Development

Prerequisites

Tool	Version	Used for
.NET SDK	10.0	Server and tests
Node.js + npm	22	Website
Docker + Compose	recent	Optional, for container builds

Running locally

Two terminals:

# 1. Game server on http://localhost:5080
cd actionBlocks_server
dotnet run --project src/ActionBlocks.Server --urls http://localhost:5080

# 2. Website on http://localhost:5173
cd actionBlocks_website
npm install
npm run dev

The Vite dev server proxies /hub (including WebSockets) to http://localhost:5080, so the default hub URL <origin>/hub just works. To point it at another server, use DEV_SERVER_URL=http://host:port npm run dev.

To play against yourself, open the site in two browser windows. Create a lobby in one and join with the code in the other. Keyboard focus decides which window receives input.

Handy server settings for testing

Any GameSettings value can be overridden with an environment variable:

Game__ItemSpawnChance=0.9 Game__CountdownSeconds=1 \
  dotnet run --project src/ActionBlocks.Server --urls http://localhost:5080

That gives items on almost every piece and a near-instant start, which is useful for testing items.

Commands

Where	Command	Does
`actionBlocks_server/`	`dotnet build`	Builds all projects
	`dotnet test`	Runs the game logic tests
`actionBlocks_website/`	`npm run dev`	Dev server with hot reload
	`npm run typecheck`	TypeScript check only
	`npm run build`	Typecheck + production build into `dist/`
	`npm run preview`	Serves `dist/` locally
repo root	`docker compose build`	Builds both images (server image runs the tests)
	`docker compose config`	Validates the compose file and `.env`

Testing strategy

Game rules live in ActionBlocks.Game and are covered by unit tests. When you change or add a rule, add a test in tests/ActionBlocks.Game.Tests. Use TestHelpers.CreatePlayer for a deterministic player: it takes a fixed piece sequence and an item chance (0 or 1). Use FillRow to build board situations.
Networking and lobby flow has no automated tests yet. Test it manually, or with a small script client (see Protocol → Writing a test client).
Bots are an effective test tool. A script client that joins a lobby and plays with a simple heuristic shows how garbage and items work under real conditions: it clears lines, collects items and uses them on you. One works like this:
1. Read your board from the snapshot.
2. For every rotation and x position of the active piece, simulate dropping it and score the result: lines cleared minus holes, height and bumpiness.
3. Send the best move's RotateCw / MoveLeft / MoveRight / HardDrop inputs.
4. Send UseItem whenever the inventory is not empty.
Frontend has no unit tests. npm run build (which includes the typecheck) catches type errors, and visual checks happen in the browser.

Debugging tips

Server logs go to stdout. Exceptions in the tick loop are logged per lobby as Failed to update lobby {Code}.
Inspect live snapshots. In the browser devtools, open Network → WS → the /hub connection → Messages. Each MatchState frame shows the full state, and its records are separated by \u001e.
GET /health on the server tells you whether the process is up.
Is the hub reachable? curl -X POST "<hub-url>/negotiate?negotiateVersion=1" must return JSON listing the available transports.

Code conventions

Server

File-scoped namespaces, nullable reference types enabled, one main type per file. Small closely related types may share a file, e.g. all items in Items.cs.
ActionBlocks.Game must stay free of ASP.NET or serialization dependencies. Mapping to the wire format happens in ActionBlocks.Server/Dtos.
Game objects are not thread-safe. Only touch them inside lock (lobby.Sync).
Prefer adding a value to GameSettings, or an implementation of an existing interface, over hard-coding numbers in logic.

Website

Function components and hooks. No state library: server state is owned by useGameConnection.
Styling only through *.module.css, plus the CSS variables in theme/global.css. Don't use inline styles except for computed sizes and colors.
Reference graphics and colors only through theme/assets.ts and theme/colors.ts.
Keep net/types.ts in sync with the server DTOs.
UI text in the pixel font: ASCII only.
No trademarked names in user-facing text or assets.

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