wip init

wip init

Writes a starter wip.yml, pre-filled with commented defaults and TODO: markers.

wip init [--force] [--template rails|node|rust|csharp] [--config PATH]

Mode detection

wip init makes one real decision for you — the mode — because it's the one thing a placeholder can't express. It looks for a compose file next to the wip.yml it's about to write:

compose.yml → compose.yaml → docker-compose.yml → docker-compose.yaml

Found	Writes
yes	mode: compose-native, with a compose: block pointing at that file
no	mode: container, with a dependencies: skeleton

$ wip init
wip: wrote /home/me/my-project/wip.yml (mode: container)

It never writes mode: compose on its own — that mode needs a compose.command only you can name. Switch by hand if you want it; see Compose Mode.

Flags

--force

Without it, an existing wip.yml is left alone:

/home/me/my-project/wip.yml already exists (use --force to overwrite)

--force overwrites it. There's no backup — commit first.

--template NAME

Picks the default sync.exclude patterns for a stack, written live into the generated file (not as a commented suggestion):

--template	Stack	Default exclude
rails	Rails	.git, log/, tmp/, storage/, public/assets/, public/packs/, .bundle/, vendor/bundle/, coverage/, node_modules/
node	Node.js	.git, node_modules/, dist/, build/, .next/, .cache/, coverage/
rust	Rust	.git, target/
csharp	C#	.git, bin/, obj/, .vs/, packages/
(omitted)	—	.git, tmp/, node_modules/

Each list mirrors that stack's own github/gitignore template — directories that are either regenerated inside the container or too large to be worth mirroring.

An unknown name fails before writing anything:

unknown --template "python" (valid: rails, node, rust, csharp)

--config PATH

Writes to PATH instead of ./wip.yml. Mode detection then looks for a compose file next to PATH, not next to your current directory.

What you have to fill in

The generated file is heavily commented; the parts that actually need you:

Container mode

container: app                 # rename freely — must match a dependencies: key
dependencies:
  app:
    image: your/image:tag      # TODO
    workdir: /app              # TODO: match your image, or delete

Compose-native mode

compose:
  service: app                 # TODO: which service in compose.yml is the app

What's deliberately left commented

• interaction: — an empty interaction: {} is indistinguishable from omitting the key, so the example block stays commented out. Uncomment and edit to add wip test etc. See Interactions.
• Derived sync: keys (target, volume) — they track another key (workdir, the container name) and would go stale if hardcoded. See Source Sync.
• compose.file / compose.project — auto-detected and directory-derived respectively; the comment shows what they'd resolve to.
• network: under compose-native — it's derived from compose.project, and setting it directly is a ConfigError.

After running it

wip doctor      # confirm the environment and the config
wip up -d

Related

• Getting Started
• Choosing a Mode
• Source Sync