kist is a lightweight, plugin-based package pipeline processor for modern JavaScript/TypeScript projects. It provides a modular framework for automating build workflows with support for live reload, parallel execution, and extensible actions.

Features

• Plugin Architecture - Extend functionality with official and community plugins
• Pipeline System - Define stages and steps in YAML configuration
• Core Actions - Built-in actions for common tasks (copy, clean, compile, etc.)
• Live Reload - Watch mode with automatic rebuilds
• TypeScript - Full TypeScript support with type definitions
• Self-Hosting - kist builds itself using its own pipeline
• Caching - Smart build caching for faster rebuilds
• Parallel Execution - Run stages and steps concurrently

Quick Start

Installation

npm install kist --save-dev

Create Configuration

Create a kist.yml file in your project root:

stages:
    - name: build
      steps:
          - name: clean
            action: DirectoryCleanAction
            options:
                dirPath: "./dist"

          - name: copy-files
            action: FileCopyAction
            options:
                srcFile: "./README.md"
                destDir: "./dist"

          - name: compile
            action: TypeScriptCompilerAction
            options:
                tsConfigPath: "./tsconfig.json"
                outputDir: "./dist/js"

Run Pipeline

npx kist
# or with a specific config
npx kist --config kist.production.yml

Core Actions

kist includes these built-in actions:

| Action | Description | | -------------------------- | ---------------------------- | | DirectoryCleanAction | Remove directory contents | | DirectoryCopyAction | Copy directories recursively | | DirectoryCreateAction | Create directories | | FileCopyAction | Copy individual files | | FileRenameAction | Rename or move files | | TypeScriptCompilerAction | Compile TypeScript | | PackageManagerAction | Generate package.json | | VersionWriteAction | Update version in files | | RunScriptAction | Execute npm scripts | | DocumentationAction | Generate documentation |

Official Plugins

Extend kist with official action plugins:

| Plugin | Description | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------- | | kist-action-sass | Compile SASS/SCSS to CSS | | kist-action-typescript | Advanced TypeScript compilation | | kist-action-jinja | Process Jinja2 templates | | kist-action-svg | Optimize and package SVGs | | kist-action-test | Run tests with Jest/Vitest |

Install plugins via npm:

npm install kist-action-sass --save-dev

Configuration

Full Example

options:
    mode: development
    logLevel: debug
    live:
        enabled: true
        port: 3000
        watchPaths:
            - src/**
    cache:
        enabled: true
        cacheDir: ".kist-cache"
    performance:
        parallelProcessing: true
        maxConcurrentStages: 4

stages:
    - name: Preprocessing
      parallel: false
      steps:
          - name: Clean
            action: DirectoryCleanAction
            options:
                dirPath: "./dist"

          - name: CopyAssets
            action: DirectoryCopyAction
            options:
                srcDir: "./src/assets"
                destDir: "./dist/assets"

    - name: Compile
      parallel: true
      steps:
          - name: CompileTS
            action: TypeScriptCompilerAction
            options:
                tsConfigPath: "./tsconfig.json"
                outputDir: "./dist/js"

          - name: CompileSASS
            action: StyleProcessingAction
            options:
                inputFile: "./src/scss/main.scss"
                outputFile: "./dist/css/main.css"

Config Inheritance

Create reusable base configurations:

# kist.base.yml
stages:
    - name: build
      steps:
          - name: compile
            action: TypeScriptCompilerAction
            options:
                tsConfigPath: "./tsconfig.json"

# kist.production.yml
extends: ./kist.base.yml
options:
    mode: production

CLI Options

kist [options]

Options:
  --config, -c    Path to config file (default: kist.yml)
  --live, -l      Enable live reload mode
  --verbose, -v   Enable verbose logging
  --help, -h      Show help
  --version       Show version

Development

Build from Source

git clone https://github.com/getkist/kist.git
cd kist
npm install
npm run build

kist uses a self-hosting build process:

1. tsc compiles TypeScript (bootstrap)
2. kist runs its own pipeline for packaging

Project Structure

kist/
├── src/ts/
│   ├── actions/      # Built-in action implementations
│   ├── core/         # Pipeline engine, config, plugins
│   ├── interface/    # TypeScript interfaces
│   ├── live/         # Live reload server
│   ├── cli.ts        # CLI entry point
│   └── kist.ts       # Main Kist class
├── dist/             # Compiled output
├── kist.yml          # Build configuration
└── package.json

Documentation

Full documentation available at getkist.com

• Getting Started
• Configuration Guide
• Core Actions
• Plugin Development
• API Reference

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! See CONTRIBUTING.md for guidelines.

1. Fork the repository
2. Create a feature branch
3. Make changes and add tests
4. Submit a pull request

License

MIT License - see LICENSE for details.

Copyright © 2024-2026 Scape Agency