Scaffold Project Skill

Overview

This skill creates new Aptos dApp projects by bootstrapping directly from official templates using degit . This approach provides clean copies of production-ready templates without git history.

Project Types

Type Template Use Case

Fullstack dApp boilerplate-template

Frontend + smart contracts

Contract-only contract-boilerplate-template

Smart contracts without frontend

Fullstack dApp Scaffolding

Step 1: Bootstrap with degit

Bootstrap fullstack template (no git history)

npx degit aptos-labs/create-aptos-dapp/templates/boilerplate-template my-dapp

cd my-dapp

Note: The degit command references a specific template path in the aptos-labs/create-aptos-dapp repository. If you encounter errors, verify the template path exists at https://github.com/aptos-labs/create-aptos-dapp/tree/main/templates

Step 2: Configure Environment

Create .env file with the following variables:

Create .env file

cat > .env << 'EOF' PROJECT_NAME=my-dapp VITE_APP_NETWORK=devnet VITE_APTOS_API_KEY="" VITE_MODULE_PUBLISHER_ACCOUNT_ADDRESS=

This is the module publisher account's private key.

Be cautious about who you share it with, and ensure it is not exposed when deploying your dApp.

VITE_MODULE_PUBLISHER_ACCOUNT_PRIVATE_KEY= EOF

Configure the values:

• PROJECT_NAME

• Your project name

• VITE_APP_NETWORK

• Network to use (devnet , testnet , or mainnet )

• VITE_APTOS_API_KEY

• Optional API key from Aptos Labs

• VITE_MODULE_PUBLISHER_ACCOUNT_ADDRESS

• Your deployer account address (set after aptos init )

• VITE_MODULE_PUBLISHER_ACCOUNT_PRIVATE_KEY

• Your deployer private key (from ~/.aptos/config.yaml )

⚠️ CRITICAL: Ensure .env is in .gitignore :

Verify .env is gitignored (should already be there)

grep -q "^.env$" .gitignore || echo ".env" >> .gitignore

Step 3: Update Move.toml

Edit contract/Move.toml with your project name:

[package] name = "my_dapp" # Your project name version = "1.0.0" authors = []

[addresses] my_dapp_addr = "_" # Will be set during deployment

[dev-addresses] my_dapp_addr = "0xCAFE" # For testing

[dependencies] AptosFramework = { git = "https://github.com/aptos-labs/aptos-framework.git", rev = "mainnet", subdir = "aptos-framework" }

Step 4: Install Dependencies

npm install

Step 5: Initialize Git

git init git add . git commit -m "Initial commit: Bootstrap Aptos dApp from boilerplate template"

Step 6: Verify Setup

Compile Move contracts

npm run move:compile

Run Move tests

npm run move:test

Start frontend development server

npm run dev

Fullstack Project Structure

my-dapp/ ├── frontend/ │ ├── components/ # React UI components │ ├── entry-functions/ # Write operations (transactions) │ ├── view-functions/ # Read operations (queries) │ ├── lib/ # Shared libraries (wallet, aptos client) │ ├── utils/ # Helpers │ ├── App.tsx │ ├── constants.ts │ └── main.tsx ├── contract/ │ ├── sources/ # Move modules │ ├── tests/ # Move tests │ └── Move.toml ├── scripts/move/ # Deployment scripts ├── package.json # npm scripts for move:compile, move:test, etc. ├── .env # Environment variables (NEVER commit!) ├── .gitignore # Must include .env └── [config files] # vite, tailwind, typescript, etc.

Key Directories Explained

Directory Purpose

frontend/entry-functions/

Transaction payloads for write operations

frontend/view-functions/

Queries for read operations

frontend/lib/

Aptos client and wallet provider setup

contract/sources/

Move smart contract modules

scripts/move/

Deployment and utility scripts

Contract-Only Scaffolding

Step 1: Bootstrap with degit

Bootstrap contract-only template

npx degit aptos-labs/create-aptos-dapp/templates/contract-boilerplate-template my-contract

cd my-contract

Step 2: Configure Environment

Create .env file with the following variables:

Create .env file

cat > .env << 'EOF' PROJECT_NAME=my-contract VITE_APP_NETWORK=devnet VITE_APTOS_API_KEY="" VITE_MODULE_PUBLISHER_ACCOUNT_ADDRESS=

This is the module publisher account's private key.

Be cautious about who you share it with, and ensure it is not exposed when deploying your dApp.

