casen CLI

casen is an interactive terminal UI (TUI) for managing Camunda 8. Navigate with arrow keys, no flags to memorize.

Installation

pnpm add -g @bpmnkit/cli

Quick Start

casen

The main menu appears. Use ↑ ↓ to navigate, Enter to select, Escape to go back.

casen
├── generate        — generate or modify BPMN files without the TUI
│   └── bpmn        — templates, CompactDiagram JSON, or patch existing files
├── view            — view BPMN, DMN, and form files in the browser
│   ├── open        — any mix of .bpmn/.dmn/.form files or folders (auto-detect)
│   ├── bpmn        — BPMN diagrams rendered as SVG
│   ├── dmn         — DMN decision tables
│   └── form        — Camunda form layouts
├── lint            — static analysis and auto-fix for BPMN files
│   ├── lint        — run all checks, report findings
│   └── improve     — AI-assisted improvement suggestions
├── story           — render a BPMN process as a narrative HTML page
├── ask             — ask an AI assistant about your process or cluster
├── connector       — generate element templates from OpenAPI specs
│   ├── generate    — generate templates from a spec file or catalog entry
│   └── catalog     — list built-in catalog entries
├── profile         — manage connection profiles
│   ├── list        — show all profiles
│   ├── add         — create a new profile
│   └── switch      — set the active profile
├── process
│   ├── list        — list deployed process definitions
│   ├── start       — start a new instance
│   ├── instances   — list running instances
│   └── cancel      — cancel an instance
├── job
│   ├── list        — list active jobs
│   ├── complete    — complete a job
│   └── fail        — fail a job with a message
├── incident
│   ├── list        — list open incidents
│   └── resolve     — resolve an incident
├── decision
│   ├── list        — list deployed DMN decision tables
│   └── evaluate    — evaluate a decision with test inputs
├── variable
│   ├── list        — list variables for an instance
│   └── update      — set a variable value
├── message
│   └── publish     — publish a message for correlation
├── worker          — run job workers
│   ├── <job-type>  — auto-complete worker for a job type
│   └── start       — start scaffolded workers from ./workers/
├── proxy           — start the local AI bridge server
└── plugin          — manage CLI plugins
    ├── search      — discover plugins on npm
    ├── install     — install a plugin from npm or a local path
    ├── list        — list installed plugins
    ├── update      — update one or all plugins
    ├── remove      — uninstall a plugin
    └── info        — show details for an installed plugin

Generate BPMN files

casen generate bpmn creates BPMN files from the command line — no interactive menu required. Choose a built-in template, supply a full CompactDiagram JSON definition, or patch an existing file.

casen generate bpmn --template approval --process-id leave-request
casen generate bpmn --input order.bpmn --dump-compact   # inspect as JSON for AI
casen generate bpmn --input order.bpmn --patch '{"elements":[...],"flows":[...]}'

See casen generate for full documentation.

View BPMN, DMN, and Form files

casen view opens a local browser-based viewer. Accepts individual files, folders, or a mix.

casen view bpmn ./processes/     # all .bpmn files in a folder
casen view dmn routing.dmn       # DMN decision table
casen view open ./project/       # any mix of .bpmn/.dmn/.form

See casen view for full documentation.

Connection Profiles

A profile stores the connection details for a Camunda cluster:

# Add a new profile
casen profile add

# You'll be prompted for:
# Name: my-saas-cluster
# Base URL: https://api.cloud.camunda.io
# Auth type: oauth2 | bearer | none
# Client ID, Client Secret, Audience, Token URL (for oauth2)

Profiles are saved to ~/.casen/profiles.json.

Common Workflows

List process definitions

Navigate to: process → list → Enter

Result:
  bpmnProcessId                name                    ver
  ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
▶ invoice-approval              Invoice Approval          2
  order-fulfillment             Order Fulfillment         1
  customer-onboarding           Customer Onboarding       3

Start a process instance

Navigate to: process → start → Enter

Select process: invoice-approval
Variables (JSON): {"invoiceId": "inv-001", "amount": 5000}

Resolve an incident

Navigate to: incident → list → Enter

Select the incident with Enter, choose “Resolve” from the action menu.

Publish a message

Navigate to: message → publish → Enter

Message name: payment-confirmed
Correlation key: ord-456
Variables (JSON): {"method": "card"}

Plugins

casen’s plugin system lets you extend the CLI with new command groups — your own organisation’s workflows, third-party integrations, or community-built tools.

