WELCOME TO FASTEXP

A powerful CLI tool designed to make backend development easier by automating the creation of Express.js projects.

Features

• 🚀 Auto-generate project structure
• 📦 Support for JavaScript & TypeScript
• 🗄️ Multiple database options (MySQL, SQLite, MongoDB, Supabase)
• ☁️ Cloud storage integration (Cloudinary)
• 🔗 Path alias configuration (@, /, or none)
• 🔒 Pre-configured middleware & auth (cors, bcrypt, jsonwebtoken)
• ⚡ Beautiful loading spinners with colors and animations
• 🎯 CLI argument support for quick project creation and startup

Updates

Latest Update

• Version Enforcement - Added automatic version check to ensure users have the latest version, blocking outdated versions from running and prompting for update (08/06/2026 4:16 PM)
• Interactive Start Menu - Added menu to choose between entering project path manually or browsing folders with arrow keys (08/06/2026 4:16 PM)
• Enhanced Project Verification - Three-layer verification checking package.json dependencies, raw content, and source code imports for Express (08/06/2026 4:16 PM)
• Folder Browser - Navigate file system with arrow keys, no loop scrolling, hidden dot folders, and smart path resolution (08/06/2026 4:16 PM)
• Folder Size Display - Added automatic folder size calculation and display after project creation, showing the total size in human-readable format (Bytes, KB, MB, GB) (08/06/2026 4:16 PM)
• Improved CLI Design - Enhanced user interface with better visual design and more intuitive navigation
• Code Restructuring - Refactored the entire codebase into modular chunks for better organization and maintainability

Installation

npm install -g express-fastexp

Or use with npx:

npx express-fastexp

Or use with bun:

bun install -g express-fastexp

Or use with bunx:

bunx express-fastexp

Usage

Interactive Mode

Run the CLI without arguments to enter interactive mode:

express-fastexp

This will display the main menu with options:

1. Create new project
2. Start a project
3. Credits
4. Exit

CLI Commands

Create a New Project

Basic usage:

express-fastexp create [project-name]

This auto-selects "Create new project" and skips the project name prompt, going directly to language selection.

With language:

express-fastexp create [project-name] [language]

Skips both project name and language prompts.

Language options:

• ts or typescript - TypeScript
• js or javascript - JavaScript

Examples:

# Create project with name only (prompts for language)
express-fastexp create my-project

# Create TypeScript project
express-fastexp create my-project ts

# Create JavaScript project
express-fastexp create my-project js

Start a Project

Basic usage:

express-fastexp start [path]

Auto-selects "Start a project" and skips the project path prompt, going directly to package manager selection.

With all options:

express-fastexp start [path] [package-manager] [command]

Skips all prompts and directly runs the project.

Package manager options:

• bun or 1 - Bun
• npm or 2 - npm

Examples:

# Start with path only (prompts for package manager and command)
express-fastexp start ./my-project

# Start with Bun
express-fastexp start ./my-project bun "npm run dev"

# Start with npm
express-fastexp start ./my-project npm "nodemon"

# Start with custom command
express-fastexp start ./my-project bun "bun run index.js"

Project Configuration

When creating a new project interactively, you'll be prompted for:

1. Project Name - Name of your project folder
2. Install Express - Whether to install Express and dependencies
3. Language - JavaScript or TypeScript
4. Path Alias Style (if Express is installed):
   • @ (e.g., @/controllers, @/models)
   • / (e.g., /controllers, /models)
   • None
5. Package Manager (if Express is installed):
   • Bun
   • npm
6. Database:
   • SQL (MySQL)
   • SQLite
   • MongoDB
   • Supabase
   • None
7. Storage:
   • Cloudinary
   • None

Project Structure

After creation, your project will have the following structure:

my-project/
├── config/
│   ├── jwt.js/ts
│   ├── sql.js/ts (if SQL selected)
│   ├── sqlite.js/ts (if SQLite selected)
│   ├── mongodb.js/ts (if MongoDB selected)
│   ├── supabase.js/ts (if Supabase selected)
│   └── cloudinary.js/ts (if Cloudinary selected)
├── models/
│   └── model.js/ts
├── middleware/
│   └── middleware.js/ts
├── controllers/
│   └── controller.js/ts
├── routes/
│   └── route.js/ts
├── templates/
│   └── start.js/ts
├── .env
├── .env.example
├── .gitignore
├── nodemon.json
├── package.json
├── index.js/ts
└── tsconfig.json (if TypeScript selected)

Included Packages

When Express is installed, the following packages are automatically included:

• express - Web framework
• dotenv - Environment variable management
• nodemon - Auto-restart on file changes
• cors - Cross-Origin Resource Sharing
• bcrypt - Password hashing
• jsonwebtoken - JWT authentication

Additional packages based on your choices:

• module-alias - Path alias support (JavaScript with @ or /)
• typescript, tsx, @types/node, @types/express - TypeScript support
• mysql2 - MySQL database
• better-sqlite3 - SQLite database
• mongoose - MongoDB database
• @supabase/supabase-js - Supabase database
• cloudinary, multer - Cloud storage

Starting Your Project

After creating a project, you can start it in multiple ways:

Option 1: Use the CLI

express-fastexp start ./my-project bun "npm run dev"

Option 2: Interactive Start Menu

Run the CLI and select "Start a project" from the main menu. You'll be presented with two options:

1. Enter project path manually - Type the full path or folder name of your project

   • Supports full paths: C:\Users\jhonj\Downloads\my-project
   • Supports relative paths: my-project or ./my-project
   • Supports folder names only: my-project (system will search in user directory)
   • Supports nested paths: portfolio\backend (system will navigate to parent folder)

2. Browse folders - Navigate through your file system using arrow keys

   • Starts in your user home directory
   • Navigate with arrow keys (no loop scrolling)
   • Hidden dot folders (folders starting with .)
   • Select "✅ Select this directory" when you find your project
   • Go back with "⬆️ .. (Go back)"

Enhanced Project Verification

The system automatically verifies that your project is a valid Express project by checking:

• package.json - for express in dependencies or devDependencies
• Raw package.json content - for the word "express" anywhere in the file
• Source code imports - for express require/import statements in common entry files:
  • Root directory: index.js, server.js, app.js, main.js (and .ts equivalents)
  • src folder: same files if it exists

Folder Size Display

When a valid Express project is found, the system displays the folder size (e.g., "Folder size: 15.2 MB").

Option 3: Manual start

cd my-project
npm run dev  # or bun run dev

The server will start at http://localhost:3000 by default.

Environment Variables

Edit the .env file to configure your project:

PORT=3000
NODE_ENV=development

# Database (based on your selection)
DB_HOST=localhost
DB_PORT=3306
DB_NAME=your_database
DB_USER=root
DB_PASSWORD=

# Or for SQLite
SQLITE_PATH=./database.sqlite

# Or for MongoDB
MONGODB_URI=mongodb://127.0.0.1:27017/your_database

# Or for Supabase
SUPABASE_URL=your_supabase_url
SUPABASE_ANON_KEY=your_supabase_anon_key

# Storage (if Cloudinary selected)
CLOUDINARY_CLOUD_NAME=your_cloud_name
CLOUDINARY_API_KEY=your_api_key
CLOUDINARY_API_SECRET=your_api_secret

Credits

Created by Jhon Ladines

• Website: https://www.jhonladines.top/
• Repository: https://github.com/Allvexnation/express-fastexp

License

MIT

Express FastExp - No more manually creating folders, files, and packages! 🚀