Project Wizard (`cb --new`)

The project wizard creates new projects interactively. It guides you through product selection, project type selection, and project-specific configuration.

Quick Start

cb --new

You can also prefill all wizard parameters from the command line:

cb --new [product-id] [project-type-id] [project-name] [package-name] [group-id] [component-id] [description...]

Example:

cb --new 1 1 my-service com.example.myservice example mycomp "A REST API service"

Wizard Flow

1. Product Selection (optional)

If a product-types.properties file exists, the wizard displays a numbered list of products:

[1] My product
[2] Another product

Selecting a product pre-fills wizard defaults (group ID, component ID, root package name, etc.) so you don't have to enter them manually for every project.

If no product-types.properties exists, this step is skipped.

2. Project Type Selection

The wizard displays all available project types:

[1]  Simple java application
[2]  Simple java library
[3]  Configuration project
[4]  Script project
...

The selected project type determines which fields are prompted and what actions are executed.

3. Project Details

Depending on the selected project type, the wizard prompts for some or all of the following:

Field	Description
Project Name	The project directory and artifact name. Some types append a suffix automatically (e.g. `-ui`, `-config`).
Root Package Name	Java package name (e.g. `com.example.myproject`). Only for Java-based types.
Group ID	Artifact group identifier, typically used for Maven/Gradle publishing.
Component ID	Optional component identifier that can be part of the project name.
Description	A short project description. Defaults to "The implementation of the {projectName}."

4. Project Generation

After collecting input, the wizard:

Installs dependencies if the project type defines an install section (e.g. node).
Runs the init action if defined (e.g. npx create-react-app).
Runs the main action if defined. If no main action is set, the wizard creates a build.gradle using common-gradle-build and runs Gradle.
Runs the post action if defined (e.g. cleanup tasks).

Configuration

`product-types.properties`

Defines organizational product groupings. Each product pre-fills wizard fields.

Location: conf/product-types.properties (see conf/product-types-sample.properties for a template)

Syntax:

<product-name> = <setting> [ | <setting> ]

Each setting is a variableName:value pair. Multiple settings are separated by |.

Example:

My product = projectComponentId:myc|projectGroupId:myg|projectRootPackageName:myc.rootpackage.name

When this product is selected, the wizard pre-fills:

Component ID → myc
Group ID → myg
Root package name → myc.rootpackage.name

`project-types.properties`

Defines available project types and their wizard configuration.

Location: conf/project-types.properties

Syntax:

<project-type-id> = <description> [ | <configuration-section> ]

Configuration sections control which fields are prompted and what actions are run:

Section	Description
`projectName`	Prompt for project name. Append `=<suffix>` to auto-add a suffix (e.g. `projectName=-ui`).
`projectRootPackageName`	Prompt for Java root package name.
`projectGroupId`	Prompt for group ID.
`projectComponentId`	Prompt for component ID.
`projectDescription`	Prompt for project description.
`install=<pkg1>[,<pkg2>]`	Install dependencies before project creation (e.g. `install=node`).
`initAction=<command>`	Run a command before the main project generation.
`mainAction=<command>`	Run as the main generation step. If empty, common-gradle-build is used.
`postAction=<command>`	Run a command after project generation (e.g. cleanup).

Important: The order of sections matters. install, initAction, mainAction, and postAction must appear after the field sections.

Parameter substitution in actions — the following tokens are replaced at runtime:

Token	Replaced with
`@@projectName@@`	Entered project name
`@@projectType@@`	Selected project type
`@@projectRootPackageName@@`	Entered root package name
`@@projectGroupId@@`	Entered group ID
`@@projectComponentId@@`	Entered component ID
`@@projectDescription@@`	Entered description
`@@logFile@@`	`/dev/null` (Linux/Mac) or `nul` (Windows)
`@@delete@@`	`rm -rf` (Linux/Mac) or `cb-deltree` (Windows)

Available Project Types

Type	Description	Suffix	Fields	Dependencies
`java-application`	Simple java application	—	name, package, group, component, description	—
`java-library`	Simple java library	—	name, package, group, component, description	—
`config`	Configuration project	`-config`	name, group, component, description	—
`script`	Script project	`-bin`	name, group, description	—
`openapi`	OpenAPI definition project	`-service-api-spec`	name, package, group, component, description	—
`quarkus`	REST-service with Quarkus	`-service`	name, package, group, component, description	—
`vuejs`	Vue	`-ui`	name, component, description	node
`nuxtjs`	Nuxt	`-ui`	name, component, description	node
`react`	React	`-ui`	name, component, description	node
`kubernetes-product`	Kubernetes product	`-app`	name, group, component, description	—
`documentation`	Documentation project	`-documentation`	name, group, description	—
`container`	Individual container (e.g. docker)	`-container`	name, component, description	—
`organization-config`	Common Organization Config	`-config`	name, group, description	—

Configuration File Resolution

The wizard searches for configuration files in this order (first found wins):

Custom runtime config — $CB_CUSTOM_RUNTIME_CONFIG_PATH/conf/
- Also supports product-specific project types: project-types-<productname>.properties
Local common-gradle-build — ~/.gradle/common-gradle-build/<version>/gradle/conf/
Default — $CB_HOME/conf/

This allows organizations to provide their own product and project types via a custom config project.

Examples

Create a Java library interactively:

cb --new
# Select: java-library
# Enter: project name, package, group, component, description

Create a Vue.js project (installs Node automatically):

cb --new
# Select: vuejs
# Enter: project name, component, description

Fully scripted project creation:

cb --new 1 1 my-service com.example.myservice example mycomp "My new service"

GNU General Public License v3.0 — see LICENSE for details.

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Project Wizard (cb --new)