DEV Community

Allen Tuh
Allen Tuh

Posted on

Getting Started with Sidekick (sdkck): A Complete Setup Guide

#ai #programming #oclif

How to install the agentic CLI and connect it to Jira, MySQL, Sentry, and more

Sidekick (sdkck) is an agentic CLI that supercharges your terminal with a growing library of tools delivered via plugins. Whether you're managing Jira tickets, querying databases, or triaging Sentry errors — Sidekick brings it all into one place without leaving your command line.

This guide walks you through installing Sidekick and configuring authentication for three of the most commonly used integrations: Jira, MySQL, and Sentry.

Prerequisites

Node.js v20 or later
npm installed globally
Terminal access (macOS, Linux, or WSL on Windows)

Step 1: Install Sidekick 

npm install -g sdkck
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Verify the installation:

sdkck --version
# sdkck/0.4.0 linux-x64 node-v20.20.0
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

To see all available commands at any time:

sdkck --help
sdkck commands
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Step 2: Official Plugins — Already Included

No need to hunt for third-party packages. Sidekick ships with a suite of official @hesed plugins that are preinstalled out of the box:

Plugin What it connects to
@hesed/jira Atlassian Jira
@hesed/sentry Sentry error monitoring
@hesed/mysql MySQL databases
@hesed/psql PostgreSQL databases
@hesed/supabase Supabase database
@hesed/conni Connection manager
@hesed/bb Bitbucket

These are bundled with your sdkck installation — you do not need to run plugins add for any of them. They are available immediately after installing Sidekick.

To confirm they are present:

sdkck plugins --core
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

You should see all @hesed/* plugins listed under core plugins.

Installing Additional Plugins

If you need integrations beyond the official set, Sidekick's plugin system is fully open. Install any compatible plugin from the npm registry:

sdkck plugins add <plugin-name>
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

To update all plugins (official and user-installed):

sdkck plugins update
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Tip: Use sdkck search <query> to discover available commands across all installed plugins.

sdkck search jira
sdkck search "create issue"

Step 3: Connecting Jira

The @hesed/jira plugin is preinstalled — no setup needed on the plugin side. All you need is your Atlassian API token.

Retrieve Your Jira API Token

Jira uses API tokens (not passwords) for CLI and third-party authentication.

  1. Log in to your Atlassian account at https://id.atlassian.com
  2. Click your profile avatar in the top-right corner
  3. Select "Account settings"
  4. Navigate to the "Security" tab
  5. Under "API token", click "Create and manage API tokens"
  6. Click "Create API token"
  7. Give it a descriptive label (e.g., sdkck-cli) and click "Create"
  8. Copy the token immediately — it won't be shown again

Create token

Copy token

Configure Jira Auth in Sidekick

Once you have your token, configure your Jira credentials. The exact command depends on your installed plugin, but the standard pattern is:

sdkck jira auth add
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Jira auth add

Step 4: Connecting MySQL/PostgreSQL

The @hesed/mysql and @hesed/psql plugins are preinstalled. All you need are your database credentials.

MySQL/PostgreSQL authentication in Sidekick uses standard database credentials. You can connect to a local or remote instance.

Retrieve Your MySQL/PostgreSQL Credentials

You'll need the following from your database administrator or cloud provider:

Field Example
Host db.yourcompany.com or localhost
Port 3306
Database production_db
Username sdkck_user
Password your_db_password

Configure MySQL Auth in Sidekick 

sdkck mysql auth add
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Security tip: For production environments, use a read-only database user for Sidekick to limit blast radius if credentials are ever exposed.

Step 5: Connecting Sentry

The @hesed/sentry plugin is preinstalled. Sentry uses Auth Tokens for API access — scoped tokens that can be granted specific permissions.

Retrieve Your Sentry Auth Token

  1. Log in to https://sentry.io
  2. Click your username/avatar in the bottom-left sidebar
  3. Select "User Auth Tokens" (or navigate to Settings → Account → API → Auth Tokens)
  4. Click "Create New Token"
  5. Give it a name (e.g., sdkck-cli)
  6. Select the required scopes — at minimum:
    • project:read
    • event:read
    • org:read
  7. Click "Create Token"
  8. Copy the token immediately

Sentry token

Configure Sentry Auth in Sidekick 

sdkck sentry auth add
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Sentry auth

Putting It All Together

Once your integrations are configured, you can start using Sidekick's full power. Use search to discover what commands are available across your plugins:

# Find all Jira-related commands
sdkck search jira

# Find commands with full help output
sdkck search sentry -d

# Find database query commands
sdkck search "mysql query" --details
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Example Workflow 

# List open Jira issues assigned to you
sdkck jira issues --assignee me --status "In Progress"

# Run a quick MySQL query
sdkck mysql query "SELECT COUNT(*) FROM users WHERE created_at > NOW() - INTERVAL 7 DAY"

# Check the latest Sentry errors in a project
sdkck sentry issues --project my-backend --limit 10
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Managing Your Plugins

Task Command
List installed plugins sdkck plugins
Add a plugin sdkck plugins add <name>
Update all plugins sdkck plugins update
Remove a plugin sdkck plugins remove <name>
Reset all plugins sdkck plugins reset
Inspect a plugin sdkck plugins inspect <name>

Keeping Sidekick Updated 

npm update -g sdkck
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Security Best Practices

  • Never commit API tokens to version control. Use .env files with .gitignore, or a secrets manager like 1Password CLI or AWS Secrets Manager.
  • Use the minimum required scopes. When creating tokens for Jira and Sentry, only grant the permissions Sidekick actually needs.
  • Rotate tokens regularly. Treat CLI tokens the same way you'd treat production secrets.
  • Use read-only database credentials for MySQL unless your workflow explicitly requires write access.

Troubleshooting

Plugin not found after install:

sdkck plugins reset
sdkck plugins add <plugin-name>
Enter fullscreen mode Exit fullscreen mode

Auth errors with Jira:

  • Double-check that your JIRA_DOMAIN includes https:// and ends without a trailing slash
  • Ensure the API token belongs to an account with access to the target project

MySQL connection refused:

  • Verify the host allows connections from your IP (check firewall/security group rules)
  • Confirm the port is correct (default 3306)

Sentry token permission error:

  • Re-check that the token scopes include project:read and event:read
  • Confirm the --org slug matches exactly what appears in your Sentry URL

What's Next?

You've configured the most common integrations, but Sidekick ships with even more out of the box. The other preinstalled @hesed plugins follow the same auth pattern — grab a credential from the provider dashboard and pass it in:

  • @hesed/supabase — uses your Supabase project
  • @hesed/bb — connects to Atlassian Bitbucket
  • @hesed/conni — connects to Atlassian Confluence

For any of these, use sdkck search <plugin-name> -d to see the full list of available commands and flags.

Sidekick is built to grow further. The plugin architecture means new community integrations can be added without touching the core CLI. Keep an eye on the npm registry for new plugin releases, and use sdkck search to explore everything already available.

Happy building. 🛠️

Top comments (0)