deepseek-harness
DeepSeek AI's own agent harness: everything is a plugin, run behind a local Web UI on the Cordis runtime.
What is deepseek-harness?
`dsh` is the agent harness DeepSeek AI develops itself. `npx @deepseek-ai/dsh web` brings up a Web UI on `http://127.0.0.1:3080`, and the architecture behind it is one where everything is a plugin, powered by the Cordis runtime, so it suits people who intend to extend a harness rather than only operate one. The caveat comes from the project itself: it is labelled a developer preview and warns in capitals that there will be compatibility-breaking changes, so plugins written today should budget for rework. It is also a poor fit if you want a documented scripted or embedded entry point right now, since the README covers only the `web` command and a source checkout, and links out to a development guide and architecture documentation without saying what either contains.
What can you do with deepseek-harness?
- Get a Web UI running from one command — With Node.js installed,
npx @deepseek-ai/dsh webstarts the harness and serves its Web UI athttp://127.0.0.1:3080by default. - Build on the plugin architecture — The harness is powered by the Cordis runtime under an everything-is-a-plugin architecture; the README's Development section points at a development guide (
docs/development.md) and architecture documentation (docs/architecture.md). - Make your plugin discoverable — Adding the
dsh-pluginGitHub topic to a plugin repository is the route the README gives for discoverability, with feedback and bug reports going through GitHub Discussions or the project's Discord. Those are the only routes: Issues are switched off on the repository, so there is no public backlog to read before adopting — no way to see what breaks, how long it stays broken, or whether maintainers reply. For a developer preview promising compatibility-breaking changes, that is the thing to weigh. - Run and modify the harness from source — Clone the repo, then
pnpm install,pnpm run buildandpnpm dsh webto launch your own checkout instead of the published package. - Hand the repo to a coding agent — The README directs agents working in this codebase to follow
AGENTS.mdat the repo root.
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16 Aug to 28 Aug · +72.3k
Frequently asked questions
Is deepseek-harness free for commercial use?
deepseek-harness is released under the MIT licence — OSI-approved open source, which permits commercial use.
How can deepseek-harness be deployed?
deepseek-harness is available as Self-hosted / Runs locally.
Documentation
Reproduced from the deepseek-ai/deepseek-harness README, published under MIT. Read the original ↗
DeepSeek Harness
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DeepSeek Harness (dsh) is an open-source agent harness developed by DeepSeek AI.
It uses an architecture where everything is a plugin, and is powered by Cordis, whose design is described in A Programming Paradigm for Spatiotemporal Composability.
Developer preview
DeepSeek Harness is currently in developer preview and is iterating rapidly. THERE WILL BE COMPATIBILITY-BREAKING CHANGES.
Run
Run from npm
Install Node.js, then run:
npx @deepseek-ai/dsh webThe command starts the Web UI, served at http://127.0.0.1:3080 by default. See Web UI guide.
Run from source
To run from a repository checkout:
git clone https://github.com/deepseek-ai/deepseek-harness.git
cd deepseek-harness
pnpm install
pnpm run build
pnpm dsh webCommunity and support
- Feel free to submit feedback or bug reports through GitHub Discussions.
- Add the
dsh-plugintopic to your plugin repository for discoverability. - Join DeepSeek Harness Discord community.
Development
Start with the development guide and architecture documentation.
For agents, follow AGENTS.md.
Other options in Agent Frameworks
AutoGPTWorkflowAn agent here is a graph of blocks — one block calls a service, transforms data, prompts a model or branches — assembled on a canvas rather than written in code, then run on demand, on a schedule or from a trigger. One repository holds both the free self-hosted platform and the code behind the paid hosted one, and that is the catch: everything under the platform directory is PolyForm Shield, which permits use but forbids offering it as a competing product.
DifyWorkflowA complete platform — prompt orchestration, retrieval, agent tools and an admin UI — that non-engineers can operate once a team has set it up. The licence is a modified Apache 2.0 with additional conditions on multi-tenant hosting and branding, so it is source-available rather than open source. Read it before building a product on top.
LangChainFrameworksIts real value is coverage: whatever model, vector store or API you need, an adapter probably already exists, which shortens the distance from idea to prototype. The abstractions have a reputation for indirection, so many teams use it for the integrations and reach for something more explicit once the control flow gets complicated.