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Symbi - Setup Free Coding Assistant

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You
can you walk me through setting up the best free open source coding assistant LLM via my terminal using homebrew
Symbi
Absolutely. I’ll give you a clean, terminal-first, Homebrew-based walkthrough that gets you to a best-in-class free & open-source coding assistant with local inference , editor + terminal use , and zero SaaS lock-in . I’ll also explain why each piece is chosen so you can swap parts later if you want. TL;DR – The “Best” Free Stack (Right Now) Core recommendation (2026-proof, widely adopted): Ollama – local LLM runtime (dead simple, Homebrew-native) Qwen2.5-Coder or DeepSeek-Coder – top-tier open coding models Continue.dev – open-source Copilot-style assistant for VS Code / JetBrains Aider (optional but powerful) – terminal-native pair programmer You can run entirely offline , or hybrid later. Step 0 – Prerequisites You need: macOS (Apple Silicon strongly recommended) Homebrew installed If not: Bash /bin/bash -c " $(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh) " Step 1 – Install Ollama (Local LLM Runtime) Ollama is the backbone. It manages models, GPU acceleration, and exposes a local API. Bash brew install ollama Start the service: Bash ollama serve (Leave this running in a terminal tab.) Verify: Bash ollama --version Step 2 – Install a Coding Model (This Is the Brain) Best general-purpose coding models (free, open): ✅ Recommended (pick ONE to start) Option A – Qwen2.5-Coder (best balance) Bash ollama pull qwen2.5-coder:7b Option B – DeepSeek-Coder (very strong at refactors) Bash ollama pull deepseek-coder:6.7b Option C – StarCoder2 (classic, stable) Bash ollama pull starcoder2:7b Test it: Bash ollama run qwen2.5-coder Try: Plain text Refactor this function to be more idiomatic TypeScript 👉 If this works, your local coding LLM is live. Step 3 – Terminal-Native Coding Assistant (Aider) If you want real pair-programming from the terminal , Aider is unmatched. Install Aider Bash brew install aider Tell it to use Ollama: Bash export OLLAMA_API_BASE = http://localhost:11434 export AIDER_MODEL = ollama/qwen2.5-coder Run inside a repo: Bash cd your-project aider You can now say things like: Plain text Add input validation to the API route and update tests Aider will: Read your files Propose diffs Apply changes safely This is extremely powerful. Step 4 – Editor Integration (Copilot-Like UX) Install Continue.dev (Open Source) VS Code Bash brew install --cask visual-studio-code Then install Continue from the VS Code extensions marketplace. Configure Continue to Use Ollama Open: ~/.continue/config.json Example config: JSON { "models": [ { "title": "Qwen2.5 Coder (Local)" , "provider": "ollama" , "model": "qwen2.5-coder" } ], "autocompleteModel": { "provider": "ollama" , "model": "qwen2.5-coder" } } Restart VS Code. You now have: Inline code completion Chat with repo context Refactors, explanations, tests All local . Step 5 – Quality Boosts (Optional but Worth It) Enable larger context (if you have RAM) Bash ollama run qwen2.5-coder --num-ctx 8192 Faster responses on Apple Silicon Ollama auto-uses Metal, but verify: Bash ollama ps You should see GPU usage. Step 6 – Sanity Check (You’re Fully Set Up) You should now have: ✅ Local LLM ✅ Coding-specialized model ✅ Terminal pair programmer ✅ IDE assistant ✅ No API keys ✅ No data leaving your machine This is already better than early Copilot for serious engineering. When You’d Upgrade (Later) You don’t need this now, but for the future: Add RAG with Continue + local embeddings Swap model → qwen2.5-coder:14b when hardware allows Run Ollama on a server and point multiple machines at it Layer in governance / memory if you’re building agents (👀) One Clarifying Question (Optional) Do you want this primarily for: Solo development Team-shared local model Agentic workflows (autonomous refactors, PRs, etc.) I can tune the stack exactly to that. But as-is? You’re now running one of the best free open-source coding assistants available — entirely from your terminal.
