create-prism

A fast, no-nonsense CLI to scaffold Node.js + Express + Prisma (MySQL) starter projects in JavaScript or TypeScript.

Quick Start

Create a new project instantly using npx or npm create:

npx create-prism my-app

npm create prism my-app

CLI Flags

You can bypass the interactive prompts by providing flags directly:

| Flag | Description | |---|---| | --js | Initialize a JavaScript project | | --ts | Initialize a TypeScript project | | --skip-install | Skip installing npm dependencies |

Example:

npx create-prism my-api --ts --skip-install

What Gets Generated

Your scaffolded project will have the following flat, simplified structure. We intentionally omit separate models or middlewares folders to keep things straightforward—controllers query Prisma directly.

my-app/
├── prisma/
│   └── schema.prisma            # Prisma schema (MySQL) with a sample User model
├── src/
│   ├── config/
│   │   └── db.(js|ts)           # Prisma Client singleton
│   ├── controllers/
│   │   └── user.controller.(js|ts) # HTTP req/res handling and DB queries
│   ├── routes/
│   │   └── user.routes.(js|ts)  # Express router definitions mapping to controllers
│   └── index.(js|ts)            # Express app entry point that mounts routes
├── .env                         # Environment variables (e.g., DATABASE_URL)
└── package.json                 # Project dependencies and scripts

Adding a New Resource

We follow a simple 3-step convention for adding new resources (e.g., Post):

1. Controller: Create src/controllers/post.controller.(js|ts) and write your CRUD logic querying prisma.
2. Routes: Create src/routes/post.routes.(js|ts) to map HTTP endpoints to your controller methods.
3. Register: Import and mount the router in src/index.(js|ts) using app.use('/posts', postRoutes).

Prerequisites

Before starting the generated app, ensure you have:

• Node.js (v16+)
• MySQL running locally or a remote database
• A valid DATABASE_URL configured in your .env file

Local Development

If you want to contribute or test the CLI locally:

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/your-username/refract.git
cd refract

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Link the package globally to test the CLI
npm link

# Test the CLI locally
create-prism test-app

Contributing

Contributions are always welcome! Please open an issue or submit a pull request with any improvements or bug fixes. Ensure you follow the existing code style.

License

MIT