CLI

The Jugg CLI lets terminals, scripts, and agents call features provided by the Jugg plugin. It works through the Jugg plugin service in an open Android Studio project, so open the target project and finish Jugg initialization first.

Installation

Installing from the IDE is recommended:

1. Press Shift twice to open Search Everywhere.
2. Search for Install Jugg Skills.
3. Select the agents, CLI, and hooks to install in the dialog.
4. Click Install.

You can also open More Options in the Jugg panel, then select Tools -> Install Jugg Skills.

Typical installation options include:

Option	Purpose
Currently installed agents	Install the jugg-android-dev-loop skill for the corresponding agents
Install CLI to $PATH	Install the jugg command for direct use by people
Install agent hooks	Remind an agent to use Jugg when it changes Android source code without verification

Output modes

The CLI supports three output modes:

jugg --console=rich status
jugg --console=plain status
jugg --console=json status

Mode	Intended user	Characteristics
rich	Human-operated terminal	Includes spinners and interactive output
plain	Agent	Stable output without spinners polluting context
json	Script	Keeps stdout as structured JSON

IMPORTANT

Use --console=plain or --console=json for agents. Do not make an agent consume rich spinner output directly.

Common commands

jugg help
jugg help deploy
jugg status
jugg compile
jugg deploy --always-restart-app false
jugg gradle-build
jugg clean-reinstall
jugg restart

Command groups:

Category	Commands	Purpose
Version	version	Show CLI and plugin versions
Build and deployment	compile	Compile without deploying
Build and deployment	deploy	Compile and deploy
Build and deployment	gradle-build	Force a Gradle build
Build and deployment	clean-reinstall	Clear app data and reinstall
Testing	instrument	Compile, deploy, and run androidTest
Runtime	restart, wait-logs, activity-stack	Restart, wait for logs, and inspect the Activity stack
UI	layout-dump, view-locate, view-inspect, tap	Export layouts, locate elements, read properties, and perform touch actions
Diagnostics	status, devices, ssh-info	Inspect status and devices, and request remote SSH information

project-dir

When invoked inside a project directory, the CLI matches the current path to an open Jugg project. When invoked elsewhere, pass the project path explicitly:

jugg --project-dir /path/to/project status

Flags support both kebab-case and camelCase, so --project-dir and --projectDir are equivalent.

Waiting behavior for compilation commands

compile, deploy, gradle-build, and instrument can take a long time. The CLI polls automatically until the task reaches a terminal state.

If a compilation task is already running, choose how to handle it:

jugg --if-compiling wait compile
jugg --if-compiling interrupt compile

Strategy	Behavior
wait	Default; wait for the existing task to finish
interrupt	Start a new task immediately and let the server interrupt the old task

Recommendations for agents

• By default, have agents run jugg compile for compilation verification without deploying to a device automatically.
• When device verification is required, explicitly ask the agent to use jugg deploy, jugg instrument, or UI tools.
• For Android source changes, hooks can remind the agent to load the Jugg skill and run verification.
• Use --console=json when the result needs to be parsed.
• When determining whether deploy succeeded, check both compilation and deployment results instead of compilation success alone.

Common problems

Symptom	Action
CLI cannot find the project	Confirm that Android Studio has the target project open, or pass --project-dir
Port connection fails	Confirm that the Jugg plugin is initialized; multiple IDE instances increment through the port range automatically
A command waits indefinitely	Use jugg status to inspect isCompiling; use --if-compiling interrupt if necessary
instrument reports that AndroidTest is disabled	Enable Android Test in the Jugg Run Configuration and establish a full-build baseline first
Windows reports that Python 3.7+ was not found	Check python3 --version, python --version, and py -3 --version in order; jugg.cmd selects the first available Python 3.7+ runtime
Output is noisy	Use --console=plain or --console=json for agents

Related pages

• Jugg CLI
• CLI commands
• Agent Skills
• MCP and CLI
• Agent or CLI execution failed