Common Labs - Radioactive experiments. Turn back! You will find no API stability here.
Common Tools is a nascent distributed computing platform that provides both a runtime and storage layer. The design allows instrumentation of all information flow in the system, enabling safe & private collaboration at scale.
Recipes are reactive programs that can be linked together to create data and program networks. They're written in TypeScript/JSX and run in a secure sandbox environment. Recipes can:
- Process and transform data
 - Render interactive UIs using 
ct-prefixed components - React to changes from linked recipes
 - Connect to external APIs
 
Charms are deployed instances of recipes running in CommonTools spaces. Charms can be linked together to create complex workflows where data flows automatically between connected components.
Spaces are collaborative environments where charms live and interact. Users can run their own spaces or use hosted versions.
Check out the repo, install deno and claude and then run /onboarding
within Claude Code.
This is a multi-package monorepo with several key components:
Backend (Toolshed): The hosted platform backend, written in Deno2, that provides the distributed runtime and storage.
Frontend (Shell): A web client interface written with Lit Web Components for interacting with CommonTools spaces.
CLI (CT Binary): Command-line interface for managing charms, linking
patterns, and deploying to spaces. Run deno task ct --help for command
reference.
UI Components (packages/ui): Custom VDOM layer and ct-
prefixed components for recipe UIs.
Examples & Patterns (packages/patterns): Example recipes and common patterns for building with CommonTools.
Pattern Development: Patterns can be developed using LLM assistance with
commands like /imagine-recipe, /pattern-dev, and /explore-recipe. See
Pattern Documentation for patterns, components, and handlers.
This repository includes many Claude Code commands in
.claude/commands/ for common workflows:
/pattern-dev- Work on existing patterns with LLM assistance/imagine-recipe- Create new recipes from ideas/explore-recipe- Test recipes interactively with Playwright/linear- Task management integration/deps- Dependency and integration setup- And many more - see the commands directory
 
Required:
- Deno 2 - Runtime for backend and tooling
 
Recommended Integrations:
- GitHub CLI - For PR and issue workflows
 - Claude Code MCP integrations:
- Linear Server MCP for task management
 - Playwright MCP for browser-based recipe testing
 
 
- CI/CD: All changes must pass automated checks before merging
 - Testing: Tests are critical - run with 
deno task test - Linting: Use 
deno task checkfor type checking - Formatting: Always run 
deno fmtbefore committing - See CLAUDE.md for detailed coding guidelines
 
For a more detailed guide, see ./packages/toolshed/README.md.
cd ./packages/toolshed
deno task devBy default the backend will run at http://localhost:8000
Run the dev server
cd ./packages/shell
deno task devBy default, the frontend will run at http://localhost:5173, and it will point to a local backend running at http://localhost:8000.
If you are not actively making updates to the backend, you can also point to the backend running in the cloud, by running the following command:
API_URL=https://toolshed.saga-castor.ts.net/ deno task dev