Migration Guide: Unified Backend Output Structure

This guide explains how to migrate from the old directory structure to the new unified backend output structure introduced in Plan 129.

What Changed

Old Structure (Before Plan 129)

my-project/
├── pac.at
├── source/
│   ├── front/
│   │   ├── app.at
│   │   └── pages/
│   └── back/
└── dist/                    # Generated Vue project (or Jet at root)

New Structure (After Plan 129)

my-project/
├── pac.at
├── front/                   # Frontend source (directly at root, no source/ wrapper)
│   ├── app.at
│   └── pages/
├── back/                    # Backend source (directly at root)
├── vue/                     # Generated Vue project (was dist/)
├── jet/                     # Generated Jetpack project (was project root)
├── tauri/                   # Generated Tauri project
└── rust/                    # Generated Rust backend

Key Changes

1. No source/ wrapper: front/ and back/ are now directly at project root
2. Backend-specific output: Generated code goes to vue/, jet/, tauri/ instead of dist/

Key Changes

1. Output Directory Names

Backend	Old Directory	New Directory
Vue	dist/	vue/
Jetpack	project root	jet/
Tauri	dist/	tauri/
Rust	N/A	back/

2. New Commands

Old commands (deprecated):

auto vue [input.at] -o ./output
auto jet [input.at]

New commands:

auto build              # Build all backends
auto build --target vue # Build only Vue
auto run                # Run dev server for all backends
auto run --target vue   # Run only Vue dev server

3. pac.at Configuration

New backend field in pac.at:

// Single backend
backend: "vue"

// Or split frontend/backend
backend: {
    front: ["vue", "jet"]
    back: "rust"
}

Migration Steps

For Vue Projects

1. Backup your generated code (if needed):

   mv dist dist-backup

2. Run the new build command:

   auto build --target vue

3. Verify output in vue/ directory:

   ls vue/

4. Update .gitignore:

   # Old
   # dist/
   
   # New
   vue/

For Jetpack Projects

1. Generated code now goes to jet/ instead of project root

2. Run the new build command:

   auto build --target jet

3. Verify output in jet/ directory:

   ls jet/

For Multi-Backend Projects

1. Update pac.at with backend configuration:

   backend: {
       front: ["vue", "jet"]
       back: "rust"
   }

2. Run build for all backends:

   auto build

3. Output will be in:

   • vue/ - Vue frontend
   • jet/ - Jetpack frontend
   • back/ - Rust backend

Troubleshooting

Q: My old dist/ directory is still there

A: The old dist/ directory is not automatically removed. You can safely delete it:

rm -rf dist/

Q: Build command says "target not found"

A: Make sure you have the backend field in your pac.at file, or specify the target explicitly:

auto build --target vue

Q: Can I still use auto vue command?

A: The auto vue and auto jet commands are deprecated but still work. They will be removed in a future version. Please migrate to auto build and auto run.

Need Help?

If you encounter any issues with migration, please open an issue on GitHub with:

• Your pac.at file contents
• The error message you're seeing
• Your project structure