Cheat Sheet

Reference · Chapter 55 of 63

Cheat Sheet

Kiro on one page: file paths, CLI commands, slash commands, permissions, the five surfaces, and the mistakes that bite, in scannable card form.

All levels 5 min read last reviewed 2026-09-04

◎ Learning objective

Find any core Kiro fact (concept, file path, command, or workflow) in under ten seconds.

This is every Kiro fact worth memorizing, on one page, in cards you can scan in seconds. Bookmark it, and follow a card’s link when you need the full chapter behind it.

The mental model


Specs	what gets built (plan first)
Steering	what the agent knows
Hooks	when it acts on its own
MCP / Powers	what it can reach
Agents / Skills	who it is / what it can do
Five surfaces	where it all happens
Cloud sessions	whose machine runs it

Five surfaces


IDE	desktop app, VS Code-style, from kiro.dev
CLI	`kiro-cli` in any terminal
Web	app.kiro.dev → PRs. GA since 2026-09-01, paid plans
Mobile	iOS app (preview): review and steer on the go
Crew	open-source, always-on, your own hardware

Kiro Crew


setup	`kirocrew setup`
verify	`kirocrew doctor`
run	`kirocrew gateway` (localhost:5476)
24/7	`kirocrew service install`
audit	`kirocrew security audit \| verify`
data	`~/.kiro/crew/` (`KIROCREW_HOME`)

Spec files


`requirements.md`	what: user stories, EARS criteria
`design.md`	how: architecture, sequences
`tasks.md`	steps: runs in concurrent waves
`bugfix.md`	bug analysis (bugfix specs)

EARS patterns

WHEN <event> THE SYSTEM SHALL <behavior> for normal paths
IF <error> THEN THE SYSTEM SHALL <handling> for error paths
WHILE <state> THE SYSTEM SHALL <constraint> for ongoing states
No IF/THEN lines = requirements not finished

Files & folders


`.kiro/steering/`	project rules (product/tech/structure.md)
`.kiro/settings/mcp.json`	workspace MCP servers
`.kiro/agents/`	custom agents (CLI: JSON · IDE 1.0+: Markdown)
`.kiro/skills/`	team skills (SKILL.md)
`.kiro/hooks/`	hooks (`~/.kiro/hooks/` = global)
`.kiro/specs/`	specs · `~/.kiro/powers/` = powers
`~/.kiro/…`	global scope; agents: project supersedes

CLI essentials


install (macOS/Linux)	`curl -fsSL https://cli.kiro.dev/install \| bash`
install (Windows 11)	`irm 'https://cli.kiro.dev/install.ps1' \| iex`
start	`kiro-cli`
as persona	`kiro-cli --agent reviewer`
resume	`kiro-cli chat --resume` / `--resume-picker`
direct shell	`!command` (no AI involved)
headless (CI)	`kiro-cli chat --no-interactive "…"` + `KIRO_API_KEY`
trust in CI	`--trust-tools=read,grep` · `--require-mcp-startup`
other editors	`kiro-cli acp` (JetBrains, Zed)

Slash commands


`/context show`	what’s loaded + token cost
`/context add "glob"`	include files
`/chat save\|load <path>`	export / import session
`/chat new [prompt]`	fresh session
`/agent create\|swap`	make / switch personas
`/editor` `/reply`	compose in $EDITOR
`/spec run`	full-screen task execution
`/compact`	summarize old history (CLI only, one-way)
`/effort`	low · medium · high · xhigh · max
`/tangent`	branch side-conversation
`/voice`	dictate a prompt (on-device)
`/mcp auth`	manage MCP auth
`/upgrade-agent`	migrate V2→V3 agent config
`--cloud` `--resume-id`	run / reattach a cloud session

Core workflows

Feature: spec → review requirements → review design → execute tasks → verify
Bug: bugfix spec → regression test → fix → verify
Refactor: steering current? → Supervised mode → small diffs → tests green
Chore: make it a hook, scoped narrowly

Steering rules of thumb

Three foundations: product.md, tech.md, structure.md
One domain per file, with the why
Modes: always · fileMatch · manual · auto
AGENTS.md also loads, nested, always
Never paste secrets into steering
Commit workspace steering: it’s team law

MCP config keys

Local: command, args, env (${VAR} expands)
Remote: url, headers, oauth
Control: disabled, disabledTools
autoApprove: [] default; "*" = sudo, beware
Debug via “Kiro - MCP Logs” channel

Modes & safety

Supervised: approve every hunk (learning, risky work)
Autopilot: end-to-end autonomy (trusted, bounded work)
Checkpoints: undo agent file-tool edits (IDE; CLI V3 experimental)
Golden rule: nothing ships unreviewed

Permissions

Effects: deny > ask > allow — deny always wins
Scopes: Kiro · admin · user · workspace · agent · session
User rules: ~/.kiro/settings/permissions.yaml
Workspace rules: ~/.kiro/workspace-roots/<hash>/permissions.yaml
IDE dial: Settings → Agent → kiroAgent.agentAutonomy
Prompt: Allow · Deny · Always allow · Always deny

.kiroignore

Workspace: .kiroignore (root or subdirectories)
Global: ~/.kiro/settings/kiroignore
IDE setting: kiroAgent.agentIgnoreFiles
Gitignore syntax, negation included; respects core.excludesfile
Cannot re-include inside an excluded directory
Support: IDE full · CLI V3 search only · Web/Mobile not yet

Top mistakes

Vague prompts → confident wrong code
Accepting diffs unread
autoApprove: "*" on untrusted servers
Hooks that trigger themselves
Steering files full of secrets
Trusting 2025 blog posts (check history)

Official links

☰ Chapter summary

All Kiro state lives under .kiro/ (workspace) and ~/.kiro/ (global): steering, settings, agents, skills, hooks.
Spec = requirements.md + design.md + tasks.md; bugfix specs use bugfix.md.
EARS: WHEN for normal behavior, IF/THEN for errors, WHILE for ongoing states.
CLI: kiro-cli to start; /context, /chat, /agent are the three command families that matter.
Permission effects rank deny over ask over allow, and deny wins from any scope.
Five surfaces: IDE, CLI, Web (GA on paid plans), iOS, and Kiro Crew on your own hardware.

All chapter summaries are collected on the revision page.