Build Validate
Validate code components before deployment to catch issues early.
When to Use This Skill
Use when:
- User is about to deploy and wants to check for issues first
- Proactively before running
webflow library share - User asks to validate, check, or verify their components
- After making significant changes to components
Do NOT use when:
- Deployment already failed (use troubleshoot-deploy instead)
- Just building for local development
- Auditing code quality (use component-audit instead)
Instructions
Phase 1: Project Structure Check
-
Verify webflow.json exists:
- Check for required fields (
library.name,library.components) - Validate glob pattern matches component files — the recommended pattern is
"./src/**/*.webflow.@(js|jsx|mjs|ts|tsx)"covering all supported extensions - Check
globalspath if specified — file must exist and be importable - Check
bundleConfigpath if specified — file must exist
- Check for required fields (
-
Check dependencies:
- Verify
@webflow/webflow-cliinstalled - Verify
@webflow/data-typesinstalled - Verify
@webflow/reactinstalled - Check for version compatibility (check installed versions, don't assume specific versions)
- Verify
-
Verify component files:
- Find all
.webflow.tsx/.webflow.tsfiles matching the glob pattern - Ensure matching React components exist
- Check for orphaned definition files
- Find all
-
Validate imports in
.webflow.tsxfiles:- Must import
declareComponentfrom@webflow/react - Must import
propsfrom@webflow/data-types(if props are defined) - Must import the actual React component being declared
- Must import
Phase 2: Component Analysis
-
For each component, check:
declareComponentis called with the component and a config objectnameis provided in the config- All props have
nameproperties and appropriatedefaultValuewhere applicable - Prop types are valid — the 11 supported types are:
- Text (alias: String) — single line text input
- RichText — multi-line text with formatting
- TextNode — single/multi-line text editable on canvas
- Link — URL input (returns
{ href, target, preload }object) - Image — image upload and selection
- Number — numeric input
- Boolean — true/false toggle
- Variant — dropdown with predefined options (requires
optionsarray) - Visibility — show/hide controls
- Slot — content areas for child components
- ID — HTML element ID
-
Validate component options:
- If
optionsobject is present, validate:applyTagSelectorsis a boolean (default:false) — enables site tag selectors in Shadow DOMssris a boolean (default:true) — controls server-side rendering
- If
-
Check for SSR issues:
- Scan for browser-only API usage outside of
useEffector guarded blocks:window,document,localStorage,sessionStorage,navigator
- Flag dynamic/personalized content patterns (user-specific dashboards, authenticated views)
- Flag heavy/interactive UI that doesn't benefit from SSR (charts, 3D scenes, maps, animation-heavy elements)
- Flag non-deterministic output (random numbers, time-based values that differ server vs client)
- Suggest
ssr: falsein options if component is purely interactive or browser-dependent
- Scan for browser-only API usage outside of
-
Check styling:
- Verify styles are imported in
.webflow.tsxor via globals file - Check for site class usage — site classes do NOT work in Shadow DOM
- Site variables DO work:
var(--variable-name, fallback) - Inherited CSS properties DO work:
font-family: inherit - Tag selectors work IF
applyTagSelectors: trueis set in component options - Validate CSS-in-JS setup if used (see CSS-in-JS detection below)
- Verify styles are imported in
-
Check for Shadow DOM + React Context issues:
- If a component uses slots (
props.Slot) AND imports/usesuseContextor a Context Provider:- Warn that parent and child components in slots cannot share React Context — each child renders in its own Shadow DOM with a separate React root
- Suggest alternatives: Nano Stores, custom events, URL parameters, or browser storage
- If a component uses slots (
Phase 3: Build Test
-
Run TypeScript/build check:
- Check for TypeScript compilation errors
- Verify all imports resolve correctly
- Identify any build-time issues
-
Check bundle size:
- If a build output exists, verify total bundle size is under 50MB (maximum bundle limit)
- If over limit, flag as error and suggest optimization
-
Run local bundle test (optional, suggest to user):
- Suggest running
npx webflow library bundle --public-path http://localhost:4000/to test bundling before sharing - If bundling issues occur, suggest
--debug-bundlerflag to inspect the final webpack config
