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Dependency Commands

Commands for discovering, adding, inspecting, and removing API dependencies.

Search the canonical repository catalog for APIs.

apx search [query]

Without a query, lists all APIs in the catalog.

Flags

Flag Shorthand Type Default Description
--format -f string "" Filter by schema format (proto, openapi, avro, etc.)
--lifecycle -l string "" Filter by lifecycle state
--domain -d string "" Filter by domain
--api-line string "" Filter by API line (v1, v2, etc.)
--origin string "" Filter by origin (first-party, external, forked)
--tag string "" Filter by tag
--catalog -c string (see below) Path or URL to catalog file (default: catalog_url from apx.yaml, then catalog/catalog.yaml)

Examples

# Search by keyword
apx search payments

# Filter by format and lifecycle
apx search --format proto --lifecycle stable

# Filter by domain
apx search --domain billing

# JSON output
apx --json search payments

# List all APIs
apx search

apx show

Display full identity and catalog data for a specific API.

apx show <api-id>

Merges two data sources: 1. Derived fields — Go module/import paths, tag pattern, source path (computed from the API ID) 2. Catalog fields — latest stable/prerelease versions, lifecycle, owners (from catalog/catalog.yaml)

Flags

Flag Type Default Description
--source-repo string "" Source repository (defaults from apx.yaml)
--catalog string (see search) Path or URL to catalog file (default: catalog_url from apx.yaml, then catalog/catalog.yaml)

Example

$ apx show proto/payments/ledger/v1
API:          proto/payments/ledger/v1
Format:       proto
Domain:       payments
Name:         ledger
Line:         v1
Source:       github.com/acme-corp/apis/proto/payments/ledger/v1
Go module:    github.com/acme-corp/apis/proto/payments/ledger
Go import:    github.com/acme-corp/apis/proto/payments/ledger/v1
Tag pattern:  proto/payments/ledger/v1/v*
Lifecycle:    stable
Latest:       v1.2.3

$ apx --json show proto/payments/ledger/v1

apx add

Add a schema dependency to apx.yaml and apx.lock.

apx add <module-path>[@version]

The @version suffix is optional. If omitted, the latest version is used.

Flags

Flag Shorthand Type Default Description
--catalog -c string (see search) Path or URL to catalog file (default: catalog_url from apx.yaml, then catalog/catalog.yaml)

The catalog is consulted to detect external API provenance (origin, managed repo, import mode). If the catalog cannot be loaded, the dependency is still added without provenance metadata.

Examples

# Add at a specific version
apx add proto/payments/ledger/v1@v1.2.3

# Add latest version
apx add proto/users/profile/v1

# Add using a remote catalog
apx add proto/payments/ledger/v1 --catalog https://raw.githubusercontent.com/acme/apis/main/catalog/catalog.yaml

After adding, generate code:

apx gen go && apx sync

apx sync

Activate locally generated overlays in each language's package manager.

apx sync [language] [module-path]

Without a language argument, all supported languages are synced. Use --clean to reverse the activation without deleting the generated code.

Language Activate (sync) Deactivate (sync --clean)
Go Updates go.work with all Go overlay paths Writes a minimal go.work with only the root module
Python Runs pip install -e for each overlay Runs pip uninstall for each overlay

Flags

Flag Type Default Description
--clean bool false Deactivate overlays from package managers
--dry-run bool false Show what would be done without making changes

Examples

# Activate all languages
apx sync

# Activate only Go overlays
apx sync go

# Activate only Python overlays (requires active virtualenv)
apx sync python

# Activate a specific Python overlay
apx sync python proto/payments/ledger/v1

# Deactivate all languages
apx sync --clean

# Deactivate only Python
apx sync --clean python

Prerequisites

  • For Python: a virtualenv must be active (VIRTUAL_ENV env var set) and overlays scaffolded (apx gen python)
  • For Go: overlays generated (apx gen go); Go's PostGen hook calls apx sync go automatically after generation

Remove a local overlay and switch to the published module.

apx unlink <module-path>

What It Does

  1. Removes the dependency from apx.lock
  2. Deletes the overlay directory from internal/gen/ (all languages)
  3. Prints hints for consuming the released module:
  4. Go: go get github.com/<org>/apis/<module-path>
  5. Python: pip install <org>-<domain>-<api>-<line>

Example

apx unlink proto/payments/ledger/v1
# → Removed overlay for proto/payments/ledger/v1
# → Run: go get github.com/acme-corp/apis/proto/payments/ledger@v1.2.3
# → Python: Run 'pip install acme-payments-ledger-v1' to install the released package

Your import paths remain unchanged — they now resolve to the published module instead of the local overlay.

apx update

Check for compatible (same API line) updates and apply them.

apx update [module-path]

Without arguments, checks all dependencies. With a module path, updates only that dependency.

Flags

Flag Shorthand Type Default Description
--dry-run bool false Preview updates without applying them
--catalog -c string (see search) Path or URL to catalog file (default: catalog_url from apx.yaml, then catalog/catalog.yaml)

Examples

# Check and apply all compatible updates
apx update

# Update a specific dependency
apx update proto/payments/ledger/v1

# Preview what would be updated
apx update --dry-run

# JSON output
apx --json update

After updating, regenerate code:

apx gen go && apx sync

apx upgrade

Upgrade a dependency to a new API line (major version transition).

apx upgrade <module-path> --to <line>

Flags

Flag Type Default Description
--to string (required) Target API line (e.g. v2)
--dry-run bool false Preview upgrade without applying
--catalog string (see search) Path or URL to catalog file (default: catalog_url from apx.yaml, then catalog/catalog.yaml)

Examples

# Upgrade from v1 to v2
apx upgrade proto/payments/ledger/v1 --to v2

# Preview the upgrade plan
apx upgrade proto/payments/ledger/v1 --to v2 --dry-run

# JSON output for CI
apx --json upgrade proto/payments/ledger/v1 --to v2 --dry-run

After upgrading:

  1. Regenerate code: apx gen go && apx sync
  2. Update import paths in your code (the command prints the mapping)
  3. Run apx breaking to inspect breaking changes

Workflow

# 1. Discover available APIs
apx search payments

# 2. Inspect details
apx show proto/payments/ledger/v1

# 3. Add as dependency
apx add proto/payments/ledger/v1@v1.2.3

# 4. Generate client code and activate overlays
apx gen go          # generates Go bindings, updates go.work automatically
apx gen python      # generates Python package
apx sync python     # pip install -e (requires active virtualenv)

# 5. Use canonical imports in your code
# import ledgerv1 "github.com/acme-corp/apis/proto/payments/ledger/v1"

# 6. When ready to consume published module
apx unlink proto/payments/ledger/v1
go get github.com/acme-corp/apis/proto/payments/ledger@v1.2.3

See Also