blueprints-cli

(work in progress. USE AT OWN RISK. api, features, and conventions are likely to change)

(docs not complete)

blueprints-cli is a tool for generating files (i.e. blueprint instances) based on templates (i.e. blueprints). One common usage for this tool is generating files for development environments (ex. components, applications, containers, configurations, etc.)

The goal of the project is the automation of file creation, with simplicity, flexibility, and extensibility in mind.

Installation

npm install -g @cliffpyles/blueprints-cli

or

yarn global add @cliffpyles/blueprints-cli

Quick Start

1) Create a blueprint

bp new -g ExampleBlueprint

2) Configure the blueprint

Place files you want to reuse in ~/.blueprints/ExampleBlueprint/files/

3) Use the blueprint

Go to the desired folder and run bp generate ExampleBlueprint MyInstance

Commands

generate|g [options] <blueprint> <blueprintInstance> Generate files with a blueprint

list|ls [namespace] List all available blueprints

new [options] <blueprint> Create a blueprint

import <globalBlueprint> [localBlueprint] Create a project blueprint based on a global blueprint

init [projectPath] Initialize a local blueprints project

remove|rm [options] <blueprint> Remove a blueprint

help [command] display help for command

How it Works

blueprint-cli uses the concept of global and local blueprints. To modify your global blueprints go to ~/.blueprints. To modify your project blueprints go to your/project/path/.blueprints. A blueprint is by definition a directory that is a descendant of a .blueprints directory. You can use a blueprint to generate a blueprint instance.

Generating a Blueprint Instance

You can use a blueprint to create a blueprint instance. This creation is referred to as generating a blueprint instance.

You can think of generating a blueprint instance, as copying and pasting a directory, followed by some optional file and directory modifications. The directory you copy is the blueprint, the directory created when you paste is the blueprint instance.

You generate a blueprint instance by running: bp generate <blueprintName> <blueprintInstanceName>

When generating blueprint instances, the tool will look for the blueprint in your current directory first, and then it will look in every parent directory, until it reaches your home directory. It will use the first blueprint it finds, unless you expicitly tell it to use the global blueprint (the blueprint in the home directory).

Blueprint Structure

├── blueprint.json
├── files/
├── hooks.js

blueprint.json

A file placed at the root of a blueprint. The contents of the this file allow for further configuration of a blueprint.

Properties

description - A description of the blueprint. Used to describe what the blueprint is when you run bp list

data - Default data values that will be used when generating a blueprint instance. The data can be used to rename files and directories, or to replace file contents. These values can be overwritten by specifying the values when the generate command is run.

files/

A directory containing the files and directories that will be copied during blueprint instance generation.

hooks.js

A node module that exports various functions that are executed during blueprint instance generation.