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| 1 | +# @nexical/cli-core |
| 2 | + |
| 3 | +The core framework for building powerful, extensible Command Line Interfaces (CLIs) within the Nexical ecosystem. |
| 4 | + |
| 5 | +This package provides the foundational architecture for specialized CLI toolsets, including command discovery, execution orchestration, and a class-based command pattern. It is designed to be **agnostic**, allowing it to be used as the backbone for other CLI tools that need a similar structure and extensibility. |
| 6 | + |
| 7 | +## Table of Contents |
| 8 | + |
| 9 | +- [Features](#features) |
| 10 | +- [Installation](#installation) |
| 11 | +- [Usage](#usage) |
| 12 | + - [Configuration](#configuration) |
| 13 | + - [Directory Structure](#directory-structure) |
| 14 | +- [Creating Commands](#creating-commands) |
| 15 | + - [The BaseCommand](#the-basecommand) |
| 16 | + - [Defining Arguments & Options](#defining-arguments--options) |
| 17 | + - [Command Discovery Rules](#command-discovery-rules) |
| 18 | +- [Architecture](#architecture) |
| 19 | +- [License](#license) |
| 20 | + |
| 21 | +--- |
| 22 | + |
| 23 | +## Features |
| 24 | + |
| 25 | +* **Class-Based Architecture**: Build commands as TypeScript classes with inheritance and lifecycle methods. |
| 26 | +* **Dynamic Discovery**: Automatically recursively finds and registers commands from specified directories. |
| 27 | +* **Type-Safe Definitions**: Declarative definition of arguments and options. |
| 28 | +* **Built-in Help**: Automatic generation of help text for commands and subcommands. |
| 29 | +* **Configuration Support**: Aware of project-level configuration (e.g., `{command_name}.yml`). |
| 30 | +* **Robust Error Handling**: Standardized error reporting and debug modes. |
| 31 | + |
| 32 | +--- |
| 33 | + |
| 34 | +## Installation |
| 35 | + |
| 36 | +This package is typically used as a dependency within a specific CLI implementation (like `@astrical/cli`). |
| 37 | + |
| 38 | +```bash |
| 39 | +npm install @nexical/cli-core |
| 40 | +``` |
| 41 | + |
| 42 | +--- |
| 43 | + |
| 44 | +## Usage |
| 45 | + |
| 46 | +To use the core framework, you need to instantiate the `CLI` class and start it. This is typically done in your CLI's entry point (e.g., `index.ts`). |
| 47 | + |
| 48 | +### Configuration |
| 49 | + |
| 50 | +The `CLI` class accepts a `CLIConfig` object to customize behavior: |
| 51 | + |
| 52 | +```typescript |
| 53 | +import { CLI } from '@nexical/cli-core'; |
| 54 | +import path from 'node:path'; |
| 55 | +import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url'; |
| 56 | + |
| 57 | +const __dirname = path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url)); |
| 58 | + |
| 59 | +const app = new CLI({ |
| 60 | + // 1. The name of your binary/command (displayed in help) |
| 61 | + commandName: 'my-cli', |
| 62 | + |
| 63 | + // 2. Directories to recursively search for command files |
| 64 | + searchDirectories: [ |
| 65 | + path.resolve(__dirname, 'commands'), |
| 66 | + // You can add multiple directories, e.g., for plugins |
| 67 | + path.resolve(process.cwd(), 'plugins/commands') |
| 68 | + ] |
| 69 | +}); |
| 70 | + |
| 71 | +app.start(); |
| 72 | +``` |
| 73 | + |
| 74 | +### Directory Structure |
| 75 | + |
| 76 | +A typical project using `@nexical/cli-core` looks like this: |
| 77 | + |
| 78 | +``` |
| 79 | +my-cli/ |
| 80 | +├── package.json |
| 81 | +├── src/ |
| 82 | +│ ├── index.ts <-- Entry point (initializes CLI) |
| 83 | +│ └── commands/ <-- Command files |
| 84 | +│ ├── init.ts |
| 85 | +│ ├── build.ts |
| 86 | +│ └── module/ <-- Subcommands |
| 87 | +│ ├── add.ts |
| 88 | +│ └── list.ts |
| 89 | +``` |
| 90 | + |
| 91 | +--- |
| 92 | + |
| 93 | +## Creating Commands |
| 94 | + |
