angular/components · error · SchematicsException

Project name is required.

Error message

Project name is required.

What it means

getProjectFromWorkspace receives projectName as string | undefined because some schematic APIs allow optional project names; when it is undefined/empty the function throws this SchematicsException instead of silently guessing the default project.

Source

Thrown at src/cdk/schematics/utils/get-project.ts:23

 * Use of this source code is governed by an MIT-style license that can be
 * found in the LICENSE file at https://angular.dev/license
 */

import {SchematicsException} from '@angular-devkit/schematics';
import {ProjectDefinition, WorkspaceDefinition} from '@schematics/angular/utility';

/**
 * Finds the specified project configuration in the workspace. Throws an error if the project
 * couldn't be found.
 */
export function getProjectFromWorkspace(
  workspace: WorkspaceDefinition,
  projectName: string | undefined,
): ProjectDefinition {
  if (!projectName) {
    // TODO(crisbeto): some schematics APIs have the project name as optional so for now it's
    // simpler to allow undefined and checking it at runtime. Eventually we should clean this up.
    throw new SchematicsException('Project name is required.');
  }

  const project = workspace.projects.get(projectName);

  if (!project) {
    throw new SchematicsException(`Could not find project in workspace: ${projectName}`);
  }

  return project;
}

View on GitHub (pinned to 0411926e7d)

Solutions

1. Pass --project=<name> explicitly on the schematic command line.
2. In your schematic, default the option before calling: projectName ?? workspace.extensions.defaultProject (or first entry of workspace.projects).
3. Add a 'project' property with `$default: { "$source": "projectName" }` to the schematic's schema.json so the CLI injects it.
4. Ensure the workspace config defines a defaultProject so the CLI's project-name source resolves.

Example fix

// before
const project = getProjectFromWorkspace(workspace, options.project); // options.project: string | undefined
// after
const projectName = options.project ?? (workspace.extensions['defaultProject'] as string | undefined);
const project = getProjectFromWorkspace(workspace, projectName);

function resolveProjectName(
  projectName: string | undefined,
  workspace: WorkspaceDefinition,
): string {
  const fallback = workspace.extensions['defaultProject'] as string | undefined;
  const name = projectName ?? fallback;
  if (!name) {
    throw new Error('No --project given and no defaultProject in angular.json');
  }
  return name;
}

function hasProjectName(p: string | undefined): p is string {
  return typeof p === 'string' && p.trim().length > 0;
}

try {
  const project = getProjectFromWorkspace(workspace, options.project);
} catch (e) {
  if (e instanceof SchematicsException && e.message === 'Project name is required.') {
    console.error('Pass --project=<name> to the schematic.');
    return;
  }
  throw e;
}

When it happens

Trigger: Calling getProjectFromWorkspace(workspace, options.project) where options.project is undefined — e.g. the schematic's schema doesn't declare a 'project' property with a default, the user omitted --project and no default was injected, or 'project' is an empty string.

Common situations: Custom schematics that call this util without registering the project option in schema.json, running `ng add`/`ng generate` in workspaces where the caller forgot --project, and newer Angular CLI versions (13+ WorkspaceDefinition API) where defaults are no longer auto-resolved by the util.

Related errors

• Cannot read "${filePath}" because it does not exist.
• No data could be found for target version: ${version}
• Could not find file for path: ${path}
• Module not found: ${modulePath}
• Could not read Angular module file: ${modulePath}

AI-assisted analysis of angular/components@0411926e7d (2026-08-31). Data as JSON: /api/errors/737ac9b3fae24b55. Report an issue: GitHub.