AI-Assisted Development

This page is the entry point for any AI assistant (Claude, Copilot, Cursor, …) that should build abap2UI5 apps. It collects, in one place, every source of information the model needs and points to the canonical references in the three project repositories.

If you are pasting context into an AI tool, start here, then follow the links — the linked files (especially the CLAUDE.md files in the source repositories) are kept up to date with every release and are the source of truth.

The Three Repositories

abap2UI5 lives in three repositories. Each carries information an AI assistant should know:

Repository	What's in it	Why an AI needs it
abap2UI5/abap2UI5	Core framework — interfaces, view builder, runtime	The public API (`z2ui5_if_app`, `z2ui5_if_client`, `z2ui5_cl_xml_view`, `z2ui5_cl_util_xml`) the app interacts with
abap2UI5/samples	250+ working demo apps + app-development guide	Canonical patterns and a copy-pastable example for almost every UI5 control and feature
abap2UI5/docs	This documentation site	Conceptual background, lifecycle, cookbook recipes

Source-Repo Briefings (for Framework / Sample Contributors)

The two source repositories carry CLAUDE.md briefings aimed at AI tools that work inside those repos — they are not needed for building apps:

abap2UI5/CLAUDE.md — for AI assistants modifying the framework itself: layered architecture (src/00 utilities, src/01 engine, src/02 public API), coding rules, naming, abaplint setup, Clean-ABAP exceptions, public-API stability contract.
samples/CLAUDE.md — for AI assistants contributing sample apps: formatting rules (blank lines, indentation), file/class conventions, abaplint setup.

If you only want to build an abap2UI5 app, this page is the single source — you do not need to read those files.

Quick Briefing — The Mental Model

The minimum an AI must know to write working apps:

1. One interface, one method

Every app implements z2ui5_if_app and has a single main method. The framework calls main on every HTTP roundtrip — initial load and every user interaction:

abap

CLASS zcl_my_app DEFINITION PUBLIC.
  PUBLIC SECTION.
    INTERFACES z2ui5_if_app.
ENDCLASS.

CLASS zcl_my_app IMPLEMENTATION.
  METHOD z2ui5_if_app~main.
    " everything happens here
  ENDMETHOD.
ENDCLASS.

2. Dispatch with `IF` / `ELSEIF`

main is a dispatcher. Three lifecycle checks decide what to do — always chain them with IF / ELSEIF, never separate IF blocks:

abap

IF client->check_on_init( ).            " first call
  " load data + render view
ELSEIF client->check_on_event( `POST` ). " user fired event 'POST'
  " handle it
ELSEIF client->check_on_navigated( ).   " returned from sub-app / popup
  " refresh state
ENDIF.

→ Life Cycle

3. State lives in public class attributes

Anything bound to the view must be PUBLIC. The framework serializes public attributes between roundtrips automatically — no session handling needed.

→ Binding → Bound Attributes Must Be Public

4. `client` is the only framework API

Views, events, binding, navigation, messages — everything goes through the client reference (z2ui5_if_client):

Category	Methods
Views	`view_display`, `view_destroy`, `view_model_update`
Popups / popovers	`popup_display`, `popup_destroy`, `popover_display`, `popover_destroy`
Binding	`_bind( var )` (read-only), `_bind_edit( var )` (two-way)
Events	`_event( 'NAME' )`, `check_on_event( 'NAME' )`, `get_event_arg( i )`
Navigation	`nav_app_call( app )`, `nav_app_leave( )`, `get_app_prev( )`
Messages	`message_box_display`, `message_toast_display`
Lifecycle	`check_on_init`, `check_on_event`, `check_on_navigated`

Read the full interface at z2ui5_if_client.intf.abap.

5. Views are XML — built with one of two builders

Views are UI5 XML strings passed to client->view_display( ... ). The framework ships two builders, both fully supported:

z2ui5_cl_util_xml — generic XML builder. Element name + attributes as strings → maps 1:1 to the UI5 SDK. Recommended for AI-generated code.
z2ui5_cl_xml_view — fluent builder with one ABAP method per UI5 control (~446 methods). Convenient for humans, but has naming inconsistencies and incomplete coverage → harder for an AI to use correctly.

