@sap/mdk-tools
A command-line tool for Mobile Development Kit projects — build, deploy, migrate and validate MDK metadata — built on the MTA Build Tool and the Cloud Foundry CLI.
MDK stores an app as metadata rather than code, and getting that metadata onto Cloud Foundry is its own build-and-deploy problem. mdk build, mdk deploy, mdk migrate and mdk validate cover it from the command line: building the project, deploying it, migrating older metadata forward, and validating it before either. It needs the Cloud Foundry CLI logged in and the Space Developer role for a CF deployment, and the MTA Build Tool underneath for the descriptor it deploys.
Facts
Where it sits
Before choosing this
Conditions
PracticalFunctional boundary
Specific to MDK metadata projects — nothing here builds or deploys a CAP service or a plain Fiori app. Closed-source, under SAP's own developer licence rather than a public repository.
What it declares
Every artifact
- Type
- CLI
- Origin
- By SAP
- Runtime
- Node.js
As a CLI
- Distributed through
- npm
Connections
Automating build and deployment of multi-module projects
Download
Install
npm add @sap/mdk-toolsDerived from the package name. No recipe recorded; the README has the configuration.
README
quoted from @sap/mdk-tools@1.17.2 under SEE LICENSE IN LICENSE.txt, read@sap/mdk-tools
CLI tools for the mobile development kit (MDK) — build, deploy, migrate, and validate MDK metadata projects from the command line.
Table of Contents
Installation
Prerequisites
| Requirement | Notes |
|---|---|
| Node.js ≥ 24.16.0, npm ≥ 11.13.0 | LTS recommended |
| Space Developer role | Required for CF deployments |
Cloud Foundry CLI + cf login | Required for all CF targets |
| MTA Build Tool | Required for web (cf) deployments |
| MultiApps CF CLI plugin | Required for web (cf) deployments |
| CF HTML5 Applications Repository CLI plugin | Required for web (cf) deployments |
Install the CF plugins:
cf install-plugin -r CF-Community "multiapps"
cf install-plugin -r CF-Community "html5-plugin"Install mdk-tools globally:
npm install -g @sap/mdk-toolsCommands at a Glance
| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
mdk build | Bundle an MDK metadata project to js, zip, or source |
mdk deploy | Deploy a project to Mobile Services or an HTML5 repository on CF |
mdk migrate | Migrate project metadata to the latest schema version |
mdk validate | Validate a project against the MDK language schema |
Usage
mdk build
Bundles an MDK metadata project using webpack.
mdk build --target <target> [options]Targets
| Target | Output | Description |
|---|---|---|
js | bundle.js, bundle.js.map | Use to update a local run project |
zip | uploadBundle.zip | Upload to Mobile Services |
source | source zip | Multi-tenant extension scenario |
Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
--target <target> | Build target: js, zip, or source |
--project <folder> | Path to the MDK metadata project (defaults to current directory) |
--externals <module…> | Space-separated npm modules to exclude from the bundle |
--filters <path…> | Space-separated project paths/files to exclude from the bundle |
--devtool <style> | Source map style, e.g. source-map |
--bundle-definition-path <folder> | Custom definition factory path (defaults to the out folder in mdk-tools) |
Built-in externals (always excluded): @nativescript/core, mdk-core.
Built-in filters (always excluded): /Web/.
Build results are placed in the .build folder under the project.
Examples
# Build a local run bundle
mdk build --target js
# Build an upload bundle for a specific project
mdk build --target zip --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project
# Build a source zip
mdk build --target source --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project
# Exclude a third-party library from the bundle
mdk build --target zip --externals "@nativescript/geolocation"
# Exclude project folders from the bundle
mdk build --target zip --filters "/FolderA/" "/FolderB/readme.txt"
# Enable source map debugging
mdk build --target zip --devtool "source-map"mdk deploy
Deploys an MDK metadata project to SAP BTP Cloud Foundry. Requires an active CF login (cf login).
mdk deploy --target <target> [options]Targets
| Target | Description |
|---|---|
mobile | Deploy to Mobile Services on Cloud Foundry (runs as a mobile application) |
cf | Deploy to the HTML5 repository on Cloud Foundry (runs as a web application) |
Common options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
--target <target> | Deploy target: mobile or cf |
--name <app-id> | Application ID (Mobile Services) or application name (HTML5 repo). Falls back to MobileService:AppId or CF:Deploy:Name in .project.json. |
--project <folder> | Path to the MDK metadata project (defaults to current directory) |
--externals <module…> | Space-separated npm modules to exclude from the bundle |
--devtool <style> | Source map style, e.g. source-map |
Deploy to Mobile Services (--target mobile)
Bundles the project, uploads the bundle to Mobile Services, and publishes it. The --name option is the application ID in Mobile Services. If omitted, the command reads MobileService:AppId from .project.json in the project root (set automatically when exporting from SAP Business Application Studio). Projects exported from SAP Web IDE do not include this key — --name is required in that case.
