CLI Documentation

Installation

Prerequisites

Install uv first: brew install uv

Install the DiffUSE CLI with a single command. Choose HTTPS or SSH based on your setup:

Option 1: HTTPS (requires gh CLI)

uv tool install git+https://github.com/diff-use/webapp.git#subdirectory=cli

Uses GitHub's HTTPS protocol. Requires the GitHub CLI (gh auth login) for authentication to private repositories.

Option 2: SSH (requires SSH key)

uv tool install git+ssh://git@github.com/diff-use/webapp.git#subdirectory=cli

Uses SSH protocol. Requires a valid SSH key configured in your GitHub account.

Verify installation:

# Show help (both -h and --help work for all commands)
diffuse -h
diffuse list -h

Upgrade to latest version:

uv tool upgrade diffuse-cli

The CLI automatically checks for updates once per day and notifies you when a new version is available.

SSH Key Troubleshooting

If using SSH (git+ssh://...) with a password-protected key, uv may appear stuck on "Resolving dependencies..." because the password prompt is hidden. Add -v for verbose mode to see the prompt. If you see a GitHub host authenticity warning, run: ssh-keyscan github.com >> ~/.ssh/known_hosts

Authentication

Authenticate with GitHub to access private experiments and perform write operations:

Command	Description
`diffuse auth login`	Login via GitHub device flow
`diffuse auth status`	Check authentication and API health
`diffuse auth logout`	Clear stored credentials

Example: Login with GitHub

$ diffuse auth login
============================================================
Visit: https://github.com/login/device
Enter code: ABCD-1234
============================================================
Waiting for authorization (expires in 900s)...
✓ Authentication successful!

# Get your token from ~/.diffuse/config.json
TOKEN=$(cat ~/.diffuse/config.json | jq -r '.github_token')

# Check authentication status
curl -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  https://app.diffuse.science/api/whoami

API Keys

Manage personal API keys for programmatic access and CI/automation workflows:

Command	Description
`diffuse keys list`	List your personal API keys
`diffuse keys create NAME`	Create a new personal API key (`--description` to add a purpose, `--save` to store locally, `--expires-in-days N` for auto-expiry)
`diffuse keys revoke KEY_ID`	Revoke an API key
`diffuse keys set KEY`	Store an API key in local config
`diffuse keys clear`	Remove stored API key from local config

Example: Create and store an API key

# Create a key and save it to ~/.diffuse/config.json
$ diffuse keys create "ci-runner" --save
✓ API key created: dfk_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
✓ Key saved to ~/.diffuse/config.json

# Use the DIFFUSE_API_KEY environment variable for CI/automation
export DIFFUSE_API_KEY=dfk_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
diffuse list

Auth priority: DIFFUSE_API_KEY env var > api_key in config > github_token in config. Set DIFFUSE_API_KEY in CI to avoid committing credentials.

API_KEY=dfk_xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

# List personal keys
curl -H "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" \
  https://app.diffuse.science/api/api-keys/personal

# Create a personal key
curl -X POST -H "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "ci-runner"}' \
  https://app.diffuse.science/api/api-keys/personal

# Revoke a key
curl -X DELETE -H "Authorization: Bearer $API_KEY" \
  https://app.diffuse.science/api/api-keys/personal/{key_id}

Experiments

Create, view, edit, and manage experiments from the command line:

Command	Description
`diffuse list`	List all experiments (tree format by default)
`diffuse view <id>`	View experiment details
`diffuse types`	List available experiment types
`diffuse create`	Create a new experiment
`diffuse edit <id>`	Edit an experiment
`diffuse delete <id>`	Delete an experiment
`diffuse publish <id>`	Publish to public catalog
`diffuse unpublish <id>`	Unpublish from catalog

CLI:

# List all experiments (tree format, interactive pagination)
diffuse list

# Query syntax (field:value, AND/OR/NOT, comparisons, wildcards)
diffuse list -q "tag:crystal AND type:mx"
diffuse list -q "author:smith OR author:jones"
diffuse list -q "created:>2024-01-01 AND public:true"
diffuse list -q "beamline:*"  # All experiments with beamline set

