Configuration
cadrei.conf is read as KEY=VALUE lines, never run.
| Setting | Default | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
PERMISSION_MODE |
default |
the permission mode of the members and your orchestrator |
ORCHESTRATOR |
terminal (the first run sets tmux, or terminal when you press p) |
where cadrei opens your orchestrator: tmux or terminal. cadrei tmux on|off sets it. |
MODEL, EFFORT |
none (Claude Code’s own) | the members’ model and effort, unless a member’s file sets its own (see Models and effort) |
ORCHESTRATOR_MODEL, ORCHESTRATOR_EFFORT |
none (Claude Code’s own) | your orchestrator’s model and effort; MODEL and EFFORT don’t apply to it |
Settings for this machine only. A crew’s .claude/local/cadrei.conf, which git leaves out, wins over cadrei.conf on this machine. Today it’s used for ORCHESTRATOR, through cadrei tmux on|off --here, and it may set the model and effort keys for this machine too. Crews from 0.2.0 have no ORCHESTRATOR, so they keep opening in the terminal until you ask. An old ORCHESTRATOR_TMUX=1 still counts as tmux.
Keys cadrei doesn’t know, and lines that aren’t KEY=VALUE, are left as they are and ignored. cadrei --check lists them once.
Cross-session messages reach a member without your approval only when your orchestrator and the member run in the same permission-mode class; otherwise they wait for you in the member’s window.
Environment variables: CADREI_HOME (use another crew for one command), CADREI_PERMISSION_MODE (override the mode), CADREI_OFF=1 (a plain Claude Code chat, not an orchestrator), CADREI_TMUX_SOCKET (run sessions on a separate tmux server), NO_COLOR (no colors, plain marks), FORCE_COLOR=1 (colors even through a pipe, for recordings), and Claude Code’s own CLAUDE_CONFIG_DIR.
The health check
Section titled “The health check”Every cadrei checks the setup and stays silent unless something is wrong. Quick checks run every time; full checks run on the first run, after an upgrade, when a quick check fails, and on cadrei --check. They cover Claude Code (installed and logged in), tmux and git (and your git name and email), cadrei’s instructions link and the every-chat hook pointing at this program, the cadrei first on your PATH being this one, files at the top of a crew that Claude Code loads into your orchestrator (.claude/settings.json, .claude/settings.local.json, CLAUDE.md, CLAUDE.local.md, .mcp.json), each crew’s pre-push hook, cadrei’s instructions (put back when something changed them), and missing projects (as information). Leftovers from 0.1.x (the old hook, a skill link and a cadrei link into the old clone) are recognized. Each finding says what’s wrong (!) and how to fix it, a fixable one asks right away, and nothing outside cadrei’s own files is changed without your yes. cadrei --check ends with ✓ Everything looks good. when it is.