ChatCLI was not designed only for interactive conversations. It can be a powerful tool in your automation scripts, CI/CD pipelines, and shell aliases thanks to its “one-shot” mode.
In this mode, you can ask a single question, get the answer, and exit, all in a single command, making it perfect for integration with other tools.
Using the -p or --prompt Flags
The most straightforward way to use one-shot mode is with the -p or --prompt flags. ChatCLI will execute the question, print the AI’s response to stdout, and exit.
chatcli -p "What is the command to list all processes consuming more than 500MB of RAM on Linux?"
Integrating with Pipes ( | )
One of the most powerful ways to use one-shot mode is by combining it with other command-line tools through pipes. ChatCLI automatically detects if it is receiving data via stdin and uses it as context.
Summarize a git diff
Analyze logs
Analyze CSV data
git diff | chatcli -p "Based on this diff, generate a commit message suggestion following the Conventional Commits standard."
cat /var/log/nginx/error.log | chatcli -p "Find the most common error in this log and suggest a possible cause and solution."
cat report.csv | chatcli --provider CLAUDEAI --model claude-sonnet-4-5 -p "Analyze this data and give me 3 key insights."
Available Flags in One-Shot Mode
You can customize the behavior of one-shot mode with the following flags:
| Flag | Description |
|---|
-p, --prompt | The main question or instruction for the AI. |
--provider <name> | Overrides the default LLM provider (e.g., OPENAI, CLAUDEAI, COPILOT). |
--model <name> | Overrides the AI model to use (e.g., gpt-4o, claude-sonnet-4-5). |
--timeout <duration> | Sets a time limit for the request (default: 5m). E.g., 10s, 1m. |
--max-tokens <num> | Overrides the maximum number of tokens in the response. |
--no-anim | Disables the “Thinking…” animation, ideal for clean output in scripts. |
--agent-auto-exec | In one-shot agent mode, automatically executes the first suggested command if it is deemed safe. |
--realm <name> | (StackSpot) Sets the realm (tenant) for authentication. |
--agent-id <id> | (StackSpot) Sets the Agent ID to use. |
Agent Mode in One-Shot
You can also invoke Agent Mode non-interactively. This is extremely useful for complex automations.
When using /agent or /run with the -p flag, ChatCLI will ask the AI for an action plan and print it. By default, it will not execute the commands.
chatcli -p "/agent find all *.tmp files in the /tmp directory and delete them."
find /tmp -name "*.tmp" -delete).To execute the plan automatically, use the --agent-auto-exec flag. Execution will only occur if the internal security validator does not detect dangerous commands.chatcli -p "/agent find and delete .tmp files" --agent-auto-exec
Use --agent-auto-exec with caution. Although the security validator blocks known dangerous commands, always review the behavior in production environments.
