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Agents naturally try to use 'bd dep <blocker> --blocks <blocked>' when establishing blocking relationships - a desire path revealing intuitive mental model for how dependencies should work. When AI agents set up dependency chains, they consistently attempt: bd dep conduit-abc --blocks conduit-xyz This reveals a desire path - the syntax users naturally reach for before reading documentation. Instead of fighting this intuition, we embrace it. - Add --blocks (-b) flag to the bd dep command - Support syntax: bd dep <blocker-id> --blocks <blocked-id> - Equivalent to: bd dep add <blocked-id> <blocker-id> - Full daemon and direct mode support - Cycle detection and child-parent anti-pattern checks - JSON output support for programmatic use This is purely additive. The existing command structure remains: - 'bd dep add' subcommand works exactly as before - All other dep subcommands (remove, list, tree, cycles) unchanged - No breaking changes to existing workflows bd dep bd-xyz --blocks bd-abc # bd-xyz blocks bd-abc bd dep bd-xyz -b bd-abc # Same, using shorthand bd dep add bd-abc bd-xyz # Original syntax still works - Added TestDepBlocksFlag for flag initialization - Added TestDepBlocksFlagFunctionality for semantic correctness - All existing tests pass
bd - Beads
Distributed, git-backed graph issue tracker for AI agents.
Beads provides a persistent, structured memory for coding agents. It replaces messy markdown plans with a dependency-aware graph, allowing agents to handle long-horizon tasks without losing context.
⚡ Quick Start
# Install (macOS/Linux)
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/steveyegge/beads/main/scripts/install.sh | bash
# Initialize (Humans run this once)
bd init
# Tell your agent
echo "Use 'bd' for task tracking" >> AGENTS.md
🛠 Features
- Git as Database: Issues stored as JSONL in
.beads/. Versioned, branched, and merged like code. - Agent-Optimized: JSON output, dependency tracking, and auto-ready task detection.
- Zero Conflict: Hash-based IDs (
bd-a1b2) prevent merge collisions in multi-agent/multi-branch workflows. - Invisible Infrastructure: SQLite local cache for speed; background daemon for auto-sync.
- Compaction: Semantic "memory decay" summarizes old closed tasks to save context window.
📖 Essential Commands
| Command | Action |
|---|---|
bd ready |
List tasks with no open blockers. |
bd create "Title" -p 0 |
Create a P0 task. |
bd dep add <child> <parent> |
Link tasks (blocks, related, parent-child). |
bd show <id> |
View task details and audit trail. |
🔗 Hierarchy & Workflow
Beads supports hierarchical IDs for epics:
bd-a3f8(Epic)bd-a3f8.1(Task)bd-a3f8.1.1(Sub-task)
Stealth Mode: Run bd init --stealth to use Beads locally without committing files to the main repo. Perfect for personal use on shared projects.
📦 Installation
- npm:
npm install -g @beads/bd - Homebrew:
brew install steveyegge/beads/bd - Go:
go install github.com/steveyegge/beads/cmd/bd@latest
Requirements: Linux (glibc 2.32+), macOS, or Windows.
🌐 Community Tools
See docs/COMMUNITY_TOOLS.md for a curated list of community-built UIs, extensions, and integrations—including terminal interfaces, web UIs, editor extensions, and native apps.