→ View Definition

Recommended Builder for AI: `z2ui5_cl_util_xml`

Translate any UI5 XML example from the UI5 SDK 1:1 into ABAP — no wrapper, no abstraction:

UI5 XML	ABAP with `z2ui5_cl_util_xml`
`<Button text="Send" />`	`->__( n =` Button`a =`text`v =`Send `)`
`press="onPress"`	`v = client->_event(` BUTTON_POST `)`
`value="{/name}"`	`v = client->_bind_edit( name )`
`<FeedInput><actions>…</actions></FeedInput>`	`->_(` FeedInput`)->_(`actions `)->__( … )`

Builder methods:

_( n, ns, p ) — add child, go into it (next call adds a grandchild)
__( n, ns, a, v, p ) — add child, stay at current level (leaf / sibling)
p( n, v ) — add a single attribute to the current node
n( 'Name' ) / n( ) — navigate to named ancestor / parent
stringify( indent = abap_true ) — serialize to XML

Boolean attribute values

Always pass 'true' or 'false' as string literals — never abap_true / abap_false. abap_false (space) is silently dropped; abap_true ('X') produces an invalid XML attribute value.

Complete worked example: see Quickstart, Hello World, and Full Example.

Canonical App Template

For anything beyond ~50 lines in main, extract on_init and on_event first, then add helpers (view_display, data_read, data_update) only when needed. Class names lowercase, no FINAL, definition order TYPES → DATA → METHODS.

abap

CLASS zcl_app_xxx DEFINITION PUBLIC.

  PUBLIC SECTION.
    INTERFACES z2ui5_if_app.
    " bound data (public DATA attributes used by _bind / _bind_edit)

  PROTECTED SECTION.
    DATA client TYPE REF TO z2ui5_if_client.

    METHODS on_init.        " first call: load data, render view
    METHODS on_event.       " user triggered an event
    METHODS on_navigation.  " returned from sub-app or popup
    METHODS view_display.   " build and render the view
    METHODS data_read.      " SELECT
    METHODS data_update.    " INSERT / UPDATE / DELETE

  PRIVATE SECTION.

ENDCLASS.


CLASS zcl_app_xxx IMPLEMENTATION.

  METHOD z2ui5_if_app~main.

    me->client = client.
    IF client->check_on_init( ).
      on_init( ).
    ELSEIF client->check_on_navigated( ).
      on_navigation( ).
    ELSEIF client->check_on_event( ).
      on_event( ).
    ENDIF.

  ENDMETHOD.

  " on_init / on_event / view_display / data_read / data_update …

ENDCLASS.

The full template (with formatting and blank-line rules) lives in samples/CLAUDE.md.

Sample Apps — 250+ Working Examples

The fastest way for an AI to ground a generation in working code is to look up a similar app in the samples repository. Each z2ui5_cl_demo_app_* class is a self-contained, abapGit-installable app demonstrating a single feature or control.

Browse them online (no system needed): https://abap2ui5.github.io/web-abap2ui5-samples/

Built-In Popups — Do Not Reinvent

Before building a custom dialog, check whether one of the built-in popup classes already covers the case:

Z2UI5_CL_POP_TO_CONFIRM, Z2UI5_CL_POP_TO_INFORM, Z2UI5_CL_POP_TO_SELECT, Z2UI5_CL_POP_FILE_UL, Z2UI5_CL_POP_FILE_DL, Z2UI5_CL_POP_TABLE, Z2UI5_CL_POP_TEXTEDIT, Z2UI5_CL_POP_PDF, Z2UI5_CL_POP_HTML, Z2UI5_CL_POP_MESSAGES, Z2UI5_CL_POP_ERROR, Z2UI5_CL_POP_GET_RANGE, Z2UI5_CL_POP_GET_RANGE_M, Z2UI5_CL_POP_INPUT_VAL, Z2UI5_CL_POP_JS_LOADER, Z2UI5_CL_POP_ITAB_JSON_DL

→ Built-in popups

Deprecated UI5 Controls — Do Not Generate

The authoritative list is at https://ui5.sap.com/#/api/deprecated. The most common pitfalls for generated code:

Whole libraries — never use any control from these:

