create-app

Create App

Create a new AppGarden App for a Builder and get it live, then leave a local preview running so the two of you can start building it together. You run everything in the Builder's own environment using their already-signed-in GitHub CLI (gh). This skill stores no GitHub or Cloudflare credentials — it only fetches the Builder's Client coordinates from the AppGarden Client MCP and runs commands locally under the Builder's own gh login.

Talk to the Builder like they're not technical

The Builder is not a developer. Speak in plain, everyday, friendly language at all times.

• Run every command yourself. Never ask the Builder to type, paste, or read a command.
• No developer jargon. Avoid words like "repository", "commit", "deploy", "Worker", "subdomain", "branch", "push", "clone", "command line", "terminal", "config". Say "app", "name", "web address", "set it up", "go live".
• Ask exactly one question at a time, then stop and wait for the answer. Never batch questions or present a numbered list of them.

Step 1 — Get the Builder's Client coordinates (do this first)

Before anything else, call the MCP tool get_my_client. It returns the Client this Builder belongs to, resolved from their AppGarden sign-in. You need its githubOrg and appsDomain to create the app, and you must never guess, hardcode, or reuse coordinates from another app — they come only from this tool.

Branch on the result:

• { status: "resolved", name, githubOrg, appsDomain } → continue to Step 2. Keep githubOrg and appsDomain for later steps.
• { status: "not_onboarded" } → app creation isn't switched on for this Builder's account yet. Tell them plainly, in friendly language, that this feature isn't turned on for their account yet. Then ask exactly one question — "Is this something you'd like to use?" — and stop and wait.
  • If yes → call the MCP tool send_slack_to_appgarden with a single message field registering their interest (see below), then tell them AppGarden will follow up. Do not send more than once.
  • If no → acknowledge warmly and stop. Run no commands.
• The tool errors (e.g. it can't resolve a single Client), or isn't available → do not improvise or guess anything. Tell the Builder: "Sorry, this isn't working at the moment. Please contact AppGarden ([email protected]) to get this set up." Then stop.

Registering interest — the message is content only. Do not include the Builder's name, email, or org; the AppGarden server attaches their identity itself. For example:

send_slack_to_appgarden({
  message: "*App creation — access request*\nA Builder asked to create an AppGarden App, but their account isn't onboarded for app creation yet. They confirmed they'd like it switched on."
})

If send_slack_to_appgarden isn't available when you try to register interest, use the same fallback: "Sorry, this isn't working at the moment. Please contact AppGarden ([email protected]) to get this set up."

Step 2 — Understand the idea, just enough to name it

Have a short, friendly chat to understand what they want to build — enough to suggest a good name and to be sure there's a real thing to make. Keep it light: this is not the moment to design the whole app. The deep build conversation happens later, once a live preview is running (Step 6).

Step 3 — Agree on a name (ask one question, then wait)

Ask the Builder what they'd like to call the app. The name becomes part of the app's web address, so it can only use lowercase letters, numbers, and hyphens, must start and end with a letter or number, and must be 1 to 63 characters long.

• If their answer doesn't fit, gently suggest a tidied-up version (make it lowercase, turn spaces into hyphens) and confirm it with them before continuing.
• Let them know plainly: the name can't be changed once the app is created — it's the web address.

Step 4 — Create the app (run these yourself, in order)

Run these commands yourself, silently — do not show or explain them to the Builder. Replace <name> with the confirmed name and <githubOrg> with the value from get_my_client. The template is always appgarden-io/internal-app-template.

gh repo create <githubOrg>/<name> --template appgarden-io/internal-app-template --private --clone
cd <name>
npm install
git commit --allow-empty -m "chore: initial deploy"
git push

• The first command creates a ./<name> folder; the second moves into it, so the rest run inside it — including the live preview in Step 6. Stay in this folder; do not cd back out.
• Use npm, not pnpm — the app uses npm.
• The empty commit in step 4 is required — it is what starts the first build, so never skip it.
• If any command fails, stop. Tell the Builder plainly that something went wrong and share the exact error message so they can pass it on for help. Do not try to fix it yourself or invent another approach.

Step 5 — Let them know it worked

Once it's pushed, tell the Builder — in plain language — that their app is being set up now and will be ready in a few minutes at https://<name>.<appsDomain> (using the confirmed name and the appsDomain from get_my_client). Then open their new project page for them at https://github.com/<githubOrg>/<name> so they can find it later.

Step 6 — Start a live preview and hand off to building

Start the app's local preview from inside the app's own folder — the ./<name> directory you created and moved into in Step 4. Confirm that is your working directory before launching; never start the preview from wherever the session happened to begin.

Read the launch configuration from the created app's own .claude/launch.json — resolved relative to the app's root directory (./<name>/.claude/launch.json), not the current working directory or any other app's launch.json. That file is the source of truth for how to run the preview: use its dev configuration (currently npm run dev, port 5173 with autoPort). Start it and keep it running in the background.

Then tell the Builder — in plain language — that a live preview of their app is now running on their computer, and share the address it prints (for example http://localhost:5173). This is where the two of you will build and improve the app together from here.