IDE Integration

This page covers practical setup for using DeepAgents ACP with IDEs and development tools.

CLI

The CLI is the easiest way to start a DeepAgents ACP server:

# Run with defaults
npx deepagents-acp

# With custom options
npx deepagents-acp --name my-agent --debug

# Full options
npx deepagents-acp \
  --name coding-assistant \
  --model claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929 \
  --workspace /path/to/project \
  --skills ./skills,~/.deepagents/skills \
  --debug

CLI Options

Option	Short	Description
--name <name>	-n	Agent name (default: "deepagents")
--description <desc>	-d	Agent description
--model <model>	-m	LLM model (default: "claude-sonnet-4-5-20250929")
--workspace <path>	-w	Workspace root directory (default: cwd)
--skills <paths>	-s	Comma-separated skill paths
--memory <paths>		Comma-separated AGENTS.md paths
--debug		Enable debug logging to stderr
--log-file <path>	-l	Write logs to file
--help	-h	Show help message
--version	-v	Show version

Environment Variables

Variable	Description
ANTHROPIC_API_KEY	API key for Anthropic/Claude models (required)
OPENAI_API_KEY	API key for OpenAI models
DEBUG	Set to "true" to enable debug logging
DEEPAGENTS_LOG_FILE	Path to log file (alternative to --log-file)
WORKSPACE_ROOT	Alternative to --workspace flag

Zed

Add the agent to your Zed settings (~/.config/zed/settings.json on Linux, ~/Library/Application Support/Zed/settings.json on macOS):

Simple Setup

{
  "agent": {
    "profiles": {
      "deepagents": {
        "name": "DeepAgents",
        "command": "npx",
        "args": ["deepagents-acp"]
      }
    }
  }
}

With Options

{
  "agent": {
    "profiles": {
      "deepagents": {
        "name": "DeepAgents",
        "command": "npx",
        "args": ["deepagents-acp", "--name", "my-assistant", "--skills", "./skills", "--debug"],
        "env": {
          "ANTHROPIC_API_KEY": "sk-ant-..."
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

Custom Script

For more control, create a custom server script:

// server.ts
import { startServer } from "deepagents-acp";

await startServer({
  agents: {
    name: "my-agent",
    description: "My custom coding agent",
    skills: ["./skills/"],
  },
});

Then configure Zed:

{
  "agent": {
    "profiles": {
      "my-agent": {
        "name": "My Agent",
        "command": "npx",
        "args": ["tsx", "./server.ts"]
      }
    }
  }
}

ACP Registry

DeepAgents is available in the ACP Agent Registry for one-click installation in supported IDEs. The registry manifest:

{
  "id": "deepagents",
  "name": "DeepAgents",
  "description": "Batteries-included AI coding agent powered by LangChain.",
  "distribution": {
    "npx": {
      "package": "deepagents-acp"
    }
  }
}

ACP Protocol Support

Implemented Agent Methods

Method	Description
initialize	Negotiate versions and capabilities
authenticate	Handle authentication (passthrough)
session/new	Create a new conversation session
session/load	Resume an existing session with full history replay
session/prompt	Process user prompts and slash commands
session/cancel	Cancel ongoing operations
session/set_mode	Switch agent modes

Client Methods Called

Method	Description
session/request_permission	Prompt user to approve/reject tool calls
fs/read_text_file	Read file contents (including unsaved buffers)
fs/write_text_file	Write file contents through the IDE
terminal/create	Start a command in the client's terminal

Session Updates Sent

Update	Description
agent_message_chunk	Stream agent text responses
agent_thought_chunk	Stream agent thinking/reasoning
tool_call	Notify about tool invocations
tool_call_update	Update tool call status with results
plan	Send task plan entries
available_commands_update	Advertise slash commands to the client

Advertised Capabilities

Capability	Description
loadSession	Session persistence with replay
promptCapabilities.image	Image content support
promptCapabilities.embeddedContext	Embedded context support
sessionCapabilities.modes	Agent mode switching
sessionCapabilities.commands	Slash command support