Nx - Quick Reference

Full Reference: See advanced.md for custom generators, custom executors, remote/self-hosted cache, module boundaries, and CI/CD GitHub Actions setup.

Deep Knowledge: Use mcp__documentation__fetch_docs with technology: nx for comprehensive documentation.

Setup

# New workspace
npx create-nx-workspace@latest my-workspace

# Add to existing repo
npx nx@latest init

Project Structure

my-workspace/
├── nx.json
├── apps/
│   ├── web/project.json
│   └── api/project.json
└── libs/
    ├── ui/project.json
    └── utils/project.json

Configuration (nx.json)

{
  "targetDefaults": {
    "build": {
      "dependsOn": ["^build"],
      "inputs": ["production", "^production"],
      "cache": true
    },
    "test": {
      "inputs": ["default", "^production"],
      "cache": true
    }
  },
  "namedInputs": {
    "default": ["{projectRoot}/**/*", "sharedGlobals"],
    "production": ["default", "!{projectRoot}/**/*.spec.ts"]
  }
}

Running Tasks

# Run target
nx build web
nx test api

# Run for all projects
nx run-many -t build
nx run-many -t build test lint

# Affected (changed since base)
nx affected -t build
nx affected -t test --base=main

# Graph
nx graph

Generators

# Generate application
nx g @nx/react:app my-app
nx g @nx/node:app my-api

# Generate library
nx g @nx/react:lib ui --directory=libs/shared

# Generate component
nx g @nx/react:component button --project=ui

# Dry run
nx g @nx/react:lib feature --dry-run

Plugins

# Add plugin
nx add @nx/react
nx add @nx/node
nx add @nx/vite

Caching

# Skip cache
nx build web --skip-nx-cache

# Clear cache
nx reset

Comparison: Nx vs Turborepo

Feature	Nx	Turborepo
Configuration	TypeScript	JSON
Generators	Advanced	Basic
Plugins	50+	Limited
Module boundaries	Enforced	Manual
Learning curve	Steeper	Lower

When NOT to Use This Skill

• Simple monorepos - Turborepo has simpler configuration
• Single package - No need for monorepo tools
• Quick setup needed - Turborepo is faster to configure

Anti-Patterns

Anti-Pattern	Why It's Bad	Correct Approach
Ignoring module boundaries	Tight coupling	Enforce with @nx/enforce-module-boundaries
Circular dependencies	Build failures	Use nx graph to detect and fix
Not using affected	Wastes CI time	Always use nx affected in CI
Missing project tags	Can't enforce constraints	Tag all projects properly
No workspace generators	Inconsistent code	Create generators for common patterns

Quick Troubleshooting

Issue	Cause	Solution
Module boundary violation	Wrong import	Check depConstraints in .eslintrc.json
Circular dependency	Projects import each other	Use nx graph, refactor to shared lib
Affected not working	Missing dependencies	Check implicit dependencies
Cache not working	Missing outputs	Add outputs to target configuration
Build order wrong	Missing dependsOn	Add dependsOn: ["^build"]

Production Checklist

• nx.json configured
• project.json for each project
• Module boundaries with tags
• Affected in CI pipeline
• Nx Cloud for remote cache
• Generators for consistency

Reference Documentation

• Nx Docs