shell-gpt

A command-line productivity tool powered by AI large language models

agent Python TheR1D/shell_gpt
58% pass rate
2/8 principles met

Spec Coverage

How many of the spec's requirements were verified for this tool. See /coverage for the full matrix.

LevelTotalVerifiedUnverified
MUST28199
SHOULD21138
MAY10100

Top Issues

All Audits

P1: Non-Interactive by Default

PASSNon-interactive by default
SKIPNon-interactive gate flag advertised in --helptarget satisfies P1 via alternative gate (help-on-bare or stdin-primary)
SKIPFlags advertise env-var bindings in --helptarget exposes no flags in --help
PASSSecret-bearing flags expose stdin or *-file companion
WARN`--help` advertises default values for flagsno default-value annotations found in --help. SHOULD-tier — agents reading help text need to see what value a flag falls back to when omitted (`[default: <value>]` per clap convention).
WARNRich-TUI affordance for TTY contextsno rich-TUI affordance detected (no `--tui`/`--interactive`/`--ui` flag, no spinner/progress/tui mention in --help). MAY-tier — rich TUI in TTY contexts is a nice-to-have, not required.

P2: Structured, Parseable Output

OPT-OUTStructured output supportno --output/--format flag detected — tool does not ship structured output. Schema-discovery requirements (p2-must-schema-print, p2-should-schema-file) collapse to n/a via antecedent propagation.
N/AStructured-output CLI exposes its schema at runtimeantecedent `p2-json-output` is opt_out: no --output/--format flag detected — tool does not ship structured output. Schema-discovery requirements (p2-must-schema-print, p2-should-schema-file) collapse to n/a via antecedent propagation.
WARN--json / --jsonl short aliases for --outputno --json or --jsonl short alias found. Agents and pipelines benefit from short forms alongside the canonical `--output` enum.
WARN`--raw` flag for pipe-safe unformatted outputno `--raw` flag advertised. MAY-tier — useful for pipelines that want to strip formatting before piping to other tools.
SKIP`--output` advertises additional formats beyond text/jsonno `--output` or `--format` flag advertised; vacuous skip for MAY-tier extra formats.
WARNBad invocation exits with structured usage-error code (2)bad invocation exited with code 1. The 0/1/2/77/78 convention reserves code 2 for usage errors; using a different non-zero code (often 1) blurs the distinction between usage errors and general failure.
SKIPErrors emit JSON envelope with `error`/`kind`/`message` under `--output json`binary does not advertise `--output json` in --help; MUST applies only to CLIs that opt into the JSON contract.
SKIPJSON success and error envelopes share their non-payload key setbinary does not advertise `--output json` in --help; envelope-consistency only applies to CLIs that opt into the JSON contract.

P3: Progressive Help Discovery

FAILHelp flag produces useful output--help exited with code 1
FAILVersion flag works (`--version` plus short alias)`--version` exited with code 1
FAILVersion flag works (`--version` plus short alias)`--version` exited with code 1
WARN`examples` subcommand or `--examples` flag for curated usage patternsno `examples` subcommand or `--examples` flag found. MAY-tier — a curated usage block keeps agents from hunting through long help text.
SKIPShort `-h` summary differs from `--help` long formcould not probe both `-h` and `--help` cleanly
SKIPEach subcommand's `--help` ships at least one invocation examplebinary has no subcommands; MUST applies conditionally to CLIs that use them.
WARNHelp text pairs human and `--output json` example invocationsno paired text + `--output json` example found within 5 lines in top-level or any subcommand `--help`. Pairing keeps agents from reverse-engineering the JSON invocation from the text one.

P4: Fail-Fast, Actionable Errors

PASSRejects invalid arguments
FAILError messages include a hint or remediation phrasestderr lacks a hint phrase. Looked for one of: try , use , expected , did you mean, see , run , for more, tip:, help:, hint:, suggestion:, available . Error messages must name what to do next, not just the symptom.
SKIP`--output json` produces JSON-formatted errorsbinary does not advertise `--output json` in --help; SHOULD applies only to CLIs that opt into the JSON contract.

P5: Safe Retries & Mutation Boundaries

SKIPDestructive subcommands require `--force` or `--yes`no destructive subcommands detected; MUST applies conditionally to CLIs with destructive operations.
SKIPRead and write surfaces are both visible in subcommand listno recognizable read or write subcommand verbs; the read/write distinction is unobservable from the help surface alone.

P6: Composable, Predictable Command Structure

PASSHandles SIGPIPE gracefully
SKIPPager-using CLI ships --no-pager escape hatchno pager signal (less/more/$PAGER/--pager) in --help
PASSRespects NO_COLOR
SKIPSubcommand verbs follow community-standard namesno subcommands parsed from --help
WARN`--color` flag for explicit color controlno `--color` flag advertised. MAY-tier — `auto|always|never` lets agents and pipelines override the TTY-based default.
SKIPInput-accepting commands read from stdin when no file is givenno input-accepting subcommand detected (process/parse/convert/transform/analyze/validate/format/lint/audit); vacuous skip for the conditional SHOULD.
SKIPSubcommand naming follows a consistent verb/noun conventionfewer than 2 user-defined subcommands; vacuous skip for the conditional SHOULD.
PASSOperations are subcommands, not verb-shaped flags

P7: Bounded, High-Signal Responses

WARNQuiet mode availableno --quiet/-q flag detected in --help output
WARN`--verbose` flag for diagnostic escalationno `--verbose` / `-v` flag advertised. SHOULD-tier — agents debugging failures need a way to escalate diagnostic detail.
SKIP`--limit` / `--max-results` flag for list operationsno list-style subcommand detected (list/ls/search/query/find/show/get); vacuous skip for the list-only SHOULD.
SKIPCursor-based pagination flags for list traversalno list-style subcommand detected; vacuous skip for the list-only MAY.
SKIP`--timeout` flag for long-running operationsno long-running subcommand detected (serve/daemon/watch/tail/monitor/follow/run/start/stream); vacuous skip for the conditional SHOULD.
WARNHelp text advertises TTY-aware verbosity behaviorno TTY-aware language found in `--help`. MAY-tier — automatic verbosity reduction when stdout is piped or redirected lets agents skip the explicit `--quiet` flag. Behavioral probes cannot simulate a real TTY without a pty crate, so this audit relies on documented intent.

P8: Discoverable Through Agent Skill Bundles

PASSSkill bundle has install path (`tool skill install [<host>]`)
PASS`skill install --all` for multi-runtime install
PASS`skill update` / `skill upgrade` for bundle refresh

Details

Version scored
1.5.1
Audit date
2026-06-01 18:37:17 UTC
Duration
821ms
Platform
linux/x86_64
Mode
command
Anc build
0.5.0
Install
uv tool install shell-gpt

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Reproduce this scorecard for shell-gpt locally and inspect the failing audits:

anc audit --command sgpt --output json

Install anc first if you don't have it. Add --output json to get the same JSON shape committed under scorecards/.