Async Mode for depot build CLI

[pratapaprasanna]

📦 Feature Request: Async Mode for depot build CLI

Hi team,

I'm currently using the following command to build and push a Docker image via the Depot CLI:

depot build -t gouthamappsmith/sample_appsmith_app:latest . --push

The issue I'm facing is that the CLI waits for the build to complete before exiting. For my use case — particularly in CI/CD or scripting environments — I would prefer to trigger the build and return immediately, then check the status or view the logs asynchronously.

💡 Feature Request

Is there a way to trigger the build in async mode, such that:

• The CLI exits immediately after submitting the job
• I can optionally retrieve the build status later using the build ID or via API

If this already exists and I'm missing it, would appreciate a pointer!

Thanks in advance 🙏

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Let me know if you want to include:

• Your OS/shell/CI environment
• A link to a build ID as a reference
• The version of the Depot CLI you're using (depot --version)

[jacobwgillespie]

Hey, thanks for the feature request! This is something we've thought of but does not exist today, specifically, the depot CLI wraps docker buildx build internally and communicates with a modified version of buildkit on the backend to process the build, and BuildKit itself requires the interactive client to stay connected and does not have a concept of background or async builds.

I know some people who heavily script our CLI have had luck running depot build from a Lambda, where the Lambda keeps the build alive and saves logs. Until we have something that natively does this, that's the recommended path today.