zfinix/aster/aster-capabilities

Name: aster-capabilities
Author: zfinix

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The complete map of what Aster can do and the exact command, flag, slash command, key, or config for each: install and sign-in, the chat TUI, permission modes and rules, every agent tool, review and fix, sessions, memory, config/keys/provider/model, mom.yaml routing, skills, plugins, MCP, web tools, sub-agents and `aster run`, cron and reminders, Telegram remote, /goal loops, and the browser, VS Code, Zed, and desktop surfaces. Use when someone asks "what can Aster do", "how do I X with aster", "is there a command for", or before recommending a workflow, so the answer names a real capability instead of guessing.

Install

npx vskill@latest install zfinix/aster/aster-capabilities

SKILL.md

Everything Aster can do

Aster is a self-hostable agent harness for software work: one aster binary that chats, edits, runs commands, reviews diffs, remembers, and runs on a schedule, in a terminal, a browser, VS Code, Zed, or a desktop window. Every subcommand takes --json (before or after it) and turns errors into {"ok":false,"error":…}. Every command that runs a model takes --model and --effort off|low|medium|high|xhigh|max|ultra.

When a question is "can Aster do X", find X below and answer with the command. When unsure whether a flag still exists, run aster <cmd> --help; it is the source of truth.

Install, upgrade, sign in

curl -fsSL https://withaster.dev/install | sh     # binary install
cargo install --path crates/aster-cli              # from source, Rust 1.85+
aster upgrade                                      # swap in the latest release
aster upgrade --version 0.4.0 --force              # pin or reinstall
aster init                                         # wizard: provider + key into ~/.aster
aster init --local                                 # config in this repo instead
aster init --yes --force                           # default aster.yaml, no questions
aster login                                        # GitHub (for --pr and --comment)
aster login codex | openrouter | zai               # provider sign-in via browser
aster logout                                       # drop every stored login
aster status                                       # what the next turn runs with
aster announce [--dismiss id,id]                   # undismissed release notes as JSON

Config lives in ./aster.yaml (repo) merged over ~/.aster/aster.yaml; keys live in .env files, never in yaml. Precedence: CLI flags > env > aster.yaml > defaults.

Chat

aster                                # TUI in the current repo
aster "why does the build fail?"     # one-shot, prints and exits (--print / -p)
echo "explain this repo" | aster     # piped stdin is the prompt
aster --continue                     # resume this repo's latest session
aster --resume [ID]                  # pick a session, or resume one by id
aster --session ID "next question"   # persist into a named session
aster --messages-json history.json   # caller owns the transcript (- for stdin)
aster --compact --messages-json h.json   # fold history into a summary, print it
aster --stream                       # NDJSON events out, approval replies in
aster --no-tools                     # plain chat, no read/search/edit
aster --no-mcp                       # start instantly; /mcp connects later
aster --allow-edits                  # let a scripted turn edit files
aster --permission-mode plan|manual|auto|edit|yolo

Chat works outside a repo too, with less to look at.

Keys in the TUI

Key	Does
`enter`	Send; while a turn runs it queues the message
`esc`	Interrupt the running turn; `esc esc` quits
`shift+tab`	Step to the next permission mode
`ctrl+j`	Newline without sending
`ctrl+o`	The `/switch` panel
`@`	Mention a repo file (images and documents attach as content)
`↑ ↓`	Move the cursor, then step through past messages

