Title here
Summary here
Glossary
Who this is for
You are reading DeskFlow docs and hit an unfamiliar term — switch, envelope, Porm. Use this page as a quick reference while following the API tutorial.
What you will learn
- Moonlight vocabulary: service, action, switch, envelope
- DeskFlow-specific names: Northwind Studio,
task/member/project - How
returnCoderelates to HTTP status codes
Before you start
Optional — no setup required. For context, skim Moonlight overview first.
How it works
Pionia docs reuse the same terms everywhere. DeskFlow is the canonical example app; when you see alex@northwind.studio or port 8000, that refers to the fictional Northwind Studio team running their local API.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Action | A method on a service invoked by name in JSON ("action": "list" → listAction) |
| AppRealm | The booted application container returned by app() / realm() |
| DeskFlow | The canonical docs example — a task board API for Northwind Studio |
| Envelope | JSON response shape: returnCode, returnMessage, returnData |
| GenericService | Base class that provides CRUD actions for one database table |
| Moonlight | Pionia’s { service, action } dispatch model over versioned /api/v1/ |
| Porm | Pionia’s fluent SQL layer (table(), where(), joins) — lives in your app |
| returnCode | Business outcome in the JSON body (0 = success); distinct from HTTP status |
| Service | PHP class holding business logic; registered on a switch |
| Switch | Versioned API entry (e.g. MainSwitch for /api/v1/) |
DeskFlow services
| Service | Example action | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
task | list, create | Tasks on the team board |
member | login, profile | Team authentication |
project | list | Client projects grouping tasks |
Example request Alex sends from the React board:
POST http://127.0.0.1:8000/api/v1/
{ "service": "task", "action": "list", "status": "open" }Common mistakes
- Confusing
returnCodewith HTTP status —returnCode: 0can arrive with HTTP 200; errors may use 422 or 401 with a non-zeroreturnCode. - Calling it a “route” — Moonlight uses one POST URL per version;
serviceandactionselect the handler. - Uppercase JSON keys — v3 expects lowercase
serviceandaction.
What’s next
Building your API
How terms connect in practice.
Moonlight overview
Full request flow diagram.
API tutorial
Use the vocabulary hands-on.