# Text search (searches title, summary, tags)
diffuse list -q "lysozyme"

# Output formats: tree (default), table, json, yaml
diffuse list -f table
diffuse list -f json

# Pagination: use --page/-p to get a specific page
diffuse list --page 1 --page-size 10
diffuse list -p 2 -n 20

# Sort experiments
diffuse list -s recent
diffuse list -s title

# Combine query and sorting
diffuse list -q "tag:processed AND type:mx" -s title

curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments

CLI:

# Interactive prompt
diffuse create

# With flags
diffuse create \
  --title "ResNet Training Run" \
  --summary "Training ResNet-50 on ImageNet" \
  --tags "vision,resnet,imagenet"

# With experiment type (see 'diffuse types' for available types)
diffuse create \
  -t "My Protocol" \
  --type protocol

# With markdown file
diffuse create \
  --title "Experiment Log" \
  --markdown ./experiment.md

curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "title": "ResNet Training Run",
    "summary": "Training ResNet-50 on ImageNet",
    "tags": ["vision", "resnet", "imagenet"]
  }'

CLI:

# View experiment details (tree format by default)
diffuse view EXP-123

# Output formats: tree (default), table, json, yaml
diffuse view EXP-123 -f table
diffuse view EXP-123 -f json

curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-123

CLI:

# Update title or summary
diffuse edit EXP-123 --title "Updated Title"
diffuse edit EXP-123 --summary "New summary"

# Update tags
diffuse edit EXP-123 --tags "new,tags,here"

# Open markdown in $EDITOR
diffuse edit EXP-123 --editor

# Update from markdown file
diffuse edit EXP-123 --markdown ./updated.md

curl -X PATCH https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-123 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "title": "Updated Title",
    "summary": "New summary"
  }'

CLI:

# Publish experiment
diffuse publish EXP-123

# Unpublish experiment
diffuse unpublish EXP-123

# Publish
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-123/publish \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

# Unpublish
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-123/unpublish \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Search & Filtering

Find experiments by text, tags, metadata fields, and more. All filtering happens server-side for efficiency.

Text Search

Title and summary

Parameter	Description	Example
`q`	Query string with search syntax	`?q=tag:crystal AND type:mx`
`search`	Legacy Text search	`?search=resnet`
`tag`	Legacy Filter by tag	`?tag=vision`
`sort`	Sort field	`?sort=title`
`order`	Sort direction	`?order=asc`
`limit`	Max results (1-200)	`?limit=20`
`offset`	Skip N results	`?offset=20`

Metadata

# Set individual metadata field
diffuse metadata set EXP-123 learning_rate 0.001

# Apply metadata from JSON file
echo '{"learning_rate": "0.001", "batch_size": "32"}' > metadata.json
diffuse metadata apply EXP-123 -f metadata.json

# Get metadata
diffuse metadata get EXP-123

# API: set metadata
curl -X PATCH https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-123/metadata \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"metadata": {"learning_rate": "0.001", "batch_size": "32"}}'

Discover Available Filter Values

# Get metadata facets - shows all field values and counts
curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/metadata/facets

# Response example:
# [
#   {
#     "field_key": "dataset",
#     "field_display_name": "Dataset",
#     "values": {"mnist": 5, "cifar10": 3, "imagenet": 2}
#   },
#   {
#     "field_key": "optimizer",
#     "field_display_name": "Optimizer",
#     "values": {"adam": 8, "sgd": 4}
#   }
# ]

Experiment Relationships

Link experiments together to track dependencies, data reuse, and related work:

Relationship Types

uses: Indicates one experiment uses data or results from another (e.g., "Experiment A uses the dataset from Experiment B")
relates_to: General association between experiments (e.g., related analyses, follow-up studies)

Command	Description
`diffuse relationships list <id>`	List all relationships for an experiment
`diffuse relationships add <from> <to>`	Create a relationship between experiments
`diffuse relationships remove <from> <to>`	Remove a relationship between experiments

CLI:

# List all relationships for an experiment
diffuse relationships list EXP-5

# Output formats: tree (default), table, json, yaml
diffuse relationships list EXP-5 -f table
diffuse relationships list EXP-5 -f json

curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-5/relationships \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

CLI:

