Install the terminal client and agent tools

Install redgold for terminal conversations, rac for agent tools and rci for its CI companion. To have an existing agent do this setup, use the setup prompt and skills. For remote API tools without local binaries, use hosted MCP.

Before installing

Create an account API key in Settings → API Keys. If you need an account, start with account access. Make the key available through your secret manager as REDGOLD_API_KEY; keep its value out of conversations and repositories. The bootstrap reads this variable before fetching protected manifests and binaries.

The Linux CLI channel requires x86_64 with glibc 2.39 or newer, such as Ubuntu 24.04 or Debian 13. Debian 12 and Ubuntu 22.04 cannot run the current rac binary. The current macOS agent tools are for Apple silicon; the terminal client also has a universal macOS archive. Check the installer's --help for the selected platform. Signature verification needs Python 3 and OpenSSL 3; the default companion install also needs unzip.

Install

Inspect the official installer before running it. In a shell with REDGOLD_API_KEY available:

curl -fsSL https://redgold.ai/install.sh | bash -s -- --without-engine --without-aws
export PATH="$HOME/.redgold/bin:$PATH"
redgold --version
rac version --json
rci --version

The installer checks release hashes and signatures and installs to ~/.redgold/bin. It checks the downloaded CLI before replacing an existing installation. Add that directory to your shell's PATH for future sessions.

Verify a download yourself

Each release archive has a .sha256 file and an Ed25519 .sig file (the signature in hex) next to it. Both installers pin this public key:

9c3097bc4dec1c190f3fff431e30217e60174e0219bf20735ad92c290731b42e

To check an archive (ARCHIVE) that you downloaded together with ARCHIVE.sig, run this with Python 3 and OpenSSL 3:

python3 -c 'import sys; open("release.pub.der","wb").write(bytes.fromhex("302a300506032b6570032100"+sys.argv[1])); open("ARCHIVE.sig.raw","wb").write(bytes.fromhex(open(sys.argv[2]).read().split()[0]))' 9c3097bc4dec1c190f3fff431e30217e60174e0219bf20735ad92c290731b42e ARCHIVE.sig
openssl pkeyutl -verify -pubin -keyform DER -inkey release.pub.der -rawin -in ARCHIVE -sigfile ARCHIVE.sig.raw

Signature Verified Successfully means the archive is the one Redgold signed. The installers refuse an archive whose signature is present but invalid.

This command keeps the rci companion and omits the optional local data engine and AWS CLI. Leave off an exclusion only when you need that component. --without-rci omits the CI companion too; commands delegated to it then need a separately installed rci. Installation alone grants no builder or fleet access.

Choose your workflow

Keep your existing model provider when adding tools. Hosted conversations use the model access enabled for your account and workspace. Connect a BYOK provider in Settings → AI accounts & history where required; a download key does not supply provider credentials or enable a model plan. Model routing remains subject to the selected installation's current rollout and account policy.

Updates

Inspect and rerun the same official bootstrap to update the tool set. Compare and reinstall your selected skills afterward, preserving local edits. redgold --update updates the terminal client; it does not replace the whole agent-tool and skill setup.

When it breaks

An API key, a successful download and a search quote verify different things. Report which checks actually completed and which services still need setup. Continue with the terminal reference or RAC command guide.