fabro/README.md
Bryan Helmkamp 5b71f42994 Add install one-liner near top of README for quick access
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
2026-03-10 18:18:13 -04:00

5.2 KiB

Arc

The open source software factory for expert engineers

AI coding agents are powerful but unpredictable. You either babysit every step or review a 50-file diff you don't trust. Arc gives you a middle path: define the process as a graph, let agents execute it, and intervene only where it matters. Why Arc?

License: MIT docs

curl -fsSL https://fabro.sh/install.sh | bash
Arc Runs board showing workflows across Working, Pending, Verify, and Merge stages

Key Features

Feature Description
🔀 Deterministic workflow graphs Define pipelines in Graphviz DOT with branching, loops, parallelism, and human gates. Diffable, reviewable, version-controlled
🙋 Human-in-the-loop Approval gates pause for human decisions. Steer running agents mid-turn. Interview steps collect structured input
🎨 Multi-model routing CSS-like stylesheets route each node to the right model and provider, with automatic fallback chains
☁️ Cloud sandboxes Run agents in isolated Daytona cloud VMs with snapshot-based setup, network controls, and automatic cleanup
🔌 SSH access and preview links Shell into running sandboxes with arc ssh and expose ports with arc preview for live debugging
🌲 Git checkpointing Every stage commits code changes and execution metadata to Git branches. Resume, revert, or trace any change
📊 Automatic retros Each run generates a retrospective with cost, duration, files touched, and an LLM-written narrative
Comprehensive API REST API with SSE event streaming and a React web UI. Run workflows programmatically or as a service
🦀 Single binary, no runtime One compiled Rust executable with zero dependencies. No Python, no Node, no Docker required
⚖️ Open source (MIT) Full source code, no vendor lock-in. Self-host, fork, or extend to fit your workflow

Example Workflow

A plan-approve-implement workflow where a human reviews the plan before the agent writes code:

digraph PlanImplement {
    graph [
        goal="Plan, approve, implement, and simplify a change"
        model_stylesheet="
            *        { llm_model: claude-haiku-4-5; reasoning_effort: low; }
            .coding  { llm_model: claude-sonnet-4-5; reasoning_effort: high; }
        "
    ]

    start [shape=Mdiamond, label="Start"]
    exit  [shape=Msquare, label="Exit"]

    plan      [label="Plan", prompt="Analyze the goal and codebase. Write a step-by-step plan.", reasoning_effort="high"]
    approve   [shape=hexagon, label="Approve Plan"]
    implement [label="Implement", class="coding", prompt="Read plan.md and implement every step."]
    simplify  [label="Simplify", class="coding", prompt="Review the changes for clarity and correctness."]

    start -> plan -> approve
    approve -> implement [label="[A] Approve"]
    approve -> plan      [label="[R] Revise"]
    implement -> simplify -> exit
}

Agents run as multi-turn LLM sessions with tool access. Human gates (hexagon) pause for approval. The stylesheet routes planning to a cheap model and coding to a frontier model. See the DOT language reference for the full syntax.


📖 Documentation

Arc ships with comprehensive documentation covering every feature in depth:

  • Getting Started -- Installation, first workflow, and why Arc exists
  • Defining Workflows -- Node types, transitions, variables, stylesheets, and human gates
  • Executing Workflows -- Run configuration, sandboxes, checkpoints, retros, and failure handling
  • Tutorials -- Step-by-step guides from hello world to parallel multi-model ensembles
  • API Reference -- Full OpenAPI spec with authentication, SSE events, and client SDKs

Quick Start

Install

curl -fsSL https://fabro.sh/install.sh | bash

# Initialize your project
cd my-repo/
arc init

# Run your first workflow
arc run hello

Help or Feedback


License

Arc is licensed under the MIT License.