silverstripe / graphql-devtools
Tools to help developers building new applications on SilverStripe's GraphQL API
Package info
github.com/silverstripe/silverstripe-graphql-devtools
Type:silverstripe-vendormodule
pkg:composer/silverstripe/graphql-devtools
Requires
Requires (Dev)
This package is auto-updated.
Last update: 2026-07-25 20:23:19 UTC
README
Tools to help developers building new applications on SilverStripe’s GraphQL API
Installation
composer require --dev silverstripe/graphql-devtools
What it does
This module adds an implementation of graphiql, an in-browser IDE for GraphQL servers. It provides browseable documentation of your schema, as well as autocomplete and syntax-checking of your queries.
Accessing the IDE
It can be accessed at /dev/graphql/ide.
This is because GraphQL 4+ has its own DevelopmentAdmin controller.
The GraphQL v4 version of the module allows you to clear your schema by running sake graphql:clear.
Security
By default, the tool has the same restrictions as other development tools like /dev/build:
- In "dev" mode, it's available without authentication
- In "test" and "live" mode, it requires ADMIN permissions
- It's installed with
composer require --devby default. In most deployment contexts that'll mean it's not available on environments in "test" or "live" modes
Configuration
In most installations of SilverStripe, there are at least two GraphQL servers running - one
for the admin (admin/graphql) and one for the user space (/graphql). By default, only
the default schema will show, but this is configurable.
Showing multiple schemas
You can configure the visible schemas in the controller.
Show a select list of schemas
SilverStripe\GraphQLDevTools\Controller: # show two schemas schemas: - default - admin # default schema that is selected default_schema: admin
Show all schemas
SilverStripe\GraphQLDevTools\Controller: # show two schemas schemas: '*' default_schema: default
Further, you can override the config in the request, by using ?schema=<schemaName>,
e.g. http://example.com/dev/graphql/ide?schema=mySchema.
If you're using a custom controller for your GraphQL endpoint
The IDE finds schemas by checking Director for routes that map to a SilverStripe\GraphQL\Controller instance.
If for some reason you're using a custom controller, you might get an error: "Could not find your default schema 'default'. You will need to add one to the SilverStripe\Control\Director.rules config setting."
To avoid this, you can explicitly map your graphql route to a schema in your Director config:
SilverStripe\Control\Director: rules: graphql: Controller: '%$MyCustomController' Schema: default
GraphQL schema initialise task
This module provides a GraphQLSchemaInitTask task to initialise a basic GraphQL schema to get you started. It will create configuration files for your schema and a basic resolver. Specifically it will create:
app/_config/graphql.ymlapp/_graphqlcontaining several yml filessrc/GraphQL/Resolvers.php
You must be in CLI mode to use this task
To view help for the task to see what options are available:
vendor/bin/sake tasks:GraphQLSchemaInitTask --help
To run the task with with minimal options:
vendor/bin/sake tasks:GraphQLSchemaInitTask --namespace=App
Upgrading and maintaining the IDE
The library running the IDE is GraphiQL. It is served from your local environment as an exposed resource, with no CDN dependency and no build chain required. The bundled files are:
client/react.production.min.jsclient/react-dom.production.min.jsclient/graphiql.min.jsclient/graphiql.min.css
The benefits of this approach are:
- It allows offline use
- It does not require setting up a build chain or installing NPM dependencies
To upgrade GraphiQL, download the new versions from unpkg.com
and overwrite the files in client/. The exact URLs and currently bundled versions
are noted in the comment above the <script> tags in templates/DevTools.ss.