generating-ui-bundle-custom-app
MUST activate when the project contains a uiBundles//src/ directory and the task involves creating or configuring a Custom Application for hosting a UI bundle in Lightning Experience. Use this skill when creating a CustomApplication metadata record to surface the UI bundle in the App Launcher. Activate when files matching applications/.app-meta.xml exist and need modification, or when the user wants to expose their app via the Lightning App Launcher without a Digital Experience Site. Do NOT use generating-custom-application for this — UI bundle apps do not use tabs, action overrides, or flexipages.
- Installs
- 1.6K
- Last 24h
- —
- Trending rank
- —
- Security
- Not audited
Install
Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.
npx skills add https://github.com/forcedotcom/sf-skills --skill generating-ui-bundle-custom-app- 01
Install
Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.
- 02
Describe the task
Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads generating-ui-bundle-custom-app automatically when relevant.
- 03
Review the result
The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.
SKILL.md
The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.
Custom Application for React UI Bundles
Create and configure a Salesforce Custom Application that hosts a React UI bundle in Lightning Experience. This skill generates the CustomApplication metadata so the app appears in the Lightning App Launcher and can be accessed by internal users.
Custom Applications differ from Experience Sites: they don't need Networks, CustomSite, DigitalExperienceConfig, or DigitalExperienceBundle metadata. The Custom Application acts as a thin launcher entry that delegates rendering to the React UI bundle referenced by uiBundle.
Required Properties
Resolve all properties before generating any metadata. Each has a fallback chain — work through each option in order until a value is found.
| Property | Format | How to Resolve |
|---|---|---|
| appName | lowercamelcase (e.g., myInternalApp) | The UI bundle name from uiBundles/<name>/ directory |
| appNamespace | String | namespace in sfdx-project.json → sf data query -q "SELECT NamespacePrefix FROM Organization" --target-org ${usernameOrAlias} → default c |
| appLabel | Human-readable string | User-provided, or derive from appName by converting camelCase to Title Case |
The appNamespace and appName connect the Custom Application to the correct React UI bundle. In newer API versions this uses <uiBundle>{appNamespace}__{appName}</uiBundle>; in older versions it uses <webApplication>{appName}</webApplication>. Getting this wrong means the app launcher entry exists but shows a blank page. Step 2 of the workflow determines which field to use.
Generation Workflow
Step 1: Resolve All Required Properties
Determine values for all properties before constructing anything. Use the resolution strategies in the table above.
Step 2: Query API Context (Version-Aware Field Discovery)
Call salesforce-api-context MCP tools to discover which fields exist for the target org's API version. This ensures the generated metadata is compatible with the user's Salesforce version.
Required calls:
- Call
get_metadata_type_fieldsforCustomApplication— check whether theuiBundlefield exists - Call
get_metadata_type_fieldsforUIBundle— check whether thetargetfield exists
Field resolution based on API response:
| Field Check | If present | If absent (older API version) |
|---|---|---|
CustomApplication.uiBundle | Use <uiBundle>{appNamespace}__{appName}</uiBundle> | Use <webApplication>{appName}</webApplication> (no namespace) |
UIBundle.target | Use <target>CustomApplication</target> | Omit the <target> element entirely |
If salesforce-api-context is unavailable after a real attempt, fall back to the newer field names (uiBundle + target).
Step 3: Create the Project Structure
Create any files and directories that don't already exist:
| Metadata Type | Path |
|---|---|
| CustomApplication | <sourceDir>/applications/{appName}.app-meta.xml |
Note: <sourceDir> is determined from sfdx-project.json. Read packageDirectories[] and use the entry where "default": true; the full source directory is <path>/main/default. If no default is set, use the first entry. Commonly force-app/main/default, but this path is configurable.
