ntm

NTM — Named Tmux Manager

Core capability: Turn tmux into a structured, recoverable multi-agent workspace.

Read the repo first. If the target repository has AGENTS.md or README.md, read those before applying this skill. Repo-local instructions override generic NTM advice.

Interactive vs automation:

• ntm dashboard, ntm palette, and other TUI surfaces are for humans.
• For machine-readable automation, prefer --robot-*.
• Non-interactive CLI commands such as ntm send, ntm work triage, ntm locks list, ntm pipeline status, and ntm serve are fine when they are the clearest tool.

Coordination and isolation:

• Agent Mail reservations are the default coordination primitive.
• --worktrees and ntm worktrees ... are supported isolation tools when the repo policy allows them.
• If a repo AGENTS.md prefers reservations-only or has worktree-specific rules, follow that repo.

Quick Start

# Install / sanity check
curl -fsSL "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Dicklesworthstone/ntm/main/install.sh?$(date +%s)" | bash -s -- --easy-mode
ntm deps -v

# Create or resolve a project
ntm quick myproject --template=go

# Launch a mixed swarm
ntm spawn myproject --cc=2 --cod=1 --agy=1

# Dispatch work
ntm send myproject --cc "Map the auth layer and propose a refactor plan."

# Inspect the current work graph and system state
ntm work triage --format=markdown
ntm --robot-snapshot

Session Orchestration

Use these for day-to-day session lifecycle management:

ntm spawn myproject --cc=3 --cod=2 --agy=1
ntm spawn myproject --label frontend --cc=2
ntm spawn myproject --label backend --cc=2 --worktrees
ntm add myproject --cc=1
ntm add myproject --label frontend --cod=1
ntm list
ntm status myproject
ntm view myproject
ntm zoom myproject 3
ntm attach myproject
ntm dashboard myproject
ntm palette myproject

Useful spawn patterns:

ntm spawn myproject --prompt "Read AGENTS.md and start on ready work"
ntm spawn myproject -r full-stack
ntm spawn myproject -t red-green
ntm spawn myproject --persona=architect --persona=implementer:2
ntm spawn myproject --stagger-mode=smart --cc=6 --cod=4

Dispatch and Reusable Assets

High-leverage NTM usage is not just spawn plus send. The real power shows up when you combine richer dispatch patterns with reusable session and prompt assets.

ntm send myproject --all "Checkpoint and summarize blockers."
ntm send myproject --pane=2 "Own the auth migration."
ntm send --project myproject "Sync to main and report conflicts."
ntm send myproject -c internal/auth/service.go "Review this subsystem"
ntm send myproject -t fix --var issue="nil pointer" --file internal/auth/service.go
ntm send myproject --smart --route=affinity "Take the auth follow-up"
ntm send myproject --distribute --dist-strategy=dependency

ntm recipes list
ntm recipes show full-stack
ntm workflows list
ntm workflows show red-green
ntm template list
ntm template show refactor
ntm session-templates list
ntm session-templates show refactor

User-level and project-level assets both matter. NTM can resolve configuration from ~/.config/ntm/... and project-local .ntm/... trees, so check the repo before assuming defaults.

Work Intelligence

NTM is no longer just a pane launcher. It has first-class work selection and assignment:

ntm work triage
ntm work triage --by-track
ntm work alerts
ntm work search "JWT auth"
ntm work impact internal/api/auth.go
ntm work next
ntm work graph

ntm assign myproject --auto --strategy=dependency
ntm assign myproject --beads=br-123,br-124 --agent=codex

Use ntm work ... when you want NTM to wrap bv and present work in operator-friendly form. Use raw bv --robot-* when you specifically want the graph engine's native robot output.

Coordination and Recovery

NTM now exposes the surrounding coordination stack directly:

ntm mail send myproject --all "Report blockers and current file focus."
ntm mail inbox myproject
ntm locks list myproject --all-agents
ntm locks renew myproject
ntm locks force-release myproject 42 --note "agent inactive"
ntm coordinator status myproject
ntm coordinator digest myproject
ntm coordinator conflicts myproject
ntm checkpoint save myproject -m "before risky refactor"
ntm checkpoint list myproject
ntm checkpoint restore myproject
ntm timeline list
ntm timeline show <session-id>
ntm history search "authentication error"
ntm audit show myproject
ntm changes conflicts myproject
ntm resume myproject

Treat ntm checkpoint save as a routine cadence, not just a pre-disaster snapshot. Good points to checkpoint: once prompts are confirmed received after a spawn or restore, after an investigation isolates a root cause, before risky edits, after significant uncommitted work but before verification, after a green verification, and before a merge/cleanup/handoff. Cheap checkpoints make any later ntm checkpoint restore land on a known-good state.

Note that Agent Mail may run as an external MCP or service-manager process outside the tmux session. If Agent Mail and tmux appear to fail together, don't assume tmux took Agent Mail down — check the service manager, process/cgroup ancestry, and OOM/memory signals at the service boundary before relaunching workers.

Isolation options:

# Coordination-first
ntm locks list myproject

# Isolation-first when policy allows it
ntm spawn myproject --cc=3 --worktrees
ntm worktrees list
ntm worktrees merge claude_1

Safety and Approvals

NTM has built-in safety, policy, and approval surfaces. Use them instead of ad hoc shell habits:

ntm safety status
ntm safety check -- git reset --hard
ntm safety blocked --hours 24
ntm safety install

ntm policy show --all
ntm policy validate
ntm policy edit
ntm policy automation

ntm approve list
ntm approve show abc123
ntm approve abc123
ntm approve deny abc123 --reason "wrong target branch"

If the repo instructions require offloading builds or tests through another tool such as rch, obey the repo instructions.

Canonical Robot Mode

Start with these:

ntm --robot-help
ntm --robot-capabilities
ntm --robot-status
ntm --robot-snapshot
ntm --robot-plan
ntm --robot-dashboard
ntm --robot-markdown --md-compact
ntm --robot-terse

Common task-specific robot surfaces:

ntm --robot-send=myproject --msg="Summarize blockers." --type=claude
ntm --robot-ack=myproject --ack-timeout=30s
ntm --robot-tail=myproject --lines=50
ntm --robot-mail-check --mail-project=myproject --urgent-only
ntm --robot-cass-search="authentication error"
ntm --robot-beads-list --beads-status=open
ntm --robot-bead-claim=br-123 --bead-assignee=agent1
ntm --robot-bead-close=br-123 --bead-close-reason="Completed"

Operator loop:

1. Bootstrap with --robot-snapshot
2. Tend with --robot-attention or --robot-wait
3. Act with --robot-send, ntm send, ntm assign, ntm locks, or ntm mail
4. Re-bootstrap with --robot-snapshot if the cursor expires

Prefer --robot-* when another agent or script needs structured output.

Serve API and Pipeline Surfaces

NTM also exposes local API and durable workflow surfaces:

ntm serve --port 7337
ntm openapi generate
ntm pipeline run .ntm/pipelines/review.yaml --session myproject
ntm pipeline status run-20241230-123456-abcd
ntm pipeline list
ntm pipeline resume run-20241230-123456-abcd
ntm pipeline cleanup --older=7d

Use ntm serve for long-lived local integrations. Use --robot-* for single-shot agent control.

Project Resolution

ntm spawn needs a project directory that NTM can resolve.

ntm config get projects_base
ntm quick myproject --template=go

# Or point projects_base at an existing repo layout / create a symlink when needed

The session name usually matches the project directory name. Labels extend the session name as project--label.

Reference Index

Read these when you need deeper detail without bloating the main skill body:

Related Skills

• agent-mail for inboxes, contact handshakes, and file reservations
• br for bead state changes and syncing
• bv for graph-aware task prioritization
• cass for prior-session retrieval