replace all relative program paths (e.g., cp) with absolute ones (e.g., /bin/cp), in constants (e.g., CP);

update some methods in here to take session as parameter;

docs/Introduction.adoc

@@ -91,7 +91,7 @@ And then having a bug in the check permission logic on the _Light Bulb Inventory
 No!
 
 All of the (really important, even though application developers hate doing it) aspects of security - you don't need to write ANY code for dealing with that.
-Just tell QQQ what Authentication provider you want to use (e.g., https://auth0.com/[Auth0]), and - to paraphrase the old https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHzM4avGrKI[iMac ad] - there's no step 2.
+Just tell QQQ what Authentication provider you want to use (e.g., OAuth2 or https://auth0.com/[Auth0]), and - to paraphrase the old https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHzM4avGrKI[iMac ad] - there's no step 2.
 QQQ just does it.
 
 ''''

docs/index.adoc

@@ -31,11 +31,9 @@ include::metaData/PermissionRules.adoc[leveloffset=+1]
 
 == Services
 
+include::misc/Javalin.adoc[leveloffset=+1]
 include::misc/ScheduledJobs.adoc[leveloffset=+1]
 
-=== Web server (Javalin)
-#todo#
-
 === API server (OpenAPI)
 #todo#
 

docs/misc/Javalin.adoc

@@ -0,0 +1,109 @@
+== QQQ Middleware:  Javalin web server
+include::../variables.adoc[]
+
+QQQ provides a standard implementation of a middleware layer - that is - code that exists between the
+QQQ backend and user interface.  This implementation is a web server built using the https://javalin.io/[Javalin framework],
+packaged and deployed in the `qqq-middleware-javalin` maven module
+
+The de facto way to create a QQQ application server is to write a class which uses an instance of one of the
+subclasses of `QApplicationJavalinServer`.
+
+For example, if your application metadata is defined in a directory of yaml files, your server class could be implemented as:
+
+[source,java]
+.ConfigFileBasedQQQApplication usage example
+----
+public static void main(String[] args)
+{
+   try
+   {
+      String path = "src/main/resources/metadata";
+      ConfigFilesBasedQQQApplication application = new ConfigFilesBasedQQQApplication(path);
+      QApplicationJavalinServer javalinServer = new QApplicationJavalinServer(application);
+      javalinServer.start();
+   }
+   catch(Exception e)
+   {
+      LOG.error("Failed to start javalin server.  See stack trace for details.", e);
+   }
+}
+----
+
+A similar class exists if your metadata is produced by a package of Java MetaDataProducer objects:  `MetaDataProducerBasedQQQApplication`.
+
+=== QApplicationJavalinServer
+This class provides the bridge between your QQQ Application (e.g., your metadata) and the QQQ Middleware layer
+served by a Javalin web server.  It has several properties to control behaviors:
+
+* `Integer port` - (default `8000`) - port to use for serving HTTP.
+* `boolean serveFrontendMaterialDashboard` - (default `true`) whether to serve the javascript frontend provided
+in the maven artifact `qqq-frontend-material-dashboard`.
+* `boolean serveLegacyUnversionedMiddlewareAPI` - (default `true`) whether to serve a version the original implementation
+of the QQQ middleware, which current version of `qqq-frontend-material-dashboard` are compatible with.
+* `List<AbstractMiddlewareVersion> middlewareVersionList` - (default contains `MiddlewareVersionV1`) - list of
+newer, formally versioned implementations of the QQQ middleware interface to be served.
+* `Consumer<Javalin> javalinConfigurationCustomizer` - (default `null`) - optional hook to customize the
+javalin service object before it is started.
+* `List<QJavalinRouteProviderInterface> additionalRouteProviders` - (default `null`) - list of fully custom
+implementations of `QJavalinRouteProviderInterface`, to add additional endpoints to the javalin server.
+** _Note, you may first want to consider using JavalinRouteProviderMetaData instead - see below._
+* `QJavalinMetaData javalinMetaData` - (default `null`) - optional alternative place to define `JavalinMetaData` (vs.
+defining it in the `QInstance`). _Note that if it is set in both places, the one in the QApplicationJavalinServer
+is used._
+
+=== JavalinMetaData
+Certain behaviors of a QQQ Javalin server are configured in a declarative manner by adding a `QJavalinMetaData`
+object to the `supplementalMetaData` in your `QInstance` (or, as mentioned above, by setting it directly on the
+`QApplicationJavalinServer`):
+
+* `List<JavalinRouteProviderMetaData> routeProviders` - (default `null`) optional list of custom route providers to
+add to the Javalin server.  See below for details.
+* `String uploadedFileArchiveTableName` - (default `null`) - reference to a QQQ Table in your application instance,
+needed to support the Bulk Load process, as well as any other processes which need to accept an uploaded file
+as input.
+* `boolean loggerDisabled` - (default `false`)
+* `Function<QJavalinAccessLogger.LogEntry, Boolean> logFilter` - (default `null`)
+* `boolean queryWithoutLimitAllowed` - (default `false`)
+* `Integer queryWithoutLimitDefault` - (default `1000`)
+* `Level queryWithoutLimitLogLevel` - (default `INFO`)
+
+==== JavalinRouteProviderMetaData
+This type of metadata allows you to add additional http route providers to your Javalin instance, e.g., for
+serving static files or for running custom code from your application (in the form of QQQ Processes) to respond
+to HTTP requests.
+
+* `String hostedPath` - (required)
+* `String fileSystemPath` - (required for a static router)
+* `String processName` - required for a dynamic, process-based router.  Must be a process name within the QQQ Instance.
+See below for additional details
+* `List<String> methods` - required list of HTTP methods (verbs) that are served by the route provider
+* `QCodeReference routeAuthenticator - Optional reference to a class that implements `RouteAuthenticatorInterface`,
+to provide security authentication to all requests handled by the route provider.
+** A default implementation is provided as `SimpleRouteAuthenticator`, which requires that a user session be present
+to access paths served by the route provider.
+
+===== Process-based route provider processes
+If you define a `JavalinRouteProviderMetaData` with a `processName` (e.g., to serve dynamic HTTP responses from your javalin
+server), the process that you implement will be called to respond to any HTTP requests received by the javalin
+server which match the `hostedPath` and `methods` that are specified in the metadata.
+
+The QQQ javalin server will marshal request data from the javalin context into the process's payload, conforming to
+the shape of the `ProcessBasedRouterPayload` class.  Similarly, the http response will be built by taking values from
+the process's output/state conforming to the fields in that class.  As such, it is recommended to use a
+`ProcessBasedRouterPayload`  instance, as show in this example:
+
+[source,java]
+.Process-based router usage example (including ProcessBasedRouterPayload)
+----
+public class MyDynamicSiteProcessStep implements BackendStep
+{
+   @Override
+   public void run(RunBackendStepInput input, RunBackendStepOutput output) throws QException
+   {
+      ProcessBasedRouterPayload payload = input.getProcessPayload(ProcessBasedRouterPayload.class);
+      String path = payload.getPath();
+      payload.setResponseString("You requested: " + path);
+      output.setProcessPayload(payload);
+   }
+}
+----

pom.xml

@@ -48,7 +48,7 @@
    </modules>
 
    <properties>
-      <revision>0.24.0</revision>
+      <revision>0.26.0-SNAPSHOT</revision>
 
       <project.build.sourceEncoding>UTF-8</project.build.sourceEncoding>
       <project.reporting.outputEncoding>UTF-8</project.reporting.outputEncoding>

qqq-backend-core/pom.xml

@@ -65,7 +65,11 @@
          <artifactId>aws-java-sdk-secretsmanager</artifactId>
          <version>1.12.385</version>
       </dependency>
-
+      <dependency>
+         <groupId>com.ibm.icu</groupId>
+         <artifactId>icu4j</artifactId>
+         <version>77.1</version>
+      </dependency>
       <dependency>
          <groupId>com.fasterxml.jackson.core</groupId>
          <artifactId>jackson-databind</artifactId>
@@ -125,10 +129,16 @@
          <version>2.16.0</version>
       </dependency>
 
+      <dependency>
+         <groupId>com.nimbusds</groupId>
+         <artifactId>oauth2-oidc-sdk</artifactId>
+         <version>11.23.1</version>
+      </dependency>
+
       <dependency>
          <groupId>com.auth0</groupId>
          <artifactId>auth0</artifactId>
-         <version>2.1.0</version>
+         <version>2.18.0</version>
       </dependency>
       <dependency>
          <groupId>com.auth0</groupId>
@@ -138,12 +148,12 @@
       <dependency>
          <groupId>com.auth0</groupId>
          <artifactId>jwks-rsa</artifactId>
-         <version>0.22.0</version>
+         <version>0.22.1</version>
       </dependency>
       <dependency>
          <groupId>io.github.cdimascio</groupId>
-         <artifactId>java-dotenv</artifactId>
-         <version>5.2.2</version>
+         <artifactId>dotenv-java</artifactId>
+         <version>3.2.0</version>
       </dependency>
       <dependency>
          <groupId>org.apache.velocity</groupId>
@@ -151,16 +161,21 @@
          <version>2.3</version>
       </dependency>
 
