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name: railway-expert description: Complete toolset for Railway project management. Manage services, deployments, variables, and environments directly from the CLI. Use this skill to deploy apps, troubleshoot issues, view logs, and configure infrastructure without leaving the terminal. compatibility: Requires railway-cli

Railway Expert

Tools Overview

Common Workflows

1. Project Setup & Linking

Before working, ensure you are authenticated and linked to the correct project:

Copy# Login to Railway
railway login

# Link via interactive menu or project ID
railway link

# Check what you are linked to
railway status

2. Deployment Management

Deploy code and manage versions:

Copy# Deploy current directory
railway up

# Deploy to a specific service
railway up --service my-service

# Detach from build logs (fire and forget)
railway up -d

# Redeploy latest version (useful for restarting)
railway redeploy --service my-service

3. Variable Management

Configure secrets and settings:

Copy# List all variables
railway variables

# Set multiple variables
railway variables --set "PORT=8080" --set "NODE_ENV=production"

# Get variables in JSON format
railway variables --json

4. Troubleshooting & Inspection

Diagnose issues in production:

Copy# View deployment logs
railway logs

# View build logs (if deployment failed)
railway logs --build

# SSH into the running container
railway ssh

# Run a command in the environment context
railway run -- dotnet --info

5. Environment Management

Work with multiple environments (Production, Staging, etc.):

Copy# Create a new environment
railway environment new staging

# Link local directory to staging
railway link --environment staging

# Delete an environment
railway environment delete dev-test

Best Practices

• Use JSON Output: When parsing output in scripts, always use the --json flag (e.g., railway variables --json).
• Service Scoping: Explicitly specify --service when working in a monorepo to avoid ambiguity.
• Detached Deploys: Use railway up -d for CI pipelines to avoid hanging on log streaming.
• Environment Context: Always verify your active environment with railway status before making destructive changes.