Agent Skills: InsForge CLI

InsForge CLI

Command-line tool for managing InsForge Backend-as-a-Service projects.

Critical: Always Use npx (No Global Install)

NEVER install the CLI globally (npm install -g @insforge/cli). Always run commands via npx:

npx @insforge/cli <command>

This ensures the latest version is always used without global install issues (permissions, PATH, node version mismatches).

Session start — verify authentication and project:

npx @insforge/cli whoami    # verify authentication
npx @insforge/cli current   # verify linked project

If not authenticated: npx @insforge/cli login If no project linked: npx @insforge/cli create (new) or npx @insforge/cli link (existing)

Global Options

| Flag | Description | |------|-------------| | --json | Structured JSON output (for scripts and agents) | | -y, --yes | Skip confirmation prompts |

All examples below use npx @insforge/cli. Never call insforge directly.

Exit Codes

| Code | Meaning | |------|---------| | 0 | Success | | 1 | General error (e.g., HTTP 400+ from function invoke) | | 2 | Not authenticated | | 3 | Project not linked | | 4 | Resource not found | | 5 | Permission denied |

Environment Variables

| Variable | Description | |----------|-------------| | INSFORGE_ACCESS_TOKEN | Override stored access token | | INSFORGE_PROJECT_ID | Override linked project ID | | INSFORGE_EMAIL | Email for non-interactive login | | INSFORGE_PASSWORD | Password for non-interactive login |

Commands

Authentication

• npx @insforge/cli login — OAuth (browser) or --email for password login. See references/login.md
• npx @insforge/cli logout — clear stored credentials
• npx @insforge/cli whoami — show current user

Project Management

• npx @insforge/cli create — create new project. See references/create.md
• npx @insforge/cli link — link directory to existing project
• npx @insforge/cli current — show current user + linked project
• npx @insforge/cli list — list all orgs and projects
• npx @insforge/cli metadata — show backend metadata (auth config, database tables, storage buckets, edge functions, AI models, realtime channels). Use --json for structured output. Run this first to discover what's configured before building features.

Database — npx @insforge/cli db

• npx @insforge/cli db query <sql> — execute raw SQL. See references/db-query.md
• npx @insforge/cli db tables / indexes / policies / triggers / functions — inspect schema
• npx @insforge/cli db rpc <fn> [--data <json>] — call database function (GET if no data, POST if data)
• npx @insforge/cli db export — export schema/data. See references/db-export.md
• npx @insforge/cli db import <file> — import from SQL file. See references/db-import.md

Edge Functions — npx @insforge/cli functions

• npx @insforge/cli functions list — list deployed functions
• npx @insforge/cli functions code <slug> — view function source
• npx @insforge/cli functions deploy <slug> — deploy or update. See references/functions-deploy.md
• npx @insforge/cli functions invoke <slug> [--data <json>] [--method GET|POST] — invoke function
• npx @insforge/cli functions delete <slug> — delete an edge function (with confirmation)

Storage — npx @insforge/cli storage

• npx @insforge/cli storage buckets — list buckets
• npx @insforge/cli storage create-bucket <name> [--private] — create bucket (default: public)
• npx @insforge/cli storage delete-bucket <name> — delete bucket and all its objects (destructive)
• npx @insforge/cli storage list-objects <bucket> [--prefix] [--search] [--limit] [--sort] — list objects
• npx @insforge/cli storage upload <file> --bucket <name> [--key <objectKey>] — upload file
• npx @insforge/cli storage download <objectKey> --bucket <name> [--output <path>] — download file

Deployments — npx @insforge/cli deployments

• npx @insforge/cli deployments deploy [dir] — deploy frontend app. See references/deployments-deploy.md
• npx @insforge/cli deployments list — list deployments
• npx @insforge/cli deployments status <id> [--sync] — get deployment status (--sync fetches from Vercel)
• npx @insforge/cli deployments cancel <id> — cancel running deployment
• npx @insforge/cli deployments env list — list all deployment environment variables
• npx @insforge/cli deployments env set <key> <value> — create or update a deployment environment variable
• npx @insforge/cli deployments env delete <id> — delete a deployment environment variable by ID

Compute Services — npx @insforge/cli compute

Availability: Compute requires the backend to have Fly.io configured. If not enabled, the API returns COMPUTE_SERVICE_NOT_CONFIGURED with setup instructions in nextActions. Follow those instructions.

• npx @insforge/cli compute list — list all compute services (name, status, image, CPU, memory, endpoint)
• npx @insforge/cli compute get <id> — get service details
• npx @insforge/cli compute create --name <name> --image <image> [--port 8080] [--cpu shared-1x] [--memory 512] [--region iad] [--env '{"KEY":"val"}'] — create and deploy a Docker container. See references/compute-create.md
• npx @insforge/cli compute deploy [directory] --name <name> [--port] [--cpu] [--memory] [--region] [--env] — build a Dockerfile and deploy via flyctl deploy. See references/compute-deploy.md
• npx @insforge/cli compute update <id> [--image] [--port] [--cpu] [--memory] [--region] — update service config
• npx @insforge/cli compute stop <id> — stop a running service
• npx @insforge/cli compute start <id> — start a stopped service
• npx @insforge/cli compute logs <id> [--limit 50] — view machine event logs
• npx @insforge/cli compute delete <id> — delete service and destroy Fly.io resources

Secrets — npx @insforge/cli secrets

• npx @insforge/cli secrets list [--all] — list secrets (values hidden; --all includes deleted)
• npx @insforge/cli secrets get <key> — get decrypted value
• npx @insforge/cli secrets add <key> <value> [--reserved] [--expires <ISO date>] — create secret
• npx @insforge/cli secrets update <key> [--value] [--active] [--reserved] [--expires] — update secret
• npx @insforge/cli secrets delete <key> — soft delete (marks inactive; restore with --active true)

Schedules — npx @insforge/cli schedules

• npx @insforge/cli schedules list — list all scheduled tasks (shows ID, name, cron, URL, method, active, next run)
• npx @insforge/cli schedules get <id> — get schedule details
• npx @insforge/cli schedules create --name --cron --url --method [--headers <json>] [--body <json>] — create a cron job (5-field cron format only)
• npx @insforge/cli schedules update <id> [--name] [--cron] [--url] [--method] [--headers] [--body] [--active] — update schedule
• npx @insforge/cli schedules delete <id> — delete schedule (with confirmation)
• npx @insforge/cli schedules logs <id> [--limit] [--offset] — view execution logs

Diagnostics — npx @insforge/cli diagnose

Run with no subcommand for a full health report across all checks.

• npx @insforge/cli diagnose — full health report (runs all diagnostics)
• npx @insforge/cli diagnose metrics [--range 1h|6h|24h|7d] [--metrics <list>] — EC2 instance metrics (CPU, memory, disk, network). Default range: 1h
• npx @insforge/cli diagnose advisor [--severity critical|warning|info] [--category security|performance|health] [--limit <n>] — latest advisor scan results and issues. Default limit: 50
• npx @insforge/cli diagnose db [--check <checks>] — database health checks. Checks: connections, slow-queries, bloat, size, index-usage, locks, cache-hit (default: all)
• npx @insforge/cli diagnose logs [--source <name>] [--limit <n>] — aggregate error-level logs from all backend sources. Default limit: 100

Logs — npx @insforge/cli logs

• npx @insforge/cli logs <source> [--limit <n>] — fetch backend container logs (default: 20 entries)

| Source | Description | |--------|-------------| | insforge.logs | Main backend logs | | postgREST.logs | PostgREST API layer logs | | postgres.logs | PostgreSQL database logs | | function.logs | Edge function execution logs | | function-deploy.logs | Edge function deployment logs |

Source names are case-insensitive: postgrest.logs works the same as postgREST.logs.

