Modern Tools

Utility packages for modern tooling, bundler integrations, and native solutions.

tools-core (/packages/tools-core )

Central utility package providing helpers for npm, logging, process management, and Meteor configuration. This is the foundation for modern tool integrations.

Logging Module (lib/log.js )

import { logProgress, logError, logInfo, logSuccess } from 'meteor/tools-core';

logProgress('Building application...'); // Blue logSuccess('Build complete'); // Green logError('Build failed'); // Red logInfo('Using Rspack bundler'); // Purple

Respects METEOR_DISABLE_COLORS environment variable.

NPM Management Module (lib/npm.js )

Function Description

getNodeBinaryPath(binaryName)

Gets path to Node binaries (npm, npx, node)

checkNpmDependencyExists(dep, opts)

Checks if npm package is installed

checkNpmBinaryExists(binary, opts)

Checks if binary exists in node_modules/.bin

checkNpmDependencyVersion(dep, opts)

Validates semver with conditions (gte, lt, eq)

installNpmDependency(deps, opts)

Installs dependencies (npm/yarn, dev/exact flags)

getNpmCommand(args)

Returns npm command with meteor npm fallback

getNpxCommand(args)

Returns npx command with meteor npx fallback

getYarnCommand(args)

Gets yarn command path

isYarnProject(opts)

Detects yarn projects (yarn.lock, packageManager)

getMonorepoPath(opts)

Detects monorepo root (workspaces, lerna, pnpm)

isMonorepo(opts)

Boolean monorepo detection

Process Management Module (lib/process.js )

Function Description

spawnProcess(cmd, args, opts)

Spawns process with streaming output, color preservation

stopProcess(proc, opts)

Graceful termination with SIGTERM/SIGKILL fallback

isProcessRunning(proc)

Checks if process is still running

isPortAvailable(port, host)

Checks if port is free

waitForPort(port, opts)

Waits for port availability with timeout

Options for spawnProcess : env , cwd , detached , onStdout , onStderr , onExit , onError

Meteor Configuration Module (lib/meteor.js )

Application Configuration:

Function Description

getMeteorAppDir()

Gets application root directory

getMeteorAppPackageJson()

Parses app's package.json

getMeteorAppConfig()

Retrieves Meteor config from package.json or Plugin

getMeteorAppPort()

Gets app port from environment

getMeteorAppConfigModern()

Gets modern bundler configuration

isMeteorAppConfigModernVerbose()

Checks verbose flag

hasMeteorAppConfigAutoInstallDeps()

Auto-install deps flag

Entry Points:

Function Description

getMeteorAppEntrypoints()

Gets main/test modules for client/server

getMeteorInitialAppEntrypoints()

Gets initial entry points with HTML detection

isMeteorAppTestModule()

Checks if project is test module

setMeteorAppEntrypoints(opts)

Sets entry points via environment variables

setMeteorAppIgnore(pattern)

Sets file ignore patterns

setMeteorAppCustomScriptUrl(url)

Sets custom script URLs

Command Detection:

Function Description

isMeteorAppRun()

Running in 'run' mode

isMeteorAppBuild()

Running in 'build' or 'deploy'

isMeteorAppUpdate()

Running in 'update'

isMeteorAppTest()

In test mode

isMeteorAppTestFullApp()

Test mode with full-app flag

isMeteorAppTestWatch()

Test mode in watch mode

isMeteorAppNativeAndroid()

Native Android mode

isMeteorAppNativeIos()

Native iOS mode

isMeteorAppNative()

Any native mode

isMeteorAppDevelopment()

Development mode

isMeteorAppProduction()

Production mode

isMeteorAppDebug()

Debug mode

Package Detection:

Function Description

isMeteorBlazeProject()

Has blaze/blaze-html-templates

isMeteorBlazeHotProject()

Blaze with hot reload

isMeteorCoffeescriptProject()

Has CoffeeScript

isMeteorLessProject()

Has Less CSS

isMeteorScssProject()

Has SCSS/Sass

isMeteorTypescriptProject()

