self-update

Usage

vendor/bin/dev-tools self-update
composer dev-tools:self-update

When the standalone dev-tools binary is itself loaded from Composer's global installation, self-update automatically targets composer global update fast-forward/dev-tools . Local project installations update the current project by default.

Global runtime options

The standalone DevTools binary also accepts Composer-like global runtime options before the command name:

vendor/bin/dev-tools --working-dir=/path/to/project tests
vendor/bin/dev-tools --workspace-dir=.artifacts reports
vendor/bin/dev-tools --auto-update tests

--working-dir (or -d ) switches the process directory before resolving paths, managed files, or command defaults. This lets a globally installed binary operate on another project without first changing shell directories. Composer executions can use Composer's own --working-dir /-d option.

--workspace-dir (or -w ) changes where generated DevTools artifacts and caches are written when command-specific paths are omitted. It does not change the project root selected by --working-dir . Composer plugin executions can use FAST_FORWARD_WORKSPACE_DIR=.artifacts to apply the same workspace policy. Explicit command options such as --target , --coverage , --metrics , and --cache-dir continue to take precedence over the workspace default.

--auto-update runs the self-update flow before the requested command. The same behavior MAY be enabled with FAST_FORWARD_AUTO_UPDATE=1 . When the active dev-tools binary is already installed globally, auto-update also targets the global installation by default. Auto-update failures are reported as warnings and do not block the requested command.

Version freshness check

When DevTools runs from an installed package, the binary checks Composer metadata for the latest stable fast-forward/dev-tools release. If a newer stable version is available, DevTools prints a warning recommending dev-tools self-update . This check is best-effort: network, Composer, or metadata failures are ignored so the requested command can continue normally. The check is skipped automatically in CI environments, including GitHub Actions, so freshly installed consumer workflows do not spend time querying release metadata. Set FAST_FORWARD_SKIP_VERSION_CHECK=1 to disable the warning in other non-interactive contexts.