-      <!-- the next 2 deps are for html to pdf - per https://www.baeldung.com/java-html-to-pdf -->
+      <!-- the next 3 deps are for html to pdf -->
       <dependency>
          <groupId>org.jsoup</groupId>
          <artifactId>jsoup</artifactId>
          <version>1.15.3</version>
       </dependency>
       <dependency>
-         <groupId>org.xhtmlrenderer</groupId>
-         <artifactId>flying-saucer-pdf-openpdf</artifactId>
-         <version>9.1.22</version>
+         <groupId>com.openhtmltopdf</groupId>
+         <artifactId>openhtmltopdf-core</artifactId>
+         <version>1.0.10</version>
+      </dependency>
+      <dependency>
+         <groupId>com.openhtmltopdf</groupId>
+         <artifactId>openhtmltopdf-pdfbox</artifactId>
+         <version>1.0.10</version>
       </dependency>
 
       <!-- the next 3 deps are being added for google drive support -->

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/automation/RunRecordScriptAutomationHandler.java

@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ public class RunRecordScriptAutomationHandler extends RecordAutomationHandler
       }
 
       QRecord scriptRevision = queryOutput.getRecords().get(0);
-      LOG.info("Running script against records", logPair("scriptRevisionId", scriptRevision.getValue("id")), logPair("scriptId", scriptRevision.getValue("scriptIdd")));
+      LOG.debug("Running script against records", logPair("scriptRevisionId", scriptRevision.getValue("id")), logPair("scriptId", scriptRevision.getValue("scriptIdd")));
 
       RunAdHocRecordScriptInput input = new RunAdHocRecordScriptInput();
       input.setCodeReference(new AdHocScriptCodeReference().withScriptRevisionRecord(scriptRevision));

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/automation/polling/PollingAutomationPerTableRunner.java

@@ -649,7 +649,7 @@ public class PollingAutomationPerTableRunner implements Runnable
          input.setRecordList(records);
          input.setAction(action);
 
-         RecordAutomationHandler recordAutomationHandler = QCodeLoader.getRecordAutomationHandler(action);
+         RecordAutomationHandler recordAutomationHandler = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(RecordAutomationHandler.class, action.getCodeReference());
          recordAutomationHandler.execute(input);
       }
    }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/customizers/MultiCustomizer.java

@@ -0,0 +1,226 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.customizers;
+
+
+import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Arrays;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Optional;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.QueryOrGetInputInterface;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.delete.DeleteInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.insert.InsertInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.update.UpdateInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QRecord;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.InitializableViaCodeReference;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeReference;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeReferenceWithProperties;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.collections.MapBuilder;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** Implementation of TableCustomizerInterface that runs multiple other customizers
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class MultiCustomizer implements InitializableViaCodeReference, TableCustomizerInterface
+{
+   private static final String KEY_CODE_REFERENCES = "codeReferences";
+
+   private List<TableCustomizerInterface> customizers = new ArrayList<>();
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    * Factory method that builds a {@link QCodeReferenceWithProperties} that will
+    * allow this multi-customizer to be assigned to a table, and to track
+    * in that code ref's properties, the "sub" QCodeReferences to be used.
+    *
+    * Added to a table as in:
+    * <pre>
+    * table.withCustomizer(TableCustomizers.POST_INSERT_RECORD,
+    *    MultiCustomizer.of(QCodeReference(x), QCodeReference(y)));
+    * </pre>
+    *
+    * @param codeReferences
+    * one or more {@link QCodeReference objects} to run when this customizer
+    * runs.  note that they will run in the order provided in this list.
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static QCodeReferenceWithProperties of(QCodeReference... codeReferences)
+   {
+      ArrayList<QCodeReference> list = new ArrayList<>(Arrays.stream(codeReferences).toList());
+      return (new QCodeReferenceWithProperties(MultiCustomizer.class, MapBuilder.of(KEY_CODE_REFERENCES, list)));
+   }
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    * Add an additional table customizer code reference to an existing
+    * codeReference, e.g., constructed by the `of` factory method.
+    *
+    * @see #of(QCodeReference...)
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static void addTableCustomizer(QCodeReferenceWithProperties existingMultiCustomizerCodeReference, QCodeReference codeReference)
+   {
+      ArrayList<QCodeReference> list = (ArrayList<QCodeReference>) existingMultiCustomizerCodeReference.getProperties().computeIfAbsent(KEY_CODE_REFERENCES, key -> new ArrayList<>());
+      list.add(codeReference);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    * When this class is instantiated by the QCodeLoader, initialize the
+    * sub-customizer objects.
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public void initialize(QCodeReference codeReference)
+   {
+      if(codeReference instanceof QCodeReferenceWithProperties codeReferenceWithProperties)
+      {
+         Serializable codeReferencesPropertyValue = codeReferenceWithProperties.getProperties().get(KEY_CODE_REFERENCES);
+         if(codeReferencesPropertyValue instanceof List<?> list)
+         {
+            for(Object o : list)
+            {
+               if(o instanceof QCodeReference reference)
+               {
+                  TableCustomizerInterface customizer = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(TableCustomizerInterface.class, reference);
+                  customizers.add(customizer);
+               }
+            }
+         }
+         else
+         {
+            LOG.warn("Property KEY_CODE_REFERENCES [" + KEY_CODE_REFERENCES + "] must be a List<QCodeReference>.");
+         }
+      }
+
+      if(customizers.isEmpty())
+      {
+         LOG.info("No TableCustomizers were specified for MultiCustomizer.");
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    * run postQuery method over all sub-customizers
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public List<QRecord> postQuery(QueryOrGetInputInterface queryInput, List<QRecord> records) throws QException
+   {
+      for(TableCustomizerInterface customizer : customizers)
+      {
+         records = customizer.postQuery(queryInput, records);
+      }
+      return records;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    * run preInsert method over all sub-customizers
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public List<QRecord> preInsert(InsertInput insertInput, List<QRecord> records, boolean isPreview) throws QException
+   {
+      for(TableCustomizerInterface customizer : customizers)
+      {
+         records = customizer.preInsert(insertInput, records, isPreview);
+      }
+      return records;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    * run postInsert method over all sub-customizers
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public List<QRecord> postInsert(InsertInput insertInput, List<QRecord> records) throws QException
+   {
+      for(TableCustomizerInterface customizer : customizers)
+      {
+         records = customizer.postInsert(insertInput, records);
+      }
+      return records;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    * run preUpdate method over all sub-customizers
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public List<QRecord> preUpdate(UpdateInput updateInput, List<QRecord> records, boolean isPreview, Optional<List<QRecord>> oldRecordList) throws QException
+   {
+      for(TableCustomizerInterface customizer : customizers)
+      {
+         records = customizer.preUpdate(updateInput, records, isPreview, oldRecordList);
+      }
+      return records;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    * run postUpdate method over all sub-customizers
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public List<QRecord> postUpdate(UpdateInput updateInput, List<QRecord> records, Optional<List<QRecord>> oldRecordList) throws QException
+   {
+      for(TableCustomizerInterface customizer : customizers)
+      {
+         records = customizer.postUpdate(updateInput, records, oldRecordList);
+      }
+      return records;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    * run preDelete method over all sub-customizers
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public List<QRecord> preDelete(DeleteInput deleteInput, List<QRecord> records, boolean isPreview) throws QException
+   {
+      for(TableCustomizerInterface customizer : customizers)
+      {
+         records = customizer.preDelete(deleteInput, records, isPreview);
+      }
+      return records;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    * run postDelete method over all sub-customizers
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public List<QRecord> postDelete(DeleteInput deleteInput, List<QRecord> records) throws QException
+   {
+      for(TableCustomizerInterface customizer : customizers)
+      {
+         records = customizer.postDelete(deleteInput, records);
+      }
+      return records;
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/customizers/OldRecordHelper.java

@@ -0,0 +1,88 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.customizers;
+
+
+import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.util.Collections;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Optional;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.context.QContext;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QRecord;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.fields.QFieldType;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.collections.TypeTolerantKeyMap;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** utility class to help table customizers working with the oldRecordList.
+ ** Usage is just 2 lines:
+ ** outside of loop-over-records:
+ **   - OldRecordHelper oldRecordHelper = new OldRecordHelper(updateInput.getTableName(), oldRecordList);
+ ** then inside the record loop:
+ **   - Optional<QRecord> oldRecord = oldRecordHelper.getOldRecord(record);
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class OldRecordHelper
+{
+   private String     primaryKeyField;
+   private QFieldType primaryKeyType;
+
+   private Optional<List<QRecord>>    oldRecordList;
+   private Map<Serializable, QRecord> oldRecordMap;
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Constructor
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public OldRecordHelper(String tableName, Optional<List<QRecord>> oldRecordList)
+   {
+      this.primaryKeyField = QContext.getQInstance().getTable(tableName).getPrimaryKeyField();
+      this.primaryKeyType = QContext.getQInstance().getTable(tableName).getField(primaryKeyField).getType();
+
+      this.oldRecordList = oldRecordList;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public Optional<QRecord> getOldRecord(QRecord record)
+   {
+      if(oldRecordMap == null)
+      {
+         if(oldRecordList.isPresent())
+         {
+            oldRecordMap = new TypeTolerantKeyMap<>(primaryKeyType);
+            oldRecordList.get().forEach(r -> oldRecordMap.put(r.getValue(primaryKeyField), r));
+         }
+         else
+         {
+            oldRecordMap = Collections.emptyMap();
+         }
+      }
+
+      return (Optional.ofNullable(oldRecordMap.get(record.getValue(primaryKeyField))));
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/customizers/QCodeLoader.java

