Xeno CLI: Usage Guide for xeno init, Interactive Mode, and Scaffolding Flags

xeno init: Usage Guide & Scaffolding Modes

The core command of @xeno-js/cli is xeno init (or simply executing xeno [target-dir]), which initializes and scaffolds a complete, production-ready Xeno project structure.

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The xeno init Command Syntax

To start scaffolding a new project, run the command in your terminal followed by an optional target directory name:

# Initialize a project in a custom directory
xeno my-xeno-service

# If no directory name is provided, defaults to 'my-xeno-app'
xeno

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Scaffolding Execution Modes

When running xeno, the CLI determines how to configure your project based on the arguments and flags provided. There are three primary modes of operation:

1. Interactive Prompt Mode (Default)

If you run the CLI without passing --full or --empty, @xeno-js/cli launches an interactive prompt interface using prompts. The terminal will walk you through a series of confirmation questions to selectively enable or disable architecture modules:

? Install Zod for validation? (Y/n)
? Install Drizzle ORM & Postgres? (Y/n)
? Install SQLite? (y/N)
? Install Axios & Cockatiel? (Y/n)
? Install Supabase? (Y/n)
? Install Pino? (Y/n)
? Install Sentry? (y/N)
? Install ioredis? (y/N)

⚠️ Validation Rule: The scaffolding engine prevents conflicting persistence setups. If you attempt to select both PostgreSQL (database: true) and SQLite (sqlLite: true), the CLI terminates immediately with a conflict error:

You cannot select both Drizzle ORM & Postgres and SQLite at the same time.

2. --full Mode (Preset Integration)

Passing the --full flag bypasses interactive prompts and automatically provisions a fully loaded enterprise architecture containing all optional infrastructure drivers:

• Validation: Zod

• Database: Drizzle ORM & PostgreSQL

• HTTP Client: Axios & Cockatiel

• Authentication: Supabase

• Logging: Pino

• Error Tracking: Sentry

• Caching: ioredis (Redis)

xeno my-enterprise-app --full

3. --empty Mode (Minimal Baseline)

Passing the --empty flag bypasses interactive prompts and scaffolds a clean, minimal Xeno project core without pre-installing external peripheral libraries or optional plugin modules.

xeno my-minimal-app --empty

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Automated Post-Scaffolding Lifecycle

Regardless of the mode selected (Interactive, --full, or --empty), the CLI executes the following automated lifecycle upon completing file generation:

1. File Generation: Assembles package.json, tsconfig.json, .gitignore, .env.example, src/registry.ts, database configs, src/bootstrap.ts, src/main.ts, and documentation.

2. Dependency Installation: Automatically runs npm install inside the newly created target directory.

3. Startup Instructions: Outputs terminal readiness commands to boot your local development server:

Next steps:
  cd <target-dir>
  npm run dev

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Support Us

Xeno is an MIT-licensed open source project. It can grow thanks to the support of these awesome people. If you’d like to join them, please read more at support section