# warp-lite
**An open-source Warp Terminal alternative for macOS — the same block-based terminal, without AI, without telemetry, and without a login.**
[](LICENSE-AGPL)
[](https://github.com/terzigolu/warp-lite/releases/latest)
[](https://github.com/terzigolu/warp-lite/releases/latest)
[](rust-toolchain.toml)
warp-lite is a lightweight, privacy-first AGPL fork of [Warp Terminal](https://github.com/warpdotdev/warp): a local-first, GPU-accelerated block terminal for macOS with no Warp account login, no bundled AI agents, no cloud onboarding, and no telemetry as a product requirement. If you want a Warp alternative that keeps the terminal and drops the AI platform, this is that fork.
> Status: alpha, but usable on macOS. The current build is **v0.5.8-lite**, an October upstream sync covering native shell completions, fzf/atuin handoff, history ranking, tabs, editor/Vim, and bounded caches. It builds, launches, and ships as downloadable `WarpLite.dmg` and `WarpLite.app.zip` assets on GitHub Releases.
Latest release:
- Download the newest published build from [releases/latest](https://github.com/terzigolu/warp-lite/releases/latest).
- Current build: `v0.5.8-lite`.
- macOS artifacts: `WarpLite.dmg`, `WarpLite.app.zip`.
See [`FORK_NOTICE.md`](FORK_NOTICE.md) for the relationship with upstream Warp.
## Why
Upstream Warp is excellent, but includes a large agentic-development and cloud surface that some users do not want in their terminal. This fork keeps the terminal core and progressively removes or disables the product surfaces around AI, cloud sync, billing, onboarding, telemetry, and account login.
Goals, in order:
1. **Local-first.** No Warp account required. No login gate for opening a terminal.
2. **Terminal-first.** Preserve the block terminal, GPU renderer, shell integrations, tabs, tab groups, panes, settings, themes, command palette, editor basics, completions, and markdown rendering.
3. **Stay current.** Regularly pull upstream Warp's terminal, renderer, shell, and bug/perf fixes via vetted `git cherry-pick -x`, while rejecting anything that would reintroduce telemetry, network calls, or AI/cloud/account surfaces.
4. **Lighter over time.** Remove AI/cloud code paths carefully without breaking terminal rendering or input.
5. **Honest status.** Some source modules are still present while the default build avoids their product paths. This README tracks that split explicitly.
What this fork is **not**: a closed-source repackage, an MIT relicense, or a project maintained by the Warp Team. The AGPL applies and cannot be downgraded.
## Looking for a Warp alternative?
warp-lite is aimed at people who like Warp's terminal UX but not the platform around it:
- You want Warp's blocks, panes, tabs, command palette, and GPU-accelerated rendering — **without AI agents** in your prompt.
- You want a terminal that opens **without a login or account**, ever.
- You want **no cloud sync** and **no telemetry**: your commands and history stay on your machine.
- You searched for "Warp terminal without AI" or "Warp without login" and found mostly settings toggles — this fork removes those surfaces at the source level instead.
- You prefer **open-source (AGPL), Rust-based** terminal software you can audit and build yourself.
- You are fine with alpha software on macOS in exchange for a lighter, local-first terminal.
If you want the AI agents, cloud drive, and team features, upstream [Warp](https://github.com/warpdotdev/warp) is the right choice — this fork intentionally goes the other way.
## Install
Download the latest macOS build from:
```text
https://github.com/terzigolu/warp-lite/releases/latest
```
Use `WarpLite.dmg`, then drag `WarpLite.app` into `/Applications`.
The packaged app uses:
- Bundle identifier: `dev.warp-lite.WarpLite`
- App name: `WarpLite`
- Current bundle version: `0.5.8-lite`
## Current Shipped State
The current build is `v0.5.8-lite`.