# Create a "uses" relationship (EXP-10 uses data from EXP-5)
diffuse relationships add EXP-10 EXP-5 --type uses

# Create a "relates_to" relationship (general association)
diffuse relationships add EXP-10 EXP-7 --type relates_to

# Default type is "uses" if not specified
diffuse relationships add EXP-10 EXP-5

curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-10/relationships \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "from_experiment_id": "EXP-10",
    "to_experiment_id": "EXP-5",
    "relationship_type": "uses"
  }'

CLI:

# Remove a "uses" relationship
diffuse relationships remove EXP-10 EXP-5 --type uses

# Remove a "relates_to" relationship
diffuse relationships remove EXP-10 EXP-7 --type relates_to

curl -X DELETE "https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-10/relationships?from_experiment_id=EXP-10&to_experiment_id=EXP-5&relationship_type=uses" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

File Uploads & Downloads

Upload artifacts and download experiment data:

Command	Description
`diffuse upload <id> <paths...>`	Upload files or directories to experiment
`diffuse download <id> <name>`	Download an artifact

Upload Examples:

# Upload a single file
diffuse upload EXP-123 ./model.pth

# Upload a directory (recursive, preserves structure)
diffuse upload EXP-123 ./checkpoints/

# Upload multiple files via glob pattern
diffuse upload EXP-123 *.log
diffuse upload EXP-123 results_*.csv

# Upload specific files
diffuse upload EXP-123 model.pth config.yaml metrics.json

# Mix files and directories
diffuse upload EXP-123 ./data/ summary.txt

# Control upload parallelism (default: 32 concurrent streams)
diffuse upload EXP-123 large_file.bin -c 16

Smart Upload Optimizations

Deduplication: Files with matching SHA256 checksums are skipped if already on server
Checksum caching: Local cache (~/.diffuse/checksum_cache.json) avoids recomputing checksums for unchanged files
Resumable uploads: Use --resume to continue interrupted uploads
Parallel streams: 32 concurrent streams by default (tune with -c)
Auto-retry: Failed parts automatically retried with exponential backoff
Mtime preservation: Original file modification times are stored, enabling efficient delta sync without recomputing checksums

Directory Upload Exclusions

Directory uploads automatically exclude: __pycache__, .git, .venv, node_modules, *.pyc, and other common non-essential files.

# 1. Create upload session
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/uploads/session \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "experiment_id": "EXP-123",
    "filename": "model.pth",
    "content_type": "application/octet-stream",
    "size_bytes": 102400,
    "metadata_document": {}
  }'

# 2. Upload chunks to presigned URLs (from response above)
# Upload each part to its presigned URL
curl -X PUT "$PRESIGNED_URL_PART_1" \
  --data-binary @model.pth.part1 \
  -H "Content-Type: application/octet-stream"

# Capture ETag from response headers for finalization
# ETag: "abc123..."

# 3. Finalize upload
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/uploads/sess_xyz/finalize \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "session_id": "sess_xyz",
    "parts": [
      {"part_number": 1, "etag": "abc123"},
      {"part_number": 2, "etag": "def456"}
    ],
    "metadata_document": {}
  }'

Download Example:

# Download artifact
diffuse download EXP-123 model.pth

# Save to specific location
diffuse download EXP-123 model.pth --output ./downloads/model.pth

# Get presigned download URL
curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-123/artifacts/model.pth/download \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

# Download file using the presigned URL from response
curl -o model.pth "$PRESIGNED_DOWNLOAD_URL"

Artifact Management

New: M:N Architecture

Artifacts can now be connected to multiple experiments. Upload once, reuse everywhere!

Manage artifacts across experiments with connect/disconnect operations:

Command	Description
`diffuse artifacts list`	List all artifacts (global view)
`diffuse artifacts list --experiment EXP-5`	List artifacts connected to experiment
`diffuse artifacts info <artifact-id>`	Show artifact details and connections
`diffuse artifacts connect EXP-5 <id> [<id>...]`	Connect one or more artifacts to experiment
`diffuse artifacts disconnect EXP-5 <id> [<id>...]`	Disconnect one or more artifacts from experiment
`diffuse artifacts delete <artifact-id>`	Delete artifact (fails if connected)

CLI:

# List all artifacts (tree format by default)
diffuse artifacts list

# Output formats: tree (default), table, json, yaml
diffuse artifacts list -f table

# Filter by experiment
diffuse artifacts list --experiment EXP-5

# Show orphaned artifacts (no connections)
diffuse artifacts list --orphaned

# List all artifacts
curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/artifacts \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

# Filter by experiment
curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/artifacts?experiment_id=EXP-5 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

CLI:

# Show artifact details including all connected experiments
diffuse artifacts info <artifact-id>

# Example output:
# Artifact: model.pth
# Type: internal
# Size: 245.3 MB
# Status: ready
# Connected to 3 experiments:
#   - EXP-5: ./baseline-model.pth
#   - EXP-7: ./improved-model.pth
#   - EXP-12: ./final-model.pth

curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/artifacts/<artifact-id> \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

CLI:

# Connect existing artifact to experiment
diffuse artifacts connect EXP-7 <artifact-id>

# Connect multiple artifacts at once
diffuse artifacts connect EXP-7 artifact-1 artifact-2 artifact-3

# Disconnect artifact from experiment
diffuse artifacts disconnect EXP-7 <artifact-id>

# Disconnect multiple artifacts at once
diffuse artifacts disconnect EXP-7 artifact-1 artifact-2

# Example workflow: Upload to Exp A, connect to Exp B
diffuse upload EXP-5 ./model.pth  # Returns artifact-id: abc123
diffuse artifacts connect EXP-7 abc123

# Connect single artifact
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-7/artifacts/connect \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"artifact_id": "abc123"}'

# Batch connect multiple artifacts
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/artifacts/batch-connect \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "experiment_id": "EXP-7",
    "artifact_ids": ["artifact-1", "artifact-2", "artifact-3"]
  }'

# Disconnect artifact
curl -X DELETE https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-7/artifacts/abc123 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

CLI:

# Delete artifact (only works if disconnected from all experiments)
diffuse artifacts delete <artifact-id>

# If still connected, you'll see:
# Error: Cannot delete artifact. Still connected to 2 experiment(s):
#   - EXP-5
#   - EXP-7
# Use 'diffuse artifacts disconnect' first.

# Admin force delete (even if connected)
diffuse artifacts delete <artifact-id> --force

Deletion Policy

Internal artifacts are permanently deleted from S3. External artifacts only remove the database record—files remain in their external bucket.

# Admin force delete
curl -X DELETE https://app.diffuse.science/api/artifacts/<artifact-id>/force-delete \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Collections

Collections provide logical grouping for artifacts, enabling organization, sharing, and versioning across multiple experiments. Collections support an M:M:M relationship: Experiments ↔ Collections ↔ Artifacts.

Display IDs

Collections use COL-N format (e.g., COL-1, COL-42) for easy citation and reference.

Command	Description
`diffuse collections list`	List all collections
`diffuse collections create "Name"`	Create a new collection
`diffuse collections info COL-5`	Show collection details
`diffuse collections update COL-5`	Update collection metadata
`diffuse collections delete COL-5`	Delete a collection
`diffuse collections add COL-5 <artifact-ids>`	Add artifacts to collection
`diffuse collections remove COL-5 <artifact-ids>`	Remove artifacts from collection
`diffuse collections connect COL-5 EXP-10`	Connect collection to experiment
`diffuse collections disconnect COL-5 EXP-10`	Disconnect from experiment
`diffuse collections snapshot COL-5`	Create immutable snapshot
`diffuse collections snapshots COL-5`	List collection snapshots

CLI:

# List all collections (tree format)
diffuse collections list

# Table format
diffuse collections list -f table

# Search by name
diffuse collections list --search "training"

# Filter by tag
diffuse collections list --tag ml --tag 2024

# Include snapshots
diffuse collections list --include-snapshots

# JSON output for scripting
diffuse collections list -f json

# List collections
curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/collections \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

# With search and tag filters
curl "https://app.diffuse.science/api/collections?search=training&tag=ml" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

CLI:

# Create a new collection
diffuse collections create "Training Data v2" \
  --description "Updated dataset with augmentations" \
  --tag ml --tag 2024

# Update collection metadata
diffuse collections update COL-5 --name "Training Data v2.1"
diffuse collections update COL-5 --description "New description"
diffuse collections update COL-5 --add-tag production
diffuse collections update COL-5 --remove-tag draft