Library	Deprecated since	Use instead
`sap.ui.commons.*` (Accordion, Button, CheckBox, ComboBox, DatePicker, Dialog, FileUploader, Label, Link, Menu, Panel, RadioButton, SearchField, Slider, TextArea, TextField, TextView, ToggleButton, Toolbar, Tree, Form, SimpleForm, AbsoluteLayout, BorderLayout, MatrixLayout, HorizontalLayout, VerticalLayout, … — entire library)	1.38	`sap.m` + `sap.ui.layout`
`sap.viz.ui5.*` legacy charts (Bar, Bubble, Bullet, Column, Combination, Donut, Heatmap, Line, Pie, Scatter, StackedColumn, Treemap, Waterfall, …)	1.32	`sap.viz.ui5.controls.VizFrame`

Individual deprecated controls:

Control	Deprecated since	Use instead
`sap.m.MultiEditField`	1.120	—
`sap.f.Avatar`	1.73	`sap.m.Avatar`
`sap.ui.core.XMLComposite`	1.88	Custom controls
`sap.ui.core.mvc.HTMLView`	1.108	`XMLView`
`sap.ui.core.mvc.JSONView`	1.120	`XMLView`
`sap.ui.core.mvc.JSView`	1.90	Typed views
`sap.ui.core.mvc.TemplateView`	1.56	`XMLView`
`sap.ui.core.tmpl.TemplateControl`	1.56	—
`sap.ui.table.ColumnHeader`	1.120	`sap.ui.table.Column`
`sap.ui.table.TableHelper`	1.118	—
`sap.f.routing.Router` / `Target` / `TargetHandler` / `Targets`	1.56	`sap.m.routing.*` (async)
`sap.tnt.IToolHeader` (interface)	1.135	Any control as `ToolPage` header

Deprecated enums/types to avoid:

sap.m.ValueCSSColor, DateTimeInputType (use DatePicker / TimePicker), ListHeaderDesign, ListMode.SingleSelect (1.143 → SingleSelectLeft), FrameType.TwoThirds / Auto, mis-spelled PlacementType.*Prefered* variants
sap.f.AvatarShape / AvatarSize / AvatarType / AvatarColor / AvatarImageFitType / IllustratedMessageType / IllustratedMessageSize / DynamicPageTitleArea (use the sap.m.* equivalents)
sap.ui.layout.BlockBackgroundType.Mixed, form.GridElementCells, SimpleFormLayout.ResponsiveLayout, SimpleFormLayout.GridLayout, cssgrid.CSSGridGapShortHand, GridHelper
sap.ui.table.NavigationMode, SortOrder (use sap.ui.core.SortOrder), VisibleRowCountMode (use rowMode aggregation), TreeAutoExpandMode, ResetAllMode
sap.ui.core.MessageType (use module:sap/ui/core/message/MessageType)
sap.ui.unified.ContentSwitcherAnimation (1.147 — concept discarded)

Other deprecated framework items:

Analysis Path Framework (APF) — deprecated 1.140
sap.m.PDFViewer.sourceValidationFailed() — deprecated 1.141
Declarative data-sap-ui-type attribute — deprecated 1.120 (use XML views)
Belize, Blue Crystal, and Blue Crystal HCB themes — removed in 1.136 (use Horizon)

Namespace caveat for Avatar: when using z2ui5_cl_xml_view->avatar( ), leave ns empty so the element resolves to sap.m.Avatar via the View's default xmlns. Never pass ns = 'f' — that produces <f:Avatar>, which is the deprecated sap.f.Avatar. (avatar_group and avatar_group_item correctly use ns = 'f' because those controls still live in sap.f.)

Documentation Map — What to Read When

When an AI needs deeper information than this page provides:

Topic	Best reference
Architecture, request roundtrip	Concept, How It All Works
Lifecycle and `IF` / `ELSEIF` dispatcher pattern	Cookbook → Life Cycle
Building views, control choice	Cookbook → View Definition
Data binding (`_bind`, `_bind_edit`)	Cookbook → Binding
Tables and trees	Cookbook → Tables, Trees
Events, actions, exceptions	Cookbook → Event, Navigation
Popups and popovers	Cookbook → Popup, Popover
Messages, toasts, i18n	Cookbook → Translation, Messages
Browser interaction (focus, scroll, URL)	Cookbook → Browser Interaction
Device features (camera, geo, files)	Cookbook → Device Capabilities
RAP / CDS / EML integration	Cookbook → EML, CDS, SQL
Snippets and recurring patterns	Cookbook → Snippets
Installation / HTTP handler	Quickstart

