vite-impl-javascript-api

Quick Reference

Core API Functions

Function	Return Type	Purpose
createServer(inlineConfig?)	Promise<ViteDevServer>	Start a programmatic dev server
build(inlineConfig?)	Promise<RollupOutput | RollupOutput[]>	Run a production build
preview(inlineConfig?)	Promise<PreviewServer>	Start a preview server for built output
resolveConfig(inlineConfig, command, ...)	Promise<ResolvedConfig>	Resolve and merge all config sources
mergeConfig(defaults, overrides, isRoot?)	Record<string, any>	Deep-merge two Vite configs
loadConfigFromFile(configEnv, ...)	Promise<{path, config, dependencies} | null>	Load config from a file path
loadEnv(mode, envDir, prefixes?)	Record<string, string>	Load .env files for a given mode

Utility Functions

Function	Purpose
searchForWorkspaceRoot(current, root?)	Find monorepo workspace root directory
normalizePath(id)	Convert Windows backslashes to forward slashes
createFilter(include, exclude)	Create a picomatch-based file filter
transformWithOxc(code, filename, options?, inMap?)	Transform code with OXC (Vite 8+)
transformWithEsbuild(code, filename, options?, inMap?)	Transform code with esbuild (DEPRECATED)
preprocessCSS(code, filename, config)	Preprocess CSS (experimental)

Version Constants

Constant	Description
version	Current Vite version string
rolldownVersion	Rolldown version used (Vite 8+)
esbuildVersion	Backward compatibility only
rollupVersion	Backward compatibility only

Critical Warnings

NEVER use createServer() and build() in the same Node.js process without setting process.env.NODE_ENV or the mode config option consistently. Inconsistent modes cause unpredictable behavior.

NEVER call mergeConfig() with isRoot=true (the default) when merging nested config subsections like build or server. ALWAYS pass isRoot=false for nested option merging.

NEVER use transformWithEsbuild() in new projects targeting Vite 8+. ALWAYS use transformWithOxc() instead -- transformWithEsbuild is deprecated.

ALWAYS call server.close() in cleanup/shutdown handlers when using createServer() programmatically. Failing to close leaks file watchers, HTTP connections, and WebSocket handles.

ALWAYS call server.listen() after createServer() -- the server is NOT listening by default. createServer() only creates the server instance.

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Decision Tree: Which API Function?

Need to run Vite programmatically?
├── Development server → createServer()
│   ├── Custom middleware → server.middlewares.use()
│   ├── SSR rendering → server.ssrLoadModule()
│   ├── Transform a file → server.transformRequest()
│   └── Transform HTML → server.transformIndexHtml()
├── Production build → build()
├── Preview built output → preview()
├── Read resolved config → resolveConfig()
├── Combine configs → mergeConfig()
├── Load config file → loadConfigFromFile()
├── Load env variables → loadEnv()
├── Transform code standalone → transformWithOxc() (v8+) / transformWithEsbuild() (v5-v7)
└── Find workspace root → searchForWorkspaceRoot()

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ViteDevServer Interface

The ViteDevServer object returned by createServer() provides full programmatic control:

Properties

Property	Type	Purpose
config	ResolvedConfig	Fully resolved Vite configuration
middlewares	Connect.Server	Connect-compatible middleware stack
httpServer	http.Server | null	Underlying Node HTTP server (null in middleware mode)
watcher	FSWatcher	Chokidar file system watcher
ws	WebSocketServer	WebSocket server for HMR communication
pluginContainer	PluginContainer	Runs plugin hooks programmatically
moduleGraph	ModuleGraph	Tracks import relationships and HMR state
resolvedUrls	ResolvedServerUrls | null	Resolved local and network URLs (available after listen())

Methods

Method	Signature	Purpose
transformRequest	(url, options?) → Promise<TransformResult | null>	Transform a module by URL
transformIndexHtml	(url, html, originalUrl?) → Promise<string>	Apply HTML transforms
ssrLoadModule	(url, options?) → Promise<Record<string, any>>	Load a module for SSR
ssrFixStacktrace	(e: Error) → void	Fix SSR error stack traces
reloadModule	(module: ModuleNode) → Promise<void>	Trigger HMR reload for a module
listen	(port?, isRestart?) → Promise<ViteDevServer>	Start listening on a port
restart	(forceOptimize?) → Promise<void>	Restart the dev server
close	() → Promise<void>	Shut down the server and clean up
bindCLIShortcuts	(options?) → void	Enable keyboard shortcuts (r, u, c, q)
waitForRequestsIdle	(ignoredId?) → Promise<void>	Wait until all pending requests complete

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PreviewServer Interface

The PreviewServer object returned by preview():

Member	Type	Purpose
config	ResolvedConfig	Resolved configuration
middlewares	Connect.Server	Connect middleware stack
httpServer	http.Server	HTTP server (ALWAYS present, unlike dev server)
resolvedUrls	ResolvedServerUrls | null	Resolved URLs
printUrls()	method	Print server URLs to console
bindCLIShortcuts(options?)	method	Enable keyboard shortcuts

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Key Types

InlineConfig

Extends UserConfig with:

• configFile: Set to a path to specify config file, or false to disable auto-resolving. ALWAYS set configFile: false when you want zero config file influence.

ResolvedConfig

All UserConfig properties resolved (no undefined values), plus:

• config.assetsInclude(id): Function to check if an ID is an asset
• config.logger: Internal logger object

resolveConfig Signature

async function resolveConfig(
  inlineConfig: InlineConfig,
  command: 'build' | 'serve',  // 'serve' for dev AND preview
  defaultMode?: string,        // default: 'development'
  defaultNodeEnv?: string,     // default: 'development'
  isPreview?: boolean,         // default: false
): Promise<ResolvedConfig>

ALWAYS pass command: 'serve' for both dev and preview scenarios. The command parameter is 'build' ONLY for production builds.

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Version Differences

Feature	Vite 5.x / 6.x	Vite 8.x+
Transform API	transformWithEsbuild()	transformWithOxc()
Bundler engine	Rollup-based	Rolldown-based
Version constants	version only	version, rolldownVersion, esbuildVersion (compat), rollupVersion (compat)
Filter utility	@rollup/pluginutils	createFilter() re-exported from Vite directly

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Reference Links

• references/api-reference.md -- Complete API signatures for all programmatic functions
• references/examples.md -- Working code examples for dev server, build, preview, and utilities
• references/anti-patterns.md -- Common programmatic API mistakes and how to avoid them

Official Sources

• https://vite.dev/guide/api-javascript
• https://vite.dev/guide/api-environment
• https://vite.dev/guide/ssr