MinniCode docs

What it is#

MinniCode works in your project the way a developer would. It reads and searches first, shows you each change before it makes it, runs the tests when the project has them, and tells you what it did.

• Runs on free models from NVIDIA or OpenRouter with your own free key, on your Claude subscription, or on a model on your own computer.
• Your keys stay on your computer. Requests go straight from your computer to the provider; Minni never sees your keys or your code.
• Its file tools work only inside the folder you start it in, and it checks every command for paths outside it.
• Every file change is shown first. By default, commands, deletions and pushes need you to type y every time.
• Windows, macOS and Linux.

Install#

Windows: the installer

1. Download MinniCode-Setup.exe.
2. Run it. It needs no administrator rights.
3. Double-click the MinniCode icon on your desktop. A terminal opens in C:\MinniCode, your MinniCode workspace, with MinniCode running.

Windows: one line, for developers

Open PowerShell (no administrator rights needed), paste this line and press Enter. Then open a new terminal so it finds the minnicode command.

irm https://minniai.com/install/minnicode.ps1 | iex

The installer and the one line install the same MinniCode in the same place, so updating and removing work the same way.

macOS and Linux

$ curl -fsSL https://minniai.com/install/minnicode.sh | sh

Then open a new terminal. You do not need Python or anything else installed first.

Start it in your project#

The Windows desktop icon starts MinniCode in C:\MinniCode. To work on a project somewhere else, start it from that project’s folder:

$ cd path/to/your/project
$ minnicode

Then type what you want in plain words and press Enter, for example:

add a --dry-run flag to sync.py

MinniCode reads the files it needs, shows you each change, asks before it writes, runs your tests if the project has them, and tells you what it did.

Choose how it reaches an AI model#

The first time, MinniCode asks how it should reach a model. Pick one; you can add the others later in /settings.

Get a free key

1. Open build.nvidia.com/settings/api-keys for NVIDIA, or openrouter.ai/settings/keys for OpenRouter. MinniCode opens the right page for you when you pick one.
2. Sign in, or create a free account.
3. Create a key, copy it, and paste it into MinniCode.

With both keys, MinniCode uses OpenRouter first and switches to NVIDIA when OpenRouter is busy or out of requests for the day. If you set up more than one option, it asks once which one to start on; /settings, Start on, changes it.

Everyday use#

• Approving: you see every file change before it happens. Enter says yes, n says no, a says yes to all file changes for the rest of the session, q stops. By default, commands, deletions, pushes and web pages need you to type y every time.
• Changed your mind: /undo takes back the last change; /diff shows what this session changed.
• Stop it: Esc stops what it is doing and keeps the work it already finished.
• Bigger jobs: /plan <task> writes a plan for you to read first; /go carries it out.
• Teach it your project: /init writes a MINNI.md notes file it reads every time; /remember <text> saves a fact for next time.
• Pick up where you left off: minnicode --continue resumes your last session in this folder.
• Settings and help: /settings for the model, keys and colours; /help lists every command.

Commands#

Type / in a session to see them all. The ones you will use most:

Free models are retired from the catalogs often. If a turn fails because a model is gone, /models shows what is live and /model default resets.

Your Claude subscription#

If you already pay for Claude, MinniCode can use it instead of a free model. You need Claude Code installed and signed in (claude login). MinniCode never reads or sends your Claude login: it asks the claude program on your computer for each answer, with Claude Code’s own tools switched off, so MinniCode’s approvals, /undo and folder rules work as usual.

$ minnicode --provider claude --model sonnet

• Turn it on at first launch (Use my Claude subscription) or any time in /settings. Models: sonnet, opus, haiku.
• It draws on your plan’s usage limits, the same pool as your own Claude Code. When a limit is reached MinniCode says when it resets and does not retry.
• Anthropic’s terms for using a subscription outside Claude Code have changed during 2026. Check your plan’s current terms before relying on it for heavy or automated use.

A model on your computer#

MinniCode can use a model you run yourself with Ollama, LM Studio or a similar app. Set it up in /settings (the port and the model name). It is reached only on your own computer, gets no key, and never falls back to the cloud unless you turn that on.

Other tools (MCP)#

MinniCode can use tools from other apps, such as Notion, GitHub, Jira or a database, through MCP (the Model Context Protocol). None are set up to begin with.

• Already use them in Claude Code? Type /mcp to see them, and /mcp import <name> to copy one over.
• Each time MinniCode wants to use one of these tools, it shows you exactly what it will send and asks first, unless you set that tool to run without asking.
• A project’s own MCP servers stay off until you run /trust in that project, so a repo you just cloned cannot start a program by itself.

Skills#

A skill is a playbook you write once: how you cut a release, your review checklist, the steps to add an endpoint. It is a Markdown file MinniCode reads only when you use it.

---
description: Cut a release: bump, changelog, tag
words: release, changelog
---
1. Bump the version in pyproject.toml.
2. Move the Unreleased notes under the new version.
3. Tag it and push the tag.

• Yours go in ~/.minni_code/skills/, for every project. A project’s go in .minnicode/skills/, shared through git.
• Type /<name> to use one, optionally with the task (/release 0.9.2), or mention one of its words and it loads on its own.
• A skill is text: it cannot approve anything, run anything or change a setting.

What it will never do#

• Read or change files outside the folder you started it in, through any of its file tools.
• Run a command, delete a file, push, open a pull request or fetch a web page without your typed y, unless you turned on auto-approval in your own settings.
• Touch .git/ directly, read or write secret-looking files (.env, keys, certificates), or run git hooks.
• Send your key anywhere but its own provider, or pass it to the commands it runs.
• Let a project you just cloned give itself commands that run without asking: those settings stay off until you /trust the project.

Update, remove, get help#

$ minnicode update
$ minnicode uninstall

minnicode update installs the latest version. minnicode uninstall removes MinniCode and asks before deleting your settings. Inside a session, /update does the same as minnicode update. Removing MinniCode never deletes your projects or your C:\MinniCode workspace.

Something wrong?

• minnicode diagnose looks at what went wrong on this computer and tells you the fix.
• minnicode report writes a file you can attach to a support request. Neither command sends anything anywhere.
• Still stuck? Email MinniMemory@gmail.com with the report file attached.