@@ -24,17 +24,11 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.customizers;
 
 import java.lang.reflect.Constructor;
 import java.util.Optional;
-import java.util.function.Function;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.automation.RecordAutomationHandler;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.processes.BackendStep;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.values.QCustomPossibleValueProvider;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QException;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.InitializableViaCodeReference;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeReference;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeType;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.possiblevalues.QPossibleValueSource;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.automation.TableAutomationAction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.lambdas.UnsafeFunction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.memoization.Memoization;
 import static com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.LogUtils.logPair;
@@ -43,9 +37,7 @@ import static com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.LogUtils.logPair;
 /*******************************************************************************
  ** Utility to load code for running QQQ customizers.
  **
- ** TODO - redo all to go through method that memoizes class & constructor
- ** lookup.  That memoziation causes 1,000,000 such calls to go from ~500ms
- ** to ~100ms.
+ ** That memoization causes 1,000,000 such calls to go from ~500ms to ~100ms.
  *******************************************************************************/
 public class QCodeLoader
 {
@@ -70,84 +62,6 @@ public class QCodeLoader
 
 
 
-   /*******************************************************************************
-    **
-    *******************************************************************************/
-   @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
-   public static <T, R> Function<T, R> getFunction(QCodeReference codeReference)
-   {
-      if(codeReference == null)
-      {
-         return (null);
-      }
-
-      if(!codeReference.getCodeType().equals(QCodeType.JAVA))
-      {
-         ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         // todo - 1) support more languages, 2) wrap them w/ java Functions here, 3) profit! //
-         ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         throw (new IllegalArgumentException("Only JAVA customizers are supported at this time."));
-      }
-
-      try
-      {
-         Class<?> customizerClass = Class.forName(codeReference.getName());
-         return ((Function<T, R>) customizerClass.getConstructor().newInstance());
-      }
-      catch(Exception e)
-      {
-         LOG.error("Error initializing customizer", e, logPair("codeReference", codeReference));
-
-         //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         // return null here - under the assumption that during normal run-time operations, we'll never hit here //
-         // as we'll want to validate all functions in the instance validator at startup time (and IT will throw //
-         // if it finds an invalid code reference                                                                //
-         //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         return (null);
-      }
-   }
-
-
-
-   /*******************************************************************************
-    **
-    *******************************************************************************/
-   @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
-   public static <T extends BackendStep> T getBackendStep(Class<T> expectedType, QCodeReference codeReference)
-   {
-      if(codeReference == null)
-      {
-         return (null);
-      }
-
-      if(!codeReference.getCodeType().equals(QCodeType.JAVA))
-      {
-         ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         // todo - 1) support more languages, 2) wrap them w/ java Functions here, 3) profit! //
-         ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         throw (new IllegalArgumentException("Only JAVA BackendSteps are supported at this time."));
-      }
-
-      try
-      {
-         Class<?> customizerClass = Class.forName(codeReference.getName());
-         return ((T) customizerClass.getConstructor().newInstance());
-      }
-      catch(Exception e)
-      {
-         LOG.error("Error initializing customizer", e, logPair("codeReference", codeReference));
-
-         //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         // return null here - under the assumption that during normal run-time operations, we'll never hit here //
-         // as we'll want to validate all functions in the instance validator at startup time (and IT will throw //
-         // if it finds an invalid code reference                                                                //
-         //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         return (null);
-      }
-   }
-
-
-
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
@@ -177,7 +91,17 @@ public class QCodeLoader
 
          if(constructor.isPresent())
          {
-            return ((T) constructor.get().newInstance());
+            T t = (T) constructor.get().newInstance();
+
+            ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+            // if the object is initializable, then, well, initialize it! //
+            ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+            if(t instanceof InitializableViaCodeReference initializableViaCodeReference)
+            {
+               initializableViaCodeReference.initialize(codeReference);
+            }
+
+            return t;
          }
          else
          {
@@ -187,7 +111,7 @@ public class QCodeLoader
       }
       catch(Exception e)
       {
-         LOG.error("Error initializing customizer", e, logPair("codeReference", codeReference));
+         LOG.error("Error initializing codeReference", e, logPair("codeReference", codeReference));
 
          //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
          // return null here - under the assumption that during normal run-time operations, we'll never hit here //
@@ -198,67 +122,4 @@ public class QCodeLoader
       }
    }
 
-
-
-   /*******************************************************************************
-    **
-    *******************************************************************************/
-   public static RecordAutomationHandler getRecordAutomationHandler(TableAutomationAction action) throws QException
-   {
-      try
-      {
-         QCodeReference codeReference = action.getCodeReference();
-         if(!codeReference.getCodeType().equals(QCodeType.JAVA))
-         {
-            ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-            // todo - 1) support more languages, 2) wrap them w/ java Functions here, 3) profit! //
-            ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-            throw (new IllegalArgumentException("Only JAVA customizers are supported at this time."));
-         }
-
-         Class<?> codeClass  = Class.forName(codeReference.getName());
-         Object   codeObject = codeClass.getConstructor().newInstance();
-         if(!(codeObject instanceof RecordAutomationHandler recordAutomationHandler))
-         {
-            throw (new QException("The supplied code [" + codeClass.getName() + "] is not an instance of RecordAutomationHandler"));
-         }
-         return (recordAutomationHandler);
-      }
-      catch(QException qe)
-      {
-         throw (qe);
-      }
-      catch(Exception e)
-      {
-         throw (new QException("Error getting record automation handler for action [" + action.getName() + "]", e));
-      }
-   }
-
-
-
-   /*******************************************************************************
-    **
-    *******************************************************************************/
-   public static QCustomPossibleValueProvider getCustomPossibleValueProvider(QPossibleValueSource possibleValueSource) throws QException
-   {
-      try
-      {
-         Class<?> codeClass  = Class.forName(possibleValueSource.getCustomCodeReference().getName());
-         Object   codeObject = codeClass.getConstructor().newInstance();
-         if(!(codeObject instanceof QCustomPossibleValueProvider customPossibleValueProvider))
-         {
-            throw (new QException("The supplied code [" + codeClass.getName() + "] is not an instance of QCustomPossibleValueProvider"));
-         }
-         return (customPossibleValueProvider);
-      }
-      catch(QException qe)
-      {
-         throw (qe);
-      }
-      catch(Exception e)
-      {
-         throw (new QException("Error getting custom possible value provider for PVS [" + possibleValueSource.getName() + "]", e));
-      }
-   }
-
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/dashboard/AbstractHTMLWidgetRenderer.java

@@ -290,7 +290,18 @@ public abstract class AbstractHTMLWidgetRenderer extends AbstractWidgetRenderer
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "call one that doesn't take input param")
    public static String linkRecordEdit(AbstractActionInput input, String tableName, Serializable recordId) throws QException
+   {
+      return linkRecordEdit(tableName, recordId);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public static String linkRecordEdit(String tableName, Serializable recordId) throws QException
    {
       String tablePath = QContext.getQInstance().getTablePath(tableName);
       return (tablePath + "/" + recordId + "/edit");
@@ -317,7 +328,17 @@ public abstract class AbstractHTMLWidgetRenderer extends AbstractWidgetRenderer
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "call one that doesn't take input param")
    public static String linkProcessForFilter(AbstractActionInput input, String processName, QQueryFilter filter) throws QException
+   {
+      return linkProcessForFilter(processName, filter);
+   }
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public static String linkProcessForFilter(String processName, QQueryFilter filter) throws QException
    {
       QProcessMetaData process = QContext.getQInstance().getProcess(processName);
       if(process == null)
@@ -337,10 +358,21 @@ public abstract class AbstractHTMLWidgetRenderer extends AbstractWidgetRenderer
 
 
 
+
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "call one that doesn't take input param")
    public static String linkProcessForRecord(AbstractActionInput input, String processName, Serializable recordId) throws QException
+   {
+      return linkProcessForRecord(processName, recordId);
+   }
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public static String linkProcessForRecord(String processName, Serializable recordId) throws QException
    {
       QProcessMetaData process   = QContext.getQInstance().getProcess(processName);
       String           tableName = process.getTableName();

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/metadata/AllowAllMetaDataFilter.java

@@ -33,6 +33,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
 /*******************************************************************************
  ** a default implementation of MetaDataFilterInterface, that allows all the things
  *******************************************************************************/
+@Deprecated(since = "migrated to metaDataCustomizer")
 public class AllowAllMetaDataFilter implements MetaDataFilterInterface
 {
 

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/metadata/DefaultNoopMetaDataActionCustomizer.java

@@ -0,0 +1,92 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.metadata;
+
+
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.metadata.MetaDataInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.dashboard.QWidgetMetaDataInterface;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.layout.QAppMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.processes.QProcessMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.reporting.QReportMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** a default implementation of MetaDataFilterInterface, that is all noop.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class DefaultNoopMetaDataActionCustomizer implements MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface
+{
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public boolean allowTable(MetaDataInput input, QTableMetaData table)
+   {
+      return (true);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public boolean allowProcess(MetaDataInput input, QProcessMetaData process)
+   {
+      return (true);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public boolean allowReport(MetaDataInput input, QReportMetaData report)
+   {
+      return (true);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public boolean allowApp(MetaDataInput input, QAppMetaData app)
+   {
+      return (true);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public boolean allowWidget(MetaDataInput input, QWidgetMetaDataInterface widget)
+   {
+      return (true);
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/metadata/MetaDataAction.java