- Suggest running
Phase 4: Detect Framework-Specific Setup
-
CSS-in-JS library detection:
- If project uses styled-components: verify
@webflow/styled-components-utilsis installed andstyledComponentsShadowDomDecoratoris exported from globals decorators array - If project uses Emotion or Material UI (
@emotion/styled,@emotion/react,@mui/material): verify@webflow/emotion-utilsis installed andemotionShadowDomDecoratoris exported from globals decorators array
- If project uses styled-components: verify
-
Tailwind CSS detection:
- If project uses Tailwind CSS (
tailwindcssin dependencies):- Verify
@tailwindcss/postcssis installed - Verify
postcss.config.mjsexists with@tailwindcss/postcssplugin - Verify Tailwind CSS is imported in globals file (e.g.,
@import "tailwindcss"in globals.css)
- Verify
- If project uses Tailwind CSS (
-
Sass/Less preprocessor detection:
- If project uses Sass (
.scssfiles orsassin dependencies): verifysassandsass-loaderare installed, and a webpack config adds the.scssrule - If project uses Less (
.lessfiles orlessin dependencies): verifylessandless-loaderare installed, and a webpack config adds the.lessrule - For either: verify
bundleConfigis set inwebflow.jsonpointing to the webpack config
- If project uses Sass (
-
Webpack custom config validation (if
bundleConfigis specified):- Verify the file exists at the specified path
- Verify it uses CommonJS exports (
module.exports) - Warn if it attempts to override blocked properties:
entry,output,target(these are silently filtered out) - Verify
module.rulesuses function syntax(currentRules) => { ... }, not an array
Phase 5: Report Results
- Generate validation report:
- List all checks performed
- Show passed/failed/warning status
- Provide fix suggestions for failures
- Indicate deployment readiness
Validation Checks
Required Checks
| Check | Severity | Description |
|---|---|---|
| webflow.json exists | Error | Required for CLI |
| Dependencies installed | Error | @webflow/webflow-cli, @webflow/data-types, @webflow/react |
| Component files exist | Error | React + definition files present |
| declareComponent called | Error | Required in .webflow.tsx with correct imports |
| Valid prop types | Error | Only the 11 supported types (Text/String, RichText, TextNode, Link, Image, Number, Boolean, Variant, Visibility, Slot, ID) |
| Build succeeds | Error | No compilation errors |
| Bundle size < 50MB | Error | Maximum bundle limit enforced by Webflow |
Warning Checks
| Check | Severity | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Props have defaults | Warning | Better designer experience |
| SSR compatibility | Warning | Browser APIs, dynamic content, heavy UI, non-deterministic output |
| Styles imported | Warning | Styles may not appear in Shadow DOM |
| Site class usage | Warning | Site classes don't work in Shadow DOM — use component-specific classes |
| Shadow DOM + Context | Warning | Slots prevent React Context sharing between parent/child |
| CSS-in-JS decorator | Warning | styled-components/Emotion need Shadow DOM decorators |
| Tailwind setup | Warning | Missing postcss config or globals import |
| Sass/Less setup | Warning | Missing loaders or webpack config |
| Webpack blocked props | Warning | entry, output, target overrides are silently ignored |
| Webpack rules format | Warning | Must use function syntax, not array |
| Component options | Warning | applyTagSelectors and ssr must be booleans |
| Glob pattern coverage | Warning | Pattern should cover all supported extensions (.js, .jsx, .mjs, .ts, .tsx) |
| bundleConfig file | Warning | File must exist if specified in webflow.json |
Info Checks
| Check | Severity | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Component count | Info | Number of components |
| Prop count | Info | Props per component |
| Bundle size | Info | Current bundle size vs 50MB limit |
| Frameworks detected | Info | CSS-in-JS, Tailwind, Sass/Less usage |
Examples
User prompt:
Check if my components are ready to deploy
Response:
🔍 Build Validation: My Component Library Running pre-deployment checks... --- ## Project Structure ✅ webflow.json found ✅ library.name: "My Component Library" ✅ library.components: "./src/**/*.webflow.@(js|jsx|mjs|ts|tsx)" ✅ globals: "./src/globals.ts" ✅ bundleConfig: not specified (using defaults) --- ## Dependencies ✅ @webflow/webflow-cli: installed ✅ @webflow/data-types: installed ✅ @webflow/react: installed ✅ react: installed ✅ typescript: installed --- ## Frameworks Detected ✅ Tailwind CSS detected ✅ @tailwindcss/postcss installed ✅ postcss.config.mjs found ✅ globals.css imports Tailwind --- ## Components Found (4) ### 1. Button ✅ - File: src/components/Button/Button.webflow.tsx - Imports: ✅ declareComponent, ✅ props, ✅ Button component - Props: label (Text), variant (Variant), disabled (Boolean) - All props have defaults ✅ - SSR compatible ✅ - Options: applyTagSelectors: true ✅ - Styles imported ✅ ### 2. Card ✅ - File: src/components/Card/Card.webflow.tsx - Imports: ✅ declareComponent, ✅ props, ✅ Card component - Props: title (Text), image (Image), content (RichText), link (Link) - All props have defaults ✅ - SSR compatible ✅ - Styles imported ✅ ### 3. Modal ⚠️ - File: src/components/Modal/Modal.webflow.tsx - Imports: ✅ declareComponent, ✅ props, ✅ Modal component - Props: title (Text), isOpen (Boolean), content (Slot) - All props have defaults ✅ - ⚠️ SSR Issue: Uses `document.body` in render → Suggestion: Add `ssr: false` to options or wrap in useEffect - Styles imported ✅ ### 4. CartIcon ⚠️ - File: src/components/CartIcon/CartIcon.webflow.tsx - Imports: ✅ declareComponent, ✅ CartIcon component - Props: none - ⚠️ Missing props - component has no editable properties → Suggestion: Consider adding props for designer customization - ⚠️ Uses localStorage without SSR guard → Suggestion: Wrap in useEffect or useState initializer - Styles imported ✅ --- ## Build Test ✅ Build completed successfully ✅ No TypeScript errors ✅ No webpack errors ✅ Bundle size: 2.3MB / 50MB limit --- ## Summary | Category | Status | |----------|--------| | Project Structure | ✅ Pass | | Dependencies | ✅ Pass | | Frameworks | ✅ Pass | | Components | ⚠️ 2 warnings | | Build | ✅ Pass | --- ## Ready to Deploy: ⚠️ WITH WARNINGS You can deploy, but consider fixing these issues: 1. **Modal SSR Issue** Add to Modal.webflow.tsx: ```typescript options: { ssr: false }
- CartIcon localStorage Usage
Update CartIcon.tsx:
typescript
const [count, setCount] = useState(() => { if (typeof window === "undefined") return 0; return parseInt(localStorage.getItem("cartCount") || "0"); });
💡 To deploy: npx webflow library share
💡 To test locally first: npx webflow library bundle --public-path http://localhost:4000/
--- **Example: Build Failure**
🔍 Build Validation: My Component Library
Running pre-deployment checks...
Project Structure
✅ webflow.json found ⚠️ library.components uses narrow glob: "./src//*.webflow.tsx" → Recommendation: Use "./src//*.webflow.@(js|jsx|mjs|ts|tsx)" to cover all supported extensions
Dependencies
❌ Missing: @webflow/react Fix: npm install --save-dev @webflow/react
Build Test
❌ Build Failed
Error in src/components/Button/Button.webflow.tsx:
Module not found: Error: Can't resolve '@webflow/react'
Summary
| Category | Status |
|---|---|
| Dependencies | ❌ 1 error |
| Build | ❌ Failed |
Ready to Deploy: ❌ NO
Fix the following before deployment:
-
Install missing dependency
bashnpm install --save-dev @webflow/react -
Re-run validation After installing, run this check again.
--- **Example: CSS-in-JS Missing Decorator**
🔍 Build Validation: My Component Library
Frameworks Detected
⚠️ styled-components detected but Shadow DOM decorator not configured
→ Install: npm install @webflow/styled-components-utils
→ Add to globals.ts:
typescript import { styledComponentsShadowDomDecorator } from "@webflow/styled-components-utils"; export const decorators = [styledComponentsShadowDomDecorator];
→ Reference globals in webflow.json:
json { "library": { "globals": "./src/globals.ts" } }
Without this, styled-components styles will be injected into document.head instead of the Shadow DOM, and your components will appear unstyled.
--- **Example: Webpack Config Issues**
🔍 Build Validation: My Component Library
Webpack Configuration
⚠️ webpack.webflow.js: module.rules uses array syntax
→ Must use function syntax: rules: (currentRules) => { return [...]; }
→ Array syntax will not work — the function receives current rules to extend
⚠️ webpack.webflow.js: overrides output property
→ The output property is blocked and will be silently ignored
→ Blocked properties: entry, output, target
💡 Use --debug-bundler flag to inspect the final merged webpack config:
npx webflow library bundle --debug-bundler
--- **Example: Shadow DOM Context Warning**
Components Found (2)
1. ThemeProvider ⚠️
-
File: src/components/ThemeProvider/ThemeProvider.webflow.tsx
-
Props: theme (Variant), children (Slot)
-
⚠️ Shadow DOM + React Context Issue: Component uses Slot prop AND React Context (ThemeContext). Children placed in slots render in separate Shadow DOM containers with their own React roots — they cannot access this Context.
