Migration
Move from the frozen npm CLI and older Tallpine architecture to the desktop app.
Move to the desktop app
The desktop app is the current supported install. It runs the Go daemon and checks for updates automatically.
The npm package @aoagents/ao is frozen at 0.10.0. Existing users can still use it, but it will receive no new features or fixes. New users should install the desktop app instead.
Preserve active work
Before changing installs, inspect any active sessions and worktrees. Commit, push, or otherwise preserve changes you need. Tallpine will not force-delete dirty registered worktrees, but you should not rely on cleanup as a backup strategy.
Open the desktop build
Download the current desktop application from Installation. Existing npm users may also run:
tallpine startThe frozen CLI uses this as a bridge to fetch and open the desktop build. It no longer represents the primary product distribution.
Add or import projects
Open the desktop app and add each local repository you want to use.
Do not copy old session folders into the current database by hand.
Verify your tools
Confirm GitHub and at least one agent harness are still authenticated:
gh auth statusRun the agent harness once outside Tallpine if its sign-in expired, then restart the desktop app.
What changed since the npm product
| Older documentation | Current product |
|---|---|
| Node.js/Next.js orchestrator | Long-running Go daemon with Electron/React desktop UI |
| Global CLI as the main entry point | Desktop app is canonical; CLI is optional and thin |
Flat files under ~/.agent-orchestrator | SQLite and all app state under ~/.tallpine |
| Stored lifecycle status | Status derived at read time from durable facts |
| Runtime plugin matrix and YAML-first setup | Daemon adapters and project settings through the app/API |
| Browser dashboard on port 3000 | Packaged desktop interface over a loopback daemon |
| Terminal-only sessions | One committed Chat or Terminal UI controller per session; native PTY/ConPTY hosts and legacy tmux compatibility |
| Repository-only work | Git workspaces plus projectless standalone workers |
Old agent-orchestrator.yaml examples and Node plugin packages are not authoritative for the Go rewrite. Reconfigure projects through the desktop app instead of copying unsupported legacy fields.
Data locations
Current Tallpine state defaults to ~/.tallpine:
~/.tallpine/datacontains durable daemon database files.~/.tallpine/running.jsonadvertises the supervised daemon process and port.- Managed worktrees and Tallpine metadata remain under the Tallpine home.
~/.tallpine/electroncontains the desktop app's Chromium data.~/.tallpine/data/mobile/config.jsoncontains mobile-listener settings and its rotating password. Tallpine writes the file with mode0600and keeps a comparison hash in memory.TALLPINE_DATA_DIRchanges this location.
Do not delete the old or new data directories until you have inspected and preserved active worktrees.
Updates
Installed desktop builds check for updates on launch and periodically while running. If an update is unavailable through the app, download the latest desktop artifact directly. Running a package-manager update cannot move the frozen npm package beyond 0.10.0.