SDK: @dotcms/types Library

The @dotcms/types package contains TypeScript type definitions for the dotCMS ecosystem. Use it to enable type safety and an enhanced developer experience when working with dotCMS APIs and structured content.

📦 @dotcms/types on npm 🛠️ View source on GitHub

Overview#


When to Use It#

  • Building TypeScript applications with dotCMS
  • Enabling type safety in your dotCMS integrations
  • Getting better IDE autocomplete and error checking
  • Working with dotCMS Client SDK or other SDK packages

Key Benefits#

  • Type Safety: Catch errors at compile time instead of runtime
  • IDE Support: Rich autocomplete and inline documentation
  • Better Developer Experience: Clear interfaces for all dotCMS data structures
  • Framework Agnostic: Works with any TypeScript project

Installation#


npm install @dotcms/types@latest --save-dev

Commonly Used Types#


import {
  DotCMSPageAsset,
  DotCMSPageResponse,
  UVEEventType,
  DotCMSInlineEditingPayload,
  DotHttpClient,
  DotHttpError,
  DotErrorPage,
  DotErrorContent,
  DotErrorNavigation,
  DotErrorAISearch,
  DotCMSAISearchParams,
  DISTANCE_FUNCTIONS
} from '@dotcms/types';

Type Hierarchy (Jump to Definitions)#


⚠️ Experimental: The AI Search types are experimental and may undergo breaking changes in future releases.

AI Search Parameters:

TypeDescription
DotCMSAISearchParamsComplete AI search parameters including query and AI config
DotCMSAISearchQueryQuery parameters (limit, offset, contentType, etc.)
DotCMSAIConfigAI configuration (threshold, distanceFunction, responseLength)
DISTANCE_FUNCTIONSAvailable distance functions for vector similarity

AI Search Response:

TypeDescription
DotCMSAISearchResponseAI search API response structure
DotCMSAISearchContentletDataContentlet with AI match information
DotCMSAISearchMatchIndividual match with distance score and extracted text

AI Search Errors:

TypeDescription
DotErrorAISearchAI Search API specific error with prompt, indexName and params context

dotCMS Content & Pages#

Page:

TypeDescription
DotCMSPageAssetComplete page with layout and content
DotCMSPageCore page data
DotCMSPageResponseAPI response for page requests
DotGraphQLApiResponseGraphQL API response structure

Content:

TypeDescription
DotCMSBasicContentletBasic contentlet structure

Site & Layout:

TypeDescription
DotCMSSiteSite information
DotCMSTemplatePage templates
DotCMSLayoutPage layout structure
DotCMSPageAssetContainerContainer definitions

Navigation:

TypeDescription
DotCMSNavigationItemNavigation structure item with hierarchy support
DotCMSVanityUrlURL rewrites and vanity URLs
DotCMSURLContentMapURL to content mapping

Universal Visual Editor (UVE)#

Editor State:

TypeDescription
UVEStateCurrent editor state
UVE_MODEEditor modes (EDIT, PREVIEW, PUBLISHED)
DotCMSPageRendererModePage rendering modes

Editor Events:

TypeDescription
UVEEventHandlerEvent handler functions
UVEEventSubscriberEvent subscription management
UVEEventTypeAvailable event types
UVEEventPayloadMapEvent payload definitions

Inline Editing:

TypeDescription
DotCMSInlineEditingPayloadInline editing data
DotCMSInlineEditingTypeTypes of inline editing

Block Editor#

TypeDescription
BlockEditorContentBlock editor content structure
BlockEditorNodeIndividual blocks/nodes
BlockEditorMarkText formatting marks

Client & HTTP#

HTTP Client:

TypeDescription
DotHttpClientHTTP client interface for custom implementations
BaseHttpClientAbstract base class with error handling utilities

Client Configuration:

TypeDescription
DotCMSClientConfigClient configuration options
DotRequestOptionsHTTP request options
DotCMSPageRequestParamsPage request parameters
DotCMSGraphQLParamsGraphQL query parameters
DotCMSNavigationRequestParamsNavigation request options

Error Handling#

Base Error Types:

TypeDescription
HttpErrorDetailsHTTP error details interface
DotHttpErrorStandardized HTTP error class

Domain-Specific Errors:

TypeDescription
DotErrorPagePage API errors with GraphQL context
DotErrorContentContent API specific error handling
DotErrorNavigationNavigation API error handling
DotErrorAISearchAI Search API error handling with prompt and params

