Scafkit CLI

Scafkit CLI is a practical project scaffolding and build helper for PHP MVC, PERN, React, and Laravel workflows. It helps you create starter projects, add PHP MVC files, run local projects, inspect tooling, and package Laravel apps for deployment.

Links

• Repository: https://github.com/RaileySawada/scafkit-cli
• Bugs: https://github.com/RaileySawada/scafkit-cli/issues
• Homepage: https://github.com/RaileySawada/scafkit-cli#readme
• npm: https://www.npmjs.com/package/scafkit-cli

Install

npm install -g scafkit-cli

Start the interactive shell:

scafkit

Run a direct command:

scafkit react dashboard --tw

What You Can Do

| Need | Command | | ---------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------- | | Create a React app | scafkit react my-app | | Create a PERN app | scafkit pern inventory --sq-pg --tw | | Create a PHP MVC auth starter | scafkit php auth-app | | Add a PHP MVC controller | scafkit make:controller Invoice approve reject | | Add a PHP MVC route | scafkit make:route GET /invoices InvoiceController@index | | Build a Laravel app for deployment | scafkit laravel:build | | Inspect the current project | scafkit inspect | | Check local tooling | scafkit doctor | | Start a local dev server | scafkit run | | Check for CLI updates | scafkit update --check |

Project Starters

React

scafkit react client-app
scafkit react client-app --tw
scafkit react client-app --js --no-install
scafkit react client-app --serverless --tw --pm pnpm

Creates a Vite React project with a scalable src layout. TypeScript is the default, JavaScript is available with --js, and Tailwind or Netlify Functions can be added with flags.

PERN

scafkit pern inventory --sq-pg --tw
scafkit pern inventory --sq-mysql --js
scafkit create pern inventory --sq-pg --dir ../projects --yes

Creates a separated React client and Express API. Sequelize dialect flags are available for PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQLite, MariaDB, and Microsoft SQL Server.

PHP MVC

scafkit php auth-app
scafkit php auth-app --tw
scafkit php auth-app --bs

Creates a PHP MVC authentication starter with controllers, models, routes, sessions, .env.example, and SQL schema.

Laravel Build

Run this from the root of an existing Laravel app:

scafkit laravel:build

Inside the interactive shell, use:

laravel:build

Scafkit checks that the current folder is a Laravel project, then quietly verifies Composer and Laravel before building.

It runs the production build sequence:

composer install --no-dev --optimize-autoloader
npm install
npm run build

php artisan config:clear
php artisan route:clear
php artisan view:clear
php artisan cache:clear

php artisan config:cache
php artisan route:cache
php artisan view:cache
php artisan event:cache

It creates the deployment folder inside the current Laravel project root. The folder name comes from APP_NAME and uses a -build suffix, such as e-docs-build or edocs-build. If the target already exists, Scafkit picks the next available suffix such as e-docs-build-1.

Generated layout:

your-app-build/
├─ .htaccess
├─ your_database_name.sql
├─ public/
│  └─ index.php
└─ laravel-app/
   ├─ app/
   ├─ bootstrap/
   ├─ config/
   ├─ database/
   ├─ resources/
   ├─ routes/
   ├─ storage/
   ├─ vendor/
   └─ .env

The build excludes local development files such as node_modules, tests, public source maps, debug logs, package files, and Vite/Tailwind config files.

For Laravel storage, Scafkit keeps the normal Laravel folder structure and .gitignore files. It only excludes these generated runtime files:

storage/logs/laravel.log
storage/framework/views/*.php

For Laravel bootstrap cache, Scafkit keeps bootstrap/cache/.gitignore and excludes generated PHP cache files:

bootstrap/cache/*.php

Scafkit also updates laravel-app/.env for deployment defaults:

APP_ENV=production
APP_DEBUG=false
APP_URL=https://your.domain.example
DB_CONNECTION=mysql
SESSION_DRIVER=database
CACHE_STORE=database

Before exporting SQL, Scafkit checks Laravel migrations for the cache, cache_locks, and sessions tables. It detects existing tables from migration contents and filenames, including nested migration folders, so it does not duplicate Laravel's database cache or session migrations. If any of those tables are missing, Scafkit writes unique scafkit_create_*_table migrations, then refreshes the local database with:

php artisan migrate:fresh

If database seeders are present, Scafkit uses:

php artisan migrate:fresh --seed

Scafkit then exports the current MySQL/MariaDB database with mysqldump. The SQL dump is stored in the build root beside .htaccess, and its filename is the exact DB_DATABASE value from .env. Generated SQL is sanitized for shared hosting by removing binlog and GTID statements such as SQL_LOG_BIN and GTID_PURGED, which can cause #1227 Access denied import errors on hosts without MySQL admin privileges.

After upload, edit laravel-app/.env with the real production domain and database credentials.

Common Flags

| Flag | Description | | --------------- | ------------------------------------------------------- | ---- | ----- | -------------------------- | | --dir <path> | Create a generated starter inside another directory | | --dry-run | Preview generated files without writing them | | --force, -f | Overwrite existing generated files | | --yes, -y | Use defaults and install dependencies without prompting | | --no-install | Skip dependency installation | | --pm <npm/pnpm/yarn/bun> | Choose the package manager | | --help, -h | Show help |

React flags:

| Flag | Description | | ---------------------- | ----------------------------------- | | --tw, --tailwind | Include Tailwind CSS | | --serverless | Include Netlify Functions endpoints | | --ts, --typescript | Generate TypeScript files | | --js, --javascript | Generate JavaScript files |

PERN flags:

| Flag | Description | | -------------------------- | ---------------------------------------- | | --sq-pg, --sq-postgres | Use Sequelize with PostgreSQL | | --sq-mysql | Use Sequelize with MySQL | | --sq-sqlite | Use Sequelize with SQLite | | --sq-mariadb | Use Sequelize with MariaDB | | --sq-mssql | Use Sequelize with Microsoft SQL Server | | --tw, --tailwind | Include Tailwind CSS in the React client | | --ts, --typescript | Generate TypeScript files | | --js, --javascript | Generate JavaScript files |

PHP MVC Helpers

Create a controller:

scafkit make:controller Invoice approve reject

Create a route:

scafkit make:route GET /invoices InvoiceController@index
scafkit make:route POST /invoices InvoiceController@store

make:route creates missing controller, model, and page view files only when needed. If the controller exists but the action is missing, Scafkit adds only that method and leaves existing code untouched.

Utility Commands

| Command | Description | | ---------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | | scafkit help | Show command help | | scafkit help react | Show React help | | scafkit help pern | Show PERN help | | scafkit help php | Show PHP MVC help | | scafkit help laravel | Show Laravel builder help | | scafkit list | List starter templates | | scafkit run | Start the detected React/Vite app | | scafkit run pern | Start PERN client and API servers | | scafkit run php | Start or link a PHP project | | scafkit inspect | Detect the current project and list scripts/package manager | | scafkit doctor | Check Scafkit, Node, npm, Git, PHP, Composer, and package managers | | scafkit status | Show managed dev-server status | | scafkit stop all | Stop tracked dev servers | | scafkit update | Check npm for a newer CLI version and install after confirmation |

Maintenance

Release checks:

npm run check
npm run security:audit
npm run security:prod
npm run pack:dry-run

Strict release gate:

npm run prepublishOnly

License

MIT