Alternatives for cross-component state:
- Nano Stores (lightweight reactive state)
- Custom events (window.dispatchEvent/addEventListener)
- URL parameters (for shareable state)
- Browser storage (localStorage/sessionStorage)
--- ## Guidelines ### Validation Order Run checks in this order for efficiency: 1. Project structure (fast, catches obvious issues) 2. Dependencies (medium, required for build) 3. Component analysis (medium, catches code issues) 4. Framework detection (medium, validates CSS-in-JS/Tailwind/Sass setup) 5. Build test (slow, but required) ### SSR Detection Patterns Look for these patterns that indicate SSR issues: ```typescript // Direct browser API usage (will break SSR) window.innerWidth document.getElementById localStorage.getItem navigator.userAgent sessionStorage.getItem // Dynamic/personalized content (may cause hydration mismatch) // User-specific dashboards, authenticated views // Heavy/interactive UI (SSR adds no value, re-renders anyway) // Charts, 3D scenes, maps, animation-driven elements // Non-deterministic output (differs server vs client) Math.random() new Date().toLocaleString() // Safe patterns (in useEffect or state initializer) useEffect(() => { // Browser APIs here are fine }, []); useState(() => { if (typeof window === "undefined") return default; return window.innerWidth; });
When SSR issues are found, prominently suggest the ssr: false option:
typescriptexport default declareComponent(MyComponent, { name: "My Component", options: { ssr: false // Disables server-side rendering }, });
CSS-in-JS / Tailwind / Preprocessor Detection
Check project dependencies and files to detect styling frameworks:
styled-components:
- Detect:
styled-componentsin package.json dependencies - Require:
@webflow/styled-components-utilsinstalled - Require:
styledComponentsShadowDomDecoratorin globals decorators array
Emotion / Material UI:
- Detect:
@emotion/styled,@emotion/react, or@mui/materialin dependencies - Require:
@webflow/emotion-utilsinstalled - Require:
emotionShadowDomDecoratorin globals decorators array
Tailwind CSS:
- Detect:
tailwindcssin dependencies - Require:
@tailwindcss/postcssinstalled - Require:
postcss.config.mjswith@tailwindcss/postcssplugin - Require: Tailwind import in globals CSS (
@import "tailwindcss")
Sass:
- Detect:
.scssfiles in src orsassin dependencies - Require:
sassandsass-loaderinstalled as dev dependencies - Require: webpack config with
.scssrule using function syntax for module.rules - Require:
bundleConfigset in webflow.json
Less:
- Detect:
.lessfiles in src orlessin dependencies - Require:
lessandless-loaderinstalled as dev dependencies - Require: webpack config with
.lessrule using function syntax for module.rules - Require:
bundleConfigset in webflow.json
Webpack Config Validation Rules
When bundleConfig is specified in webflow.json:
- File must exist at the specified path
- Must use CommonJS:
module.exports = { ... } - Blocked properties that are silently ignored:
entry,output,target module.rulesmust be a function, not an array:rules: (currentRules) => { ... }ModuleFederationPluginandMiniCssExtractPluginare auto-deduplicated
Common Build Errors
| Error | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| "Can't resolve '@webflow/react'" | Missing dependency | npm i -D @webflow/react |
| "Cannot find module './Component'" | Wrong import path | Check relative paths |
| "Type 'X' is not assignable" | TypeScript error | Fix type mismatch |
| "Unexpected token" | Syntax error | Check JSX/TS syntax |
| "Maximum call stack" | Circular import | Break dependency cycle |
| Bundle exceeds 50MB | Too many/large dependencies | Tree-shake, lazy load, replace heavy libs |
| Styles not appearing | Missing Shadow DOM decorator | Add CSS-in-JS decorator or import styles in .webflow.tsx |
Bundle Size Optimization
Quick wins for reducing bundle size:
- Use production build: Ensure minification is enabled
- Tree-shake imports: Import specific exports
- Replace heavy libraries: moment → date-fns, lodash → lodash-es
- Lazy load: Dynamic imports for heavy components
- Check for duplicates: Multiple React versions, etc.
- Monitor size: Bundle must stay under 50MB limit

