Installation

This page covers:

1. The one-line install command for Linux / macOS / Windows.
2. Direct binary download and the escape-hatch alternative.
3. Where the binary lands.
4. Two sanity checks — novetest --version and novetest --help.
5. Environment overrides, re-install, and uninstall.

Nove Test ships as a single self-contained binary — a PyApp bundle that embeds CPython 3.11 plus the novetest wheel — so the binary path needs no Python toolchain on your machine. The install script always resolves the latest release unless you pin one; the current version is listed on the GitHub Releases page.

1. The install command

The install scripts are hosted at ailovestesting.com/products/novetest/ — a byte-identical mirror of scripts/install.sh / scripts/install.ps1 in the public repo. Use the branded URL (shorter, canonical to share); the GitHub Raw URL shown under each is the same script straight from source. Either URL works.

Linux + macOS

curl -fsSL https://ailovestesting.com/products/novetest/install.sh | sh

Direct from source (identical bytes):

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Nove-Lab/Nove-Test/main/scripts/install.sh | sh

Windows (PowerShell)

irm https://ailovestesting.com/products/novetest/install.ps1 | iex

Direct from source (identical bytes):

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Nove-Lab/Nove-Test/main/scripts/install.ps1 | iex

Both scripts are idempotent (re-running upgrades in place via atomic rename), sudo-free (write to ~/.local/bin/), and abort loudly on a SHA-256 mismatch rather than write a partial binary.

Inspect-first (recommended for first-time users)

# Linux / macOS
curl -fsSL -o install.sh \
  https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Nove-Lab/Nove-Test/main/scripts/install.sh
less install.sh   # read it
sh install.sh

# Windows
irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Nove-Lab/Nove-Test/main/scripts/install.ps1 -OutFile install.ps1
Get-Content install.ps1   # read it
.\install.ps1

What the install script does, step by step

1. Detects OS + arch.

2. Resolves the GitHub Release asset name:

   • Linux × x86_64 -> novetest-linux-x86_64
   • Linux × aarch64 -> novetest-linux-aarch64
   • macOS (any arch) -> novetest-macos-universal2 (one fat binary covering Intel + Apple Silicon)
   • Windows × x86_64 -> novetest-windows-x86_64.exe
3. Downloads the binary and its .sha256 sidecar.
4. Computes SHA-256 locally (sha256sum / shasum / openssl / Get-FileHash).
5. Compares to the sidecar. Mismatch -> loud abort; nothing is written under the install prefix.
6. Atomically renames the verified binary into ~/.local/bin/novetest.
7. Tests whether the install prefix is on PATH; if not, prints a one-line hint.

The script needs a downloader (curl or wget) and a SHA-256 tool.

Supported platforms

Linux i686 / armv7l and Windows arm64 are not built.

Linux hosts have a glibc floor. The binaries bundle a CPython built against a specific glibc, and each release states its minimum in its release notes. For every release up to and including 0.2.1 that minimum is glibc 2.39, so on an older host (Debian 12 "bookworm" 2.36, Ubuntu 22.04 LTS 2.35 — including the official node image family, which is bookworm-based) the install succeeds but the binary refuses to start with version 'GLIBC_2.39' not found. From v0.3.0 the floor drops to glibc 2.31 — most hosts the earlier floor excluded, including both of the ones just named, now work; see the Troubleshooting glibc entry for the full host table. Check yours with ldd --version; below the floor, use the Python-tooling install in §2, which runs on your own Python and is not subject to it. Full recovery steps: Troubleshooting -> Install issues.

Where the binary lives

Override with NOVETEST_INSTALL_PREFIX=... if you need elsewhere.

If ~/.local/bin is not on your PATH

# Linux / macOS (~/.bashrc, ~/.zshrc)
export PATH="$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH"

# Windows (PowerShell profile)
$env:PATH = "$HOME\.local\bin;$env:PATH"

Then source the profile (or open a new shell) and re-check.

Pinning a specific version

NOVETEST_INSTALL_VERSION=v0.1.2 \
  curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Nove-Lab/Nove-Test/main/scripts/install.sh | sh

The default (latest) resolves the most recent GitHub Release at install time. Pinning a tag gives deterministic, reproducible installs — recommended for CI pipelines and agent-managed hosts.

2. Other ways to install

Direct binary download (no script)

base=https://github.com/Nove-Lab/Nove-Test/releases/latest/download
target=novetest-linux-x86_64   # or linux-aarch64 / macos-universal2 / windows-x86_64
curl -fsSLO "$base/$target"
curl -fsSLO "$base/$target.sha256"
sha256sum -c "$target.sha256"          # must say: OK
chmod +x "$target" && mv "$target" ~/.local/bin/novetest

The install scripts above are the only recommended install path; the direct binary download covers environments where piping to a shell is forbidden by policy. Escape hatch beyond both (no prebuilt binary for your platform, a Linux host below the binaries' glibc floor, or a PyPI-mirror-only network): a Python-tooling install — uv tool install novetest / pipx install novetest (Python >= 3.11). There is no Homebrew, Docker, npm, or cargo distribution.

