bus-shell
bus-shell — interactive command prompt for bus
Synopsis
bus shell [global-flags]
bus shell [global-flags] [--] <command> [args...]
bus shell gives you a prompt where each line is executed as a bus command. You can also pass a command directly so the shell runs it once and exits.
Description
This module is useful when you want to run many commands in one terminal session without repeating the bus prefix. Inside the prompt, write command lines like accounts list or run sync-all --profile local. The shell dispatches them as bus accounts list and bus run sync-all --profile local.
Interactive mode supports lightweight built-ins. help prints a short reminder, and exit or quit ends the session.
One-shot mode is useful in scripts and aliases. For example, bus shell dev stage runs one command and returns its exit code.
Global flags
The module accepts standard BusDK global flags. Help and version are immediate and exit with code 0.
-C and --chdir set the effective working directory before command execution. -o and --output are supported only in one-shot mode and redirect command stdout to a file. -q suppresses normal output, and -v enables verbose diagnostics. -q and -v cannot be combined.
--color and --no-color are accepted for compatibility. --format currently supports only text.
Examples
# Start interactive mode
bus shell
# Run one command and exit
bus shell accounts list --format tsv
# Run one command in another repository
bus shell -C ../customer-repo run sync-all --profile dry-run
# Write one-shot output to a file
bus shell -o /tmp/bus-shell.out run send-feedback --channel docs
Using from .bus files
Inside a .bus file, call the shell target the same way as any other module target.
# same as: bus shell accounts list --format tsv
shell accounts list --format tsv
# same as: bus shell run sync-all --profile local
shell run sync-all --profile local
Use this form only when you intentionally want shell-mediated dispatch from a busfile. Most workflows should call module targets directly.
Files
bus shell does not create or own workspace accounting datasets. It executes commands in the effective working directory and relies on bus being available on PATH.
Exit status and errors
Exit code 0 means success. Exit code 1 means runtime failure, such as when bus cannot be executed. Exit code 2 means invalid usage, such as incompatible flags.
When a one-shot command fails, bus shell returns that command exit code.
Development state
Value promise. Start an interactive BusDK prompt or run one command through the dispatcher with consistent global-flag behavior.
Use cases. Orphan modules — not mapped to a documented use case.
Completeness. 30% — Interactive loop, one-shot mode, and global flag handling are implemented and covered by unit and e2e tests.
Use case readiness. Orphan (not mapped): 30% — Core prompt flow and one-shot command execution are available.
Depends on. bus.
Used by. End users and scripts that want a shell-style bus prompt.
See Development status.