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Feature Request FR-4957
Product Area Application Builder
Status OPEN

10 Voters

Allow developers to specify the application ID and alias of an APEX working copy

akluev Public · Jul 17 2026

Idea Summary
When creating an APEX working copy, developers should be able to specify its application ID and application alias, just as they can when importing or copying a regular application.

Currently, APEX automatically generates both values for a working copy. The generated alias cannot be changed afterward. This makes working-copy URLs unpredictable and limits the use of working copies in automated testing, documentation, scripts, and external integrations.

Use Case
A CI/CD process may create a working copy for a feature, pull request, code review, or deployment validation.

Automated browser tests, test documentation, deployment scripts, and external integrations often require a deterministic application URL. If the application ID and alias are generated automatically, the target URL is not known in advance.

For example, a team may want to use a convention such as:

  • Main application: ID 100, alias ACCOUNTS-RECEIVABLE
  • Developer working copy: ID 1100, alias ACCOUNTS-RECEIVABLE-DEV
  • Review working copy: ID 2100, alias ACCOUNTS-RECEIVABLE-REVIEW

With predictable IDs and aliases, automated tests and scripts could immediately target the correct working-copy URL without querying APEX metadata, dynamically rewriting configuration, or manually updating environment settings after each working copy is created.

This would also support:

  • stable links in test plans and documentation;
  • deterministic IDs for scripts and external integrations;
  • automated UI and regression testing;
  • CI/CD deployment and review workflows;
  • coordinated working copies for modular solutions containing multiple related APEX applications;
  • cleaner application ID and alias conventions in shared development environments.

Preferred Solution (Optional)
 

Allow both the working-copy creation UI ( and hopefully in future the public working-copy API)  to accept optional values for:

  • target application ID;
  • application alias.

If either value is omitted, APEX could continue generating it automatically using the current behavior.

This would preserve the existing simple workflow while allowing teams with CI/CD, automated testing, or integration requirements to create working copies with predictable and stable URLs.

This idea is open.