Usage Examples#


Error Type Checking#

import {
  DotHttpError,
  DotErrorPage,
  DotErrorContent,
  DotErrorNavigation,
  DotErrorAISearch
} from '@dotcms/types';

// Type-safe error handling
if (error instanceof DotHttpError) {
  // Access standardized HTTP error properties
  console.error(`HTTP ${error.status}: ${error.statusText}`);
  console.error('Response data:', error.data);
}

if (error instanceof DotErrorPage) {
  // Page-specific error with GraphQL context
  console.error('GraphQL query:', error.graphql?.query);
}

if (error instanceof DotErrorContent) {
  // Content-specific error context
  console.error(`${error.operation} failed for ${error.contentType}`);
}

if (error instanceof DotErrorAISearch) {
  // AI Search-specific error context
  console.error('AI Search failed for prompt:', error.prompt);
  console.error('Index name:', error.indexName);
  console.error('Search params:', error.params);
}

Note: For complete implementation examples and usage patterns, see the @dotcms/client package documentation.

Support#


We offer multiple channels to get help with the dotCMS Types library:

  • GitHub Issues: For bug reports and feature requests, please open an issue in the GitHub repository
  • Community Forum: Join our community discussions to ask questions and share solutions
  • Stack Overflow: Use the tag dotcms-types when posting questions
  • Enterprise Support: Enterprise customers can access premium support through the dotCMS Support Portal

When reporting issues, please include:

  • Package version you're using
  • TypeScript version
  • Minimal reproduction steps
  • Expected vs. actual behavior

Contributing#


GitHub pull requests are the preferred method to contribute code to dotCMS. We welcome contributions to the dotCMS Types library! If you'd like to contribute, please follow these steps:

  1. Fork the repository dotCMS/core
  2. Create a feature branch (git checkout -b feature/amazing-feature)
  3. Commit your changes (git commit -m 'Add some amazing feature')
  4. Push to the branch (git push origin feature/amazing-feature)
  5. Open a Pull Request

Please ensure your code follows the existing style and includes appropriate tests.

Changelog#


[1.3.0]#

✨ Added - AI Search Types (Experimental)#

⚠️ Experimental: AI Search types are experimental and may undergo breaking changes in future releases.

New AI Search Types:

  • DotCMSAISearchParams - Complete AI search parameters including query and AI config
  • DotCMSAISearchQuery - Query parameters (limit, offset, contentType, etc.)
  • DotCMSAIConfig - AI configuration (threshold, distanceFunction, responseLength)
  • DotCMSAISearchResponse<T> - AI search API response structure
  • DotCMSAISearchContentletData<T> - Contentlet with AI match information
  • DotCMSAISearchMatch - Individual match with distance score and extracted text
  • DotErrorAISearch - AI Search API specific error with prompt, indexName, and params context
  • DISTANCE_FUNCTIONS - Available distance functions for vector similarity (cosine, L2, inner product, etc.)

[1.1.1]#

Added#

  • DotHttpClient interface for custom HTTP client implementations
  • BaseHttpClient abstract class with built-in error handling utilities
  • DotHttpError class for standardized HTTP error handling
  • DotErrorPage class for page-specific errors with GraphQL query context
  • DotErrorContent class for content API errors with operation details
  • DotErrorNavigation class for navigation-specific error handling
  • DotGraphQLApiResponse interface for GraphQL API responses
  • HttpErrorDetails interface for HTTP error standardization
  • All error classes include toJSON() methods for easy logging and serialization

Changed#

  • Renamed RequestOptions to DotRequestOptions for better naming consistency
  • Renamed DotCMSGraphQLPageResponse to DotGraphQLApiResponse for clarity
  • Enhanced DotCMSClientConfig to support custom httpClient implementations

Licensing#


dotCMS is available under either the Business Source License 1.1 (BSL) or a commercial license.

Under the BSL, dotCMS can be used at no cost by individual developers, small businesses or agencies under $5M in total finances, and by larger organizations in non-production environments. Every BSL release automatically converts to GPL v3 four years after its release date. For full terms and FAQs, visit dotcms.com/bsl and dotcms.com/bsl-faq.

Production use in larger organizations, along with access to managed cloud, SLAs, support, and enterprise capabilities, is available under a commercial license from dotCMS. For details on commercial plans, features, and support options, see dotcms.com/pricing.

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