| 95 | +The core framework itself only includes a **Help** command. All functional commands must be implemented by consuming libraries. |
| 96 | + |
| 97 | +### The BaseCommand |
| 98 | + |
| 99 | +All commands must extend the `BaseCommand` abstract class exported by the core. |
| 100 | + |
| 101 | +```typescript |
| 102 | +// src/commands/greet.ts |
| 103 | +import { BaseCommand } from '@nexical/cli-core'; |
| 104 | + |
| 105 | +export default class GreetCommand extends BaseCommand { |
| 106 | + // Description shown in help |
| 107 | + static description = 'Greets the user'; |
| 108 | + |
| 109 | + // Implement the run method |
| 110 | + async run(options: any) { |
| 111 | + this.log('Hello from my-cli!'); |
| 112 | + } |
| 113 | +} |
| 114 | +``` |
| 115 | + |
| 116 | +### Defining Arguments & Options |
| 117 | + |
| 118 | +You can define arguments and options using the static `args` property. |
| 119 | + |
| 120 | +```typescript |
| 121 | +export default class GreetCommand extends BaseCommand { |
| 122 | + static description = 'Greets the user with a custom message'; |
| 123 | + |
| 124 | + static args = { |
| 125 | + // Positional arguments |
| 126 | + args: [ |
| 127 | + { |
| 128 | + name: 'name', |
| 129 | + required: false, |
| 130 | + description: 'Name to greet', |
| 131 | + default: 'World' |
| 132 | + } |
| 133 | + ], |
| 134 | + // Flags/Options |
| 135 | + options: [ |
| 136 | + { |
| 137 | + name: '--shout', |
| 138 | + description: 'Print in uppercase', |
| 139 | + default: false |
| 140 | + }, |
| 141 | + { |
| 142 | + name: '--count <n>', |
| 143 | + description: 'Number of times to greet', |
| 144 | + default: 1 |
| 145 | + } |
| 146 | + ] |
| 147 | + }; |
| 148 | + |
| 149 | + async run(options: any) { |
| 150 | + // 'name' comes from args (mapped to options by name) |
| 151 | + // 'shout' and 'count' come from options |
| 152 | + const { name, shout, count } = options; |
| 153 | + |
| 154 | + const message = `Hello, ${name}!`; |
| 155 | + const finalMessage = shout ? message.toUpperCase() : message; |
| 156 | + |
| 157 | + for (let i = 0; i < count; i++) { |
| 158 | + this.log(finalMessage); |
| 159 | + } |
| 160 | + } |
| 161 | +} |
| 162 | +``` |
| 163 | + |
| 164 | +### Command Discovery Rules |
| 165 | + |
| 166 | +The `CommandLoader` uses the file structure to determine command names: |
| 167 | + |
| 168 | +* **File Name = Command Name**: |
| 169 | + * `commands/build.ts` -> `my-cli build` |
| 170 | +* **Nested Directories = Subcommands**: |
| 171 | + * `commands/user/create.ts` -> `my-cli user create` |
| 172 | +* **Index Files = Parent Command**: |
| 173 | + * `commands/user/index.ts` -> `my-cli user` (The handler for the root `user` command) |
| 174 | + |
| 175 | +> **Note**: A file must default export a class extending `BaseCommand` to be registered. |
| 176 | +
|
| 177 | +--- |
| 178 | + |
| 179 | +## Architecture |
| 180 | + |
| 181 | +The core is built around three main components: |
| 182 | + |
| 183 | +1. **`CLI`**: The main entry point. It wraps [CAC](https://github.com/cacjs/cac) to handle argument parsing and acts as the dependency injection container for commands. |
| 184 | +2. **`CommandLoader`**: Scans the filesystem for command files. It handles importing typescript files and validating that they export a valid command class. |
| 185 | +3. **`BaseCommand`**: Provides the interface for commands, including: |
| 186 | + * `init()`: Async initialization hook (pre-run). |
| 187 | + * `run()`: The main execution logic. |
| 188 | + * `this.projectRoot`: Automatically resolved path to the project root (if running in a project context). |
| 189 | + * Logging helpers (`this.success`, `this.warn`, `this.error`). |
| 190 | + |
| 191 | +--- |
| 192 | + |
| 193 | +## License |
| 194 | + |
| 195 | +Apache-2.0 |
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