SOP-014: Headless Mode

DOCUMENT CONTROL

Field	Value
SOP ID	SOP-014
Version	1.0
Status	Active

Purpose

Run Claude Code in headless (non-interactive) mode for automation and scripting.

What is Headless Mode?

Headless mode allows:

• Non-interactive execution
• Script automation
• CI/CD integration
• Batch processing

Basic Usage

# Print mode (single response)
claude -p "generate tests for auth.ts"

# With output file
claude -p "review code" > review.md

# Piped input
cat code.ts | claude -p "explain this"

Command Options

Flag	Description
-p, --print	Print mode
--quiet	Minimal output
--json	JSON output format
--max-turns N	Limit turns

Use Cases

Code Generation

claude -p "create a REST API handler" > handler.ts

Code Review

git diff | claude -p "review these changes"

Documentation

claude -p "generate docs for src/" > DOCS.md

CI/CD Integration

Example GitHub Action:

- name: Code Review
  run: |
    git diff HEAD~1 | claude -p "review"

Best Practices

Headless Tips

1. Use specific prompts
2. Handle output appropriately
3. Set reasonable timeouts
4. Check exit codes

Next Steps

• SOP-015: Sub-Agents
• WF-002: GitHub Actions