The Helix CLI (@trayai/helix-cli) is the command-line interface for Helix: it scaffolds projects, runs them locally, connects authentications, and deploys to Tray’s cloud. The binary is helix. It also runs an MCP server, which is how Claude drives the same commands while you build.
Install
The CLI needs Node.js 24.18.0 or later. Check with node --version and upgrade first if you’re below that (for example, nvm install 24).
npm install -g @trayai/helix-cliPrefer pnpm? pnpm add -g @trayai/helix-cli. To run without installing: npx @trayai/helix-cli <command>.
Verify with helix --version and which helix. These pages document v0.85.0 and later.
Ask the CLI
helix --help lists the commands your installed version has, and helix <command> --help lists that command’s flags. This output is authoritative and version-specific. Where these pages and --help disagree, trust --help: it ships with the binary you’re running.
Commands
This is the complete command surface. Anything you’ve seen in a platform design document but can’t find here isn’t available yet.
Session, workspace, and project
Full details: Project & auth session.
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
helix login | Sign in to Helix through your browser |
helix logout | Sign out and end the session |
helix whoami | Show who you’re signed in as |
helix init [project-name] | Scaffold a new project, optionally with a React app |
helix workspace select [name] | Choose the Tray workspace interactively |
helix workspace set <id> | Set the workspace by ID |
helix project set <id> | Point the project at a provisioned project ID |
helix env set <environment> | Choose the Helix environment the CLI talks to |
Local development
Full details: Local development.
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
helix dev | Run the project locally on port 3000 with hot reload |
Authentications
Full details: Authentications.
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
helix auth connect [service] | Find and connect a service interactively |
helix auth add <alias> <uuid> | Map an alias to an existing authentication |
helix auth list | List the aliases configured for this project |
Deploy
Full details: Build & deploy.
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
helix deploy | Deploy the project and print its live URL |
helix deployment get <deploymentId> | Show a deployment’s status, warnings, and build errors |
Agent tooling
| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
helix mcp | Start the CLI’s MCP server on stdio |
helix mcp serves the tools Claude uses to build a Helix project. It speaks the stdio transport, and Claude starts it from the project’s MCP configuration, so you rarely run it by hand. See Building with Claude Code.
Environments and configuration
Project settings live in helix.config.ts at the project root: name, projectId, workspaceId, and your authentication aliases. Your Tray session lives separately in ~/.tray.config, written by helix login.
Pick the Helix environment with helix env set <environment>, which persists. For a single command, helix login, helix logout, and helix whoami each take --env <us1|staging>, defaulting to us1.
There is no global --config flag and no HELIX_CONFIG environment variable. Per-target config files (helix.<target>.config.ts) are part of the platform design, not the shipped CLI.