Step 4: Populate All Metadata Fields
Use the default template in the doc below. Values in {braces} are resolved property references — substitute them with the actual values from Step 1. Apply the field resolution from Step 2 to determine which XML elements to use.
| Metadata Type | Template Reference |
|---|---|
| CustomApplication | configure-metadata-custom-application.md |
Execution Note for Step 4: Load and use the doc
- Agents MUST read the full contents of the docs/*.md file referenced in Step 4 before attempting to populate metadata fields.
- Read the file in full, replace placeholders (e.g.
{appName}) with the resolved values, then use the expanded template to populate the metadata XML content. - If Step 2 determined the older field names apply, substitute
<uiBundle>with<webApplication>in the generated output.
Step 5: Update UI Bundle Meta XML
If Step 2 confirmed the target field exists on UIBundle, add <target>CustomApplication</target> to the .uibundle-meta.xml file (skip if the field doesn't exist in the org's API version):
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<UIBundle xmlns="http://soap.sforce.com/2006/04/metadata">
<masterLabel>{appName}</masterLabel>
<description>A Salesforce UI Bundle.</description>
<isActive>true</isActive>
<version>1</version>
<target>CustomApplication</target>
</UIBundle>
Step 6: Do Not Modify Non-Templated Properties
Do not modify any default property values for CustomApplication metadata that are not expressed as variables wrapped in {braces}.
Verification Checklist
Before deploying, confirm:
- All required properties are resolved
- API context was queried to determine available fields (Step 2)
-
applications/{appName}.app-meta.xmlexists with correct content - The bundle reference field matches the org's API version (
<uiBundle>or<webApplication>) - If
targetfield is supported:.uibundle-meta.xmlhas<target>CustomApplication</target> - Deployment validates successfully:
sf project deploy validate --metadata CustomApplication UIBundle --target-org ${usernameOrAlias}
FAQ
What does the generating-ui-bundle-custom-app skill do?
MUST activate when the project contains a uiBundles//src/ directory and the task involves creating or configuring a Custom Application for hosting a UI bundle in Lightning Experience. Use this skill when creating a CustomApplication metadata record to surface the UI bundle in the App Launcher. Activate when files matching applications/.app-meta.xml exist and need modification, or when the user wants to expose their app via the Lightning App Launcher without a Digital Experience Site. Do NOT use generating-custom-application for this — UI bundle apps do not use tabs, action overrides, or flexipages.
How do I install generating-ui-bundle-custom-app?
Run npx skills add https://github.com/forcedotcom/sf-skills --skill generating-ui-bundle-custom-app in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/generating-ui-bundle-custom-app/ (personal) or .claude/skills/generating-ui-bundle-custom-app/ (project).
Which AI agents can use generating-ui-bundle-custom-app?
Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.
Is generating-ui-bundle-custom-app safe to install?
No partner security audit is available yet. Skills can run commands and scripts, so read the SKILL.md and any bundled files before installing.
Who maintains generating-ui-bundle-custom-app?
It is published by forcedotcom in forcedotcom/sf-skills. It has 1,589 recorded installs.
More from forcedotcom/sf-skills
platform-apex-generate
forcedotcom/sf-skills
Primary Apex authoring skill for class generation, refactoring, and review. ALWAYS ACTIVATE when the user mentions Apex, .cls, triggers, or asks to create/refactor a class (service, selector, domain, batch, queueable, schedulable, invocable, DTO, utility, interface, abstract, exception, REST resource). Use this skill for requests involving SObject CRUD, mapping collections, fetching related records, scheduled jobs, batch jobs, trigger design, @AuraEnabled controllers, @RestResource endpoints, custom REST APIs, or code review of existing Apex.
platform-apex-test-generate
forcedotcom/sf-skills
Use to generate and validate Apex test classes with TestDataFactory patterns, bulk testing (251+ records), mocking, assertions, and disciplined test-fix loops. Use when creating Apex test classes (for triggers, services, controllers, batch jobs, queueables, and callouts), improving coverage, debugging or fixing failing Apex tests, or running test/coverage analysis. Triggers on Test.cls files, sf apex run test, coverage reports. Do NOT trigger for production Apex (use platform-apex-generate) or Jest/LWC tests.
