Using Forcehybrid

For creating hybrid apps, Mobile SDK provides the forcehybrid npm utility. This utility works with the Cordova command line to build hybrid Mobile SDK projects. With forcehybrid, you can create hybrid projects for iOS, Android, or both in a single pass.

Forcehybrid gives you two ways to create your app.

Specify the type of application you want, along with basic configuration data.
OR
Use an existing Mobile SDK app as a template. You still provide the basic configuration data.

You can use forcehybrid interactively at the command line, or in script mode with command line parameters. To see usage information, type forcehybrid without arguments.

Using forcehybrid create Interactively

To enter application options interactively at a command prompt, type forcehybrid create. The forcehybrid utility then prompts you for each configuration option. For example:

1$ forcehybrid create
2Enter the target platform(s) separated by commas (ios, android): ios,android
3Enter your application type (hybrid_local, hybrid_remote): <press RETURN>
4Enter your application name: LocalHybridTest
5Enter your package name: com.myhybrid.ios
6Enter your organization name (Acme, Inc.): BestApps.com
7Enter output directory for your app (leave empty for the current directory): LocalHybridTest

This example creates a hybrid local app named “LocalHybridTest” in the ./LocalHybridTest/ directory, with iOS and Android targets.

Although forcehybrid create sets up hybrid projects for the platforms you specify, the app isn’t ready for building until you’ve finished the setup at the Cordova command line. See Create Hybrid Apps

Note

Using forcehybrid create in Script Mode

In script mode, you enter your parameters in a single command line instruction:

1$ forcehybrid create --platform=ios,android --apptype=hybrid_local --appname=packagetest 
2--packagename=com.test.my_new_app --organization="Acme Widgets, Inc." 
3--outputdir=PackageTest

This example creates a hybrid local app named “packagetest” in the ./PackageTest/ directory, with iOS and Android targets. Here’s a description of the available options.

1Usage:
2
3# create ios/android hybrid_local or hybrid_remote mobile application
4forcehybrid create
5    --platform=Comma separated platforms (ios, android)
6    --apptype=Application Type (hybrid_local, hybrid_remote)
7    --appname=Application Name
8    --packagename=App Package Identifier (e.g. com.mycompany.myapp)
9    --organization=Organization Name (Your company's/organization's name)
10    [--startpage=App Start Page (The start page of your remote app. Only required for hybrid_remote)]
11    [--outputdir=Output Directory (Leave empty for current directory)]

Using forcehybrid createWithTemplate

The forcehybrid createWithTemplate command is identical to forcehybrid create except that it asks for a GitHub repo URI instead of an app type. You set this path to point to any repo directory that contains a Mobile SDK app that can be used as a template. Your template app can be any supported Mobile SDK app type. The force script changes the template’s identifiers and configuration to match the values you provide for the other parameters.

Before you use createWithTemplate, it's helpful to know which templates are available. To find out, type forcehybrid listtemplates. This command prints a list of templates provided by Mobile SDK. Each listing includes a brief description of the template and its GitHub URI. For example:

1Available templates:
2
31) Basic hybrid local applicationforcehybrid createwithtemplate
4    --templaterepouri=HybridLocalTemplate
52) Basic hybrid remote applicationforcehybrid createwithtemplate
6    --templaterepouri=HybridRemoteTemplate

Once you've found a template's URI, you can plug it into the forcehybrid command line. Here’s command line usage information for forcehybrid createWithTemplate:

1# create ios/android hybrid_local or hybrid_remote mobile application from a template
2forcehybrid createWithTemplate
3    --platform=Comma separated platforms (ios, android)
4    --templaterepouri=Template repo URI
5    --appname=Application Name
6    --packagename=App Package Identifier (e.g. com.mycompany.myapp)
7    --organization=Organization Name (Your company's/organization's name)
8    [--outputdir=Output Directory (Leave empty for current directory)]

For any template in the SalesforceMobileSDK-Templates repo, you can drop the path for templaterepouri—just the template name will do. For example, consider the following command line call:

1forcehybrid createWithTemplate 
2--platform=android
3--templaterepouri=HybridLocalTemplate 
4--appname=MyHybrid 
5-—packagename=com.mycompany.hybridlocal 
6--organization="Acme Software, Inc."

This call replicates the hybrid local template app. It recreates the app in the current directory with the same source code and resources as the template app. Forcehybrid changes the app name to “MyHybrid” throughout the project. (This createwithtemplate call is equivalent to creating a hybrid_local app with forcehybrid.)

How the Forcehybrid Script Generates New Apps

The forcehybrid script

Generates apps with the Cordova command line.
Downloads the template app and a bootconfig.json file from GitHub.
Downloads the SalesforceMobileSDK Cordova plugin from GitHub. This plugin delivers the Mobile SDK libraries as Android and iOS library projects.

Mobile SDK Development Guide

Using Forcehybrid

Using forcehybrid create Interactively

Using forcehybrid create in Script Mode

Using forcehybrid createWithTemplate

How the Forcehybrid Script Generates New Apps