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Overview

The specify check command verifies that required tools and AI assistant CLIs are installed and available in your system PATH. Use this command to diagnose environment issues before initializing a project.

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Usage

specify check
This command takes no arguments or options.

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What It Checks

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Core Tools

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git
tool
Git version control — Required for repository initialization unless using --no-git with specify init.Install: https://git-scm.com/downloads

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AI Assistant CLIs

The command checks for all CLI-based AI assistants:
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claude
tool
Claude Code — Anthropic’s Claude Code CLISpecial handling: After running claude migrate-installer, the CLI is located at ~/.claude/local/claude instead of in PATH.Install: https://docs.anthropic.com/en/docs/claude-code/setup
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gemini
tool
Gemini CLI — Google’s Gemini CLIInstall: https://github.com/google-gemini/gemini-cli
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cursor-agent
tool
Cursor — Cursor CLINote: The CLI tool is cursor-agent, not cursor.
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qwen
tool
Qwen Code — Alibaba’s Qwen Code CLIInstall: https://github.com/QwenLM/qwen-code
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opencode
tool
opencode — opencode CLIInstall: https://opencode.ai
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q
tool
Amazon Q Developer CLI — Amazon Q DeveloperInstall: https://aws.amazon.com/developer/learning/q-developer-cli/
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amp
tool
Amp — Amp CLIInstall: https://ampcode.com/manual#install
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shai
tool
SHAI — SHAI CLIInstall: https://github.com/ovh/shai
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auggie
tool
Auggie CLI — Auggie CLIInstall: https://docs.augmentcode.com/cli/setup-auggie/install-auggie-cli
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codebuddy
tool
CodeBuddy — CodeBuddy CLIInstall: https://www.codebuddy.ai/cli
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qodercli
tool
Qoder CLI — Qoder CLIInstall: https://qoder.com/cli
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codex
tool
Codex CLI — Codex CLIInstall: https://github.com/openai/codex

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IDE-Based Assistants (Informational)

The following assistants are IDE-based and don’t require CLI checks:
  • GitHub Copilot — Built into VS Code and compatible editors
  • Windsurf — Windsurf IDE
  • Kilo Code — Kilo Code IDE
  • Roo Code — Roo Code IDE
  • IBM Bob — IBM Bob IDE
  • Antigravity — Antigravity IDE
These are marked as “IDE-based, no CLI check” in the output.

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Editor CLIs (Optional)

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code
tool
Visual Studio Code — VS Code command-line interfaceInstall: https://code.visualstudio.com/
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code-insiders
tool
Visual Studio Code Insiders — VS Code Insiders edition CLIInstall: https://code.visualstudio.com/insiders/

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Example Output

$ specify check

███████╗██████╗ ███████╗ ██████╗██╗███████╗██╗   ██╗
██╔════╝██╔══██╗██╔════╝██╔════╝██║██╔════╝╚██╗ ██╔╝
███████╗██████╔╝█████╗  ██║     ██║█████╗   ╚████╔╝ 
╚════██║██╔═══╝ ██╔══╝  ██║     ██║██╔══╝    ╚██╔╝  
███████║██║     ███████╗╚██████╗██║██║        ██║   
╚══════╝╚═╝     ╚══════╝ ╚═════╝╚═╝╚═╝        ╚═╝   

GitHub Spec Kit - Spec-Driven Development Toolkit

Checking for installed tools...

Check Available Tools
├─ ● Git version control (available)
├─ ○ GitHub Copilot (IDE-based, no CLI check)
├─ ● Claude Code (available)
├─ ○ Gemini CLI (not found)
├─ ● Cursor (available)
├─ ○ Qwen Code (not found)
├─ ● opencode (available)
├─ ○ Codex CLI (not found)
├─ ○ Windsurf (IDE-based, no CLI check)
├─ ○ Kilo Code (IDE-based, no CLI check)
├─ ○ Auggie CLI (not found)
├─ ○ CodeBuddy (not found)
├─ ○ Qoder CLI (not found)
├─ ○ Roo Code (IDE-based, no CLI check)
├─ ○ Amazon Q Developer CLI (not found)
├─ ○ Amp (not found)
├─ ○ SHAI (not found)
├─ ○ Antigravity (IDE-based, no CLI check)
├─ ○ IBM Bob (IDE-based, no CLI check)
├─ ● Visual Studio Code (available)
└─ ○ Visual Studio Code Insiders (not found)

Specify CLI is ready to use!

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Status Indicators

The check command uses the following status indicators:
  • ● Green — Tool is available and found in PATH
  • ● Red — Required tool not found (error)
  • ○ Yellow — Optional tool not found or IDE-based (skipped)
  • ○ Gray — Pending check

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Understanding Results

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All Clear

If git and at least one AI assistant CLI are available: 
Specify CLI is ready to use!
You’re ready to run specify init.

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Missing Git

If git is not found: 
Specify CLI is ready to use!
Tip: Install git for repository management
You can still use Specify, but use --no-git with specify init.

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No AI Assistants Found

If no AI assistant CLIs are available: 
Specify CLI is ready to use!
Tip: Install an AI assistant for the best experience
Consider:
  • Installing a CLI-based assistant from the list above
  • Using an IDE-based assistant (GitHub Copilot, Windsurf, etc.)
  • Using --ignore-agent-tools with specify init

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When to Run Check

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Before Initialization

Run check before creating a new project to ensure tools are available: 
specify check
specify init my-project --ai claude

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Troubleshooting

If specify init fails with agent detection errors: 
specify check  # See which tools are missing
# Install missing tools
specify init my-project --ai claude

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After Installing Tools

Verify that newly installed tools are in PATH: 
# Install Claude CLI
curl -fsSL https://anthropic.com/install.sh | sh

# Verify installation
specify check

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Common Issues

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Tool Installed But Not Found

If you’ve installed a tool but check doesn’t find it: Cause: The tool is not in your PATH. Solutions:
  1. Restart your terminal to reload PATH
  2. Check installation instructions for PATH setup
  3. Verify with: which <tool-name> (Unix) or where <tool-name> (Windows)

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Claude Migrate-Installer

If you ran claude migrate-installer: Note: The Claude CLI is now at ~/.claude/local/claude instead of in PATH. specify check will find it automatically at this location. See GitHub Spec Kit issue #123 for details.

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Multiple Versions Detected

If multiple versions of a tool are installed: Behavior: check finds the first one in PATH. To see which version: 
which claude      # Unix-like
where claude      # Windows

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Exit Codes

  • 0 — Check completed successfully (tools may or may not be available)
The check command always exits with 0, as missing tools are informational rather than errors.

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Technical Details

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Tool Detection

The command uses shutil.which() to search for executables in PATH, which:
  • Respects system PATH environment variable
  • Handles platform-specific executable extensions (.exe on Windows)
  • Finds the first matching executable

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Special Cases

Claude CLI: After claude migrate-installer, checks both:
  1. Standard PATH lookup via shutil.which("claude")
  2. Specific location at ~/.claude/local/claude
Generic Agent: Not checked (not a real agent to check)

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Performance

Tool checks are fast (typically < 1 second) as they only query the filesystem without executing tools.

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