A Ready-Made Prompt for AI Assistants

A prompt that gives an AI assistant enough context to produce a working app:

You are building an abap2UI5 app. Read https://abap2ui5.github.io/docs/advanced/agent.html first — it is the single source of truth for app-building (template, client API, lifecycle, view builder, deprecated controls, documentation map). For working examples, browse https://github.com/abap2UI5/samples/tree/main/src (250+ apps, one feature per app). Use z2ui5_cl_util_xml as the view builder. Look up any UI5 control at https://ui5.sap.com/#/api and translate the XML 1:1 to ABAP. Do not use any control listed in this page's "Deprecated UI5 Controls" section.

Hard Rules (Cheat Sheet)

Rule	Why
Implement `z2ui5_if_app` with a single `main` method	The only entry point the framework calls
Bound attributes must be `PUBLIC`	The framework binds via dynamic ASSIGN; `PROTECTED`/`PRIVATE` are silently ignored
Use `IF` / `ELSEIF` with `check_on_init` / `check_on_event( 'NAME' )` / `check_on_navigated`	Canonical dispatcher pattern
Use `z2ui5_cl_util_xml` for AI-generated views	Maps 1:1 to UI5 SDK; no wrapper to learn
Pass XML boolean attributes as string literals `'true'` / `'false'`	`abap_true` / `abap_false` produce invalid or empty attributes
Use backtick string literals (`), not single quotes	Project-wide convention enforced by abaplint
Never use a deprecated control	See list in framework `CLAUDE.md`
Use built-in popups (`z2ui5_cl_pop_*`) before building custom ones	Tested, consistent, less code
Run `npx abaplint` on every change in the framework / samples repos	Primary quality gate; must report 0 issues

That's the briefing. Hand the link to this page (or the two CLAUDE.md files it points to) to any AI tool and it has everything it needs to build a working abap2UI5 app.

View

Model

Binding

Event, Navigation

Event

Popup, Popover

Translation, Messages

Browser Interaction

Device Capabilities

Upload, Download

State, Connectivity

More Topics

EML, CDS, SQL

Patterns, Helpers

Troubleshooting

Obsolete

Setup

Technology

AI-Assisted Development

The Three Repositories

Source-Repo Briefings (for Framework / Sample Contributors)

Quick Briefing — The Mental Model

1. One interface, one method

2. Dispatch with `IF` / `ELSEIF`

3. State lives in public class attributes

4. `client` is the only framework API

5. Views are XML — built with one of two builders

Recommended Builder for AI: `z2ui5_cl_util_xml`

Canonical App Template

Sample Apps — 250+ Working Examples

Built-In Popups — Do Not Reinvent

Deprecated UI5 Controls — Do Not Generate

Documentation Map — What to Read When

A Ready-Made Prompt for AI Assistants

Hard Rules (Cheat Sheet)

Binding

Event

Upload, Download

EML, CDS, SQL

AI-Assisted Development ​

The Three Repositories ​

Source-Repo Briefings (for Framework / Sample Contributors) ​

Quick Briefing — The Mental Model ​

1. One interface, one method ​

2. Dispatch with IF / ELSEIF ​

3. State lives in public class attributes ​

4. client is the only framework API ​

5. Views are XML — built with one of two builders ​

Recommended Builder for AI: z2ui5_cl_util_xml ​

Canonical App Template ​

Sample Apps — 250+ Working Examples ​

Built-In Popups — Do Not Reinvent ​

Deprecated UI5 Controls — Do Not Generate ​

Documentation Map — What to Read When ​

A Ready-Made Prompt for AI Assistants ​

Hard Rules (Cheat Sheet) ​

AI-Assisted Development

The Three Repositories

Source-Repo Briefings (for Framework / Sample Contributors)

Quick Briefing — The Mental Model

1. One interface, one method

2. Dispatch with `IF` / `ELSEIF`

3. State lives in public class attributes

4. `client` is the only framework API

5. Views are XML — built with one of two builders

Recommended Builder for AI: `z2ui5_cl_util_xml`

Canonical App Template

Sample Apps — 250+ Working Examples

Built-In Popups — Do Not Reinvent

Deprecated UI5 Controls — Do Not Generate

Documentation Map — What to Read When

A Ready-Made Prompt for AI Assistants

Hard Rules (Cheat Sheet)