You
They have been backed up to: /Users/admin/Library/Caches/Homebrew/Backup ==> Summary 🍺 /opt/homebrew/Cellar/python@3.14/3.14.3_1: 3,764 files, 75.3MB ==> Installing ollama dependency: mlx ==> Pouring mlx--0.30.5.arm64_tahoe.bottle.tar.gz 🍺 /opt/homebrew/Cellar/mlx/0.30.5: 411 files, 148.9MB ==> Installing ollama dependency: mlx-c ==> Pouring mlx-c--0.5.0.arm64_tahoe.bottle.tar.gz 🍺 /opt/homebrew/Cellar/mlx-c/0.5.0: 39 files, 814.3KB ==> Installing ollama ==> Pouring ollama--0.15.5.arm64_tahoe.bottle.tar.gz ==> Caveats To start ollama now and restart at login: brew services start ollama Or, if you don't want/need a background service you can just run: OLLAMA_FLASH_ATTENTION="1" OLLAMA_KV_CACHE_TYPE="q8_0" /opt/homebrew/opt/ollama/bin/ollama serve ==> Summary 🍺 /opt/homebrew/Cellar/ollama/0.15.5: 8 files, 32MB ==> Running brew cleanup ollama ... Disable this behaviour by setting HOMEBREW_NO_INSTALL_CLEANUP=1 . Hide these hints with HOMEBREW_NO_ENV_HINTS=1 (see man brew ). ==> Caveats ==> ollama To start ollama now and restart at login: brew services start ollama Or, if you don't want/need a background service you can just run: OLLAMA_FLASH_ATTENTION="1" OLLAMA_KV_CACHE_TYPE="q8_0" /opt/homebrew/opt/ollama/bin/ollama serve admin@SYMBIs-MacBook-Pro ~ % ollama serve MLX: Failed to load symbol: mlx_metal_device_info time=2026-02-11T09:57:25.475+11:00 level=INFO source=routes.go:1636 msg="server config" env="map[HTTPS_PROXY: HTTP_PROXY: NO_PROXY: OLLAMA_CONTEXT_LENGTH:0 OLLAMA_DEBUG:INFO OLLAMA_FLASH_ATTENTION:false OLLAMA_GPU_OVERHEAD:0 OLLAMA_HOST:http://127.0.0.1:11434 OLLAMA_KEEP_ALIVE:5m0s OLLAMA_KV_CACHE_TYPE: OLLAMA_LLM_LIBRARY: OLLAMA_LOAD_TIMEOUT:5m0s OLLAMA_MAX_LOADED_MODELS:0 OLLAMA_MAX_QUEUE:512 OLLAMA_MODELS:/Users/admin/.ollama/models OLLAMA_MULTIUSER_CACHE:false OLLAMA_NEW_ENGINE:false OLLAMA_NOHISTORY:false OLLAMA_NOPRUNE:false OLLAMA_NUM_PARALLEL:1 OLLAMA_ORIGINS:[http://localhost https://localhost http://localhost:* https://localhost:* http://127.0.0.1 https://127.0.0.1 http://127.0.0.1:* https://127.0.0.1:* http://0.0.0.0 https://0.0.0.0 http://0.0.0.0:* https://0.0.0.0:* app://* file://* tauri://* vscode-webview://* vscode-file://*] OLLAMA_REMOTES:[ollama.com] OLLAMA_SCHED_SPREAD:false http_proxy: https_proxy: no_proxy:]" time=2026-02-11T09:57:25.477+11:00 level=INFO source=images.go:473 msg="total blobs: 8" time=2026-02-11T09:57:25.477+11:00 level=INFO source=images.go:480 msg="total unused blobs removed: 0" time=2026-02-11T09:57:25.478+11:00 level=INFO source=routes.go:1689 msg="Listening on 127.0.0.1:11434 (version 0.15.5)" time=2026-02-11T09:57:25.478+11:00 level=INFO source=runner.go:67 msg="discovering available GPUs..." time=2026-02-11T09:57:25.479+11:00 level=INFO source=server.go:430 msg="starting runner" cmd="/opt/homebrew/Cellar/ollama/0.15.5/bin/ollama runner --ollama-engine --port 62092" time=2026-02-11T09:57:36.225+11:00 level=INFO source=types.go:42 msg="inference compute" id=0 filter_id=0 library=Metal compute=0.0 name=Metal description="Apple M1 Pro" libdirs="" driver=0.0 pci_id="" type=discrete total="11.8 GiB" available="11.8 GiB" time=2026-02-11T09:57:36.225+11:00 level=INFO source=routes.go:1739 msg="vram-based default context" total_vram="11.8 GiB" default_num_ctx=4096
