About orca-cli
Orca CLI is a discovery skill for agents working with Orca's editor and runtime state, including worktrees, terminals, automations, and its embedded browser. It directs the agent to load the matching binary's own guide rather than rely on stale command details.
Key features
- 01Resolves the CLI executable for a session
- 02Loads version-matched command guidance
- 03Supports worktree and terminal workflows
- 04Covers handoffs and automations
- 05Guidance for Orca's embedded browser
- 06JSON-oriented agent command guidance
Use cases
- 01Inspecting or operating Orca-managed worktrees
- 02Reading or controlling Orca terminals
- 03Handing work to another agent
- 04Controlling the browser embedded in Orca
Install
Copy the command and run it in a terminal.
npx skills add https:/ / github.com/ maczzinatui/ borca --skill orca-cliAfter installing, type/orca-cliin Claude Code to confirm it loaded.
Details
From the project READMEOrca CLI
This file is a discovery stub, not the usage guide. The full, version-matched Orca CLI
reference is served by the orca binary itself — kept out of this file on purpose so it
can never drift from the binary that will actually run your commands.
Engage Orca whenever its running editor/runtime is the source of truth: Orca-managed worktrees, folder contexts, terminals, repos, automations, worktree comments, and the browser embedded inside the Orca app. Triggers include "$orca-cli", "Orca worktree", "child worktree", "spawn codex/claude in a worktree", "read/wait/send Orca terminal", "full handoff" / "handover" / "give this to another agent", and "control the browser inside Orca". Use plain shell tools when Orca state does not matter.
Resolve the CLI for this session
Choose the executable once and reuse it for every later command:
- If the
ORCA_CLI_COMMANDenvironment variable is set, use its value. Orca exports this for managed WSL sessions. - Otherwise, in a dev checkout whose session exposes
ORCA_DEV_REPO_ROOT, useorca-dev. - Otherwise, on Linux outside an Orca-managed terminal, use
orca-ide. Never run bareorcathere — outside Orca's terminals it normally resolves to the GNOME Orca screen reader (/usr/bin/orca) and starts speech on the user's machine. - Otherwise, use
orca.
Below, ORCA is a placeholder for the executable you resolved. Substitute it before
running anything; do not create a shell variable or run ORCA literally. This works the
same way in POSIX shells, PowerShell, and cmd.exe.
If the selected executable cannot run, report its exact error and stop. Do not fall through to another executable, which could silently target a different Orca build.
Load the full guide before running Orca commands
ORCA skills get orca-cli
That prints the complete, version-matched guide for the exact binary that will handle your next commands — worktrees, handoffs, terminals, automations, and the built-in browser. Read it first, then run the specific command you need.
Don't guess subcommands or flags from memory or from a cached copy of this stub. They
change between Orca releases, and this file deliberately no longer lists them. Confirm the
app is up with ORCA status --json (start it with ORCA open --json if needed), and
prefer --json for agent-driven calls.
If an older Orca does not recognize skills get
Use this fallback only when the selected binary explicitly reports that skills get is an
unknown command. Another failure is not proof of an older binary; report it rather than
guessing or changing executables. For a confirmed pre-guide binary, use only this bounded,
read-only bootstrap to orient. Do not dead-end and do not invent commands:
ORCA status --json
ORCA worktree ps --json
ORCA terminal list --json
Then tell the user that updating Orca restores the full, version-matched guide via
ORCA skills get orca-cli. Beyond these commands, ask the user rather than guessing a
command surface this older binary may not support.