| Area | State | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Terminal core | Works | Core terminal view/input/model files are preserved. Do not wholesale stub them. |
| macOS app bundle | Works | `script/build-warp-lite-app.sh` builds `WarpLite.app`. |
| DMG release | Works | `WarpLite.dmg` is published in GitHub Releases. |
| Platform product boundary | Enabled | Default Lite omits `warp_platform`; billing, referrals, rewards, pricing UI/model, and selected AI startup/background paths compile only for platform builds. |
| Warp login gate | Disabled | `skip_firebase_anonymous_user` is enabled by default. Startup, "skip login", and visible account/billing menu entry points are hardened away from Warp auth in the lite build. |
| Telemetry product goal | Removed/neutralized | Historical telemetry call-site cleanup is part of the fork; keep auditing before claiming perfect network silence. |
| Context Panel / Tools Panel | Removed from shipped UI | The experimental Context Panel was deleted from the app wiring in `v0.5.1-lite` after causing instability and stale data issues. |
| Codex / Claude Code notifications | Kept | These are intentionally preserved for the lite fork. |
| Markdown viewer | Kept | `markdown_tables` and `markdown_mermaid` remain in defaults. |
| Agent mode | Not a target | Agent-mode product surfaces should stay out of the lite app. |
## What Changed Recently
### v0.5.9-lite — additional October local-terminal improvements
Right-click paste with Shift-menu override, macOS TIFF clipboard support, uncached editor text layout, RTL/font crash guards, smaller UI-core update/spawn code, local Grok/Kiro CLI integration, Windows backdrop/GPU recovery, and font-fallback fixes. See the [follow-up source and validation report](WARP_LITE_SYNC_FOLLOWUP_2026-10.md). This extends the former protected UI/core boundary. Includes 14 additional upstream source adaptations; embedded Warp AI/cloud and telemetry remain disabled.
### v0.5.8-lite — October upstream sync (2026-10)
- Reviewed 368 upstream commits; imported or adapted compatible changes from 73 of them, plus one earlier command-line-ending prerequisite. Superseded command-signature pins are included in that source count.
- Added native shell completions, file fallback, POSIX `--` handling, fzf/atuin widget handoff, and improved local history ranking.
- Improved tab/group focus, vertical group search, shortcut hints, saved launch configurations, Vim `il`/`al`, Markdown scroll preservation, settings layout, and wide-character handling.
- Bounded shared gitignore and signature caches, reduced editor allocation/parallel work, and removed obsolete completion v2/plugin-host code.
- Preserved the Lite product boundary and protected UI/core crates. Default build check and optimized release build passed; 2,170 selected tests passed, 9 were ignored, and one legacy disabled-AI-panel expectation remains failing.
- Native macOS smoke checks passed for zsh startup, commands, Unicode output, Tab completion, and a second terminal tab. Distribution is macOS Apple Silicon, ad-hoc signed and not notarized.
- Full provenance, exclusions, and validation limits: [`WARP_LITE_SYNC_2026-10.md`](WARP_LITE_SYNC_2026-10.md).
### v0.5.7-lite — August upstream sync (2026-08)
- Integrated 193 vetted upstream-sync and Warp Lite adaptation commits while keeping AI/agent, cloud account, billing, team, remote-control, and new telemetry changes out of the default Lite product.
- Added security hardening for external links/downloads, command and SSH escaping, environment-aware blocklist checks, auth-log redaction, OSC 52 clipboard control, and dependency fixes.
- Improved terminal and shell reliability across PTY writes, wide-character resize, inline images, OSC hyperlinks, process-group cancellation, zsh/PowerShell bootstrap, SSH, and remote sessions.
- Expanded editor, Markdown, file-viewer, and Vim behavior, including autosave settings, non-ASCII find/replace, local image refresh, natural file sorting, and additional Vim motions/actions.
- Added and stabilized horizontal/vertical tab grouping and pinning, persistence, cross-window drag behavior, multi-pane headers, Quake-window focus, hotkey-window behavior, and macOS window chrome.
- Reduced avoidable Git/filesystem watcher work, process sampling, path canonicalization, glyph work, and duplicate font scanning; added Windows/WSL, old-Mesa Intel Xe, bootstrap, and build-script compatibility fixes.
- Verified default and `warp_platform` checks, focused crate suites, test compilation graphs, process-group regressions, script syntax, diff hygiene, and a fresh optimized release build. Full audit: [`WARP_LITE_SYNC_2026-08.md`](WARP_LITE_SYNC_2026-08.md).
### v0.5.6-lite — Product boundaries and measured slimming (2026-07)
- Added the positive `warp_platform` compile boundary while keeping it out of the default Lite feature set.
- Removed billing, referrals, rewards, pricing UI/model, upgrade modals, and pricing-dependent terminal allocations from the default Lite compilation path.