# Delete (blocked if connected to experiments)
diffuse collections delete COL-5

# Force delete (admin only)
diffuse collections delete COL-5 --force

# Create collection
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/collections \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "Training Data v2",
    "description": "Updated dataset with augmentations",
    "tags": ["ml", "2024"]
  }'

# Update collection
curl -X PATCH https://app.diffuse.science/api/collections/COL-5 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Training Data v2.1"}'

CLI:

# Add artifacts to a collection
diffuse collections add COL-5 <artifact-id>

# Add multiple artifacts at once
diffuse collections add COL-5 artifact-1 artifact-2 artifact-3

# Add with custom path (how it appears in collection)
diffuse collections add COL-5 artifact-1 --path "./custom/path.csv"

# Remove artifact from collection
diffuse collections remove COL-5 <artifact-id>

# Remove multiple artifacts
diffuse collections remove COL-5 artifact-1 artifact-2

Note: Removing an artifact from a collection does NOT delete the artifact—it only removes the membership. The artifact remains available in the artifact library.

# Add artifact
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/collections/COL-5/artifacts \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"artifact_id": "abc123", "artifact_path": "./data.csv"}'

# Batch add
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/collections/COL-5/artifacts/batch \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"artifact_ids": ["artifact-1", "artifact-2"]}'

# Remove artifact
curl -X DELETE https://app.diffuse.science/api/collections/COL-5/artifacts/abc123 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

CLI:

# Connect a collection to an experiment
diffuse collections connect COL-5 EXP-10

# Connect with an alias (context-specific name)
diffuse collections connect COL-5 EXP-10 --alias "Primary Training Data"

# Disconnect collection from experiment
diffuse collections disconnect COL-5 EXP-10

# Example workflow: Multiple experiments sharing one collection
diffuse collections connect COL-5 EXP-10  # Base experiment
diffuse collections connect COL-5 EXP-11  # Ablation study
diffuse collections connect COL-5 EXP-12  # Extended training

Tip: Collections enable artifact reuse without duplication. When 10+ experiments use the same dataset, connect them all to one collection instead of duplicating artifact connections.

# Connect collection to experiment
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-10/collections/connect \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"collection_id": "COL-5", "alias": "Primary Training Data"}'

# Disconnect
curl -X DELETE https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-10/collections/COL-5 \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

CLI:

# Create an immutable snapshot
diffuse collections snapshot COL-5 --note "Pre-publication freeze"

# List all snapshots of a collection
diffuse collections snapshots COL-5

# Example workflow: Publication versioning
diffuse collections create "ImageNet Training v1"
diffuse collections add COL-1 artifact-1 artifact-2 artifact-3
# ... later, before publishing ...
diffuse collections snapshot COL-1 --note "Paper submission v1"
# ... after revisions ...
diffuse collections add COL-1 artifact-4
diffuse collections snapshot COL-1 --note "Camera ready version"

Snapshots are Immutable

Once created, snapshots cannot be modified—you cannot add or remove artifacts. This ensures reproducibility for published research and citations.

# Create snapshot
curl -X POST https://app.diffuse.science/api/collections/COL-5/snapshots \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"note": "Pre-publication freeze"}'

# List snapshots
curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/collections/COL-5/snapshots \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN"

Metadata Management

View and manage experiment metadata fields:

Command	Description
`diffuse metadata get <id>`	Get experiment metadata
`diffuse metadata set <id> <key> <value>`	Set a metadata field
`diffuse metadata apply <id> -f <file>`	Apply metadata from file
`diffuse metadata fields`	List available field definitions

Example: Set metadata field

# Set individual field
diffuse metadata set EXP-123 learning_rate 0.001

# Get all metadata
diffuse metadata get EXP-123

# Apply from JSON file
echo '{"learning_rate": 0.001, "batch_size": 32}' > metadata.json
diffuse metadata apply EXP-123 -f metadata.json

# Set metadata
curl -X PATCH https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-123/metadata \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "metadata": {
      "learning_rate": 0.001,
      "batch_size": 32
    }
  }'

# Get metadata
curl https://app.diffuse.science/api/experiments/EXP-123/metadata

Activity & Audit Log

View recent activity:

