CLI Reference

Complete reference for all Rhyla command-line interface (CLI) commands.

Installation

Install Rhyla globally to use the CLI:

npm install -g rhyla

Verify installation:

rhyla --version

Commands Overview

Command	Description
`rhyla init`	Initialize a new project
`rhyla dev`	Start development server
`rhyla build`	Build for production
`rhyla serve`	Serve production build
`rhyla --version`	Show version number
`rhyla --help`	Show help information

rhyla init

Initialize a new Rhyla documentation project.

Usage

rhyla init [directory]

Arguments

directory (optional) - Directory name for the project. Defaults to current directory.

Examples

Create in current directory:

rhyla init

Create in new directory:

rhyla init my-docs

Create with specific name:

mkdir project-docs
cd project-docs
rhyla init

What It Creates

project/
├── config.json          # Site configuration
├── header.html          # Custom header template
├── body/                # Documentation content
│   └── home.md         # Homepage
├── public/              # Static assets
│   ├── favicon.ico
│   └── logo.png
└── styles/              # Stylesheets
    ├── dark.css        # Dark theme
    ├── light.css       # Light theme
    └── global.css      # Global styles

Default Configuration

Creates config.json with:

{
  "title": "Documentation",
  "description": "Generated with Rhyla",
  "sidebar": ["home"],
  "side_topics": true,
  "allow_raw_html": false,
  "base": "/",
  "build_ignore": ["kit_dev_rhyla"]
}

Options

Currently rhyla init doesn't accept options, but you can modify the generated files afterward.

rhyla dev

Start a development server with hot reload.

Usage

rhyla dev [options]

Options

None currently supported (uses port 3000 by default)

Environment Variables

PORT - Custom port number (default: 3000)

Examples

Start with default port:

rhyla dev

Start with custom port:

PORT=3001 rhyla dev

Start with environment variable (macOS/Linux):

PORT=8080 rhyla dev

Start with environment variable (Windows CMD):

set PORT=8080 && rhyla dev

Start with environment variable (Windows PowerShell):

$env:PORT=8080; rhyla dev

Features

Hot Reload - Automatically reloads browser on file changes
Live Updates - Watches for changes in:
- body/ - Markdown files
- styles/ - CSS files
- public/ - Static assets
- config.json - Configuration
- header.html - Header template
Error Reporting - Shows build errors in terminal
Fast Builds - Optimized for quick iteration

Output

[Rhyla Dev Server]
Server running at http://localhost:3000
Watching for changes...

Stopping the Server

Press Ctrl+C in the terminal.

rhyla build

Build your documentation for production deployment.

Usage

rhyla build [options]

Options

None currently supported

Examples

Standard build:

rhyla build

Build and check output:

rhyla build && ls -la dist/

Build with error checking:

rhyla build || echo "Build failed!"

Output Directory

Creates a dist/ folder with:

dist/
├── index.html              # Main HTML file
├── config.json             # Site configuration
├── styles/                 # Compiled stylesheets
│   ├── global.css
│   ├── dark.css
│   └── light.css
├── scripts/                # Generated JavaScript
│   ├── header-runtime.js
│   ├── search-runtime.js
│   ├── search_index.js
│   ├── search_index.json
│   ├── generatePages.js
│   └── password-auth.js
├── public/                 # Static assets
│   ├── favicon.ico
│   └── logo.png
└── pages/                  # Generated page content
    ├── home.json
    └── [other-pages].json

Build Process

Reads Configuration - Parses config.json
Processes Markdown - Converts .md files to HTML
Generates Search Index - Creates searchable content index
Copies Assets - Copies public/ files
Minifies Styles - Optimizes CSS files
Creates Output - Writes to dist/ folder

Build Ignore

Files/folders specified in config.json are excluded:

{
  "build_ignore": [
    "drafts",
    "private",
    "kit_dev_rhyla"
  ]
}

Build Errors

Common errors and fixes:

Invalid config.json:

Error: Invalid JSON in config.json

Fix: Validate JSON syntax

Missing files:

Error: Cannot find file 'body/missing.md'

Fix: Check sidebar references and file paths

Markdown syntax errors:

Error: Unexpected token in body/page.md

Fix: Check markdown syntax, close code blocks

rhyla serve

Serve the production build locally for testing.

Usage

rhyla serve [options]

Options

None currently supported (uses port 8080 by default)

Examples

Start server:

rhyla serve

Serve after building:

rhyla build && rhyla serve

Features

Production Testing - Test the built site locally
Static File Serving - Serves files from dist/
Default Port - Runs on port 8080

Output

[Rhyla Serve]
Serving production build at http://localhost:8080
Press Ctrl+C to stop

Use Cases

Pre-deployment Testing

rhyla build
rhyla serve
# Test at http://localhost:8080

Quality Assurance
- Test production build before deploying
- Verify all links work
- Check responsive design
Demo/Preview
- Show stakeholders the production version
- Share local preview

Stopping the Server

Press Ctrl+C in the terminal.

rhyla --version

Display the installed Rhyla version.

