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Configuration

Yeti's configuration lives in a single JSON file. Most settings can be changed at runtime without restarting the service, and the web dashboard provides a UI for editing them. This page covers the essentials to get Yeti working after a fresh install.

Config file

~/.yeti/config.json

The install script creates this file with defaults. It is owned by your user and has 600 permissions (readable only by you, since it may contain tokens).

Priority order

When the same setting is available in multiple places, the highest-priority source wins:

  1. Environment variables (set in ~/.yeti/env or the shell) --- highest priority
  2. Config file (~/.yeti/config.json)
  3. Built-in defaults --- lowest priority

Essential settings

A fresh install will not process any work until you configure at least enabledJobs. Here are the fields to set first:

enabledJobs --- Required

An array of job names to activate. An empty array means nothing runs. This is the most important setting to configure.

For a typical starting point, enable the core workflow jobs:

"enabledJobs": [
  "issue-refiner",
  "issue-worker",
  "ci-fixer",
  "review-addresser",
  "auto-merger",
  "repo-standards"
]

All available jobs: issue-refiner, issue-worker, ci-fixer, review-addresser, auto-merger, doc-maintainer, repo-standards, improvement-identifier, issue-auditor, triage-yeti-errors, plan-reviewer, mkdocs-update.

githubOwners

GitHub organizations or usernames whose repositories Yeti should scan. Defaults to ["frostyard"].

"githubOwners": ["your-org", "your-username"]

allowedRepos

An optional allow-list of specific repositories (by name, not full path) to process. When set, Yeti ignores all other repos under the configured owners. When null or omitted, all repos under the owners are eligible.

includeForks

Whether to include forked repositories when scanning for work. Defaults to false. Set to true if you want Yeti to discover and process issues/PRs in forks.

"includeForks": true

"allowedRepos": ["frontend", "api", "docs"]

authToken

A token to protect the web dashboard. When set, all dashboard requests require this token as a query parameter or via the login form. Leave empty to allow unauthenticated access (suitable for private networks).

"authToken": "your-secret-token"

Alternatively (or additionally), you can enable GitHub OAuth sign-in --- see GitHub App Setup.

discordBotToken and discordChannelId

Optional. Enable the Discord bot for notifications and commands. Yeti will post job activity to the configured channel and respond to commands like !yeti issue and !yeti look.

"discordBotToken": "your-bot-token",
"discordChannelId": "123456789012345678"

Minimal config example

A lean configuration to get started. This watches one org, enables the core jobs, and protects the dashboard:

{
  "githubOwners": ["your-org"],
  "enabledJobs": [
    "issue-refiner",
    "issue-worker",
    "ci-fixer",
    "review-addresser",
    "auto-merger",
    "repo-standards"
  ],
  "allowedRepos": ["your-first-repo"],
  "authToken": "pick-something-strong",
  "discordBotToken": "",
  "discordChannelId": ""
}

Live reload

Most configuration changes take effect without restarting the service. When you edit ~/.yeti/config.json (or save changes through the dashboard), Yeti picks up the new values on its next config reload cycle.

Live-reloadable fields:

  • enabledJobs, pausedJobs
  • intervals (all job polling intervals)
  • schedules (daily job hours)
  • skippedItems, prioritizedItems
  • allowedRepos, githubOwners, selfRepo
  • authToken
  • maxClaudeWorkers, claudeTimeoutMs
  • maxCopilotWorkers, copilotTimeoutMs
  • maxCodexWorkers, codexTimeoutMs
  • jobAi
  • includeForks
  • reviewLoop, maxPlanRounds
  • logLevel
  • logRetentionDays, logRetentionPerJob
  • queueScanIntervalMs
  • discordAllowedUsers

Requires restart:

  • port --- the HTTP server binds once at startup
  • discordBotToken, discordChannelId --- the Discord bot connects once at startup
  • githubAppId, githubAppInstallationId, githubAppPrivateKeyPath --- see GitHub App Setup
  • githubAppClientId, githubAppClientSecret, externalUrl --- see GitHub App Setup --- OAuth
  • webhookSecret --- see GitHub App Setup --- Webhooks

Next steps

With Yeti configured and running, it is time to walk through your first issue-to-PR cycle.

Quickstart guide

For the full reference of every config field, interval default, and environment variable, see the Configuration Reference.