Innate CLI Reference

The innate CLI is your control panel. SSH into MARS and start typing.

in8 is a zsh alias for innate, available in any new shell.

Default (no args)

Command	What it does
`innate`	Status dashboard — version, mode, ROS/DDS status, quick reference

Service management

Start, stop, and inspect all ROS nodes.

Command	What it does
`innate service start`	Start all ROS nodes in tmux
`innate service stop`	Kill the tmux session
`innate service restart`	Stop + start
`innate service view`	Attach to the tmux session

Top-level shortcuts

Command	Same as
`innate view`	`innate service view`
`innate restart`	`innate service restart`

Build

Smart build that does the right thing automatically. If ROS nodes are running, it stops them, builds, and restarts them. If nodes aren’t running, it just builds. If the build fails, nodes are not restarted.

Command	What it does
`innate build`	Build full workspace (stops/starts nodes if running)
`innate build pkg1 pkg2`	Build specific packages only
`innate build release [pkg ...]`	Build with `CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release` (whole workspace, or the named packages)
`innate clean`	Remove `build/`, `install/`, `log/`

Examples

innate build mars_arm          # build one package (restarts nodes if they're running)
innate build                   # build everything
innate build release           # optimized release build of everything
innate build release mars_arm  # optimized release build of one package
innate clean && innate build   # full clean rebuild

Skills

List and trigger the robot’s skills straight from the terminal — handy for testing a skill without the app.

Command	What it does
`innate skill list`	List the skills the robot currently publishes
`innate skill type <skill-id>`	Print a skill’s input contract (the parameters it accepts)
`innate skill run <skill-id> [@param=value ...]`	Run a skill by ID, passing any inputs as `@key=value`

Options

Command	Options
`innate skill list`	`--timeout <sec>` — how long to wait for skills to be published (default 5)
`innate skill type`	`--timeout <sec>` (default 5) · `--json` — print the raw contract as JSON
`innate skill run`	`--timeout <sec>` — wait for the skill result (`0`, the default, waits indefinitely) · `--server-timeout <sec>` — wait for the skill action server (default 5)

Examples

innate skill list                                   # see what's available
innate skill type innate-os/wave --json             # contract as JSON
innate skill run innate-os/wave                     # run a skill with no inputs
innate skill run innate-os/arm_utils @command=torque_on --timeout 0
innate skill run local/my-skill @x=1 @name=alice    # pass parameters

Skill IDs are prefixed by where they live — innate-os/ for shipped skills, local/ for your own. See Skills for how IDs are formed.

Speaker volume

Command	What it does
`innate volume`	Show the current speaker volume
`innate volume <0-100>`	Set the speaker volume (`0` mutes)

Examples

innate volume        # show current volume
innate volume 60     # set to 60%
innate volume 0      # mute

Foxglove

Start the Foxglove bridge to visualize topics, TF, images, and point clouds from a browser. Off by default on the robot; always on in the simulator. See Foxglove Setup for the full workflow.

Command	What it does
`innate foxglove start`	Start the bridge (WebSocket on port `8765`); prints the `ws://` URL to connect to
`innate foxglove stop`	Stop the bridge
`innate foxglove status`	Show whether the bridge is running

Diagnostics & updates

Command	What it does
`innate diag`	Hardware check (servos, PCB, lidar, cameras, speaker) — offers to stop running ROS nodes first so the check is reliable
`innate update check`	Check for available updates
`innate update apply [target]`	Apply updates (optionally pin a specific version)
`innate update status`	Show version + service info, and warn if installed services drift from the checkout
`innate update reinstall`	Re-run the post-update setup (systemd units, sudoers, dependencies, rebuild) without changing version

Apply options

Option	What it does
`--yes`, `-y`	Skip confirmation prompts
`--background`, `-b`	Run the update in a background tmux session (`innate_update`); attach with `tmux attach -t innate_update`

Dev mode and branch targets

Pass --dev before the subcommand to opt into pre-release tags and branch targets. With it, apply can take a tag, a branch name, or the latest commit on a branch:

innate update --dev check             # list newer tags, including pre-releases
innate update --dev apply 0.6.0-rc1   # a specific pre-release tag
innate update --dev apply main        # latest commit on main
innate update --dev apply my-feature  # latest commit on any branch

See Updates and Maintenance for details.

Quick reference card

innate                          → status dashboard
innate service start            → launch ROS nodes
innate service stop             → kill all nodes
innate service restart          → stop + start
innate service view             → attach to tmux
innate view                     → shortcut for above
innate restart                  → shortcut for above
innate build [pkg ...]          → build (stops/starts nodes if running)
innate build release [pkg ...]  → optimized release build
innate clean                    → rm build/install/log
innate skill list               → list the robot's skills
innate skill type <id> [--json] → show a skill's input contract
innate skill run <id> [@k=v]    → run a skill by ID
innate volume [0-100]           → show or set speaker volume
innate foxglove start           → start Foxglove bridge (ws :8765)
innate foxglove stop            → stop the bridge
innate foxglove status          → bridge status
innate diag                     → hardware diagnostics
innate update check [--dev]     → check for updates
innate update apply [target] [--dev] → apply updates (tag or branch with --dev)
innate update status            → version + service info
innate update reinstall         → re-run post-update setup
in8 ...                         → alias for innate

When you run innate view, you’re inside a tmux session. Here’s how to move around:

Keys	Action
`Ctrl+B` then `0`–`6`	Switch to window 0–6
`Ctrl+B` then `←` / `→`	Switch between left/right panes
`Ctrl+B` then `[`	Enter scroll mode (navigate with arrow keys)
`q`	Exit scroll mode
`Ctrl+B` then `D`	Detach from tmux (nodes keep running)

See Advanced Development for a breakdown of what runs in each window.

Get Started

MARS Hardware

Simulator

Controller App

Web App

Agent SDK

Hacking on MARS

Manipulation

ROS2 Core

Troubleshooting & Support

Hackathon

Default (no args)

Service management

Top-level shortcuts

Build

Examples

Skills

Options

Examples

Speaker volume

Examples

Foxglove

Diagnostics & updates

Apply options

Dev mode and branch targets

Quick reference card

Tmux navigation

​Default (no args)

​Service management

​Top-level shortcuts

​Build

​Examples

​Skills

​Options

​Examples

​Speaker volume

​Examples

​Foxglove

​Diagnostics & updates

​Apply options

​Dev mode and branch targets

​Quick reference card

​Tmux navigation

Default (no args)

Service management

Top-level shortcuts

Build

Examples

Skills

Options

Examples

Speaker volume

Examples

Foxglove

Diagnostics & updates

Apply options

Dev mode and branch targets

Quick reference card

Tmux navigation