Documentation — npx @insforge/cli docs

• npx @insforge/cli docs — list all topics
• npx @insforge/cli docs instructions — setup guide
• npx @insforge/cli docs <feature> <language> — feature docs (db / storage / functions / auth / ai / realtime × typescript / swift / kotlin / rest-api)

For writing application code with the InsForge SDK, use the insforge (SDK) skill instead, and use the npx @insforge/cli docs <feature> <language> to get specific SDK documentation.

Non-Obvious Behaviors

Functions invoke URL: invoked at {oss_host}/functions/{slug} — NOT /api/functions/{slug}. Exits with code 1 on HTTP 400+.

Secrets delete is soft: marks the secret inactive, not destroyed. Restore with npx @insforge/cli secrets update KEY --active true. Use --all with secrets list to see inactive ones.

Storage delete-bucket is hard: deletes the bucket and every object inside it permanently.

db rpc uses GET or POST: no --data → GET; with --data → POST.

Compute deploy requires flyctl: The compute deploy command shells out to flyctl deploy --remote-only. Install flyctl first (brew install flyctl) and set FLY_API_TOKEN. The compute create command does NOT require flyctl — it uses the Fly Machines API directly via the backend.

Compute endpoints use .fly.dev: Services get a public URL at https://{name}-{projectId}.fly.dev. Custom domains require DNS configuration.

Schedules use 5-field cron only: minute hour day month day-of-week. 6-field (with seconds) is NOT supported. Headers can reference secrets with ${{secrets.KEY_NAME}}.

Common Workflows

Set up database schema

npx @insforge/cli db query "CREATE TABLE posts (
  id UUID DEFAULT gen_random_uuid() PRIMARY KEY,
  title TEXT NOT NULL,
  content TEXT,
  author_id UUID REFERENCES auth.users(id),
  created_at TIMESTAMPTZ DEFAULT now()
)"
npx @insforge/cli db query "ALTER TABLE posts ENABLE ROW LEVEL SECURITY"
npx @insforge/cli db query "CREATE POLICY \"public_read\" ON posts FOR SELECT USING (true)"
npx @insforge/cli db query "CREATE POLICY \"owner_write\" ON posts FOR INSERT WITH CHECK (auth.uid() = author_id)"

FK to users: always auth.users(id). RLS current user: auth.uid().

Deploy an edge function

# Default source path: insforge/functions/{slug}/index.ts
npx @insforge/cli functions deploy my-handler
npx @insforge/cli functions invoke my-handler --data '{"action": "test"}'

Deploy frontend

Always verify the local build succeeds before deploying. Local builds are faster to debug and don't waste server resources.

Environment variables are required. Frontend apps need env vars (API URL, anon key) to connect to InsForge at runtime. Deploying without them produces a broken app. Before deploying, you must ensure env vars are set using one of these two approaches:

Option A — Persistent env vars (recommended): Set once, applied to every future deployment automatically. Best for projects that will be redeployed.

# Check what's already set
npx @insforge/cli deployments env list

# Set the vars your app needs (use the correct framework prefix)
npx @insforge/cli deployments env set VITE_INSFORGE_URL https://my-app.us-east.insforge.app
npx @insforge/cli deployments env set VITE_INSFORGE_ANON_KEY ik_xxx

# Deploy — persistent env vars are applied automatically
npx @insforge/cli deployments deploy ./dist

Option B — Inline --env flag: Pass env vars as JSON directly on the deploy command. Useful for one-off deploys or overriding persistent vars.

npx @insforge/cli deployments deploy ./dist --env '{"VITE_INSFORGE_URL": "https://my-app.us-east.insforge.app", "VITE_INSFORGE_ANON_KEY": "ik_xxx"}'

Full workflow:

# 1. Build locally first
npm run build

# 2. Ensure env vars are set (check existing, add missing)
npx @insforge/cli deployments env list
npx @insforge/cli deployments env set VITE_INSFORGE_URL https://my-app.us-east.insforge.app
npx @insforge/cli deployments env set VITE_INSFORGE_ANON_KEY ik_xxx