Discover plugins

# Browse all published casen plugins
casen plugin search

# Search by keyword
casen plugin search deploy
casen plugin search slack

Results are fetched live from the npm registry. Any package tagged with the casen-plugin keyword appears here.

Install a plugin

# Install from npm
casen plugin install casen-deploy

# Install a local plugin during development
casen plugin install ./my-plugin

Plugins are installed into ~/.casen/plugins/ and loaded automatically the next time casen starts.

Manage installed plugins

# List installed plugins
casen plugin list

# Show full details for one plugin
casen plugin info casen-deploy

# Update a single plugin to the latest version
casen plugin update casen-deploy

# Update all installed plugins
casen plugin update

# Remove a plugin
casen plugin remove casen-deploy

Once installed, plugin commands appear in the main TUI and in tab-completion alongside built-in commands.

To build your own plugin, see Plugin Authoring.

BPMN generation pipeline

Every BPMN process is authored as a ProcessPlan JSON file — never hand-written XML — and compiled deterministically:

# Print the ProcessPlan JSON format reference (schema + field notes)
casen plan schema

# Compile a plan to laid-out, deployable BPMN
casen synth synth order-process.plan.json --output order-process.bpmn

# Extend an existing process: lift it back to plan form, then merge a delta plan into it
casen plan extract order-process.bpmn
casen synth synth delta.plan.json --merge order-process.bpmn --output order-process.bpmn

# Find and inspect a Camunda connector template
casen connector search slack
casen connector show io.camunda.connectors.Slack.v1

# Deploy-readiness gate, then deploy
casen lint lint order-process.bpmn --profile deploy
casen deploy deploy order-process.bpmn                   # local Reebe
casen deploy deploy order-process.bpmn --target camunda8 # active Camunda 8 profile

casen synth reports any problems keyed by JSON path in the plan (e.g. steps[2].connector.values.token) — fix the plan, never the XML, and re-run. If the plan has a tests array, casen synth also writes a <file>.bpmn.tests.json sidecar, runnable with casen test <file>.bpmn.

See Building Processes with AI and AI Agents for full walkthroughs.

AIKit Skills

casen ships four lightweight, CLI-only Claude Code slash commands (no MCP server, no proxy):

casen skills install

Command	Description
`/implement <description>`	Write a plan, compile it, test it, scaffold workers, deploy
`/review <path>`	Run the full lint report and report a deploy-ready verdict
`/test <path>`	Run scenario tests and report path/branch coverage
`/deploy <path>`	Deploy-readiness gate, then deploy to local Reebe or Camunda 8

For the richer skill set (/bpmnkit:implement, :extend, :agent, :connect, plus generated reference docs), install the Claude Code plugin instead: /plugin marketplace add github:bpmnkit/monorepo then /plugin install bpmnkit. See AIKit Skills for full documentation.

Worker commands

# Run a simple auto-complete worker (for testing)
casen worker payment-service

# Start scaffolded workers from ./workers/
casen worker start

# Start a specific scaffolded worker
casen worker start send-invoice

Local engine (Reebe)

Reebe is a Zeebe-compatible workflow engine (~50 MB) that runs locally, so you can deploy and run processes without a Camunda 8 cluster.

# Embedded SQLite, no external database
casen reebe start

# Custom port — match ZEEBE_ADDRESS, which defaults to http://localhost:26500
casen reebe start --port 26500

# PostgreSQL instead of the embedded database
casen reebe start --database-url postgres://user:pass@localhost/reebe

Flag	Default	Description
`--port`	`8080`	HTTP port to listen on
`--database-url`	embedded SQLite	PostgreSQL connection URL
`--config`	`config.toml`	Path to the engine config file

casen reebe on its own is shorthand for casen reebe start. The command runs the reebe-server binary; build it with cargo install --path apps/reebe/crates/reebe-server if it is not on your PATH.

MCP Server Mode

casen can act as an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server, exposing all cluster operations as tools to Claude Desktop, Cursor, or any MCP client:

casen mcp

Configure in Claude Desktop (claude_desktop_config.json):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "camunda": {
      "command": "casen",
      "args": ["mcp"],
      "env": {
        "CAMUNDA_CLIENT_ID": "...",
        "CAMUNDA_CLIENT_SECRET": "..."
      }
    }
  }
}

Now you can ask Claude: “Show me the open incidents on the invoice-approval process” or “Resolve all incidents on process instance 2251799813685249”.