Deploy
Deploy code from the current directory to Railway using railway up.
When to Use User asks to "deploy", "ship", "push code" User says "railway up" or "deploy to Railway" User wants to deploy local code changes User says "deploy and fix any issues" (use --ci mode) Modes Detach Mode (default)
Starts deploy and returns immediately. Use for most deploys.
railway up --detach
CI Mode
Streams build logs until complete. Use when user wants to watch the build or needs to debug issues.
railway up --ci
When to use CI mode:
User says "deploy and watch", "deploy and fix issues" User is debugging build failures User wants to see build output Deploy Specific Service
Default is linked service. To deploy to a different service:
railway up --detach --service backend
Deploy to Unlinked Project
Deploy to a project without linking first:
railway up --project
Requires both --project and --environment flags.
CLI Options
Flag Description
-d, --detach Don't attach to logs (default)
-c, --ci Stream build logs, exit when done
-s, --service
Railway CLI walks UP the directory tree to find a linked project. If you're in a subdirectory of a linked project, you don't need to relink.
For subdirectory deployments, prefer setting rootDirectory via the environment skill, then deploy normally with railway up.
After Deploy
Detach mode
Deploying to
Use deployment skill to check build status (with --lines flag).
CI mode
Build logs stream inline. If build fails, the error will be in the output.
Do NOT run railway logs --build after CI mode - the logs already streamed. If you need more context, use deployment skill with --lines flag (never stream).
Composability
Check status after deploy: Use service skill
View logs: Use deployment skill
Fix config issues: Use environment skill
Redeploy after config fix: Use environment skill
Error Handling
No Project Linked
No Railway project linked. Run railway link first.
No Service Linked
No service linked. Use --service flag or run railway service to select one.
Build Failure (CI mode)
The build logs already streamed - analyze them directly from the railway up --ci output. Do NOT run railway logs after CI mode (it streams forever without --lines).
Common issues:
Missing dependencies → check package.json/requirements.txt Build command wrong → use environment skill to fix Dockerfile issues → check dockerfile path