The Max TUI (max tui) is a readline-based terminal client that connects to the running daemon over SSE. All communication with Max happens through the terminal prompt.
Command overview
| Command | Syntax | Description |
|---|
/model | /model [name] | Show or switch the active model |
/auto | /auto | Toggle auto model routing on/off |
/memory | /memory | Show all stored memories |
/skills | /skills | List installed skills |
/workers | /workers | List active worker sessions |
/copy | /copy | Copy the last response to clipboard |
/status | /status | Check daemon health |
/restart | /restart | Restart the daemon |
/cancel | /cancel | Cancel the current in-flight message |
/clear | /clear | Clear the screen |
/help | /help | Show command reference in the terminal |
/quit | /quit | Exit the TUI |
Command reference
/model
Without an argument, shows the currently active Copilot model. With a model name, switches to that model and persists the change to ~/.max/.env.
Outputs the current model:
Switches and confirms:
model: claude-sonnet-4.6 → gpt-4.1
The model is validated against what the Copilot CLI reports as available. If the name is not found, Max will suggest close matches.
/auto
Toggles intelligent auto model routing on or off. When enabled, Max classifies each message as fast, standard, or premium and selects the appropriate model automatically. Toggling off returns to the model set by /model.
Outputs the new state:
or:
auto off · using claude-sonnet-4.6
/memory
Displays all memories stored in Max’s long-term memory, grouped by category. Memories are facts, preferences, projects, people, and routines that Max carries across conversations.
Example output:
#1 [preference] Prefers TypeScript over JavaScript
#2 [project] Working on auth refactor in ~/dev/myapp
#3 [person] Alice is the lead on the payments team
3 memories total.
/skills
Lists all installed skills from all three skill directories:
- bundled — shipped with Max (e.g.
find-skills, gogcli)
- local — installed in
~/.max/skills/
- global — shared across agents in
~/.agents/skills/
Displays a table with skill number, name, source, and description. Local skills are highlighted and can be uninstalled interactively: after the table, Max prompts uninstall # — enter the number of a local skill to remove it, or press Enter to go back.
Only local skills (source: local) can be uninstalled from the TUI. Bundled and global skills must be managed outside Max.
/workers
Lists all active worker sessions with their status and working directory. Worker sessions are child Copilot CLI processes spawned by Max to handle coding tasks in specific directories.
Example output:
● busy auth-fix /home/user/dev/myapp
● idle api-tests /home/user/dev/api
No active worker sessions.
/copy
Copies the last response from Max to the system clipboard. Uses pbcopy on macOS, and falls back to xclip or xsel on Linux.
Outputs:
If no clipboard tool is available:
Clipboard tool not found (install xclip or xsel).
/status
Prints the raw JSON from GET /status — daemon health and current worker list.
Example output:
{
"status": "ok",
"workers": [
{
"name": "auth-fix",
"workingDir": "/home/user/dev/myapp",
"status": "running"
}
]
}
/restart
Sends a restart request to the daemon. Active worker sessions are destroyed, and a new daemon process is spawned. The TUI reconnects automatically once the new process is ready.
Outputs:
/cancel
Cancels the current in-flight message. Equivalent to pressing Escape.
Outputs:
/clear
Clears the terminal screen.
/help
Prints the command reference inline in the terminal.
/quit
Exits the TUI. Also accepts /exit. The history file is trimmed to the last 1,000 entries before exit.
Keyboard shortcuts
| Key | Action |
|---|
Escape | Cancel the current in-flight response (same as /cancel) |
Ctrl+C | Exit the TUI (same as /quit) |
↑ / ↓ | Navigate command and message history |
Input history
The TUI maintains persistent input history in ~/.max/tui_history. History is capped at 1,000 entries. Regular messages (not slash commands) are saved to history. Use the up and down arrow keys to navigate previous inputs.
Connecting to the daemon
The TUI connects to the daemon at http://127.0.0.1:7777 by default. Set the MAX_API_URL environment variable to override:
MAX_API_URL=http://127.0.0.1:8888 max tui
~/.max/api-token. If the daemon is not running, you will see:
✗ cannot connect to daemon
start with: max start
Debug logging
Set MAX_TUI_DEBUG=1 to write detailed lifecycle logs to ~/.max/tui-debug.log:
The log contains timestamped JSON entries for every SSE event, stream chunk, and user input. 