Beads (bd)

Distributed, git-backed graph issue tracker for AI coding agents. Persistent memory with dependency-aware task tracking.

Quick Start

# Install
brew install steveyegge/beads/bd
# or
curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/steveyegge/beads/main/scripts/install.sh | bash

# Initialize in repo (humans run once)
bd init

# Tell your agent
echo "Use 'bd' for task tracking" >> AGENTS.md

When to Use

• AI agent needs persistent task memory across sessions
• Tracking dependencies between tasks (blocks:, depends_on:)
• Multi-agent/multi-branch workflows (hash-based IDs prevent conflicts)
• Incremental delivery with molecules/gates
• Sync issues with GitLab, Linear, Jira, GitHub

Essential Commands

Hash-Based IDs

Issues use hash-based IDs like bd-a1b2 to prevent merge conflicts:

bd create "Fix login bug" -p 1
# Created: bd-x7k3

bd show bd-x7k3

Hierarchical IDs

bd-a3f8      (Epic)
bd-a3f8.1    (Task)
bd-a3f8.1.1  (Sub-task)

Use bd children <id> to view hierarchy.

References

Key Concepts

Git as Database

Issues stored as JSONL in .beads/. Versioned, branched, merged like code.

Dependency Graph

bd dep add bd-child bd-parent --blocks   # child blocks parent
bd dep add bd-a bd-b --related           # related items
bd ready                                 # only shows unblocked work

Molecules (Advanced)

Molecules group related issues with gates for incremental delivery:

bd mol create "Feature X" --steps=3      # Create 3-step molecule
bd mol progress bd-xyz                   # Check progress
bd mol burn bd-xyz                       # Complete molecule

Stealth Mode

Use Beads locally without committing to repo:

bd init --stealth

Contributor vs Maintainer

# Contributor (forked repos) — separate planning repo
bd init --contributor

# Maintainer auto-detected via SSH/HTTPS credentials

Configuration

Config stored in .beads/config.yaml:

sync:
  branch: beads-sync # Sync to separate branch
  remote: origin
daemon:
  auto_start: true
  auto_sync: true
types:
  custom:
    - name: spike
      statuses: [open, in_progress, done]

Storage Backend (Dolt Default)

Beads now defaults to the embedded Dolt backend. Server mode is opt-in for multi-client access. Use bd backend to inspect or configure backend settings, and see the sync reference for server-mode notes.

Agent Integration

Tell Agent About Beads

Add to AGENTS.md:

## Task Tracking

Use `bd` for task tracking. Run `bd ready` to find work.

Agent-Optimized Output

BD_AGENT_MODE=1 bd list --json  # Ultra-compact JSON output
bd list --json                   # Standard JSON output

MCP Plugin

Beads includes Claude Code MCP plugin for direct integration.

Critical Commands

# What to work on
bd ready                    # Unblocked tasks
bd ready --pretty           # Formatted output

# Create with dependencies
bd create "Task B" --blocks bd-a1b2

# Doctor (fix issues)
bd doctor                   # Check health
bd doctor --fix             # Auto-fix problems

# Sync
bd sync                     # Full sync
bd sync --import-only       # Import only

Anti-patterns

Links

• Releases
• Documentation
• Community Tools