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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://filepacks.com/docs/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

Use this page when you know the four commands already and want repeatable ways to combine them.

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Workflow: create the first useful artifact

npx filepacks pack ./run-output --output ./run-output.fpk
npx filepacks inspect ./run-output.fpk
Use this when you want fast confirmation that:
  • the output directory is packageable
  • the artifact was created successfully
  • the resulting file count and byte count look reasonable

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Workflow: trust but verify

If an artifact is going to be uploaded, shared, or used as a baseline, verify it first: 
npx filepacks verify ./run-output.fpk
Use this before:
  • attaching the artifact to a ticket or pull request
  • comparing against another artifact
  • storing the artifact as an accepted baseline

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Workflow: baseline vs candidate review

npx filepacks compare ./baseline.fpk ./candidate.fpk
This is the core review loop for repeated runs:
  • 0 means no packaged files changed
  • 20 means one or more packaged files changed
  • 1 means command or artifact failure

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Workflow: received artifact from someone else

When someone hands you a .fpk file: 
npx filepacks inspect ./received.fpk
npx filepacks verify ./received.fpk
inspect tells you what it claims to be. verify tells you whether the payload still matches the manifest.

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Workflow: accept a new baseline

The public OSS CLI does not manage baseline aliases or tags. If the candidate is acceptable, update your baseline explicitly in your own storage or workflow. For example: 
cp ./candidate.fpk ./baseline.fpk
Or upload the accepted candidate artifact to the location your CI jobs already use as the baseline source.

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Workflow: use from a shell script

set +e
npx filepacks compare ./baseline.fpk ./candidate.fpk
status=$?
set -e

if [ "$status" -eq 0 ]; then
  echo "No structural changes"
elif [ "$status" -eq 20 ]; then
  echo "Changes detected; review candidate artifact"
else
  echo "Comparison failed"
  exit "$status"
fi
Treat 20 as “artifact changed”, not “tool crashed”.

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Workflow: 60-second AI-assisted software demo

Use this when you want a short demo that looks like real AI-assisted software work instead of a single summary.txt file. Create two tiny directories with the kinds of files an agent-assisted coding run often produces: 
mkdir -p ./demo/baseline ./demo/candidate

printf 'Task: checkout fix\nStatus: success\n' > ./demo/baseline/agent-task-summary.md
printf 'diff --git a/app.js b/app.js\n+console.log("baseline")\n' > ./demo/baseline/changes.patch
printf 'PASS smoke test\n' > ./demo/baseline/test-output.txt
printf '{"source":"agent","step":"baseline"}\n' > ./demo/baseline/metadata.json

printf 'Task: checkout fix\nStatus: success\nReviewed by human\n' > ./demo/candidate/agent-task-summary.md
printf 'diff --git a/app.js b/app.js\n+console.log("candidate")\n' > ./demo/candidate/changes.patch
printf 'PASS smoke test\nPASS checkout test\n' > ./demo/candidate/test-output.txt
printf '{"source":"agent","step":"candidate"}\n' > ./demo/candidate/metadata.json
Then run the full review loop: 
npx filepacks pack ./demo/baseline --output ./baseline.fpk
npx filepacks pack ./demo/candidate --output ./candidate.fpk
npx filepacks inspect ./candidate.fpk
npx filepacks verify ./candidate.fpk
npx filepacks compare ./baseline.fpk ./candidate.fpk
That flow shows why filepacks matters for AI-assisted software work: one portable artifact preserves the agent’s files, verify confirms they still match the manifest, and compare shows exactly what changed before a human decides whether to ship.

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Workflow: choose the right command

GoalCommand
Create an artifact from a directorypack
Read the artifact summaryinspect
Confirm the artifact is intactverify
Check whether packaged files changedcompare
Continue to the individual command pages for argument and output details.