init

name	init
description	Initialize wicked-bus or connect to an existing instance. Use when setting up the bus for the first time, checking if it's running, or configuring a project to use it. Auto-triggered when any wicked-bus skill detects no config.

wicked-bus init

Set up wicked-bus for the current project. Detects an existing running instance before creating a new one.

When to use

• First time using wicked-bus in a project
• Another wicked-bus skill detected no config and redirected here
• User asks to "set up the bus", "init wicked-bus", or "connect to the bus"

Process

Step 1: Check for existing instance

Before creating anything, check if wicked-bus is already initialized:

# Check if the data directory exists
ls ~/.something-wicked/wicked-bus/bus.db 2>/dev/null

If the data dir and DB exist, wicked-bus is already running. Skip to Step 4.

Also check if another agent or process already initialized it this session:

# Check if the CLI is available
npx wicked-bus status 2>/dev/null

If status returns valid JSON, the bus is live. Report to the user and skip init.

Step 2: Check if wicked-bus is installed

# Check if the package is available
node -e "require.resolve('wicked-bus')" 2>/dev/null || \
  node -e "import('wicked-bus').then(() => console.log('found'))" 2>/dev/null

If not installed:

wicked-bus is not installed. Install it:
  npm install wicked-bus

Step 3: Initialize

Run the init command:

npx wicked-bus init

This creates:

• ~/.something-wicked/wicked-bus/ data directory
• bus.db SQLite database with WAL mode
• config.json with defaults

Verify success by checking the JSON output for "initialized": true.

Step 4: Register the current project (optional)

If the user wants this project to emit events, register as a provider:

Ask: "What domain name should this project use?" (default: directory name)

npx wicked-bus register \
  --role provider \
  --plugin {domain} \
  --filter 'wicked.*'

Step 5: Confirm

Report:

wicked-bus is ready.
  Data dir: ~/.something-wicked/wicked-bus/
  DB: bus.db (WAL mode)
  Status: {event count} events, {subscriber count} subscribers

If the bus was already running, say so:

wicked-bus is already initialized and running.
  {status output}