> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.rekody.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Install the CLI

> The open-source Rekody daemon: Homebrew, one-line installer, or build from source.

The CLI is the open-source dictation engine at [github.com/rekody/rekody](https://github.com/rekody/rekody) (MIT). It runs as a daemon in your terminal: hold <kbd>⌥</kbd> <kbd>Space</kbd> anywhere on your desktop, speak, release, and the transcript lands at your cursor.

<Frame caption="Dictating from the terminal into any app on your desktop.">
  <img src="https://mintcdn.com/rekody/tt70CbnQ-gY5MINH/images/demo.gif?s=a77ba7321329ea78a3ae6c7efff7768e" alt="Rekody running in the terminal, transcribing speech into an editor window." width="800" height="450" data-path="images/demo.gif" />
</Frame>

**Requirements:** macOS, Apple Silicon or Intel.

## Homebrew (recommended)

```bash theme={null}
brew install rekody/rekody/rekody
```

The formula auto-taps from the `rekody/rekody` tap. Newer Homebrew versions gate third-party taps; if prompted, run:

```bash theme={null}
brew trust rekody/rekody
```

<Note>
  The tap is only needed while Rekody lives outside homebrew-core. Once it is accepted there, a plain `brew install rekody` will do.
</Note>

## One-line installer

No Homebrew needed. The script detects your platform, downloads the precompiled binary, and falls back to building from source if none exists:

```bash theme={null}
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/rekody/rekody/main/install.sh | bash
```

## Build from source

```bash theme={null}
git clone https://github.com/rekody/rekody.git
cd rekody
make install
```

The Rust toolchain is pinned in `rust-toolchain.toml`; rustup picks it up automatically.

## First run

```bash theme={null}
rekody
```

The first run launches the setup wizard: pick a speech-to-text engine, optionally configure LLM cleanup, download the model, and grant the two macOS permissions (Accessibility for the hotkey and injection, Microphone to your terminal).

Once set up, the daemon shows a live console: your words stream in as you talk, then the finished text is injected at your cursor.

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="While you talk">
    <Frame caption="The live console: words stream in across multiple lines, the current line bright and the tail dimmed.">
      <img src="https://mintcdn.com/rekody/tt70CbnQ-gY5MINH/images/cli-streaming.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=tt70CbnQ-gY5MINH&q=85&s=ebd4c04cf90a3266d845bb8954192193" alt="The Rekody CLI console streaming a transcript live while recording." width="898" height="622" data-path="images/cli-streaming.png" />
    </Frame>
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="After you release">
    <Frame caption="The finished text is placed at your cursor. Here it landed about 52ms after key release.">
      <img src="https://mintcdn.com/rekody/tt70CbnQ-gY5MINH/images/cli-inserted.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=tt70CbnQ-gY5MINH&q=85&s=4660391e154c477d26a74affded4b070" alt="The Rekody CLI console showing the completed transcript inserted at the cursor." width="895" height="622" data-path="images/cli-inserted.png" />
    </Frame>
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

<Note>
  macOS attributes microphone access for CLI apps to the parent terminal, so Terminal, iTerm, Warp, or Ghostty shows up in your Microphone permission list instead of Rekody. This is a system-level design, not a bug.
</Note>

## Check the install

```bash theme={null}
rekody doctor    # live connectivity check for every configured engine and provider
rekody --version
```

`rekody doctor` probes the microphone, verifies models on disk, tests each configured provider, and reports the size of your local training dataset.

## Updating

```bash theme={null}
brew upgrade rekody
# or, for non-Homebrew installs
rekody update
```

`rekody update` downloads the latest GitHub release and verifies the tarball against the release's published `SHA256SUMS` before installing. It replaces the binary that is actually running, wherever it is installed.


## Related topics

- [Install the app](/app/install.md)
- [Rekody](/index.md)
- [Contributing](/developers/contributing.md)
- [Models and checksums](/developers/models.md)
- [config.toml reference](/developers/configuration.md)