platform-apex-test-run
forcedotcom/sf-skills
Apex test execution, coverage analysis, and test-fix loops with 120-point scoring. Use when the user runs Apex tests, checks code coverage, fixes failing tests, or touches Test.cls / Test.cls files. DO NOT TRIGGER when writing Apex production code (use platform-apex-generate), Agentforce agent testing (use agentforce-test), or Jest/LWC tests (use experience-lwc-generate).
platform-apex-logs-debug
forcedotcom/sf-skills
Salesforce debug log analysis and troubleshooting with 100-point scoring. TRIGGER when: user analyzes debug logs, hits governor limits, reads stack traces, or touches .log files from Salesforce orgs. DO NOT TRIGGER when: running Apex tests (use platform-apex-test-run), generating or fixing Apex code (use platform-apex-generate), or Agentforce session tracing (use agentforce-observe).
platform-soql-query
forcedotcom/sf-skills
Use when the user needs SOQL/SOSL authoring or optimization: natural-language-to-query generation, relationship queries, aggregates, query-plan/selectivity analysis, and performance or safety improvements. TRIGGER when the user writes, optimizes, or debugs SOQL/SOSL, touches .soql files, or asks about relationship queries, aggregates, or query performance. DO NOT TRIGGER for bulk data operations (use platform-data-manage), Apex DML logic (use platform-apex-generate), or report/dashboard queries.
platform-metadata-deploy
forcedotcom/sf-skills
Salesforce DevOps automation using sf CLI v2. TRIGGER when: user deploys metadata, validates a deploy or does a dry-run, deploys to a Production org, quick-deploys a validated job ID, ships/promotes to prod, creates/manages scratch orgs or sandboxes, sets up CI/CD pipelines, or troubleshoots deployment errors with sf project deploy. DO NOT TRIGGER when: writing Apex code, building LWC components (use experience-lwc-generate), creating metadata definitions (use platform-custom-object-generate), deleting metadata from an org (use platform-destructive-deploy), or querying org data (use platform-data-manage).
Popular frontend & design skills
setup-matt-pocock-skills
mattpocock/skills
Configure this repo for the engineering skills: set up its issue tracker, triage label vocabulary, and domain doc layout. Run once before first use of the other engineering skills.
frontend-design
anthropics/skills
Guidance for distinctive, intentional visual design when building new UI or reshaping an existing one. Helps with aesthetic direction, typography, and making choices that don't read as templated defaults.
hyperframes-animation
heygen-com/hyperframes
All animation knowledge for HyperFrames — atomic motion rules, multi-phase scene blueprints, scene transitions, broader motion-design techniques, AND the seven runtime adapters (GSAP default, plus Lottie, Three.js, Anime.js, CSS keyframes, Web Animations API, TypeGPU). Use for any motion or animation task: pick 2-4 rules and compose, or load a blueprint, or look up runtime-specific API (e.g. GSAP eases / Lottie player / Three.js mixer). Also covers auditing an existing composition's choreography (animation map) and 24 named text-animation effects. HyperFrames-native: single paused timeline, seek-safe, deterministic.
prototype
mattpocock/skills
Build a throwaway prototype to answer a design question. Use when the user wants to sanity-check whether a state model or logic feels right, or explore what a UI should look like.
hyperframes-core
heygen-com/hyperframes
The HyperFrames composition contract — build one renderable project. Use for composition structure, the data- timing attributes, class="clip", tracks, sub-compositions, variables, framework-owned media playback, deterministic-render rules, and validation. Read before writing composition HTML.
vercel-react-best-practices
vercel-labs/agent-skills
React and Next.js performance optimization guidelines from Vercel Engineering. This skill should be used when writing, reviewing, or refactoring React/Next.js code to ensure optimal performance patterns. Triggers on tasks involving React components, Next.js pages, data fetching, bundle optimization, or performance improvements.