Installation

Installation¶

This guide covers installing Prodigy and the prerequisite tools needed to run AI-powered workflow automation.

Prerequisites¶

Before installing Prodigy, ensure you have:

Required: - Claude Code CLI - Prodigy executes Claude commands via the Claude Code CLI - Install from: https://github.com/anthropics/claude-code - Verify: claude --version - Rust 1.70+ - Required for building Prodigy from source - Install from: https://rustup.rs/ - Verify: rustc --version - Source: Cargo.toml:4 (edition = "2021" requires Rust 1.56+, recommended 1.70+)

Required for MapReduce Workflows: - Git 2.25+ - Required for worktree isolation and parallel execution - Install from: https://git-scm.com/ - Verify: git --version - Note: Git worktrees are used to isolate parallel work in MapReduce workflows

Optional: - mdBook - Required only for documentation workflows - Install: cargo install mdbook - Verify: mdbook --version - jq - Useful for inspecting JSON outputs and DLQ items - Install from: https://jqlang.github.io/jq/

Using Cargo (Recommended)¶

The simplest way to install Prodigy is via Cargo, Rust's package manager:

cargo install prodigy

This command: 1. Downloads the latest version from crates.io 2. Compiles the binary with optimizations 3. Installs to ~/.cargo/bin/prodigy (ensure this is in your PATH)

Verify installation:

prodigy --version
# Expected output: prodigy 0.2.7

Source: README.md:51-55

From Source¶

To install the latest development version or contribute to Prodigy, build from source:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/iepathos/prodigy
cd prodigy

# Build and install
cargo build --release
cargo install --path .

Build process: 1. cargo build --release compiles with optimizations (takes 3-5 minutes) 2. Binary is created at target/release/prodigy 3. cargo install --path . copies binary to ~/.cargo/bin/

Verify installation:

prodigy --version

Source: README.md:57-66

Optional: Man Pages¶

Prodigy includes comprehensive man pages for CLI reference. Install them with:

./scripts/install-man-pages.sh

This installs man pages to /usr/local/share/man/man1/. After installation:

# View main Prodigy documentation
man prodigy

# View specific command documentation
man prodigy-run
man prodigy-resume
man prodigy-dlq

Source: README.md:68-69, scripts/install-man-pages.sh

Verification¶

After installation, verify Prodigy is working correctly:

Check version:

prodigy --version

View available commands:

prodigy --help

Test basic functionality:

# Initialize Claude commands
prodigy init

# Should create .claude/commands/ directory
ls -la .claude/commands/

Troubleshooting¶

Command not found: prodigy¶

Cause: ~/.cargo/bin is not in your PATH

Fix: Add to your shell profile (~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc, etc.):

export PATH="$HOME/.cargo/bin:$PATH"

Then reload: source ~/.bashrc (or restart terminal)

cargo: command not found¶

Cause: Rust toolchain not installed

Fix: Install Rust via rustup:

curl --proto '=https' --tlsv1.2 -sSf https://sh.rustup.rs | sh

Build fails with "linker not found"¶

Cause: Missing C compiler/linker (required by some Rust dependencies)

Fix: - macOS: Install Xcode Command Line Tools: xcode-select --install - Linux: Install build essentials: sudo apt-get install build-essential (Debian/Ubuntu) - Windows: Install Visual Studio Build Tools

Permission denied when installing man pages¶

Cause: /usr/local/share/man/man1/ requires elevated permissions

Fix: Run with sudo:

sudo ./scripts/install-man-pages.sh

Platform-Specific Notes¶

macOS: - Xcode Command Line Tools recommended for best compatibility - Man pages install to /usr/local/share/man/man1/ by default - Homebrew users: Cargo is included with brew install rust

Linux: - Build essentials package required for compilation - Man pages may require sudo for installation - Consider using system package manager if available

Windows: - Visual Studio Build Tools required for Rust compilation - Consider using WSL2 for better compatibility with git worktrees - Man pages not supported on Windows (use prodigy --help instead)

Next Steps¶

After installation, explore Prodigy's features:

Getting Started: - Introduction - Overview of Prodigy's capabilities - Workflow Basics - Learn how to write workflows

Popular Use Cases: - Automated Documentation - Keep docs synchronized with code - MapReduce Workflows - Parallel processing at scale - Examples - See real-world workflow examples