YAML Wizard

Create YAML configuration files interactively without memorizing syntax.

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Overview

The YAML Wizard is an interactive CLI that guides you through creating curl-runner configuration files. Instead of writing YAML by hand, answer prompts for URL, method, headers, body, authentication, and more. The wizard handles all the formatting and syntax for you.

Interactive

Guided Prompts

Step-by-step prompts walk you through every option

Templates

Pre-built Templates

Start from templates for common use cases

Edit Mode

Modify Existing

Edit existing YAML files through the wizard

Quick Init

The fastest way to create a new YAML file. Just run curl-runner init and answer a few prompts.

Terminal
# Quick init - prompts for URL and method
curl-runner init

# Quick init with URL
curl-runner init https://api.example.com/users

# The wizard will prompt for method and filename

Quick init prompts for:

  • Request URL (or pass as argument)
  • HTTP method (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE)
  • Output filename
  • Whether to run immediately

Full Wizard Mode

For more control, use the full wizard with --wizard or -w. This guides you through all available options.

Terminal
# Full interactive wizard
curl-runner init --wizard

# Or short form
curl-runner init -w

# With custom output file
curl-runner init --wizard -o api-test.yaml

Wizard Flow

The wizard takes you through these steps:

Wizard Flow
┌─ curl-runner wizard v1.x.x ──────────────────┐
│                                              │
│  ? Start from a template?                    │
│    ○ Blank - Start from scratch              │
│    ● Basic GET Request                       │
│    ○ Basic POST Request                      │
│    ○ API Test                                │
│    ○ File Upload                             │
│    ○ Auth Flow                               │
│                                              │
│  ? Request URL                               │
│    https://api.example.com/users             │
│                                              │
│  ? HTTP method                               │
│    GET                                       │
│                                              │
│  ? Request name (optional)                   │
│    Get All Users                             │
│                                              │
│  ? Add headers?                              │
│    Yes                                       │
│                                              │
│  ... (continues through all options)         │
│                                              │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Templates

Start from a pre-built template to save time. Templates come with sensible defaults for common scenarios.

Basic GET

Simple GET request with follow redirects enabled

Basic POST

POST with JSON content-type header preset

API Test

Includes validation, response time checks, verbose output

File Upload

Multipart form data with file attachment support

Auth Flow

Bearer token authentication pre-configured

templates-info.txt
# Available templates:

# 1. Basic GET Request
# - Simple GET with default settings
# - Follow redirects enabled

# 2. Basic POST Request
# - POST method with JSON content-type
# - Prompts for JSON body

# 3. API Test
# - Includes response validation
# - Response time assertions
# - Verbose output enabled

# 4. File Upload
# - Multipart form data
# - File attachment support

# 5. Auth Flow
# - Bearer token authentication
# - Pre-configured headers

Edit Existing Files

Use the edit command to modify existing YAML files through the wizard. The current values are pre-filled so you can quickly make changes.

Terminal
# Edit an existing YAML file
curl-runner edit api-test.yaml

# Edit and save to a new file
curl-runner edit api-test.yaml -o api-test-v2.yaml

Edit Mode Features

  • Pre-fills all prompts with existing values
  • Skip through unchanged options quickly
  • Save to original or new file
  • Preview changes before saving

Advanced Options

The wizard prompts for advanced options when you select "Configure advanced options". These include timeout, retry, SSL, and validation settings.

Advanced Options
# The wizard prompts for these advanced options:

# Timeout
? Timeout (ms): 30000

# Redirects
? Follow redirects? Yes

# SSL
? Skip SSL verification? No

# HTTP/2
? Use HTTP/2? Yes

# Retry configuration
? Configure retry strategy? Yes
? Max retry attempts: 3
? Retry delay (ms): 1000
? Backoff multiplier: 2

# Response validation
? Add response validation? Yes
? Expected status code(s): 200
? Response time constraint: < 2000

Preview and Run

Before saving, the wizard shows a preview of your YAML configuration. You can then choose to run the request immediately to verify it works.

Preview
# After creating the file, the wizard asks:

┌─ Preview ──────────────────────────────────────┐
│                                                │
│  request:                                      │
│    url: "https://api.example.com/users"        │
│    headers:                                    │
│      Accept: application/json                  │
│    expect:                                     │
│      status: 200                               │
│                                                │
└────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

? Save to: api-test.yaml
? Run request after creating? Yes

# If you say yes, the request executes immediately
# so you can verify your configuration works

Generated Output

The wizard generates clean, well-formatted YAML that follows curl-runner conventions.

generated-config.yaml
request:
  name: Get All Users
  url: "https://api.example.com/users"
  headers:
    Accept: application/json
    Authorization: Bearer my-token
  expect:
    status: 200
    responseTime: "< 2000"

CLI Reference

CommandDescription
curl-runner initQuick create with minimal prompts
curl-runner init [url]Quick create with URL pre-filled
curl-runner init --wizardFull interactive wizard
curl-runner init -w -o file.yamlWizard with custom output file
curl-runner edit file.yamlEdit existing YAML file
curl-runner edit file.yaml -o new.yamlEdit and save to new file

Tips

Use Templates

Start from a template when possible. It sets sensible defaults and saves time.

Run After Create

Always run after creating to verify your configuration works as expected.

Edit Mode for Updates

Use edit mode instead of manual YAML editing to avoid syntax errors.

Quick Init for Simple Cases

For simple GET/POST requests, quick init is faster than the full wizard.