Automatically Generate Forms from Config Schema

A blog post by James Williams on ComputerMinds discusses leveraging Drupal’s configuration schema to generate forms automatically. Traditionally, developers create configuration forms separately from the config schema, but Williams highlights the redundancy, especially when schemas define validation rules, typing, and translations. He delves into how Drupal's core already uses the config_translation_config_schema_info_alter() function to map configuration types to form elements in multilingual contexts. This discovery led him to develop a method for automatically building forms for monolingual sites based on config schemas.

By defining constraints and types in the schema itself, he simplifies form generation and validation. For instance, regex-based validation is applied directly to config properties. His method reduces redundancy by pulling schema labels and default values directly into form elements, making form creation more efficient. He also explores the potential of future improvements, including leveraging choice constraints for select elements.

For full code examples, visit his gist.