exograph

Exograph provides a declarative way to build backends that expose GraphQL query and mutation APIs. The server workflow centers on defining your domain model and business logic, while Exograph handles the GraphQL schema generation, resolvers wiring, and secure data access. With the server running, clients can perform standard GraphQL operations to fetch, mutate, and subscribe to data as defined by your model. The tooling supports integrating with popular frontend libraries and authentication providers, enabling you to craft secure, scalable APIs with less boilerplate.

Once running, you can use the GraphQL endpoint to send queries and mutations that reflect your domain’s capabilities. Exograph emphasizes a declarative approach: define your data structures, rules, and access controls, and the framework will generate the corresponding GraphQL schema and resolvers. This makes it easier to evolve your API over time while maintaining consistency between your domain logic and the API surface. The project commonly integrates with modern frontend stacks (e.g., Next.js, Apollo, Urql) and supports common authentication patterns, so you can plug in your existing auth0 or Clerk setups as needed.

Prerequisites:

• Node.js (14+ or as required by your Exograph project)
• npm or yarn

Step-by-step:

1. Install Node.js and npm/yarn from https://nodejs.org/
2. Initialize your project (if starting from scratch):

mkdir my-exograph-project
cd my-exograph-project
npm init -y

3. Install Exograph dependencies (use the package name from the official docs; if following the Getting Started guide, use the recommended package):

npm install exograph  # or the exact package name per docs

4. Create or copy your Exograph configuration and domain model definitions as instructed by the Getting Started guide. This typically involves defining your domain model, access control rules, and GraphQL schema preferences.
5. Start the server:

node path/to/server.js  # or the npm script defined for your project

6. Open the GraphQL playground or send GraphQL requests to the configured endpoint to verify the API is working.

If you are using a different installation method (e.g., npx, Docker, or a Python/uv setup), follow the specific instructions in the official Getting Started guide referenced in the repository.

Tips and common issues:

• Ensure Node.js version compatibility with your Exograph version.
• If you encounter schema mismatches after changes to the domain model, regenerate or re-run your code generation step as per the docs.
• Keep environment variables like authentication keys, database URLs, and feature flags in your deployment environment (e.g., .env files or CI secrets).
• When debugging, check logs for GraphQL schema generation messages to pinpoint missing domain definitions or access control rules.
• For deployments, consider containerizing your server and using the provided MCP config to manage the server command and arguments consistently across environments.