Prompts & flows

@tsed/cli-prompts wraps @clack/prompts so every question runs inside the Ts.ED injector via the PromptRunner service. That means you can inject services, reuse providers, and share state while guiding users through generator wizards.

Prompt types

Define prompts by returning a PromptQuestion[] from the $prompt hook (decorators) or the prompt() option on command. Each question sets its type field to one of the following:

input / password

Collect free-form text or secrets; combine with default, validate, or transformers:

{
  type: "input",
  name: "projectName",
  message: "Project name",
  default: initial.projectName || "awesome-cli",
  validate(value) {
    return /^[a-z0-9-]+$/i.test(value || "") ? true : "Use letters, numbers, or dashes.";
  }
}

confirm

Gate follow-up actions with a yes/no prompt:

{
  type: "confirm",
  name: "installNow",
  message: "Install dependencies immediately?",
  default: true,
  when: (answers) => answers.runtime === "node"
}

list and checkbox

Offer curated choices (single- or multi-select). Add checked, disabled, or custom labels as needed:

{
  type: "list",
  name: "runtime",
  message: "Select a runtime",
  choices: [
    {name: "Node.js (LTS)", value: "node"},
    {name: "Bun", value: "bun"}
  ]
},
{
  type: "checkbox",
  name: "features",
  message: "Pick optional features",
  choices: [
    {name: "MCP server", value: "cli-mcp"},
    {name: "Task runner", value: "cli-tasks"}
  ]
}

autocomplete

Provide async, searchable selections backed by a source function:

{
  type: "autocomplete",
  name: "template",
  message: "Which starter template do you want to use?",
  source: async (_answers, keyword = "") => {
    const catalog = ["minimal", "fullstack", "plugin"];
    return catalog
      .filter((entry) => entry.includes(keyword))
      .map((value) => ({name: `${value} template`, value}));
  }
}

Validation and branching

Use synchronous or async validation functions to reject invalid answers, then branch on the results with when. The snippets below show the same interactive command implemented with Command and command so prompts, tasks, and execution all live together:

Decorators

import {Command, type CommandProvider} from "@tsed/cli-core";
import type {PromptQuestion} from "@tsed/cli-prompts";
import type {Task} from "@tsed/cli-tasks";

export interface GeneratorAnswers {
  projectName: string;
  runtime: "node" | "bun";
  template: string;
  features: string[];
  installNow: boolean;
}

const runtimeChoices = [
  {name: "Node.js (LTS)", value: "node"},
  {name: "Bun", value: "bun", short: "Bun"}
];

@Command({
  name: "init:interactive",
  description: "Guide developers through a multi-step scaffolding wizard"
})
export class InteractiveInitCmd implements CommandProvider<GeneratorAnswers> {
  async $prompt(initial: Partial<GeneratorAnswers>): Promise<PromptQuestion[]> {
    return [
      {
        type: "input",
        name: "projectName",
        message: "Project name",
        default: initial.projectName || "awesome-cli",
        validate(value) {
          return /^[a-z0-9-]+$/i.test(value || "") ? true : "Project name may only contain letters, numbers, and dashes.";
        }
      },
      {
        type: "list",
        name: "runtime",
        message: "Select a runtime",
        choices: runtimeChoices,
        default: initial.runtime || "node"
      },
      {
        type: "autocomplete",
        name: "template",
        message: "Which starter template do you want to use?",
        source: async (_answers, keyword = "") => {
          const catalog = ["minimal", "fullstack", "plugin"];
          return catalog.filter((entry) => entry.includes(keyword)).map((value) => ({name: `${value} template`, value}));
        }
      },
      {
        type: "checkbox",
        name: "features",
        message: "Pick optional features",
        choices: [
          {name: "MCP server", value: "cli-mcp"},
          {name: "Interactive prompts", value: "cli-prompts", checked: true},
          {name: "Task runner", value: "cli-tasks"},
          {name: "Vitest", value: "vitest"},
          {name: "Swagger UI", value: "swagger"}
        ]
      },
      {
        type: "confirm",
        name: "installNow",
        message: "Install dependencies immediately?",
        default: initial.installNow ?? true,
        when: (answers) => answers.runtime === "node"
      }
    ];
  }

  async $exec(): Promise<Task<GeneratorAnswers>[]> {
    return [
      {
        title: "Generate files",
        task: async (_ctx, logger) => {
          logger.info("Writing project files...");
        }
      },
      {
        title: "Install dependencies",
        skip: (ctx) => (!ctx.installNow ? "Skipped by prompt" : false),
        task: async (_ctx, logger) => {
          logger.info("Installing dependencies...");
        }
      }
    ];
  }
}

Functional API

import {command} from "@tsed/cli-core";
import type {PromptQuestion} from "@tsed/cli-prompts";
import type {Task} from "@tsed/cli-tasks";

interface GeneratorAnswers {
  projectName: string;
  runtime: "node" | "bun";
  template: string;
  features: string[];
  installNow: boolean;
}

const runtimeChoices = [
  {name: "Node.js (LTS)", value: "node"},
  {name: "Bun", value: "bun", short: "Bun"}
];

function createPrompts(initial: Partial<GeneratorAnswers> = {}): PromptQuestion[] {
  return [
    {
      type: "input",
      name: "projectName",
      message: "Project name",
      default: initial.projectName || "awesome-cli",
      validate(value) {
        return /^[a-z0-9-]+$/i.test(value || "") ? true : "Project name may only contain letters, numbers, and dashes.";
      }
    },
    {
      type: "list",
      name: "runtime",
      message: "Select a runtime",
      choices: runtimeChoices,
      default: initial.runtime || "node"
    },
    {
      type: "autocomplete",
      name: "template",
      message: "Which starter template do you want to use?",
      source: async (_answers, keyword = "") => {
        const catalog = ["minimal", "fullstack", "plugin"];
        return catalog.filter((entry) => entry.includes(keyword)).map((value) => ({name: `${value} template`, value}));
      }
    },
    {
      type: "checkbox",
      name: "features",
      message: "Pick optional features",
      choices: [
        {name: "MCP server", value: "cli-mcp"},
        {name: "Interactive prompts", value: "cli-prompts", checked: true},
        {name: "Task runner", value: "cli-tasks"},
        {name: "Vitest", value: "vitest"},
        {name: "Swagger UI", value: "swagger"}
      ]
    },
    {
      type: "confirm",
      name: "installNow",
      message: "Install dependencies immediately?",
      default: initial.installNow ?? true,
      when: (answers) => answers.runtime === "node"
    }
  ];
}

function createTasks(): Task<GeneratorAnswers>[] {
  return [
    {
      title: "Generate files",
      task: async (_ctx, logger) => {
        logger.info("Writing project files...");
      }
    },
    {
      title: "Install dependencies",
      skip: (ctx) => (!ctx.installNow ? "Skipped by prompt" : false),
      task: async (_ctx, logger) => {
        logger.info("Installing dependencies...");
      }
    }
  ];
}

export const InteractiveInitCmd = command<GeneratorAnswers>({
  name: "init:interactive",
  description: "Guide developers through a multi-step scaffolding wizard",
  prompt(initial) {
    return createPrompts(initial);
  },
  handler() {
    return createTasks();
  }
}).token();

Highlights

• Validation returns either true or a string error. Throwing will mark the prompt as failed.
• Branching is handled by when, letting you route users to follow-up prompts based on prior answers.
• Because commands run inside Ts.ED DI, prompts can access services, log metrics, or read project settings without manual wiring.

Next, combine these prompts with @tsed/cli-tasks to stream long-running operations back to the user.