Bates

Local multi-application development server.

Repo Structure

source/          Elixir application (code, tests, config)
specs/           Domain specs (what the system is and why)
workflow/        Proposals, plans, and blueprints (CDD pipeline)
playbook/        Coding conventions and code review checklist
research/        Distilled external knowledge
transcripts/     Cleaned call transcripts and meeting notes
experiments/     Prototypes and POCs
docs/            External-facing content

Setup

Install Caddy

brew install caddy

Configure DNS resolver

Create a resolver file so .test domains resolve to localhost:

sudo bash -c 'echo "nameserver 127.0.0.1" > /etc/resolver/test'

Trust the Caddy CA

Caddy automatically generates SSL certificates for local domains. Trust its root CA so browsers accept the certificates:

caddy trust

Build and Run

Bates ships two binaries: batesd (the server, a Mix release) and bates (a thin escript client for control commands). From source/:

mix deps.get
mix escript.build               # produces source/bates (the CLI)
MIX_ENV=prod mix release batesd # produces source/_build/prod/rel/batesd/

Run the daemon in the foreground:

_build/prod/rel/batesd/bin/batesd

Pass --config <path> to override the default config location (~/.config/bates/config.toml). Ctrl-C shuts the daemon down.

The bates escript talks to the running daemon via the JSON API. With bates and batesd both on $PATH:

bates status
bates env myapp

Configuration

The configuration file is defined in TOML format.

[test_server]
environment = { SECRET = "Shh…" }
root = "/apps/test_server"
command = "bundle exec rackup -p $PORT"

Methodology

This repo follows Context-Driven Development. Every decision, conversation, and research finding is written down in the repo. Agents and humans navigate the same context.