SuiteCloud Development Framework: Environment setup, commands, and SuiteApp deployment guide

SuiteCloud Development Framework (SDF) is NetSuite’s framework for customizing, extending, and deploying SuiteApps. It enables developers to build solutions locally using familiar tools and then seamlessly push changes to NetSuite environments.

For developers, mastering the essential SDF commands is critical. In this guide, you’ll learn how to set up your environment, install required tools, create a project, and use the most important commands for validation, deployment, and ongoing SuiteApp management. In this blog, we will cover the following topics:

• What is SuiteCloud Development Framework (SDF)?
• Setting up SuiteCloud CLI
• Installing SuiteCloud Extension for Visual Studio Code
• Creating a new SDF project
• Authenticating with NetSuite
• Importing objects to your project
• Validating your project
• Deploying changes to NetSuite
• Other useful commands

SuiteCloud Development Framework (SDF) is a file-based development framework for NetSuite. Companies can leverage this framework to create SDF SuiteApps or customize your NetSuite account, using an IDE from your local computer.

There are two types of SuiteCloud projects:

1. Account Customization Project – modify an individual NetSuite account
2. SuiteApp Project – develop a distributable SuiteApp

Both projects are file-based and use XML definition of SDF custom objects representing NetSuite objects and record types such as custom records, forms, and workflows.

To get started, the following tools will need to be installed on your machine: 

• SuiteCloud CLI for Node.js 
• SuiteCloud Extension for Visual Studio Code 
• SuiteCloud Unit Testing (optional) 

Run this command in your terminal to install SuiteCloud CLI globally:

npm install -g @oracle/suitecloud-cli

This CLI is the core of SDF development, allowing you to create projects, manage authentication, import objects, validate code, and deploy changes.

To install the SuiteCloud extension for Visual Studio Code, follow the steps below:

1. Open Visual Studio Code
2. Go to Extensions
3. Search for SuiteCloud Extension for Visual Studio Code
4. Click Install

This extension provides code completion, debugging, and project templates directly inside VS Code.

To start a new SuiteCloud project in Visual Studio Code, follow the steps below:

1. Navigate to the project folder in the Terminal, and enter the following command:

   suitecloud project:create -i

2. Select Account Customization Project
3. Enter the name of the project 
4. If you want to install Jest for Unit Testing, select Yes 

After setup, open the new project folder in VS Code. Two important files appear in the structure:

• manifest.xml – defines the project’s configuration
• deploy.xml – controls deployment details

Authentication is required to connect your local project to a NetSuite account. Run:

suitecloud account:setup

Enter your NetSuite credentials and follow the prompts to establish your authentication profile.

This allows the local project to connect to a NetSuite account to import objects, deploy code or check dependencies. When run, it allows the user to authenticate using two methods: browser-based (the command line delegates control to the browser, and the user can select an account already logged there) or using TBA (entering authentication tokens corresponding to an Integration Record present in the account).

Once the authentication ID is created, it’s stored and can be used in different projects without the need to authenticate again. Every time a command is run that needs to connect to an account, it will use the selected authentication ID. Feel free to create multiple authentication IDs corresponding to your partner TSTDRV accounts. They can be useful for testing your customizations in different environments.

Run the following command to import objects from NetSuite to your project: 

suitecloud object:import -i 

Once the account is set up in the project, objects can be imported into your project using the command above. Use the interactive prompts to specify the type of objects you want to import. Once the object is specified, an xml with the object’s definition is created in the project’s Object folder. 

Create a new account profile for the target environment. Once a profile is created, run the validate command to validate the integrity of your code and project objects: 

suitecloud project:validate 

This checks for errors or missing dependencies. If your project is missing dependencies, use the following command: 

suitecloud project:adddependencies 

This command will verify that the account is configured correctly and that the project requires the necessary features before deployment. The manifest.xml file at the root of the project is automatically modified to reflect this. 

Validate the project again to confirm that the project has been validated successfully. 

Once your project is validated, deploy it to the target account with:

suitecloud project:deploy

This publishes your customizations or SuiteApp to NetSuite, making them available in the environment.

• List of all commands:
  suitecloud –help
• View configured accounts:
  suitecloud account:manageauth –list
• Help for deploy command:
  suitecloud project:deploy –help

These code examples illustrate the most essential commands for developing with NetSuite SDF, from setting up your environment and project to deploying customizations and managing SuiteApps. With these commands and examples, developers can begin harnessing the power of SuiteCloud Development Framework to build, validate, and deliver robust NetSuite solutions.

At Rand Group, we combine technical depth with real-world business expertise. We help organizations implement, optimize, and extend NetSuite with custom development, integrations, and ongoing support. Whether you’re creating your first project or managing enterprise-scale SuiteApps, our team ensures your solutions are scalable, reliable, and built for long-term success.

Contact Rand Group today to discuss how we can help maximize your NetSuite investment.