How to use the command 'envoy' (with examples)
Envoy is a PHP-based task manager for Laravel remote servers. It provides a convenient way to run tasks remotely from the command line. This article will walk through several use cases of the ’envoy’ command, explaining each use case along with its code, motivation, explanation, and example output.
Use case 1: Initialize a configuration file
Code:
envoy init host_name
Motivation: Initializing a configuration file is the first step in setting up ’envoy’ for a specific remote server. It allows you to define the hosts and tasks you will be managing with ’envoy'.
Explanation:
envoy: The command itself, indicating that we want to invoke ’envoy'.init: A keyword specifying that we want to initialize a configuration file.host_name: The name of the remote host for which we want to create the configuration file.
Example output:
Initializing configuration file for host_name...
Configuration file created successfully.
Use case 2: Run a task
Code:
envoy run task_name
Motivation: Running a task allows you to execute predefined scripts or commands on a remote server without manually connecting to it.
Explanation:
envoy: The command itself, indicating that we want to invoke ’envoy'.run: A keyword specifying that we want to run a task.task_name: The name of the task defined in the configuration file that we want to run.
Example output:
Running task 'task_name'...
Task completed successfully.
Use case 3: Run a task from a specific project
Code:
envoy run --path path/to/directory task_name
Motivation: Running a task from a specific project allows you to execute tasks on a remote server while specifying the project directory.
Explanation:
envoy: The command itself, indicating that we want to invoke ’envoy'.run: A keyword specifying that we want to run a task.--path: An option to provide the path to the directory where the project is located.path/to/directory: The path to the directory where the project is located.task_name: The name of the task defined in the configuration file that we want to run.
Example output:
Running task 'task_name' from 'path/to/directory'...
Task completed successfully.
Use case 4: Run a task and continue on failure
Code:
envoy run --continue task_name
Motivation:
Running a task with the --continue option allows you to continue executing tasks even if one of the tasks fails. This is useful in scenarios where you want to perform multiple actions regardless of whether any of them encounter errors.
Explanation:
envoy: The command itself, indicating that we want to invoke ’envoy'.run: A keyword specifying that we want to run a task.--continue: An option to continue executing tasks even if one of them fails.task_name: The name of the task defined in the configuration file that we want to run.
Example output:
Running task 'task_name'...
Task failed, but proceeding with other tasks...
All tasks completed successfully.
Use case 5: Dump a task as a Bash script for inspection
Code:
envoy run --pretend task_name
Motivation: Dumping a task as a Bash script allows you to inspect and verify the commands that will be executed on the remote server before actually running them. This can help in debugging tasks or ensuring their correctness.
Explanation:
envoy: The command itself, indicating that we want to invoke ’envoy'.run: A keyword specifying that we want to run a task.--pretend: An option to dump the task as a Bash script for inspection.task_name: The name of the task defined in the configuration file that we want to dump.
Example output:
Dumping task 'task_name' as a Bash script...
#!/bin/bash
echo "This is a sample task script."
Use case 6: Connect to the specified server via SSH
Code:
envoy ssh server_name
Motivation: Connecting to a remote server via SSH using ’envoy’ provides a quick way to access the server’s command line interface without manually executing SSH commands. This simplifies the process of interacting with remote servers.
Explanation:
envoy: The command itself, indicating that we want to invoke ’envoy'.ssh: A keyword specifying that we want to connect to a server via SSH.server_name: The name of the remote server specified in the configuration file.
Example output:
Connecting to server 'server_name' via SSH...
Welcome to the remote server's command line interface.
Conclusion: The ’envoy’ command is a powerful tool for managing tasks on Laravel remote servers. It allows you to initialize a configuration file, run tasks, run tasks from specific projects, continue executing tasks on failure, inspect task scripts before execution, and connect to remote servers via SSH. By understanding and utilizing these use cases, you can make efficient use of ’envoy’ for managing your Laravel applications.
