connect info mod args is the code to execute in order to initialize the state associated with the module mod (usually calling mod.connect) with the arguments args, in the context of the project information info.
configure info is the code to execute in order to configure the device. During the configuration phase, the specficied packages might not yet be there. The code might involve generating more OCaml code, running shell scripts, etc.
build info is the code to execute in order to build the device. During the build phase, you can rely that all packages are installed (via opam). The code might involve generating more OCaml code (crunching directories), running shell scripts, etc.