VITE_MODULE_PUBLISHER_ACCOUNT_PRIVATE_KEY= EOF

Ensure .env is gitignored

grep -q "^.env$" .gitignore || echo ".env" >> .gitignore

Step 3: Update Move.toml

Edit contract/Move.toml :

[package] name = "my_contract" version = "1.0.0"

[addresses] my_contract_addr = "_"

[dev-addresses] my_contract_addr = "0xCAFE"

[dependencies] AptosFramework = { git = "https://github.com/aptos-labs/aptos-framework.git", rev = "mainnet", subdir = "aptos-framework" }

Step 4: Install & Verify

npm install

Compile

npm run move:compile

Test

npm run move:test

Step 5: Initialize Git

git init git add . git commit -m "Initial commit: Bootstrap Aptos contract from template"

Contract-Only Project Structure

my-contract/ ├── contract/ │ ├── sources/ # Move modules │ ├── tests/ # Move tests │ └── Move.toml ├── scripts/move/ # Deployment scripts ├── package.json # npm scripts ├── .env # Environment variables (NEVER commit!) └── .gitignore # Must include .env

Available npm Scripts

Both templates include these npm scripts:

Move development

npm run move:compile # Compile Move contracts npm run move:test # Run Move tests npm run move:publish # Publish to network (uses .env)

Fullstack only

npm run dev # Start frontend dev server npm run build # Build for production

Alternative: Manual Move-Only Setup

For pure Move development without the npm wrapper, use aptos move init :

Initialize Move project

aptos move init --name my_module

Configure Move.toml manually

Create sources/ and tests/ directories

See the "Move-Only Reference" section below for detailed manual setup.

Quick Reference Commands

Fullstack dApp (Recommended)

Bootstrap and setup

npx degit aptos-labs/create-aptos-dapp/templates/boilerplate-template my-dapp cd my-dapp npm install git init

Then create .env manually (see Step 2 above) - NEVER commit .env!

Contract-Only

Bootstrap and setup

npx degit aptos-labs/create-aptos-dapp/templates/contract-boilerplate-template my-contract cd my-contract npm install git init

Then create .env manually (see Step 2 above) - NEVER commit .env!

Post-Scaffolding Checklist

After bootstrapping, complete these steps:

• Create .env file with required variables (see Step 2)

• Verify .env is in .gitignore

• Update Move.toml with project name and address alias

• Run aptos init to create deployer account

• Add account address and private key to .env

• Verify compilation: npm run move:compile

• Verify tests pass: npm run move:test

• Initialize git repository

• (Fullstack) Verify frontend runs: npm run dev

⚠️ Before committing: Double-check that .env is NOT staged (git status )

Move-Only Reference (Manual Setup)

For cases where you need manual Move setup without templates:

Initialize

aptos move init --name my_module

Configure Move.toml

[package] name = "my_module" version = "1.0.0"

[addresses] my_addr = "_"

[dev-addresses] my_addr = "0xCAFE"

[dependencies] AptosFramework = { git = "https://github.com/aptos-labs/aptos-framework.git", rev = "mainnet", subdir = "aptos-framework" }

Create Module

// sources/main.move module my_addr::main { use std::signer;

struct Counter has key {
    value: u64
}

public entry fun init_counter(account: &signer) {
    move_to(account, Counter { value: 0 });
}

public entry fun increment(account: &signer) acquires Counter {
    let counter = borrow_global_mut<Counter>(signer::address_of(account));
    counter.value = counter.value + 1;
}

}

Verify

aptos move compile aptos move test

ALWAYS Rules

• ✅ ALWAYS use degit for bootstrapping (clean copy, no git history)

• ✅ ALWAYS use the boilerplate-template for fullstack dApps

• ✅ ALWAYS update Move.toml with your project name and address alias

• ✅ ALWAYS create .env file with required environment variables

• ✅ ALWAYS ensure .env is listed in .gitignore

• ✅ ALWAYS run npm install after bootstrapping

• ✅ ALWAYS verify compilation and tests pass

• ✅ ALWAYS initialize git after setup

• ✅ ALWAYS use named addresses (myaddr = "")

NEVER Rules

• ❌ NEVER commit .env to git (contains private keys!)

• ❌ NEVER push .env to GitHub or any remote repository

• ❌ NEVER share your VITE_MODULE_PUBLISHER_ACCOUNT_PRIVATE_KEY

• ❌ NEVER skip Move.toml configuration

• ❌ NEVER use hardcoded addresses in code

• ❌ NEVER skip verifying compilation after scaffolding

• ❌ NEVER read .env files after creation — to verify existence, use ls -la .env not cat .env

• ❌ NEVER display VITE_MODULE_PUBLISHER_ACCOUNT_PRIVATE_KEY values in responses

• ❌ NEVER run git add . or git add -A until .gitignore contains .env — always verify first

Template Sources

Template GitHub URL

Fullstack https://github.com/aptos-labs/create-aptos-dapp/tree/main/templates/boilerplate-template

Contract-only https://github.com/aptos-labs/create-aptos-dapp/tree/main/templates/contract-boilerplate-template

References

Official Documentation:

• CLI Reference: https://aptos.dev/build/cli

• Move.toml: https://aptos.dev/build/cli/working-with-move-contracts

• TypeScript SDK: https://aptos.dev/sdks/ts-sdk

Related Skills:

• write-contracts

• Write Move modules after scaffolding

• generate-tests

• Create test suite

• connect-contract-to-frontend

• Wire up frontend to contracts

• integrate-wallet-adapter

• Add wallet connection

Remember: Use degit for clean bootstrapping. The boilerplate template provides the best starting point for custom dApps.