routing
Commands that work with panes need a room. ordo takes the most explicit answer first, then falls back to what is already running. If nothing is running, it can create the room before running the command.
--session <id>
Use the session you named. Best for scripts and repeatable commands.
ORDO_SESSION
Inside an ordo pane, the session is already known.
one live room
If only one session is live, ordo uses it. If none is live, it starts one.
sessions
ordo
The plain command opens the ordo command center.
Starts ordo in a fresh terminal window and shows the launcher.
Use it when you want to see the room before acting. You can start a session, restore one, and watch panes from the center.
ordo$ ordo
# Open the launcher and choose what to do next.ordo new
Creates a clean session without going through the launcher picker.
Opens a fresh ordo session immediately.
Use it when you want a new room now. It is the fastest manual way to start from zero.
ordo new$ ordo new
# Create a fresh session and open its command center.ordo restore <id>
Reopens a saved session by id.
Checks that the session exists, opens ordo, and restores that session into view.
Use it to return to named work. If the daemon is still alive, panes reattach. After a reboot, ordo rebuilds from saved state.
ordo restore <id>$ ordo restore centurion-optio
# Open the saved session named centurion-optio.ordo sessions
Prints the saved sessions ordo knows about.
Lists session ids in your terminal.
Use it before restore or delete when you do not remember the exact name.
ordo sessions$ ordo sessions
# Show saved session ids.ordo delete <id>
Removes a saved session and stops its panes.
Asks the daemon to kill panes for the session, then deletes the saved session record.
Use it to clear old rooms from the launcher. After this, restore will not find that id.
ordo delete <id>$ ordo delete centurion-optio
# Remove that saved session.panes
ordo agents
Shows the panes in the selected session.
Prints pane name, live/dead state, foreground program and working directory.
Use it to learn the call signs in the room. Those names are what you send to, read from, and interrupt.
ordo agents [--session <id>]$ ordo agents
# Show panes for the active or only live session.ordo spawn
Creates a new pane, optionally running a known agent CLI.
Requests a pane from the daemon. It can name the pane, choose the working directory, and launch an agent program.
Use it to add another worker to the room. A named agent pane is easy to address later and gets ordo MCP tools automatically.
ordo spawn [--agent <agent>] [--cwd <path>] [--name <pane>] [--session <id>]$ ordo spawn --agent claude --name legatus
# Open a Claude pane named legatus.
$ ordo spawn --cwd ~/code/ordo
# Open a shell pane in the repo.ordo send
Sends text to a pane by name.
Resolves the target pane and delivers the message. If an agent is waiting through MCP, it receives the message there. Otherwise ordo types into the pane and presses Enter.
Use it to delegate from anywhere. With the new no-session flow, a command like this can make a room, open or find legatus, and send the message.
ordo send <pane> <text...> [--session <id>]$ ordo send legatus "hi"
# Start or find legatus and send a short message.
$ ordo send optio "inspect apps/cli/src/core and report back"
# Give optio a concrete task.ordo read
Prints recent output from a pane.
Reads the target pane's captured terminal output and prints it to your shell.
Use it to check work without focusing the window. It is useful from scripts, CI, or another agent pane.
ordo read <pane> [--lines N] [--session <id>]$ ordo read legatus --lines 80
# Read the last 80 lines from legatus.ordo broadcast
Sends the same text to every other pane in the session.
Delivers one message to all peer panes.
Use it for room-wide instructions: wrap up, pause, summarize, switch branch, or stop touching a file.
ordo broadcast <text...> [--session <id>]$ ordo broadcast "wrap up and leave a short status"
# Ask every pane to finish cleanly.ordo status
Shows statuses, or sets your own status from inside a pane.
With no text, prints live pane statuses. With text, sets the current pane's status when ORDO_PANE is present.
Use it as the room notice board. Agents can say what they are doing, and you can read the whole room in one command.
ordo status [--session <id>]
ordo status <text...> [--session <id>]$ ordo status
# Show current pane statuses.
$ ordo status "reviewing docs"
# Set your pane status from inside an ordo pane.ordo interrupt
Sends Ctrl-C to the target pane.
Resolves the target pane and sends an interrupt signal into it.
Use it when a pane is running the wrong task, hanging, or needs to stop before it changes more files.
ordo interrupt <pane> [--session <id>]$ ordo interrupt legatus
# Stop the current foreground work in legatus.agents
Pass one of these to ordo spawn --agent. ordo starts it in a pane and gives it the MCP tools automatically.
other
ordo completion
Outputs a shell completion script.
Prints the completion script for the requested shell. The default follows your platform: PowerShell on Windows, otherwise your login shell (bash or zsh).
Use it once during setup if you want Tab to complete commands, sessions, panes and agent names.
ordo completion [powershell|pwsh|bash|zsh]$ ordo completion powershell
# Print the PowerShell completer.
$ ordo completion zsh
# Print the zsh completer.ordo help
Prints the short command summary.
Writes the built-in usage text to your terminal.
Use it when you need the compact command list without opening this page.
ordo help
ordo -h
ordo --help$ ordo --help
# Show help using the long flag.internals
These exist in the CLI because ordo needs them for agents, completion and window launch. You may see them in configs or process lists, but the public commands are what you type.
ordo mcp
Starts the MCP server used by agent panes.
Runs the tool server that lets agents discover peers, send messages, read panes, broadcast, interrupt and spawn.
You normally do not type this. ordo installs it into supported agent configs so the tools appear when an agent starts.
ordo mcpordo __complete
Returns completion candidates to shell completion scripts.
Looks at the current command words and prints matching subcommands, panes, sessions or agent names.
Your shell calls this after Tab. It is not a user workflow.
ordo __complete <words...>ordo __in-window
Runs ordo inside the terminal window it opened.
Receives the launch intent after the public command has opened a terminal window.
This is window plumbing. Use ordo, ordo new, and ordo restore instead.
ordo __in-window
ordo __in-window new
ordo __in-window restore <id>