Salesforce Lightning Application Build

Overview

Build complete Lightning Experience applications from natural language by orchestrating multiple metadata types in proper dependency order. This skill acts as a "conductor" that invokes specialized metadata skills when available, or generates metadata directly when no skill exists.

When to Use This Skill

Use when:

User requests a "complete app", "Lightning app", or "end-to-end solution"
User says "build an app", "create an application", "build a [type] app" (project management, tracking, etc.)
Request involves 3+ metadata types working together (objects + fields + pages + security)
User describes multiple custom objects with relationships between them
User mentions custom objects AND Lightning Record Pages in the same request
User mentions custom objects AND permission sets/security in the same request
Request includes phrases like "allows users to manage/track", "management system", "tracking app"
Need to ensure proper sequencing (Objects → Fields → UI → Security)

Examples that should trigger this skill:

"Build a project management app with Tasks, Resources, and Supplies objects"
"Create an app to track vehicles with Lightning pages and permission sets"
"I need a Space Station management system with multiple objects and relationships"
"Build an employee onboarding app with custom Lightning Record Pages"

Do NOT use when:

Creating a single metadata component (use specific metadata skill instead)
Troubleshooting or debugging existing metadata
Building Salesforce Classic apps (not Lightning Experience)
User asks for just one object, or just one page, or just one permission set (without others)

Metadata Type Registry

This table shows which metadata types are commonly needed for LEX apps and their skill availability.

Metadata Type	Skill Available?	Skill Name	Usage Rule
Custom Object	✅ YES	`salesforce-custom-object`	MUST use skill
Custom Field	✅ YES	`salesforce-custom-field`	MUST use skill
Custom Tab	✅ YES	`salesforce-custom-tab`	MUST use skill
FlexiPage	✅ YES	`salesforce-flexipage`	MUST use skill
Custom Application	✅ YES	`salesforce-custom-application`	MUST use skill
List View	✅ YES	`salesforce-list-view`	MUST use skill
Validation Rule	✅ YES	`salesforce-validation-rule`	MUST use skill (if requested)
Flow	✅ YES	`salesforce-flow`	MUST use skill (if requested)
Permission Set	❌ NO	-	Generate directly using Metadata API knowledge

Skill Usage Rules

CRITICAL RULE: When a skill exists for a metadata type (✅ YES in table above), you MUST invoke that skill. Do NOT generate the metadata directly.

FALLBACK RULE: When NO skill exists for a metadata type (❌ NO in table above), you MAY generate the metadata directly using your knowledge of Salesforce Metadata API and best practices.

RATIONALE: Specialized skills contain validated patterns, error handling, and field-specific knowledge that prevent deployment failures.

Dependency Graph & Build Order

Phase 1: Data Model (Foundation)

Custom Objects (no dependencies)
    ↓
Custom Fields (depends on: Objects exist)
    ↓
Relationships (depends on: Both parent and child objects + fields exist)

Skills to invoke in order:

salesforce-custom-object for each object
salesforce-custom-field for each field (including Master-Detail, Lookup, Roll-up Summary)

Phase 2: Business Logic (Optional - only if requested)

Validation Rules (depends on: Fields exist)
    ↓
Flows (depends on: Objects, Fields exist)

Skills to invoke (only if user requested):

salesforce-validation-rule if validation requirements mentioned
salesforce-flow if automation/workflow requirements mentioned

Phase 3: User Interface

List Views (depends on: Objects, Fields exist)
    ↓
Custom Tabs (depends on: Objects exist)
    ↓
FlexiPages (depends on: Objects, Tabs exist)

Skills to invoke in order:

salesforce-list-view for filtered record views (if requested)
salesforce-custom-tab for each object tab
salesforce-flexipage for record/home/app pages

Phase 4: Application Assembly

Custom Application (depends on: Tabs exist)

Skills to invoke:

salesforce-custom-application to create the Lightning App container

Phase 5: Security & Access

Permission Sets (depends on: Objects, Fields, Tabs, App exist)

Fallback generation (no skill available):

