max-chat

Prerequisites

• The max CLI must be installed (npm i -g @getfrontline/cli — provides both frontline and max binaries).
• The user must have a per-user API key saved: max auth login <api-key> (or frontline auth login on the same profile).

Commands

Quick message (shorthand)

max "Your question here"
max --new "Start a fresh conversation"

This is the fastest way to send a single message to Max. It uses the last active conversation by default, or --new to start a fresh one.

Calls the Public API: POST /public/v1/max/conversations/message (Bearer = user API key). Responses use { "ok": boolean, "data": ... }. Default stdout is one-line JSON; no spinner lines.

Flag	Description
--new	Start a new conversation instead of continuing the last one
--conversation <id>	Send to a specific conversation ID
--no-wait	Do not poll for the assistant reply (fire and forget)
--timeout <seconds>	Max seconds to wait for assistant reply (default: 60)
--json	Print only the POST response JSON (no poll)
--pretty	Print assistant plain text from data instead of JSON
--profile <name>	Use a specific Max CLI profile
--base-url <url>	Override Public API root (…/public/v1) for this run
--api-base-url <url>	Deprecated alias for --base-url
--api-key <key>	Override per-user API key for this run
--debug	Show HTTP request/response diagnostics

Example:

# Quick question using last conversation
max "What agents do I have?"

# Start a new conversation
max --new "Help me set up a new workflow"

# Send to a specific conversation
max --conversation 123 "Continue from here"

Send a message (explicit command)

max chat send <message...> [--new] [--conversation <id>] [--json] [--debug]

Same as the shorthand above but under the chat send subcommand. Default stdout is one-line JSON; --pretty for assistant plain text from data.

Interactive chat (REPL)

max chat repl [--profile <name>] [--debug] [--timeout <seconds>]
max chat

Opens an interactive readline session for back-and-forth conversation with Max.

REPL Command	Description
:help	Show available REPL commands
:new	Start a new conversation on next message
:conv <id>	Switch to a specific conversation ID
:exit	Exit the REPL
Ctrl+C	Exit the REPL

Example:

# Start interactive chat
max chat

# Start with a specific profile
max chat repl --profile work --debug

Conversations (Public API)

max conversations list [--pinned <bool>]
max conversations get <id>
max conversations update <id> --data '{"key":"value"}'
max conversations abort <id>
max conversations pin <id>
max conversations unpin <id>
# alias: max conv list

See max conversations --help for flags (--profile, --base-url, --api-key, --debug).

Conversation management

• Max automatically remembers the last conversation ID in your profile. Subsequent messages continue that conversation.
• Use --new to explicitly start a fresh conversation.
• Use --conversation <id> to jump to a specific conversation.
• In the REPL, use :new and :conv <id> to manage conversations interactively.

Troubleshooting

• "No Max API key found": run max auth login <api-key> or frontline auth login <api-key> on the same profile.
• "Message cannot be empty": provide a non-empty message string.
• Timeout waiting for reply: increase --timeout or use --no-wait and check the conversation later.
• Use --debug to see the full HTTP request URL, headers, and response status for diagnosing issues.
• Use --json for machine-readable output that can be piped to jq or other tools.

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See also

• Full reference: https://docs.getfrontline.ai/docs (concepts) and https://docs.getfrontline.ai/cli (command reference).
• App UI walkthroughs (channels, billing, settings): https://help.getfrontline.ai.