SOP-002: CLI Commands Reference

DOCUMENT CONTROL

Field	Value
SOP ID	SOP-002
Version	1.0
Status	Active

Purpose

Complete reference for Claude Code CLI commands, flags, and invocation patterns.

Command Structure

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                      CLI COMMAND STRUCTURE                           │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

    claude [options] [prompt]

    ┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
    │  EXECUTION MODES                                              │
    ├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
    │                                                              │
    │  claude                    → Interactive REPL mode           │
    │  claude "prompt"           → One-shot execution              │
    │  claude -p "prompt"        → Print mode (no conversation)    │
    │  echo "x" | claude         → Pipe input                      │
    │                                                              │
    └──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Core Commands

Starting Claude Code

# Interactive mode (default)
claude

# With initial prompt
claude "explain this codebase"

# In specific directory
claude --cwd /path/to/project

Resume Previous Session

# Continue last conversation
claude --continue

# Resume specific session
claude --resume <session-id>

Command Line Flags

Flag	Short	Description
--help	-h	Show help information
--version	-v	Display version
--print	-p	Print mode (non-interactive)
--continue	-c	Continue last conversation
--resume	-r	Resume specific session
--cwd		Set working directory
--model		Specify model to use
--max-turns		Limit autonomous turns
--verbose		Enable verbose output

Print Mode vs Interactive Mode

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                       EXECUTION MODES                                │
├────────────────────────────────┬────────────────────────────────────┤
│        INTERACTIVE             │           PRINT MODE               │
├────────────────────────────────┼────────────────────────────────────┤
│  claude                        │  claude -p "prompt"                │
│                                │                                    │
│  • Full REPL interface         │  • Single response only            │
│  • Conversation memory         │  • No conversation state           │
│  • Tool approvals              │  • Output to stdout                │
│  • Multi-turn dialogue         │  • Good for scripts                │
│  • File watching               │  • Pipeable output                 │
└────────────────────────────────┴────────────────────────────────────┘

Input Methods

Direct Prompt

claude "refactor the auth module"

Piped Input

echo "explain this" | claude

cat error.log | claude "what's wrong?"

git diff | claude "review these changes"

File Input

claude < instructions.txt

Output Control

# Quiet mode (minimal output)
claude -p "generate code" --quiet

# JSON output
claude -p "list files" --output-format json

# Stream to file
claude -p "write docs" > output.md

Session Management

# List recent sessions
claude sessions list

# Resume by ID
claude --resume abc123

# Continue last session
claude --continue

Slash Commands (In-Session)

Command	Description
/help	Show available commands
/config	Open configuration menu
/clear	Clear conversation
/compact	Compact context
/cost	Show token usage
/doctor	Run diagnostics
/init	Initialize CLAUDE.md
/memory	Manage memory
/model	Switch model
/quit	Exit Claude Code

Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl+C	Cancel current operation
Ctrl+D	Exit Claude Code
Escape	Interrupt generation
Tab	Autocomplete
Up/Down	Navigate history

Configuration Commands

# Open settings menu
claude config

# Set specific option
claude config set <key> <value>

# Get current value
claude config get <key>

Verification Checklist

• [ ] Understand interactive vs print mode
• [ ] Know how to continue/resume sessions
• [ ] Familiar with common flags
• [ ] Know in-session slash commands

Next Steps

• SOP-003: Interactive Mode
• SOP-009: Slash Commands