Symbi
Perfect — thank you for pasting the actual Ollama logs . This makes it very clear what’s happening. Short answer first, then we’ll tune it properly. TL;DR (You Are NOT Broken ✅) This line: MLX: Failed to load symbol: mlx_metal_device_info looks scary but is not fatal . Your logs confirm: ✅ Ollama started successfully ✅ Metal GPU was detected correctly ✅ Apple M1 Pro 11.8 GB VRAM available ✅ Server is listening on 127.0.0.1:11434 ✅ Context length auto-set to 4096 You are already operational. The MLX warning is a known Homebrew + MLX edge case , not a failure. What’s Actually Happening (Plain English) Ollama supports multiple GPU backends On Apple Silicon it prefers Metal MLX is an optional acceleration path The symbol error means: “MLX is present, but this specific optional Metal helper isn’t” Ollama falls back cleanly to native Metal compute — which you can see here: library=Metal name=Apple M1 Pro total="11.8 GiB" So you are already running hardware-accelerated inference . Verify Everything Works (Do This Now) In a new terminal tab (leave ollama serve running): Bash ollama run qwen2.5-coder If you haven’t pulled a model yet: Bash ollama pull qwen2.5-coder:7b ollama run qwen2.5-coder If you see a prompt like: >>> You’re done. 🎉 Optional: Silence the MLX Warning (Clean Fix) If you want a clean startup with zero warnings, do this: 1️⃣ Stop Ollama Bash Ctrl + C 2️⃣ Start Ollama with explicit Metal settings Bash OLLAMA_FLASH_ATTENTION = 1 \ OLLAMA_KV_CACHE_TYPE = q8_0 \ OLLAMA_LLM_LIBRARY = metal \ ollama serve This tells Ollama: “Don’t even try MLX” “Use Metal directly” “Use efficient KV cache” Result: no MLX symbol lookup at all. Recommended: Run Ollama as a Background Service Once you’re happy: Bash brew services start ollama Now Ollama: Starts on login Runs quietly in the background Exposes http://127.0.0.1:11434 permanently You’ll never need ollama serve manually again. Performance Tuning for M1 Pro (Worth Doing) Add this once you’re stable: Bash export OLLAMA_NUM_PARALLEL = 2 export OLLAMA_MAX_LOADED_MODELS = 1 Then restart the service. This: Keeps one model hot in VRAM Improves latency Avoids memory thrash Final Sanity Check Run: Bash ollama ps You should see: Your model loaded GPU memory in use Metal backend active Bottom Line You are already here: 🟢 Local LLM running 🟢 Apple GPU acceleration active 🟢 No cloud dependency 🟢 Ready for Aider / Continue.dev That MLX line is cosmetic — not a blocker. Next (Your Choice) 1️⃣ Wire this into Aider (terminal-first) 2️⃣ Wire this into Continue.dev (IDE Copilot-style) 3️⃣ Tune for larger context / refactors Tell me which path you want and I’ll give you the exact next commands , no fluff.
