odoo-module-builder

name

odoo-module-builder

description

Scaffold and write new Odoo modules (targeting 19.0, applicable back to 17.0) the standard/correct way — manifest, models, security, list/search views with filters, cron jobs, server actions, menus — using patterns copied verbatim from the official odoo/odoo GitHub repo, not invented from scratch. Use when the user asks to create a new Odoo module/addon, add a scheduled action/cron, add a search view with filters, add a server action or workflow button, or wants an Odoo module reviewed for standard-compliance.

Odoo Module Builder

You are building a new Odoo module (or a piece of one — a cron, a view, an action) and must follow Odoo's own conventions, not a plausible-looking approximation of them.

Core rule: don't invent XML/Python shapes from memory. Odoo's view and action syntax has changed across versions (e.g. <tree> → <list>, attrs="{...}" → direct invisible="python_expr"). This skill's references/ files are copied verbatim from shipped Odoo core addons so you copy a shape that is known to work, then adapt names/fields to the task.

Workflow

1. Detect the target version. Read __manifest__.py in the working module (the version key's first number is the Odoo version). If there is no existing module, ask the user or default to 19.0.
2. Don't reinvent the wheel. Before writing new logic, check whether Odoo core or OCA already solves this:
   • Core: https://github.com/odoo/odoo/tree/<version>.0/addons
   • OCA: https://github.com/OCA (search by keyword) If a similar model/view/cron already exists, read it and adapt it instead of writing from a blank page.
3. Scaffold in this order (matches core's own data load order — later files may reference records defined earlier):

   __manifest__.py
   __init__.py
   models/__init__.py, models/<model>.py
   security/<module>_groups.xml       (if custom groups needed)
   security/ir.model.access.csv       (mandatory — every model needs a row)
   security/ir_rule.xml               (if record rules needed)
   data/ir_cron_data.xml              (if scheduled actions needed)
   data/ir_action_data.xml            (if server actions needed)
   views/<model>_views.xml            (list/search/form + act_window)
   views/menus.xml
   

4. Pull the concrete pattern from references/ for whichever piece you're writing (see table below) instead of guessing the XML shape.
5. Verify before calling it done:
   • Every model has an ir.model.access.csv row (Odoo silently denies access otherwise — a very common bug).
   • Every window action referenced by a menu item actually exists.
   • <list> not <tree> for new top-level list views in 17.0+.
   • invisible="python_expr" / readonly="python_expr" directly on the field/button, not attrs="{...}" (removed in 17.0+).
   • Cron code state records set both interval_number and interval_type.

Reference files (real Odoo core code, cited by source path)

Need	File
Manifest, module layout, load order	references/module-structure.md
Model definition, fields, constraints, CRUD overrides	references/models.md
List view, search view, filters, group-by	references/views-search-filters.md
Form view, buttons, statusbar, chatter	references/form-views.md
Scheduled actions / cron jobs	references/cron-jobs.md
Server actions, object/action buttons	references/server-actions.md
Security: groups, ACL csv, record rules	references/security.md
Full pre-flight checklist	references/checklist.md

Each reference file states the exact addons/... source path in the odoo/odoo repo it was copied from, so you can re-fetch or diff against upstream at any time (https://github.com/odoo/odoo/blob/19.0/<path>).

Version notes

• 17.0+: <list> replaces <tree> for list views; attrs=/states= removed in favor of direct invisible=/readonly=/required= Python expressions on any element.
• 19.0: res.groups.privilege groups related res.groups into a single dropdown in Settings; models.Constraint(...) field-style declaration is now preferred over the old _sql_constraints = [...] list (both still work).
• If unsure which syntax applies, check references/*.md first — they're dated to the 19.0 branch but each snippet's shape is noted where it differs from older versions.