Skip to main content

CLI Overview

What is OpenCore CLI?​

The OpenCore CLI is the official command-line tool used to build, validate, and orchestrate OpenCore-based projects.

It is not a generic TypeScript compiler.
It understands FiveM/RedM runtimes, OpenCore architecture, and the constraints of each execution environment.

Conceptually, it plays a role similar to:

  • NestJS CLI (project orchestration)
  • Vite (fast, opinionated builds)

…but designed specifically for FiveM and RedM and OpenCore.

What problem does it solve? 🧠​

FiveM/RedM is not a single runtime.

You are dealing with:

  • Node.js (server)
  • Neutral JS runtimes (client)
  • Browsers (NUI / Views)

Each with different rules, APIs, and limitations.

The OpenCore CLI:

  • Detects what you are building
  • Validates what is allowed
  • Produces runtime-safe artifacts
  • Fails early when something is invalid

This removes an entire class of hard-to-debug runtime errors.

Core concepts​

The CLI understands three types of components:

🧠 Core​

The central brain of your server.

  • Hosts the OpenCore runtime
  • Exposes exports to other resources
  • Owns global systems (commands, players, identity)

There is usually one Core per server.

🛰️ Satellite Resources​

Modular resources that depend on the Core.

  • Contain gameplay logic
  • Register commands and events
  • Delegate shared systems to Core
  • Built for small bundles and fast iteration

This is the recommended way to scale a server.

📦 Standalone Resources​

Independent resources that do not rely on OpenCore.

  • Legacy Lua scripts
  • Utility JS resources
  • Third-party tools

The CLI supports them, but does not enforce framework rules.

High-level build flow 🔁​


Source Code
↓
Discovery (server / client / views)
↓
Runtime validation
↓
Adapter selection
↓
Parallel compilation
↓
FiveM-ready artifacts

You do not configure this manually.
The CLI infers it from structure and intent.

Why Go? ⚙️​

The CLI and compiler are written in Go (Golang) by design.

Key reasons:

  • Performance: Parallel builds using goroutines
  • Single binary: No Node.js dependency for the tool itself
  • Low memory usage: Stable even with many resources
  • Fast startup: Near-instant command execution

This makes the CLI reliable in both development and CI environments.

CLI syntax basics 🧪​

Command arguments follow a simple convention:

  • <argument> → required
  • [argument] → optional

Example:

opencore create <type> [name]

This mirrors standard CLI conventions and avoids ambiguity.

Automatic discovery 🔍​

The CLI performs automatic project analysis:

  • Detects server entrypoints:

    • main.ts, index.ts, server.ts

  • Detects client entrypoints:

    • client.ts, index.ts

  • Discovers NUI / view entrypoints

  • Infers runtime targets per file

No explicit configuration is required.

Recommended environment 🧰​

While npm and yarn are supported, pnpm is strongly recommended.

Reasons:

  • Faster installs
  • Lower disk usage
  • Strict dependency isolation
  • Optimized integration with the CLI linker

The CLI is designed around pnpm’s dependency model.

NUI / Views support 🖥️​

The compiler automatically detects your UI framework and expects the correct adapters to be installed.

Supported setups include:

  • React → react, react-dom
  • Vue → vue, esbuild-plugin-vue3
  • Svelte → svelte, esbuild-svelte
  • SASS / SCSS → sass, esbuild-sass-plugin

If required dependencies are missing:

  • The build fails
  • A clear error is shown
  • The exact pnpm add command is suggested

No guessing, no silent failures.

Runtime adapters 🧠​

The CLI adapts its behavior based on runtime context:

  • Server (Node.js) Full Node APIs allowed

  • Client (Neutral runtime) Node.js and Web APIs are stripped

  • NUI (Browser) Standard web environment

This ensures:

  • Correct bundling
  • No invalid imports
  • Predictable runtime behavior

Philosophy ✨​

The OpenCore CLI is opinionated by design.

Its goals are:

  • Safety over flexibility
  • Correctness over convenience
  • Explicit failures instead of silent bugs

You can build your own tooling — but the CLI is the reference implementation for OpenCore projects.

This overview defines what the CLI is. The following sections explain how to use it.