Local development workflow can be improved

[bcullman]

Step template

Octopus Community Library local development workflow

Step version

N/A

Octopus version

N/A

Step template parameter inputs

N/A - local website development issue, not a step template configuration issue

What happened

The local development workflow for the Octopus Community Library site has several usability issues.

When running the site locally:

• the browser opens on the BrowserSync proxy port instead of the primary app port
• edits to step template JSON files are not reflected cleanly during local development
• regenerated step template data can require a restart before it is served
• client-side React edits do not reliably show up through the normal reload flow

Overall, the local feedback loop is slower and less reliable than it should be.

Reproduction steps

1. Check out the repository on master.
2. Install dependencies.
3. Run npm run watch.
4. Observe which URL opens and whether the app is immediately available.
5. Edit a file under step-templates/*.json and save it.
6. Refresh the local app and observe whether the updated template data is reflected without restarting.
7. Edit a React component such as Footer.jsx and save it.
8. Observe whether the visible UI change appears through the normal reload flow.

More Information

No response