Requirements
Plexus drives the Claude Code CLI on top of Git, so both must be on your machine — a couple of optional tools unlock the rest.
Claude Code CLI
Plexus runs every session through the Claude Code CLI; it does not bundle its own agent. Install Claude Code and confirm the claude command works in a terminal:
claude --help
Plexus finds claude on your PATH at startup, so a standard install needs no configuration. There's no API key to enter — your existing Claude Code authentication is handed through to each session.
The npm shim (claude.cmd) and Volta are fully supported on Windows, AI features included. Sessions, AI diff review, AI pull request descriptions, session summaries and the review-and-fix cycle all run on those the same as on a native install. One caveat: if the path to claude contains one of & | < > ^ % ", Plexus refuses it rather than hand it to the Windows command prompt — move it, or use the native install below.
If Plexus can't find claude — you'll see a message saying the agent isn't installed — set an explicit path in Settings → Advanced → Path to the Claude program and point it at the actual program file. This is common on Windows, where Claude Code installs as an npm shim (claude.cmd) or through Volta and isn't on the PATH Plexus sees — for example C:\Users\me\AppData\Roaming\npm\claude.cmd. It's about finding Claude Code — you don't need it to make an individual feature work.
See Settings for where this lives.
Prefer the native install?
Nothing in Plexus requires it, but Claude Code also ships a standalone build that doesn't depend on Node or npm. Run claude install from a terminal to switch an existing install over, or on Windows run this in PowerShell:
irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex
Anthropic's setup guide is at https://code.claude.com/docs/en/setup.
Git
Git must be installed and on your PATH. Plexus uses it to detect repositories, create and remove worktrees, switch branches, and compute diffs. Any standard Git install satisfies this.
Git providers (for pull requests)
Pull-request features — opening PRs, reading status, and checking CI — need a connected git provider, either GitHub or Bitbucket. There's nothing to install: open Settings → Git providers and click Connect, then approve the one-click sign-in in your browser. The gh CLI is not required. Everything else (sessions, editing, local Git) works without connecting. See Connections.
notify-send (Linux, optional)
On Linux, Plexus uses notify-send for native desktop notifications — for instance when an agent needs your input. Without it, Plexus falls back to its in-app notifications, so it's purely optional. macOS and Windows use their native notification systems and need nothing extra.
Supported platforms
| OS | Architectures | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| macOS | Apple Silicon (aarch64), Intel (x86_64) | Native builds for both |
| Linux | x86_64 | AppImage and .deb; notify-send optional |
| Windows | x86_64 | -setup.exe (per-user, recommended) or .msi (per-machine); npm, Volta and native Claude Code installs all fully supported |
Ready to get it running? See Install.