CLI: init

The init command sets up ShipGate for your project. It creates configuration files, directory structure, and optionally generates ISL specs from existing code.

Usage

shipgate init [name] [options]

Options

Flag	Description
-t, --template <type>	Project template: minimal, full, api
-d, --directory <dir>	Target directory
--force	Overwrite existing files
--no-git	Skip git initialization
-e, --examples	Include example ISL files
--from-code <path>	Generate ISL specs from existing source code
--from-prompt <text>	Generate ISL spec from natural language
--ai	Use AI for spec generation
--api-key <key>	API key for AI provider

Templates

Minimal (default)

Creates the minimum files needed:

shipgate init --template minimal

Output:

.shipgate.yml          # Project configuration
specs/                 # Directory for ISL files
  example.isl          # Example spec (if --examples)

Full

Full setup with CI, team config, and examples:

shipgate init --template full

Output:

.shipgate.yml                    # Project configuration
.shipgate-team.yml               # Team policies
specs/                           # ISL specs directory
  example.isl                    # Example spec
.github/workflows/shipgate.yml  # GitHub Actions workflow

API

Optimized for REST API projects:

shipgate init --template api

Output:

.shipgate.yml                    # Project configuration
specs/                           # ISL specs directory
  api-example.isl                # Example API spec
.github/workflows/shipgate.yml  # CI workflow

Generate from existing code

If you already have source code, generate ISL specs from it:

# Analyze source code and generate specs
shipgate init --from-code ./src

# With AI enhancement for better spec quality
shipgate init --from-code ./src --ai

# From natural language description
shipgate init --from-prompt "User registration with email verification"

AI-powered initialization

With the --ai flag, ShipGate uses LLM analysis to produce higher-quality specifications:

# Ensure ANTHROPIC_API_KEY is set in your environment (do not put real keys in docs or commits).
# Generate AI-enhanced specs
shipgate init --from-code ./src --ai

Interactive setup

The shipgate init command runs interactively. Without the --from-code flag, it asks:

1. What type of project (API, web app, library)?
2. Which template to use?
3. Include example files?
4. Set up CI workflow?

Examples

# New project with examples
shipgate init my-project --examples

# Add to existing project
shipgate init --force

# API project with CI
shipgate init --template api

# Generate specs from code
shipgate init --from-code ./src --output specs/

# AI-powered setup
shipgate init --from-code ./src --ai

What init creates

.shipgate.yml

# ShipGate configuration
version: "1.0"
specs: "specs/"
impl: "src/"
gate:
  threshold: 80
  fail-on: error
verification:
  pbt: true
  chaos: true

GitHub Actions workflow

name: ShipGate Verify
on:
  pull_request:
    branches: [main]
jobs:
  verify:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - uses: actions/setup-node@v4
        with:
          node-version: "20"
      - run: npm ci
      - uses: guardiavault-oss/isl-gate-action@v1
        with:
          mode: auto
          threshold: 80

Exit codes

Code	Meaning
0	Initialization successful
1	Initialization error