via optional platform packages on npm install. Fallbacks: source build under crates/diffing-tui, or a diffing-tui on $PATH.

diffing view
diffing --tui
diffing mode tui
diffing mode web     # restore web default

Behavior notes

  • Shares sparse diff index ideas with headless inspect tools
  • Publishes a capability-scoped loopback API through the session registry
  • Web and TUI can run concurrently for the same repo
  • Read-only viewer does not register a full review session
  • Mouse capture configurable (tuiMouseEnabled in settings)

Build from source

pnpm build:tui
# or
cargo build --release --manifest-path crates/diffing-tui/Cargo.toml

Design

TUI chrome follows Gridline — same semantic roles as the web adapter.

The workspace keeps file names in a quiet side rail, change totals in the active-file header, and contextual shortcuts in the bottom strip. On narrow terminals, Tab switches between full-width panes. Comments show their location and body on separate rows when the review rail is narrow. The top bar tracks viewed files, and v or the file header’s Mark viewed action updates progress.

Press zf for focused reading. Press it again to restore your panels, or Tab to restore them and move focus. This temporary layout does not change your saved preferences. Settings groups diff display, workspace, language tools, and appearance.

Find an action

Press Ctrl-P or : and type a task such as line wrap, find a file, or send review. Use the arrow keys and Enter to run it, or Escape to close. The read-only viewer shows only its available actions. Existing colon commands still work, and :42 jumps to line 42 when that line is present in the diff.

/ searches changes, f finds files, gs finds symbols, ? opens the full keymap, and , opens settings. Home/End move to the start/end of the diff. Truecolor and ANSI-256 palettes preserve readable text contrast; NO_COLOR provides a monochrome rendering path.

Working with an agent

Press S for Send to agent. Choose Approve, Request edits, Reject, or Comment only; review your comments and add an optional note. Comment only tells the agent to reply without editing files. Tab moves between fields, Ctrl+S sends, and Esc keeps your draft while you inspect the diff. Ctrl+Y copies the handoff when you want to paste it into a chat.

The dialog tells you whether an agent is waiting. You can send before the agent connects: diffing await-review collects the latest handoff. For subsequent rounds, agents pass --since <last-round>. Live progress stays in the header; reply notifications open the relevant thread. You can also find Open latest agent reply in Actions.

The shared “require all files viewed” preference controls the extra send confirmation. Failed saves keep the draft open. Sending leaves your clipboard alone. Review delivery and history stay available while the TUI session runs; the XML export remains on disk afterward.