www/docs/en/5.0.0/guide/overview/index.md - cordova-docs - Git at Google

 ---
 license: >
     Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
     or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
     distributed with this work for additional information
     regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
     to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
     "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
     with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at

         http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

     Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
     software distributed under the License is distributed on an
     "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
     KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
     specific language governing permissions and limitations
     under the License.

 title: Overview
 ---

 # Overview

 Apache Cordova is an open-source mobile development framework. It allows you
 to use standard web technologies such as HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript
 for cross-platform development, avoiding each mobile platforms' native
 development language.  Applications execute within wrappers targeted
 to each platform, and rely on standards-compliant API bindings to
 access each device's sensors, data, and network status.

 Apache Cordova graduated in October 2012 as a top level project within the Apache Software Foundation (ASF). Through the ASF, future Cordova development will ensure open stewardship of the project. It will always remain free and open source under the Apache License, Version 2.0.  Visit [cordova.apache.org](http://cordova.apache.org) for more information.

 Use Apache Cordova if you are:

 * a mobile developer and want to extend an application across more
   than one platform, without having to re-implement it with each
   platform's language and tool set.

 * a web developer and want to deploy a web app that's packaged for
   distribution in various app store portals.

 * a mobile developer interested in mixing native application
   components with a _WebView_ (special browser window) that can access
   device-level APIs, or if you want to develop a plugin interface
   between native and WebView components.

 ## Basic Components

 Apache Cordova applications rely on a common `config.xml` file that provides
 information about the app and specifies parameters affecting how it
 works, such as whether it responds to orientation shifts. This file
 adheres to the W3C's
 [Packaged Web App](http://www.w3.org/TR/widgets/),
 or _widget_, specification.

 The application itself is implemented as a web page, by default a local
 file named _index.html_, that references whatever CSS, JavaScript,
 images, media files, or other resources are necessary for it to run.
 The app executes as a _WebView_ within the native application wrapper,
 which you distribute to app stores.

 The Cordova-enabled WebView may provide the application with its
 entire user interface. On some platforms, it can also be a component
 within a larger, hybrid application that mixes the WebView with native
 application components. (See [Embedding WebViews](../hybrid/webviews/index.html) for details.)

 A _plugin_ interface is available for Cordova and native components to
 communicate with each other. This enables you to invoke native code
 from JavaScript. Ideally, the JavaScript APIs to that native code are
 consistent across multiple device platforms. As of version 3.0, plugins provide
 bindings to standard device APIs.  Third-party plugins provide
 additional bindings to features not necessarily available on all
 platforms. You can find these third-party plugins in the
 [plugin registry](http://plugins.cordova.io) and use them in your
 application. You can also develop your own plugins, as described in the
 [Plugin Development Guide](../hybrid/plugins/index.html). Plugins may be necessary, for example, to
 communicate between Cordova and custom native components.

 __NOTE__: As of version 3.0, when you create a Cordova project it does not have
 any plugins present. This is the new default behavior. Any plugins you
 desire, even the core plugins, must be explicitly added.

 Cordova does not provide any UI widgets or MV* frameworks. Cordova provides
 only the runtime in which those can execute. If you wish to use UI widgets
 and/or an MV* framework, you will need to select those and include them in
 your application yourself as third-party material.

 ## Development Paths

 As of version 3.0, you can use two basic workflows to create a mobile
 app. While you can often use either workflow to accomplish the same
 task, they each offer advantages:

 - __Cross-platform (CLI) workflow__: Use this workflow if you want your app
   to run on as many different mobile operating systems as possible,
   with little need for platform-specific development.  This workflow
   centers around the `cordova` utility, otherwise known as the Cordova
   _CLI_, that was introduced with Cordova 3.0. The CLI is a high-level
   tool that allows you to build projects for many platforms at once,
   abstracting away much of the functionality of lower-level shell
   scripts. The CLI copies a common set of web assets into
   subdirectories for each mobile platform, makes any necessary
   configuration changes for each, runs build scripts to generate
   application binaries. The CLI also provides a common interface to
   apply plugins to your app. For more details on the CLI, see The
   Command-Line Interface. Unless you have a need for the platform-centered
   workflow, the cross-platform workflow is recommended.

