Constructive CLI

API Server and Development Tools for PostgreSQL

Constructive CLI provides GraphQL server capabilities and code generation tools for PostgreSQL databases. For database migrations, packages, and deployment operations, use pgpm.

Installation

npm install -g @constructive-io/cli

Commands

cnc server

Start the GraphQL development server.

# Start with defaults (port 5555)
cnc server

# Custom port and options
cnc server --port 8080 --no-postgis

# With custom CORS origin
cnc server --origin http://localhost:3000

Options:

• --port <number> - Server port (default: 5555)
• --origin <url> - CORS origin URL
• --simpleInflection - Use simple inflection (default: true)
• --oppositeBaseNames - Use opposite base names (default: false)
• --postgis - Enable PostGIS extension (default: true)
• --metaApi - Enable Meta API (default: true)

cnc explorer

Launch GraphiQL explorer for your API.

# Launch explorer
cnc explorer

# With custom CORS origin
cnc explorer --origin http://localhost:3000

Options:

• --port <number> - Server port (default: 5555)
• --origin <url> - CORS origin URL (default: http://localhost:3000)
• --simpleInflection - Use simple inflection (default: true)
• --oppositeBaseNames - Use opposite base names (default: false)
• --postgis - Enable PostGIS extension (default: true)

cnc codegen

Generate TypeScript types, operations, and SDK from a GraphQL schema or endpoint.

# Generate React Query hooks from endpoint
cnc codegen --endpoint http://localhost:5555/graphql --output ./codegen --react-query

# Generate ORM client from endpoint
cnc codegen --endpoint http://localhost:5555/graphql --output ./codegen --orm

# Generate both React Query hooks and ORM client
cnc codegen --endpoint http://localhost:5555/graphql --output ./codegen --react-query --orm

# From schema file
cnc codegen --schema-file ./schema.graphql --output ./codegen --react-query

# From database with schemas
cnc codegen --schemas public,app_public --output ./codegen --react-query

# From database with API names
cnc codegen --api-names my_api --output ./codegen --orm

Options:

• --config <path> - Path to config file
• --endpoint <url> - GraphQL endpoint URL
• --schema-file <path> - Path to GraphQL schema file
• --schemas <list> - Comma-separated PostgreSQL schemas
• --api-names <list> - Comma-separated API names
• --react-query - Generate React Query hooks
• --orm - Generate ORM client
• --output <dir> - Output directory (default: ./codegen)
• --authorization <token> - Authorization header value
• --browser-compatible - Generate browser-compatible code (default: true)
• --dry-run - Preview without writing files
• --verbose - Verbose output

cnc codegen --schema-enabled

Export GraphQL schema SDL without running full code generation. Works with any source (endpoint, file, database, PGPM).

# From database schemas
cnc codegen --schema-enabled --schemas myapp,public --schema-output ./schemas

# From running server
cnc codegen --schema-enabled --endpoint http://localhost:3000/graphql --schema-output ./schemas

# From schema file (useful for converting/validating)
cnc codegen --schema-enabled --schema-file ./input.graphql --schema-output ./schemas

# From a directory of .graphql files (multi-target)
cnc codegen --schema-enabled --schema-dir ./schemas --schema-output ./exported

# Custom filename
cnc codegen --schema-enabled --endpoint http://localhost:3000/graphql --schema-output ./schemas --schema-filename public.graphql

Options:

• --schema-enabled - Enable schema SDL export
• --schema-output <dir> - Output directory for the exported schema file
• --schema-filename <name> - Filename for the exported schema (default: schema.graphql)
• --endpoint <url> - GraphQL endpoint URL
• --schema-file <path> - Path to GraphQL schema file
• --schemas <list> - Comma-separated PostgreSQL schemas
• --api-names <list> - Comma-separated API names (multi-target when >1)
• --schema-dir <path> - Directory of .graphql files (auto-creates one target per file)
• --output <dir> - Output directory (default: ./generated/graphql)
• --authorization <token> - Authorization header value

Configuration

Environment Variables

Constructive respects standard PostgreSQL environment variables:

export PGHOST=localhost
export PGPORT=5432
export PGDATABASE=myapp
export PGUSER=postgres
export PGPASSWORD=password

Database Operations

For database migrations, packages, and deployment, use pgpm:

npm install -g pgpm

Common pgpm commands:

• pgpm init workspace - Initialize a new workspace
• pgpm init - Create a new module
• pgpm add <change> - Add a database change
• pgpm deploy - Deploy database changes
• pgpm verify - Verify database state
• pgpm revert - Revert database changes

See the pgpm documentation for more details.