Usage

rhyla --version

Aliases

rhyla -v
rhyla version

Output

1.0.8

Use Cases

Check Installation - Verify Rhyla is installed
Version Comparison - Check if update is needed
Bug Reports - Include version in issue reports

rhyla --help

Display help information and available commands.

Usage

rhyla --help

Aliases

rhyla -h
rhyla help

Output

Rhyla - Documentation Generator

Commands:
  rhyla init [dir]     Initialize a new project
  rhyla dev            Start development server
  rhyla build          Build for production
  rhyla serve          Serve production build

Options:
  --version, -v        Show version number
  --help, -h           Show help

Examples:
  rhyla init my-docs   Create new project
  rhyla dev            Start dev server
  rhyla build          Build site
  rhyla serve          Serve built site

Documentation: https://rhyladoc.com

Command Workflows

Initial Setup Workflow

# 1. Create new project
rhyla init my-docs

# 2. Navigate to project
cd my-docs

# 3. Start development
rhyla dev

# 4. Edit files in body/, styles/, etc.
# (Dev server auto-reloads)

# 5. Build for production
rhyla build

# 6. Test production build
rhyla serve

Development Workflow

# 1. Start dev server
rhyla dev

# 2. Edit content
# - Add/edit files in body/
# - Update config.json
# - Customize styles/

# 3. Preview changes
# Open http://localhost:3000

# 4. Build when ready
# Ctrl+C to stop dev server
rhyla build

Deployment Workflow

# 1. Build project
rhyla build

# 2. Test locally
rhyla serve

# 3. Deploy dist/ folder
# - Upload to hosting
# - Push to Git (for Vercel/Netlify)
# - Run CI/CD pipeline

Environment Variables

PORT (dev/serve)

Set custom port for dev or serve commands:

# macOS/Linux
PORT=3001 rhyla dev
PORT=9000 rhyla serve

# Windows CMD
set PORT=3001 && rhyla dev
set PORT=9000 && rhyla serve

# Windows PowerShell
$env:PORT=3001; rhyla dev
$env:PORT=9000; rhyla serve

DEBUG

Enable debug output:

DEBUG=* rhyla dev
DEBUG=* rhyla build

Exit Codes

Code	Meaning
0	Success
1	Error occurred

Examples

# Check if build succeeded
rhyla build
if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
  echo "Build successful!"
else
  echo "Build failed!"
fi

# Build and deploy on success
rhyla build && vercel --prod

NPX Usage

Run Rhyla without global installation:

# Initialize project
npx rhyla init

# Development
npx rhyla dev

# Build
npx rhyla build

# Serve
npx rhyla serve

Package.json Scripts

Add Rhyla commands to your package.json:

{
  "scripts": {
    "dev": "rhyla dev",
    "build": "rhyla build",
    "serve": "rhyla serve",
    "start": "rhyla dev"
  }
}

Then run:

npm run dev
npm run build
npm run serve
npm start

CI/CD Integration

GitHub Actions

- name: Build Documentation
  run: |
    npm install -g rhyla
    rhyla build

GitLab CI

build:
  script:
    - npm install -g rhyla
    - rhyla build
  artifacts:
    paths:
      - dist/

Jenkins

stage('Build') {
  steps {
    sh 'npm install -g rhyla'
    sh 'rhyla build'
  }
}

Troubleshooting Commands

Clear and Rebuild

rm -rf dist node_modules
npm install -g rhyla
rhyla build

Verbose Output

DEBUG=* rhyla build

Check Installation

which rhyla
rhyla --version

Reinstall

npm uninstall -g rhyla
npm install -g rhyla

Advanced Usage

Custom Build Directory

Currently not supported, but you can copy dist:

rhyla build
cp -r dist/ custom-output/

Multiple Environments

Use different config files:

# Development
cp config.dev.json config.json
rhyla dev

# Production
cp config.prod.json config.json
rhyla build

Automated Builds

#!/bin/bash
# build.sh

echo "Building documentation..."
rhyla build

if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
  echo "✅ Build successful!"
  rhyla serve
else
  echo "❌ Build failed!"
  exit 1
fi

Make executable and run:

chmod +x build.sh
./build.sh

Tips and Best Practices

Use npm scripts - Standardize commands across team
Test before deploying - Always run rhyla serve after build
Version control - Commit before major changes
Clean builds - Remove dist/ before building
Check errors - Read terminal output carefully
Use latest version - Keep Rhyla updated

Quick Reference

# Setup
npm install -g rhyla
rhyla init my-docs
cd my-docs

# Development
rhyla dev                    # Start dev server (port 3000)
PORT=8080 rhyla dev         # Custom port

# Production
rhyla build                  # Build to dist/
rhyla serve                  # Serve dist/ (port 8080)

# Utilities
rhyla --version             # Show version
rhyla --help                # Show help

Need More Help?

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