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Automations are how your workspace learns to operate itself. They turn repeated setup, run, verify, cleanup, and review steps into actions that humans and agents can both use. They can be scripts, like copying env files or starting Docker. They can also launch agents, like a session that reviews recent Neroli runs and suggests better automations. Claude, Codex, OpenCode, and other agents can create or update automations from inside Neroli. Agents launched inside Neroli know about the current session, visible panes, attached browser, simulator, known services, and available automations, so they can use the same workspace controls you do.
Placeholder image: a Neroli Automations view showing Prepare session, Run dev, Build, Verify, Improve my automations, and Docs from shipped work.

Automations can be toolbar buttons, lifecycle hooks, scheduled agent sessions, or cleanup scripts with stop behavior.

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Two kinds of automations

Both are workspace-native. They can show up in the top bar, command palette, sidebar, or session menu. They can also run on a schedule or when a session is created, moved, archived, or removed. Sidebar automations can live on workflow groups like Planning, In Review, Merge, or Done. When you run one from a group header, it receives that group and the sessions inside it. When you drag a session between groups, Session moved automations can run for the destination group.

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Automations worth creating

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The isolated dev environment pattern

The most useful automation is often Prepare session.
1

Copy local config

Copy .env.local, certificates, or generated files into the session without committing secrets.
2

Assign unique ports

Give each session its own backend, database, or frontend ports so parallel runs do not collide.
3

Provision services

Start or prepare an isolated Docker database, queue, cache, or local stack for that session.
4

Expose buttons

Pin Run, Build, and Verify to the toolbar so humans and agents use the same workflow.
5

Add stop behavior

Give services a Stop script so Neroli can tear them down cleanly when the run ends.

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Let agents improve the workspace

Because Neroli sessions can inspect their own workspace and recent runs, you can ask an agent to set this up for you:
It can inspect package scripts, Docker config, previous commands, and failed sessions, then create automations that make the next session smoother.

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Make automations visible

Good automations should be easy to launch from where the work happens:
  • pin Run, Build, and Verify in the session toolbar
  • place group actions on the sidebar groups where they are useful
  • keep Stop paired with anything that starts a server or service
  • use lifecycle setup when every new session needs the same preparation
  • use Session moved automations when entering In Review, Merge, or Done should trigger follow-up work
  • use scheduled or agentic automations for ongoing maintenance, docs, and improvements
  • keep personal machine-specific actions local, and share repo-wide actions with the team
Shared automations can live with the repo. Personal automations can stay local to your machine.
Next: use Recipes and gotchas to turn automations into isolated dev sessions, cloud handoff, group actions, and review workflows.