Configuration

Create .rukrc.json in the repository root. Ruk rejects unknown keys.

dependencyMode

{
  "dependencyMode": "shared"
}

Accepted values are managed and shared. Automatically detected Bun and pnpm projects default to shared; other detected package managers default to managed. A custom installCommand always defaults to managed, regardless of its executable name. Select shared explicitly only when a custom Bun or pnpm command produces a compatible shared layout.

installCommand

{
  "installCommand": ["npm", "ci"]
}

The value must be a non-empty array of non-empty strings. Ruk invokes it directly without a shell. Supplying this option disables dependency-mode auto-detection, so its default mode is managed unless dependencyMode is also set.

Environment variables

Variable	Purpose
RUK_AGENT_ID	Default assignment owner when --owner is absent.
RUK_DEPENDENCY_MODE	Temporarily override dependencyMode with managed or shared.
RUK_INSTALL_COMMAND	Temporarily override the installer with a JSON string array.
RUK_UPDATE_INSTALLER	Force npm, bun, pnpm, or yarn for package self-update.

Example for a temporary custom installer:

RUK_INSTALL_COMMAND='["npm","ci"]' ruk sync --json

Environment values override .rukrc.json. Use them for temporary automation; commit stable repository policy to .rukrc.json.

sharedCheckoutPolicy

{
  "sharedCheckoutPolicy": "deny"
}

Accepted values are deny, warn, and allow; the default is deny. When the primary checkout has active Ruk assignments, the policy controls ruk run and ruk sync there. Pool and inspection commands remain available. Use --allow-shared-checkout for a single intentional task command without changing repository policy.

The guard coordinates Ruk commands. It cannot prevent direct filesystem writes or Git commands, so treat the primary checkout as a control location.

Package-manager detection

Without installCommand, Ruk reads the packageManager field, then checks known lockfiles. It supports Bun, pnpm, Yarn, and npm. The selected executable must be available on PATH.