Generate Permission Set XML directly with access to:
- Objects (Read, Create, Edit, Delete)
- Fields (Read, Edit)
- Tabs (Visible)
- Custom Application (Visible)

Execution Workflow

STEP 1: Requirements Analysis & Planning

Actions:

Parse user's natural language request
Extract business entities (become Custom Objects)
Extract attributes/properties (become Custom Fields)
Identify relationships (Master-Detail, Lookup)
Detect validation requirements (become Validation Rules)
Detect automation requirements (become Flows)
Identify user personas (inform Permission Sets)

Output: Build Plan

Generate a structured plan listing:

📋 Lightning App Build Plan: [App Name]

DATA MODEL:
- Custom Objects: [list with object names]
- Custom Fields: [list grouped by object]
- Relationships: [list M-D and Lookup relationships]

BUSINESS LOGIC (if applicable):
- Validation Rules: [list with object and rule name]
- Flows: [list with flow name and type]

USER INTERFACE:
- List Views: [list with object and view name]
- Custom Tabs: [list with object]
- FlexiPages: [list with page name and type]
- Custom Application: [app name]

SECURITY:
- Permission Sets: [list with purpose]

METADATA SKILLS TO INVOKE:
- salesforce-custom-object (x N)
- salesforce-custom-field (x N)
- salesforce-validation-rule (x N) - if validation requirements identified
- salesforce-flow (x N) - if automation requirements identified
- salesforce-custom-tab (x N)
- salesforce-flexipage (x N)
- salesforce-custom-application (x 1)
- [fallback] Permission Set XML generation (x N)

DEPENDENCY ORDER:
1. Phase 1: Data Model (Objects → Fields)
2. Phase 2: Business Logic (Validation Rules → Flows)
3. Phase 3: User Interface (List Views → Tabs → Pages)
4. Phase 4: App Assembly (Application)
5. Phase 5: Security (Permission Sets)

STEP 2: Skill Invocation Sequence

Execute in strict dependency order. For each metadata component:

Check Metadata Type Registry: Does a skill exist?
If YES (✅): Invoke the specialized skill with required parameters
If NO (❌): Generate metadata directly using Metadata API knowledge
Handle Errors: If skill invocation fails, log error and continue (don't block entire app)

Invocation Pattern Example:

For Custom Object → Invoke salesforce-custom-object
For Custom Field → Invoke salesforce-custom-field
For Validation Rule → Invoke salesforce-validation-rule
For Flow → Invoke salesforce-flow
For Custom Tab → Invoke salesforce-custom-tab
For FlexiPage → Invoke salesforce-flexipage
For Custom Application → Invoke salesforce-custom-application
For Permission Sets (no skill) → Generate XML directly

Error Handling

Critical Errors (Stop Execution)

Stop and ask user for clarification if:

User request is too vague to extract any objects or fields
Conflicting requirements detected (e.g., "make it private" + "everyone should see it")
Invalid Salesforce naming detected (reserved words like Order, Group)

Non-Critical Errors (Continue with Warning)

Log warning and continue if:

Optional component fails (e.g., List View generation fails)
Skill invocation fails for non-critical metadata
Validation Rule or Flow has minor issues

Warning Pattern:

⚠️  Warning: [Component Type] generation encountered issue
    Component: [Name]
    Issue: [Description]
    Impact: [What won't work]
    Recommendation: [How to fix manually]

    Continuing with remaining components...

Best Practices

1. Always Follow Dependency Order

Never invoke skills out of sequence. Fields need objects, pages need tabs, apps need tabs.

2. Use Skills When Available

Don't reinvent the wheel. Specialized skills have field-specific validation that prevents deployment errors.

3. Generate Thoughtful Defaults

When user doesn't specify details:

Use Text name fields for human entities
Use AutoNumber for transactions
Enable Search and Reports for user-facing objects
Set sharingModel based on relationships

5. Validate Before Building

Check for:

Reserved words in API names
Relationship limits (max 2 M-D per object)
Name length limits
Duplicate names

salesforce-lightning-app-build