feat(data-transfer): add directory export/import format

[innerdvations]

What does it do?

• Adds directory-based Strapi Data Transfer (DTS) export/import: the CLI accepts an unpacked export directory (same layout as inside a .tar: metadata.json, schemas/, entities/, links/, configuration/, assets/, …) in addition to .tar / .tar.gz / .tar.enc archives.
• Introduces directory source (and related) providers in @strapi/data-transfer, wired through the public package surface and Strapi CLI import/export flow (including validation that a path looks like an unpacked export).
• Refactors the Strapi core CLI to load Inquirer via a small getInquirer() helper (cached dynamic import) instead of repeating await import('inquirer') at many call sites.
• Fixes @strapi/cloud-cli: deploy-project/action.ts no longer references a removed loadInquirer symbol (uses the same dynamic import pattern as elsewhere in that package).
• Moves e2e DTS fixtures under tests/e2e/data/ from committed .tar blobs to unpacked directories so JSON/JSONL and small metadata files are normal text diffs in Git; binary uploads stay under assets/uploads/ as before.
• Updates contributor / e2e documentation for the new fixture layout and import workflow.
• Adjusts tooling so fixture trees are not churned by repo-wide formatting: .prettierignore entries for tests/e2e/data/** and **/tmp-dts-export/** (e.g. examples/complex/tmp-dts-export), plus optional EditorConfig overrides for those paths so editor save behavior doesn’t fight fixture files.

Why is it needed?

• Unpacked directories make export/import fixtures easier to review, diff, and update in Git than opaque archives, while keeping the same on-disk layout Strapi already uses inside a transfer archive.
• Single, cached Inquirer load in the core CLI avoids duplicated dynamic imports and keeps ESM/CJS interop predictable across CLI commands.
• The cloud CLI build broke after removing loadInquirer; this restores a valid implementation without pulling core helpers into cloud-cli.
• Prettier / format-on-save was still touching metadata.json and similar files under example export trees; ignoring those paths prevents noisy EOF/newline-only diffs when running yarn prettier:write.

How to test it?

Environment: Node/Yarn as in the repo root; build Strapi packages if your workflow requires it (yarn setup / yarn build as you normally use for local dev).

Automated

• Unit tests: @strapi/data-transfer directory provider tests and Strapi CLI import/export/transfer/admin command tests that were updated on this branch.
• CLI tests: tests/cli/tests/strapi/data-transfer/ (export, import, roundtrip) — they exercise export → output.tar → import using the test app and e2e-backed seed data.
• E2e: run the Playwright suite or the subset that resets DB from tests/e2e/data (e.g. with-admin) if you touch import paths or fixtures.

Manual

• From a Strapi app, run strapi export to a filename (producing a .tar as today), then extract it and run strapi import -f /path/to/unpacked/dir (or point -f at the directory directly, per CLI help) and confirm import completes.
• Optionally compare behavior importing the same content as .tar vs unpacked directory (DB / admin content parity).
• Run yarn prettier:write and confirm tests/e2e/data/** and examples/complex/tmp-dts-export/** files are not rewritten (no spurious newline-only changes to metadata.json).

Related issue(s)/PR(s)

CMS-538

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Project	Deployment	Actions	Updated (UTC)
contributor-docs	Ready	Preview, Comment	Apr 2, 2026 9:12am

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[innerdvations]

@dosubot Only one label may be present on a PR at a time; if you add one, you must also remove one

[dosubot]

Hi! I'm Dosu and I'm helping the Strapi team. Thanks for the heads-up! I'll keep that in mind — only one label at a time on a PR, and if I add one, I need to remove the existing one first. Got it! 👍

To reply, just mention @dosu.

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[nclsndr]

Nice job @innerdvations 🙌
Managed to export / import with both archive and plain-files folder.

[innerdvations]

@pwizla No rush (as in, even if it takes a few weeks after we release this it's fine) but we might want documentation on the extra import/export options being added here

[butcherZ]

@pwizla No rush (as in, even if it takes a few weeks after we release this it's fine) but we might want documentation on the extra import/export options being added here

@pwizla this PR is perfect to test my plugin :D I just ran it myself and your Router identified everything correctly 😄