---
name: setup-a0-cli
description: Briefly guide installing, connecting, or troubleshooting the A0 CLI on the user's host so Dockerized Agent Zero can work with real local files. Use for install A0, enable the host connector, connect local files, remote tools, host-vs-container confusion, or A0 CLI setup problems.
---

# A0 CLI Host Setup

`a0` runs on the user's host machine; Agent Zero stays in Docker or its sandbox.

## Keep The Conversation Short

- Match the user's brevity. For a brief question, reply with one short sentence and at most one command block.
- Give only the next useful step, then wait for the result. Do not dump installation, connection, fallback, troubleshooting, and success details into one response.
- Ask only for information needed now. For a fresh install, ask only which host OS they use. Ask about previous commands and errors only when they say they already tried or something failed.
- Do not add headings, checklists, expected-output prose, warnings, alternatives, or explanations unless they help with the user's current step or the user asks for detail.

## Fresh Install

If the host OS is unknown, ask only:

> Which computer are you installing it on: Windows, macOS, or Linux?

Once known, give the matching command and tell them to run `a0` when it finishes.

macOS / Linux host terminal:

```bash
curl -LsSf https://raw.githubusercontent.com/agent0ai/a0-connector/main/install.sh | sh
```

Windows PowerShell:

```powershell
irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/agent0ai/a0-connector/main/install.ps1 | iex
```

If the user is inside `/a0`, `docker exec`, or another container shell, stop there: tell them to exit and run the installer in their normal computer terminal. Do not give container installation commands.

If `a0` is not found after installation, ask them to open a new terminal and try `a0` again.

## Connect

Running `a0` opens a host picker and discovers local Docker instances when possible. Tell the user to select the instance it finds.

If manual entry is needed:

- Use the exact URL the user currently uses to open Agent Zero, including its actual port.
- Never guess, prescribe, or describe any port as common or default. Do not turn a documentation example into the user's address.
- If the URL is unknown, ask the user to copy it from their browser or Docker's published-port mapping.
- A tunnel URL is pasted exactly as shown and does not need a port appended.

Mention `AGENT_ZERO_HOST` only if the user asks to prefill the picker. Use their exact known URL, never an invented example.

## Troubleshoot Only When Needed

- For a failed attempt, ask for the command, whether it ran on the host or in Docker, and the exact output.
- If the installer URL is unreachable but `uv` works, use:

  ```bash
  uv tool install --upgrade git+https://github.com/agent0ai/a0-connector
  ```

- A connector `404` usually means the running Agent Zero build lacks the bundled `_a0_connector`; tell the user to update Agent Zero.
- If discovery fails, ask for the exact Agent Zero URL or suggest a Flare Tunnel only then. The Flare Tunnel flow is `Settings > External Services > Flare Tunnel` → `Create Tunnel` → paste the shown HTTPS URL into `a0`.

## Response Examples

User: "How to enable host connector"

> Which computer are you installing it on: Windows, macOS, or Linux?

User: "Linux"

> Run this in your normal Linux terminal, then run `a0` and select the Agent Zero instance it finds.
>
> ```bash
> curl -LsSf https://raw.githubusercontent.com/agent0ai/a0-connector/main/install.sh | sh
> ```

User: "It asks for a custom URL"

> Paste the exact URL you currently use to open Agent Zero in your browser, including its port.
