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Last updated: 11 Dec 2024

Name a new application or gem

This describes how you should name an application or gem on GOV.UK. It was first proposed in RFC 63.

Of course, break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous.

Naming applications

Firstly, the service manual has good guidance on naming things.

The most important rules:

  • The name should be self-descriptive. No branding or puns.
  • Use dashes for the URL and GitHub repo
  • The name of the app should be the same on GitHub, Puppet and hostname

Publishing applications

Applications that publish things are named x-publisher.

Good:

  • specialist-publisher
  • manuals-publisher

Not so good:

  • publisher (too generic)
  • contacts-admin (could be contacts-publisher)

Frontend applications

Applications that render content to end users on GOV.UK are named x-frontend

Good:

  • government-frontend
  • email-alert-frontend

Not so good:

  • collections (could be collections-frontend)
  • frontend (too generic)

APIs

Applications that just expose an API are named x-api.

Good:

  • publishing-api
  • email-alert-api

Not so good:

  • rummager (renamed to search-api)

Admin applications

Applications that “manage” things can be called x-manager or x-admin or thing-doer.

Good:

  • search-admin
  • local-links-manager
  • content-tagger

Not so good:

  • signonotron2000
  • maslow (needs-manager)

Service applications

Applications which (probably) listen to the publishing queue and do a thing, with no API or web interface.

Good:

  • email-alert-service
  • cache-clearing-service

Not so good:

  • cache-clearer

Naming gems

  • Use the official Rubygems naming convention
  • Use underscores for multiple words
  • Use govuk_ prefix if the gem is only interesting to projects within GOV.UK

Good:

  • govuk_sidekiq
  • govuk_content_models
  • govuk_admin_template
  • vcloud-edge_gateway

Not so good:

  • slimmer
  • plek
  • gds-sso (should be gds_sso, or govuk_sso)

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