shadpanel init

Initialize a new ShadPanel project or merge into an existing Next.js application.

Generated apps (CLI 1.5.0+) are Next.js 16 + React 19 + Better Auth. Apps already generated on 1.4.0 are not migrated.

Usage

npx shadpanel@latest init [project-name] [options]
# or, if installed globally:
shadpanel init [project-name] [options]

npx create-shadpanel-next is deprecated. Use shadpanel init.

Arguments

[project-name]

Project directory name.

• Optional: the CLI prompts if omitted
• Use . to install in the current directory (merge mode)

shadpanel init my-admin-panel
shadpanel init .  # current directory

Options

Package Manager

Installation Type

Authentication Providers

Other Options

--no-demos is the Commander flag (demos: false). --skip-demos is an alias.

Installation Types

Full Panel (Default)

shadpanel init my-app --full-panel

Includes:

• Next.js 16 project (next ^16, eslint-config-next ^16)
• Better Auth (better-auth ^1.7.2)
• proxy.ts (Node runtime)
• Dashboard with sidebar
• Vendored shadcn/ui components (50+)
• Form builder and data tables
• Optional demo pages
• Landing page

Auth Components

shadpanel init my-app --auth-components

Includes: Better Auth files, login/signup, UI components. Skips the base dashboard when merging, and skips the full Next.js scaffold when targeting ..

Components Only

shadpanel init my-app --components-only

Includes: UI components, form builder, data tables, lib/utils.ts, hooks. No authentication, no dashboard.

What Gets Created

Components only:

components/ui/
lib/utils.ts
hooks/

Auth components:

proxy.ts
app/admin/login/
app/admin/signup/
app/api/auth/[...all]/route.ts
lib/auth.ts
lib/auth-client.ts
components/login-form.tsx
components/signup-form.tsx
components/ui/

Full panel:

my-app/
├── proxy.ts
├── app/
│   ├── layout.tsx
│   ├── page.tsx
│   ├── admin/
│   │   ├── layout.tsx
│   │   ├── login/
│   │   ├── signup/
│   │   └── dashboard/
│   └── api/auth/[...all]/route.ts
├── components/
├── lib/
│   ├── utils.ts
│   ├── auth.ts
│   └── auth-client.ts
├── config/menu.ts
├── .env / .env.example
└── package.json

Auth env vars written at init:

BETTER_AUTH_URL=http://localhost:3000
BETTER_AUTH_SECRET=<generated>
GOOGLE_CLIENT_ID=
GOOGLE_CLIENT_SECRET=
GITHUB_CLIENT_ID=
GITHUB_CLIENT_SECRET=

Prisma files (prisma/schema.prisma, lib/prisma.ts) are added by shadpanel db init, not by init itself. Resource generation also emits lib/prisma.ts if needed.

Merging with Existing Projects

cd my-existing-nextjs-app
shadpanel init .

• Existing files are preserved
• Only missing ShadPanel files are added
• Base Next.js template is skipped when merging
• You are prompted before destructive changes

See Merging with Existing Projects.

Interactive Prompts

Without flags, init asks for:

1. Project name (if not provided)
2. Package manager
3. Installation type
4. Authentication (yes/no)
5. Auth providers
6. Include demos
7. Initialize git

--yes accepts defaults: npm, full panel, credentials auth, demo pages, git enabled.

Examples

shadpanel init my-app --yes
shadpanel init my-app --use-pnpm --google --github --no-demos
shadpanel init . --components-only
shadpanel init . --auth-components --google

Next Steps

1. cd my-app and npm run dev (or your package manager)
2. Optional: shadpanel db init
3. Add models, migrate, then shadpanel resource <Model>

See Also

• Quick Start
• Project Structure
• Authentication
• Database Commands