herdr GUI client
herdr is the runtime your coding agents live on: Claude Code, Codex, pi and the rest run in its panes, in workspaces and tabs, and keep running when you close the terminal. Alma is a GUI client for it, on macOS, Windows, Linux and iPhone.
Agents keep running in herdr exactly as before. Alma connects to the herdr server on your computer and shows every pane as something you can read and answer.
Getting started
- Install and start herdr (herdr.dev).
- Install Alma and open it.
- Switch the sidebar to agents with the toggle at the top (⌘⇧A on the Mac).
There is nothing to configure. Alma looks for herdr's socket the same way herdr does:
| Where | Used when |
|---|---|
HERDR_SOCKET_PATH or HERDR_SOCKET | Set in Alma's environment or your login shell |
<config>/herdr/sessions/<name>/herdr.sock | HERDR_SESSION names a session |
<config>/herdr/herdr.sock | The default session |
<config> is XDG_CONFIG_HOME if set, %APPDATA% on Windows, and ~/.config otherwise. On Windows herdr listens on a named pipe, and Alma connects to that.
Alma also reads your login shell's environment, so a herdr started from a terminal is found even when Alma was opened from the Dock or the Start menu.
Every agent as a chat
Pick a pane in the sidebar and Alma shows the agent's session as a conversation instead of a terminal:
- Claude Code, Codex and pi transcripts are read directly, with tool calls, subagents and file changes laid out in order.
- Type in the composer to answer. What you send goes to the agent in its pane, as if you had typed it there.
- Switch to the screen view any time to see the real terminal.
Who needs you
The sidebar groups agents by status:
- Needs input: the agent asked you something and is waiting.
- Working: the agent is in the middle of a turn.
- Done: the agent finished, with unread turns marked.
Alma sends a desktop notification when an agent needs you or finishes. Mute a workspace or a tab from its menu when you don't want to hear from it.
Workspaces and tabs
Everything herdr has, Alma has too:
- New tab starts an agent in the current workspace.
- New workspace picks a folder (recent ones are listed) and what to start in it.
- Rename, reorder, mute and close workspaces and tabs from their menus. Closing a tab quits its agent; the session stays on the computer.
- Sort the sidebar as in herdr, by status, or by name.
Other computers
One Alma can drive the agents of several computers. In Add computer…, paste the pairing link from Settings › Remote Access in Alma on the other computer. Alma connects straight over the local network when it can, and through the end-to-end encrypted Alma relay otherwise.
On iPhone
The iPhone app (in beta, through TestFlight) pairs with Alma on your computer and brings the same agents with it:
- Read and answer every agent, and start new ones.
- Get a push notification when an agent needs you.
- Remote Screen: see and control your Mac's screen from the phone. The Mac needs Screen Recording and Accessibility allowed for Alma.
- Simulator: watch and drive an iOS Simulator or Android emulator running on that computer.
Troubleshooting
"herdr isn't running": start herdr on that computer. If it runs a named session or a custom socket, make sure HERDR_SESSION or HERDR_SOCKET_PATH is set in your login shell, then choose Reconnect.
"Update Alma on that computer": the other computer runs an older Alma than this one. Update it there.