 - __Platform-centered workflow__: Use this workflow if you want to
   focus on building an app for a single platform and need to be able
   to modify it at a lower level. You need to use this approach, for
   example, if you want your app to mix custom native components with
   web-based Cordova components, as discussed in [Embedding WebViews](../hybrid/webviews/index.html).
   As a rule of thumb, use this workflow if you need to modify the
   project within the SDK.  This workflow relies on a set of
   lower-level shell scripts that are tailored for each supported
   platform, and a separate Plugman utility that allows you to apply
   plugins.  While you can use this workflow to build cross-platform
   apps, it is generally more difficult because the lack of a
   higher-level tool means separate build cycles and plugin
   modifications for each platform. Still, this workflow allows you
   greater access to development options provided by each SDK, and is
   essential for complex hybrid apps. See the various [Platform Guides](../platforms/index.html)
   for details on each platform's available shell utilities.

 When first starting out, it may be easiest to use the cross-platform
 workflow to create an app, as described in The Command-line Interface.
 You then have the option to switch to a platform-centered workflow if
 you need the greater control the SDK provides.  Lower-level shell
 utilities are available at
 [cordova.apache.org](http://cordova.apache.org) in a separate
 distribution than the CLI. For projects initially generated by the
 CLI, these shell tools are also available in the project's various
 `platforms/*/cordova` directories.

 __NOTE__: Once you switch from the CLI-based workflow to one centered
 around the platform-specific SDKs and shell tools, you can't go back.
 The CLI maintains a common set of cross-platform source code, which on
 each build it uses to write over platform-specific source code.  To
 preserve any modifications you make to the platform-specific assets,
 you need to switch to the platform-centered shell tools, which ignore
 the cross-platform source code, and instead relies on the
 platform-specific source code.

 ## Installing Cordova

 The installation of Cordova will differ depending on the workflow above
 you choose:

   * Cross-platform workflow: see [The Command-Line Interface](../cli/index.html).

   * Platform-centered workflow: see the [Platform Guides](../platforms/index.html).

 After installing Cordova, it is recommended that you review the [Platform Guides](../platforms/index.html)
 for the mobile platforms that you will be developing for. It is also
 recommended that you also review the [Privacy Guide](../appdev/privacy/index.html), [Security Guide](../appdev/security/index.html), and
 [Next Steps](../next/index.html). For configuring Cordova, see [The config.xml File](../../config_ref/index.html).
 For accessing native function on a device from JavaScript, refer
 to the [Plugin APIs](../../cordova/plugins/pluginapis.html). And refer to the other included guides as necessary.
	---
	license: >
	Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
	or more contributor license agreements. See the NOTICE file
	distributed with this work for additional information
	regarding copyright ownership. The ASF licenses this file
	to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
	"License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
	with the License. You may obtain a copy of the License at

	http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0

	Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
	software distributed under the License is distributed on an
	"AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
	KIND, either express or implied. See the License for the
	specific language governing permissions and limitations
	under the License.

	title: Overview
	---

	# Overview

	Apache Cordova is an open-source mobile development framework. It allows you
	to use standard web technologies such as HTML5, CSS3, and JavaScript
	for cross-platform development, avoiding each mobile platforms' native
	development language. Applications execute within wrappers targeted
	to each platform, and rely on standards-compliant API bindings to
	access each device's sensors, data, and network status.

	Apache Cordova graduated in October 2012 as a top level project within the Apache Software Foundation (ASF). Through the ASF, future Cordova development will ensure open stewardship of the project. It will always remain free and open source under the Apache License, Version 2.0. Visit [cordova.apache.org](http://cordova.apache.org) for more information.

	Use Apache Cordova if you are:

	* a mobile developer and want to extend an application across more
	than one platform, without having to re-implement it with each
	platform's language and tool set.

	* a web developer and want to deploy a web app that's packaged for
	distribution in various app store portals.

	* a mobile developer interested in mixing native application
	components with a _WebView_ (special browser window) that can access
	device-level APIs, or if you want to develop a plugin interface
	between native and WebView components.

	## Basic Components

	Apache Cordova applications rely on a common `config.xml` file that provides
	information about the app and specifies parameters affecting how it
	works, such as whether it responds to orientation shifts. This file
	adheres to the W3C's
	[Packaged Web App](http://www.w3.org/TR/widgets/),
	or _widget_, specification.

	The application itself is implemented as a web page, by default a local
	file named _index.html_, that references whatever CSS, JavaScript,
	images, media files, or other resources are necessary for it to run.
	The app executes as a _WebView_ within the native application wrapper,
	which you distribute to app stores.

	The Cordova-enabled WebView may provide the application with its
	entire user interface. On some platforms, it can also be a component
	within a larger, hybrid application that mixes the WebView with native
	application components. (See [Embedding WebViews](../hybrid/webviews/index.html) for details.)