You
Last login: Wed Feb 11 09:56:20 on ttys011 admin@SYMBIs-MacBook-Pro ~ % ollama run qwen2.5-coder MLX: Failed to load symbol: mlx_metal_device_info pulling manifest pulling manifest pulling manifest pulling manifest pulling 60e05f210007: 1% ▕█ ▏ 42 MB/4.7 GB 4.7 MB/s 16m21s Error: Post "http://127.0.0.1:11434/api/show": dial tcp 127.0.0.1:11434: connect: connection refused admin@SYMBIs-MacBook-Pro ~ % ollama pull qwen2.5-coder:7b ollama run qwen2.5-coder MLX: Failed to load symbol: mlx_metal_device_info Error: could not connect to ollama server, run 'ollama serve' to start it MLX: Failed to load symbol: mlx_metal_device_info Error: could not connect to ollama server, run 'ollama serve' to start it admin@SYMBIs-MacBook-Pro ~ %
Symbi
Great, this output is very diagnostic — nothing mysterious now. You’re hitting one specific, common Ollama gotcha , and the fix is simple. What Went Wrong (Exactly) This line is the key: Error: dial tcp 127.0.0.1:11434: connect: connection refused That means the Ollama server is NOT running at the moment you ran: Bash ollama run qwen2.5-coder Important Ollama rule (non-obvious): ollama pull and ollama run both require ollama serve to be running. Unlike some CLIs, Ollama is client/server , even locally. Why It Failed Mid-Download You did this sequence: ollama serve (worked) Started pulling model Server stopped (Ctrl-C, terminal closed, or crash) Client tried to continue → ❌ connection refused So the download aborted at 1% . Correct Recovery Sequence (Do This Exactly) 1️⃣ Start the Ollama server (clean, explicit) In Terminal tab #1 : Bash OLLAMA_LLM_LIBRARY = metal \ OLLAMA_FLASH_ATTENTION = 1 \ OLLAMA_KV_CACHE_TYPE = q8_0 \ ollama serve You should see: Listening on 127.0.0.1:11434 ⚠️ Do not close this terminal 2️⃣ Pull the model (new terminal tab) In Terminal tab #2 : Bash ollama pull qwen2.5-coder:7b Good signs: It will resume , not restart You’ll see steady MB/s No connection errors This model is ~4.7 GB — totally normal. 3️⃣ Run the model (same tab #2) After pull finishes: Bash ollama run qwen2.5-coder:7b Expected result: >>> That’s your local coding LLM, live. About the MLX Message (Again, Reassurance) You’ll still see: MLX: Failed to load symbol: mlx_metal_device_info This is harmless and expected on some Homebrew builds. You are confirmed using Metal , as proven earlier: library=Metal name=Apple M1 Pro total="11.8 GiB" So performance is correct. Make This Never Happen Again (Recommended) Once everything works, run Ollama as a background service : Bash brew services start ollama Then verify: Bash curl http://127.0.0.1:11434/api/tags If you get JSON back → Ollama is always-on. After this: ollama pull ollama run Aider Continue.dev …will all work without thinking about the server. Quick Mental Model (So This Clicks) ollama serve → the engine ollama pull/run → clients No engine = connection refused Engine running = everything works Next Step (Once This Runs) Say one word and I’ll guide you precisely: aider → terminal-first pair programmer vscode → Copilot-style IDE assistant performance → context length + speed tuning You’re 95% done — this was the last real hurdle.
