What is effort-cycle?
effort-cycle is a Claude Code mod by Anerco that change Claude Code's effort level per agent: Ctrl+↑ and Ctrl+↓ step the main thread or the subagent in view, shown as a colored meter in the footer (‹ › to click on hover) and in the tasks. It is listed under Agents & automation and has 3 GitHub stars.
| Type | Claude code mod |
|---|---|
| Author | Anerco |
| Repository | Anerco/claude-code-effort-cycle |
| Popularity | 3 GitHub stars |
| Category | Agents & automation |
| Security | Review before installing (64/100) |
| Rank | #777 of 5,272 Claude Code mods; #71 in Agents & automation |
| License | MIT |
| Last commit | 2026-10-06 |
| Stars this week | +1 |
| Hooks | 7 events |
| Sees | subagent spawns |
| Draws on | SessionMode, AbovePrompt, ToolUse |
Is effort-cycle safe to install?
effort-cycle scores 64/100 on the MCPMods security check: Review before installing. Things to review: starts processes outside the sandbox; writes files or config; reads environment variables. It passed 5 of 8 checks.
Mod footprints come from claude plugin validate, which lists every event a mod hooks and every API call it makes without running it.
| Check | Result |
|---|---|
| No network access | Pass |
| Starts processes outside the sandbox | Review |
| Writes files or config | Review |
| Reads environment variables | Review |
| Only sees the events it hooks | Pass |
| Doesn't drive Claude | Pass |
| Passes claude plugin validate | Pass |
| Has an open-source license | Pass |
API calls in its code
| Call | What it means |
|---|---|
$.agent.list | |
$.clock.after | |
$.clock.every | |
$.clock.now | |
$.env.get | reads env vars |
$.env.set | sets env vars |
$.fs.write | writes files |
$.process.run | runs processes |
$.session.id | |
$.session.model | |
$.session.surfaces | |
$.settings.read | reads settings |
$.state.get | |
$.state.set | |
$.ui.resolve | draws interface |
How do I install effort-cycle?
- Check your Claude Code version. Mods need Claude Code 2.1.287 or later and are on by default.
claude --version
- Read its footprint. This lists every event it hooks and every API call it makes, without running it.
git clone https://github.com/Anerco/claude-code-effort-cycle claude plugin validate ./claude-code-effort-cycle/.
- Install it. Run this in your terminal, then /reload-plugins in an open session.
git clone https://github.com/Anerco/claude-code-effort-cycle && claude --plugin-dir ./claude-code-effort-cycle/.
Or ask Claude to set it up
Paste this into Claude Code and it installs effort-cycle for you:
Install the "effort-cycle" Claude Code mod from https://github.com/Anerco/claude-code-effort-cycle. Run claude plugin validate on it first and show me what it can access before you enable it.