Studio & developer guides

Requirements

• Node.js 20 or later and npm.
• Banow SDK and CLI version 0.1.0.
• A Banow account with access to Studio.

This guide uses banow-template-sdk-0.1.0.tgz and banow-template-cli-0.1.0.tgz. Obtain both files from the Banow team. Public npm installation is not currently available.

Create a template

Place both package files in an empty folder. Open a terminal in that folder and run:

npm install --offline --ignore-scripts --no-save --cache ./npm-cache ./banow-template-sdk-0.1.0.tgz ./banow-template-cli-0.1.0.tgz
node node_modules/@banow/template-cli/bin/banow-template.js create my-template
cd my-template
npm install --offline --ignore-scripts --save-exact --cache ../npm-cache ../banow-template-sdk-0.1.0.tgz
npm pkg set dependencies.@banow/template-sdk=0.1.0
npm install --offline --ignore-scripts --package-lock-only --cache ../npm-cache

Edit banow.template.mjs to define your pages, sections, fields and styles. Keep package-lock.json in the project. Uploaded projects support only the Banow SDK and CLI pinned to version 0.1.0.

Build and export

From the template folder, run:

node ../node_modules/@banow/template-cli/bin/banow-template.js validate
node ../node_modules/@banow/template-cli/bin/banow-template.js build
node ../node_modules/@banow/template-cli/bin/banow-template.js pack
node ../node_modules/@banow/template-cli/bin/banow-template.js bundle

• validate checks the template definition.
• build creates the rendering artifact.
• pack saves an immutable artifact in releases/.
• bundle creates a .banow-source.json file in releases/, containing editable source, declared images and starting settings.

Use the source bundle for Studio imports. Built artifact JSON, npm tarballs and ZIP/TAR archives are not editable source bundles. Add image declarations and image elements to your template before bundling; declaring a file alone does not display it on a page.

Import into Studio

1. Open Workspace → Projects (coming soon) and sign in.
2. Under Import and private templates, enter a project name.
3. Select the .banow-source.json file from your project's releases/ folder.
4. Click Import into Studio. Studio opens the project after its source has been validated and built.
5. Open Preview to view the design and Code to inspect its source.

Banow rebuilds the uploaded source before saving the project. Its fingerprint must match the bundle's expected fingerprint. If they differ, regenerate the bundle from your current files.

Edit a project

1. Open the project and select Code.
2. Edit banow.template.mjs or another supported source file.
3. Open Project controls and click Save & build.
4. Open Preview after the build finishes.

On narrow screens, use More options to access project controls. A failed build retains the last successful preview. Fix the source and rebuild, or restore an available checkpoint.

Save a private release

After a successful build, click Save private release in Project controls. Studio displays the saved version's fingerprint.

A private release preserves the exact source, settings, images and built artifact. Later edits to the working project do not change that release. Saving a private release does not publish a live store.

Fork a release

1. Return to Projects (coming soon).
2. Find the release under Your saved private releases.
3. Click Fork this version.
4. Edit the new project and use Save & build to apply changes.

The new project copies the selected saved version, even if the original working project has changed. Edits to the copy do not affect the original or saved release. Private releases are accessible only to their owner in the same business.

Upload limits

• Source: up to 500 files, 512KiB per file and 5MiB total. Supported extensions are .js, .mjs, .json and .css.
• Images: up to 40 PNG, JPEG or WebP files, 2MiB per image and 12MiB total.
• Bundle file: up to 23MiB in the browser. The complete request limit is 24MiB.

Use relative paths within the project. Duplicate or unsafe paths, links, unsupported dependencies, package install scripts and invalid images are rejected. See troubleshooting for failed imports and builds.

Local development

From the template folder, start a local preview with:

node ../node_modules/@banow/template-cli/bin/banow-template.js dev

Open the preview URL printed in the terminal. The local preview uses fixture products and cart data; it does not place real orders.

For a local Studio connection, run the CLI's studio command and enter its runner URL and temporary token in Studio. Local commands execute your source with your machine's permissions, so use trusted projects. The local runner is for development, not server deployment.