Dean Sheather a8f2a8a44d fix(cli): skip dry-run for workspace start/restart commands (#20754)
## Problem

The `prepWorkspaceBuild()` function in `cli/create.go` was
unconditionally executing dry-runs for **all** workspace actions. This
caused unnecessary delays and "Planning workspace..." messages during
`coder start` and `coder restart` commands when they should only happen
during `coder create` and `coder update`.

## Root Cause

The `prepWorkspaceBuild()` function is shared code called by:
- **create command** - passes `WorkspaceCreate` action  dry-run IS
desired
- **update command** - passes `WorkspaceUpdate` action  dry-run IS
desired
- **start command** - passes `WorkspaceStart` action (or
`WorkspaceUpdate` as fallback)  dry-run NOT desired for
`WorkspaceStart`
- **restart command** - passes `WorkspaceRestart` action  dry-run NOT
desired
- **scaletest commands** - pass `WorkspaceCreate` action  dry-run IS
desired

## Solution

Wrapped the dry-run section (lines 580-627) in a conditional that only
executes when `args.Action == WorkspaceCreate || args.Action ==
WorkspaceUpdate`.

This skips dry-run for `WorkspaceStart` and `WorkspaceRestart` actions
while preserving it for creation and explicit updates.

## Changes

- Added conditional check around the entire dry-run logic block
- Added clarifying comment explaining the intent
- Changed from unconditional execution to: `if args.Action ==
WorkspaceCreate || args.Action == WorkspaceUpdate { ... }`

## Impact

| Command | Action Type | Dry-run Before | Dry-run After | Status |
|---------|-------------|----------------|---------------|--------|
| `coder create` | `WorkspaceCreate` |  Yes |  Yes | Unchanged |
| `coder update` | `WorkspaceUpdate` |  Yes |  Yes | Unchanged |
| `coder start` (normal) | `WorkspaceStart` |  Yes (bug) |  No |
**Fixed** |
| `coder start` (template changed) | `WorkspaceUpdate` |  Yes |  Yes |
Unchanged (correct behavior) |
| `coder restart` | `WorkspaceRestart` |  Yes (bug) |  No | **Fixed**
|
| scaletest | `WorkspaceCreate` |  Yes |  Yes | Unchanged |

## Testing

 **Code compiles successfully**
```bash
go build -o /dev/null ./cli/...
```

 **All relevant tests pass locally**
```bash
cd cli && go test -run "TestCreate|TestStart|TestRestart|TestUpdate" -v
PASS
ok      github.com/coder/coder/v2/cli   3.337s
```

 **All CI checks pass**
- test-go-pg (ubuntu, macos, windows) 
- test-go-pg-17 
- test-go-race-pg 
- test-e2e 
- All other checks 

## Behavior Changes

**Before:**
- Users running `coder start` would see "Planning workspace..." and wait
for unnecessary dry-run completion
- Users running `coder restart` would experience unnecessary dry-run
overhead

**After:**
- `coder start` (simple start) skips dry-run entirely (faster, more
intuitive)
- `coder start` (with template update) still shows dry-run (correct -
user needs to see what's changing)
- `coder restart` skips dry-run entirely (faster, more intuitive)
- `coder create` maintains existing dry-run behavior (shows "Planning
workspace..." and resource preview)
- `coder update` maintains existing dry-run behavior (shows "Planning
workspace..." and resource preview)

## Verification

Manual testing should verify:
1. `coder create` still shows "Planning workspace..." 
2. `coder update` still shows "Planning workspace..." 
3. `coder start` (simple start) does NOT show "Planning workspace..." 
4. `coder restart` does NOT show "Planning workspace..." 
2025-11-13 09:48:28 +11:00
2025-10-15 14:22:31 -03:00

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