Monorepo Strategies: Nx, Turborepo, and Lerna

Monorepos manage multiple packages in one repository. After managing production monorepos, here’s how to use the tools effectively.

What is a Monorepo?

A monorepo:

• Multiple packages - In one repository
• Shared code - Common utilities
• Atomic changes - Cross-package commits
• Single source - One version control

Nx

Setup

npx create-nx-workspace my-workspace
cd my-workspace

Create Application

nx generate @nrwl/react:application my-app
nx generate @nrwl/node:library shared-utils

Task Execution

# Run tests
nx test my-app

# Build
nx build my-app

# Affected commands
nx affected:test
nx affected:build

Configuration

{
  "projects": {
    "my-app": "apps/my-app",
    "shared-utils": "libs/shared-utils"
  },
  "defaultBase": "main"
}

Turborepo

Setup

npx create-turbo@latest

Turbo.json

{
  "pipeline": {
    "build": {
      "dependsOn": ["^build"],
      "outputs": ["dist/**"]
    },
    "test": {
      "dependsOn": ["build"],
      "outputs": []
    },
    "lint": {
      "outputs": []
    }
  }
}

Run Tasks

# Run build for all packages
turbo run build

# Run only affected
turbo run build --filter=...my-package

# Parallel execution
turbo run build --parallel

Lerna

Setup

npm install -g lerna
lerna init

Lerna.json

{
  "version": "independent",
  "npmClient": "npm",
  "command": {
    "publish": {
      "conventionalCommits": true
    }
  }
}

Commands

# Bootstrap dependencies
lerna bootstrap

# Run script in all packages
lerna run test

# Publish packages
lerna publish

Package Management

Workspaces

{
  "workspaces": [
    "packages/*",
    "apps/*"
  ]
}

Shared Dependencies

{
  "dependencies": {
    "shared-utils": "workspace:*"
  }
}

Best Practices

1. Use tools - Nx, Turborepo, or Lerna
2. Task orchestration - Parallel execution
3. Dependency management - Workspaces
4. CI/CD - Affected packages
5. Code sharing - Shared libraries
6. Versioning - Independent or fixed
7. Testing - Cross-package tests
8. Documentation - Clear structure

Conclusion

Monorepo tools enable:

• Code sharing
• Atomic changes
• Task orchestration
• Better DX

Choose the right tool for your needs. The strategies shown here scale to large codebases.

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Monorepo strategies from October 2021, covering Nx, Turborepo, and Lerna.