Command-line options¶

Agda accepts the following options.

General options¶

--version -V: Show version number
--help[=TOPIC] -?[TOPIC]: Show basically this help, or more help about TOPIC. Current topics available: warning.
--interactive -I: Start in interactive mode (no longer supported)
--interaction: For use with the Emacs mode (no need to invoke yourself)

Compilation¶

See Compilers for backend-specific options.

--no-main: Do not treat the requested module as the main module of a program when compiling
--compile-dir=DIR: Set DIR as directory for compiler output (default: the project root)
--no-forcing: Disable the forcing optimisation

Generating highlighted source code¶

--vim: Generate Vim highlighting files
--latex: Generate LaTeX with highlighted source code (see Generating LaTeX)
--latex-dir=DIR: Set directory in which LaTeX files are placed to DIR (default: latex)
--count-clusters: Count extended grapheme clusters when generating LaTeX code (see Counting Extended Grapheme Clusters)
--html: Generate HTML files with highlighted source code (see Generating HTML)
--html-dir=DIR: Set directory in which HTML files are placed to DIR (default: html)
--css=URL: Set URL of the CSS file used by the HTML files to URL (can be relative)
--dependency-graph=FILE: Generate a Dot file FILE with a module dependency graph

Imports and libraries¶

(see Library Management)

--ignore-interfaces: Ignore interface files (re-type check everything)
--include-path=DIR -i=DIR: Look for imports in DIR
--library=DIR -l=LIB: Use library LIB
--library-file=FILE: Use FILE instead of the standard libraries file
--no-libraries: Don’t use any library files
--no-default-libraries: Don’t use default library files

Command-line and pragma options¶

The following options can also be given in .agda files in the {-# OPTIONS --{opt₁} --{opt₂} ... #-} form at the top of the file.

Printing and debugging¶

--show-implicit: Show implicit arguments when printing
--show-irrelevant: Show irrelevant arguments when printing
--no-unicode: Don’t use unicode characters to print terms
--verbose=N -v=N: Set verbosity level to N

Copatterns and projections¶

--copatterns: Enable definitions by copattern matching (default; see Copatterns)
--no-copatterns: Disable definitions by copattern matching
--postfix-projections: Make postfix projection notation the default

Experimental features¶

--injective-type-constructors: Enable injective type constructors (makes Agda anti-classical and possibly inconsistent)
--guardedness-preserving-type-constructors: Treat type constructors as inductive constructors when checking productivity
--experimental-irrelevance: Enable potentially unsound irrelevance features (irrelevant levels, irrelevant data matching) (see Irrelevance)
--rewriting: Enable declaration and use of REWRITE rules (see Rewriting)

Errors and warnings¶

--allow-unsolved-metas: Succeed and create interface file regardless of unsolved meta variables (see Metavariables)
--no-positivity-check: Do not warn about not strictly positive data types (see Positivity Checking)
--no-termination-check: Do not warn about possibly nonterminating code (see Termination Checking)
--warning=GROUP|FLAG -W=GROUP|FLAG: Set warning group or flag (see Warnings)

Pattern matching and equality¶

--without-K: Disables definitions using Streicher’s K axiom (see Without K)
--with-K: Overrides a global --without-K in a file (see Without K)
--no-pattern-matching: Disable pattern matching completely
--exact-split: Require all clauses in a definition to hold as definitional equalities unless marked CATCHALL (see Case trees)
--no-exact-split: Do not require all clauses in a definition to hold as definitional equalities (default)
--no-eta-equality: Default records to no-eta-equality (see Eta-expansion)

Search depth¶

--termination-depth=N: Allow termination checker to count decrease/increase upto N (default: 1; see Termination Checking)
--instance-search-depth=N: Set instance search depth to N (default: 500; see Instance Arguments)
--inversion-max-depth=N: Set maximum depth for pattern match inversion to N (default: 50). Should only be needed in pathological cases.

