npm install -g @tacobase/cli

Quick start

taco login                        # Authenticate
taco init my-app --template next  # Scaffold a new project
cd my-app && npm install
taco dev --with-app               # Postgres + dev server, one command

🌮 Wrapped. You're building.

Table of Contents

• taco login
• taco init
• taco dev
• taco typegen
• taco status
• taco logs
• taco seed
• taco doctor
• taco dashboard
• Configuration
• Framework templates
• Troubleshooting

taco login

Authenticate with tacobase. Opens a browser session to sign in.

taco login

Your auth token is stored in ~/.taco/config.json. Sign in once, taco forever.

taco init

Scaffold a new tacobase project. Creates a cloud instance, generates your API key, and optionally sets up a framework template.

taco init my-project                 # Interactive template picker
taco init my-app --template next     # Next.js + App Router
taco init my-app --template react    # React + Vite
taco init my-app --template vue      # Vue
taco init my-app --template svelte   # Svelte

What happens:

1. Creates a tacobase instance in the dashboard
2. Generates an API key (tbk_...)
3. Writes .env.local with TACOBASE_URL and TACOBASE_API_KEY
4. Scaffolds your project with the selected framework template

Options:

• -t, --template <template> — Framework template (next, react, vue, svelte)

taco dev

Spins up a local Postgres instance via Docker. Your database, local, zero config.

taco dev                         # Postgres on :5432
taco dev --with-app              # Postgres + npm run dev
taco dev --run "vite"            # Postgres + custom app command
taco dev -p 9090 --run "vite"   # Custom port + custom command

What it does:

1. Starts a postgres:16 Docker container named tacobase-dev-postgres
2. Prints your local DATABASE_URL
3. Injects DATABASE_URL and DATABASE_URL_UNPOOLED into your app process
4. Tears everything down on Ctrl+C — clean exit, no leftovers

Options:

• -p, --port <port> — Postgres port (default: 5432)
• -a, --with-app — Also run npm run dev
• -r, --run <command> — Custom command to start your app

Prerequisite: Docker Desktop must be installed and running.

taco typegen

Generate TypeScript types from your live collection schemas. Run once, get autocomplete forever.

taco typegen                          # → ./src/types/tacobase.ts
taco typegen --output ./types/db.ts   # Custom output path
taco typegen --watch                  # Auto-regenerate on schema changes
taco typegen --watch --interval 10    # 10-second poll interval

Example output:

export interface PostsRecord extends BaseRecord {
  title: string;
  content: string;
  author: string;
  published: boolean;
}

export type CollectionName = 'posts' | 'users' | 'comments';

Comes with a typed db instance — zero extra setup:

import { db } from './src/types/tacobase'

const posts = await db.collection('posts').getList(1, 20)
//                                ^-- autocomplete  ^-- PostsRecord[]
posts.items[0].title  // ✓ typed

Options:

• -o, --output <path> — Output file path (default: ./src/types/tacobase.ts)
• -i, --instance <id> — Instance ID (defaults to current project)
• -w, --watch — Watch for schema changes and regenerate
• --interval <seconds> — Poll interval in watch mode (default: 5)

taco status

Check what's cooking with your current project.

taco status
taco status --instance <instance-id>

Options:

• -i, --instance <id> — Instance ID (defaults to current project)

taco logs

Tail your project logs. Great for watching things go sideways in real time.

taco logs                   # Last 100 lines
taco logs --tail 50         # Last 50 lines
taco logs --follow          # Stream in real-time
taco logs --instance <id>   # Specific project

Options:

• -n, --tail <lines> — Number of lines (default: 100)
• -f, --follow — Stream logs in real-time
• -i, --instance <id> — Instance ID

taco seed

Seed your collections with data. Point at a file, run it, done.

taco seed                          # Auto-detects tacobase.seed.{ts,js,json}
taco seed --file ./data/seed.json  # Explicit file
taco seed --reset                  # Wipe existing data first, then seed
taco seed --reset --file seed.ts

Options:

• -f, --file <path> — Path to seed file
• -r, --reset — Clear existing data before seeding
• -i, --instance <id> — Instance ID

taco doctor

Runs diagnostic checks. Something's not working? Start here.

taco doctor
taco doctor --instance <id>

taco dashboard

Open your project dashboard in the browser.

taco dashboard
taco dashboard --instance <instance-id>

Configuration

Stored in ~/.taco/config.json:

{
  "authToken": "your-auth-token",
  "currentInstance": "inst_abc123",
  "instances": {
    "inst_abc123": {
      "id": "inst_abc123",
      "name": "my-project",
      "url": "https://my-project.tacobase.dev",
      "apiKey": "tbk_abc123..."
    }
  }
}

Framework templates

Next.js

App Router, TypeScript, @tacobase/client and @tacobase/react pre-wired.

taco init my-app --template next
cd my-app && npm install && npm run dev

React (Vite)

React + Vite + TypeScript, tacobase ready to go.

taco init my-app --template react
cd my-app && npm install && npm run dev

Includes @tacobase/client, @tacobase/react, src/tacobase.ts, and .env pre-filled.

Vue, Svelte — coming soon 🌮

Troubleshooting

"You must be logged in" → Run taco login.

"No instance found" → Run taco init or pass --instance <id>.

"Docker not found" / "Docker daemon is not running" → Install Docker Desktop and make sure it's running before taco dev.

Types not updating → Run taco typegen after modifying collection schemas. Or run with --watch so it stays current automatically.

Related packages

| Package | Description | |---|---| | @tacobase/client | Core SDK — CRUD, auth, realtime, storage | | @tacobase/react | React hooks — useAuth, useCollection, useRealtime | | @tacobase/taco | Drop-in AI context — installs client + writes TACOBASE.md | | @tacobase/mcp-server | MCP server — let your AI manage schema via natural language |

tacobase.dev · docs · github · issues

License

MIT