Getting Started
This set of articles covers the core fundamentals of Pikku. To understand how Pikku operates, we'll go over the express-middleware setup.
Prerequisites
Ensure that Node.js (version >= 18) is installed on the operating system.
Setup
Begin by installing the starter project using npm create:
- npm
- Yarn
- pnpm
- Bun
npm create pikku@latest
npm create pikku@latest
# couldn't auto-convert command
npm create pikku@latest
# couldn't auto-convert command
bunx create-pikku@latest
Which will then guide you through starting a project:
Core Files
Here's a brief overview of there core files:
| File | Description |
|---|---|
start.ts | uWebsocketServer / entry point |
services.ts | Contains all the Pikku services management |
channels.ts | Websockets |
http.ts | HTTP Endpoints |
scheduled-tasks.ts | Cron Jobs |
types/application-types.d.ts | Application types |
The config file
The pikku.config.json file is used to drive the pikku CLI tool.
info
The pikku CLI tool is used to:
- Index all your API routes.
- Generate the route schemas.
- Create typescript declaration files to aid developers.
For more info you can checkout the CLI documentation.
pikku.config.json
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Generated Files
The two files we use within our code are pikku-bootstrap.gen.ts and pikku-types.gen.ts. The rest are generated in order to create types to improve your developer experience, as well as documentation and schemas to validate input against.
Core Files
| File | Description |
|---|---|
pikku-schemas/ | Directory containing all validation schemas |
pikku-bootstrap.gen.ts | Main bootstrap file that imports all required files |
pikku-types.gen.ts | TypeScript type definitions for the application |
pikku-functions.gen.ts | Generated function definitions |
pikku-functions-meta.gen.ts | Metadata for all functions |
pikku-rpc-meta.gen.ts | RPC metadata |
pikku-rpc-map.gen.ts | RPC mapping definitions |
pikku-bootstrap-*.gen.ts | Event-specific bootstrap files |
Transport Files
| File | Description |
|---|---|
pikku-http-routes.gen.ts | HTTP route definitions |
pikku-http-routes-meta.gen.ts | HTTP route metadata |
pikku-http-routes-map.gen.d.ts | TypeScript declarations for HTTP route mapping |
pikku-channels.gen.ts | WebSocket channel definitions |
pikku-channels-meta.gen.ts | Channel metadata |
pikku-channels-map.gen.d.ts | TypeScript declarations for channel mapping |
pikku-schedules.gen.ts | Scheduled task definitions |
pikku-schedules-meta.gen.ts | Scheduled task metadata |