Other features¶

--safe: Disable postulates, unsafe OPTION pragmas and primTrustMe (see Safe Agda)
--type-in-type: Ignore universe levels (this makes Agda inconsistent; see Universe Levels)
--sized-types: Use sized types (default, inconsistent with “musical” coinduction; see Sized Types)
--no-sized-types: Disable sized types (see Sized Types)
--universe-polymorphism: Enable universe polymorphism (default; see Universe Levels)
--no-universe-polymorphism: Disable universe polymorphism (see Universe Levels)
--no-irrelevant-projections: Disable projection of irrelevant record fields (see Irrelevance)
--no-auto-inline: Disable automatic compile-time inlining. Only definitions marked INLINE will be inlined.
--no-print-pattern-synonyms: Always expand Pattern Synonyms during printing. With this option enabled you can use pattern synonyms freely, but Agda will not use any pattern synonyms when printing goal types or error messages, or when generating patterns for case splits.

Warnings¶

The -W or --warning option can be used to disable or enable different warnings. The flag -W error (or --warning=error) can be used to turn all warnings into errors, while -W noerror turns this off again.

A group of warnings can be enabled by -W {group}, where group is one of the following:

all: All of the existing warnings
warn: Default warning level
ignore: Ignore all warnings

Individual warnings can be turned on and off by -W {Name} and -W {noName} respectively. The flags available are:

OverlappingTokensWarning: Multi-line comments spanning one or more literate text blocks.
UnknownNamesInFixityDecl: Names not declared in the same scope as their syntax or fixity declaration.
UnknownFixityInMixfixDecl: Mixfix names without an associated fixity declaration.
UnknownNamesInPolarityPragmas: Names not declared in the same scope as their polarity pragmas.
PolarityPragmasButNotPostulates: Polarity pragmas for non-postulates.
UselessPrivate: private blocks where they have no effect.
UselessAbstract: abstract blocks where they have no effect.
UselessInstance: instance blocks where they have no effect.
EmptyMutual: Empty mutual blocks.
EmptyAbstract: Empty abstract blocks.
EmptyPrivate: Empty private blocks.
EmptyInstance: Empty instance blocks.
EmptyMacro: Empty macro blocks.
EmptyPostulate: Empty postulate blocks.
InvalidTerminationCheckPragma: Termination checking pragmas before non-function or mutual blocks.
InvalidNoPositivityCheckPragma: No positivity checking pragmas before non-data`, record or mutual blocks.
InvalidCatchallPragma: CATCHALL pragmas before a non-function clause.
OldBuiltin: Deprecated BUILTIN pragmas.
EmptyRewritePragma: Empty REWRITE pragmas.
UselessPublic: public blocks where they have no effect.
UnreachableClauses: Unreachable function clauses.
UselessInline: INLINE pragmas where they have no effect.
DeprecationWarning: Feature deprecation.
InversionDepthReached: Inversions of pattern-matching failed due to exhausted inversion depth.
TerminationIssue: Failed termination checks.
CoverageIssue: Failed coverage checks.
CoverageNoExactSplit: Failed exact split checks.
NotStrictlyPositive: Failed strict positivity checks.
UnsolvedMetaVariables: Unsolved meta variables.
UnsolvedInteractionMetas: Unsolved interaction meta variables.
UnsolvedConstraints: Unsolved constraints.
SafeFlagPostulate: postulate blocks with the safe flag
SafeFlagPragma: Unsafe OPTIONS pragmas with the safe flag.
SafeFlagNonTerminating: NON_TERMINATING pragmas with the safe flag.
SafeFlagTerminating: TERMINATING pragmas with the safe flag.
SafeFlagPrimTrustMe: primTrustMe usages with the safe flag.
SafeFlagNoPositivityCheck: NO_POSITIVITY_CHECK pragmas with the safe flag.
SafeFlagPolarity: POLARITY pragmas with the safe flag.

For example, the following command runs Agda with all warnings enabled, except for warnings about empty abstract blocks:

agda -W all --warning noEmptyAbstract file.agda

Command-line options¶