# Help with rake

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/help-with-rake/78707>\
**Category:** Ruby\
**Created:** [December 8, 2006, 12:00am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/help-with-rake/78707 "2006-12-08T00:00:32Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![nuby2ruby](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/n/54ee81/32.png) [@nuby2ruby](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/nuby2ruby)\
**Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 12:00am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/help-with-rake/78707/1 "2006-12-08T00:00:32Z")

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Can anyone tell me exactly how rake works? How does it know what to do?

Also, when I run rake db:anything, it changes my schema file to an  
autogenerated format, can anyone tell me where it gets the info for  
this?

Thanks

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**Author:** ![nuby2ruby](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/n/54ee81/32.png) [@nuby2ruby](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/nuby2ruby)\
**Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 12:07am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/help-with-rake/78707/2 "2006-12-08T00:07:23Z")

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On Dec 7, 2006, at 15:00 , Jeremy W. wrote:

> Can anyone tell me exactly how rake works? How does it know what to  
> do?

Jim W.'s site [onestepback.org](http://onestepback.org) has several articles on how rake  
does what it does:

[http://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Aonestepback.org+rake](http://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Aonestepback.org+rake)

If you want the short answer, it builds a dependency tree, performs a  
topological sort, then runs things in order until done.

> Also, when I run rake db:anything, it changes my schema file to an  
> autogenerated format, can anyone tell me where it gets the info for  
> this?

Ask the Rails list.

–  
Eric H. - removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid - [http://blog.segment7.net](http://blog.segment7.net)

I LIT YOUR GEM ON FIRE!

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**Author:** ![nuby2ruby](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/n/54ee81/32.png) [@nuby2ruby](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/nuby2ruby)\
**Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 12:31am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/help-with-rake/78707/3 "2006-12-08T00:31:26Z")

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Jeremy W. wrote:

> Can anyone tell me exactly how rake works? How does it know what to do?

I found this article to be a great introduction to rake:

[Using the Rake Build Language](http://www.martinfowler.com/articles/rake.html)

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**Author:** ![nuby2ruby](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/n/54ee81/32.png) [@nuby2ruby](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/nuby2ruby)\
**Post date:** [December 8, 2006, 12:25am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/help-with-rake/78707/4 "2006-12-08T00:25:17Z")

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Thanks for the help.