Desktop and TUI

CodeAlta has two apps:

CodeAlta Desktop (alta) is a desktop application with session tabs you can arrange, a file editor and a single Settings window. It is the most complete way to use CodeAlta.
CodeAlta TUI (altatui) is a keyboard-first terminal UI.

Both apps share the same harness: the same agent runtime, providers, tools, agent prompts, skills, MCP servers and plugins, on the same ~/.alta profile. This documentation applies to both. Where the two apps differ, the page says so, and screenshots have a Desktop / TUI switch.

CodeAlta main workspace in CodeAlta Desktop — The same workspace in both apps: projects and sessions on the left, the session timeline, and the prompt at the bottom.

CodeAlta main workspace in CodeAlta TUI — The same workspace in both apps: projects and sessions on the left, the session timeline, and the prompt at the bottom.

Install

dotnet tool install -g CodeAlta        # Desktop: alta
dotnet tool install -g CodeAlta.Tui    # TUI: altatui

You can install both. See Getting Started for requirements and first launch.

What is shared

Everything under ~/.alta/ is common to both apps:

config.toml, model providers and their credentials;
the project catalog and all sessions, with their timelines, notes and pasted images;
agent prompts, system prompts and skills;
MCP server configuration and plugins.

A session started in one app can be opened and continued in the other. Only one CodeAlta runs on a profile at a time, so close one app before starting the other.

Appearance is not shared. The desktop app keeps its theme, color scheme, open tabs and window layout in its own application data, and the TUI keeps its theme and navigator settings in ~/.alta/ui-state.yaml.

What the desktop app adds

Arrange sessions in the window

Session tabs can be dragged along the tab strip to reorder them, to the edge of a pane to split the window, or to the center of another pane to merge. The tab menu also has Split right and Split below. Tabs from different projects stay open together, and each pane has its own prompt.

CodeAlta Desktop with a parent session and its two child sessions in three panes — A parent session and its two child sessions share the window.

CodeAlta Desktop with two sessions side by side — Two sessions side by side.

CodeAlta Desktop with two sessions stacked — Two sessions from different projects, stacked.

Files beside sessions

Ctrl+E opens a project file in an editor tab. An editor tab can be split like a session tab, so the file stays visible beside the session that works on it.

CodeAlta Desktop with a session on the left and a C# file in an editor tab on the right — A session and a file of the project, side by side.

One Settings window

The TUI opens a dialog for each area. The desktop app groups them as pages of one window: Appearance, Providers, Models, Agent prompts, Skills, Plugins, MCP Servers, Configuration file, Application Logs and About.

CodeAlta Desktop Settings window showing the Appearance page with the list of pages on the left — Settings pages on the left, the selected page on the right.

Windows over the session

Tool details, file diffs, context usage, session info, the session browser and the Notes of a session open as windows that you can move and resize over the workspace.

Runs in the background

Closing the window keeps CodeAlta running in the notification area, with its sessions. Use the tray icon to open the window again or to exit. Turn this off with Settings > Appearance > Keep running when the window is closed. Exiting while sessions are running asks for confirmation first.

Updates from the app

When a new version is available, the desktop app shows a notice with Update and restart. The TUI shows the dotnet tool update command to run.

Differences at a glance

	Desktop	TUI
Command	`alta`	`altatui`
Session tabs	Drag to reorder, split and merge panes	One visible tab at a time
File editor	Editor tabs that can sit beside a session	Editor tab
Settings	One window with a page per area	One dialog per area
Appearance	Light, dark or system theme, 13 color schemes	Terminal themes
Session notes	Movable Notes window over the timeline	Notes panel in the sidebar
Pasted images	Thumbnails above the prompt	Preview dialog, in terminals with image support
Queue a prompt	Enqueue until idle in the Send options	AlwaysQueue checkbox
Tool permissions	Always approved automatically	Approved automatically by default; can be reviewed
Plugin dialogs and content	The app's own components, with HTML fragments from the plugin	Terminal controls
Updates	Update and restart	Shows the command to run
Font	No requirement	Nerd Font required
Copy the UI as an image	Not available	`Ctrl+F12`

Current desktop limitations

Tool permission requests are always approved automatically on the desktop. To review each request, use the TUI and turn off Auto approve commands in Workspace Settings.

The --no-plugins and --plugin-safe-mode options belong to the TUI. Set CODEALTA_DISABLE_PLUGINS=1 to start the desktop app without plugins.

A plugin written with terminal controls only shows its plain text or Markdown form on the desktop. See Plugin development.

Which one to use

Use the desktop app for daily work: it shows more at once and every feature is one click away. Use the TUI when you prefer to stay in a terminal, or when you want to review tool permission requests.