Deploy an eve project

eve is Vercel’s open-source agent framework. If you built an agent with eve’s filesystem layout, Zavu deploys it as a first-class Zavu agent — same inbox, same executions log, same billing as an agent written with @zavudev/functions — without editing a single file of your project. Two ways in:

# From GitHub, in one command:
npx zavudev import acme/support-bot --sender sndr_123

# Or from a local checkout:
cd my-eve-agent
npx zavudev deploy --sender sndr_123

deploy recognizes the eve layout by agent/instructions.md. import downloads the repo, detects the framework (eve or Zavu native), registers the function, installs dependencies, and deploys.

What maps to what

eve	Zavu
`agent/instructions.md`	The agent’s system prompt
`agent/agent.ts` (`model: "..."`)	The agent’s model (string models only)
`agent/agent.ts` (`name: "..."`)	The agent’s name. Without it, the `package.json` name is used
`agent/tools/*.ts`	Tools, named by filename — `get_weather.ts` becomes `get_weather`. Each file must `export default defineTool({ ... })`
Zod `inputSchema`	Converted to JSON Schema automatically
`package.json` dependencies	Installed server-side, exactly like a native function

Your tool handlers run unmodified inside the function. The eve package itself is compiled away — it is not installed or executed on Zavu.

The sender

An eve project has no concept of a sender, and the agent needs one to answer messages. Provide it either way:

npx zavudev deploy --sender sndr_123        # inlined at compile time
# or
npx zavudev fn secrets set SENDER_ID sndr_123   # resolved at runtime

Without either, the deploy succeeds and the agent stays disconnected until you connect a sender from the dashboard.

What does not run on Zavu

The deploy prints a compatibility report before anything ships. Every eve capability without a Zavu equivalent is listed there — nothing is dropped silently:

agent/channels/ — not needed: your Zavu senders are the channels. Messages arrive without any channel file.
agent/schedules/ — use a Zavu cron trigger instead: npx zavudev fn triggers add --events cron --cron '0 9 * * 1-5'.
agent/skills/ — skill files are not loaded at runtime. Fold critical content into instructions.md or a knowledge base.
agent/subagents/, agent/sandbox/ — not supported. If your agent depends on them, run it on eve’s own runtime and connect Zavu as a channel instead.
evals/ — keep running them locally with eve; they do not run on Zavu.
Tool approval gates and toModelOutput — ignored, with a warning per tool.

A file under agent/tools/ that does not export default defineTool(...) — it is not a tool and is reported by name. The tool count in the report is always the number of tools that will actually be created:

// Not a tool: nothing registers it, and the agent's prompt will reference
// something that does not exist.
export default { description: "...", execute: async () => ({}) }

// A tool.
import { defineTool } from "eve/tools"
export default defineTool({ description: "...", execute: async () => ({}) })

A voice block in agent/agent.ts — not translated. The agent deploys as text only and will not answer phone calls. To give it a voice, declare it on a Zavu-native agent (defineAgent({ voice: { ... } })) or turn voice on from the dashboard.

agent/agent.ts is read against a fixed list of keys: model and name. Every other key it declares is reported by name, whether or not Zavu has heard of it, so a capability eve adds tomorrow cannot slip through unmentioned:

agent config 'reasoning' is not translated to Zavu and will be ignored
agent config 'voice' is not translated to Zavu and will be ignored — this agent
deploys as TEXT ONLY and will not answer phone calls

Tools run on every channel — plain text, voice, and flow tool steps — with up to 5 tool rounds per reply, exactly as an eve agent expects.

Importing from GitHub

npx zavudev import owner/repo                # default branch
npx zavudev import owner/repo#staging        # branch, tag, or commit
npx zavudev import owner/repo --root apps/agent   # monorepo subdirectory

Private repositories work by setting a GITHUB_TOKEN environment variable. The token is sent only to GitHub to download the archive — never to Zavu. import works for Zavu-native projects too: a repo with a root index.ts is registered and deployed exactly like npx zavudev init + deploy would.

After the first deploy

npx zavudev agents list                      # find the agent id
npx zavudev agents test <agentId> --message "hi"   # dry-run, nothing delivered

Redeploys are just npx zavudev deploy from the project directory — edit your eve files, deploy, and the reconcile summary shows exactly what changed (+ created, ~ updated, = unchanged, - deleted).

Getting Started

Concepts

Guides

Deploy an eve project