Cordova Command-line-interface (CLI) Commands

CLI Syntax

cordova <command> [options] -- [platformOpts]

Global Command List

These commands are available at all times.

Project Command List

These commands are supported when the current working directory is a valid Cordova project.

Common options

These options apply to all cordova-cli commands.

Platform-specific options

Certain commands have options (platformOpts) that are specific to a particular platform. They can be provided to the cordova-cli with a '--' separator that stops the command parsing within the cordova-lib module and passes through rest of the options for platforms to parse.

CLI Usage Example

The following example illustrates how to utilize Cordova CLI to perform various tasks such as:

• Creating a project
• Adding the camera plugin
• Adding, building, and running the project on the android platform

Additionally, it includes an example showcasing the usage of specific options provided by the Cordova-Android platform, such as --keystore, which is utilized for release signing.

1. Create a cordova project

    cordova create myApp com.myCompany.myApp myApp
    cd myApp
   

2. Add Camera Plugin to the Project

    cordova plugin add cordova-plugin-camera
   

3. Add Android Platform to the Project

    cordova platform add android
   

4. Confirm System is Configured with Android Platform Requirements

    cordova requirements android
   

5. Build Project for Android with Verbose Logging Enabled

    cordova build android --verbose
   

6. Run Project on Android Platform

    cordova run android
   

7. Build Project for Android in Release Mode with Signing Parameters

    cordova build android --release -- --keystore="..\android.keystore" --storePassword=android --alias=mykey
   

cordova create command

Creates the directory structure for the Cordova project in the specified path.

Command Syntax:

cordova create path [id [name]] [options]

Arguments:

Options:

Directory structure

Cordova CLI works with the following directory structure:

myapp/
|-- config.xml
|-- merges/
| | |-- android/
| | |-- ios/
|-- www/
|-- platforms/
| |-- android/
| |-- ios/
|-- plugins/
  |-- cordova-plugin-camera/

config.xml

Configures your application and allows you to customize the behavior of your project. See also config.xml reference documentation

www/

The "www" directory contains the web artifacts of the project, encompassing various file types with extensions including, but not limited to, .html, .css, and .js.

As a Cordova application developer, most of your code and assets will be placed in this directory. During the cordova prepare command execution, the contents of the "www" directory are copied to the corresponding www directories within each platform's subdirectory. For instance, you can find it at platforms/ios/www or platforms/android/assets/www.

It's important to note that since the CLI regularly copies files from the source "www" folder, you should only make edits to the files in this directory and avoid modifying the ones located in the platform subdirectories.

If you're using version control software, it's recommended to include both the source "www" folder and the "merges" folder in your version control system.

When using frameworks that require a transpiling process, it is crucial to understand that the final output, which is intended for distribution, should be placed in the "www" directory. The purpose of the "www" directory is not to store the untranspiled source code. Instead, it is recommended to keep the untranspiled source code in a separate directory dedicated to that purpose.

platforms/

Contains all of the source code for the platforms that you add to your project.

WARNING: When using the CLI to build your application, you should not edit any files in the /platforms/ directory unless you know what you are doing, or if documentation specifies otherwise. The files in this directory are routinely overwritten when preparing applications for building, or when plugins are re-installed.

plugins/

Any added plugins will be extracted or copied into this directory.

merges/

Platform-specific web assets (HTML, CSS and JavaScript files) are contained within appropriate subfolders in this directory. These are deployed during a prepare to the appropriate native directory. Files placed under merges/ will override matching files in the www/ folder for the relevant platform. A quick example, assuming a project structure of:

merges/
|-- ios/
| -- app.js
|-- android/
| -- android.js
www/
-- app.js

After building the Android and iOS projects, the Android application will contain both app.js and android.js. However, the iOS application will only contain an app.js, and it will be the one from merges/ios/app.js, overriding the "common" app.js located inside www/.

Version control

To ensure a cleaner version control setup, it is advisable not to include the platforms/ and plugins/ directories in your version control system. These directories are considered build artifacts. Instead, the platforms and plugins used in your project are automatically recorded in the config.xml and package.json files. When you invoke the cordova prepare command, the necessary platforms and plugins will be downloaded and set up based on the information specified in these configuration files.

By excluding the platforms/ and plugins/ directories from version control and relying on the config.xml and package.json files, you can maintain a more streamlined development and continuous integration workflow.

