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incremental-compilation

Incremental Compilation:

  • Speeds up compilation: Incremental compilation allows TypeScript to compile only files that have changed, as well as files that depend on them, speeding up the build process significantly for large projects.

  • tsconfig settings: Use the incremental flag in tsconfig.json to enable incremental compilation. This instructs TypeScript to save information about the project graph from the last compilation to use on subsequent compilations.

  • Build info file: When incremental compilation is enabled, TypeScript generates a .tsbuildinfo file, which stores information about the project graph and compilation. Make sure this file is not deleted between builds.

  • Dependency tracking: TypeScript's incremental compilation tracks dependencies between files to determine what needs to be recompiled, making it efficient.

  • Composite projects: Use composite projects to break your codebase into smaller projects. This feature works well with incremental compilation, as TypeScript can skip compiling projects that haven't changed.

  • Project references: Use project references in tsconfig.json files for large codebases. They allow you to structure your codebase into smaller, interdependent projects.

  • Disk cache: Incremental compilation benefits from a disk cache, as the .tsbuildinfo file is read from and written to disk.

  • Memory consumption: Incremental compilation can reduce memory consumption during the build process, as not all files need to be loaded into memory at once.

  • Continuous integration: In a CI/CD pipeline, consider caching the .tsbuildinfo file between builds to take advantage of incremental compilation.

  • Watch mode: Combine incremental compilation with watch mode (tsc --watch) for an improved development experience, as it will continuously compile changes as you work.

  • Avoid full rebuilds: Be cautious when changing compiler settings or updating TypeScript versions, as this may require a full rebuild of your project.

  • Clean builds: Sometimes, it's necessary to perform a clean build, especially when tracking down strange build issues. This can be done by deleting the .tsbuildinfo file.

  • Module resolution: Understand how TypeScript resolves modules, as changes to module resolution logic can impact incremental compilation.

  • Output consistency: Incremental builds should be consistent with full builds; if they're not, it may indicate a misconfiguration in your build process.

  • Debugging: If you encounter issues with incremental compilation, you can use the --explainFiles flag to understand why TypeScript includes each file in the compilation.

Being familiar with incremental compilation and how to configure it can greatly improve your productivity by reducing build times, especially in large TypeScript projects.