Custom Angular Project Structure Generation

[HarshadSonagara]

Which @angular/* package(s) are relevant/related to the feature request?

compiler-cli

Description

Currently, when creating a new Angular project using the Angular CLI (ng new), the CLI generates a fixed default folder structure. While this structure works well for simple applications, most real-world and enterprise Angular projects require a custom architecture from the beginning.

In practice, developers and teams often need to manually restructure the generated project to follow their preferred architecture, such as separating folders for auth, features, shared, and core. This manual setup process is repetitive, time-consuming, and can lead to inconsistencies across projects and teams.

I would like to propose a feature (or supporting tool) that allows developers to define their Angular project architecture before project generation.

Proposed solution

Provide a simple and interactive way to generate an Angular project with a custom structure instead of the default Angular CLI layout.

The proposed flow would be:

Ask the developer which Angular version they want to use when creating the project

Ask whether the project should be module-based or standalone (component-based)

Allow the developer to define their own main folder structure

For example, a developer may want the following top-level folders:

core

shared

features

layout

The developer should be able to fully manage and customize these folders, including creating subfolders inside them based on project needs.

After defining the configuration and folder structure, the tool should generate the Angular project automatically. When the developer runs a single command or clicks a generate button, the Angular project should be created according to the selected version, architecture type, and custom folder structure.

This approach would give developers full flexibility, reduce manual setup work, and help maintain a consistent project architecture from the beginning.

Alternatives considered

N/A

[geromegrignon]

I would not call enterprise structure a 'custom' one compared to the default one because there is nothing at all by default: just a src/app folder with a component. From this default structure you are free to create your own, it's not about 'restructure'.

The developer should be able to fully manage and customize these folders

These are just folders you can create, i don't understand the 'manage/customize' part, it's not like creating folders was an Angular feature.

If you are going module-based while creating a new project, there is an issue: going standalone is not only about how to structure apps but unlocking some features not available for non-standalone, such as defer, component lazy loading or hostDirectives. Going otherwise for the Angular team would also mean to maintain two different versions of the docs.

About the specific version, if you have some specific needs not to use the latest one, you can set it in the command itself: npm create @angular@17.0.0.

In my opinion, the best solution is to enforce rules through documentation files you can pass to AI tools if needed.

I might miss some context but it kinda feel like you are currently using some non official generator, creating way more content than the default ng new command.

[geromegrignon]

This manual setup process is repetitive, time-consuming, and can lead to inconsistencies across projects and teams.

For companies creating a lot of Angular projects, I know they built their own generator on top of the Angular CLI ng new one.
An Angular library can expose schematics, using the official one under the hood. So the output is exactly what they need, adding docker files, auth, structure, libraries...

[JoostK]

The CLI provides the ability to do code generation using (custom) schematics, which allows for customizations however you see fit.