route-visualizer

Use this skill when inspecting all registered ColdBox routes using the route-visualizer module. Covers installation as a development dependency, accessing the route-visualizer UI, understanding the route table output, and restricting access to development environments.

Route Visualizer Skill

When to Use This Skill

Load this skill when:

  • Debugging route registration and handler mapping in a ColdBox application
  • Verifying that REST API routes are correctly defined and ordered
  • Checking which HTTP methods, patterns, and actions are registered
  • Onboarding new developers to understand the application's URL structure

Installation

Install as a development-only dependency:

box install route-visualizer --saveDev

Accessing the Route Visualizer

Once installed, navigate to:

http://localhost:8500/route-visualizer

The visualizer displays all registered routes including:

  • HTTP method(s) allowed
  • URL pattern
  • Handler and action target
  • Route name
  • Module (if applicable)
  • Middleware assigned

Module-Specific Routes

To view routes for a specific module:

http://localhost:8500/route-visualizer?module=api

Filtering Routes

The UI supports text-based filtering. Use the search box to filter by path, handler, or name.

Best Practices

  • Install with --saveDev — should never be present in production environments
  • Restrict to development only — confirm the module is listed under devDependencies in box.json, not dependencies
  • Verify route ordering — ColdBox routes are first-match-wins; use the visualizer to catch shadowing
  • Use before deploying to confirm all expected API routes are registered after router changes
  • Do not commit --savedev installs to shared production boxes — use box.json environment scoping

box.json Example

{
    "devDependencies": {
        "route-visualizer": "^1.0.0"
    }
}

Documentation