You
so it says it cannot access my repo - i was hoping it could be like claude code and access my local files
Symbi
Yes — and this is an important distinction , so you’re not wrong to expect Claude-Code–style behavior. Right now you’re just one small step away from that. Let me be very clear and concrete. The Core Issue (Why It “Can’t Access Your Repo”) Ollama alone does NOT read your files. By design: ollama run model = pure chat No filesystem access No repo awareness No diffing, no edits This is intentional for safety. Claude Code = LLM + file-aware controller Ollama = LLM engine only You’re missing the controller layer . How Claude Code Actually Works (Mental Model) Claude Code is effectively: LLM + repo indexer + file reader + diff writer + guardrails With Ollama, you assemble this stack yourself . The good news: the tools are free, open source, and local . The Two Correct Ways to Get Repo Access (Pick One) ✅ OPTION A — Aider (Closest to Claude Code, Terminal-First) This is what you want if you liked Claude Code. What Aider Does Reads your repo Understands context Proposes diffs Applies changes safely Uses git as a guardrail Install (if not already) Bash brew install aider Run it inside your repo This is the key part people miss: Bash cd /path/to/your/repo aider Now Aider can see: All tracked files Git history Project structure Tell Aider to use Ollama Run once: Bash export OLLAMA_API_BASE = http://127.0.0.1:11434 export AIDER_MODEL = ollama/qwen2.5-coder (You can add these to ~/.zshrc later.) Test it Inside Aider, type: List the main modules in this repo and explain the architecture If it responds correctly → you now have Claude Code–level repo access , locally. ✅ OPTION B — Continue.dev (IDE / Copilot Style) If you want inline suggestions + repo chat inside VS Code. This is better for: Continuous coding Autocomplete Inline refactors It also has explicit file access . I can walk you through this next if you want, but Aider is the closest mental match to Claude Code. Why Ollama Alone Can’t Do This (Important) You might be thinking: “Why can’t I just let the model read files?” Because: LLMs don’t have filesystem APIs Giving raw file access is dangerous Tools like Aider/Continue enforce: file boundaries diffs git safety human approval This separation is correct architecture , not a limitation. Quick Checklist (So You Know You’re “There”) You should now have: ✅ Ollama running ( brew services start ollama ) ✅ Model pulled ( qwen2.5-coder:7b ) ✅ Aider installed ✅ Aider launched inside a repo ✅ Git repo initialized If any one of those is missing , repo access won’t work. One Last Gotcha (Very Common) If your repo is not a git repo yet: Bash git init git add . git commit -m "Initial commit" Aider relies on git to operate safely. Bottom Line ❌ Ollama alone ≠ Claude Code ✅ Aider + Ollama = Claude Code (local, open, better control) You’re not blocked — you were just missing the controller layer Tell me your preference and I’ll go step-by-step next: aider → finish setup + best prompts vscode → Continue.dev config both → hybrid power setup why → deeper architecture explanation You’re exactly where you should be — this is the normal “click” moment.
You
admin@SYMBIs-MacBook-Pro ~ % aider ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── You can skip this check with --no-gitignore Add .aider* to .gitignore (recommended)? (Y)es/(N)o [Yes]: y Added .aider* to .gitignore hello No LLM model was specified and no API keys were provided. OpenRouter provides free and paid access to many LLMs. Login to OpenRouter or create a free account? (Y)es/(N)o [Yes]: Please open this URL in your browser to connect Aider with OpenRouter: https://openrouter.ai/auth?callback_url=http://localhost:8484/callback/aider&code_challenge=Vmxj9fnO9sV-G5WkWaBsQ-ug2AcMw8rpH-dy0Tmvtrw&code_challenge_method=S256 Waiting up to 5 minutes for you to finish in the browser... Use Control-C to interrupt. Completing authentication... Aider will load the OpenRouter key automatically in future sessions. Aider v0.86.1 Model: openrouter/deepseek/deepseek-r1:free with diff edit format, prompt cache, infinite output Git repo: .git with 737 files Repo-map: using 4096 tokens, auto refresh https://aider.chat/HISTORY.html#release-notes Would you like to see what's new in this version? (Y)es/(N)o [Yes]: hello Please answer with one of: yes, no, skip, all Would you like to see what's new in this version? (Y)es/(N)o [Yes]: y ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── > hello Initial repo scan can be slow in larger repos, but only happens once. Scanning repo: 100%|█████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████████| 