wheels generate snippets

Generate code snippets and boilerplate code for common Wheels patterns.

Synopsis

wheels generate snippets [pattern] [options]
wheels g snippets [pattern] [options]

Description

The wheels generate snippets command creates code snippets for common Wheels patterns and best practices. It provides ready-to-use code blocks that can be customized for your specific needs, helping you implement standard patterns quickly and consistently.

Arguments

Argument	Description	Default
pattern	Snippet pattern to generate	Shows available patterns

Options

Option	Description	Valid Values	Default
--list	List all available snippets	true/false	false
--category	Filter by category	authentication, model, controller, view, database	All categories
--output	Output format	console, file	console
--path	Output file path (required when output=file)	Any valid file path
--customize	Show customization options	true/false	false
--create	Create custom snippet template	true/false	false
--force	Overwrite existing files	true/false	false

Available Snippets

List All Snippets

wheels generate snippets --list

Output:

Available Snippets

Authentication:
  - login-form - Login form with remember me
  - auth-filter - Authentication filter
  - password-reset - Password reset flow
  - user-registration - User registration with validation

Model:
  - soft-delete - Soft delete implementation
  - audit-trail - Audit trail with timestamps
  - sluggable - URL-friendly slugs
  - versionable - Version tracking
  - searchable - Full-text search

Controller:
  - crud-actions - Complete CRUD actions
  - api-controller - JSON API controller
  - nested-resource - Nested resource controller
  - admin-controller - Admin area controller

View:
  - form-with-errors - Form with error handling
  - pagination-links - Pagination navigation
  - search-form - Search form with filters
  - ajax-form - AJAX form submission

Database:
  - migration-indexes - Common index patterns
  - seed-data - Database seeding
  - constraints - Foreign key constraints


Next steps:
   1. Generate a snippet: wheels g snippets <pattern-name>

Authentication Snippets

Login Form

wheels generate snippets login-form

Generates:

#startFormTag(action="create")#
  #textField(objectName="user", property="email", label="Email")#
  #passwordField(objectName="user", property="password", label="Password")#
  #checkBox(objectName="user", property="rememberMe", label="Remember me")#
  #submitTag(value="Login")#
#endFormTag()#

Note: This is a basic snippet. You can customize it by saving to a file and editing:

wheels generate snippets login-form --output=file --path=app/views/sessions/new.cfm

Authentication Filter

wheels generate snippets auth-filter

Generates:

function init() {
  filters(through="authenticate", except="new,create");
}

private function authenticate() {
  if (!StructKeyExists(session, "userId")) {
    redirectTo(route="login");
  }
}

Password Reset

wheels generate snippets password-reset

Generates:

function requestReset() {
  user = model("User").findOne(where="email='#params.email#'");
  if (IsObject(user)) {
    token = Hash(CreateUUID());
    user.update(resetToken=token, resetExpiresAt=DateAdd("h", 1, Now()));
    // Send email with token
  }
}

User Registration

wheels generate snippets user-registration

Generates:

#startFormTag(action="create")#
  #textField(objectName="user", property="firstName", label="First Name")#
  #textField(objectName="user", property="email", label="Email")#
  #passwordField(objectName="user", property="password", label="Password")#
  #submitTag(value="Register")#
#endFormTag()#

Model Patterns

Soft Delete

wheels generate snippets soft-delete

Generates:

function init() {
  property(name="deletedAt", sql="deleted_at");
  beforeDelete("softDelete");
}

private function softDelete() {
  this.deletedAt = Now();
  this.save(validate=false, callbacks=false);
  return false;
}

Audit Trail

wheels generate snippets audit-trail

Generates:

function init() {
  property(name="createdBy", sql="created_by");
  property(name="updatedBy", sql="updated_by");
  beforeSave("setAuditFields");
}

private function setAuditFields() {
  if (StructKeyExists(session, "userId")) {
    if (this.isNew()) this.createdBy = session.userId;
    this.updatedBy = session.userId;
  }
}

Sluggable

wheels generate snippets sluggable

Generates:

function init() {
  property(name="slug");
  beforeSave("generateSlug");
}

private function generateSlug() {
  if (!len(this.slug) && len(this.title)) {
    this.slug = lCase(reReplace(this.title, "[^a-zA-Z0-9]", "-", "all"));
  }
}

Versionable

wheels generate snippets versionable

Generates:

function init() {
  property(name="version", default=1);
  beforeUpdate("incrementVersion");
}

private function incrementVersion() {
  this.version = this.version + 1;
}

Searchable

wheels generate snippets searchable

Generates:

function search(required string query) {
  return findAll(where="title LIKE '%#arguments.query#%' OR content LIKE '%#arguments.query#%'");
}

