CLI Commands

Command Style

AIS supports Linux-style commands as the default. Legacy forms remain compatible:

# Recommended
ais ls
ais rm old-rule
ais cursor rules rm react

# Legacy (still supported)
ais list
ais remove old-rule
ais cursor rules remove react

Global Commands

ais use <repo>

Set the current (default) rules repository.

ais use https://github.com/org/rules.git    # remote URL
ais use ~/my-rules-repo                      # local path
ais use company-rules                        # by name

ais ls

List all registered repositories.

ais ls
ais ls --json

ais add / ais rm

Top-level shortcuts that auto-detect the tool (Cursor, Copilot, Windsurf, or Cline) when config is unambiguous. Prefer explicit tool commands when using multiple tools.

ais add react                    # Add rule (cursor/copilot when unambiguous)
ais add react my-alias -d dir    # With alias and custom target dir
ais rm react                     # Remove entry
ais rm react --dry-run           # Preview removal

TIP

For Claude, Trae, OpenCode, Codex, Gemini, Warp, or AGENTS.md, use the explicit tool command (e.g., ais claude skills add).

ais install

Install all rules from config files.

ais install                # project rules (from ai-rules-sync.json)
ais install --user         # user rules (from ~/.config/ai-rules-sync/user.json)

TIP

You can also use ais user install to install user-level configs. Both are equivalent.

ais init

Initialize a rules repository template.

ais init
ais init my-rules-repo
ais init --force                 # Overwrite existing ai-rules-sync.json
ais init --no-dirs               # Skip creating default source directories
ais init --only cursor copilot    # Only include specified tools
ais init --exclude codex          # Exclude specified tools
ais init --json                  # Output result as JSON

ais update

Pull updates and reinstall entries.

ais update
ais update --dry-run

ais check

Check whether repositories are behind upstream.

ais check
ais check --user
ais check --json

ais status

Show project status (repos, symlinks, config files).

ais status
ais status --user                 # Include user config status
ais status --json

ais search <query>

Search for rules.

ais search react
ais search react --json

ais add-all

Discover and install all available rules from the current repository.

ais add-all
ais add-all --dry-run             # Preview without installing
ais add-all --tools cursor,copilot # Filter by tools
ais add-all --interactive         # Prompt for each entry
ais add-all --force               # Overwrite existing
ais add-all --skip-existing       # Skip entries already in config
ais add-all -l                    # Save to ai-rules-sync.local.json
ais add-all --quiet               # Minimal output

Tool Commands

Tool-specific commands: ais <tool> [subtype] <action>. See Tool Guides for details.

Common pattern:

ais cursor add react              # Add Cursor rule
ais cursor rules add react        # Same, explicit subtype
ais claude skills add code-review # Add Claude skill
ais copilot instructions add coding-style
ais cursor rules rm react         # Remove
ais cursor install                # Install all Cursor entries
ais cursor rules import my-rule  # Import from project to repo

Tools and subtypes:

Tool	Subtypes	Example
cursor	rules, commands, skills, agents	ais cursor rules add react
copilot	instructions, prompts, skills, agents	ais copilot instructions add x
claude	rules, skills, agents, md	ais claude md add CLAUDE --user
trae	rules, skills	ais trae rules add x
opencode	commands, skills, agents, tools	ais opencode skills add x
codex	rules, skills, md	ais codex md add AGENTS
gemini	commands, skills, agents, md	ais gemini md add GEMINI
warp	skills	ais warp skills add x
windsurf	rules, skills	ais windsurf rules add x
cline	rules, skills	ais cline rules add x
agents-md	file	ais agents-md add .

Options: -t repo, -l local, -d targetDir, -s sourceDir, --dry-run, --force, --user

ais git <command>

Run git commands in the repository.

ais git status
ais git pull
ais git push
ais git log --oneline
ais git status -t company-rules

ais user install

Install all user-level entries from ~/.config/ai-rules-sync/user.json. Equivalent to ais install --user.

ais user install

ais completion install

Install shell tab completion. Auto-detects shell (bash, zsh, fish) and appends to config file.

ais completion install            # Auto-detect shell and install
ais completion install --force    # Force reinstall
ais completion bash               # Output script only (for manual install)

ais config

Manage configuration.

# Repository source directories (override where AIS looks for rules in a repo)
ais config repo set-source <repo> <tool.subtype> <path>
# Example: ais config repo set-source my-repo cursor.rules custom/rules
ais config repo show <repo>
ais config repo clear-source <repo> [tool.subtype]   # Omit subtype to clear all
ais config repo list            # Same as ais ls

# User config path
ais config user show
ais config user set <path>
ais config user reset

Common Options (tool commands)

Option	Description
-t, --target <repo>	Specify repository (name, URL, or path)
-l, --local	Save to ai-rules-sync.local.json
-d, --target-dir <dir>	Custom target directory
-s, --source-dir <dir>	Custom source directory
--dry-run	Preview without making changes
--force	Force overwrite existing
--user	Use user mode (personal config)