Salesforce Mobile SDK for Hybrid Package

The forcehybrid npm package allows users to create hybrid iOS and Android mobile applications to interface with the Salesforce Platform, leveraging Salesforce Mobile SDK for iOS and Salesforce Mobile SDK for Android.

Getting Started

If you're new to mobile development or the force.com platform, you may want to start at the Mobile SDK landing page. This page offers a variety of resources to help you determine the best technology path for creating your app, as well as many guides and blog posts detailing how to work with Mobile SDK.

But assuming you're all read up, here's how to get started with the forcehybrid package to create the starting point for your mobile application.

Install the forcehybrid Package

Because forcehybrid is a command-line utility, we recommend installing it globally so that it's easily accessible on your path:

    sudo npm install forcehybrid -g

You're of course welcome to install it locally as well:

    npm install forcehybrid

In local installations, you can access the forcehybrid app at [Install Directory]/node_modules/.bin/forcehybrid.

Using forcehybrid

For the rest of this document, we'll assume that forcehybrid is on your path.

Typing forcehybrid with no arguments gives you a breakdown of the usage:

-> forcehybrid
forcehybrid: Tool for building a hybrid mobile application using Salesforce Mobile SDK

Usage:

# create a hybrid mobile application
forcehybrid create
    --platform=comma-separated list of platforms (ios, android)
    [--apptype=application type (hybrid_local or hybrid_remote, leave empty for hybrid_local)]
    --appname=application name
    --packagename=app package identifier (e.g. com.mycompany.myapp)
    --organization=organization name (your company's/organization's name)
    [--startpage=app start page (the start page of your remote app; required for hybrid_remote apps only)]
    [--outputdir=output directory (leave empty for current directory)]

 OR 

# create a hybrid mobile application from a template
forcehybrid createwithtemplate
    --platform=comma-separated list of platforms (ios, android)
    --templaterepouri=template repo URI or Mobile SDK template name
    --appname=application name
    --packagename=app package identifier (e.g. com.mycompany.myapp)
    --organization=organization name (your company's/organization's name)
    [--outputdir=output directory (leave empty for current directory)]

 OR 

# list available Mobile SDK templates
forcehybrid listtemplates

 OR 

# validate store or syncs configuration
forcehybrid checkconfig
    --configpath=path to store or syncs config to validate
    --configtype=type of config to validate (store or syncs)

 OR 

# show version of Mobile SDK
forcehybrid version

 OR 

forcehybrid

Note: You can specify any or all of the arguments as command line options as specified in the usage. If you run forcehybrid create with missing arguments, it prompts you for each missing option interactively.

Once the creation script completes, you'll have a fully functioning basic application of the type you specified. The new application has an Android Studio and/or a XCode workspace that you can peruse, run, and debug.

forcehybrid create options

App Type: ( Optional ) The type of application you wish to develop:

• hybrid_local (default) — A hybrid application, based on the Cordova framework, that runs in a native container. The app contents are developed locally in the Xcode project and are deployed to the device itself when the app is built
• hybrid_remote — A hybrid application, based on the Cordova framework, that runs in a native container. The app contents live in the cloud as a Visualforce application

App Name: The name of your application

App Package Identifier: An identifier for your company, similar to a Java package (e.g. com.acme.MobileApps). This concatenates with the app name to form the unique identifier for your app in the App Store.

Organization: The name of your company or organization. For example, Acme Widgets, Inc.

Start Page: ( Required for hybrid_remote apps only ) The starting page of your application on salesforce.com. This is the entry point of your remote application, though it's only the path, not the server portion of the URL. For instance, /apex/MyVisualforceStartPage.

Output Directory: ( Optional ) The folder where you want your app to be created.

More information

• After your app has been created, you will see some on-screen instructions for next steps, such as building and running your app, importing the project into XCode or Android Studio, and changing the default Connected App (sample) configuration values to match your own Connected App.

• You can find the forceios npm package here to develop Mobile SDK apps for iOS.

• You can find the forcedroid npm package here to develop Mobile SDK apps for Android.

• You can find the forcereact npm package here to develop Mobile SDK react native apps for iOS and Android.

• The Salesforce Mobile SDK for iOS source repository lives here.

• The Salesforce Mobile SDK for Android source repository lives here.

• See our developerforce site for more information about how you can leverage Salesforce Mobile SDK with the force.com platform.

• If you would like to make suggestions, have questions, or encounter any issues, we'd love to hear from you. Post any feedback you have on Salesforce StackExchange.