Getting Help

# Global help
cnc --help

# Command-specific help
cnc server --help
cnc codegen -h

Global Options

• --help, -h - Show help information
• --version, -v - Show version information
• --cwd <dir> - Set working directory

Education and Tutorials

1. 🚀 Quickstart: Getting Up and Running Get started with modular databases in minutes. Install prerequisites and deploy your first module.

2. 📦 Modular PostgreSQL Development with Database Packages Learn to organize PostgreSQL projects with pgpm workspaces and reusable database modules.

3. ✏️ Authoring Database Changes Master the workflow for adding, organizing, and managing database changes with pgpm.

4. 🧪 End-to-End PostgreSQL Testing with TypeScript Master end-to-end PostgreSQL testing with ephemeral databases, RLS testing, and CI/CD automation.

5. ⚡ Supabase Testing Use TypeScript-first tools to test Supabase projects with realistic RLS, policies, and auth contexts.

6. 💧 Drizzle ORM Testing Run full-stack tests with Drizzle ORM, including database setup, teardown, and RLS enforcement.

7. 🔧 Troubleshooting Common issues and solutions for pgpm, PostgreSQL, and testing.

Related Constructive Tooling

📦 Package Management

• pgpm: 🖥️ PostgreSQL Package Manager for modular Postgres development. Works with database workspaces, scaffolding, migrations, seeding, and installing database packages.

🧪 Testing

• pgsql-test: 📊 Isolated testing environments with per-test transaction rollbacks—ideal for integration tests, complex migrations, and RLS simulation.
• pgsql-seed: 🌱 PostgreSQL seeding utilities for CSV, JSON, SQL data loading, and pgpm deployment.
• supabase-test: 🧪 Supabase-native test harness preconfigured for the local Supabase stack—per-test rollbacks, JWT/role context helpers, and CI/GitHub Actions ready.
• graphile-test: 🔐 Authentication mocking for Graphile-focused test helpers and emulating row-level security contexts.
• pg-query-context: 🔒 Session context injection to add session-local context (e.g., SET LOCAL) into queries—ideal for setting role, jwt.claims, and other session settings.

🧠 Parsing & AST

• pgsql-parser: 🔄 SQL conversion engine that interprets and converts PostgreSQL syntax.
• libpg-query-node: 🌉 Node.js bindings for libpg_query, converting SQL into parse trees.
• pg-proto-parser: 📦 Protobuf parser for parsing PostgreSQL Protocol Buffers definitions to generate TypeScript interfaces, utility functions, and JSON mappings for enums.
• @pgsql/enums: 🏷️ TypeScript enums for PostgreSQL AST for safe and ergonomic parsing logic.
• @pgsql/types: 📝 Type definitions for PostgreSQL AST nodes in TypeScript.
• @pgsql/utils: 🛠️ AST utilities for constructing and transforming PostgreSQL syntax trees.

Credits

🛠 Built by the Constructive team — creators of modular Postgres tooling for secure, composable backends. If you like our work, contribute on GitHub.

Disclaimer

AS DESCRIBED IN THE LICENSES, THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", AT YOUR OWN RISK, AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND.

No developer or entity involved in creating this software will be liable for any claims or damages whatsoever associated with your use, inability to use, or your interaction with other users of the code, including any direct, indirect, incidental, special, exemplary, punitive or consequential damages, or loss of profits, cryptocurrencies, tokens, or anything else of value.