Docyrus Print PDF Template Design

Docyrus Print / PDF Template Design

Design a printable, data-bound report template with docyrus studio create-html-template, then validate its shape and test that it renders to HTML/PDF for a real record. An export template is a row in tenant_html_template: an HTML body (+ optional header/footer/CSS) with {{field}} Handlebars placeholders, bound to a data source, with page setup. Rendering is done via the app's render endpoints (reachable with docyrus curl).

Workflow

1. Confirm app + auth, and the source record shape. An export template must bind to a data source, and its placeholders must match real fields.

   docyrus auth who --json
   docyrus apps list --json
   docyrus studio list-data-sources --appSlug crm --json     # → the data source to bind (required)
   docyrus studio list-fields --appSlug crm --dataSourceSlug quotes --json   # the field slugs to interpolate
   

2. Design the document. Decide the layout (HTML body), repeating sections ({{#each}} over an own array field or a child.{from}__{using} child data source collection), header/footer HTML, CSS in styles, the page setup (orientation, format, margins), and the output filename pattern (filename_tmpl). See references/template-fields-and-rendering.md.

3. Create the template (create-html-template). --name and a data source (--dataSourceSlug/--dataSourceId) are required. Add body/header/footer/styles and page options. See Create.

4. Validate — read it back and confirm content, page options, and binding landed. See Validate.

5. Test — render it to HTML and PDF for a real record via the app endpoints and confirm placeholders resolve and the page renders. See Test.

A worked example (a quote/invoice template with a line-items table, rendered to PDF) is in references/template-fields-and-rendering.md.

Command cheat-sheet

Selectors: --appId | --appSlug (resolves a slug), --dataSourceId | --dataSourceSlug (the required binding), --templateId (the template). Write commands take camelCase flags or --data/--from-file (flags merge over JSON; API keys snake_case). Append --json.

Create an export template

docyrus studio create-html-template --appSlug crm --dataSourceSlug quotes \
  --name "Quote PDF" \
  --body '<h1>{{name}}</h1><p>Total: {{total}}</p>' \
  --styles 'h1{font-size:22px} table{width:100%;border-collapse:collapse}' \
  --headerTmpl '<div style="font-size:10px">{{name}}</div>' \
  --footerTmpl '<div style="font-size:10px;text-align:center">Page</div>' \
  --pageFormat A4 --pageOrientation portrait \
  --marginTop 40 --marginBottom 40 --marginLeft 30 --marginRight 30 \
  --filenameTmpl "{{name}}-{{autonumber_id}}" --isDefault true --json
# → capture data.id as TEMPLATE_ID

• --name and a data source are required. Unlike email templates, the binding (tenant_data_source_id) is mandatory — omitting it → HTTP 422. Resolve the data source first.
• --body is the document HTML; --headerTmpl/--footerTmpl are header/footer HTML; --styles is CSS. All four are Handlebars-compiled against the record.
• Page setup: --pageFormat (free string, e.g. A4, Letter), --pageOrientation (use portrait/landscape — the PDF renderer checks the literal string "landscape"), --marginTop/Bottom/Left/Right (numbers), --filenameTmpl (Handlebars; defaults to <DataSourceName>-<autonumber_id>).
• --isDefault true marks this the default template for the data source (rendered when a caller asks for template default).
• --sourceType is NOT the file format. source_type is an option-set UUID selecting single- vs multi-record export, not the format. The format is chosen by the render endpoint you call (/html vs /pdf). See the field reference. Leave --sourceType unset unless you have a real option UUID.

Manage / inspect

docyrus studio list-html-templates --appSlug crm --dataSourceSlug quotes --json   # filter by data source; --isDefault to filter defaults
docyrus studio get-html-template    --templateId TEMPLATE_ID --json                # full body/header/footer/styles
docyrus studio update-html-template --templateId TEMPLATE_ID --pageOrientation landscape --json   # PUT, but partial
docyrus studio delete-html-template --templateId TEMPLATE_ID --json                # soft delete (archived=true), 204

• get returns full content; list omits body/header_tmpl/footer_tmpl/styles (metadata only).
• update is PUT but partial — only passed fields change.
• delete is soft (archived=true), returns 204.

Render endpoints (how a template becomes a document)

There is no CLI render command — render through the app endpoints with docyrus curl (path only; auth automatic). The :templateId segment must be a real template UUID (there is no default keyword — the param is UUID-validated):

# Render HTML for one record (verified to work locally):
docyrus curl "/v1/apps/crm/data-sources/quotes/items/<recordId>/templates/TEMPLATE_ID/html"
# Render PDF (compiles HTML, POSTs it to the hosted html2pdf service):
docyrus curl "/v1/apps/crm/data-sources/quotes/items/<recordId>/templates/TEMPLATE_ID/pdf" --format json
# To render the DEFAULT template, first resolve its id, then render by that id:
docyrus studio list-html-templates --appSlug crm --dataSourceSlug quotes --isDefault true --json

The HTML endpoint returns the compiled HTML (verified). The PDF endpoint compiles the HTML and POSTs it to the hosted html2pdf microservice — PDF generation depends on that external service and can 500 in local dev, so use the /html render as your reliable correctness check and reserve /pdf for real environments. DOCX has no render path — only HTML and PDF. See references/template-fields-and-rendering.md.