Slash commands

Command	Does
`/switch`	Thinking, mode, effort, model, provider in one panel
`/model [id]`, `/m`	Switch model or open the picker
`/provider [id\	url]`,` /p`	Switch endpoint, then pick a model
`/mode [name]`	plan, manual, auto, edit, yolo
`/effort [level]`	Set or cycle the reasoning budget
`/thinking`	Print the model's thinking in full or not
`/yolo`	Toggle yolo (guardrails off, red theme)
`/mom [resume]`	Show the mom.yaml policy state; `resume` re-arms it after a manual `/model`
`/resume`, `/r`	Reopen a saved session
`/clear`, `/c`	Start fresh
`/compact`	Fold earlier turns into a summary
`/status`	Session, model, context, token usage
`/diff`, `/d`	Uncommitted changes
`/mcp`	MCP servers and their tools; connects them if `--no-mcp` skipped it
`/skills`	Pick a skill to load
`/memory`	What Aster remembers here
`/theme`	Dark or light
`/welcome`	Show or hide the session header, saved to `ui.welcome`
`/goal <condition>`	Loop turns until a separate judge model says the condition is met (see Goals)
`/help`, `/quit`	The list above; exit

Installed skills that declare a command also appear as slash commands (for example /write-tests).

Permission modes and rules

One setting gates edits and commands: shift+tab in chat, --permission-mode per run, permissions.mode in aster.yaml.

Mode	Does
`plan`	Explore and present a plan. Never edits or runs
`manual`	Ask before every edit and command (denies when headless)
`auto`	Edit and run, pause on risky commands (sudo, rm, curl, ssh…)
`edit`	Like auto but commands are trusted; only a rule stops one. Default
`yolo`	No rules, no sandbox. Asks first

Rules use one language for all tools, precedence deny > ask > allow > built-ins > mode:

yaml

permissions:
  mode: edit
  allow: ["Bash(cargo test:*)", "Edit(src/**)", "Read(**/.env)"]
  ask:   ["Edit(migrations/**)", "Bash(git push:*)"]
  deny:  ["Bash(npm publish:*)", "Edit(infra/**)"]
  use_default_rules: true          # asks on .git/**, workflows, hooks; refuses secrets
  additional_directories: ["~/Downloads"]   # readable outside the repo without asking
  allow_credentials: ["gh:~/.config/gh"]    # sandbox credential dirs a command may read

A Bash rule matches inside bash -lc "…" too. Outside yolo, commands run in a sandbox: writes limited to the repo and temp, secrets stripped from the environment, network on with per-domain approval.

What the agent can do inside a turn

These are the tools the model calls. Knowing them tells you what to ask for.

Tool	Does
`read_file`	Read with line numbers, optional `start_line`/`end_line`. PDF, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, ODF, EPUB, RTF convert to Markdown. Outside-repo and `~` paths prompt
`list_files`, `find_files`, `search_files`	Directory listing, glob search, regex content search (smart-case, grouped by file)
`explore`	Several lookups in one call
`edit_file`	Search-and-replace edits, gated by the permission mode
`ast_grep`, `ast_edit`	Structural search and rewrite over syntax trees
`lsp_definitions`, `lsp_references`, `lsp_diagnostics`	Language-server navigation and errors
`run_command`, `run_tests`	Shell in the sandbox (timeout `agent.command_timeout_secs`); the test runner
`agent`	Spawn sub-agents from the roster (see Sub-agents)
`ask_user`	Structured question with options
`update_plan`, `exit_plan_mode`	Visible step plan; the plan-mode approval handshake
`remember`, `recall`, `forget`	Durable memory (see Memory)
`read_skill`	Load a skill's body on demand
`open_preview`	Open a URL or file in the browser (`ASTER_NO_BROWSER=1` prints the URL instead)
`security_scan`	Static security scan of the working tree
MCP tools	Anything a configured server exposes, injected progressively; `web/search` and `web/extract` ship built in

Limits: agent.max_tool_rounds (60), agent.command_timeout_secs (300), agent.compact_budget_chars (192000), agent.max_output_tokens (8000), agent.language (the user's), env ASTER_MAX_TOOL_ROUNDS, ASTER_COMMAND_TIMEOUT, ASTER_COMPACT_BUDGET, ASTER_MAX_TOKENS, ASTER_LANGUAGE.

