MelisToolCreator

GUI generator that scaffolds new backoffice tools as standalone Laminas modules. Package: melisplatform/melis-tool-creator.

Purpose

MelisToolCreator is the in-backoffice wizard behind Create a tool. It walks you through a multi-step form (module name, texts, database table, columns, add/update form, translations, summary, finalization) and then writes a complete, working Laminas module to disk under module/<ModuleName>/ — controller, service, model tables, listeners, config, language files, views and JS. It does not store tools in the database; the generated code is plain files you own and can edit afterwards. See the full walkthrough in Create a tool.

Enable it

Standard Laminas module. Add it to config/melis.module.load.php:

return [
    // …
    'MelisToolCreator',
];

Dependencies (from composer.json): melisplatform/melis-core and melisplatform/melis-cms (PHP ^8.1|^8.3). The module merges module.config.php, app.interface.php, app.toolstree.php and app.tools.php in src/Module.php::getConfig().

Key services

Registered as service_manager aliases in config/module.config.php:

Service alias	Role
MelisToolCreatorService	Drives generation. createTool() fires melis_tool_creator_generate_tool_start, builds the module tree and files from the template/ skeletons, then fires melis_tool_creator_generate_tool_end. Helpers: moduleName(), getTableColumns($table), getTablePK($table), describeTable($table), hasPrimaryKey(), isFrameworkTool(), generateModuleNameCase($str), cleanString($str).
MelisToolCreatorCacheSystemService	Filesystem cache helper (getCacheByKey, setCacheByKey, deleteCacheByPrefix, getTtlByKey) for the wizard.

MelisToolCreatorService extends MelisCore\Service\MelisGeneralService and reads the live DB schema (Laminas Metadata) so a generated db tool maps onto an existing table.

Tool types

The step-1 form (tcf-tool-type) offers three kinds of tool, plus an optional framework variant:

Type	What it scaffolds
db	A full CRUD tool over an existing database table (list + add/update form, with optional language tables).
iframe	A tool that embeds an external URL (tcf-tool-iframe-url) in an iframe.
blank	An empty tool skeleton you fill in yourself.

Framework tools (config/frameworks.php: laravel, symfony, lumen, silex) generate a micro-service style controller instead of the standard ZF/Laminas one.

Backoffice

The wizard is reached from the left menu under Tools → Tools creation → Designs, declared in config/app.toolstree.php. Its melisKeys: melistoolcreator_tool (and children melistoolcreator_header, melistoolcreator_content, melistoolcreator_steps).

Concern	Value
Controller	MelisToolCreator\Controller\ToolCreator (ToolCreatorController)
Entry action	render-tool-creator (renderToolCreatorAction)
Steps action	render-tool-creator-steps (renderToolCreatorStepsAction)
Validate / navigate	route tool-creator-validate-cur-step
Load table columns	route tool-creator-get-tbl-cols → renderStep3TableColumns

Step forms live in config/app.tools.php (tool-creator-step-1, tool-creator-step-2, …).

Database tables

None. MelisToolCreator declares no melis_* tables of its own (no install SQL / dbdeploy delta). The melis_tool_creator_generate_tool_start / _end strings in the service are event names, not tables. For db tools it instead introspects whatever existing table you point the wizard at.

Key files

Concern	Path
Module bootstrap / config merge	vendor/melisplatform/melis-tool-creator/src/Module.php
Wizard controller	vendor/melisplatform/melis-tool-creator/src/Controller/ToolCreatorController.php
Generation service	vendor/melisplatform/melis-tool-creator/src/Service/MelisToolCreatorService.php
Cache service	vendor/melisplatform/melis-tool-creator/src/Service/MelisToolCreatorCacheSystemService.php
Backoffice menu entry	vendor/melisplatform/melis-tool-creator/config/app.toolstree.php
Wizard step forms	vendor/melisplatform/melis-tool-creator/config/app.tools.php
Framework list / form	vendor/melisplatform/melis-tool-creator/config/frameworks.php
Generated-code skeletons	vendor/melisplatform/melis-tool-creator/template/
Wizard views (step 1–8)	vendor/melisplatform/melis-tool-creator/view/melis-tool-creator/tool-creator/

See also

• Create a tool — the end-to-end guide.
• Module reference — all platform modules.
• Plugins — the sibling scaffolders for templating & dashboard plugins.