737/737 [00:10<00:00, 71.47it/s] ░litellm.NotFoundError: NotFoundError: OpenrouterException - {"error":{"message":"No endpoints found for deepseek/deepseek-r1:free.","code":404},"user_id":"user_3034nys4cHZ8t1hvjIPZUq0wApP"} ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── > hello ░litellm.NotFoundError: NotFoundError: OpenrouterException - {"error":{"message":"No endpoints found for deepseek/deepseek-r1:free.","code":404},"user_id":"user_3034nys4cHZ8t1hvjIPZUq0wApP"} ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── > export OLLAMA_API_BASE=http://127.0.0.1:11434 > export AIDER_MODEL=ollama/qwen2.5-coder > http://127.0.0.1:11434 Add URL to the chat? (Y)es/(N)o/(D)on't ask again [Yes]: y Scraping http://127.0.0.1:11434... For the best web scraping, install Playwright: /opt/homebrew/Cellar/aider/0.86.1_2/libexec/bin/python -m pip install --upgrade --upgrade-strategy only-if-needed aider-chat[playwright] /opt/homebrew/Cellar/aider/0.86.1_2/libexec/bin/python -m playwright install --with-deps chromium See https://aider.chat/docs/install/optional.html#enable-playwright for more info. Install playwright? (Y)es/(N)o [Yes]: y Installing: /opt/homebrew/Cellar/aider/0.86.1_2/libexec/bin/python -m pip install --upgrade --upgrade-strategy only-if-needed 'aider-chat[playwright]' Installation complete. Installing: /opt/homebrew/Cellar/aider/0.86.1_2/libexec/bin/python -m playwright install --with-deps chromium Installation complete. litellm.NotFoundError: NotFoundError: OpenrouterException - {"error":{"message":"No endpoints found for deepseek/deepseek-r1:free.","code":404},"user_id":"user_3034nys4cHZ8t1hvjIPZUq0wApP"} ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── >
Symbi
Excellent, thank you for pasting everything — this makes the root cause 100% clear. You are very close , but Aider is currently doing exactly the wrong thing by default , and it’s confusing if you don’t know its internals. What’s Actually Happening (Clear + Precise) 🔴 Problem Aider is still bound to OpenRouter , even though you exported Ollama variables. This line proves it: Model: openrouter/deepseek/deepseek-r1:free Once Aider authenticates with OpenRouter, it persists that choice and will ignore Ollama unless you explicitly override it. So every prompt is still going to OpenRouter → which is failing → hence: No endpoints found for deepseek/deepseek-r1:free The Key Rule (This Is the “Gotcha”) Environment variables must be set before starting Aider Setting them inside the Aider prompt does nothing. You did everything right — just in the wrong order. The Correct Fix (Do This Exactly) 1️⃣ Exit Aider completely Inside Aider: Plain text /exit Or press Ctrl+C . 2️⃣ Start a clean shell with Ollama vars set In your normal terminal (not inside Aider): Bash export OLLAMA_API_BASE = http://127.0.0.1:11434 export AIDER_MODEL = ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b (Optional but recommended to avoid future confusion:) Bash export AIDER_OPENROUTER_API_KEY = "" 3️⃣ Start Aider with explicit model override (best practice) From inside your repo: Bash aider --model ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b This forces Aider to use Ollama and bypasses OpenRouter entirely. What You Should See (This Confirms Success) You want to see something like: Aider v0.86.1 Model: ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b Git repo: .git with 737 files ❌ If you see openrouter/... anywhere → stop, it’s still wrong ✅ If you see ollama/... → you’re good Quick Smoke Test (Very Important) Inside Aider, type: Summarize the architecture of this repo. If it: References real files Mentions actual modules Does not error 🎉 You now have Claude Code–style repo access , fully local. Optional: Make This Permanent (So You Never See OpenRouter Again) Create or edit: Bash ~/.aider.conf.yml Add: YAML model: ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b ollama-api-base: http://127.0.0.1:11434 Now you can just run: Bash aider Forever. Why This Happened (So It Makes Sense) Aider supports many providers OpenRouter auth auto-enables if you say “yes” It becomes the default unless overridden Ollama must be opted in explicitly This is not obvious, and you didn’t mess up. Final State (Where You Are Now) You now have: ✅ Local LLM (Ollama + Metal) ✅ Repo-aware controller (Aider) ✅ Git-guarded edits ✅ Claude Code–level capability ✅ No cloud dependency Next (Pick One) best-prompts → how to talk to Aider effectively performance → speed + context tuning for big repos vscode → add Continue.dev alongside Aider safety → guardrails for large refactors Say the word — you’re officially over the hump now.