- Removed AI initialization/keybinding registrations, scheduled ambient-agent startup work, its schedule implementation, and the Agent status-bar tip singleton from Lite.
- Preserved terminal input/view/model and persistence contracts instead of replacing them with broad stubs.
- Added revision-aware static and native runtime benchmark harnesses under `script/`.
- Reduced the same-machine release binary from **268,410,752** to **267,208,032 bytes**: **1,202,720 bytes (about 1.15 MiB)**.
- Verified default and `warp_platform` checks, both test compilation graphs, release compilation, benchmark dry-run behavior, and diff hygiene.
### v0.5.5-lite — Upstream sync (2026-07)
A large, privacy-audited catch-up with upstream Warp. Fork point `bc3fffa` was **927 commits** behind upstream `d375729`; **139 improvements were cherry-picked** (`-x` for AGPL provenance) after a strict per-commit review. Selection rule: bugfix / performance / terminal-feature only, and **rejected** if the diff reintroduced any telemetry, outbound network client, or AI/cloud/auth/account surface. The applied diff was audited — no new `send_telemetry`, `reqwest`, Firebase, or GraphQL network calls were added.
- **New feature: vertical tab grouping** — group, rename, reorder, and move tabs between groups (upstream #11749, #11791, #11842, #11849, #11903).
- **Performance:** avoid cloning the whole file tree on view updates (#12221), async presentation on macOS (#11326), input hot-path cleanup (#10927), fewer redundant SVG rasterizations (#12104), fixed a `WeakModelHandle` zombie-handle leak (#11767).
- **Stability / crash fixes:** flat-storage `RowIterator` underflow after clear (#12085), secret redaction across multibyte UTF-8 (#9521), block up/down navigation (#10095), plus ~60 more fixes.
- **Terminal / shell:** tab CWD + git branch from OSC 7 escape sequences (#9279), empty zsh `RPROMPT` handling (#11868), Intel(R) HD Graphics 2500 added to the buggy-iGPU list (#11454).
- **Editor / files:** configurable code-editor line numbers (#10012), show-hidden-files toggle in Project Explorer (#9532).
- **Intentionally skipped (6):** upstream changes entangled with removed AI/cloud/auth code — e.g. horizontal tab-group rendering (needs removed AI imports), SSH/remote-auth transport, and the code-review discard-panic fix — were aborted rather than force-merged, to avoid dragging removed surfaces back in.
- Verified green with `cargo check -p warp --bin warp-oss` and launch-tested. Full lists: [`WARP_LITE_SYNC_GAP_2026-06.md`](WARP_LITE_SYNC_GAP_2026-06.md) and [`WARP_LITE_SYNC_APPLIED_2026-07.md`](WARP_LITE_SYNC_APPLIED_2026-07.md).
### v0.5.4-lite
- Removed the normal prompt's unsupported AI toolbar in the lite build, including Agent/Auto mode switching, `auto (cost-efficient)`, slash AI commands, `@` AI context, and AI file attach controls.
- Redirected hidden settings entry points such as Account, billing, teams, Warp Drive, and Warp Agent pages to the supported Appearance settings page.
- Kept CLI agent rich-input infrastructure separate so Codex/Claude Code notification and context surfaces can continue to work where they are explicitly supported.
### v0.5.3-lite
- Refreshed this README to match the real v0.5.2-lite state.
- Hardened the no-login path so the compiled lite feature bypasses auth onboarding even if runtime flags drift.
- Hid or no-op'd remaining visible sign-up, upgrade, referral, logout, and anonymous-user menu/actions in the lite build.
### v0.5.2-lite
- Restored `skip_firebase_anonymous_user` in default features.
- Fixed the regression where the welcome/sign-up modal still appeared and "Skip for now" attempted Warp/Firebase auth.
- Rebuilt and published fresh `WarpLite.dmg` and `WarpLite.app.zip` release assets.
### v0.5.1-lite
- Slimmed default features.
- Removed the experimental Context Panel source/wiring from the shipped app path.
- Gated additional agent/cloud management UI surfaces.
### v0.5.0-lite and earlier
- Gutted large parts of codebase indexing and AI-adjacent background work.
- Deleted or stubbed several AI/cloud peripheral crates.
- Removed large telemetry call-site surface from earlier phases.
- Preserved the terminal renderer/input stack after a failed over-aggressive stub attempt proved that compile success is not enough.
