create-react-native-module

create-react-native-module

Tool to create a React Native library module or native view component, with a single command.

See below for command-line usage, example with no view, and example with an extremely simple native view.

This tool based on react-native-create-library, with working example callbacks, optional native view, and some other updates added by @brodybits (Christoper J. Brody aka Chris Brody).

LICENSE: MIT

Why might you need this?

If you are looking to create a native module for React Native, you need some native code for each platform you want to support and then some JavaScript code to bind it all together. Setting this up by yourself can be time-consuming.

This is where this tool comes in. It creates a boilerplate with all current best practices in mind. Why not use react-native new-library? Unfortunately that command doesn't create an up-to-date library, requires an already initialized React Native project and only sets up the iOS side of things.

Alternatives

• react-native-create-library
• react-native-create-bridge

Installation

Requirements: Node 6.0+

Packages required to be installed globally if the recommended example app is generated:

• react-native-cli
• yarn

$ npm install -g react-native-cli yarn

To install this package:

$ npm install -g create-react-native-module

Command-line usage

Navigate into an empty directory to execute the command.

$ create-react-native-module MyFancyLibrary

This will create the folder MyFancyLibrary in which the library will be created in.

Now install dependencies by running this command in the newly created library.

$ npm install

Usage: create-react-native-module [options] <name>

Options:

  -h, --help                                output usage information
  -V, --version                             output the version number
  -p, --prefix <prefix>                     The prefix for the library (Default: `RN`)
  --module-prefix <modulePrefix>            The module prefix for the library (Default: `react-native`)
  --package-identifier <packageIdentifier>  (Android only!) The package name for the Android module (Default: `com.reactlibrary`)
  --platforms <platforms>                   Platforms the library will be created for. (comma separated; default: `ios,android`)
  --github-account <github_account>         The github account where the library is hosted (Default: `github_account`)
  --author-name <name>                      The author's name (Default: `Your Name`)
  --author-email <email>                    The author's email (Default: `[e-mail]`)
  --license <license>                       The license type of this library (Default: `Apache-2.0`)
  --view                                    Generate the module as a very simple native view component (Default: `false`)
  --generate-example <shouldGenerate>       Generate an example project and links the library module to it, requires both react-native-cli and yarn to be installed globally (Default: `false`)

Programmatic usage

const createLibrary = require('create-react-native-module');

createLibrary({
  name: 'MyFancyLibrary'
}).then(() => {
  console.log('Oh yay! My library has been created!');
})

Options

{
  name: String, /* The name of the library (Default: Library) */
  prefix: String, /* The prefix for the library (Default: RN) */
  modulePrefix: String, /* The module prefix for the library (Default: react-native) */
  platforms: Array, /* Platforms the library will be created for. (Default: ['ios', 'android']) */
  packageIdentifier: String, /* (Android only!) The package name for the Android module (Default: com.reactlibrary) */
  githubAccount: String, /* The github account where the library is hosted (Default: `github_account`) */
  authorName: String, /* The author's name (Default: `Your Name`) */
  authorEmail: String, /* The author's email (Default: `[e-mail]`) */
  license: String, /* The license type of this library (Default: `Apache-2.0`) */
  view: Boolean, /* Generate the module as a very simple native view component (Default: `false`) */
  generateExample: Boolean, /* Generate an example project and links the library module to it, requires both react-native-cli and yarn to be installed globally (Default: `false`) */
}

SOME KNOWN ISSUES

• CLI does not show the correct path of the generated library module
• not all documented options work as documented
• not all options are documented

Behavior not tested or supported

• Windows platform support

Examples

Example module with no view

Create the module with no view:

create-react-native-module --prefix CB --package-identifier io.mylibrary --generate-example AliceHelper

The module would be generated in the react-native-alice-helper subdirectory, and the example test app would be in react-native-alice-helper/example. (Note that this tool will show an incorrect project name when it is finished.)

Then go into the example app subdirectory:

cd react-native-alice-helper/example

Running the example app

Within the example test app subdirectory:

It is recommended to start the Metro Bundler manually (within react-native-alice-helper/example), which would run in the foreground:

npm start

Otherwise, React Native will open its own window to run the Metro Bundler.

To run on Android, do the following command (within react-native-alice-helper/example):

react-native run-android

This assumes that the ANDROID_HOME environmental variable is set properly. Here is a sample command that does not make such an assumption on a mac:

ANDROID_HOME=~/Library/Android/sdk react-native run-android

To run on iOS:

react-native run-ios

or do the following command to open the iOS project in Xcode:

open ios/example.xcodeproj

Expected result:

The example app shows the following indications:

• STATUS: native callback received
• NATIVE CALLBACK MESSAGE with the number argument and string argument values that are received by the native module

Example view module

Create the module with an extremely simple view:

create-react-native-module --prefix CB --package-identifier io.mylibrary --view --generate-example CarolWidget

The module would be generated in the react-native-alice-helper subdirectory, and the example test app would be in react-native-alice-helper/example. (Note that this tool will show an incorrect project name when it is finished.)

Then go into the example app subdirectory:

cd react-native-carol-widget/example

Within the example test app subdirectory:

It is recommended to start the Metro Bundler manually as described above (within react-native-carol-widget/example):

npm start

To run on Android, do react-native run-android as described for the other example above.

To run on iOS, do react-native run-ios or open ios/example.xcodeproj as described for the other example above.

Expected result:

• on Android: a check box that is checked (and cannot be changed)
• on iOS: a label with 5 red asterisks

Acknowledgements

• react-native-create-library - original basis of this project
• react-native-share - was acknowledged as "a great source of inspiration" for react-native-create-library