# 3. Deploy
npx @insforge/cli deployments deploy ./dist

Environment variable prefix by framework:

| Framework | Prefix | Example | |-----------|--------|---------| | Vite | VITE_ | VITE_INSFORGE_URL | | Next.js | NEXT_PUBLIC_ | NEXT_PUBLIC_INSFORGE_URL | | Create React App | REACT_APP_ | REACT_APP_INSFORGE_URL | | Astro | PUBLIC_ | PUBLIC_INSFORGE_URL | | SvelteKit | PUBLIC_ | PUBLIC_INSFORGE_URL |

Pre-deploy checklist:

• [ ] npm run build succeeds locally
• [ ] Env vars are set — run deployments env list to verify, or pass --env on the deploy command
• [ ] All env vars use the correct framework prefix
• [ ] Edge function directories excluded from frontend build (if applicable)
• [ ] Never include node_modules, .git, .env, .insforge, or build output in the zip
• [ ] Build output directory matches framework's expected output (dist/, build/, .next/, etc.)

Deploy a Docker container (compute service)

Two paths: pre-built image or build from Dockerfile.

Pre-built image (e.g. nginx, Redis, custom registry):

npx @insforge/cli compute create --name my-api --image nginx:alpine --port 80 --region iad
npx @insforge/cli compute list
# Service is running with a public https://{name}-{project}.fly.dev endpoint

Build from Dockerfile:

# Requires: flyctl installed + FLY_API_TOKEN set
npx @insforge/cli compute deploy ./my-app --name my-api --port 8000
# Builds remotely on Fly, deploys the image, syncs state back to InsForge

Lifecycle management:

npx @insforge/cli compute stop <id>       # stop the machine
npx @insforge/cli compute start <id>      # restart it
npx @insforge/cli compute logs <id>       # check machine events
npx @insforge/cli compute delete <id>     # destroy everything

CPU tiers: shared-1x (default), shared-2x, performance-1x, performance-2x, performance-4x Memory options: 256, 512 (default), 1024, 2048, 4096, 8192 MB Regions: iad (default), sin, lax, lhr, nrt, ams, syd

The deploy command requires flyctl CLI and FLY_API_TOKEN env var. It backs up any existing fly.toml, generates one for the deploy, then restores the original.

Backup and restore database

npx @insforge/cli db export --output backup.sql
npx @insforge/cli db import backup.sql

Schedule a cron job

# Create a schedule that calls a function every 5 minutes
npx @insforge/cli schedules create \
  --name "Cleanup Expired" \
  --cron "*/5 * * * *" \
  --url "https://my-app.us-east.insforge.app/functions/cleanup" \
  --method POST \
  --headers '{"Authorization": "Bearer ${{secrets.API_TOKEN}}"}'

# Check execution history
npx @insforge/cli schedules logs <id>

Cron Expression Format

InsForge uses 5-field cron expressions (pg_cron format). 6-field expressions with seconds are NOT supported.

┌─────────────── minute (0-59)
│ ┌───────────── hour (0-23)
│ │ ┌─────────── day of month (1-31)
│ │ │ ┌───────── month (1-12)
│ │ │ │ ┌─────── day of week (0-6, Sunday=0)
│ │ │ │ │
* * * * *

| Expression | Description | |------------|-------------| | * * * * * | Every minute | | */5 * * * * | Every 5 minutes | | 0 * * * * | Every hour (at minute 0) | | 0 9 * * * | Daily at 9:00 AM | | 0 9 * * 1 | Every Monday at 9:00 AM | | 0 0 1 * * | First day of every month at midnight | | 30 14 * * 1-5 | Weekdays at 2:30 PM |

Secret References in Headers

Headers can reference secrets stored in InsForge using the syntax ${{secrets.KEY_NAME}}.

