---
schema_version: "1"
id: f1c88947d0ae6ba7868098704935e196e7ee9942d0682bc42ee74c4e4b9d8385
title: template generate apex trigger
collection: developer
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/developer/current/en-us/salesforcedx/sfclireference/guides/template/cli_reference_template_generate_apex_trigger.md
canonical_url: https://developer.salesforce.com/docs/platform/salesforce-cli-reference/guide/cli_reference_template_generate_apex_trigger.html
source_site: developer.salesforce.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: a9667d6b3df1290dc8d27a6c1b8da88028c210e875598e68b68a0cb218813589
products:
  - Salesforce CLI Command Reference
  - salesforcedx
---
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# template generate apex trigger

Generate an Apex trigger.

## Description for template generate apex trigger

Generates the Apex trigger *.trigger file and associated metadata file. These files must be contained in a parent directory called "triggers" in your package directory. Either run this command from an existing directory of this name, or use the --output-dir flag to generate one or point to an existing one.

If you don't specify the --sobject flag, the .trigger file contains the generic placeholder SOBJECT; replace it with the Salesforce object you want to generate a trigger for. If you don't specify --event, "before insert" is used.

## Aliases for template generate apex trigger

`force:apex:trigger:create`

`apex:generate:trigger`

## Flags

| Flag Name (Long) | Flag Name (Short) | Description |
|------------------|-------------------|-------------|
| <code>&#8209;&#8209;api&#8209;version</code> | N/A | **Type:** Value<br><br>Override the api version used for api requests made by this command |
| <code>&#8209;&#8209;event</code> | <code>&#8209;e</code> | **Type:** Value<br>**Valid Values:** `before insert`, `before update`, `before delete`, `after insert`, `after update`, `after delete`, `after undelete`<br>**Default value:** `before insert`<br><br>Events that fire the trigger. |
| <code>&#8209;&#8209;flags&#8209;dir</code> | N/A | **Type:** Value<br><br>Import flag values from a directory. |
| <code>&#8209;&#8209;json</code> | N/A | **Type:** Boolean<br><br>Format output as json. |
| <code>&#8209;&#8209;name</code> | <code>&#8209;n</code> | **Type:** Value<br>**Required**<br><br>Name of the generated Apex trigger<br><br>The name can be up to 40 characters and must start with a letter. |
| <code>&#8209;&#8209;output&#8209;dir</code> | <code>&#8209;d</code> | **Type:** Value<br>**Default value:** `.`<br><br>Directory for saving the created files.<br><br>The location can be an absolute path or relative to the current working directory. The default is the current directory. |
| <code>&#8209;&#8209;sobject</code> | <code>&#8209;s</code> | **Type:** Value<br>**Default value:** `SOBJECT`<br><br>Salesforce object to generate a trigger on. |
| <code>&#8209;&#8209;template</code> | <code>&#8209;t</code> | **Type:** Value<br>**Valid Values:** `ApexTrigger`<br>**Default value:** `ApexTrigger`<br><br>Template to use for file creation.<br><br>Supplied parameter values or default values are filled into a copy of the template. |

## Examples for template generate apex trigger

Generate two files associated with the MyTrigger Apex trigger (MyTrigger.trigger and MyTrigger.trigger-meta.xml) in the current directory:

```shell
sf template generate apex trigger --name MyTrigger
```

Similar to the previous example, but generate the files in the "force-app/main/default/triggers" directory:

```shell
sf template generate apex trigger --name MyTrigger --output-dir force-app/main/default/triggers
```

Generate files for a trigger that fires on the Account object before and after an insert:

```shell
sf template generate apex trigger --name MyTrigger --sobject Account --event "before insert,after insert"
```
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