🚀 MERN Project Generator CLI

Create production-ready MERN stack projects in seconds!

NPM Package Website mern-project-cli

Website https://devcli.vercel.app

MERN Project Generator CLI is a powerful tool designed to simplify the process of setting up a complete, production-ready MERN stack project in seconds.

This tool eliminates the need for manual configurations, boilerplate code copying, and repetitive tasks, allowing developers to start building their apps right away with best practices in place. Perfect for both beginners and experienced developers, it saves time and ensures a solid project foundation.

✨ Features

• One Command Setup: Generate both frontend and backend with a single command
• Industry-Standard Structure: Pre-configured folder structure following best practices
• Instant MongoDB Integration: Connect to MongoDB with zero configuration
• Generate Mongoose Schema: Generate Mongoose Schema with just one command
• Development Ready: Hot-reloading enabled for both frontend and backend
• Pre-configured Environment: .env.example files included with sensible defaults
• Git Ready: Initialized Git repository with proper .gitignore files

📑 Index

• Requirements
• Installation
• Commands
  • 1. devcli create
  • 2. devcli mongodb-connect
  • 3. devcli mongoose-schema
• Complete User Journey Example
• Future Enhancements
• Contribute
• License
• Support the project

⚡ Requirements

Before you begin, ensure your system meets these requirements:

• Node.js: Version 14.x or higher
• npm: Version 6.x or higher
• MongoDB: Local or remote installation

📦 Installation

Install the CLI tool globally to use it from anywhere in your system:

npm install -g mern-project-cli

To check installation version:

devcli --version

🛠️ Commands

1. Create MERN Project

devcli create <your_project_name>

What This Command Does:

1. 📁 Creates Project Structure:

The generated project follows the MVC (Model-View-Controller) pattern, a battle-tested architecture that separates your application into three main components:

your-project-name/
├── backend/
│   ├── controllers/         # Handle business logicdocumentation
│   ├── db/                  # Database configuration
│   ├── middlewares/         # Custom middleware functionsdocumentation
│   ├── models/              # MongoDB Schema model
│   ├── routes/              # API route definitions
│   ├── utils/               # Helper functionsdocumentation
│   ├── .env.example         # Environment variables template
│   ├── .gitignore           # Git ignore rules
│   ├── constants.js         # Application constants
│   ├── package.json         # Dependencies and scripts
│   ├── README.md            # Backend documentation
│   └── server.js            # Server entry point
└── frontend/
    ├── public/              # Static files
    ├── src/                 # React source code
    │   ├── components/      # React components
    │   ├── pages/           # Page components
    │   ├── utils/           # Helper functions
    │   └── App.js           # Root component
    ├── .env.example         # Frontend environment template
    └── package.json         # Frontend dependencies

2. Installs Dependencies:

• Backend:
  • Express
  • Mongoose
  • CORS
  • dotenv
  • nodemon (dev dependency)
• Frontend:
  • React
  • React Router
  • Axios
  • Other Create React App dependencies

After Creation:

Start Backend Development:

cd your-project-name/backend

npm run dev             # Start development server with nodemon

Start Frontend Development:

cd your-project-name/frontend

npm start               # Start React App

2. Connect MongoDB

• Create database as your_project_name_db

devcli mongodb-connect

• Or with custom database name

devcli mongodb-connect --project custom-name  

Options:

• -p, --project <name>: Specify custom database name
• No options: Uses project folder name as database name

What This Command Does:

1. Creates Database Connection:

• Generates connection.js in the db folder
• Sets up Mongoose connection with error handling
• Configures connection string based on environment variables

2. Updates Server Configuration:

• Adds database connection import to server.js
• Sets up connection status logging

Usage Examples:

# Using project name
devcli mongodb-connect

# Using custom database name
devcli mongodb-connect --project custom_name

Generated Files:

// db/connection.js
require('dotenv').config();
const mongoose = require('mongoose');

const dburl = process.env.DB_URL || "mongodb://localhost:27017/your_db_name";
mongoose.connect(dburl)
  .then(() => console.log("Connected to DB Successfully"))
  .catch((err) => console.log(err.message));

3. Generate Mongoose Schema

• Create mongoose schema for your backend.

devcli devcli mongoose-schema <schema-name> <fieldName:fieldType fieldName:fieldType ...>

Example

devcli mongoose-schema User name:String email:String password:String

This will create a User.js file with a Mongoose schema inside the models/ directory:

//models/User.js
import mongoose from 'mongoose';

const UserSchema = new mongoose.Schema({
  name: { type: String, required: true },
  email: { type: String, required: true },
  password: { type: String, required: true }
});

const User = mongoose.model('User', UserSchema);
export default User;

Explanation:

The mongoose-schema command takes a model name (User) and field definitions (name:String, email:String, password:String), generating a Mongoose model file in the models/ folder.

📖 Complete User Journey Example

Let's create a blog application from scratch:

# Step 1: Install CLI globally
npm install -g mern-project-cli

# Step 2: Create new project
devcli create my-blog-app

# Step 3: Set up backend
cd my-blog-app/backend
npm run dev

# Step 4: Set up frontend (new terminal)
cd ../frontend
npm start

# Step 5: Connect MongoDB (optional)
cd ../backend
devcli mongodb-connect

# Step 6: Generate Mongoose Scheama (optional)
devcli mongoose-schema Blog name:String category:String

🎉 Congratulations! Your blog application structure is ready with:
- Backend running on `http://localhost:5000`
- Frontend running on `http://localhost:3000`
- MongoDB connected and ready to use

⚙️ Environment Configuration

Backend (.env)

# Server Configuration
PORT=5000

# Database Configuration
DB_URI=mongodb://localhost:27017/your_db_name

Frontend (.env)

# API Configuration
REACT_APP_API_URL=http://localhost:5000

🔧 Development Commands

Backend Commands

npm run dev     # Start with auto-reload (development)
npm start       # Start without auto-reload (production)

Frontend Commands

npm start       # Start development server
npm run build   # Create production build
npm test        # Run tests
npm run eject   # Eject from Create React App

🔮 Future Enhancements

1. Code Generation
   • More Code-Snippets

🤝 Contribute to the Project

We welcome and appreciate contributions to MERN Project Generator CLI! If you’d like to help improve this tool, feel free to do so.

📄 License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

🌟 Support the Project

If you find this tool helpful, please consider:

• Giving it a star on GitHub
• View on NPM mern-project-cli
• Sharing it with your fellow developers
• Contributing to its development

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🌟 Made with ❤️ by Manish Raj

Portfolio • GitHub • LinkedIn • Twitter