	A _plugin_ interface is available for Cordova and native components to
	communicate with each other. This enables you to invoke native code
	from JavaScript. Ideally, the JavaScript APIs to that native code are
	consistent across multiple device platforms. As of version 3.0, plugins provide
	bindings to standard device APIs. Third-party plugins provide
	additional bindings to features not necessarily available on all
	platforms. You can find these third-party plugins in the
	[plugin registry](http://plugins.cordova.io) and use them in your
	application. You can also develop your own plugins, as described in the
	[Plugin Development Guide](../hybrid/plugins/index.html). Plugins may be necessary, for example, to
	communicate between Cordova and custom native components.

	__NOTE__: As of version 3.0, when you create a Cordova project it does not have
	any plugins present. This is the new default behavior. Any plugins you
	desire, even the core plugins, must be explicitly added.

	Cordova does not provide any UI widgets or MV* frameworks. Cordova provides
	only the runtime in which those can execute. If you wish to use UI widgets
	and/or an MV* framework, you will need to select those and include them in
	your application yourself as third-party material.

	## Development Paths

	As of version 3.0, you can use two basic workflows to create a mobile
	app. While you can often use either workflow to accomplish the same
	task, they each offer advantages:

	- __Cross-platform (CLI) workflow__: Use this workflow if you want your app
	to run on as many different mobile operating systems as possible,
	with little need for platform-specific development. This workflow
	centers around the `cordova` utility, otherwise known as the Cordova
	_CLI_, that was introduced with Cordova 3.0. The CLI is a high-level
	tool that allows you to build projects for many platforms at once,
	abstracting away much of the functionality of lower-level shell
	scripts. The CLI copies a common set of web assets into
	subdirectories for each mobile platform, makes any necessary
	configuration changes for each, runs build scripts to generate
	application binaries. The CLI also provides a common interface to
	apply plugins to your app. For more details on the CLI, see The
	Command-Line Interface. Unless you have a need for the platform-centered
	workflow, the cross-platform workflow is recommended.

	- __Platform-centered workflow__: Use this workflow if you want to
	focus on building an app for a single platform and need to be able
	to modify it at a lower level. You need to use this approach, for
	example, if you want your app to mix custom native components with
	web-based Cordova components, as discussed in [Embedding WebViews](../hybrid/webviews/index.html).
	As a rule of thumb, use this workflow if you need to modify the
	project within the SDK. This workflow relies on a set of
	lower-level shell scripts that are tailored for each supported
	platform, and a separate Plugman utility that allows you to apply
	plugins. While you can use this workflow to build cross-platform
	apps, it is generally more difficult because the lack of a
	higher-level tool means separate build cycles and plugin
	modifications for each platform. Still, this workflow allows you
	greater access to development options provided by each SDK, and is
	essential for complex hybrid apps. See the various [Platform Guides](../platforms/index.html)
	for details on each platform's available shell utilities.

	When first starting out, it may be easiest to use the cross-platform
	workflow to create an app, as described in The Command-line Interface.
	You then have the option to switch to a platform-centered workflow if
	you need the greater control the SDK provides. Lower-level shell
	utilities are available at
	[cordova.apache.org](http://cordova.apache.org) in a separate
	distribution than the CLI. For projects initially generated by the
	CLI, these shell tools are also available in the project's various
	`platforms/*/cordova` directories.

	__NOTE__: Once you switch from the CLI-based workflow to one centered
	around the platform-specific SDKs and shell tools, you can't go back.
	The CLI maintains a common set of cross-platform source code, which on
	each build it uses to write over platform-specific source code. To
	preserve any modifications you make to the platform-specific assets,
	you need to switch to the platform-centered shell tools, which ignore
	the cross-platform source code, and instead relies on the
	platform-specific source code.

	## Installing Cordova

	The installation of Cordova will differ depending on the workflow above
	you choose:

	* Cross-platform workflow: see [The Command-Line Interface](../cli/index.html).

	* Platform-centered workflow: see the [Platform Guides](../platforms/index.html).

	After installing Cordova, it is recommended that you review the [Platform Guides](../platforms/index.html)
	for the mobile platforms that you will be developing for. It is also
	recommended that you also review the [Privacy Guide](../appdev/privacy/index.html), [Security Guide](../appdev/security/index.html), and
	[Next Steps](../next/index.html). For configuring Cordova, see [The config.xml File](../../config_ref/index.html).
	For accessing native function on a device from JavaScript, refer
	to the [Plugin APIs](../../cordova/plugins/pluginapis.html). And refer to the other included guides as necessary.