Quickstart

Install Kerno and connect it to your AI coding agent.

Prerequisites

• Docker: must be installed and running

• Node.js 18+: required to run the Kerno CLI

• Git: your project must be a git repository

• Python, TypeScript, or JavaScript project: these are the currently supported languages

1. Install the CLI

Install globally:

npm install -g @kerno/cli

Or run without installing:

npx @kerno/cli mcp

2. Start Kerno

From your project directory:

kerno mcp

Or pointing to your project from anywhere:

kerno mcp -w /absolute/path/to/your/repo

This starts the Kerno agent and prints the MCP config for your coding tool. On first run, it will download the agent. This takes a moment. If you are not logged in, it will open a browser window to authenticate. Once done, return to your terminal.

3. Connect your AI coding agent

Kerno exposes an MCP server at the URL printed in your terminal. Add it to your coding tool using that URL.

The port is session-specific. Always copy it from your terminal output.

Claude Code:

claude mcp add --transport http kerno http://localhost:<port>/mcp

Cursor, add to .cursor/mcp.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "kerno": {
      "url": "http://localhost:<port>/mcp",
      "transport": "http"
    }
  }
}

Any MCP-compatible coding tool can connect using the same URL.

What's next

Kerno is connected. Continue to Start the environment to bring up your local stack so Kerno can run validations against it.

Resources

Support

Get help from the Kerno team.

FAQs

Get answers to common questions.

Security

Learn how Kerno handles your code and data.