CLI

kilnx run

Start a development server with hot reload.

kilnx run app.kilnx

Auto-creates the database on first run
Applies pending migrations
Watches app.kilnx and reloads on change
Default port: 8080 (override with PORT env or config port:)

kilnx build

Compile to a standalone binary.

kilnx build app.kilnx -o myapp
./myapp

The output binary embeds the parsed app, htmx, and the Kilnx runtime. ~15MB, no runtime dependencies. Target platform follows the host (cross-compile via Go's GOOS/GOARCH).

kilnx check

Static analysis.

kilnx check app.kilnx

Validates: grammar, field type usage, SQL parameter binding, template variable references, security concerns (password fields in public queries, unsafe raw filter usage), and tenant scoping.

Exit code: 0 on clean, 1 on errors. Warnings do not fail.

Options:

kilnx check app.kilnx --db sqlite://app.db    # validate against live DB

kilnx test

Run test blocks declaratively.

kilnx test app.kilnx

Spins up an in-memory server with a fresh SQLite database, executes each test as HTTP requests, reports pass/fail counts. No mocks. Tests run against the real routing, queries, and template engine.

kilnx migrate

Schema migrations. Normally automatic during run; use this for production.

kilnx migrate app.kilnx                # apply pending
kilnx migrate app.kilnx --dry-run      # show SQL without applying
kilnx migrate app.kilnx --status       # show applied migrations

Detects: added fields (emits ALTER TABLE ADD COLUMN), new models (emits CREATE TABLE). Does not detect: removed or renamed fields.

kilnx lsp

Language Server Protocol endpoint. For editor integrations.

kilnx lsp

Speaks LSP over stdin/stdout. Used by the VS Code extension. Provides: completions, diagnostics, hover docs, go-to-definition, document symbols.

kilnx mcp

Model Context Protocol server. For AI tools (Claude, Cursor, etc.).

kilnx mcp

Exposes the grammar spec, keyword docs, example snippets, and the check tool to LLM clients. Configure in your MCP client's settings.

kilnx version

kilnx version

Prints the version and git commit hash.

Global flags

Flag	Effect
`--help`	Show command help
`--verbose`	Verbose output

Environment variables

Most config values are overridable via env vars declared in the config block:

config
  database: env DATABASE_URL default "sqlite://app.db"
  port: env PORT default 8080
  secret: env SECRET_KEY required

env VAR required fails fast if the variable is unset. Useful for production secrets.