aider.nvim

A Neovim plugin for seamless integration with Aider, an AI pair programming tool.

Features

• Toggle Aider terminal window
• Load files into Aider session
• Ask questions about code with visual selection support
• Integration with fzf-lua and Telescope for file selection
• Maintains persistent Aider sessions

Prerequisites

• Neovim 0.5+
• Aider installed (pip install aider-chat)
• fzf-lua or Telescope (optional, for enhanced file selection)

Installation

Using lazy.nvim

{
    "aweis89/aider.nvim",
    version = "v0.0.1",
    dependencies = {
        "ibhagwan/fzf-lua", -- or "nvim-telescope/telescope.nvim"
    },
    init = function()
      require("aider").setup()
    end,
    -- e.x. mappings
    keys = {
        {
            "<leader>a<space>",
            "<cmd>AiderToggle<CR>",
            desc = "Toggle Aider",
        },
        {
            "<leader>al",
            "<cmd>AiderLoad<CR>",
            desc = "Add file to aider",
        },
        {
            "<leader>ad",
            "<cmd>AiderAsk<CR>",
            desc = "Ask with selection",
            mode = { "v", "n" },
        },
    },
}

Using vim-plug

Plug 'ibhagwan/fzf-lua'
Plug 'aweis89/aider.nvim', { 'tag': 'v0.0.1' }

" After plug#end(), add the setup:
lua require('aider').setup()

Using packer.nvim

use {
    'aweis89/aider.nvim',
    tag = 'v0.0.1',
    requires = { 'ibhagwan/fzf-lua' },
    config = function()
        require('aider').setup()
    end
}

Using dein.vim

call dein#add('ibhagwan/fzf-lua')
call dein#add('aweis89/aider.nvim', {'rev': 'v0.0.1'})

" After loading plugins, add the setup:
lua require('aider').setup()

Using Vundle.vim

Plugin 'ibhagwan/fzf-lua'
Plugin 'aweis89/aider.nvim'

" After Plugin commands, add the setup:
lua require('aider').setup()
" Note: Vundle doesn't support direct tag specification,
" use git checkout v0.0.1 in the plugin directory after installation

Commands

• :AiderToggle - Toggle the Aider terminal window
• :AiderLoad [files...] - Load files into Aider session
• :AiderAsk - Ask a question about code (works in visual mode)

FZF-lua Integration

When fzf-lua is installed, you can use Ctrl-l in the file picker to load files into Aider:

• Single file: Navigate to a file and press Ctrl-l to load it into Aider
• Multiple files: Use Shift-Tab to select multiple files, then press Ctrl-l to load all selected files
• The files will be automatically added to your current Aider session if one exists, or start a new session if none is active
• FZF also support a select-all behavior, which can be used to load all files matching a suffix for example

Telescope Integration

When Telescope is installed, you can use <C-l> in any file picker to load files into Aider:

• Single file: Navigate to a file and press <C-l> to load it into Aider.
• Multiple files: Use multi-select to choose files, then press <C-l> to load all selected files.
• The files will be automatically added to your current Aider session if one exists, or start a new session if none is active.

Configuration

The plugin can be configured during setup:

require('aider').setup({
    -- Override the default editor command (defaults to 'tmux popup -E nvim' in tmux)
    editor_command = 'your-custom-editor-command',

    -- Change the FZF action key (defaults to 'ctrl-l')
    fzf_action_key = 'ctrl-x',

    -- Change the Telescope action key (defaults to '<C-l>')
    telescope_action_key = '<C-l>',

    -- Set default arguments for aider CLI (can also use AIDER_ARGS env var)
    aider_args = '--model gpt-4 --no-auto-commits',

    -- Configure window display (these are the defaults)
    window = {
        layout = "float",     -- 'float', 'vertical', 'horizontal', or 'current'
        width = 0.9,         -- width of the window (in columns or percentage)
        height = 0.9,        -- height of the window (in lines or percentage)
        border = "rounded",   -- 'none', 'single', 'double', 'rounded', etc.
    }
})

Dark Mode

The plugin automatically sets the --dark-mode flag when Neovim's background option is set to "dark". This ensures aider's UI matches your Neovim theme.

Environment Variables

• AIDER_ARGS: Set default command line arguments for aider. These are applied before any arguments specified in the plugin configuration.
• AIDER_EDITOR: Set by the plugin when using tmux (see Editor Command below).

Editor Command Behavior

When running in a tmux session, the plugin automatically sets AIDER_EDITOR to use a tmux popup with Neovim by default. This provides a better experience than the default /editor command, which can have issues when running nested Neovim sessions in terminal mode. You can override this behavior by setting editor_command in the setup options.

The default FZF action key is ctrl-l, but this can be customized using the fzf_action_key option during setup.

Usage Examples

1. Toggle Aider window:

:AiderToggle

2. Load current file into Aider:

:AiderLoad

3. Load specific files:

:AiderLoad path/to/file1.lua path/to/file2.lua

4. Ask about code:
   • Select code in visual mode
   • Run :AiderAsk
   • Enter your prompt
   • Aider will respond in the terminal window

License

MIT