🔥 Torch It

One command to nuke caches, dependencies, and Docker environments — then rebuild from scratch.

Project stopped working for no obvious reason? torch-it cleans up 50+ build artifacts, cache directories, and temporary files, then reinstalls your dependencies fresh. It's surprising how often this just fixes things. 🤞

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Quick Start

npm install -g torch-it   # install globally (recommended)
cd your-project
torch-it                  # clean and rebuild

torch-it will show you a preview of what it's about to delete and ask for confirmation before doing anything destructive.

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What It Does

Always runs

1. Removes build artifacts and cache directories (50+ targets — node_modules, dist, .next, .cache, .vite, etc.)
2. Removes log files and temporary files (*.log, *.tgz, *.tar.gz, etc.)
3. Removes any custom paths you define in torchrc.json
4. Cleans your package manager's cache (npm, yarn, or pnpm)
5. Reinstalls all dependencies

Optionally runs (Docker mode)

When dockerMode: true and a docker-compose.yml or Dockerfile is present:

Step	When	Command
Teardown	Before cleanup	docker compose down --rmi all --volumes
Rebuild	After dependency install	docker compose build --pull --no-cache
Start	After successful rebuild	docker compose up -d

Note: All Docker operations use docker compose (plugin). Ensure Docker Compose plugin is installed and on your PATH.

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Installation

Global (recommended)

Install once, use in any project:

npm install -g torch-it

Per-project

npm install torch-it --save-dev

Add a script to package.json:

{
  "scripts": {
    "torch": "torch-it"
  }
}

Then run with npm run torch or npx torch-it.

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Usage

Basic run

torch-it

Shows a preview of what will be deleted, then prompts: Continue? Type Yes or No (y/n).

Skip confirmation (CI / automation)

torch-it --yes   # or -y

Dry run (preview only, no changes)

torch-it --test

Show current configuration

torch-it --config

Displays all active settings, every cleanup target, custom paths, protected paths, and Docker settings. Useful for verifying your setup before running.

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Configuration

Create a torchrc.json file in your project root to customise behaviour. Everything is optional — torch-it works with sensible defaults out of the box.

{
  "customPaths": ["apps/web/.next", "services/api/tmp", "coverage-final.json"],
  "protectedPaths": ["important-data/", "config/production.json"],
  "dockerMode": false,
  "rebuild": true,
  "logfile": false
}

Option	Type	Default	Description
customPaths	string[]	[]	Extra directories or files to delete during cleanup
protectedPaths	string[]	[]	Paths to skip — preserved even if they match built-in targets
dockerMode	boolean	false	Enable Docker teardown, rebuild, and launch
rebuild	boolean	true	Set to false to skip dependency reinstall and Docker rebuild (cleanup still runs)
logfile	boolean	false	Write runtime output to torch-it.log in the project root

Command line overrides

Any config option can be overridden with a flag. Flags take precedence over torchrc.json.

torch-it --yes --rebuild=false --customPaths=["temp/","logs/"]
torch-it --dockerMode=true --logfile=true

All flags:

Flag	Description
--help	Show help and available options
--version, -v	Show version and exit
--config	Show current configuration and exit
--test	Dry run — preview changes without executing
--yes, -y	Skip confirmation prompt
--customPaths=[...]	Extra paths to delete
--protectedPaths=[...]	Paths to preserve
--dockerMode=true|false	Enable/disable Docker steps
--rebuild=true|false	Enable/disable dependency reinstall and Docker rebuild
--logfile=true|false	Enable/disable log file output

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Supported Frameworks & Tools

React, Next.js, Vue, Vite, SvelteKit, React Native, Expo, Remix, Qwik, Nuxt, Astro, Angular, Solid, Docusaurus, and 40+ more.

Package managers: npm · yarn · pnpm

Full list of cleanup targets

Framework build outputs

dist, build, out, .output, .next, .nuxt, .svelte-kit, .svelte, .remix, .qwik, .astro, .angular, .angular/cache, .solid, .docusaurus, .nitro

Build tool caches

.cache, .parcel-cache, .webpack, .rollup.cache, .vite, .swc, .rpt2_cache, .eslintcache, .stylelintcache, .sass-cache, .babel-cache, .cache-loader

Package manager caches

node_modules/.cache, .npm, .pnpm-store, .pnpm-debug.log, .yarn/cache, .yarn/unplugged, .yarn/install-state.gz

Monorepo & build tools

.turbo, .nx/cache, .lerna, .rush, .yalc

Blockchain & Web3

.hardhat, .foundry, .anchor

Deployment & platform

.vercel, .netlify, .wrangler, .amplify, .sst, .firebase, .serverless

Mobile development

android/.gradle, android/build, android/app/build, ios/Pods, ios/build, .expo, .expo-shared

File patterns

*.log, *.tgz, *.tar.gz, tsconfig.tsbuildinfo, coverage, .nyc_output, storybook-static, .storybook-out

Temporary files

.tmp, tmp, temp, lib, es, cjs, umd, jspm_packages, .typings

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Logging

By default, output goes to the console only. To save a log file for troubleshooting, set logfile: true in torchrc.json or pass --logfile=true.

The log is written to torch-it.log in your project root. Add it to .gitignore:

torch-it.log

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Troubleshooting

Docker issues: Run docker compose ps from the project root to check if Compose is working. For rebuilds, confirm docker compose is on your PATH. Check that the Docker daemon is running with docker info.

Missing package.json: Run npm init -y to initialise a project, or make sure you're in the right directory.

Not sure what will be deleted? Run torch-it --config to see the full list of targets, or torch-it --test for a dry run.

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License

MIT — Happy torching! 🔥✨