Bring Your Own (BYO) General FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

The BYO framework lets you create your own regenerative components, events, and operations for the Unqork Designer Platform. That way, Creators have the flexibility to extend Unqork's functionality by implementing third-party JavaScript libraries, bespoke functionality, and proprietary business logic.

Unqork's Content component lets Creators add custom JavaScript, but it lacks structure and maintainability. BYO solves this issue by providing a more robust, standardized, and regenerative way to integrate custom functionality. With BYO, Creators have full control over the DOM structure, styling, and interactions of custom-built components. BYO also  leverages Unqork APIs to seamlessly integrate them into applications, and produce  no-code assets for use in the Module Builder.

The BYO framework provides the following benefits:

• Flexibility: Creators can integrate their preferred third-party libraries and scripts as no-code solutions, providing greater flexibility.

• Maintainability: BYO components follow a clear contract with Unqork, which makes them easier to manage and update over time. Compared to the impromptu approach of the Content component, BYO provides a more structured way to integrate custom functionality.

• Reusability: After defining a BYO asset, Creators can drag it into any module. Additionally,  BYO asset updates reflect everywhere in a company's environment, making it your own no-code asset.

With BYO, you can create the following types of custom assets:

• Components: Import third-party libraries, like AG Grid, D3 charts, or payment processing systems.

• Events: Import or create events like onClick and onHover.

• Operations: Import API calls and custom business logic.

  Learn more about Events & Operations in our Introduction to the Operations Builder article.

To create a BYO package, follow Unqork's documentation on how to structure your files:

• BYO: Create a Package

  • BYO: Understanding the manifest.json File

  • BYO: Understanding Runtime Engine API

After creating a BYO package, upload it to the Custom Assets Administration page in the Unqork Designer Platform. The platform scans your package and extracts the details of your BYO components, events, and operations. After integration, Creators can use these assets in Unqork modules as they would use any Unqork component.

No. At this time, developers can only use plain, non-framework JavaScript. Doing so prevents version conflicts and ensures compatibility with Unqork's runtime. However,  there are many supported libraries that provide a framework-agnostic version for use.

Using BYO, developers have full control over the DOM structure and styling of custom components. They can define  styling targets and use custom stylesheets to apply styles.

Unqork strongly advises that developers avoid directly manipulating the outer DOM of the component. Instead, use the provided APIs to interact with the component. Unqork does not support interactions with the platform outside the bounds of the methods provided in our API. Customers are responsible for the maintenance and functionality of their custom components.

No. At this time, Creators cannot drag other Unqork components directly into a BYO component. However, Creators can pass settings to a BYO component that inform what should be shown in child components.

Closed Beta (7.24) is a limited release where Unqork is working closely with a small group of clients to develop early feedback. BYO in closed beta provides the following features:

• Only available in the Staging environment.

• Requires Unqork approval and outreach.

• Optionally providing feature feedback about the functionality and other enhancements you'd want in  a custom regenerative component.

The BYO framework will be more widely available in Open Beta (7.26). Expect additional support for custom operations and  UX improvements to the administration pages. Open beta will provide the following:

• Available in every environment level.

• All customers can opt-in to gain feature access.

  After the release of 7.26, unless otherwise noted, issues that break functionality are considered bugs and should be reported.

BYO might feel like it moves away from Unqork's no-code approach, but it's actually a regenerative improvement to the Content component experience. It provides a structured way for clients to contribute their own custom functionality, while keeping the output a no-code asset when inside of Unqork. Custom components built with BYO still perform as Unqork components, so you can easily manage and reuse them like  built-in components.