@@ -23,10 +23,12 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.metadata;
 
 
 import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Collections;
 import java.util.Comparator;
 import java.util.LinkedHashMap;
 import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Objects;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.ActionHelper;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.customizers.QCodeLoader;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.permissions.PermissionCheckResult;
@@ -34,6 +36,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.permissions.PermissionsHelper;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.context.QContext;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QException;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QRuntimeException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QUserFacingException;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.metadata.MetaDataInput;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.metadata.MetaDataOutput;
@@ -65,7 +68,7 @@ public class MetaDataAction
 {
    private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(MetaDataAction.class);
 
-   private static Memoization<QInstance, MetaDataFilterInterface> metaDataFilterMemoization = new Memoization<>();
+   private static Memoization<QInstance, MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface> metaDataActionCustomizerMemoization = new Memoization<>();
 
 
 
@@ -79,7 +82,7 @@ public class MetaDataAction
       MetaDataOutput           metaDataOutput = new MetaDataOutput();
       Map<String, AppTreeNode> treeNodes      = new LinkedHashMap<>();
 
-      MetaDataFilterInterface filter = getMetaDataFilter();
+      MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface customizer = getMetaDataActionCustomizer();
 
       /////////////////////////////////////
       // map tables to frontend metadata //
@@ -90,7 +93,7 @@ public class MetaDataAction
          String         tableName = entry.getKey();
          QTableMetaData table     = entry.getValue();
 
-         if(!filter.allowTable(metaDataInput, table))
+         if(!customizer.allowTable(metaDataInput, table))
          {
             continue;
          }
@@ -119,7 +122,7 @@ public class MetaDataAction
          String           processName = entry.getKey();
          QProcessMetaData process     = entry.getValue();
 
-         if(!filter.allowProcess(metaDataInput, process))
+         if(!customizer.allowProcess(metaDataInput, process))
          {
             continue;
          }
@@ -144,7 +147,7 @@ public class MetaDataAction
          String          reportName = entry.getKey();
          QReportMetaData report     = entry.getValue();
 
-         if(!filter.allowReport(metaDataInput, report))
+         if(!customizer.allowReport(metaDataInput, report))
          {
             continue;
          }
@@ -169,7 +172,7 @@ public class MetaDataAction
          String                   widgetName = entry.getKey();
          QWidgetMetaDataInterface widget     = entry.getValue();
 
-         if(!filter.allowWidget(metaDataInput, widget))
+         if(!customizer.allowWidget(metaDataInput, widget))
          {
             continue;
          }
@@ -206,7 +209,7 @@ public class MetaDataAction
             continue;
          }
 
-         if(!filter.allowApp(metaDataInput, app))
+         if(!customizer.allowApp(metaDataInput, app))
          {
             continue;
          }
@@ -292,11 +295,22 @@ public class MetaDataAction
          metaDataOutput.setBranding(QContext.getQInstance().getBranding());
       }
 
-      metaDataOutput.setEnvironmentValues(QContext.getQInstance().getEnvironmentValues());
+      metaDataOutput.setEnvironmentValues(Objects.requireNonNullElse(QContext.getQInstance().getEnvironmentValues(), Collections.emptyMap()));
 
-      metaDataOutput.setHelpContents(QContext.getQInstance().getHelpContent());
+      metaDataOutput.setHelpContents(Objects.requireNonNullElse(QContext.getQInstance().getHelpContent(), Collections.emptyMap()));
 
-      // todo post-customization - can do whatever w/ the result if you want?
+      try
+      {
+         customizer.postProcess(metaDataOutput);
+      }
+      catch(QUserFacingException e)
+      {
+         LOG.debug("User-facing exception thrown in meta-data customizer post-processing", e);
+      }
+      catch(Exception e)
+      {
+         LOG.warn("Unexpected error thrown in meta-data customizer post-processing", e);
+      }
 
       return metaDataOutput;
    }
@@ -306,26 +320,36 @@ public class MetaDataAction
    /***************************************************************************
     **
     ***************************************************************************/
-   private MetaDataFilterInterface getMetaDataFilter()
+   private MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface getMetaDataActionCustomizer()
    {
-      return metaDataFilterMemoization.getResult(QContext.getQInstance(), i ->
+      return metaDataActionCustomizerMemoization.getResult(QContext.getQInstance(), i ->
       {
-         MetaDataFilterInterface filter                  = null;
-         QCodeReference          metaDataFilterReference = QContext.getQInstance().getMetaDataFilter();
-         if(metaDataFilterReference != null)
+         MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface actionCustomizer                  = null;
+         QCodeReference                    metaDataActionCustomizerReference = QContext.getQInstance().getMetaDataActionCustomizer();
+         if(metaDataActionCustomizerReference != null)
          {
-            filter = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(MetaDataFilterInterface.class, metaDataFilterReference);
-            LOG.debug("Using new meta-data filter of type: " + filter.getClass().getSimpleName());
+            actionCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface.class, metaDataActionCustomizerReference);
+            LOG.debug("Using new meta-data actionCustomizer of type: " + actionCustomizer.getClass().getSimpleName());
          }
 
-         if(filter == null)
+         if(actionCustomizer == null)
          {
-            filter = new AllowAllMetaDataFilter();
-            LOG.debug("Using new default (allow-all) meta-data filter");
+            QCodeReference metaDataFilterReference = QContext.getQInstance().getMetaDataFilter();
+            if(metaDataFilterReference != null)
+            {
+               actionCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface.class, metaDataFilterReference);
+               LOG.debug("Using new meta-data actionCustomizer (via metaDataFilter reference) of type: " + actionCustomizer.getClass().getSimpleName());
+            }
          }
 
-         return (filter);
-      }).orElseThrow(() -> new QRuntimeException("Error getting metaDataFilter"));
+         if(actionCustomizer == null)
+         {
+            actionCustomizer = new DefaultNoopMetaDataActionCustomizer();
+            LOG.debug("Using new default (allow-all) meta-data actionCustomizer");
+         }
+
+         return (actionCustomizer);
+      }).orElseThrow(() -> new QRuntimeException("Error getting MetaDataActionCustomizer"));
    }
 
 

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/metadata/MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface.java

@@ -0,0 +1,78 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.metadata;
+
+
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.metadata.MetaDataInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.metadata.MetaDataOutput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.dashboard.QWidgetMetaDataInterface;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.layout.QAppMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.processes.QProcessMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.reporting.QReportMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** Interface for customizations that can be injected by an application into
+ ** the MetaDataAction - e.g., loading applicable meta-data for a user into a
+ ** frontend.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public interface MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface
+{
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   boolean allowTable(MetaDataInput input, QTableMetaData table);
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   boolean allowProcess(MetaDataInput input, QProcessMetaData process);
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   boolean allowReport(MetaDataInput input, QReportMetaData report);
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   boolean allowApp(MetaDataInput input, QAppMetaData app);
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   boolean allowWidget(MetaDataInput input, QWidgetMetaDataInterface widget);
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   default void postProcess(MetaDataOutput metaDataOutput) throws QException
+   {
+      /////////////////////
+      // noop by default //
+      /////////////////////
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/metadata/MetaDataFilterInterface.java

@@ -22,43 +22,11 @@
 package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.metadata;
 
 
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.metadata.MetaDataInput;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.dashboard.QWidgetMetaDataInterface;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.layout.QAppMetaData;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.processes.QProcessMetaData;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.reporting.QReportMetaData;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
-
-
 /*******************************************************************************
  **
  *******************************************************************************/
-public interface MetaDataFilterInterface
+@Deprecated(since = "migrated to metaDataCustomizer")
+public interface MetaDataFilterInterface extends MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface
 {
 
-   /***************************************************************************
-    **
-    ***************************************************************************/
-   boolean allowTable(MetaDataInput input, QTableMetaData table);
-
-   /***************************************************************************
-    **
-    ***************************************************************************/
-   boolean allowProcess(MetaDataInput input, QProcessMetaData process);
-
-   /***************************************************************************
-    **
-    ***************************************************************************/
-   boolean allowReport(MetaDataInput input, QReportMetaData report);
-
-   /***************************************************************************
-    **
-    ***************************************************************************/
-   boolean allowApp(MetaDataInput input, QAppMetaData app);
-
-   /***************************************************************************
-    **
-    ***************************************************************************/
-   boolean allowWidget(MetaDataInput input, QWidgetMetaDataInterface widget);
-
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/processes/RunBackendStepAction.java

@@ -36,6 +36,8 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QUserFacingException;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.processes.RunBackendStepInput;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.processes.RunBackendStepOutput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.QCriteriaOperator;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.QFilterCriteria;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.QQueryFilter;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.QueryInput;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.QueryOutput;
@@ -46,6 +48,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.processes.QBackendStepMetaD
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.processes.QFunctionInputMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.processes.QProcessMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.processes.QStepMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
 
 
@@ -188,21 +191,40 @@ public class RunBackendStepAction
       {
          if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeIsEmpty(runBackendStepInput.getRecords()))
          {
-            QueryInput queryInput = new QueryInput();
-            queryInput.setTableName(inputMetaData.getRecordListMetaData().getTableName());
+            QTableMetaData table      = QContext.getQInstance().getTable(inputMetaData.getRecordListMetaData().getTableName());
+            QueryInput     queryInput = new QueryInput();
+            queryInput.setTableName(table.getName());
 
