abtop
Like htop, but for AI coding agents. Monitor Claude Code & Codex CLI sessions, tokens, context window, rate limits, and ports in real-time.
Runssource: GitHubRustMITcommit 4b96568666c1
Rust, MIT licensed. The project labels itself: ai agents, ai coding agent, btop, claude code, cli, codex, developer tools and htop.
abtop runs. An Argusic agent installed it in 2.5 minutes and hit 3 errors and fixed every one without help on a clean machine with no GPU, and the whole session was recorded.
abtop 0.5.5 builds and passes all 222 tests; --once and --json modes produce correct live terminal-monitor snapshots from local process/file state
What the agent ended up with on a clean machine, in its own words. How this is measured
Measured by Argusic on a fresh machine every time. Every number links to its evidence. Argusic Score 100 of 100 (the mean of this project's run scores).
At a glance
Subject data from GitHub, linked at the top of this page, refreshed . Test data by Argusic (CC BY 4.0); every number links to a run page with the full log, the recording, and their sha256 hashes.
What was measured
From the run that decided this verdict. Every line is a recorded value, not an estimate.
What went wrong, in the agent's own words
The agent's own words, worst first, never rewritten into advice.
- Rust toolchain not found1 minute
- sqlite3 not installed
- abtop --help fails with Os error: No such device or address
- Install time
- 3 minutes
- Cold machine to finish
- 9 minutes
- Errors hit and fixed
- 3 hit, 3 fixed with no human help
- How the result was proved
- cargo test exited 0, 222 passed; cargo run -- --once printed live session snapshot and exited 0; cargo run -- --json emitted valid JSON with session, token, port, and child process data
- Model tokens used
- 113,679
- Exact commit tested
- 4b96568666c1
- Container image
- sha256:cdd920bce783
What was not measured
The other half, so you can see exactly how far this evidence goes. A gap is printed as a gap and never filled in.
- Peak GPU memory
- this ran on a CPU machine, so there was no GPU to sample
- Behaviour over a long run
- each attempt uses the smallest documented settings and a fixed time budget, so this measures whether it runs, not how it holds up under load
The end of the recording
The last lines of the terminal session that decided this verdict, exactly as they were recorded.
**Install**: Rust was missing from the container. Installed via `rustup` (rustc 1.98.1). Then `carg… **Tests**: `cargo test` passed all 222 tests (0 failed, 0 ignored). **Launch verification**: `cargo run -- --once` printed a live TUI snapshot showing 1 session (itsel… **sqlite3**: Not installed, but that's optional — it's only required for OpenCode session monitorin… exec /bin/sh -lc 'echo "Actual elapsed from first tool call to now: about 3 minutes. Build was clean. Te… succeeded in 0ms: Actual elapsed from first tool call to now: about 3 minutes. Build was clean. Tests all pass. App l… Everything is verified and working. Here's the complete result: tokens used 113,679 Everything is verified and working. Here's the complete result:
Replay the whole session, every command from a clean machine to this point.
How it was tested
One agent, one container, no human help. It installs the project the way its own documentation says to, runs it, and fixes what breaks. Everything below is recorded as it happened: the terminal session, the log and the exact commit. The full method.
Strengths and limits
Measured facts, not opinions. How this is written.
What went well
- Reached a running state on a clean machine, with the session recorded.
- Installed in 2.5 minutes, faster than the median of the 33 comparable projects Argusic has measured.
- Recovered from all 3 errors without a human stepping in, which says the failures are documented well enough to solve.
- Ran without a GPU, so it does not need one to start.
- Licensed MIT, as reported by its host.
What did not, or is not known
- Measured once so far. A single attempt shows it can run, not that it runs reliably.
Of the 34 ai-agents projects Argusic has installed and timed, abtop was the 7th fastest to reach a running state, and 24 of 34 reached one at all.
What it is a reasonable choice for
- Trying it on a laptop or a small server: it reached a running state without a GPU.
- A quick evaluation: it was running 2.5 minutes after the clone.
Also tested, in the same area
Every one of these was installed and run by Argusic on a clean machine. Nothing appears here that was not tested.
Run history
Topics (from GitHub)
ai-agentsai-coding-agentbtopclaude-codeclicodexdeveloper-toolshtopmonitorratatuirustterminaltui
Embed the badge
Markdown for the project README. It links back here; terms on the terms page.
[](https://argusic.com/subject/abtop)Questions
- Does abtop run?
- Yes. abtop runs. Argusic installed and launched it on a clean machine in 3 minutes, hitting 3 errors on the way, and recorded the session.
- How did Argusic test abtop?
- On a fresh, disposable machine, with every command recorded and the repository pinned at commit 4b96568666c1. One attempt is recorded, and the full method is on the methodology page.
- What did it cost to test abtop?
- The run that produced this verdict cost $0.03: real compute and model cost, not a list price per million tokens. It is recorded on that run's page.
- How long does abtop take to install?
- 2.5 minutes in the run that decided this verdict, from a clean machine to a running state. That is one measured attempt, not an average.
- Does abtop need a GPU?
- Not to start. Argusic reached a running state on a machine with no GPU.
- What goes wrong when installing abtop?
- 3 things broke in the recorded run, and 3 were fixed without human help. Each one, and the time it cost, is listed on this page.
- How does abtop compare with the alternatives?
- Of the 34 ai-agents projects Argusic has installed and timed, abtop was the 7th fastest to reach a running state, and 24 of 34 reached one at all.
- Where is the evidence for abtop?
- The recorded run is on this page, each linking to its full log and terminal recording, stored with a sha256 fingerprint so it cannot be quietly altered.