Arduino CLI Skill#

This skill provides guidance for using the arduino-cli to manage Arduino projects, boards, cores, and libraries from the command line.

Quick Reference#

1. Configuration & Setup#

Initialize the configuration file (usually in ~/.arduino15/arduino-cli.yaml):

bash

arduino-cli config init

Update the local cache of available platforms and libraries (do this first!):

bash

arduino-cli core update-index

2. Board Management#

List connected boards to find the port and FQBN (Fully Qualified Board Name):

bash

arduino-cli board list

List all supported boards and their FQBN strings:

bash

arduino-cli board listall <search_term>

3. Core (Platform) Management#

Search for a core:

bash

arduino-cli core search <keyword>

Install a core using its ID (e.g., arduino:samd):

bash

arduino-cli core install <core_id>

List installed cores:

bash

arduino-cli core list

4. Sketch Workflow#

Create a new sketch:

bash

arduino-cli sketch new <SketchName>

Compile a sketch (requires the board's FQBN):

bash

arduino-cli compile --fqbn <FQBN> <SketchName>

Example: arduino-cli compile --fqbn arduino:samd:mkr1000 MyFirstSketch

Upload a sketch to a connected board:

bash

arduino-cli upload -p <port> --fqbn <FQBN> <SketchName>

Example: arduino-cli upload -p /dev/ttyACM0 --fqbn arduino:samd:mkr1000 MyFirstSketch

5. Library Management#

Search for a library:

bash

arduino-cli lib search <keyword>

Install a library:

bash

arduino-cli lib install "<Library Name>"

Adding 3rd Party Cores (e.g., ESP8266)#

To install 3rd party cores, pass the --additional-urls flag to your core commands:

bash

arduino-cli core update-index --additional-urls https://arduino.esp8266.com/stable/package_esp8266com_index.json
arduino-cli core install esp8266:esp8266 --additional-urls https://arduino.esp8266.com/stable/package_esp8266com_index.json

(Alternatively, these URLs can be added to the board_manager.additional_urls array in arduino-cli.yaml)