Getting started

Install

Homebrew (macOS / Linux)

brew install clintmod/tap/rite

mise

# mise.toml
[tools]
"ubi:clintmod/rite" = "v1.0.3"

Then mise install. The ubi backend downloads the prebuilt binary from the GitHub release — no Go toolchain needed.

Older mise (pre-2026.4.x)? The ubi: backend in older versions mangles v-prefixed tags. Either upgrade (mise self-update) or fall back to the go: backend, which works on any version but builds from source:

[tools]
"go:github.com/clintmod/rite/cmd/rite" = "1.0.3"

From source (Go 1.26+)

go install github.com/clintmod/rite/cmd/rite@latest

Manual download

Grab a binary from the releases page — archives for darwin / linux / windows / freebsd × amd64 / arm64 / arm / 386 / riscv64, plus deb / rpm / apk packages.

Your first Ritefile

mkdir hello && cd hello
rite --init          # writes Ritefile.yml

The generated file:

version: '3'

vars:
  GREETING: Hello, world!

tasks:
  default:
    desc: Print a greeting message
    cmds:
      - echo "{{.GREETING}}"
    silent: true

Run it:

rite                 # runs the default task → Hello, world!

Core commands

Command	What it does
rite <task>	Run a task
rite	Run default
rite --list	Show tasks with descriptions
rite --list-all	Show all tasks, including undescribed
rite --init	Create a starter Ritefile.yml
rite --migrate Taskfile.yml	Convert a go-task Taskfile to a Ritefile (warnings to stderr)
rite --watch <task>	Rerun on file changes

Passing variables

Three ways, in precedence order (highest wins):

FOO=bar rite build             # 1. Shell env — tier 1
rite build FOO=bar             # 2. CLI arg   — tier 2

For variables declared inside a Ritefile, see the precedence model for all seven tiers.

A more interesting example

version: '3'
vars:
  IMAGE: myapp
  TAG: "{{.RITE_VERSION}}"

tasks:
  build:
    desc: Build the container image
    cmds:
      - docker build -t ${IMAGE}:${TAG} .

  push:
    desc: Push the image
    deps: [build]
    cmds:
      - docker push ${IMAGE}:${TAG}

Note both ${VAR} and {{.VAR}} reference variables. They're interchangeable — both resolve against the same set with identical precedence. See syntax for the full rules.

Next

• Variable precedence — the seven-tier model, one table.
• Syntax reference — what goes where in a Ritefile.
• .riterc config — optional user-config file for CLI defaults and experiments.
• Migration from go-task — what's different and why.