Examples

• Create a Cordova project in myapp directory using the specified ID and display name:

cordova create myapp com.mycompany.myteam.myapp MyApp

cordova platform command

Manage cordova platforms - allowing you to add, remove, update and list platforms. Running commands to add or remove platforms affects the contents of the project's platforms directory.

Command Syntax:

cordova {platform | platforms} [
    add <platform-spec> [...] {--save | link=<path> } |
    {remove | rm}  platform [...] {--save}|
    {list | ls}  |
    update ]

Platform-spec

There are a number of ways to specify a platform:

<platform-spec> : platform[@version] | path | url[#commit-ish]

Supported Platforms

• android
• browser
• electron
• ios

Examples

• Add pinned version of the android and ios platform and save the downloaded version to config.xml & package.json:

cordova platform add android ios

• Add android platform with semver version ^5.0.0 and save it to config.xml & package.json:

cordova platform add android@^5.0.0

• Add platform by cloning the specified git repo and checkout to the 4.0.0 tag:

cordova platform add https://github.com/myfork/cordova-android.git#4.0.0

• Add platform using a local directory named android:

cordova platform add ../android

• Add platform using the specified tarball:

cordova platform add ../cordova-android.tgz

• Remove android platform from the project and remove from config.xml & package.json:

cordova platform rm android

• Remove android platform from the project and do NOT remove from config.xml & package.json:

cordova platform rm android --nosave

• List available and installed platforms with version numbers. This is useful to find version numbers when reporting issues:

cordova platform ls

cordova plugin command

Manage project plugins

Command Syntax:

cordova {plugin | plugins} [
    add <plugin-spec> [..] {--searchpath=<directory> | --noregistry | --link | --save | --force} |
    {remove | rm} {<pluginid> | <name>} --save |
    {list | ls}
]

Plugin-spec

There are a number of ways to specify a plugin:

<plugin-spec> : [@scope/]pluginID[@version]|directory|url[#commit-ish][:subdir]

Algorithm for resolving plugins

When adding a plugin to a project, the CLI will resolve the plugin based on the following criteria (listed in order of precedence):

1. The plugin-spec given in the command (e.g. cordova plugin add pluginID@version)
2. The plugin-spec saved in config.xml & package.json (i.e. if the plugin was previously added without --nosave)
3. As of Cordova version 6.1, the latest plugin version published to npm that the current project can support (only applies to plugins that list their Cordova dependencies in their package.json)
4. The latest plugin version published to npm

Examples

• Add cordova-plugin-camera and cordova-plugin-file to the project and save it to config.xml & package.json. Use ../plugins directory to search for the plugins.

    cordova plugin add cordova-plugin-camera cordova-plugin-file --searchpath ../plugins
  

• Add cordova-plugin-camera with semver version ^2.0.0 and save it to config.xml & package.json:

    cordova plugin add cordova-plugin-camera@^2.0.0
  

• Add the plugin from the specified local directory:

    cordova plugin add ../cordova-plugin-camera
  

• Add the plugin from the specified tarball file:

    cordova plugin add ../cordova-plugin-camera.tgz
  

• Remove the plugin from the project and the config.xml & package.json:

    cordova plugin rm camera
  

• Remove the plugin from the project, but not the config.xml or package.json:

    cordova plugin rm camera --nosave
  

• List all plugins installed in the project:

    cordova plugin ls
  

Conflicting plugins

Conflicting plugins may occur when adding plugins that use edit-config tags in their plugin.xml file. edit-config allows plugins to add or replace attributes of XML elements.

This feature can cause issues with the application if more than one plugin tries to modify the same XML element. Conflict detection has been implemented to prevent plugins from being added so one plugin doesn't try to overwrite another plugin's edit-config changes. An error will be thrown when a conflict in edit-config has been found and the plugin won't be added. The error message will mention that all conflicts must be resolved before the plugin can be added. One option to resolving the edit-config conflict is to make changes to the affected plugins' plugin.xml so that they do not modify the same XML element. The other option is to use the --force flag to force add the plugin. This option should be used with caution as it ignores the conflict detection and will overwrite all conflicts it has with other plugins, thus may leave the other plugins in a bad state.