3. Sanity check #1 — novetest --version

The shortest round-trip to confirm the binary works. It reports the CLI identity envelope; on a TTY the same values render as text.

novetest --version

{
  "command": "version",
  "data": {
    "commandName": "novetest",
    "installLocation": "~/.local/share/pyapp/novetest/7904589091198436804/0.3.1/bin/python3",
    "installedVersion": "0.3.1",
    "platform": "linux-x86_64",
    "pythonVersion": "3.11.9",
    "verifiedAt": "2026-08-05T01:44:37.415596Z"
  },
  "errors": [],
  "ok": true,
  "schema": "novetest/v1",
  "warnings": []
}

NOVETEST_OUTPUT=json novetest --version

{
  "command": "version",
  "data": {
    "commandName": "novetest",
    "installLocation": "~/.local/share/pyapp/novetest/7904589091198436804/0.3.1/bin/python3",
    "installedVersion": "0.3.1",
    "platform": "linux-x86_64",
    "pythonVersion": "3.11.9",
    "verifiedAt": "2026-08-05T01:44:37.415596Z"
  },
  "errors": [],
  "ok": true,
  "schema": "novetest/v1",
  "warnings": []
}

4. Sanity check #2 — novetest --help

The list of every verb the CLI exposes. novetest --help and bare novetest (no args) are equivalent — bare novetest prints help, it does not run tests.

novetest --help

novetest — AI-first testing orchestration

Onboarding:
  novetest --version            Print CLI identity envelope.
  novetest --help               Print command surface envelope.
  novetest init                 Initialize a Project Store under .novetest/ in the current workspace.
  novetest reset                Wipe the active Project Store and re-initialize (requires --confirm).

Operating:
  novetest test                 Run tests with integrated orchestration and synthesize a recommendation.
  novetest run                  Execute a Test Target via the native engine and persist a Run Record.
  novetest memory list          List Memory Entries in Run History.
  novetest memory show          Show a Memory Entry by Run Reference.
  novetest memory delete        Tombstone a Memory Entry; Run Reference remains resolvable.
  novetest inspect              Aggregate run view across Memory and derived facts.
  novetest status               Latest run plus per-sub-report availability summary.
  novetest coverage show        Show Coverage Facts for a run.
  novetest coverage diff        Diff Coverage Facts between two runs.
  novetest regression compare   Compare two runs into a Regression Fact set.
  novetest regression latest    Compute Regression Facts versus the latest baseline.
  novetest compare              Composed Regression and Coverage delta between two runs.
  novetest localization         Ranked suspicious code locations for a run.
  novetest localization latest  Ranked suspicious code locations for the latest analyzable run.
  novetest replay               Re-execute a stored run and classify reproducibility.
  novetest licenses             List third-party components Nove Test redistributes or links to.

NOVETEST_OUTPUT=json novetest --help

{
  "command": "help",
  "data": {
    "onboarding": [
      { "availableInPhase": 0, "group": "onboarding", "name": "novetest --version", "summary": "Print CLI identity envelope." },
      { "availableInPhase": 0, "group": "onboarding", "name": "novetest --help",    "summary": "Print command surface envelope." },
      { "availableInPhase": 1, "group": "onboarding", "name": "novetest init",      "summary": "Initialize a Project Store under .novetest/ in the current workspace." },
      { "availableInPhase": 7, "group": "onboarding", "name": "novetest reset",     "summary": "Wipe the active Project Store and re-initialize (requires --confirm)." }
    ],
    "operating": [
      { "availableInPhase": 6, "group": "orchestration", "name": "novetest test", "summary": "Run tests with integrated orchestration and synthesize a recommendation." },
      { "availableInPhase": 1, "group": "run",           "name": "novetest run",  "summary": "Execute a Test Target via the native engine and persist a Run Record." }
      /* ... also: memory list/show/delete, inspect, status, coverage show/diff,
         regression compare/latest, compare, localization, localization latest,
         replay, licenses */
    ],
    "schemaVersion": 1
  },
  "errors": [],
  "ok": true,
  "schema": "novetest/v1",
  "warnings": []
}

5. Environment overrides

Install-script variables (script-only; they do not affect the CLI at runtime):

Runtime output mode:

Precedence rule:

explicit --output flag  >  NOVETEST_OUTPUT env  >  TTY auto-detect

6. Verifying a clean install

# 1) Binary on PATH
command -v novetest || { echo "novetest missing"; exit 1; }

# 2) Version envelope round-trips
NOVETEST_OUTPUT=json novetest --version \
  | jq -e '.ok == true and .schema == "novetest/v1"' \
  || { echo "version envelope malformed"; exit 1; }
# (gate on .data.installedVersion only if you pinned a version at install time)

# 3) Help envelope enumerates the operating surface
NOVETEST_OUTPUT=json novetest --help | jq -e '.data.operating | length >= 15' \
  || { echo "help envelope shrunk unexpectedly"; exit 1; }

7. Re-install and uninstall

• Re-install / upgrade: re-run the same install command. The script always overwrites with the verified binary via atomic rename.
• Uninstall: rm ~/.local/bin/novetest (Linux/macOS) or Remove-Item $HOME\.local\bin\novetest.exe (Windows). The CLI keeps no state outside per-project .novetest/ directories, so removing the binary removes the CLI entirely.

To delete a specific project's history (without touching its source or tests):

cd /path/to/project
novetest reset --confirm   # wipe + re-initialize the Project Store
# or remove it outright:
rm -rf .novetest/

Caveats pinned by the MVP

• First-run cold start is on the order of 5–15 seconds (PyApp unpacks its embedded Python once per binary version). Subsequent invocations are warm and fast.
• The SHA-256 check is a real integrity gate: a mismatch aborts and writes nothing.
• The binary bundles CPython 3.11; a Python >= 3.11 requirement applies only to the uv / pipx escape hatch (see §2).

What to read next

• Quick Start — the 4-step canonical happy path: init -> test -> read the recommendation -> (optional) inspect.
• Supported Languages — if your project is not Python, the one-line toolchain difference your engine needs before you novetest init.
• Troubleshooting — if a sanity check didn't return clean output.