Dashboard

ctxfile ui starts a local dashboard: a cockpit for snapshots, the captured context, and Pro features. It is a viewer and control surface over the same engine the MCP server uses; agents never need it.

Starting it

ctxfile ui                # opens your browser
ctxfile ui --no-open      # just prints the URL
ctxfile ui --port 5000    # explicit port (default 4747)

The printed URL carries a one-time access token in the URL fragment. Open the dashboard through that URL; a bare http://127.0.0.1:4747 is refused. The server binds to 127.0.0.1 only, sends a strict Content-Security-Policy, and is never reachable from your network.

Views

View	What it shows
Overview	Run snapshots and watch them live: each connector lights up as it starts and finishes (streamed over SSE), the token meter fills against the budget, and recent snapshots chart their token usage. Stats: tokens used, key files, redactions, snapshot age (flags stale).
Context	The captured ContextObject as a filterable, virtualised tree: plan, every key file with its token count and redactions, git state, Notion pages, notes, sessions. Files open in a syntax-coloured view with line numbers and wrap; plan, notes, and session text render as Markdown; the JSON view is collapsible. Scope switch (full / plan / files / git) and “Copy payload”.
Git	Staged / modified / untracked columns, a commit timeline, and the diff summary as diffstat bars with a raw toggle.
Sessions (Pro)	Session digests from every connected tool, grouped by day, with per-source filters and search. Each shows source, turn count, and last activity.
Memory	Free: imported memory by scope (global and this project), a pending queue with approve and reject, and an Import sheet that copies the export prompt and takes a pasted reply. Pro adds the encrypted memory entries below it, grouped by the agent that wrote them, with provenance, search, and forget behind a confirmation.
Playbooks (Pro)	Reusable prompts distilled from your sessions: filter, copy, expand, remove; placeholders like `<feature>` are highlighted so you know what to fill in.
Consult (Pro)	Ask your configured providers a question; answers stream as Markdown in side-by-side columns, with a Stop button and suggested questions to start from.
Settings	The network gauge (how many remote opt-ins are enabled; 0 means fully local), resolved configuration, connector status, license activation and feature flags, and the privacy defaults.

Keyboard

Key	Action
R	Run a snapshot from any view.
⌘K / Ctrl+K	Command palette: fuzzy search, grouped by views, actions, and settings.
1 – 8	Switch views.
/	Focus the filter in the current view.
[	Collapse or expand the sidebar.
?	Shortcuts help.
Esc	Close palettes and dialogs.

License activation

Paste a Pro key into Settings → License (or run ctxfile activate <key>). Verification is local Ed25519; the tier, expiry, and per-feature flags render immediately. See Pro.

Behavior worth knowing

Snapshot runs are single-flight: pressing R during a run does not queue a second build.
If the ctxfile ui process dies, the page shows a “server unreachable” overlay and reconnects automatically when you restart it.
The view is in the URL hash (#/context), so refresh and back/forward keep your place.
The sidebar collapses to an icon rail and becomes a drawer on narrow screens.
Dark and light themes; the toggle lives in the top bar and persists.