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Quick Start Guide

Get up and running with Wheels CLI in minutes.

Prerequisites

  • CommandBox 5.0+

  • Java 8+

  • Database (MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, or H2)

Installation

Install CommandBox

# macOS/Linux
curl -fsSl https://downloads.ortussolutions.com/debs/gpg | sudo apt-key add -
echo "deb https://downloads.ortussolutions.com/debs/noarch /" | sudo tee -a /etc/apt/sources.list.d/commandbox.list
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install commandbox

# Windows (PowerShell as Admin)
iex ((New-Object System.Net.WebClient).DownloadString('https://chocolatey.org/install.ps1'))
choco install commandbox

Install Wheels CLI

box install wheels-cli

Creating Your First Application

1. Generate Application

wheels new blog
cd blog

This creates a new Wheels application with:

  • Complete directory structure

  • Configuration files

  • Sample code

2. Configure Database

Edit /config/settings.cfm:

<cfset set(dataSourceName="blog_development")>

Or use H2 embedded database:

wheels new blog --setupH2

Create the database:

# If using external database (MySQL, PostgreSQL, etc.)
wheels db create

3. Start Server

box server start

Visit http://localhost:3000

Creating Your First Feature

Let's create a blog post feature:

1. Generate Scaffold

wheels scaffold name=post properties=title:string,content:text,published:boolean

This generates:

  • Model with validations

  • Controller with CRUD actions

  • Views for all actions

  • Database migration

  • Test files

2. Run Migration

wheels dbmigrate latest

3. Add Routes

Edit /config/routes.cfm:

<cfscript>
    // Add this line
    resources("posts");
</cfscript>

4. Reload Application

wheels reload

5. Test Your Feature

Visit http://localhost:3000/posts

You now have a fully functional blog post management system!

Development Workflow

File Watching

In a new terminal:

wheels watch

Now changes to .cfc and .cfm files trigger automatic reloads.

Running Tests

# Run all tests
wheels test run

# Watch mode
wheels test run --watch

# Specific tests
wheels test run tests/models/PostTest.cfc

Adding Relationships

Let's add comments to posts:

# Generate comment model
wheels generate model comment --properties="author:string,content:text,postId:integer" \
  --belongs-to="post"

# Update post model
wheels generate property post comments --has-many

# Generate comments controller
wheels generate controller comments --rest

# Run migration
wheels dbmigrate latest

Common Tasks

Adding Authentication

# Generate user model
wheels scaffold name=user properties=email:string,password:string,admin:boolean

# Generate session controller
wheels generate controller sessions new,create,delete

# Run migrations
wheels dbmigrate latest

Adding API Endpoints

# Generate API resource
wheels generate api-resource product --properties="name:string,price:decimal"

# Or convert existing to API
wheels generate controller api/posts --api

Working with Views

# Generate specific views
wheels generate view posts featured
wheels generate view users profile

# Add layouts
echo '<cfoutput><!DOCTYPE html>...</cfoutput>' > views/layout.cfm

Best Practices

1. Use Migrations

Always use migrations for database changes:

# Create tables
wheels dbmigrate create table products

# Add columns
wheels dbmigrate create column products featured

# Create indexes
wheels dbmigrate create blank add_index_to_products

2. Write Tests

Generate tests for your code:

# After creating a model
wheels generate test model post

# After creating a controller
wheels generate test controller posts

3. Use Environment Configuration

# Development
wheels reload development

# Testing
wheels reload testing

# Production
wheels reload production

4. Version Control

git init
git add .
git commit -m "Initial Wheels application"

Add to .gitignore:

/db/sql/
/logs/
/temp/
.env

Debugging

Check Logs

tail -f logs/wheels.log

Enable Debug Mode

In /config/settings.cfm:

<cfset set(showDebugInformation=true)>

Common Issues

Port already in use:

box server start port=3001

Database connection failed:

# Check datasource
box server info
box server show

Migration failed:

# Check status
wheels db status

# Run specific migration
wheels dbmigrate exec 20240120000000

# Or rollback and try again
wheels db rollback

Need to reset database:

# Complete reset (careful - destroys all data!)
wheels db reset --force

Access database directly:

# CLI shell
wheels db shell

# Web console (H2 only)
wheels db shell --web

Next Steps

  1. Read the Guides:

  2. Explore Commands:

    • wheels --help

    • wheels generate --help

    • wheels dbmigrate --help

  3. Join the Community:

Example: Complete Blog Application

Here's a complete blog setup:

# Create application
wheels new myblog --setupH2
cd myblog

# Generate blog structure
wheels scaffold post title:string,slug:string,content:text,publishedAt:datetime
wheels scaffold author name:string,email:string,bio:text
wheels generate model comment author:string,email:string,content:text,postId:integer \
  --belongs-to=post

# Update associations
wheels generate property post authorId:integer --belongs-to=author
wheels generate property post comments --has-many
wheels generate property author posts --has-many

# Add routes
echo '<cfset resources("posts")>' >> config/routes.cfm
echo '<cfset resources("authors")>' >> config/routes.cfm

# Setup and seed database
wheels db setup --seed-count=10

# Start development
wheels server start
wheels watch

# Visit http://localhost:3000/posts

You now have a working blog with posts, authors, and comments!

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