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Contral Documentation
Contral is an AI coding assistant that teaches while you build. Find setup guides, AppSumo lifetime-deal help, feature references and fixes for common problems.
Popular tasks
- Redeem your AppSumo codeActivate your AppSumo license on a new or existing Contral account, step by step, including email verification.
- QuickstartInstall the extension, sign in, and make your first build and first lesson in about five minutes.
- Install the extensionInstall Contral in VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Antigravity, Kilo Code or VSCodium from the Marketplace, Open VSX or a VSIX file.
- Usage limits explainedExact limits for every plan and AppSumo tier, when they reset, and what counts as a message, deep dive or session.
- TroubleshootingEvery AppSumo redemption error message, what causes it, and how to fix it.
Browse by section
Get started
- IntroductionWhat Contral is, its Build, Learn and Defense modes, and who it's for.
- QuickstartInstall the extension, sign in, and make your first build and first lesson in about five minutes.
- Install the extensionInstall Contral in VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf, Antigravity, Kilo Code or VSCodium from the Marketplace, Open VSX or a VSIX file.
- Install the desktop IDEDownload and install Contral IDE: supported platforms, system requirements, first launch and automatic updates.
- Sign in & connect your accountSign in to Contral from the extension or desktop IDE with Google, GitHub or email, and fix common sign-in issues.
AppSumo
- AppSumo lifetime deal overviewWhat each Contral AppSumo tier includes: exact limits, features in every tier, and what isn't included.
- Redeem your AppSumo codeActivate your AppSumo license on a new or existing Contral account, step by step, including email verification.
- Upgrade or change your tierUpgrade or downgrade your Contral AppSumo tier on AppSumo; changes carry over to your account automatically.
- Refunds & deactivationAppSumo's 60-day refund policy and what happens to your Contral account when a license is refunded.
- AppSumo FAQAnswers to common questions about the Contral AppSumo lifetime deal: licenses, tiers, limits, BYOK, teams and devices.
Using Contral
- Build modeUse Contral's AI coding agent: give it tasks, review edits hunk by hunk, approve commands and undo turns.
- Learn mode & curriculumContral's Java curriculum: categories, free topics, missions, hints, checkpoints and where progress is saved.
- Defense modeHow Contral checks that you understand code: explain-it-back steps, quizzes, checkpoints and exams.
- Agent modes & plan approvalsWhen to use Fast, Plan, Deep and Recursive modes, which plans include them, and how plan approval works.
- Slash commands referenceEvery slash command in the Contral chat, plus MCP, skills and @contral commands.
- Teaching on AI edits from other agentsGet teaching cards for code written by Cursor, Copilot, Claude Code, Codex and other AI agents.
- Codebase tours & codebase chatAnalyse a repository into a guided tour and learning path, then ask questions about it.
- Web searchSearch the web from the Contral extension with /web and /research, and how monthly search limits work.
- MCP serversAdd MCP servers to Contral from the marketplace or by hand, and manage and approve their tools.
- SkillsUse Contral's built-in skills, install more from the marketplace or GitHub, and write your own SKILL.md.
- Bring your own key (BYOK)Use your own OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, OpenRouter, Ollama or other API key in Contral, and BYOK limits by plan.
- Usage limits & quotas explainedExact limits for every plan and AppSumo tier, when they reset, and what counts as a message, deep dive or session.
Account & billing
- Plans & pricingCompare Contral's Free, Pro, Pro+ and Teams plans and the AppSumo lifetime tiers.
- Your dashboardWhat's on the Overview, Account, Subscription and Feedback pages of your Contral dashboard.
- Subscriptions, upgrades & cancellationSubscribe, upgrade, manage billing, cancel and request refunds for Contral plans bought on contral.ai.
- Privacy & dataWhat data Contral collects and never collects, how long it's kept, and how to use your privacy rights.
- Delete your accountPermanently delete your Contral account, what gets removed, and what to do first if you have a license or subscription.
Troubleshooting
- Redemption errorsEvery AppSumo redemption error message, what causes it, and how to fix it.
- Extension not loading or sign-in loopFix a missing or blank Contral panel, sign-in that never returns to the editor, and repeated sign-in prompts.
- Limits reached & quota errorsWhat each Contral limit message means and what to do when you hit a daily or monthly quota.
- Desktop IDE install issuesFix Contral IDE download, install, macOS security, Windows SmartScreen, Linux package and update problems.
- Model & response errorsFix failed or empty AI responses, usage-server connection errors, teaching card errors and BYOK provider errors.
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