# View last 20 activities (tree format by default)
diffuse activity

# Limit results
diffuse activity -n 50

# Output formats: tree (default), table, json, yaml
diffuse activity -f table
diffuse activity -f json

curl -H "Authorization: Bearer $TOKEN" \
  https://app.diffuse.science/api/activity

Configuration

Manage CLI configuration stored in ~/.diffuse/config.json:

Command	Description
`diffuse config view`	View current configuration
`diffuse config set <key> <value>`	Set configuration value
`diffuse config reset`	Reset configuration
`diffuse config env`	Show current environment
`diffuse config env --list`	List available environments
`diffuse config env <name>`	Switch environment (local/staging/prod)

Environment Configuration

The CLI connects to production (https://app.diffuse.science) by default. Use diffuse config env --list to see all environments.

Switch Environments:

# Show available environments
diffuse config env --list

# Switch to staging
diffuse config env staging

# Switch to local development
diffuse config env local

# Switch back to production
diffuse config env prod

# Check current environment
diffuse config env

Environment Priority (highest to lowest):

--server flag on each command
DIFFUSE_API_URL environment variable (full URL)
DIFFUSE_ENV environment variable (local/staging/prod)
Persistent config file (~/.diffuse/config.json)
Default: Production (https://app.diffuse.science)

Other Configuration Examples:

# View current config
diffuse config view

# Use per-command override
diffuse list --server https://custom.example.com

# Use environment variable (temporary)
export DIFFUSE_API_URL=https://custom.example.com
diffuse list

# Check authentication status (shows current API and GitHub Client ID)
diffuse auth status

Security Note

Your GitHub token is stored in ~/.diffuse/config.json with restricted permissions (0600). Never commit this file to version control.

Metadata Fields

Admin Role Required

Create, update, and delete operations require admin privileges. List and view operations are available to all users.

Define metadata fields that can be associated with experiment types:

Command	Description
`diffuse fields list [--include-inactive]`	List all field definitions
`diffuse fields create -k KEY -n NAME`	Create a new metadata field
`diffuse fields update FIELD_ID`	Update a field's properties
`diffuse fields delete FIELD_ID`	Delete a metadata field

# List all field definitions
diffuse fields list

# Include inactive fields
diffuse fields list --include-inactive

# Create a numeric field with unit
diffuse fields create \
  -k resolution \
  -n "Resolution" \
  --type NUMBER \
  --unit "angstrom" \
  --required

# Create an enum field with allowed values
diffuse fields create \
  -k status \
  -n "Status" \
  --type ENUM \
  --allowed-values "pending,running,completed,failed"

# Create a field with a default value
diffuse fields create \
  -k priority \
  -n "Priority" \
  --type NUMBER \
  --default "5"

# Update a field name
diffuse fields update resolution --name "Crystal Resolution"

# Deactivate a field
diffuse fields update resolution --inactive

# Delete a field (with confirmation)
diffuse fields delete resolution

# Delete without confirmation prompt
diffuse fields delete resolution -y

Experiment Types

Admin Role Required

Create, update, and delete operations require admin privileges. List and view operations are available to all users.

Manage experiment types and their associated metadata fields:

Command	Description
`diffuse types list [--include-inactive]`	List all experiment types
`diffuse types view TYPE_ID`	View type details with associated fields
`diffuse types create -n NAME -d DISPLAY_NAME`	Create a new experiment type
`diffuse types update TYPE_ID`	Update a type's properties
`diffuse types delete TYPE_ID`	Delete an experiment type
`diffuse types set-fields TYPE_ID FIELD_IDS...`	Associate metadata fields with a type

# List all experiment types
diffuse types list

# Include inactive types
diffuse types list --include-inactive

# View type with associated fields
diffuse types view protocol

# Create a new experiment type
diffuse types create \
  -n crystallography \
  -d "Crystallography Experiment" \
  --description "Standard MX data collection"

# Create a type with a template file
diffuse types create \
  -n cryo-em \
  -d "Cryo-EM Experiment" \
  --template ./template.md

# Update a type's display name
diffuse types update crystallography --display-name "X-ray Crystallography"

# Update a type's template
diffuse types update crystallography --template ./new-template.md

# Deactivate a type
diffuse types update crystallography --inactive

# Associate metadata fields with a type
diffuse types set-fields crystallography resolution beamline wavelength

# Delete a type (with confirmation)
diffuse types delete crystallography

# Delete without confirmation prompt
diffuse types delete crystallography -y

Advanced Usage

Scripting & Automation

The CLI is designed for scripting and CI/CD integration:

#!/bin/bash
# Create experiment and upload results

EXP_ID=$(diffuse create \
  --title "Automated Run $(date +%Y%m%d)" \
  --tags "automation,ci" \
  --format json | jq -r '.id')

echo "Created experiment: $EXP_ID"

# Upload entire checkpoints directory (recursive)
diffuse upload $EXP_ID ./checkpoints/

# Or upload individual files
diffuse upload $EXP_ID ./model.pth
diffuse upload $EXP_ID ./metrics.json

# Set metadata
diffuse metadata set $EXP_ID commit_sha $GITHUB_SHA
diffuse metadata set $EXP_ID build_number $BUILD_NUMBER

# Publish if successful
if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
  diffuse publish $EXP_ID
fi

GitHub Actions Integration

name: Train and Track
on: [push]
jobs:
  train:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - name: Install uv
        run: curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh
      - name: Install DiffUSE CLI
        run: |
          git clone https://github.com/diff-use/webapp.git /tmp/diffuse
          cd /tmp/diffuse/cli
          uv tool install .
      - name: Authenticate
        run: |
          mkdir -p ~/.diffuse
          echo '{"github_token": "${{ secrets.DIFFUSE_TOKEN }}"}' > ~/.diffuse/config.json
      - name: Create experiment
        run: |
          EXP_ID=$(diffuse create --title "Run ${{ github.run_number }}" --format json | jq -r '.id')
          echo "EXP_ID=$EXP_ID" >> $GITHUB_ENV
      - name: Train model
        run: python train.py
      - name: Upload results
        run: diffuse upload ${{ env.EXP_ID }} ./model.pth

Governance

Manage governance tasks for data quality and compliance.

# List all tasks
diffuse governance list

# Filter by type (duplicate_review, missing_metadata, validation_failure, enrichment_required)
diffuse governance list --type missing_metadata

# Filter by status (open, in_progress, resolved, dismissed)
diffuse governance list --status open

# Filter by experiment
diffuse governance list --experiment EXP-1

# Show only tasks assigned to me
diffuse governance list --mine

# Table output format
diffuse governance list -f table

# View task details
diffuse governance view <task-id>

# JSON output
diffuse governance view <task-id> -f json

# Create a task (required: --title, --type)
diffuse governance create \
  --title "Missing sample metadata" \
  --type missing_metadata

# Create with all options
diffuse governance create \
  --title "Review duplicate files" \
  --type duplicate_review \
  --priority high \
  --description "Multiple artifacts with same checksum" \
  --experiment EXP-5

# Task types: duplicate_review, missing_metadata, validation_failure, enrichment_required
# Priorities: low, medium, high, critical

# Update title
diffuse governance update <task-id> --title "New title"

# Update status to in_progress
diffuse governance update <task-id> --status in_progress

# Update priority
diffuse governance update <task-id> --priority high

# Resolve task
diffuse governance resolve <task-id>

# Resolve with notes
diffuse governance resolve <task-id> --notes "Deleted duplicate artifacts"

# Dismiss task with reason (required)
diffuse governance dismiss <task-id> --reason "False positive"

Admin Role Required

Hard delete removes the task permanently.

# Delete task (requires confirmation)
diffuse governance delete <task-id>

# Skip confirmation
diffuse governance delete <task-id> -y

Quick Links

Installation

Prerequisites

SSH Key Troubleshooting

Authentication

API Keys

Experiments

Search & Filtering

Tags

Metadata

Discover Available Filter Values

Experiment Relationships

Relationship Types

File Uploads & Downloads

Smart Upload Optimizations

Directory Upload Exclusions

Artifact Management

New: M:N Architecture

Deletion Policy

Collections

Display IDs

Snapshots are Immutable

Metadata Management

Activity & Audit Log

Configuration

Environment Configuration

Security Note

Metadata Fields

Admin Role Required

Experiment Types

Admin Role Required

Advanced Usage

Scripting & Automation

GitHub Actions Integration

Governance

Admin Role Required