Windmill Raw Apps — CLI workflow

This guide covers raw apps from the terminal: scaffolding via wmill app new, the on-disk layout, and the file-based conventions the CLI uses to represent backend runnables and data table configuration. The platform shape (how a raw app behaves at runtime — frontend bundling, runnable types, datatable SDK calls) is covered in the companion authoring guide.

Creating a Raw App

You — the AI agent — create the app yourself by running wmill app new with the right flags. Do NOT tell the user to "run wmill app new and follow the prompts" or wait for them to do it. The bare wmill app new is an interactive wizard that hangs waiting for stdin in any non-TTY context (which includes you). Always pass flags.

Step 1 — Settle the setup

You need three values to run the command:

1. summary — a short description of the app
2. path — the windmill path, e.g. f/folder/my_app or u/username/my_app
3. framework — one of react19 (recommended), react18, svelte5

summary and path: if the user's request did not supply them, ask. Do not guess values and do not invent paths.

framework: never ask. Use the one the user named, otherwise the one the project's existing apps use, otherwise react19 (see "Starting a new app" in the authoring guide).