You
admin@SYMBIs-MacBook-Pro ~ % admin@SYMBIs-MacBook-Pro ~ % export OLLAMA_API_BASE=http://127.0.0.1:11434 export AIDER_MODEL=ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b admin@SYMBIs-MacBook-Pro ~ % export AIDER_OPENROUTER_API_KEY="" admin@SYMBIs-MacBook-Pro ~ % aider --model ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── Aider v0.86.1 Model: ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b with whole edit format Git repo: .git with 737 files Repo-map: using 4096.0 tokens, auto refresh ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── > hello █░ Waiting for ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b
Symbi
Perfect — this output is actually the success state , not an error 👍 You’ve crossed the hard boundary. Now we just need to clear the last mile behavior so it feels right. What This Means (Important) This line is the key: Model: ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b ✅ Aider is now correctly bound to your local Ollama model ✅ Repo is indexed (737 files) ✅ Git + repo-map are active ✅ No OpenRouter, no cloud So architecturally, you are exactly where Claude Code would be . Why It’s “Waiting for ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b” This state: █░ Waiting for ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b means one of three normal things : 1️⃣ Ollama server isn’t running (most common) Aider is waiting for 127.0.0.1:11434 to respond. 2️⃣ Model isn’t fully pulled yet Qwen2.5-Coder is ~4.7 GB. If the pull was interrupted earlier, Ollama may still be finalizing. 3️⃣ First inference cold-start First prompt can take 30–90 seconds on initial load (Metal graph + KV cache). We’ll check in order. Step 1 — Verify Ollama Is Running (Do This First) Open a new terminal tab and run: Bash ollama ps Expected outcomes: ✅ If you see a running model → good ❌ If you get connection refused → server isn’t running If it’s not running, start it: Bash ollama serve Leave that terminal open . Step 2 — Verify the Model Exists Locally In another terminal tab: Bash ollama list You should see: qwen2.5-coder:7b If you don’t , pull it (with the server running): Bash ollama pull qwen2.5-coder:7b Let it finish fully. Step 3 — Sanity Test Ollama Directly (Critical) Before involving Aider again, confirm Ollama itself responds: Bash ollama run qwen2.5-coder:7b Type: Say hello and explain what kind of model you are. If this responds → Ollama is healthy. Exit with Ctrl+D . Step 4 — Go Back to Aider (Now It Will Respond) Return to the Aider prompt and try something repo-aware , not just “hello”: List the top-level directories in this repo and describe their purpose. This does two things: Forces file access Forces reasoning grounded in your repo The first response may take ~30–60 seconds. That’s normal. If It Still Appears “Stuck” (Rare but Fixable) Stop Aider ( Ctrl+C ) and restart with slightly safer settings: Bash aider \ --model ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b \ --no-stream This disables token streaming, which sometimes looks like a hang. What Success Looks Like You’ll see: A thoughtful, file-specific answer Mentions of real directories/files No OpenRouter errors No permission complaints At that moment, you officially have: Claude Code–level repo intelligence, fully local, open-source One Last Optimization (Highly Recommended) Once it responds, I suggest we immediately do one tuning pass : Increase context safely Improve diff quality Reduce latency on large repos Say tune when you see your first real answer, and I’ll dial it in for your M1 Pro. You’re no longer debugging — you’re initializing.
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it responded: Hello! I'm ready to help. Please let me know what changes you need and I'll suggest the most relevant files for editing. Once I have that information, I can provide the updated file content using the specified format.
