The model

An application is described by one YAML document. Every tool reads the same document: both generators, the eml command line, the modelling tool and the in-browser bundle.

Two forms, one meaning

Form	File	Use it when
CEDM model	*.cedm.yaml, opens with cedm:	You want to import entities from the CEDM library and add your own.
Model document	*.eml.yaml, opens with eml:	You want to write every entity yourself.

A CEDM model is lowered into a model document before it is compiled, so both forms generate the same application. appwithai convert turns one into the other.

cedm: "1.0"
application:
  name: Sales and Order Management
  domain: sales
imports:
  - module: common          # the shared foundation: parties, places, currencies…
  - entity: Customer
  - entity: SalesOrder
ui:
  categories:
    - name: Sales
      icon: badge-dollar-sign
      entities: [Customer, SalesOrder]

What a model can declare

Section (model document)	Declares
entities	Records, their attributes, help text, form sections, icons and parent entities
enums	Value lists, with labels and descriptions for each value
relationships	How entities relate; the key goes on the right side automatically
categories	How entities are grouped on the dashboard
stateMachines	Which moves a record may make between states
rules	Business rules on lifecycle events, compiled to GoRules decision graphs
sagas	Multi-step processes, compiled to BPMN
automations	A trigger, conditions that must all hold, and ordered steps
rbac	Restrictions on operations and moves, by role
hooks	Points where your own Rust code runs around reads and writes
reports and dashboards	Read-only queries shipped with the application
triggers	External events and schedules that call a handler

A CEDM model expresses the same things in the library's terms: imports, entities, enums, ui, authorization, rules, processes, automations, hooks, triggers, reports and dashboards.

Checked before anything is generated

Reading a model runs three layers, in order:

1. YAML. Version 1.2, and a duplicate key is an error, not a silent overwrite.
2. The schema. What a document may contain, with types and allowed values.
3. The checker. Cross-references the schema cannot express: an edge between two states that exist, a rule that reads only real columns, a report that is a single read.

Every finding names its document path, line and column. Many have an automatic repair that keeps the author's comments.

Help is part of the model

The help written on an entity, attribute, value or relationship becomes the application's built-in help: on its window, its tab and every field. Write it for the person using the screen.