Getting Started

Feature statusAvailable
Applies to0.13.0-alpha.1 (pre-alpha)
Last verified2026-07-31

On first launch, Deputy Shell downloads its development runtime, then opens on the Default Workspace with an empty session list. From there you can start working immediately or create a dedicated project first.

Deputy Shell provides a terminal and development workspace. Commands and agents (including Codex) can modify or delete files and communicate with external services. Review actions before approving them, and keep independent backups of anything important.

First run, step by step

  1. Runtime setup. The app downloads and verifies its development runtime (roughly 500 MB) over Google Play. See Runtime Setup for what happens during this step and how to recover from an interruption.
  2. Choose your privacy settings. A first-run dialog lets you choose whether to share crash reports and usage statistics, share crash reports only, or share nothing. Nothing is shared unless you choose to. See Privacy and Telemetry.
  3. Start in the Default Workspace, or create a project. The Default Workspace is always available and cannot be deleted. If you're working on something specific, create a named project first — see Projects and Workspaces.
  4. Start a session. Use "+ New Session" to open a terminal in the current project. Sessions keep their identity and recent output even if you leave the app.
  5. Optionally sign in to Codex. Codex is bundled but optional to use. Signing in requires your own eligible OpenAI account — see Codex Sign-In.

Safety and backups

Approve agent and command actions only after reviewing what they will do. Deputy Shell is pre-release software: keep independent backups of anything you can't afford to lose, and use workspace export regularly for anything important.