Devtrack CLI Tool 🛠️

🚀 Installation

npm install -g @rupanjan123/devtrackcli

⚠️ Do not install locally (without -g) — the dev command will not be available in your terminal.

🧐 Ever feel lost coming back to a project after a few days?

As developers, we often return to a project after a break and think: "What was I even doing here?"

Git commits brilliantly track code changes, but they rarely capture the thought process, debugging insights, or design decisions that are critical to our work.

We scribble random notes in Notion, sticky notes, or worse — lose track entirely. Our brains work task-by-task, and writing them down helps retain clarity.

That's why I built Devtrack CLI 🛠️ A simple command-line tool to log your ideas, blockers, bugs, notes, and progress independently of Git. Think of it as "committing your thoughts," not just your code.

✨ What's New & Improved?

🔎 Smarter Folder-Based Context (Default Behavior)

• Logs now default to the current folder name as the project
• If you dev switch-to <project>, logs go to that project until you change folders
• Moving to a different folder resets the project context automatically
• No global sticky context — just intuitive folder-based tracking

🧠 How Devtrack Context Works

📁 1. Folder-Based Logging (Default)

Devtrack automatically logs your entries under the folder name you're currently in.

cd ~/projects/ChatbotApp
dev new "Improve authentication strategy"

➡️ This will be logged under ChatbotApp.

🔀 2. Switch Context Temporarily

Use this when you want to log under a different project without changing folders !:

dev switch-to backend

➡️ Logs will now go under backend until a new project is encountered or is registered.

🚶 3. Folder Change = Context Reset

As soon as you cd into a different folder, Devtrack resets the context back to the folder name:

cd ../ExpenseTracker

➡️ Logs will now go under ExpenseTracker (not backend anymore).

🧪 Summary Table

| Scenario | Where logs go | | ------------------------------- | ----------------- | | Inside a folder (no switch) | Folder name | | After dev switch-to <project> | Switched project | | After new project encountered | Folder name again |

✨ Global & Local Databases

• Store logs locally inside project folders or globally for cross-project memory
• Use --global flag or --scope to switch views and searches

🔍 Powerful Search

• Fuzzy search across local, global, or all logs
• Smart filters: search by project, author, tags, or date range
• Search even with numerics and special characters now

🎨 Smart Tagging & Auto Context

• Tag logs as per your choice: bug, task, design, note, idea, etc.
• Auto-registers your folder as a project when logging for the first time
• Switches context automatically when moving to a new folder

➕ New Commands

• dev switch-to <project> – switch context manually (local to current folder)
• dev resume – return to your last working context in that folder (context switch)
• dev context – view current effective project
• dev all – view logs from local, global, or all scopes
• dev search – fuzzy or exact search with --scope, --tags, --author, etc.
• dev clean – clean logs if database reaches a certain size threshold

🎓 Real-Life Developer Flow

# 1. Start in a folder (default project = folder name)
cd ~/projects/ChatbotApp

# 2. Log a new idea
dev new "Using WebSockets for real-time chat instead of polling." -t idea

# 3. Log a bug
dev new "Chat lags when typing fast. Debounce input needed." -t bug

# 4. Save a quick note
dev new "Review message throttling strategy for smoother UI." -t note

# 5. Switch to a project temporarily
dev switch-to backend

dev new "Add Redis pub-sub for horizontal scaling." -t design

# 6. Change folder (context resets)
cd ../ExpenseTracker

dev new "Choosing between localStorage and IndexedDB." -t design

# 7. Plan sprint
dev new "Add export-to-CSV feature in admin dashboard." -t task

# 8. View all logs
dev all

# 9. Search all logs
dev search "chat" --scope all

# 10. Filter by project & tag
dev search --project ExpenseTracker --tags design

# 11. View current project context
dev context

# 12. Resume work from your current project
dev resume

# 13. View global logs
dev all --scope global

# 14. Clean logs
dev clean

ℹ️ Why Not Just Git?

Git is great for code, but:

• ❌ Doesn't track what you're thinking
• ❌ No support for personal logs unrelated to commits
• ❌ No quick journal-like tracking across projects

Devtrack is:

• 🧠 Brain-first, not just code-first
• 🛠️ Lightweight, always available
• 📂 Structured, searchable, and scoped logging

🌐 NPM Package

https://www.npmjs.com/package/devtrack

Let me know what you think – feedback or ideas to improve it are always welcome! ✨

#devtools #cli #nodejs #productivity #opensource #logging #developerworkflow