Guide to Add Custom Modules in ABP.IO App

If you want to extend your ABP. IO application with a custom module, like Vineforce.Test—this guide is for you. Whether you’re building a new feature or organizing your code into reusable parts, creating a custom module helps keep your application clean, scalable, and maintainable.

In this guide, we’ll walk through the full integration process step by step, covering both the backend and the Angular frontend. You’ll learn how to properly register the module, configure dependencies, and connect the UI layer to your logic. By the end, you’ll have a working module that’s fully integrated into your ABP.IO solution, following best practices.

No guesswork, no skipping steps, just a clear path to getting your custom module up and running.

Prerequisites

Step 1. Install ABP CLI.

If not already installed, run the following command.

dotnet tool install -g Volo.Abp.Cli

Step 2. Create the main Apb.io application with the name “Vineforce.Admin”

abp new Vineforce.Admin -t app -u angular -m none --separate-auth-server --database-provider ef -csf

Main Apb

It creates the structure of the backend of the main ABP application as follows.

Main ABP application

Step 3. Configure appsettings.json of the main ABP.IO

Edit the appsettings.json files in the two projects below to include the correct connection strings.

Projects

Vineforce.Admin.HttpApi.Host
Vineforce.Admin.DbMigrator

Step 4. Create the Module folder in the main application as Follow the official guide to create your module.

Official Guide

Module folder

If you choose Angular as the UI framework (by using the -u angular option), the generated solution will include a folder named angular. This folder contains all the client-side code for the application.

Example: A module named Vineforce.Test was created using the Angular UI option.

Step 1. When you open the Angular folder in an IDE, the folder structure will appear as follows.

Angular UI option

Step 2. And the backend structure is as follows.

Structure

Step 3. Configure appsettings.json.

Edit the appsettings.json file in the Host projects to include the correct connection strings.

Projects

Vineforce.Test.AuthServer
Vineforce.Test.HttpApi.Host
Vineforce.Test.Web.Unified

"ConnectionStrings": { "Default": "Server=servername;Database=Test_Main;Trusted_Connection=True;TrustServerCertificate=True", "Test": "Server=VINEFORCE-SHIVA;Database=Test_Module;Trusted_Connection=True;TrustServerCertificate=True" }

Make sure the server names and database details match your development environment.

Database details

Step 4. Apply Database Update.

In the Package Manager Console (under the EntityFrameworkCore project), run.

Update-Database

Apply Database Update

Step 5. Run the Application.

Set Vineforce.Test.Web.Unified as the startup project and launch the application using the default credentials.

Username: admin
Password: 1q2w3E*

Step 6. Ensure Redis Is Running.

Redis is used for distributed caching. Make sure Redis is installed and running before starting the application.

Step 7. Application Startup Order.

Run the following projects in order

*.AuthServer or *.IdentityServer
*.HttpApi.Host
*.Web.Unified

Step 8. Adding a Module to the Backend of the Main Application.

cd C:\Users\Vineforce\source\repos\AbpAdmin

Step 9. Add All Required Projects of the module to the Main ABP.IO Solution.

Required Projects

To include various parts of your module (such as Domain, Application, EntityFrameworkCore, and HttpApi) in the main ABP solution, run the following commands.

dotnet sln add modules\vineforce.test\src\Vineforce.Test.Domain\Vineforce.Test.Domain.csproj
dotnet sln add modules\vineforce.test\src\Vineforce.Test.Application\Vineforce.Test.Application.csproj
dotnet sln add modules\vineforce.test\src\Vineforce.Test.EntityFrameworkCore\Vineforce.Test.EntityFrameworkCore.csproj
dotnet sln add modules\vineforce.test\src\Vineforce.Test.HttpApi\Vineforce.Test.HttpApi.csproj

Projects are added as follows.

Projects

Add Project References Using Visual Studio

In the Vineforce.Admin.HttpApi.Host project: Right-click the project and select “Add” → “Project Reference”.

Step 1. In the dialog that appears, check the following projects.

Vineforce.Test.Application
Vineforce.Test.EntityFrameworkCore
Vineforce.Test.HttpApi

Step 2. Click OK to confirm and add the references.

Click OK

Step 3. After adding the project > reference, here you can add all module references you want.

Reference

Project vineforce

In AdminHttpApiHostModule.cs, update the [DependsOn(...)] attribute:.

typeof(TestHttpApiModule),
typeof(TestApplicationModule),
typeof(TestEntityFrameworkCoreModule),
typeof(TestDomainSharedModule)

Also, add the necessary using statements.

using Vineforce.Test;
using Vineforce.Test.EntityFrameworkCore;

Statements

Configure the Module in the EntityFrameworkCore Project

To ensure that schema, table mappings, and other Entity Framework configurations from the module are applied in the main ABP.IO application, follow these steps.

Add a Project Reference.

Right-click on the Vineforce.Admin.EntityFrameworkCore project.
Select Add → Project Reference.
Check and add: Vineforce.Test.EntityFrameworkCore

Project Reference

Name

Update the DbContext Configuration

Open AdminDbContext.cs.
Inside the OnModelCreating method, add the following line to apply the module’s configuration.

builder.ConfigureTest();

AdminDbContext

Entity

You can verify this by navigating to Vineforce.Test.The EntityFrameworkCore module and opening the TestDbContext class.

TestDbContext class

Framework

Apply Migrations to Update the Database Schema

After completing the integration steps, you need to apply Entity Framework migrations to reflect the module’s schema changes in the database.

Option 1. Using PowerShell or Terminal.

Open a PowerShell or terminal window.
Navigate to the EntityFrameworkCore project directory of your main application, for example:cd src/Vineforce.Admin.EntityFrameworkCore.
Run the following command to create a new migration.

dotnet ef migrations add Add_Test_Module

Option 2. Using the Package Manager Console in Visual Studio.

Open the Package Manager Console (Tools → NuGet Package Manager → Package Manager Console).
Set the Default Project to src\Vineforce.Admin.EntityFrameworkCore.
Run the following command.

PM> Add-Migration Add_Test_Module

This will generate a new migration that includes all Entity Framework changes from the integrated module.

Entity Framework changes

Then run the following command to apply the migration and update the database.

Update-Database

Steps to add the module application to the main ABP.IO application

Step 1. Build the Angular Module.

Navigate to the module’s frontend directory and build the module using the Angular CLI.

ng build test --configuration production

This command compiles the test Angular module in production mode and outputs the build artifacts to the dist folder.

Test Angular module

Output folder: C:\Users\Vineforce\source\repos\AbpAdmin\modules\Vineforce.Test\angular\dist

Output folder

Step 2. Copy Module Output to Main App.

Go to your main app’s angular folder: C:\Users\Vineforce\source\repos\AbpAdmin\angular
Create a project folder inside it.
Copy the test folder from the dist directory into the projects.
Final path: C:\Users\Vineforce\source\repos\AbpAdmin\angular\projects\test

Copy Module

Test

Step 3. Update App Routing.

Open app-routing.module.ts in the main app

C:\Users\Vineforce\source\repos\AbpAdmin\angular\src\app\app-routing.module.ts.

In app-routing.module.ts, import the module’s routing configuration and add it to the main route definitions.

{
  path: 'test',
  loadChildren: () =>
    import('test').then(m => m.TestModule.forLazy())
}

Step 4. Link the Module in package.json

Open the package.json file having path C:\Users\Vineforce\source\repos\AbpAdmin\angular add the following line under the “dependencies” section to link your local module.