# Standard deploy
mdk deploy --target mobile --name "com.mdk.myapp" --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project
# Show QR code for onboarding after deploy
mdk deploy --target mobile --name "com.mdk.myapp" --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project --showqr
# Use source maps for debugging
mdk deploy --target mobile --name "com.mdk.myapp" --devtool "source-map"
# Exclude a third-party library
mdk deploy --target mobile --name "com.mdk.myapp" --externals "@nativescript/geolocation"
# Deploy a pre-built bundle zip (e.g. exported from SAP Business Application Studio)
mdk deploy --target mobile --name "com.mdk.myapp" --zip Your-MDK-bundle.zip
# Deploy a source zip (multi-tenant base project scenario)
mdk deploy --target mobile --name "com.mdk.myapp" --zip Your-MDK-source.zip --sourceAdditional mobile options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
--showqr | Display a QR code for onboarding after deploy |
--preview | Use the Mobile Services preview runtime |
--zip <file> | Deploy a pre-built bundle or source zip instead of building from source |
--source | Treat the zip as a source zip (multi-tenant scenario) |
--create | Create the mobile application if it does not yet exist |
Deploy to HTML5 Repository (--target cf)
Bundles the project, builds an MTA project from it, and deploys the result to the HTML5 repository. The --name option is the application name in SAP BTP cockpit. If omitted, the command reads CF:Deploy:Name from .project.json (set automatically when exporting from SAP Business Application Studio). Projects exported from SAP Web IDE do not include this key — --name is required in that case.
# Standard web deploy
mdk deploy --target cf --name "MyWebApplication" --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project
# Use a preview web runtime
mdk deploy --target cf --name "MyWebApplication" --runtime preview
# Use a custom runtime URL
mdk deploy --target cf --name "MyWebApplication" --runtime "https://your-runtime-url"
# Exclude a third-party library
mdk deploy --target cf --name "MyWebApplication" --externals "@nativescript/geolocation"Additional cf options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
--runtime <value> | Runtime to use: preview, production, or a custom https:// URL |
--force | Replace the entire MTA on redeploy |
Deploy to NEO (legacy)
Note: SAP BTP NEO is end-of-life. New projects should target Cloud Foundry.
mdk deploy --target mobile --name "com.mdk.myapp" --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project --neoUse --adminApi, --user, and --pwd to skip interactive prompts. If omitted, the command reads adminApi and user from .project.json and prompts for the password.
mdk migrate
Migrates an MDK metadata project to the latest schema version. Both JSON metadata files and JavaScript rule files are migrated. Use --preview to do a dry run that lists affected files without writing any changes.
mdk migrate --project <folder> [options]Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
--project <folder> | Path to the MDK metadata project |
--target-version <version> | Migrate to a specific schema version instead of the latest. Run mdk migrate --help for the versions bundled with this release. |
--preview | List files that would be migrated without performing the migration |
--log-file <file> | Write migration output to a file (created automatically if absent) |
Examples
# Migrate to the latest schema version
mdk migrate --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project
# Preview which files would be migrated (dry run)
mdk migrate --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project --preview
# Migrate to a specific schema version
mdk migrate --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project --target-version 6.3
# Write migration output to a log file
mdk migrate --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project --log-file /path/to/migration.logmdk validate
Validates an MDK metadata project against the MDK language schema. Exits with 0 when there are no errors and with a non-zero code when issues are found — making it suitable for use as a git pre-commit hook. Warnings are not included in the exit code unless --show-warnings is set.
mdk validate --project <folder> [options]Options
| Option | Description |
|---|---|
--project <folder> | Path to the MDK metadata project |
--log-file <file> | Write validation output to a file |
--log-level <number> | Minimum log level: 0 Debug, 1 Info (default), 2 Warn, 3 Error |
--show-warnings | Include warnings in the validation result and let them affect the exit code (default: false) |
--config-file <file> | JSON file with validation exclusion rules. Defaults to .project.json in the project root. |
Exclusion config format (in .project.json or a custom --config-file):
{
"validation": {
"exclude": {
"ui": [
"#Page:myFormCell",
"#Control:myControl"
],
"i18n": [
"test"
]
}
}
}Examples
# Validate with default settings
mdk validate --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project
# Validate and write results to a log file, errors only
mdk validate --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project --log-file /path/to/validate.log --log-level 3
# Include warnings in the result
mdk validate --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project --show-warnings
# Use a custom exclusion config
mdk validate --project /path/to/Your-MDK-Project --config-file /path/to/config.jsonLicense
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History
Others providing
Compare all 3 on the Deployment and operator page →- @sap/artifact-management@sap/artifact-managementA library a VS Code extension calls to read a multi-module workspace, generate its MTA descriptor and archive, and deploy the bundle to Cloud Foundry in one click.sap official, btpMTA generation and Cloud Foundry deploy for VS Code workspacesfrom BTP/BAIP
- @sap_oss/vscode-mta-tools@sap_oss/vscode-mta-toolsVS Code Multi-Target Application toolssap official, capVS Code Multi-Target Application toolsfrom CAP
Details
Sources
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Compatibility and provenance
History in the atlas
- researched from the npm record: artifact_type corrected to cli (it is a standalone command run from the shell, not something cds.requires loads), ecosystem corrected to btp to match the other MDK-related artifacts already in the graph (sap-mdk-mcp-server, sap-samples-cloud-mdk-samples).
- First seen.
For your agent
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artifact:sap-mdk-tools- JSON
- /artifacts/sap-mdk-tools.json
- MCP
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