PICLE - Python Interactive Command Line Shells

PICLE helps you build interactive CLI shells from Pydantic v2 models. Think of it as: your model tree becomes the command tree.

Built on top of Python's standard library CMD module, prompt_toolkit for interactive input, and Pydantic models to construct shell environments.

What you get out of the box:

command discovery + inline help (? / ??)
tab completion (works well with nested commands)
editable, persistent command history
input validation via Pydantic
optional pipes (|) to post-process output

Docs: https://dmulyalin.github.io/picle/

Install

pip install picle

Optional extras (Rich output, tables, YAML config support):

pip install "picle[full]"

A tiny shell app

This creates a small interactive shell:

Root
  └─ show
     ├─ version
     └─ clock

import time
from typing import Any

from pydantic import BaseModel, Field
from picle import App


class Show(BaseModel):
    version: Any = Field(
        None,
        description="Show software version",
        json_schema_extra={"function": "show_version"},
    )
    clock: Any = Field(
        None,
        description="Show current clock",
        json_schema_extra={"function": "show_clock"},
    )

    @staticmethod
    def show_version():
        return "0.1.0"

    @staticmethod
    def show_clock():
        return time.ctime()


class Root(BaseModel):
    show: Show = Field(None, description="Show commands")

    class PicleConfig:
        prompt = "picle#"
        intro = "PICLE sample app"


if __name__ == "__main__":
    App(Root).start()

Try it:

picle#show version
0.1.0

picle#show clock
Fri May  2 22:44:01 2025

picle#?
... shows available commands

Comparison With Other Projects

PICLE is not trying to replace every CLI library. It’s mostly for the “network device / DB console / ops shell” style workflow: you stay in a shell, you explore commands, you get completion + help, and your input is validated.

Some nearby tools and where PICLE fits:

One-shot CLI command frameworks

Great when you want mytool subcommand --flags and exit.

argparse: batteries-included, stable, not interactive by default.
click / typer: excellent UX for subcommands/options, but still “run once and exit”.
python-fire: fast to expose a Python object as CLI, but it’s not focused on interactive shells, completion, or validation the way a model-driven shell is.

You can build REPL-like flows with these, but PICLE starts from the REPL/shell side.

Interactive shell / REPL frameworks

Python’s built-in cmd: the base that PICLE builds on.
cmd2: adds a lot of features on top of cmd (nice project). PICLE’s angle is different: it uses Pydantic models as the command tree, so completion/help/validation all come from the schema.
python-nubia (archived): similar “interactive shell” spirit, but the project is not maintained and doesn’t integrate with Pydantic.

TUI / input toolkits

prompt-toolkit: PICLE uses it for portable line editing, history, and terminal input. PICLE adds the model-driven command tree, parsing, help, completion rules, validation, and dispatch.
textual: awesome for full-screen TUIs (apps, dashboards). Different goal than a command shell.

Output formatting helpers

PICLE can use these (optionally) but doesn’t depend on them:

rich: pretty output rendering
tabulate: text tables
PyYAML: YAML config support (used by ConfigModel)

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