Loxel
GitHub

Getting Started

This page gets you from a fresh install to your first change and worktree in a few minutes.

Add your first project

Click Add project at the bottom of the worktree sidebar. The dialog has two tabs: New Project creates a new folder and repository, and Import Existing brings in something you already have:

  • Detect — enter a path or browse to a folder on disk. Loxel identifies whether it’s a bare repo, a regular repo, or a non-repo folder.
  • Add — after detection, confirm to register the repo in Loxel’s project list.
  • Clone — paste a remote URL. Choose single-workspace (regular clone) or multi-workspace (bare repo + first worktree) before confirming.
  • Init — initialize git in an existing folder that isn’t yet a repo. Same single/multi choice as Clone.
  • Convert — choose multi-workspace on a detected regular repo to turn it into a bare repo with worktrees. Requires a clean working tree, a checked-out branch, and no existing linked worktrees.

For most cases, Detect + Add is the fastest path. If you’re planning to run multiple parallel workstreams on the same repo, choose the multi-workspace option during Clone or Init — it sets up a bare repo from the start. See Worktrees & Projects for the full breakdown.

Panel layout overview

Loxel’s interface is divided into five areas:

  • Left sidebar — the Project Files and Changes panels (, ). The worktree sidebar with your projects and worktrees sits to its left ().
  • Center — editors, diff views, terminals, and browsers. This is your main workspace.
  • Right sidebar — the Comments panel (); drag any tool panel here.
  • Bottom — the Git panel with the commit graph () and the Logs panel.
  • Status bar — active branch, upstream tracking (↑ X ↓ Y), and working tree counts.

Panels are fully rearrangeable by drag and drop. Use –9 to focus a specific panel, / to cycle through open panels. See Panel Layout for rearranging panels and keyboard navigation.

Open a file and make a change

Open a file

Press to open Quick Open. Type any part of a file path — results filter with fuzzy matching. Press to open the file.

To jump to a specific line, append :line to the filename: for example, type app.ts:42 to land on line 42.

Make a change

Loxel autosaves 250ms after you stop typing, with a maximum 5s delay. Press to save immediately. Format-on-save runs on explicit save by default.

Review and commit

Open the Changes panel () to see every changed file; double-click one (or press ) to open its diff. Loxel has no staging or commit UI, so commit from a terminal () — or let your agent do it.

Create a worktree for a new task

When you’re ready to start a parallel task without touching your current working state, create a new worktree.

  • Click Add worktree under the project in the worktree sidebar.
  • Press from anywhere in the app.

Type a name for the worktree and press . The new worktree appears in the sidebar; click it to switch to it — it has a clean working tree, its own editor layout, and its own terminals.

Switch back to your previous worktree by clicking it in the sidebar, or use / to go back and forward through the worktrees you visited. Your layout and open files are restored exactly as you left them.

See Worktrees & Projects for bare repos, uncommitted changes across worktrees, and the worktree sidebar.