Critical rules

• name + tenant_data_source_id are required. The data-source binding is mandatory (resolve it before creating) — this is the key difference from email templates.
• source_type is a UUID column; the output format is the render endpoint, not a field. source_type selects single- vs multi-record export (a uuid), NOT "html"/"pdf"/"docx" — verified: passing --sourceType pdf fails with invalid input syntax for type uuid: "pdf". The format is decided by which endpoint you hit (/html vs /pdf). Leave --sourceType unset unless you have a real EXPORT_SOURCE_TYPE UUID (listed in the field reference).
• page_orientation is a plain string — pass portrait/landscape. Verified: the value is stored and rendered as the literal string (the PDF renderer checks page_orientation === "landscape"). Despite the studio UI modelling it as an option set, the API accepts and stores the string — use portrait/landscape.
• No DOCX renderer exists. Only /html and /pdf endpoints render — there is no DOCX output path. Don't promise DOCX from these endpoints.
• Ownership is always CUSTOM — server-set, not a flag, not returned (same as email templates).
• Body/header/footer/styles/filename are all Handlebars over the record: {{slug}}, {{name}}, {{autonumber_id}}, related fields {{customer.name}}/{{customer.tax_number}}, and repeats over an own array field or a child data source collection via {{#each child.{from}__{using}}} (auto-fetched from the template — see the reference). Missing keys render empty (no error). HTML is escaped by {{x}} — use {{{x}}} for intentional raw HTML.
• Unknown JSON keys are silently ignored (whitelist:false). A mistyped key in --data neither errors nor takes effect; sending source_type:"pdf" (a non-UUID string) passes DTO validation but can fail at the DB uuid column. Read back to confirm.
• update is PUT-but-partial; delete is soft (204). __body_html is server-derived — don't write it.
• Render is a separate endpoint, not a studio command. Validate via get; test by curling the /html and /pdf render endpoints against a real record.
• Validate then test, every time. Confirm placeholders match real slugs, then render against a real record. Delete throwaway templates you create.

Validate

1. docyrus studio get-html-template --templateId TEMPLATE_ID --json — name, body, header_tmpl, footer_tmpl, styles, page_format, page_orientation, margins, filename_tmpl, is_default, and tenant_data_source_id all as intended.
2. Cross-check every {{placeholder}} against docyrus studio list-fields --appSlug crm --dataSourceSlug <bound-ds> --json — bare {{slug}} = real field; {{x.name}}/{{x.other}} = a sub-field of an expanded relation/enum/user field; {{#each y}} = an own array field or a child.{from}__{using} collection.
3. docyrus studio list-html-templates --appSlug crm --dataSourceSlug <ds> --json — the template appears under its binding (and as default if is_default).

Checklist detail in references/template-fields-and-rendering.md.

Test

Render against a real record (create a throwaway one if needed):

1. HTML render:

   docyrus ds create crm quotes --data '{"name":"ACME Quote","total":1500}' --json   # → RECORD_ID (or reuse a real one)
   docyrus curl "/v1/apps/crm/data-sources/quotes/items/RECORD_ID/templates/TEMPLATE_ID/html"
   

   Confirm every {{placeholder}} is filled and the markup is well-formed.
2. PDF render: hit the /pdf endpoint. In real environments this returns a PDF; in local dev the external html2pdf service may 500 — that's an environment limit, not a template error, so treat a clean /html render as the pass condition.
3. Default lookup: if is_default, confirm list-html-templates --isDefault true returns this template (there is no templates/default/... render path — render by the resolved id).
4. Placeholder boundary: include a {{nonexistent}} in a throwaway copy and confirm it renders empty (not an error).
5. Clean up: delete the throwaway record(s) and docyrus studio delete-html-template --templateId TEMPLATE_ID --json.

Full render/test playbook in references/template-fields-and-rendering.md.

References

• references/template-fields-and-rendering.md — Full field table (with the source_type/page_orientation option-set UUIDs and the format gotcha), the Handlebars context, the render endpoints (/html, /pdf, custom-PDF upload, default), a worked invoice/quote example, validation checklist, and the render test playbook.
• docyrus-automation-design — the generate-document action node that renders a template against a record inside a workflow. docyrus-email-template-design — the sibling email-template flow. docyrus-cli-app — CLI command index (docyrus studio …-html-template --help). docyrus-api-dev — REST client + its HTML-to-PDF helper.