If you've ever installed and setup the ServiceNow CLI you know that getting started is never easy. Between managing node versions, memorizing the commands, or managing the now-ui.json there is plenty of room for headache! Sure after a couple of tries, you can become familiar with common errors and get things started faster than normal, but the learning curve is a little discouraging!

That's why, here at Yansa Labs, we decided to create the yala-component-cli npm package. The yala-component-cli is a wrapper around ServiceNow's CLI to add helpful functionality and improve user experience.

This post will highlight some of the improvements that we made.

Wrapper Approach

The yala-component-cli is a wrapper around ServiceNow's CLI, meaning that it still uses the Now CLI's commands but they are abstracted from the user. For example, the snc ui-component project --profile profile_name --scope scope_name --name project_name Now CLI command is used by the yala setup command but the command is wrapped with some additional steps:

Check requirements
Prompt the user for project profile, scope, and name
Run the Now CLI command snc ui-component project --profile profile_name --scope scope_name --name project_name
Ask the user if they would like to remove the default component
- Remove the default component if they said yes
Switch to the newly created component project folder and run npm install to install dependencies

Better Setup Experience

ServiceNow's CLI requires that you run it on Nodejs v12.16.1 or v14.21.3. If you don't meet that requirement you may see a 'Missing “Keytar” Module' error while running any of the commands. This error is not very helpful and can be frustrating to encounter because it doesn't provide you with any direction on how to fix it. After some searching, you might find that the cause of the problem is that you are running the wrong Nodejs version.

If you've never used Nodejs from the command line before, simply downloading and switching node versions can be a daunting task. If you try to use the yala-component-cli while running an incompatible version of Nodejs, it will print this error message that provides some helpful instructions:

- Checking requirements -
✖ Running incompatible version of node
In order to use the Now CLI you must be running node v12.16.1 or v14.21.3
Check the node versions you have installed by running 'nvm list'
If v12.16.1 or v14.21.3 is installed then switch node versions by running 'nvm use <version_num_here>'
If you don't have node v12.16.1 or v14.21.3 installed, then download one of them here:
https://nodejs.org/ru/blog/release/v12.16.1
https://nodejs.org/en/blog/release/v14.21.3
Once downloaded, run 'nvm install <version_num_here>' to finish the installation

Improved User Interaction

The yala-component-cli takes a prompt-based approach to interact with users rather than chaining command inputs, this helps reduce the learning curve.

Here's an example of a user interacting with the yala setup command:

Added Functionality

yala setup

The yala setup command builds a new component project and installs the dependencies all in one command. This command also allows the user to remove the default component that is automatically created when a project is made

yala create-component

The yala create-component command adds a new component to your current project and the appropriate references for that component to the project index.js, now-ui.json, and example/element.js files. The newly created component folder contains helpful template files

yala delete-component

The yala delete-component command allows you to quickly remove a component and its references from a project

yala add-property

The yala add-property command adds a new property object to the now-ui.json file for a given component

yala add-action

The yala add-action command does a similar thing as the add-property command but instead, it adds an action. These two commands make working with the now-ui.json file much easier

yala develop

The yala develop command starts a live development server for your current project

yala deploy

The yala deploy command deploys the current project to a ServiceNow instance. This command also allows the user to save a zipped copy of the project folder locally and it attaches the zip to the application record on the instance. This approach ensures that an un-minified version of the code is stored both locally and on the instance

yala create-xml

The yala create-xml creates an update set xml file for the component project

Installation

If you are interested in trying out the yala-component-cli for your ServiceNow custom component development you can install the npm package by running:

npm install -g yala-component-cli

Unlocking the Potential of ServiceNow's CLI

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