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— Agent harnesses ▸ ACP ▸ Nova

Nova, inside Glueprint.

Nova by Compass AI - a fully-fledged software engineer at your command. Glueprint runs Nova over the Agent Client Protocol it already speaks — adding live sessions on every device, approvals from your phone, parallel worktrees, schedules, and memory.

Nova

Compass AI

Agent
Nova
Maintainer
Compass AI
Connection
Agent Client Protocol
Wire format
JSON-RPC 2.0 over stdio
Registry version
1.1.25
License
proprietary

What is Nova?

Nova is a terminal-first AI coding assistant from the Compass Agentic Platform, distributed via npm as '@compass-ai/nova' and built on Node.js 18 or newer. It is MIT-licensed open source and works in the terminal as well as through Zed and JetBrains IDEs via the Agent Client Protocol, with companion desktop and web apps. Nova offers a 200K-token context window, a three-tier approval system (manual, auto, strict), automatic file backups with an /undo rollback, session save and load, and real-time cost and token tracking. It supports Anthropic Claude models, local Ollama, and providers including GLM, Minimax, Kimi, and Gemini, switchable mid-session.

  • MIT licensed, Node.js 18+, via npm
  • Three-tier approval: manual, auto, strict
  • File backups with /undo rollback
  • Multiple providers: Claude, Ollama, GLM, Gemini, more
  • Mid-session model switching and 200K context

Best for Developers wanting a privacy-conscious, multi-provider terminal agent with strong undo and approval controls.

Sourced from Nova's official site and repository.

How Glueprint runs Nova

Nova connects over the open Agent Client Protocol — one generic adapter implements the protocol's client side, so Nova gets the same surfaces as every other harness:

01

Glueprint spawns Nova, not a fork

Glueprint finds the Nova binary you installed and spawns it, then speaks the Agent Client Protocol — JSON-RPC 2.0 over stdio — to drive it. Same CLI, same authentication; Glueprint just wraps the session.

02

Output streams as structure

Message chunks, tool calls, and tool-call updates from Nova arrive as protocol notifications and render as the same live, typed timeline every Glueprint session gets — watchable from desktop, browser, or phone.

03

Permission requests become approval cards

When Nova asks to write a file or run a command, the protocol's permission request surfaces as an inline approval card on whatever device you're holding. Approve, deny, or auto-allow per tool.

04

One adapter, the whole fleet

Because Nova speaks ACP, adding it is a catalog entry, not an engineering project — the same adapter runs every other agent in the registry, so you can tile them side by side.

What Nova gains inside Glueprint

Everything below works with the Nova CLI you have today — no migration, no new account for the model, no lock-in. Uninstall Glueprint and your terminal workflow is exactly as it was.

Live sessions on every surface

Watch every Nova prompt, tool call, and diff stream in real time — desktop, web portal, iOS and Android. The session runs on your machine; the view follows you.

Approve from your phone

Permission prompts arrive as approval cards wherever you are. Kick off a refactor at your desk, approve the file writes from the couch.

Parallel sessions across worktrees

Run several Nova sessions side by side, each in its own git worktree, with diffs, history, and a three-pane conflict resolver alongside.

Mix harnesses in one mosaic

Tile Nova next to Claude Code, Codex, and the rest of the ACP fleet in the Command Center. The protocol differs; the surface doesn't.

Nova as a persistent assistant

Promote it to an assistant: persona, constitution, long-term memory, and a daily journal on disk, loaded into every wake.

Routines on a schedule

Wake it on cron: triage the inbox every 30 minutes, sweep PRs at 9am, run the nightly cleanup. Quiet hours and watermarks prevent re-fires.

Analytics per harness

Messages, sessions, and output tokens computed from session logs — compare Nova against Claude Code, Codex, and your other ACP agents.

Encrypted to the relay

Remote viewing rides AES-256-GCM envelope encryption. The relay routes; it cannot read.

Nova + Glueprint, asked plainly

Can I run Nova with Glueprint?

Yes. Nova is registered in the official Agent Client Protocol registry, and Glueprint implements the protocol's client side. It spawns the Nova CLI you already installed and drives it over JSON-RPC 2.0 — adding live sessions, inline approvals, worktrees, and remote control.

Do I need a separate Nova subscription or API key?

No. Glueprint doesn't resell model access. Nova authenticates exactly the way its vendor designed — its own login, subscription, or API key. Glueprint spawns the binary and speaks the protocol; it doesn't sit between you and the model provider.

Can I run Nova from my phone?

Sessions always run on your machines — a laptop, a desktop, or a server with the headless daemon. The iOS and Android app streams Nova sessions live, lets you send follow-ups, and handles permission approvals from anywhere.

Can I run Nova next to Claude Code and Codex?

Yes — that's the point. Each harness is an adapter; sessions from all of them tile into the same Command Center, share the same task boards, and roll up in the same per-harness analytics.

Is my session content private?

Yes. Remote viewing routes AES-256-GCM-encrypted envelopes through the relay, which stores a wrapped key it cannot open — decryption happens on your devices. On the free local tier, session content never leaves your machine at all. See security.

— THE LOCAL TIER IS FREE

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