The paper CLI is the command line for Paper Compute. One command gets you from a fresh machine to a working proxy that records every Claude Code inference — no gateway setup, no backend config, no API keys in your shell.
The proxy is powered by tapes, our open source trace layer.
Getting started
Install
curl -fsSL https://download.papercompute.com/install | shThat puts paper on your PATH.
Quick Start
Want the guided setup? Use the wizard:
Login
paper loginOpens a browser for WorkOS auth. You don’t need an org, but we encourage you to sign in with your work email.
If you have multiple accounts, run paper login again to change accounts.
Need to create an organization? (optional) If you’re the first person on your team, head to console.papercompute.com to name your org. The console provisions a default gateway and Anthropic backend so the CLI has something to route through. Invited by someone? Skip this — your org is already set up.
Start
paper start claudeLaunches Claude Code with the proxy already wired up. Prefer to manage the env var yourself? See ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL.
Common commands
| Task | Command |
|---|---|
| Start Claude Code through paper | paper start claude |
| Check proxy status | paper status |
| View logs | paper logs --follow |
| Switch orgs | paper org select |
| Invite a teammate | paper org invite [email protected] |
Commands
paper start
Launch a supported client through the local proxy. Sets ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL for the launched process.
paper start [client]paper init
Start paperd in the background and open the local proxy.
paper initAuto-discovers the default gateway and backend, and keeps a short-lived JWT warm so agents skip long-lived API keys.
paper status
Show the proxy address, auth health, current user, and org.
paper status
paper status --portproxy: 127.0.0.1:8080
auth: healthy (expires in 14m59s)
user: [email protected]
org: your-org--port prints just the proxy port — handy for shell scripts:
echo "http://127.0.0.1:$(paper status --port)"paper logs
Stream paperd logs.
paper logs
paper logs --followpaper login
Open a browser for WorkOS auth. Re-run to switch accounts.
paper loginpaper org
Manage organization context.
Use paper org invite to invite a teammate:
paper org invite [email protected]Invited teammates receive a WorkOS invite. When they run paper login, the org is pre-selected and the CLI auto-discovers the default gateway — admins provision it during org setup on console.papercompute.com.
Use paper org select when you belong to more than one org and need to choose which gateway paper routes through:
paper org selectThe new selection takes effect the next time paper starts. If it’s already running, restart it:
paper initpaper tapes
Create, inspect, and manage tapes AI gateway instances and their LLM backends.
paper tapes create
paper tapes gateway
paper tapes backendBootstrap interactively
Use paper tapes create when an org has no default gateway, or when you want to provision a second one:
paper tapes createManage gateways
| Subcommand | Description |
|---|---|
paper tapes gateway create | Create a new gateway |
paper tapes gateway list | List gateways |
paper tapes gateway get | Get gateway details |
paper tapes gateway delete | Delete a gateway |
Manage backends
Backends are scoped to a gateway — every command takes --gateway [name].
| Subcommand | Description |
|---|---|
paper tapes backend create | Create a backend |
paper tapes backend list | List backends |
paper tapes backend get | Get backend details |
paper tapes backend delete | Delete a backend |
paper uninstall
Stop the proxy and close the menu bar.
paper uninstallCredentials in ~/.config/paper/ are preserved — re-run paper init to start again without logging in.
Configuration
org context
Which organization paper routes through. Auto-selected on paper login if you belong to one; choose with paper org select if you belong to multiple. View with paper status.
gateway context
Which tapes AI gateway paper routes inference through. Auto-discovered from the org default on paper init; manage with paper tapes gateway.
backend context
Which LLM backend the active gateway routes to. Provisioned alongside the gateway by default; manage with paper tapes backend. Stores the upstream API key and model allowlist.
ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL
Environment variable Claude Code reads to find an alternate API endpoint. paper start claude sets it automatically for the launched process. To wire it up yourself:
export ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL=http://127.0.0.1:$(paper status --port)Add the export to your .zshrc or .bashrc to make it permanent.
config location
Credentials and local state live in ~/.config/paper/. Removing this directory wipes your login — running paper login again recreates it.
Troubleshooting
Proxy not running
paper initIf it still won’t start, run paper status to see what’s wrong, then paper logs for the underlying error.
paper won’t start (multiple orgs)
If you belong to more than one org and haven’t picked one, paper logs shows:
paperd: cannot derive inference upstream: no org selected — run `paper org select` or pass --upstreamRun paper org select, then paper init.
Claude Code can’t connect
Confirm ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL matches the proxy address in paper status. If the proxy restarted and the port changed, re-run paper start claude to pick up the new address — or re-export with $(paper status --port) if you’re managing the env var yourself.
Model rejected
The backend’s model allowlist doesn’t include the model you requested. Contact the team to update the allowlist, or switch to a model that’s already enabled.
401 from the gateway
The Anthropic API key stored in your backend may be wrong or expired. Run paper login again — the wizard will prompt you to re-enter it.