Create Invoke Task

Create a new invoke task accessible via dda inv <namespace>.<task-name>.

Instructions

Step 1: Gather information from the user

Use AskUserQuestion to collect the following. If $ARGUMENTS provides values, skip those questions.

1. Task name: The function name (e.g. build, refresh_assets). Underscores become hyphens in the CLI.

2. Namespace: Which task module does it belong to?

   • Existing module — Add to an existing file in tasks/ (e.g. agent, linter, dogstatsd). Check tasks/__init__.py for the full list.
   • New module — Create a new tasks/<name>.py file and register it.

3. What does the task do?: Brief description (becomes the docstring / help text).

4. Parameters: What CLI flags does the task need? (name, type, default value, description)

Step 2: Read a reference

Read an existing task file matching the desired complexity:

• Simple task (no params): tasks/auth.py
• Task with params: Pick any task from tasks/agent.py or tasks/linter.py
• Registration: tasks/__init__.py — to see how modules and tasks are registered

Step 3: Create the task

Add the @task decorated function to the appropriate file. Follow the patterns from Step 2.

Key rules:

• First parameter is always ctx (the invoke Context)
• Use ctx.run("command") to execute shell commands
• Docstring first line = short description shown in dda inv --list
• Import from invoke: task, Exit (for errors), Context

Step 4: Register (new modules only)

If you created a new module file, edit tasks/__init__.py:

1. Add the import in the from tasks import (...) block (alphabetical order)
2. Register it:
   • As a namespace (most common): ns.add_collection(<module>) — creates dda inv <module>.<task>
   • As a root task: ns.add_task(<task>) — creates dda inv <task>

If adding to an existing module, no registration is needed — invoke auto-discovers @task functions.

Step 5: Verify

Test the task:

dda inv <namespace>.<task-name> --help

Usage

• /create-invoke-task — Interactive: prompts for all details
• /create-invoke-task agent my-task — Pre-fills namespace and name