-            // todo - handle this being async (e.g., http)
-            // seems like it just needs to throw, breaking this flow, and to send a response to the frontend, directing it to prompt the user for the needed data
-            // then this step can re-run, hopefully with the needed data.
-
-            QProcessCallback callback = runBackendStepInput.getCallback();
-            if(callback == null)
+            //////////////////////////////////////////////////
+            // look for record ids in the input data values //
+            //////////////////////////////////////////////////
+            String recordIds = (String) runBackendStepInput.getValue("recordIds");
+            if(recordIds == null)
             {
-               throw (new QUserFacingException("Missing input records.",
-                  new QException("Function is missing input records, but no callback was present to request fields from a user")));
+               recordIds = (String) runBackendStepInput.getValue("recordId");
             }
 
-            queryInput.setFilter(callback.getQueryFilter());
+            ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+            // if records were found, add as criteria to query input //
+            ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+            if(recordIds != null)
+            {
+               queryInput.setFilter(new QQueryFilter(new QFilterCriteria(table.getPrimaryKeyField(), QCriteriaOperator.IN, recordIds.split(","))));
+            }
+            else
+            {
+               // todo - handle this being async (e.g., http)
+               // seems like it just needs to throw, breaking this flow, and to send a response to the frontend, directing it to prompt the user for the needed data
+               // then this step can re-run, hopefully with the needed data.
+               QProcessCallback callback = runBackendStepInput.getCallback();
+               if(callback == null)
+               {
+                  throw (new QUserFacingException("Missing input records.",
+                     new QException("Function is missing input records, but no callback was present to request fields from a user")));
+               }
+
+               queryInput.setFilter(callback.getQueryFilter());
+            }
 
             //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
             // if process has a max-no of records, set a limit on the process of that number plus 1 //
@@ -210,7 +232,7 @@ public class RunBackendStepAction
             //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
             if(process.getMaxInputRecords() != null)
             {
-               if(callback.getQueryFilter() == null)
+               if(queryInput.getFilter() == null)
                {
                   queryInput.setFilter(new QQueryFilter());
                }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/reporting/ExportStreamerInterface.java

@@ -54,6 +54,14 @@ public interface ExportStreamerInterface
       // noop in base class
    }
 
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   default void setExportStyleCustomizer(ExportStyleCustomizerInterface exportStyleCustomizer)
+   {
+      // noop in base class
+   }
+
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Called once per sheet, before any rows are available.  Meant to write a
     ** header, for example.

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/reporting/ExportStyleCustomizerInterface.java

@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.reporting;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** interface for classes that can be used to customize visual style aspects of
+ ** exports/reports.
+ **
+ ** Anticipates very different sub-interfaces based on the file type being generated,
+ ** and the capabilities of each.  e.g., excel (bolds, fonts, cell merging) vs
+ ** json (different structure of objects).
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public interface ExportStyleCustomizerInterface
+{
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/reporting/GenerateReportAction.java

@@ -163,6 +163,17 @@ public class GenerateReportAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<ReportInput, R
          reportStreamer = reportFormat.newReportStreamer();
       }
 
+      if(reportInput.getExportStyleCustomizer() != null)
+      {
+         ExportStyleCustomizerInterface styleCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(ExportStyleCustomizerInterface.class, reportInput.getExportStyleCustomizer());
+         reportStreamer.setExportStyleCustomizer(styleCustomizer);
+      }
+      else if(report.getExportStyleCustomizer() != null)
+      {
+         ExportStyleCustomizerInterface styleCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(ExportStyleCustomizerInterface.class, report.getExportStyleCustomizer());
+         reportStreamer.setExportStyleCustomizer(styleCustomizer);
+      }
+
       reportStreamer.preRun(reportInput.getReportDestination(), views);
 
       ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
@@ -211,7 +222,8 @@ public class GenerateReportAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<ReportInput, R
                /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
                if(dataSourceTableView.getViewCustomizer() != null)
                {
-                  Function<QReportView, QReportView> viewCustomizerFunction = QCodeLoader.getFunction(dataSourceTableView.getViewCustomizer());
+                  @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
+                  Function<QReportView, QReportView> viewCustomizerFunction = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(Function.class, dataSourceTableView.getViewCustomizer());
                   if(viewCustomizerFunction instanceof ReportViewCustomizer reportViewCustomizer)
                   {
                      reportViewCustomizer.setReportInput(reportInput);
@@ -660,7 +672,7 @@ public class GenerateReportAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<ReportInput, R
          ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
          // if any fields are 'showPossibleValueLabel', then move display values for them into the record's values map //
          ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         for(QReportField column : tableView.getColumns())
+         for(QReportField column : CollectionUtils.nonNullList(tableView.getColumns()))
          {
             if(column.getShowPossibleValueLabel())
             {

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/reporting/excel/poi/ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer.java

@@ -46,6 +46,7 @@ import java.util.zip.ZipEntry;
 import java.util.zip.ZipInputStream;
 import java.util.zip.ZipOutputStream;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.reporting.ExportStreamerInterface;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.reporting.ExportStyleCustomizerInterface;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.reporting.ReportUtils;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QReportingException;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.QInstanceEnricher;
@@ -77,6 +78,7 @@ import org.apache.poi.xssf.usermodel.XSSFPivotTable;
 import org.apache.poi.xssf.usermodel.XSSFRow;
 import org.apache.poi.xssf.usermodel.XSSFSheet;
 import org.apache.poi.xssf.usermodel.XSSFWorkbook;
+import static com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.LogUtils.logPair;
 
 
 /*******************************************************************************
@@ -112,9 +114,10 @@ public class ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer implements ExportStreamerInter
    public static final String EXCEL_DATE_FORMAT      = "yyyy-MM-dd";
    public static final String EXCEL_DATE_TIME_FORMAT = "yyyy-MM-dd H:mm:ss";
 
-   private PoiExcelStylerInterface    poiExcelStylerInterface = getStylerInterface();
+   private ExcelPoiBasedStreamingStyleCustomizerInterface styleCustomizerInterface;
+
    private Map<String, String>        excelCellFormats;
-   private Map<String, XSSFCellStyle> styles                  = new HashMap<>();
+   private Map<String, XSSFCellStyle> styles = new HashMap<>();
 
    private int rowNo      = 0;
    private int sheetIndex = 1;
@@ -402,6 +405,7 @@ public class ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer implements ExportStreamerInter
       dateTimeStyle.setDataFormat(createHelper.createDataFormat().getFormat(EXCEL_DATE_TIME_FORMAT));
       styles.put("datetime", dateTimeStyle);
 
+      PoiExcelStylerInterface poiExcelStylerInterface = getStylerInterface();
       styles.put("title", poiExcelStylerInterface.createStyleForTitle(workbook, createHelper));
       styles.put("header", poiExcelStylerInterface.createStyleForHeader(workbook, createHelper));
       styles.put("footer", poiExcelStylerInterface.createStyleForFooter(workbook, createHelper));
@@ -413,6 +417,11 @@ public class ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer implements ExportStreamerInter
       XSSFCellStyle footerDateTimeStyle = poiExcelStylerInterface.createStyleForFooter(workbook, createHelper);
       footerDateTimeStyle.setDataFormat(createHelper.createDataFormat().getFormat(EXCEL_DATE_TIME_FORMAT));
       styles.put("footer-datetime", footerDateTimeStyle);
+
+      if(styleCustomizerInterface != null)
+      {
+         styleCustomizerInterface.customizeStyles(styles, workbook, createHelper);
+      }
    }
 
 
@@ -458,7 +467,7 @@ public class ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer implements ExportStreamerInter
          }
          else
          {
-            sheetWriter.beginSheet();
+            sheetWriter.beginSheet(view, styleCustomizerInterface);
 
             ////////////////////////////////////////////////
             // put the title and header rows in the sheet //
@@ -560,6 +569,16 @@ public class ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer implements ExportStreamerInter
 
 
 
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static void setStyleForField(QRecord record, String fieldName, String styleName)
+   {
+      record.setDisplayValue(fieldName + ":excelStyle", styleName);
+   }
+
+
+
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
@@ -567,12 +586,12 @@ public class ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer implements ExportStreamerInter
    {
       sheetWriter.insertRow(rowNo++);
 
-      int styleIndex         = -1;
+      int baseStyleIndex     = -1;
       int dateStyleIndex     = styles.get("date").getIndex();
       int dateTimeStyleIndex = styles.get("datetime").getIndex();
       if(isFooter)
       {
-         styleIndex = styles.get("footer").getIndex();
+         baseStyleIndex = styles.get("footer").getIndex();
          dateStyleIndex = styles.get("footer-date").getIndex();
          dateTimeStyleIndex = styles.get("footer-datetime").getIndex();
       }
@@ -582,6 +601,13 @@ public class ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer implements ExportStreamerInter
       {
          Serializable value = qRecord.getValue(field.getName());
 
+         String overrideStyleName = qRecord.getDisplayValue(field.getName() + ":excelStyle");
+         int    styleIndex        = baseStyleIndex;
+         if(overrideStyleName != null)
+         {
+            styleIndex = styles.get(overrideStyleName).getIndex();
+         }
+
          if(value != null)
          {
             if(value instanceof String s)
@@ -706,7 +732,7 @@ public class ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer implements ExportStreamerInter
       {
          if(!ReportType.PIVOT.equals(currentView.getType()))
          {
-            sheetWriter.endSheet();
+            sheetWriter.endSheet(currentView, styleCustomizerInterface);
          }
 
          activeSheetWriter.flush();
@@ -815,7 +841,29 @@ public class ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer implements ExportStreamerInter
     *******************************************************************************/
    protected PoiExcelStylerInterface getStylerInterface()
    {
+      if(styleCustomizerInterface != null)
+      {
+         return styleCustomizerInterface.getExcelStyler();
+      }
+
       return (new PlainPoiExcelStyler());
    }
 
