Vera

Install Guide · Features · Query Guide · Benchmarks · How It Works · Models · Supported Languages

Vector Enhanced Reranking Agent

Code search that combines BM25 keyword matching, vector similarity, and cross-encoder reranking. Supports 65 languages (61 with tree-sitter parsing), runs locally, returns structured results with file paths, line ranges, symbol metadata, and relevance scores.

Quick Start

1. Install

bunx @vera-ai/cli install   # or: npx -y @vera-ai/cli install / uvx vera-ai install

2. Set up models (pick one)

vera setup                       # Interactive wizard (auto-detects your hardware)
vera setup --api                 # API mode: works everywhere, no GPU needed (recommended)
vera setup --onnx-jina-coreml    # Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3/M4)
vera setup --onnx-jina-cuda      # NVIDIA GPU
vera setup --onnx-jina-rocm      # AMD GPU (ROCm, Linux)
vera setup --onnx-jina-openvino  # Intel GPU (OpenVINO, Linux)
vera setup --onnx-jina-directml  # DirectX 12 GPU (Windows)

3. Index and search

vera index .
vera search "authentication logic"

What Sets Vera Apart

Vera started after weeks of working on Pampax, a project I forked because it and other similar tools were missing what I wanted. I kept running into deep-rooted bugs, less-than-ideal design decisions, and thought I could build something better from the ground up. Every design choice comes from careful research, learning from other projects, benchmarking and evaluation. Take a look at the full feature list to see everything Vera can do.

Installation

Use the quick start above if you just want to get going. This section helps you pick the right backend.

bunx @vera-ai/cli install   # or: npx -y @vera-ai/cli install / uvx vera-ai install

Pick Your Backend

Vera itself is always local: the index lives in .vera/ per project, config and models in $XDG_DATA_HOME/vera (or ~/.vera for existing installs). The backend choice only affects where embeddings and reranking run.

API mode works with any OpenAI-compatible endpoint and needs no local compute. Local mode downloads two curated ONNX models and auto-detects your GPU; a GPU is recommended since CPU-only indexing is slow. After the first index, vera update . only re-embeds changed files, so incremental updates are fast on any backend. Full details: docs/models.md.

For step-by-step instructions, API provider options, Docker, building from source, and troubleshooting, see the full Installation Guide.

vera mcp   # or: bunx @vera-ai/cli mcp / uvx vera-ai mcp

Exposes search_code, get_stats, get_overview, and regex_search tools. search_code auto-indexes and starts a file watcher on first use if no index exists. The MCP surface stays intentionally small; use the CLI skill path when you need the full command set.

Usage

Core Workflow

vera index .
vera search "authentication logic"
vera update .

Search Patterns

vera search "error handling" --lang rust
vera search "routes" --path "src/**/*.ts"
vera search "handler" --type function --limit 5
vera search "OAuth token refresh" "JWT expiry handling" "auth middleware"
vera search "config" --intent "find where database connection strings are loaded"
vera search "config loading" --deep
vera search "auth" --compact

Common Tasks

See the query guide for search tips, the feature list for the full command surface, and vera --help for CLI details.

Output

Defaults to markdown codeblocks (the most token-efficient format for AI agents):

```src/auth/login.rs:42-68 function:authenticate
pub fn authenticate(credentials: &Credentials) -> Result<Token> { ... }
```

Use --json for compact JSON. --raw and --timing work with vera search and vera grep, and you can place them before or after the subcommand (for example, vera --timing search "auth" or vera grep "TODO" --raw).

Excluding Files

Vera respects .gitignore by default. Create a .veraignore file (gitignore syntax) for more control, or use --exclude flags. Details: docs/features.md.

Benchmarks

21-task benchmark across ripgrep, flask, fastify, and turborepo:

Full methodology and version history: docs/benchmarks.md.

Configure Your AI Agent

vera agent install installs the Vera skill for supported coding agents and can add a short usage snippet to your project's AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, COPILOT.md, or editor rules file.

vera agent install
vera agent install --client all

If you use the skills CLI, you can install Vera there too:

npx skills add lemon07r/Vera

If you skipped the prompt and want to add the instructions manually, use the snippet in the Installation Guide.

Contributing

See CONTRIBUTING.md.