## Removed From Source
These crates or app modules are no longer present in the current tree:
| Path | Status |
|---|---|
| `crates/integration` | Removed |
| `crates/firebase` | Removed |
| `crates/voice_input` | Removed |
| `crates/handlebars` | Removed |
| `crates/warp_js` | Removed |
| `crates/warp_graphql_schema` | Removed |
| `crates/command-signatures-v2` | Removed |
| `crates/serve-wasm` | Removed |
| `crates/prevent_sleep` | Removed |
| `crates/managed_secrets_wasm` | Removed |
| `crates/app-installation-detection` | Removed |
| `app/src/onboarding` | Removed |
## Still Present And Needs Work
These modules still exist and should be treated as the next cleanup targets. Some are default-disabled, partially stubbed, or unreachable in normal lite flows, but they are not physically gone.
| Path | Why it matters | Suggested next move |
|---|---|---|
| `app/src/auth` | Login UI and auth flow still exist in source. Startup/skip/menu paths are hardened in the lite build, but the module is not physically gone. | Continue shrinking or feature-gating auth UI internals after verifying shared `AuthStateProvider` consumers. |
| `app/src/ai` | Large AI UI/product surface remains. | Continue surgical feature-gating and deletion; avoid terminal core wholesale stubs. |
| `crates/ai` | Still a major compiled/source dependency. | Continue reducing agent/indexing/ambient modules behind stable APIs. |
| `crates/onboarding` | Still present even though app onboarding module is gone. | Finish crate-level cleanup if consumers are gone or can be stubbed safely. |
| `app/src/billing` | Source remains for platform builds, but the module and reachable UI are excluded from default Lite. | Keep the `warp_platform` boundary compile-green during upstream syncs. |
| `app/src/voice` | Voice feature source remains although `crates/voice_input` is gone. | Remove dead app-side voice surfaces or gate them out. |
| `crates/graphql` (`warp_graphql`) | The GraphQL client remains in the resolved graph despite platform product UI cuts. | Remove only after its protected terminal/workspace consumers have neutral ownership boundaries. |
| `crates/websocket` | Network transport crate still exists. | Verify consumers, then stub or delete if no terminal feature needs it. |
| `crates/warp_server_client` | Warp backend client remains. | Audit call sites and remove once auth/cloud dependencies are gone. |
| `crates/managed_secrets` | Cloud/secret product surface remains as a stub candidate. | Keep API only if required, otherwise delete. |
| `crates/warp_files` | Cloud/file integration residue. | Audit dependencies before removal. |
## Guardrails
The terminal works because its core was preserved. Keep these files off any broad deletion or wholesale-stub plan:
- `app/src/terminal/view.rs`
- `app/src/terminal/input.rs`
- `app/src/terminal/block_list_element.rs`
- `app/src/terminal/view/`
- `app/src/terminal/input/`
- `app/src/terminal/local_tty/terminal_manager.rs`
- `app/src/terminal/alt_screen/alt_screen_element.rs`
- `app/src/terminal/model/`
If a change makes the build green by replacing terminal rendering/input/model code with small stubs, that change is wrong for warp-lite. Verify with launch testing, not just `cargo check`.
## Build
The fork keeps upstream's macOS build prerequisites:
1. Full Xcode, not just Command Line Tools.
2. Metal Toolchain:
```sh
sudo xcode-select -s /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer
xcodebuild -downloadComponent MetalToolchain
```
3. git-lfs:
```sh
brew install git-lfs
git lfs install
git lfs pull
```
4. Rust toolchain pinned by `rust-toolchain.toml`.
Common commands:
```sh
cargo check -p warp --bin warp-oss
CARGO_BUILD_JOBS=4 cargo build --release --bin warp-oss
script/build-warp-lite-app.sh
rm -f WarpLite.dmg
hdiutil create -volname WarpLite -srcfolder WarpLite.app -ov -format UDZO WarpLite.dmg
```
Verification used for the latest release:
```sh
cargo check -p warp --bin warp-oss
CARGO_BUILD_JOBS=4 cargo build --release --bin warp-oss
codesign --verify --deep --strict --verbose=2 WarpLite.app
hdiutil verify WarpLite.dmg
```
Known caveat: full `cargo fmt --check` can currently fail because the repository still references disabled/removed upstream files. Prefer targeted formatting/checks until that cleanup is complete.
