Create Minimal PWA

A simple CLI tool to generate the minimal required files for a Progressive Web App (PWA).

Features

• Generates all the required files for a minimal PWA:
  • manifest.json - Web app manifest with basic configuration
  • index.html - Simple HTML file with service worker registration
  • sw.js - Service worker for offline functionality
  • icon.png - Basic square icon with your chosen colour
• Customizable project name, icon colour, and platform support
• Interactive CLI interface
• Zero configuration - just run and answer prompts

Installation & Usage

Running the tool

To run the tool, use npx:

npx create-minimal-pwa

Installation

To install the tool globally:

npm install -g create-minimal-pwa

Then run the tool:

create-minimal-pwa

How It Works

When you run the tool, you'll be prompted for:

1. Project name - The name of your PWA
2. Icon color - Color for the generated icon (hex code or color name)
3. Platform support - Which platforms the icon should support (iOS, Android, Desktop)

The tool will then generate a directory with your project name containing all required PWA files.

Generated Files

manifest.json

Contains the basic metadata for your PWA:

{
  "name": "Your PWA Name",
  "short_name": "PWA Name",
  "start_url": "/",
  "display": "standalone",
  "background_color": "#ffffff",
  "theme_color": "#000000",
  "icons": [
    {
      "src": "./icon.png",
      "sizes": "192x192",
      "type": "image/png"
    },
    {
      "src": "./icon.png",
      "sizes": "512x512",
      "type": "image/png"
    }
  ]
}

index.html

A simple HTML file with:

• Proper meta tags
• Manifest link
• Service worker registration
• Platform-specific meta tags (based on your selections)

sw.js

A basic service worker that:

• Caches core application files
• Serves files from cache when offline
• Manages cache updates

icon.png

A simple square icon in your chosen colour.

Testing Your PWA

After generating the files:

cd your-project-name
npx serve

Then open your browser to the displayed URL (usually http://localhost:3000).

To verify PWA functionality:

1. Open Chrome DevTools
2. Go to the "Application" tab
3. Check the "Manifest" and "Service Workers" sections

Requirements

• Node.js >= 18
• For the canvas dependency (used to generate the icon), you might need additional system libraries:
  • Ubuntu/Debian: sudo apt-get install build-essential libcairo2-dev libpango1.0-dev libjpeg-dev libgif-dev librsvg2-dev
  • macOS: brew install pkg-config cairo pango libpng jpeg giflib librsvg
  • Windows: See the node-canvas wiki

Development

Project Structure

create-minimal-pwa/
├── bin/
│   └── index.js            # Main executable entry point
├── src/
│   ├── cli.js              # Command-line interface and user input handling
│   ├── generators/
│   │   ├── iconGenerator.js        # Icon generation logic
│   │   ├── manifestGenerator.js    # Manifest.json generation
│   │   ├── htmlGenerator.js        # Index.html generation 
│   │   └── serviceWorkerGenerator.js # Service worker generation
│   └── utils/
│       ├── fileSystem.js           # File system operations
│       └── platformHelpers.js      # Platform-specific helpers
├── package.json
└── README.md

Acknowledgments

• Progressive Web Apps - For inspiration and standards
• node-canvas - For icon generation
• inquirer - For the interactive CLI