Has TypeScript

isMeteorBundleVisualizerProject()

Has bundle visualizer

isMeteorPackagesTest()

test-packages command

File Operations:

Function Description

getMeteorAppFilesAndFolders(opts)

Scans app directory (recursive, with ignore)

getMeteorAppPackages()

Lists all loaded packages

getMeteorEnvPackageDirs()

Gets package directories from env vars

getMeteorToolsRequire(filePath)

Requires module relative to Meteor tools

Global State Module (lib/global-state.js )

Maintains persistent state across file changes during development:

import { getGlobalState, setGlobalState, removeGlobalState, clearGlobalState } from 'meteor/tools-core';

setGlobalState('buildStartTime', Date.now()); const startTime = getGlobalState('buildStartTime');

Git Management Module (lib/git.js )

Function Description

isGitRepository(dir)

Checks if directory is git repo

gitignoreExists(dir)

Checks .gitignore existence

ensureGitignoreExists(dir, entries)

Creates .gitignore with initial entries

getMissingGitignoreEntries(dir, entries)

Finds missing entries

addGitignoreEntries(dir, entries, ctx)

Adds entries with context logging

String Utilities (lib/string.js )

Function Description

capitalizeFirstLetter(str)

Capitalizes first character

shuffleString(str)

Shuffles string characters

joinWithAnd(items, opts)

Human-readable list ("a, b, and c")

Rspack Integration (/packages/rspack )

Modern bundler integration using Rspack (Rust-based Webpack alternative).

Package Structure

File Description

lib/constants.js

Default versions, global state keys, build contexts

lib/dependencies.js

Dependency checking and auto-installation

lib/build-context.js

Build directory management

lib/config.js

Meteor configuration for Rspack

lib/processes.js

Rspack process spawning

lib/compilation.js

Compilation tracking

Build Contexts

Context Directory Purpose

RSPACK_BUILD_CONTEXT

_build

Build output

RSPACK_ASSETS_CONTEXT

build-assets

Static assets

RSPACK_CHUNKS_CONTEXT

build-chunks

Chunk bundles

RSPACK_DOCTOR_CONTEXT

.rsdoctor

Analysis/diagnostics

Key Dependencies

• @rspack/core ^1.7.1

• @meteorjs/rspack ^0.3.56 (configuration logic)

• @rspack/plugin-react-refresh ^1.4.3

• swc-loader ^0.2.6

Integration with tools-core

• Uses getMeteorInitialAppEntrypoints() for entry points

• Uses command detection functions for build mode awareness

• Uses process spawning and npm utilities

TypeScript Compiler (/packages/typescript )

Compiler plugin for TypeScript/TSX file compilation.

Registered Plugin: compile-typescript

Supported Extensions: .ts , .tsx

Implied Packages: modules , ecmascript-runtime , babel-runtime , promise , dynamic-import

Features:

• Transpiles TypeScript before Babel processing

• Supports client/server/legacy browser targets

• Integrates with React Fast Refresh for HMR

Limitations:

• Per-file transpilation (no cross-file type analysis)

• No tsconfig.json support (Meteor manages settings)

• No type checking during compilation

• No .d.ts generation

WebApp & Express (/packages/webapp )

HTTP server integration using Express.js 5.x framework.

Key APIs

import { WebApp } from 'meteor/webapp';

// Middleware registration WebApp.connectHandlers.use('/api', myMiddleware); WebApp.handlers.use(compression());

// Direct Express access WebApp.expressApp.get('/health', (req, res) => res.send('OK'));

// Server instance WebApp.httpServer;

// Hooks WebApp.onListening(() => console.log('Server ready'));

Express Exports

Property Description

WebApp.connectHandlers

Express middleware registry (legacy name)

WebApp.handlers

Current middleware registry

WebApp.rawConnectHandlers

Raw Express handlers

WebApp.expressApp

Direct Express app instance

WebApp.httpServer

HTTP server instance

WebApp.express

Express module export

Dependencies: express@5.1.0, cookie-parser@1.4.6, compression@1.7.4, errorhandler@1.5.1