Dependency Check Plugin

The dependency check plugin validates and synchronizes version numbers across multiple files in your repository. This ensures consistency between your .version file and other version declarations in package manifests, build files, and source code.

syncBuilt-inDisabled by default

Features

• Validates version consistency across multiple file formats
• Automatically syncs versions during bumps (optional)
• Supports JSON, YAML, TOML, raw text, and regex patterns
• Handles nested fields with dot notation
• Normalizes version formats (e.g., 1.2.3 matches v1.2.3)

Configuration

Enable and configure in .sley.yaml:

Complete Example

View the dependency-check.yaml example for all available options.

plugins:
  dependency-check:
    enabled: true
    auto-sync: true
    files:
      - path: package.json
        field: version
        format: json
      - path: Chart.yaml
        field: version
        format: yaml

Configuration Options

Option	Type	Default	Description
enabled	bool	false	Enable/disable the plugin
auto-sync	bool	false	Automatically sync versions after bump
files	array	[]	List of files to check/sync

File Configuration

Field	Type	Required	Description
path	string	yes	File path relative to repository root
format	string	yes	File format: json, yaml, toml, raw, regex
field	string	no	Dot-notation path to version field (JSON/YAML/TOML)
pattern	string	no	Regex pattern with capturing group (for regex format)

Supported Formats

Format	Field Required	Pattern Required	Example Use Case
json	yes	no	package.json, composer.json
yaml	yes	no	Chart.yaml, pubspec.yaml
toml	yes	no	Cargo.toml, pyproject.toml
raw	no	no	VERSION file (entire content)
regex	no	yes	Source code constants, build files

Format Examples

files:
  # JSON with nested field
  - path: package.json
    field: version
    format: json

  # YAML
  - path: Chart.yaml
    field: version
    format: yaml

  # TOML with nested section
  - path: pyproject.toml
    field: tool.poetry.version
    format: toml

  # Raw file (entire content is version)
  - path: VERSION
    format: raw

  # Regex pattern (must have one capturing group)
  - path: src/version.go
    format: regex
    pattern: 'const Version = "(.*?)"'

Behavior

Validation (Before Bump)

The plugin validates that all configured files can be updated. If inconsistencies or errors are detected, the bump is aborted.

Auto-Sync (After Bump)

With auto-sync: true, files are automatically updated after the .version file is bumped:

sley bump patch
# Version bumped from 1.2.3 to 1.2.4
# Synced version to 3 dependency file(s)

Version Normalization

The plugin normalizes version strings for comparison:

• 1.2.3 matches v1.2.3
• 2.0.0-alpha matches v2.0.0-alpha

Integration with Other Plugins

plugins:
  dependency-check:
    enabled: true
    auto-sync: true
    files:
      - path: package.json
        field: version
        format: json
  tag-manager:
    enabled: true
    prefix: "v"

Flow: dependency-check validates -> version updated -> files synced -> tag created

Error Handling

Error Type	Behavior
File not found	Bump aborted with error
Invalid format	Bump aborted with parse error
Pattern mismatch	Bump aborted (regex must have capturing group)

Common errors

Error: version mismatch in package.json: expected 1.2.3, found 1.2.2

Cause: Version in dependency file doesn't match the .version file when auto-sync: false. Solution: Enable auto-sync or manually update the file.

# Option 1: Enable auto-sync
# In .sley.yaml:
plugins:
  dependency-check:
    auto-sync: true

# Option 2: Manually update package.json
# Update "version": "1.2.3" in package.json

Error: file not found: package.json

Cause: Configured dependency file doesn't exist in the repository. Solution: Verify the file path or remove it from configuration.

# Check path is relative to repository root
plugins:
  dependency-check:
    files:
      - path: package.json # Must exist at root
      - path: services/api/package.json # Or subdirectory

Error: regex pattern must have exactly one capturing group

Cause: Regex pattern for version matching has zero or multiple capturing groups. Solution: Ensure pattern has exactly one group using (...).

# Incorrect patterns:
pattern: 'const Version = ".*?"'      # No capturing group
pattern: 'const (.*?) = "(.*?)"'      # Two capturing groups

# Correct pattern:
files:
  - path: src/version.go
    format: regex
    pattern: 'const Version = "(.*?)"'  # One capturing group

For more troubleshooting help, see the Troubleshooting Guide.

Best Practices

1. Start with validation only - Set auto-sync: false initially
2. Test regex patterns - Validate patterns before adding
3. Commit atomically - Commit all changed files together
4. CI validation - Add sley show to CI to catch inconsistencies

Troubleshooting

Issue	Solution
Plugin not running	Verify enabled: true in configuration
Files not syncing	Check auto-sync: true is set
Regex not matching	Ensure pattern has exactly one capturing group (.*)

Limitations

• Regex patterns must have exactly one capturing group
• File modifications use basic formatting (JSON: 2-space indent)
• Binary files are not supported

See Also

• Version Validator - Enforce version policies
• Tag Manager - Sync git tags with versions
• Monorepo Support - Sync versions across multiple modules
• CI/CD Integration - Automate version syncing in pipelines
• .sley.yaml Reference - File configuration options
• Troubleshooting - Common sync issues