Review

Hypothesize, retrieve evidence from a local symbol index, verify by trying to refute, shape. Findings carry file, line, severity, category, title, suggestion, confidence.

aster review                               # current branch
aster review --range main..HEAD
git diff HEAD~1 | aster review --diff -
aster review --pr 42 [--repo owner/repo] [--token T]
aster review --pr 42 --comment [-y]        # post inline PR comments
aster review --tui                         # browse findings
aster review --json                        # data for CI
aster review --stream                      # NDJSON progress for UIs
aster review -i "src/**/*.rs" -x "**/*.lock" --min-confidence 0.6
aster review --no-index                    # faster, less evidence
aster review --effort high

Config under review: in aster.yaml: model, hypothesis_model, verify_model, base_url, min_confidence, max_diff_bytes, analyzers: [semgrep, ast-grep], astgrep_rules, effort, web_search, focus_areas, include, exclude. model: auto picks from OpenRouter's live rankings (ASTER_ROUTER_TIER=cheap|balanced|strong, see aster model router). Env: ASTER_VERIFY_MODEL, ASTER_HYPOTHESIS_MODEL, ASTER_VERIFY_CONCURRENCY.

Fix

aster review --json | aster fix                # dry run: preview the patches
aster review --json | aster fix --apply        # write them
aster fix --findings-json findings.json --apply --repo-root .

Sessions

Every chat, ACP thread, and scheduled run is a session under ~/.aster.

aster sessions [list] [--all]          # this repo, or every project
aster sessions show ID
aster sessions rename ID "title"
aster sessions delete ID
aster sessions prune [--keep N] [--older-than DAYS]   # empties always go
aster sessions import [--from claude|codex|cursor|opencode|hermes] [--dry-run]

Memory

Two layers: short project facts always in context, named blocks listed by title and read on demand. The agent writes with remember, reads with recall, retracts with forget.

aster memory [list]
aster memory add "we deploy from release, never main"
aster memory add "prefers terse replies" --title tone
aster memory show tone
aster memory remove tone

Config, keys, provider, model

aster config                          # form in a terminal, table when piped
aster config list | get KEY | set KEY VALUE [--global|--local] | unset KEY
aster config path
aster config edit [--global|--local]
aster config providers | provider [ID --model M] | models [--capabilities] | model [ID]
aster config keys [--all] | key [VAR [VALUE]] [--local]
 
aster key list [--all] | get VAR | set VAR [VALUE] [--stdin] [--local] | unset VAR | path
 
aster provider list
aster provider use openai [--model gpt-5.5]   # endpoint and model together
aster model list [--capabilities] | use ID | recommended
aster model router [--tier cheap|balanced|strong]

Any OpenAI-compatible endpoint works. A key var named for the endpoint (ANTHROPIC_API_KEY, OPENROUTER_API_KEY) beats the shared ASTER_API_KEY. ASTER_MODEL and ASTER_BASE_URL in the shell outrank the file and are reported when set.

mom.yaml: model routing per turn

Drop mom.yaml in the repo root or ~/.aster/. Entries describe intent (power, thinking, prefer), switch rules fire on conditions like planning, stuck, looping, model-down, and a cheap router judges the rest. Switches show as mom: notes in chat.

aster mom check                 # validate, show what each entry resolves to
aster mom route "refactor the auth module"   # which entry the router would pick

Spec: specs/mom.md. Logs: ~/.aster/logs/mom-router.jsonl, mom-switches.jsonl.

Skills

Folders with a SKILL.md; titles are indexed, bodies load when relevant. Five core skills are built in and listed; eleven more about the agent's own conduct are internal and never shown. A skill installed under <skills root>/internal/<name>/ is internal too. Ten optional skills are bundled off by default; aster skills bundled marks the internal ones, which install into internal/.

This is the start of the file. Read the full SKILL.md on GitHub.

Security

Security scanPassed, 95 of 100Pattern checks on the skill's files.
Model reviewPassed

See the full security report

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Source

SKILL.md in the repositoryCheckingskills/aster-capabilities/SKILL.md

Popularity

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