Global Options

These flags are available on every APX command.

Flags

Flag	Shorthand	Type	Default	Description
--quiet	-q	bool	false	Suppress non-essential output
--verbose		bool	false	Enable verbose output with additional detail
--json		bool	false	Format output as JSON (supported by most commands)
--no-color		bool	false	Disable colored terminal output
--config		string	apx.yaml	Path to the APX configuration file

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--quiet

Suppresses informational messages, leaving only errors and the primary output. Useful in CI pipelines where you only want actionable output.

apx lint --quiet
apx release prepare proto/payments/ledger/v1 --version v1.0.0 -q

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--verbose

Enables additional diagnostic output, including resolved tool paths, config values, and intermediate steps.

apx lint --verbose
apx gen go --verbose

--quiet and --verbose are mutually exclusive. If both are set, --quiet wins.

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--json

Formats output as JSON for machine consumption. Supported by commands that produce structured data:

apx --json show proto/payments/ledger/v1
apx --json search payments
apx --json config validate
apx --json release inspect
apx --json release history proto/payments/ledger/v1
apx --json semver suggest --against HEAD^
apx --json inspect identity proto/payments/ledger/v1
apx --json explain go-path proto/payments/ledger/v1

Note

--json is a persistent flag on the root command. It can be placed before or after the subcommand: apx --json show ... or apx show --json ... both work.

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--no-color

Disables ANSI color codes in terminal output. Automatically enabled when stdout is not a TTY (e.g. piped output or CI environments).

apx lint --no-color
apx release prepare --no-color proto/payments/ledger/v1 --version v1.0.0

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--config

Specifies a custom path to the APX configuration file. Defaults to apx.yaml in the current directory.

apx lint --config /path/to/custom/apx.yaml
apx config validate --config staging-apx.yaml

This is useful when:

• Running APX from a directory other than the repo root

• Managing multiple configurations (e.g. staging vs production)

• Testing config changes without modifying the default file

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Exit Codes

Code	Meaning
0	Success
1	General error
6	Configuration validation error

The exit code 6 is returned specifically by apx config validate when the configuration is invalid, allowing CI scripts to distinguish config errors from other failures.

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Environment Variables

Variable	Equivalent flag	Description
APX_CONFIG	--config	Path to configuration file
APX_VERBOSE	--verbose	Enable verbose output
APX_QUIET	--quiet	Suppress non-essential output
APX_JSON	--json	Format output as JSON
HTTP_PROXY / HTTPS_PROXY	—	Proxy settings for network operations
NO_COLOR	--no-color	Disable color output (standard convention)