Development Server

The buddy dev command starts development servers for your Stacks application with hot module replacement (HMR) and live reload capabilities.

Basic Usage

# Start the default development server
buddy dev

# Start with interactive mode to select which server to run
buddy dev -i

Command Syntax

buddy dev [server] [options]

Arguments

Argument	Description
`server`	Optional. Specify which server to start (frontend, api, components, dashboard, desktop, docs, system-tray)

Options

Option	Description
`-f, --frontend`	Start the frontend development server
`-a, --api`	Start the API development server
`-e, --email`	Start the Email development server
`-c, --components`	Start the Components development server
`-d, --dashboard`	Start the Dashboard development server
`-t, --desktop`	Start the Desktop App development server
`--docs`	Start the Documentation development server
`--system-tray`	Start the System Tray development server
`-i, --interactive`	Get prompted to select which server to start
`-l, --with-localhost`	Include the localhost URL in the output
`-p, --project [project]`	Target a specific project
`--verbose`	Enable verbose output

Available Dev Servers

Frontend Server

Start the frontend/views development server:

buddy dev frontend
# or
buddy dev:frontend
# or
buddy dev:views
buddy dev:pages

API Server

Start the API development server:

buddy dev api
# or
buddy dev:api

Components Server

Start the Vue components development server:

buddy dev components
# or
buddy dev:components

Dashboard Server

Start the admin dashboard development server:

buddy dev dashboard
# or
buddy dev:dashboard
buddy dev:admin

Desktop Server

Start the desktop application development server (powered by Tauri):

buddy dev desktop
# or
buddy dev:desktop

Documentation Server

Start the documentation development server:

buddy dev docs
# or
buddy dev:docs

System Tray Server

Start the system tray application development server:

buddy dev system-tray
# or
buddy dev:system-tray
buddy dev:tray

Interactive Mode

Use interactive mode to be prompted for which server to start:

buddy dev -i

This presents a selection menu:

Which development server are you trying to start?
> All
  Frontend
  Backend
  Dashboard
  Desktop
  Email
  Components
  Documentation

Aliases

For Laravel developers familiar with artisan serve:

buddy serve              # alias for buddy dev
buddy serve:components   # alias for buddy dev:components
buddy serve:desktop      # alias for buddy dev:desktop
buddy serve:views        # alias for buddy dev:views
buddy serve:functions    # alias for buddy dev:functions
buddy serve:docs         # alias for buddy dev:docs

Examples

Start Frontend with Verbose Output

buddy dev frontend --verbose

Start API Server for Specific Project

buddy dev:api -p my-project

Start Multiple Servers

To run multiple development servers, open separate terminal windows:

# Terminal 1
buddy dev:frontend

# Terminal 2
buddy dev:api

# Terminal 3
buddy dev:docs

Hot Module Replacement

All development servers support Hot Module Replacement (HMR), which means:

Changes to your code are reflected immediately without full page reloads
Component state is preserved during updates
CSS changes are applied instantly

Pretty URLs

Stacks provides pretty development URLs out of the box:

<https://your-project.localhost> instead of <http://localhost:3000>

This is configured automatically based on your APP_URL environment variable.

Troubleshooting

Port Already in Use

If you see an error about port being in use:

# Check which process is using the port
buddy ports

# Or use a different port in your configuration

SSL Certificate Issues

Development servers use HTTPS with self-signed certificates. If your browser shows a warning:

Click "Advanced" or "Details"
Click "Proceed" or "Accept the Risk"

Server Won't Start

Ensure all dependencies are installed: buddy install
Check for syntax errors in your configuration files
Run with verbose mode: buddy dev --verbose

buddy build - Build for production
buddy test - Run tests
buddy lint - Lint your code