What is a Workspace?

A workspace is a convenient way of organizing your projects. A workspace is a directory on the file system that includes all of the source code and configuration files needed to make an application work, along with a Git repository for source control. Workspace directories are stored within the 'modules' sub-directory of the Profound.js installation directory. Workspaces from Profound.js can easily be deployed in the cloud on Profound.js Spaces and vice-versa. Use of workspaces in Profound.js is optional, but strongly encouraged. On Profound.js Spaces, all applications are organized into workspaces.

Creating a Workspace

To create a new workspace, use the option New→Workspace from the Home section of the ribbon:

Then enter a workspace name and description on the Create Workspace dialog:

The workspace is created and then automatically opened in the IDE.

Workspace Directory Structure

A workspace has the following directory structure. Note that you'll need to select Show Hidden in order to show all of the contents.

• Application source code files can go into the main workspace directory, or into sub-directories that you create. This example shows a new/empty workspace – there are no source code files yet.
• The '.git' directory contains the Git source control repository.
• The '.gitignore' file contains a list of files and directories to be ignored by Git. This is useful when your project contains files that you don't want to commit to source control, such as dependencies from NPM (node_modules), etc.
• The '.noderun' directory contains the workspace settings, which are stored in JSON files.
• The 'public' directory is where you can place static files that are designed to be served via HTTP, such as images, style sheets, client-side JavaScript files, etc.
• The 'README.md' file is a Markdown file that you can use to show a description of your project.

Adding Files and Directories

New files and directories can be added to the workspace by using the right-click options on the Files Tree:

Or by using the New File drop down options on the ribbon: 

And then saving the file into the workspace directory or a sub-directory, by clicking the Save button in the ribbon:

When a workspace is open in the IDE, the default save location will be the workspace directory:

Configuring Routes to Run Profound.js Modules

To run an application, you must first create one or more callable Profound.js modules. See here for instructions on creating a callable module. Then, you must configure a route (a URL path) that will be used to call the module. To configure routes, right-click on your Profound.js module file or Rich Display File JSON file in the files Tree and select Properties:

On the File Properties dialog, you can configure 2 different types of routes: 

• An App Start Route. There can be only 1 App Start Route in each workspace. This route runs a module when the URL specifies just the workspace name. The route can be either a stateful Rich Display File program, or a stateless Express program. For a stateful Rich Display File program, just click the App Start box:

For a stateless Express program, also check the Express Route Box and optionally select the desired HTTP method to respond to:

The Files Tree will display an icon next to the file associated with the App Start route, if configured:

• A Named Route. A workspace can contain any number of Named Routes. These routes run when the URL includes a route name, in addition to the workspace name. Named Routes can also be either stateful Rich Display File programs, or stateless Express programs. To set up a named route, check the Express Route box, uncheck the App Start Route box, select the desired HTTP method, and fill in the desired route name. Route names must be unique within the workspace. For a stateful Rich Display File program, set the HTTP Method to 'get' and check the Rich Display App box.

The Files Tree will display an icon next to any files associated with a Named Route: