AITree

Project file map generator for AI-assisted development.

Scans a directory and prints a clean, annotated tree that you can paste directly into any AI chat. Instead of uploading your entire codebase, share the map first — then only send the files the AI actually asks for.

webapp/
├── src/
│   ├── components/
│   │   ├── Header.jsx  [4KB]
│   │   └── Footer.jsx  [2KB]
│   ├── App.jsx  [8KB]
│   └── index.js  [1KB]
├── public/
│   └── index.html  [3KB]
└── package.json  [1KB]

# 2 directories, 6 files  (18KB total)
#
# File types:
#   .jsx          3   ███
#   .js           1   █
#   .html         1   █
#   .json         1   █

---

Installation

Via pip (recommended):

pip install paracci-aitree

One-liner (Linux / macOS):

curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/paracci/aitree/main/install.sh | bash

One-liner (Windows PowerShell):

irm https://raw.githubusercontent.com/paracci/aitree/main/install.ps1 | iex

From source:

git clone https://github.com/paracci/aitree.git
cd aitree
pip install .

Optional dependencies — install only what you need:

pip install "paracci-aitree[live]"    # --live mode  (watchdog)
pip install "paracci-aitree[tokens]"  # --tokens     (tiktoken)
pip install "paracci-aitree[git]"     # --git-changed (gitpython)
pip install "paracci-aitree[mcp]"     # MCP server   (mcp)
pip install "paracci-aitree[all]"     # everything + clipboard (pyperclip)

---

Usage

aitree [path] [options]

path defaults to the current directory if omitted.

Output modes

Flag	Description
(none)	Print tree to stdout
--save	Save to _aitree.txt (or _aitree.json / _aitree.md)
--copy	Copy output to clipboard
--live	Watch for changes and auto-update the saved file
--serve	Launch the web UI in your browser

Output formats

Flag	Description
--format text	Plain text with # comments (default)
--format json	Structured JSON with tree + stats + meta
--format markdown	Markdown with fenced code block + stats table

Filtering

Flag	Description
--depth N	Limit tree depth (e.g. --depth 2)
--include GLOB	Show only matching files (repeatable)
--exclude GLOB	Hide matching files (repeatable)
--no-gitignore	Skip .gitignore / .aitreeignore parsing
--git-changed	Show only git-changed / untracked files

Extras

Flag	Description
--tokens	Append estimated token count to output
--version	Show version and exit

---

Examples

aitree .                                    # current directory → stdout
aitree ~/projects/webapp                    # specific path → stdout
aitree . --save                             # save to _aitree.txt
aitree . --copy                             # copy to clipboard
aitree . --depth 2                          # top 2 levels only
aitree . --include "*.py"                   # Python files only
aitree . --include "*.py" --include "*.js"  # multiple patterns
aitree . --exclude "*.test.*"               # hide test files
aitree . --git-changed                      # only modified/untracked files
aitree . --format json --save               # save as _aitree.json
aitree . --format markdown --save           # save as _aitree.md
aitree . --tokens                           # append token count
aitree . --live                             # watch for changes
aitree . --live --depth 2 --git-changed     # live + depth + git filter
aitree . --serve                            # open web UI
aitree . --serve --port 8080                # web UI on a custom port

AI workflow

1. aitree . --copy
2. Paste into your AI chat
3. Ask "Which files do you need?"
4. Send only those files

---

Web UI

--serve launches a local web server and opens a professional, interactive explorer in your browser.

• Real-time Search: Instant tree filtering with match highlighting.
• Syntax Highlighting: Auto-detection for 30+ languages (via highlight.js).
• Themes: Switch between Dark (Tokyo Night) and Light (GitHub) modes.
• File Preview: Click any file to see content with line numbers and word-wrap.
• Interactive Tree: Fast collapse/expand, depth control, and file-type icons.
• Live Reload: UI auto-refreshes when your project files change.
• Responsive Layout: Resizable sidebar and mobile-friendly design.

aitree . --serve
aitree . --serve --port 8080

---

MCP Server

AITree ships a Model Context Protocol server so AI assistants (Claude Desktop, etc.) can call it as a tool.

# Install MCP dependency
pip install "paracci-aitree[mcp]"

# Start the server
aitree-mcp

Available tools

Tool	Description
aitree_get_tree	Generate a file tree for a local path or GitHub URL
aitree_get_stats	Return structured JSON statistics for a path
aitree_get_changed	List git-changed / untracked files
aitree_read_file	Read the contents of a file inside the project

aitree_read_file lets an AI assistant fetch any file it spotted in the tree — without leaving the conversation:

aitree_get_tree(path=".", format="text")
aitree_read_file(path=".", file="src/auth/login.py")

Claude Desktop config (claude_desktop_config.json)

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "aitree": {
      "command": "aitree-mcp"
    }
  }
}

---

GitHub URL support

Pass a GitHub repository URL instead of a local path:

aitree https://github.com/owner/repo
aitree https://github.com/owner/repo --depth 2
aitree https://github.com/owner/private-repo --token ghp_xxxx

Works entirely via the GitHub API — no cloning required.

---

Custom ignore rules

Create .aitreeignore in your project root — same syntax as .gitignore:

# .aitreeignore
*.secret
config/local.json
private/

AITree reads .aitreeignore first, then .gitignore. Use --no-gitignore to skip both.

---

What gets ignored by default

Category	Examples
VCS & editors	.git, .idea, .vscode, .svn
Dependencies	node_modules, .venv, venv, env
Build output	dist, build, target, out, bin
Cache	__pycache__, .pytest_cache, .mypy_cache
Binary & temp	.pyc, .class, .exe, .log, .tmp
OS files	.DS_Store, Thumbs.db

---

Live mode

--live watches the directory with watchdog and regenerates the output file whenever the structure actually changes. False positives (editor auto-saves, antivirus touches, etc.) are filtered out via content hashing and a 1-second debounce.

🟢  AITree LIVE — Watching: /home/user/projects/webapp  [depth=2, git-changed]
    Updates trigger only on real changes.
    Press Ctrl+C to stop.

[14:32:10] Updated — initial snapshot
[14:33:05] Updated — filesystem change  (3 false events skipped)

Combines with any filter flag: --depth, --include, --exclude, --git-changed.

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Platform support

Platform	Tested
Linux	✅
macOS	✅
Windows	✅
WSL	✅

Requires Python 3.10+.

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License

MIT