CLI Overview

The Light framework provides a command-line interface through the bin/light executable for database installation and code generation. The CLI is built on Symfony Console, providing a robust command framework with built-in help, argument parsing, and extensibility.

For detailed information about specific commands, see:

• Database installation: Database Installation
• Code generation commands: Code Generators

Symfony Console Foundation

The CLI tool at bin/light1-24 is a PHP script that creates a Symfony\Component\Console\Application instance and registers command classes. This architecture provides:

• Standardized command structure with configure() and execute() methods
• Automatic help text generation via --help flag
• Input argument and option validation
• Command discovery and listing via bin/light list
• Interactive input handling

CLI Application Initialization:

Sources: bin/light1-24

Command Structure

All commands follow Symfony Console conventions and are invoked using:

Each command is implemented as a class extending Symfony\Component\Console\Command\Command with:

• configure() method defining command name, description, arguments, and options
• execute() method containing command logic

The framework automatically handles:

• Command name routing based on registration at bin/light17-21
• Help text display via --help flag
• Argument validation and type coercion
• Error handling and exit codes

Command Execution Flow:

Sources: bin/light15-23

Registered Commands

The CLI registers five commands through the addCommand() method at bin/light17-21 Each command is instantiated and added to the application container:

Command Registration Mapping:

Sources: bin/light6-21

Command Summary Table

Command Class	CLI Command Name	Purpose	Primary Output
Light\Command\DbInstallCommand	db:install	Initialize database schema and seed admin data	Database tables from db.json
Light\Command\MakeControllerCommand	make:controller	Generate GraphQL controller with CRUD methods	src/Controller/{Name}Controller.php
Light\Command\MakeModelCommand	make:model	Generate model class from database table	src/Model/{Name}.php
Light\Command\MakeInputCommand	make:input	Generate GraphQL input types for mutations	src/Input/{Name}.php
Light\Command\MakeTsCommand	make:ts	Generate TypeScript type definitions	TypeScript output to stdout

Each command class is documented in detail in subsequent sections:

• DbInstallCommand for database installation
• MakeModelCommand for model generation
• MakeControllerCommand for controller generation
• MakeInputCommand for input type generation
• MakeTsCommand for TypeScript generation

Sources: bin/light6-21

Database Schema Source

The CLI commands that generate code (make:model, make:controller, make:input, make:ts) and the database installation command (db:install) all depend on the database schema definition stored in db.json. This file serves as the single source of truth for:

• Table structure and column definitions
• Primary keys, foreign keys, and indexes
• Column types, lengths, nullability, and defaults
• Database constraints and relationships

Schema-Driven Architecture:

Sources: db.json1-676 bin/light6-21

Example Schema Entries

The db.json file defines tables as JSON objects with columns, keys, and constraints:

User Table Definition:

• Primary key: user_id (auto-increment) at db.json6-11
• Unique constraint on username at db.json131-138
• Columns: username, password, email, phone, addresses, status, language, settings, OAuth fields
• Timestamps: created_time at db.json116-118

Role Table Definition:

• Primary key: role_id at db.json144-149
• Hierarchy support via child field at db.json156-159

UserRole Junction Table:

• Foreign key to User table with CASCADE delete at db.json218-230
• Links users to roles for RBAC at db.json196-199

EventLog Audit Table:

• Tracks changes with source and target JSON fields at db.json364-370
• Foreign key to User for attribution at db.json405-417

Sources: db.json1-418

Usage Examples

Install database and create admin user:

Generate model from Product table:

Generate controller for Product:

Generate input types for Product:

Generate TypeScript definitions:

Preview generated code without writing files:

Sources: bin/light23-423

Standard Imports and Annotations

All generated code includes standard imports for GraphQL integration:

Model Imports bin/light226-230:

• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\Field
• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\MagicField
• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\Type

Controller Imports bin/light91-97:

• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\InjectUser
• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\Query
• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\Mutation
• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\Right
• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\Logged
• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\UseInputType

Input Imports bin/light306-307:

• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\Field
• TheCodingMachine\GraphQLite\Annotations\Input

Sources: bin/light91-97 bin/light226-230 bin/light306-307

Initial Data Seeding

The db:install command seeds the database with initial data after schema creation:

Seeded Data:

The admin user password is hashed using password_hash() with PASSWORD_DEFAULT algorithm bin/light41

Sources: bin/light23-67 db.json1-672