## Branch Structure
```text
origin/warp-lite/main default branch; current shipped work
origin/warp-lite/sync-2026-10 upstream-sync staging branch (v0.5.8-lite backports land here first)
origin/upstream-tracking read-only mirror/cherry-pick source for upstream Warp changes
upstream/master upstream Warp source
```
Upstream syncs are staged on a dated `warp-lite/sync-*` branch, verified (build + launch), then merged into `warp-lite/main`.
Historical phase branches and tags may still exist, but the public state should be read from `warp-lite/main`, the tags, and the GitHub Releases page.
## Release History
| Tag | Summary |
|---|---|
| `v0.5.9-lite` | Right-click paste, TIFF clipboard, editor/UI-core and RTL/font fixes, Grok/Kiro CLI support, and Windows renderer/backdrop adaptations. |
| `v0.5.8-lite` | October sync: native completions, shell widget handoff, history ranking, tab groups, editor/Vim, settings, and bounded caches. |
| `v0.5.7-lite` | Privacy-vetted August upstream sync: 193 integration commits for security, terminal/shell reliability, editor/Vim, grouped/pinned tabs, performance, and platform compatibility. |
| `v0.5.6-lite` | Added `warp_platform` compile boundaries, removed pricing/account and safe AI startup work from default Lite, and added measured release/runtime benchmark gates. |
| `v0.5.5-lite` | Large privacy-safe upstream sync: 139 cherry-picked bug/perf/terminal improvements, incl. vertical tab grouping, with all telemetry/network/AI/cloud changes rejected. |
| `v0.5.4-lite` | Removed unsupported prompt AI controls and redirected hidden settings pages away from Account/signup surfaces. |
| `v0.5.3-lite` | README refresh, no-login hardening, and remaining visible account/upsell action cleanup. |
| `v0.5.2-lite` | No-login hotfix; fresh DMG/app zip assets. |
| `v0.5.1-lite` | Default feature diet and Context Panel removal from shipped app path. |
| `v0.5.0-lite` | AI/codebase-index cleanup and bundle version bump. |
| `v0.4.0-lite` | Managed secrets/onboarding reduction work. |
| `v0.3.x-lite` | Context Panel experiments; later removed from shipped path. |
| `v0.2.x-lite` | Telemetry call-site cleanup, UI hiding, niche crate removals. |
| `v0.1.0-lite` | Initial default feature purge and first green lite build. |
## FAQ
**Is warp-lite a Warp Terminal alternative?**
Yes. It is an independent open-source fork of Warp's AGPL source that keeps the block terminal, panes, tabs, and command palette, and removes the AI, cloud, account, and telemetry product surfaces. It is a Warp alternative for people who want the terminal without the platform.
**Does warp-lite require a login or account?**
No. There is no login gate, no sign-up prompt, and no Warp/Firebase account flow in the lite build. The app opens straight into a terminal.
**Does warp-lite send telemetry?**
Telemetry removal is an explicit product goal: historical telemetry call sites have been cleaned up, and upstream changes that would reintroduce telemetry or outbound network calls are rejected during syncs. Auditing continues before claiming perfect network silence — see [Current Shipped State](#current-shipped-state) for the honest status.
**Does warp-lite work on Linux or Windows?**
Not currently. Builds and releases are macOS-only. Upstream Warp's open-source drop is what this fork tracks, and only the macOS app path is maintained here today.
**Is the AI code completely gone from the source?**
Not yet. Some AI/cloud/auth modules still exist in the source tree but are disabled, gated, or unreachable in the shipped lite build. The [Still Present And Needs Work](#still-present-and-needs-work) table tracks this split honestly; removal continues incrementally.
**Is this project affiliated with Warp or Denver Technologies, Inc.?**
No. warp-lite is an independent AGPL fork and is not maintained, sponsored, or endorsed by the Warp team. The "Warp" trademark belongs to Denver Technologies, Inc. — see [`FORK_NOTICE.md`](FORK_NOTICE.md).
## License
- Source code: **AGPL-3.0-only** (see [`LICENSE-AGPL`](LICENSE-AGPL)).
- `warpui` and `warpui_core` retain their original **MIT** license (see [`LICENSE-MIT`](LICENSE-MIT)).
Trademark "Warp" belongs to Denver Technologies, Inc. See [`FORK_NOTICE.md`](FORK_NOTICE.md).