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public void setExportStyleCustomizer(ExportStyleCustomizerInterface exportStyleCustomizer)
+   {
+      if(exportStyleCustomizer instanceof ExcelPoiBasedStreamingStyleCustomizerInterface poiExcelStylerInterface)
+      {
+         this.styleCustomizerInterface = poiExcelStylerInterface;
+      }
+      else
+      {
+         LOG.debug("Supplied export style customizer is not an instance of ExcelPoiStyleCustomizerInterface, so will not be used for an excel export", logPair("exportStyleCustomizerClass", exportStyleCustomizer.getClass().getSimpleName()));
+      }
+   }
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/reporting/excel/poi/ExcelPoiBasedStreamingStyleCustomizerInterface.java

@@ -0,0 +1,81 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.reporting.excel.poi;
+
+
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Map;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.reporting.ExportStyleCustomizerInterface;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.reporting.QReportView;
+import org.apache.poi.ss.usermodel.CreationHelper;
+import org.apache.poi.xssf.usermodel.XSSFCellStyle;
+import org.apache.poi.xssf.usermodel.XSSFWorkbook;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** style customization points for Excel files generated via our streaming POI.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public interface ExcelPoiBasedStreamingStyleCustomizerInterface extends ExportStyleCustomizerInterface
+{
+   /***************************************************************************
+    ** slightly legacy way we did excel styles - but get an instance of object
+    ** that defaults "default" styles (header, footer, etc).
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   default PoiExcelStylerInterface getExcelStyler()
+   {
+      return (new PlainPoiExcelStyler());
+   }
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    ** either change "default" styles put in the styles map, or create new ones
+    ** which can then be applied to row/field values (cells) via:
+    ** ExcelPoiBasedStreamingExportStreamer.setStyleForField(row, fieldName, styleName);
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   default void customizeStyles(Map<String, XSSFCellStyle> styles, XSSFWorkbook workbook, CreationHelper createHelper)
+   {
+      //////////////////
+      // noop default //
+      //////////////////
+   }
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    ** for a given view (sheet), return a list of custom column widths.
+    ** any nulls in the list are ignored (so default width is used).
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   default List<Integer> getColumnWidthsForView(QReportView view)
+   {
+      return (null);
+   }
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    ** for a given view (sheet), return a list of any ranges which should be
+    ** merged, as in "A1:C1" (first three cells in first row).
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   default List<String> getMergedRangesForView(QReportView view)
+   {
+      return (null);
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/reporting/excel/poi/StreamedSheetWriter.java

@@ -25,7 +25,10 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.reporting.excel.poi;
 import java.io.IOException;
 import java.io.Writer;
 import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Map;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.reporting.QReportView;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
 import org.apache.poi.ss.util.CellReference;
 
 
@@ -53,13 +56,33 @@ public class StreamedSheetWriter
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
-   public void beginSheet() throws IOException
+   public void beginSheet(QReportView view, ExcelPoiBasedStreamingStyleCustomizerInterface styleCustomizerInterface) throws IOException
    {
       writer.write("""
          <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
-            <worksheet xmlns="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/spreadsheetml/2006/main">
-               <sheetData>""");
+            <worksheet xmlns="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/spreadsheetml/2006/main">""");
 
+      if(styleCustomizerInterface != null && view != null)
+      {
+         List<Integer> columnWidths = styleCustomizerInterface.getColumnWidthsForView(view);
+         if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(columnWidths))
+         {
+            writer.write("<cols>");
+            for(int i = 0; i < columnWidths.size(); i++)
+            {
+               Integer width = columnWidths.get(i);
+               if(width != null)
+               {
+                  writer.write("""
+                     <col min="%d" max="%d" width="%d" customWidth="1"/>
+                     """.formatted(i + 1, i + 1, width));
+               }
+            }
+            writer.write("</cols>");
+         }
+      }
+
+      writer.write("<sheetData>");
    }
 
 
@@ -67,11 +90,25 @@ public class StreamedSheetWriter
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
-   public void endSheet() throws IOException
+   public void endSheet(QReportView view, ExcelPoiBasedStreamingStyleCustomizerInterface styleCustomizerInterface) throws IOException
    {
-      writer.write("""
-            </sheetData>
-         </worksheet>""");
+      writer.write("</sheetData>");
+
+      if(styleCustomizerInterface != null && view != null)
+      {
+         List<String> mergedRanges = styleCustomizerInterface.getMergedRangesForView(view);
+         if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(mergedRanges))
+         {
+            writer.write(String.format("<mergeCells count=\"%d\">", mergedRanges.size()));
+            for(String range : mergedRanges)
+            {
+               writer.write(String.format("<mergeCell ref=\"%s\"/>", range));
+            }
+            writer.write("</mergeCells>");
+         }
+      }
+
+      writer.write("</worksheet>");
    }
 
 
@@ -151,7 +188,7 @@ public class StreamedSheetWriter
             {
                rs.append("&quot;");
             }
-            else if (c < 32 && c != '\t' && c != '\n')
+            else if(c < 32 && c != '\t' && c != '\n')
             {
                rs.append(' ');
             }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/scripts/QJavaExecutor.java

@@ -53,7 +53,8 @@ public class QJavaExecutor implements QCodeExecutor
       Serializable output;
       try
       {
-         Function<Map<String, Object>, Serializable> function = QCodeLoader.getFunction(codeReference);
+         @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
+         Function<Map<String, Object>, Serializable> function = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(Function.class, codeReference);
          output = function.apply(context);
       }
       catch(Exception e)

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/tables/DeleteAction.java

@@ -401,6 +401,7 @@ public class DeleteAction
          if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(associatedKeys))
          {
             DeleteInput nextLevelDeleteInput = new DeleteInput();
+            nextLevelDeleteInput.setFlags(deleteInput.getFlags());
             nextLevelDeleteInput.setTransaction(deleteInput.getTransaction());
             nextLevelDeleteInput.setTableName(association.getAssociatedTableName());
             nextLevelDeleteInput.setPrimaryKeys(associatedKeys);

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/tables/InsertAction.java

@@ -34,7 +34,6 @@ import java.util.Set;
 import java.util.stream.Collectors;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.AbstractQActionFunction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.ActionHelper;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.QBackendTransaction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.audits.DMLAuditAction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.automation.AutomationStatus;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.automation.RecordAutomationStatusUpdater;
@@ -54,6 +53,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.insert.InsertInput;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.insert.InsertOutput;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QRecord;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QBackendMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeReference;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.fields.QFieldMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.fields.QFieldType;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.joins.JoinOn;
@@ -157,7 +157,7 @@ public class InsertAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<InsertInput, InsertOut
       //////////////////////////////////////////////////
       // insert any associations in the input records //
       //////////////////////////////////////////////////
-      manageAssociations(table, insertOutput.getRecords(), insertInput.getTransaction());
+      manageAssociations(table, insertOutput.getRecords(), insertInput);
 
       //////////////////
       // do the audit //
@@ -174,9 +174,21 @@ public class InsertAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<InsertInput, InsertOut
             .withRecordList(insertOutput.getRecords()));
       }
 
-      //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-      // finally, run the post-insert customizer, if there is one //
-      //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+      ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+      // finally, run the post-insert customizers, if there are any //
+      ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+      runPostInsertCustomizers(insertInput, table, insertOutput);
+
+      return insertOutput;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   private static void runPostInsertCustomizers(InsertInput insertInput, QTableMetaData table, InsertOutput insertOutput)
+   {
       Optional<TableCustomizerInterface> postInsertCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getTableCustomizer(table, TableCustomizers.POST_INSERT_RECORD.getRole());
       if(postInsertCustomizer.isPresent())
       {
@@ -193,7 +205,25 @@ public class InsertAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<InsertInput, InsertOut
          }
       }
 
-      return insertOutput;
+      ///////////////////////////////////////////////
+      // run all of the instance-level customizers //
+      ///////////////////////////////////////////////
+      List<QCodeReference> tableCustomizerCodes = QContext.getQInstance().getTableCustomizers(TableCustomizers.POST_INSERT_RECORD);
+      for(QCodeReference tableCustomizerCode : tableCustomizerCodes)
+      {
+         try
+         {
+            TableCustomizerInterface tableCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(TableCustomizerInterface.class, tableCustomizerCode);
+            insertOutput.setRecords(tableCustomizer.postInsert(insertInput, insertOutput.getRecords()));
+         }
+         catch(Exception e)
+         {
+            for(QRecord record : insertOutput.getRecords())
+            {
+               record.addWarning(new QWarningMessage("An error occurred after the insert: " + e.getMessage()));
+            }
+         }
+      }
    }
 
 
@@ -308,6 +338,19 @@ public class InsertAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<InsertInput, InsertOut
             insertInput.setRecords(preInsertCustomizer.get().preInsert(insertInput, insertInput.getRecords(), isPreview));
          }
       }
+
+      ///////////////////////////////////////////////
+      // run all of the instance-level customizers //
+      ///////////////////////////////////////////////
+      List<QCodeReference> tableCustomizerCodes = QContext.getQInstance().getTableCustomizers(TableCustomizers.PRE_INSERT_RECORD);
+      for(QCodeReference tableCustomizerCode : tableCustomizerCodes)
+      {
+         TableCustomizerInterface tableCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(TableCustomizerInterface.class, tableCustomizerCode);
+         if(whenToRun.equals(tableCustomizer.whenToRunPreInsert(insertInput, isPreview)))
+         {
+            insertInput.setRecords(tableCustomizer.preInsert(insertInput, insertInput.getRecords(), isPreview));
+         }
+      }
    }
 