{
  "headers": {
    "Authorization": "Bearer ${{secrets.API_TOKEN}}",
    "X-API-Key": "${{secrets.EXTERNAL_API_KEY}}"
  }
}

Secrets are resolved at schedule creation/update time. If a referenced secret doesn't exist, the operation fails with a 404 error.

Best Practices

1. Use 5-field cron expressions only

   • pg_cron does not support seconds (6-field format)
   • Example: */5 * * * * for every 5 minutes

2. Store sensitive values as secrets

   • Use ${{secrets.KEY_NAME}} in headers for API keys and tokens
   • Create secrets first via the secrets API before referencing them

3. Target InsForge functions for serverless tasks

   • Use the function URL format: https://your-project.region.insforge.app/functions/{slug}
   • Ensure the target function exists and has status: "active"

4. Monitor execution logs

   • Check logs regularly to ensure schedules are running successfully
   • Look for non-200 status codes and failed executions

Common Mistakes

| Mistake | Solution | |---------|----------| | Using 6-field cron (with seconds) | Use 5-field format only: minute hour day month day-of-week | | Referencing non-existent secret | Create the secret first via secrets API | | Targeting non-existent function | Verify function exists and is active before scheduling | | Schedule not running | Check isActive is true and cron expression is valid |

Recommended Workflow

1. Create secrets if needed     -> `npx @insforge/cli secrets add KEY VALUE`
2. Create/verify target function -> `npx @insforge/cli functions list`
3. Create schedule              -> `npx @insforge/cli schedules create`
4. Verify schedule is active    -> `npx @insforge/cli schedules get <id>`
5. Monitor execution logs       -> `npx @insforge/cli schedules logs <id>`

Diagnose backend health

# Full health report (all checks)
npx @insforge/cli diagnose

# Check specific areas
npx @insforge/cli diagnose metrics --range 24h          # CPU/memory/disk over last 24h
npx @insforge/cli diagnose advisor --severity critical   # critical issues only
npx @insforge/cli diagnose db --check bloat,slow-queries # specific DB checks
npx @insforge/cli diagnose logs                          # aggregate errors from all sources

Debug with logs

npx @insforge/cli logs function.logs          # function execution issues
npx @insforge/cli logs postgres.logs          # database query problems
npx @insforge/cli logs insforge.logs          # API / auth errors
npx @insforge/cli logs postgrest.logs --limit 50

Best Practices

1. Start with function.logs for function issues

   • Check execution errors, timeouts, and runtime exceptions

2. Use postgres.logs for query problems

   • Debug slow queries, constraint violations, connection issues

3. Check insforge.logs for API errors

   • Authentication failures, request validation, general backend errors

Common Debugging Scenarios

| Problem | Check | |---------|-------| | Function not working | function.logs | | Database query failing | postgres.logs, postgREST.logs | | Auth issues | insforge.logs | | API returning 500 errors | insforge.logs, postgREST.logs | | General health / performance | diagnose (full report) or diagnose metrics | | Database bloat / slow queries | diagnose db | | Security / config issues | diagnose advisor --category security | | Compute service not starting | compute logs <id>, check Fly machine events | | Compute deploy failed | Check FLY_API_TOKEN is set, flyctl installed |

Non-interactive CI/CD

INSFORGE_EMAIL=$EMAIL INSFORGE_PASSWORD=$PASSWORD npx @insforge/cli login --email -y
npx @insforge/cli link --project-id $PROJECT_ID --org-id $ORG_ID -y
npx @insforge/cli db query "SELECT count(*) FROM users" --json

Project Configuration

After create or link, .insforge/project.json is created:

{
  "project_id": "...",
  "appkey": "...",
  "region": "us-east",
  "api_key": "ik_...",
  "oss_host": "https://{appkey}.{region}.insforge.app"
}

oss_host is the base URL for all SDK and API operations. api_key is the admin key for backend API calls.

Never commit this file to version control or share it publicly. Do not edit this file manually. Use npx @insforge/cli link to switch projects.