CLI · eject

cem eject

Eject your project from the create-express-modular CLI dependency, inlining raw standalone scripts directly into package.json for 100% autonomy.

bash

cem eject

cem eject gives you complete ownership of your project scripts. It inspects your chosen ORM, package manager, and build configuration, replaces all cem <command> scripts with direct node/tsx/tsc equivalents, and unlinks the CLI dependency.

What changes in package.json

Before ejecting, scripts delegate to the CEM binary:

json

// Before ejection
{
  "scripts": {
    "start:dev": "cem dev",
    "build": "cem build",
    "start": "cem start",
    "check": "cem check",
    "fix": "cem fix"
  }
}

After running cem eject, standalone tooling commands are inlined directly:

json

// After ejection
{
  "scripts": {
    "start:dev": "tsx watch src/server.ts",
    "build": "tsc -p tsconfig.json",
    "start": "node dist/server.js",
    "check": "tsc --noEmit && eslint src && prettier --check src",
    "fix": "eslint src --fix && prettier --write src",
    "lint": "eslint src",
    "format": "prettier --write src"
  }
}

Why eject?

Advantage	Details
Zero CLI dependency	Your CI and deployment containers no longer need create-express-modular installed globally or locally.
Custom toolchains	Easily substitute tsx with SWC, esbuild, Rolldown, or custom bundling pipelines without CLI interference.
Standard npm scripts	Developers familiar with standard Express codebases can run standard scripts without learning any CLI syntax.
Preserved architecture	All modular code, folders, and cem-cli.json metadata remain intact, so your project structure stays pristine.

Can I still use cem subcommands?

Yes! If you have create-express-modular installed globally, you can still use generator commands like cem add module <Name>, cem add env <KEY>, or cem list. Ejecting only decouples your project's runtime and build scripts from the CLI.