 
@@ -342,7 +385,7 @@ public class InsertAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<InsertInput, InsertOut
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
-   private void manageAssociations(QTableMetaData table, List<QRecord> insertedRecords, QBackendTransaction transaction) throws QException
+   private void manageAssociations(QTableMetaData table, List<QRecord> insertedRecords, InsertInput insertInput) throws QException
    {
       for(Association association : CollectionUtils.nonNullList(table.getAssociations()))
       {
@@ -375,7 +418,8 @@ public class InsertAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<InsertInput, InsertOut
          if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(nextLevelInserts))
          {
             InsertInput nextLevelInsertInput = new InsertInput();
-            nextLevelInsertInput.setTransaction(transaction);
+            nextLevelInsertInput.withFlags(insertInput.getFlags());
+            nextLevelInsertInput.setTransaction(insertInput.getTransaction());
             nextLevelInsertInput.setTableName(association.getAssociatedTableName());
             nextLevelInsertInput.setRecords(nextLevelInserts);
             InsertOutput nextLevelInsertOutput = new InsertAction().execute(nextLevelInsertInput);

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/tables/ReplaceAction.java

@@ -126,6 +126,7 @@ public class ReplaceAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<ReplaceInput, Replace
          InsertInput insertInput = new InsertInput();
          insertInput.setTableName(table.getName());
          insertInput.setRecords(insertList);
+         insertInput.withFlags(input.getFlags());
          insertInput.setTransaction(transaction);
          insertInput.setOmitDmlAudit(input.getOmitDmlAudit());
          InsertOutput insertOutput = new InsertAction().execute(insertInput);
@@ -135,6 +136,7 @@ public class ReplaceAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<ReplaceInput, Replace
          UpdateInput updateInput = new UpdateInput();
          updateInput.setTableName(table.getName());
          updateInput.setRecords(updateList);
+         updateInput.withFlags(input.getFlags());
          updateInput.setTransaction(transaction);
          updateInput.setOmitDmlAudit(input.getOmitDmlAudit());
          UpdateOutput updateOutput = new UpdateAction().execute(updateInput);
@@ -151,6 +153,7 @@ public class ReplaceAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<ReplaceInput, Replace
             DeleteInput deleteInput = new DeleteInput();
             deleteInput.setTableName(table.getName());
             deleteInput.setQueryFilter(deleteFilter);
+            deleteInput.withFlags(input.getFlags());
             deleteInput.setTransaction(transaction);
             deleteInput.setOmitDmlAudit(input.getOmitDmlAudit());
             DeleteOutput deleteOutput = new DeleteAction().execute(deleteInput);

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/tables/UpdateAction.java

@@ -57,6 +57,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.QueryOutput;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.update.UpdateInput;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.update.UpdateOutput;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QRecord;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeReference;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.fields.DynamicDefaultValueBehavior;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.fields.FieldBehavior;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.fields.QFieldMetaData;
@@ -199,6 +200,18 @@ public class UpdateAction
       //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
       // finally, run the post-update customizer, if there is one //
       //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+      runPostUpdateCustomizers(updateInput, table, updateOutput, oldRecordList);
+
+      return updateOutput;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   private static void runPostUpdateCustomizers(UpdateInput updateInput, QTableMetaData table, UpdateOutput updateOutput, Optional<List<QRecord>> oldRecordList)
+   {
       Optional<TableCustomizerInterface> postUpdateCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getTableCustomizer(table, TableCustomizers.POST_UPDATE_RECORD.getRole());
       if(postUpdateCustomizer.isPresent())
       {
@@ -215,7 +228,49 @@ public class UpdateAction
          }
       }
 
-      return updateOutput;
+      ///////////////////////////////////////////////
+      // run all of the instance-level customizers //
+      ///////////////////////////////////////////////
+      List<QCodeReference> tableCustomizerCodes = QContext.getQInstance().getTableCustomizers(TableCustomizers.POST_UPDATE_RECORD);
+      for(QCodeReference tableCustomizerCode : tableCustomizerCodes)
+      {
+         try
+         {
+            TableCustomizerInterface tableCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(TableCustomizerInterface.class, tableCustomizerCode);
+            updateOutput.setRecords(tableCustomizer.postUpdate(updateInput, updateOutput.getRecords(), oldRecordList));
+         }
+         catch(Exception e)
+         {
+            for(QRecord record : updateOutput.getRecords())
+            {
+               record.addWarning(new QWarningMessage("An error occurred after the update: " + e.getMessage()));
+            }
+         }
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   private static void runPreUpdateCustomizers(UpdateInput updateInput, QTableMetaData table, Optional<List<QRecord>> oldRecordList, boolean isPreview) throws QException
+   {
+      Optional<TableCustomizerInterface> preUpdateCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getTableCustomizer(table, TableCustomizers.PRE_UPDATE_RECORD.getRole());
+      if(preUpdateCustomizer.isPresent())
+      {
+         updateInput.setRecords(preUpdateCustomizer.get().preUpdate(updateInput, updateInput.getRecords(), isPreview, oldRecordList));
+      }
+
+      ///////////////////////////////////////////////
+      // run all of the instance-level customizers //
+      ///////////////////////////////////////////////
+      List<QCodeReference> tableCustomizerCodes = QContext.getQInstance().getTableCustomizers(TableCustomizers.PRE_UPDATE_RECORD);
+      for(QCodeReference tableCustomizerCode : tableCustomizerCodes)
+      {
+         TableCustomizerInterface tableCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(TableCustomizerInterface.class, tableCustomizerCode);
+         updateInput.setRecords(tableCustomizer.preUpdate(updateInput, updateInput.getRecords(), isPreview, oldRecordList));
+      }
    }
 
 
@@ -278,11 +333,7 @@ public class UpdateAction
       ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
       // after all validations, run the pre-update customizer, if there is one //
       ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
-      Optional<TableCustomizerInterface> preUpdateCustomizer = QCodeLoader.getTableCustomizer(table, TableCustomizers.PRE_UPDATE_RECORD.getRole());
-      if(preUpdateCustomizer.isPresent())
-      {
-         updateInput.setRecords(preUpdateCustomizer.get().preUpdate(updateInput, updateInput.getRecords(), isPreview, oldRecordList));
-      }
+      runPreUpdateCustomizers(updateInput, table, oldRecordList, isPreview);
    }
 
 
@@ -405,7 +456,7 @@ public class UpdateAction
                   QFieldType   fieldType = table.getField(lock.getFieldName()).getType();
                   Serializable lockValue = ValueUtils.getValueAsFieldType(fieldType, oldRecord.getValue(lock.getFieldName()));
 
-                  List<QErrorMessage> errors = ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper.validateRecordSecurityValue(table, lock, lockValue, fieldType, ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper.Action.UPDATE, Collections.emptyMap());
+                  List<QErrorMessage> errors = ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper.validateRecordSecurityValue(table, lock, lockValue, fieldType, ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper.Action.UPDATE, Collections.emptyMap(), QContext.getQSession());
                   if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(errors))
                   {
                      errors.forEach(e -> record.addError(e));
@@ -554,6 +605,7 @@ public class UpdateAction
                {
                   LOG.debug("Deleting associatedRecords", logPair("associatedTable", associatedTable.getName()), logPair("noOfRecords", queryOutput.getRecords().size()));
                   DeleteInput deleteInput = new DeleteInput();
+                  deleteInput.setFlags(updateInput.getFlags());
                   deleteInput.setTransaction(updateInput.getTransaction());
                   deleteInput.setTableName(association.getAssociatedTableName());
                   deleteInput.setPrimaryKeys(queryOutput.getRecords().stream().map(r -> r.getValue(associatedTable.getPrimaryKeyField())).collect(Collectors.toList()));
@@ -566,6 +618,7 @@ public class UpdateAction
                LOG.debug("Updating associatedRecords", logPair("associatedTable", associatedTable.getName()), logPair("noOfRecords", nextLevelUpdates.size()));
                UpdateInput nextLevelUpdateInput = new UpdateInput();
                nextLevelUpdateInput.setTransaction(updateInput.getTransaction());
+               nextLevelUpdateInput.setFlags(updateInput.getFlags());
                nextLevelUpdateInput.setTableName(association.getAssociatedTableName());
                nextLevelUpdateInput.setRecords(nextLevelUpdates);
                UpdateOutput nextLevelUpdateOutput = new UpdateAction().execute(nextLevelUpdateInput);
@@ -576,6 +629,7 @@ public class UpdateAction
                LOG.debug("Inserting associatedRecords", logPair("associatedTable", associatedTable.getName()), logPair("noOfRecords", nextLevelUpdates.size()));
                InsertInput nextLevelInsertInput = new InsertInput();
                nextLevelInsertInput.setTransaction(updateInput.getTransaction());
+               nextLevelInsertInput.setFlags(updateInput.getFlags());
                nextLevelInsertInput.setTableName(association.getAssociatedTableName());
                nextLevelInsertInput.setRecords(nextLevelInserts);
                InsertOutput nextLevelInsertOutput = new InsertAction().execute(nextLevelInsertInput);

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/tables/helpers/ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper.java