Symbi
That’s exactly the response we wanted to see. ✅ You are officially past setup and into normal operation . Let me translate what just happened and then show you how to use it properly (so it actually feels like Claude Code and not a polite chatbot). What That Response Means “Please let me know what changes you need and I'll suggest the most relevant files for editing…” This tells us: ✅ Aider is active ✅ Ollama is responding ✅ Repo is indexed ✅ File-selection + diff workflow is enabled ✅ It’s waiting for an actionable instruction In other words: the engine is warm . The reason it didn’t auto-describe the repo is because Aider is optimized to act , not narrate, unless asked. The One Mental Shift to Use Aider Well Think less: “hello / chat with the model” Think more: “do something to my codebase” Aider shines when you give it tasks , not greetings. Your First “Real” Command (Try This Now) Paste this into Aider: Give me a high-level overview of this repository. Identify the main components and how they interact. This will: Read real files Traverse directories Build an architectural map Prove repo access beyond doubt First response may take ~30–60 seconds. That’s normal on first deep read. Then Try a Claude-Code–Style Task Pick one that matches your repo: Refactor-style Find the most complex module in this repo and suggest a refactor to improve readability without changing behavior. Safety-style Scan the repo for obvious error-handling gaps or unsafe patterns and list them by file. Feature-style Add basic input validation to the main API entry point and update any affected tests. Aider will: Propose files Show diffs Ask before applying changes (unless configured otherwise) This is the Claude Code experience , just local. Important: How Aider Decides What Files to Touch Aider uses: Repo-map (summaries of all files) Git history Your instruction Model reasoning If it ever picks the wrong files, just say: Focus only on <file/path> and related utilities. It will immediately comply. Optional but Recommended: One-Time Quality Upgrade Once you’re comfortable, restart Aider like this for better results on a repo your size: Bash aider \ --model ollama/qwen2.5-coder:7b \ --map-tokens 8192 This gives it a larger repo “mental map” without blowing memory. Where You Are Now (Ground Truth) You now have: 🧠 Local coding LLM (Qwen2.5-Coder) 🗂️ Full repo visibility (737 files) ✏️ Safe, git-backed edits 🧪 Diff-based workflow 🔌 No cloud dependency This is not a demo state — this is production usage. Next Moves (Your Choice) Say one of these and I’ll guide you precisely: best-prompts → how to talk to Aider like a power user guardrails → prevent risky edits in large refactors performance → faster responses, bigger context vscode → add Continue.dev alongside Aider agents → semi-autonomous refactor / audit loops You did the hard part. Now it’s just leverage.
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will it do things like push to my remote repo
Symbi
Short, precise answer first: No — Aider will NOT push to your remote repo on its own. And that’s a feature , not a limitation. Now let me explain exactly what it can do, what it cannot do, and how close it gets to “autonomous” , so you know where the guardrails are. What Aider CAN Do (Safely) Aider is intentionally scoped to local git operations only . ✅ It can : Read your entire repo Propose changes across many files Apply edits directly to your working tree Stage changes ( git add ) Create commits ( git commit ) Write excellent commit messages Amend commits Work across branches (if you tell it) All of this happens locally . What Aider CANNOT Do (By Design) ❌ It will not : Push to a remote ( git push ) Pull from a remote ( git pull ) Merge remote branches Authenticate with GitHub / GitLab Touch CI/CD systems Modify repo settings Even if you ask it to . This is a hard safety boundary in Aider. Why This Boundary Exists (Important) Pushing to a remote repo means: Publishing code Triggering CI/CD Potentially affecting production So Aider’s philosophy is: “The human presses the red button.” This is exactly how Claude Code behaves as well — it may guide you, but you execute the push . The Typical (and Recommended) Workflow Here’s how most serious users work: Plain text 1. Aider edits files 2. Aider commits changes locally 3. Human reviews diff 4. Human runs tests 5. Human pushes to remote Example: Aider: "I’ve updated validation logic in api/user.ts and added tests. Shall I commit?" You: "Yes, commit with message: Harden input validation." Aider: *creates commit* You: git push origin main Clean. Auditable. Safe. Can It Help With the Push? Yes — Indirectly Aider can: Tell you what to push Suggest branch names Write PR descriptions Generate release notes Warn you if changes look risky Tell you which tests to run before pushing But you execute: Bash git push If You Really Want Auto-Push (Advanced / Not Recommended) You could technically: Write a wrapper script Allow shell command execution Chain Aider output into automation But this breaks the safety model and is not how Aider is intended to be used . Most experienced users keep the human-in-the-loop for remotes. Bottom Line (Clear Answer) ❌ No automatic pushing ✅ Local commits are fine ✅ You retain final control ✅ Matches Claude Code’s safety posture You now have a power tool with brakes — which is exactly what you want. If you want, next I can show you: How to let Aider auto-commit but never push How to structure prompts for multi-file refactors How to combine Aider + CI checks How teams use this safely at scale Just say the word. New version of GPT available - Continue chatting to use the old version, or start a new chat for the latest version.