Usage Guide

Commands

lantern lint [project] [--strict] [--json]

Analyzes an agent project for design issues without using an LLM.

# From the project root
cd my-agent-project
lantern lint

# From anywhere
lantern lint /path/to/my-agent-project

# Exit with code 1 on any finding (CI-friendly)
lantern lint --strict

# Machine-readable output for CI pipelines and integrations
lantern lint --json

See the Linter reference for all rules and codes.

lantern inspect [project]

Outputs the full project model as JSON for integrations and debugging.

lantern inspect /path/to/my-agent-project

lantern play [project] [--ws-port PORT] [--http-port PORT] [--name NAME]

Runs a supported agent project and opens the live animated Play UI.

# From the project root
cd my-agent-project
lantern play

# From anywhere
lantern play /path/to/my-agent-project

# Custom ports
lantern play /path/to/my-agent-project --ws-port 8790 --http-port 8791

# Save the run for replay and auto-start it
lantern play /path/to/my-agent-project --name demo-run

The browser UI starts in a ready state. If --name is omitted, the UI asks for a run name before START. Use STOP to terminate the active run.

The Play UI includes dynamic 1-10 agent layouts, a central Tool Hub for tool calls, timeline/thoughts/tools/comms/log panels, clickable agent history, and final report.md display when available.

See the Play reference.

lantern replay NAME [--speed FLOAT]

Replays a saved lantern play --name run.

lantern replay demo-run
lantern replay last
lantern replay demo-run --speed 2.0
lantern replay /path/to/.lantern_replays/demo-run.jsonl

lantern docs [project] [-o OUTPUT_DIR]

Generates documentation for an agent project.

# From the project root
cd my-agent-project
lantern docs

# From anywhere
lantern docs /path/to/my-agent-project

# Custom output directory
lantern docs /path/to/my-agent-project -o /path/to/output

lantern web [project]

Generates (unless --no-generate) and serves the documentation for an agent project over local HTTP.

# From the project root
cd my-agent-project
lantern web

# From anywhere
lantern web /path/to/my-agent-project

# Custom port
lantern web --port 9000

# Serve without regenerating
lantern web --no-generate

# Accessible on the local network
lantern web --host 0.0.0.0

By default, lantern web serves http://localhost:9000 over local HTTP, so the browser should not show a certificate warning.

Supported Frameworks

AgentLantern detects the framework automatically from pyproject.toml dependencies or project structure.

Framework	Detection signal	Analysis level
CrewAI	crewai dep or crew.py + @CrewBase	Full — agents, tasks, diagrams, env vars
LangGraph	langgraph dep	Detected — basic info from pyproject.toml
AutoGen	autogen-agentchat or pyautogen dep	Detected — basic info from pyproject.toml
Smolagents	smolagents dep	Detected — basic info from pyproject.toml
Google ADK	google-adk dep	Detected — basic info from pyproject.toml

For frameworks with full analysis, AgentLantern parses agents, tasks, tools, environment variables, and generates Mermaid diagrams.

For frameworks detected but not yet fully analyzed, AgentLantern generates a documentation site with the project metadata available and indicates that deeper analysis is coming.

Generated Files

File	Content
overview.md	Project snapshot, entrypoints, high-level flow
architecture.md	System map, key files, dependencies, environment variables
diagrams.md	Mermaid diagrams: agent-task graph, execution flow, sequence
agents.md	Agent roles, goals, tools, backstories
tasks.md	Task descriptions, agents assigned, expected outputs
runbook.md	Install, configure, run, static checks, troubleshooting
contact.md	Project contacts from pyproject.toml
index.html	Docsify site — publishable to GitHub Pages
_sidebar.md	Navigation menu
agentlantern-docs.html	Self-contained shareable HTML bundle

Typical Workflow

# 1. Navigate to (or point at) your agent project
cd my-agent-project

# 2. Generate and view documentation
lantern web

# 3. Open http://localhost:9000
# 4. Press Ctrl+C to stop the server

Multiple Projects

# Terminal 1
lantern web ~/projects/crew-project --port 9000

# Terminal 2
lantern web ~/projects/adk-project --port 9001

Sharing Documentation

The generated docs/ folder is a static site. To share it:

• GitHub Pages — push docs/ and enable GitHub Pages in repository settings
• Single-file share — send docs/agentlantern-docs.html (self-contained, no server needed)
• Any web server — docs/ works on Nginx, Vercel, Netlify, etc.

Next Steps

• Examples
• FAQ