Controller Patterns

CRUD Actions

wheels generate snippets crud-actions

Generates:

function index() {
  users = model("User").findAll();
}

function show() {
  user = model("User").findByKey(params.key);
}

function create() {
  user = model("User").create(params.user);
  if (user.valid()) {
    redirectTo(route="user", key=user.id);
  } else {
    renderView(action="new");
  }
}

API Controller

wheels generate snippets api-controller

Generates:

function init() {
  provides("json");
}

function index() {
  users = model("User").findAll();
  renderWith(data={users=users});
}

Nested Resource

wheels generate snippets nested-resource

Generates:

function init() {
  filters(through="findParent");
}

private function findParent() {
  user = model("User").findByKey(params.userId);
}

Admin Controller

wheels generate snippets admin-controller

Generates:

function init() {
  filters(through="requireAdmin");
}

private function requireAdmin() {
  if (!currentUser().isAdmin()) {
    redirectTo(route="home");
  }
}

View Patterns

Form with Errors

wheels generate snippets form-with-errors

Generates:

#errorMessagesFor("user")#

#startFormTag(action="create")#
  #textField(objectName="user", property="firstName", label="First Name")#
  <cfif user.errors("firstName").len()>
    <span class="error">#user.errors("firstName").get()#</span>
  </cfif>
  #submitTag(value="Submit")#
#endFormTag()#

Pagination Links

wheels generate snippets pagination-links

Generates:

<cfif users.totalPages gt 1>
  <nav>
    <cfif users.currentPage gt 1>
      #linkTo(text="Previous", params={page: users.currentPage - 1})#
    </cfif>
    <cfloop from="1" to="#users.totalPages#" index="pageNum">
      #linkTo(text=pageNum, params={page: pageNum})#
    </cfloop>
    <cfif users.currentPage lt users.totalPages>
      #linkTo(text="Next", params={page: users.currentPage + 1})#
    </cfif>
  </nav>
</cfif>

Search Form

wheels generate snippets search-form

Generates:

#startFormTag(method="get")#
  #textField(name="q", value=params.q, placeholder="Search...")#
  #submitTag(value="Search")#
#endFormTag()#

AJAX Form

wheels generate snippets ajax-form

Generates:

#startFormTag(action="create", id="userForm")#
  #textField(objectName="user", property="name")#
  #submitTag(value="Submit")#
#endFormTag()#

<script>
$("#userForm").submit(function(e) {
  e.preventDefault();
  $.post($(this).attr("action"), $(this).serialize());
});
</script>

Database Snippets

Migration Indexes

wheels generate snippets migration-indexes

Generates:

t.index("email");
t.index(["last_name", "first_name"]);
t.index("email", unique=true);
t.index("user_id");

Seed Data

wheels generate snippets seed-data

Generates:

execute("INSERT INTO users (name, email) VALUES ('Admin', '[email protected]')");

Constraints

wheels generate snippets constraints

Generates:

t.references("user_id", "users");
t.references("category_id", "categories");

Custom Snippets

Create Custom Snippet

wheels generate snippets --create my-custom-snippet

This creates a directory structure in app/snippets/my-custom-snippet/:

my-custom-snippet/
└── template.txt

You can then edit the template file and use your custom snippet:

wheels generate snippets my-custom-snippet

Output Options

Output to Console (Default)

wheels generate snippets login-form
# or explicitly:
wheels generate snippets login-form --output=console

Save to File

wheels generate snippets api-controller --output=file --path=app/controllers/Api.cfc

Use --force to overwrite existing files:

wheels generate snippets api-controller --output=file --path=app/controllers/Api.cfc --force

Customization Options

wheels generate snippets [pattern] --customize

Shows available customization options for snippets.

Filter by Category

List snippets from a specific category:

wheels generate snippets --list --category=model
wheels generate snippets --list --category=authentication
wheels generate snippets --list --category=controller
wheels generate snippets --list --category=view
wheels generate snippets --list --category=database

Best Practices

1. Review generated code: Customize for your needs

2. Understand the patterns: Don't blindly copy

3. Keep snippets updated: Maintain with framework updates

4. Share useful patterns: Contribute back to community

5. Document customizations: Note changes made

6. Test generated code: Ensure it works in your context

7. Use consistent patterns: Across your application

See Also

• wheels generate controller - Generate controllers

• wheels generate model - Generate models

• wheels scaffold - Generate complete resources