CLI commands

Artisan commands shipped by Quest. They help you create references, find them later, and inspect the method behind a ref.

The tracker sees:

• classes listed in routes/quest.php
• classes / directories passed to Quest::spawn / Quest::spaw in the files listed in config/quest.php → base_routes (default: routes/web.php, routes/api.php)

If you register Quest from another file, add that path to base_routes.

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quest:generate-ref

Generate a reference string to paste into #[QuestSpaw(ref: …)].

php artisan quest:generate-ref
php artisan quest:generate-ref 16
php artisan quest:generate-ref --uuid

Argument / option	Role
length	Character count for a random string (default 36). Ignored with --uuid.
--uuid	Generate a UUID v4 instead of a random string.

You are not required to use this command. Any string without / is a valid ref. A readable prefix plus a generated suffix is easier to live with:

forest.tree.NAhLlRZW3g3Fbh30dZ

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quest:track-ref

Show where a ref is implemented: class, method signature, attribute arguments, file.

php artisan quest:track-ref forest.tree
php artisan quest:track-ref RrOWXRfKOjauvSpc7y

Argument	Role
ref	Exact reference to look up.

Possible outcomes:

• match — prints namespace, #[QuestSpaw] arguments, and the method signature (including PHPDoc when present)
• unmatched — no method with that ref in the discovered classes
• empty register — no classes discovered (check routes/quest.php and base_routes)

This is the command to run when an HTTP call does nothing or you forgot which class owns a ref.

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quest:find

Search references by a free-text keyword: class name, method name, ref, or PHPDoc comment.

php artisan quest:find forest
php artisan quest:find tree --with-comments
php artisan quest:find forest --full

Argument / option	Role
keyword	Text to search.
--with-comments (-c)	Include PHPDoc in the listing.
--full (-f)	Namespace, file:line, and comments.

Without --full / --with-comments, results are a table: No, Namespace, Class, Method, Reference.

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quest:ref

Single entry point that delegates to the commands above.

php artisan quest:ref --list
php artisan quest:ref --list --no-table
php artisan quest:ref --list --index=1,2,4
php artisan quest:ref --generate=16
php artisan quest:ref --g-uuid
php artisan quest:ref --track=forest.tree

Option	Role
--list (-l)	Print every discovered reference.
--no-table (-e)	With --list: one block per item instead of a table.
--index= (-i)	With --list: keep only these 1-based row numbers, comma-separated.
--generate= (-g)	Call quest:generate-ref with this length.
--g-uuid (-u)	Call quest:generate-ref --uuid.
--track= (-t)	Call quest:track-ref with this value.

With no option, the command prints an error (No action : check your option).

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quest:publish

Create routes/quest.php if it does not exist (same as QuestRouter::createRouteFile()).

php artisan quest:publish

Does not publish config/quest.php. For both files:

php artisan vendor:publish --tag=quest

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php artisan about

Laravel’s own command. Quest adds a Quest section (version, channel) via the service provider.

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PHPDoc and the tracker

track-ref and find surface the method’s docblock. Document the return shape so a ref is readable in the terminal:

/** @return array{color: string, fruits: int} */
#[QuestSpaw(ref: 'forest.tree', method: SpawMethod::GET)]
public function tree(string $color): array
{
    return ['color' => $color, 'fruits' => 18];
}

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Related

• Quest
• Attributes
• Guide