tree-gen

Generate folder and file structures from ASCII tree diagrams. Perfect for quickly scaffolding project structures from documentation or planning notes.

Installation

Install globally via npm:

npm install -g @ipget/tree-gen

Usage

From a file

tree-gen structure.txt

Interactive mode (paste directly)

tree-gen -i
# Paste your tree structure, then press Ctrl+D (Unix/Mac) or Ctrl+Z (Windows)

Dry run (preview without creating)

tree-gen -d structure.txt
tree-gen -i -d

Help

tree-gen --help

Tree Format

tree-gen supports standard ASCII tree format with box-drawing characters:

• Folders: End with a trailing slash /
• Files: Have an extension or no extension
• Box characters: ├──, │, └── (automatically parsed)

Example Tree

project/
├── src/
│   ├── components/
│   │   ├── Header.js
│   │   └── Footer.js
│   ├── utils/
│   │   └── helpers.js
│   └── index.js
├── public/
│   └── index.html
├── package.json
└── README.md

Creating this structure

Save the tree to a file structure.txt and run:

tree-gen structure.txt

Or use interactive mode:

tree-gen -i
# Paste the tree above, press Ctrl+D

Output

✓ Created folder: project/
✓ Created folder: project/src/
✓ Created folder: project/src/components/
✓ Created file: project/src/components/Header.js
✓ Created file: project/src/components/Footer.js
✓ Created folder: project/src/utils/
✓ Created file: project/src/utils/helpers.js
✓ Created file: project/src/index.js
✓ Created folder: project/public/
✓ Created file: project/public/index.html
✓ Created file: project/package.json
✓ Created file: project/README.md

Summary:
Folders: 5
Files: 7

Options

| Option | Description | |--------|-------------| | -i, --interactive | Enter interactive mode to paste tree structure | | -d, --dry-run | Preview the structure without creating files/folders | | --help | Show help message |

Features

• ✅ Zero dependencies (only Node.js built-ins)
• ✅ Works with standard ASCII tree format
• ✅ Automatically detects folders (trailing /) and files
• ✅ Creates nested directory structures
• ✅ Skips existing files/folders
• ✅ Dry-run mode for safe previewing
• ✅ Interactive mode for pasting trees directly
• ✅ Cross-platform (Windows, Mac, Linux)

Tips

1. Copy from documentation: Many projects display their structure as ASCII trees - copy and paste directly!

2. Generate from tree command: On Unix systems, you can use the tree command output:

   tree -F > structure.txt
   tree-gen structure.txt

3. Mix files and folders: Files can have extensions, no extensions, or be explicitly marked

4. Flexible formatting: Works with various indentation styles and box characters

Examples

Simple project structure

app/
├── src/
│   └── main.js
└── tests/
    └── test.js

Frontend project

my-app/
├── public/
│   ├── favicon.ico
│   └── index.html
├── src/
│   ├── App.js
│   ├── index.js
│   └── styles.css
├── package.json
└── README.md

API project

api/
├── controllers/
│   ├── userController.js
│   └── authController.js
├── models/
│   └── User.js
├── routes/
│   └── api.js
├── config/
│   └── database.js
├── server.js
└── .env

Requirements

• Node.js >= 14.0.0

License

MIT

Contributing

Contributions welcome! Please open an issue or submit a pull request on GitHub.

Author

Of the North

Support

If you encounter any issues or have questions, please open an issue.

## **Publishing to npm**

### 1. Update package.json

Replace `yourusername` with your actual GitHub username and update the author field.

### 2. Create .gitignore

node_modules/ .DS_Store *.log