Refer to the plugin.xml guide for managing edit-config, resolving conflicts, and examples.

cordova prepare command

Transforms config.xml metadata to platform-specific manifest files, copies icons & splashscreens, copies plugin files for specified platforms so that the project is ready to build with each native SDK.

Command Syntax:

cordova prepare [<platform> [..]]

Options

cordova compile command

cordova compile is a subset of the cordova build command. It only performs the compilation step without doing prepare. It's common to invoke cordova build instead of this command - however, this stage is useful to allow extending using hooks.

Command Syntax:

cordova compile [<platform> [...]]
    [--debug | --release]
    [--device | --emulator | --target=<targetName>]
    [--buildConfig=<configfile>]
    [-- <platformOpts>]

For detailed documentation see cordova build command docs below.

cordova build command

Shortcut for cordova prepare + cordova compile for all/the specified platforms. Allows you to build the app for the specified platform.

Command Syntax:

cordova build [<platform> [...]]
    [--debug | --release]
    [--device | --emulator]
    [--buildConfig=<configfile>]
    [-- <platformOpts>]

Examples

• Build for android and ios platform in debug mode for deployment to device:

cordova build android ios --debug --device

• Build for android platform in release mode and use the specified build configuration:

cordova build android --release --buildConfig=..\myBuildConfig.json

• Build for android platform in release mode and pass custom platform options to android build process:

cordova build android --release -- --keystore="..\android.keystore" --storePassword=android --alias=mykey

cordova run command

Prepares, builds, and deploys app on specified platform devices/emulators. If a device is connected it will be used, unless an eligible emulator is already running.

Command Syntax:

cordova run [<platform> [...]]
    [--list | --debug | --release]
    [--noprepare]
    [--nobuild]
    [--device | --emulator | --target=<targetName>]
    [--buildConfig=<configfile>]
    [-- <platformOpts>]

Examples

• Run a release build of current cordova project on android platform emulator named Nexus_5_API_23_x86. Use the spcified build configuration when running:

cordova run android --release --buildConfig=..\myBuildConfig.json --target=Nexus_5_API_23_x86

• Run a debug build of current cordova project on android platform using a device or emulator (if no device is connected). Skip doing the build:

cordova run android --nobuild

• Run a debug build of current cordova project on an ios device:

cordova run ios --device

• Enumerate names of all the connected devices and available emulators that can be used to run this app:

cordova run ios --list

cordova emulate command

Alias for cordova run --emulator. Launches the emulator instead of device. See cordova run command docs for more details.

cordova clean command

Cleans the build artifacts for all the platforms, or the specified platform by running platform-specific build cleanup.

Command Syntax:

cordova clean [<platform> [...]]

Example Usage:

• Clean android platform build artifacts:

cordova clean android

cordova requirements command

Checks and print out all the requirements for platforms specified (or all platforms added to project if none specified). If all requirements for each platform are met, exits with code 0 otherwise exits with non-zero code.

This can be useful when setting up a machine for building a particular platform.

Command Syntax:

cordova requirements [platform?]

cordova info command

Print out useful information helpful for submitting bug reports and getting help.

Command Syntax:

cordova info

cordova serve command

Run a local web server for www/ assets using specified port or default of 8000. Access projects at: http://HOST_IP:PORT/PLATFORM/www

Command Syntax:

cordova serve [port]

cordova telemetry command

Turns telemetry collection on or off.

Command Syntax:

cordova telemetry [State]

Details

A timed prompt asking the user to opt-in or out is displayed the first time cordova is run. It lasts for 30 seconds, after which the user is automatically opted-out if they don't provide any answer. In CI environments, the CI environment variable can be set, which will prevent the prompt from showing up. Telemetry collection can also be turned off on a single command by using the --no-telemetry flag.

Usage Example:

cordova telemetry on
cordova telemetry off
cordova build --no-telemetry

For details, see our privacy notice: https://cordova.apache.org/privacy

cordova help command

Show syntax summary, or the help for a specific command.

Command Syntax:

cordova help [command]
cordova [command] -h
cordova -h [command]

cordova config command

Set, get, delete, edit, and list global cordova options.

Command Syntax:

cordova config [ls|edit|set|get|delete] <key?> <value?>

Usage Examples:

cordova config ls
cordova config edit
cordova config set save-exact true
cordova config get save-exact
cordova config delete save-exact