@@ -50,6 +50,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.security.QSecurityKeyType;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.security.RecordSecurityLock;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.security.RecordSecurityLockFilters;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.session.QSession;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.statusmessages.PermissionDeniedMessage;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.statusmessages.QErrorMessage;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
@@ -102,7 +103,7 @@ public class ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper
       // actually check lock values //
       ////////////////////////////////
       Map<Serializable, RecordWithErrors> errorRecords = new HashMap<>();
-      evaluateRecordLocks(table, records, action, locksToCheck, errorRecords, new ArrayList<>(), madeUpPrimaryKeys, transaction);
+      evaluateRecordLocks(table, records, action, locksToCheck, errorRecords, new ArrayList<>(), madeUpPrimaryKeys, transaction, QContext.getQSession());
 
       /////////////////////////////////
       // propagate errors to records //
@@ -124,6 +125,29 @@ public class ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper
 
 
 
+   /***************************************************************************
+    ** return boolean if given session can read given record
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static boolean allowedToReadRecord(QTableMetaData table, QRecord record, QSession qSession, QBackendTransaction transaction) throws QException
+   {
+      MultiRecordSecurityLock locksToCheck = getRecordSecurityLocks(table, Action.SELECT);
+      if(locksToCheck == null || CollectionUtils.nullSafeIsEmpty(locksToCheck.getLocks()))
+      {
+         return (true);
+      }
+
+      Map<Serializable, RecordWithErrors> errorRecords = new HashMap<>();
+      evaluateRecordLocks(table, List.of(record), Action.SELECT, locksToCheck, errorRecords, new ArrayList<>(), Collections.emptyMap(), transaction, qSession);
+      if(errorRecords.containsKey(record.getValue(table.getPrimaryKeyField())))
+      {
+         return (false);
+      }
+
+      return (true);
+   }
+
+
+
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** For a list of `records` from a `table`, and a given `action`, evaluate a
     ** `recordSecurityLock` (which may be a multi-lock) - populating the input map
@@ -142,7 +166,7 @@ public class ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper
     ** BUT - WRITE locks - in their case, we read the record no matter what, and in
     ** here we need to verify we have a key that allows us to WRITE the record.
     *******************************************************************************/
-   private static void evaluateRecordLocks(QTableMetaData table, List<QRecord> records, Action action, RecordSecurityLock recordSecurityLock, Map<Serializable, RecordWithErrors> errorRecords, List<Integer> treePosition, Map<Serializable, QRecord> madeUpPrimaryKeys, QBackendTransaction transaction) throws QException
+   private static void evaluateRecordLocks(QTableMetaData table, List<QRecord> records, Action action, RecordSecurityLock recordSecurityLock, Map<Serializable, RecordWithErrors> errorRecords, List<Integer> treePosition, Map<Serializable, QRecord> madeUpPrimaryKeys, QBackendTransaction transaction, QSession qSession) throws QException
    {
       if(recordSecurityLock instanceof MultiRecordSecurityLock multiRecordSecurityLock)
       {
@@ -153,7 +177,7 @@ public class ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper
          for(RecordSecurityLock childLock : CollectionUtils.nonNullList(multiRecordSecurityLock.getLocks()))
          {
             treePosition.add(i);
-            evaluateRecordLocks(table, records, action, childLock, errorRecords, treePosition, madeUpPrimaryKeys, transaction);
+            evaluateRecordLocks(table, records, action, childLock, errorRecords, treePosition, madeUpPrimaryKeys, transaction, qSession);
             treePosition.remove(treePosition.size() - 1);
             i++;
          }
@@ -165,7 +189,7 @@ public class ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper
       // if this lock has an all-access key, and the user has that key, then there can't be any errors here, so return early //
       /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
       QSecurityKeyType securityKeyType = QContext.getQInstance().getSecurityKeyType(recordSecurityLock.getSecurityKeyType());
-      if(StringUtils.hasContent(securityKeyType.getAllAccessKeyName()) && QContext.getQSession().hasSecurityKeyValue(securityKeyType.getAllAccessKeyName(), true, QFieldType.BOOLEAN))
+      if(StringUtils.hasContent(securityKeyType.getAllAccessKeyName()) && qSession.hasSecurityKeyValue(securityKeyType.getAllAccessKeyName(), true, QFieldType.BOOLEAN))
       {
          return;
       }
@@ -193,7 +217,7 @@ public class ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper
             }
 
             Serializable        recordSecurityValue = record.getValue(field.getName());
-            List<QErrorMessage> recordErrors        = validateRecordSecurityValue(table, recordSecurityLock, recordSecurityValue, field.getType(), action, madeUpPrimaryKeys);
+            List<QErrorMessage> recordErrors        = validateRecordSecurityValue(table, recordSecurityLock, recordSecurityValue, field.getType(), action, madeUpPrimaryKeys, qSession);
             if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(recordErrors))
             {
                errorRecords.computeIfAbsent(record.getValue(primaryKeyField), (k) -> new RecordWithErrors(record)).addAll(recordErrors, treePosition);
@@ -339,7 +363,7 @@ public class ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper
 
                   for(QRecord inputRecord : inputRecords)
                   {
-                     List<QErrorMessage> recordErrors = validateRecordSecurityValue(table, recordSecurityLock, recordSecurityValue, field.getType(), action, madeUpPrimaryKeys);
+                     List<QErrorMessage> recordErrors = validateRecordSecurityValue(table, recordSecurityLock, recordSecurityValue, field.getType(), action, madeUpPrimaryKeys, qSession);
                      if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(recordErrors))
                      {
                         errorRecords.computeIfAbsent(inputRecord.getValue(primaryKeyField), (k) -> new RecordWithErrors(inputRecord)).addAll(recordErrors, treePosition);
@@ -446,7 +470,7 @@ public class ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
-   public static List<QErrorMessage> validateRecordSecurityValue(QTableMetaData table, RecordSecurityLock recordSecurityLock, Serializable recordSecurityValue, QFieldType fieldType, Action action, Map<Serializable, QRecord> madeUpPrimaryKeys)
+   public static List<QErrorMessage> validateRecordSecurityValue(QTableMetaData table, RecordSecurityLock recordSecurityLock, Serializable recordSecurityValue, QFieldType fieldType, Action action, Map<Serializable, QRecord> madeUpPrimaryKeys, QSession qSession)
    {
       if(recordSecurityValue == null || (madeUpPrimaryKeys != null && madeUpPrimaryKeys.containsKey(recordSecurityValue)))
       {
@@ -461,7 +485,7 @@ public class ValidateRecordSecurityLockHelper
       }
       else
       {
-         if(!QContext.getQSession().hasSecurityKeyValue(recordSecurityLock.getSecurityKeyType(), recordSecurityValue, fieldType))
+         if(!qSession.hasSecurityKeyValue(recordSecurityLock.getSecurityKeyType(), recordSecurityValue, fieldType))
          {
             if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(recordSecurityLock.getJoinNameChain()))
             {

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/templates/ConvertHtmlToPdfAction.java

@@ -26,22 +26,32 @@ import java.nio.file.Path;
 import java.util.Map;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.AbstractQActionFunction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.templates.ConvertHtmlToPdfInput;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.templates.ConvertHtmlToPdfOutput;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
+import com.openhtmltopdf.css.constants.IdentValue;
+import com.openhtmltopdf.pdfboxout.PdfBoxFontResolver;
+import com.openhtmltopdf.pdfboxout.PdfBoxRenderer;
+import com.openhtmltopdf.pdfboxout.PdfRendererBuilder;
 import org.jsoup.Jsoup;
+import org.jsoup.helper.W3CDom;
 import org.jsoup.nodes.Document;
-import org.xhtmlrenderer.layout.SharedContext;
-import org.xhtmlrenderer.pdf.ITextRenderer;
 
 
 /*******************************************************************************
  ** Action to convert a string of HTML to a PDF!
  **
  ** Much credit to https://www.baeldung.com/java-html-to-pdf
- *******************************************************************************/
+ **
+ ** Updated in March 2025 to go from flying-saucer-pdf-openpdf lib to openhtmltopdf,
+ ** mostly to get support for max-height on images...
+ ********************************************************************************/
 public class ConvertHtmlToPdfAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<ConvertHtmlToPdfInput, ConvertHtmlToPdfOutput>
 {
+   private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(ConvertHtmlToPdfAction.class);
+
+
 
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
@@ -58,35 +68,37 @@ public class ConvertHtmlToPdfAction extends AbstractQActionFunction<ConvertHtmlT
          //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
          Document document = Jsoup.parse(input.getHtml());
          document.outputSettings().syntax(Document.OutputSettings.Syntax.xml);
+         org.w3c.dom.Document w3cDoc = new W3CDom().fromJsoup(document);
 
          //////////////////////////////
          // convert the XHTML to PDF //
          //////////////////////////////
-         ITextRenderer renderer      = new ITextRenderer();
-         SharedContext sharedContext = renderer.getSharedContext();
-         sharedContext.setPrint(true);
-         sharedContext.setInteractive(false);
+         PdfRendererBuilder builder = new PdfRendererBuilder();
+         builder.toStream(input.getOutputStream());
+         builder.useFastMode();
+         builder.withW3cDocument(w3cDoc, input.getBasePath() == null ? "./" : input.getBasePath().toUri().toString());
 
-         if(input.getBasePath() != null)
+         try(PdfBoxRenderer pdfBoxRenderer = builder.buildPdfRenderer())
          {
-            String baseUrl = input.getBasePath().toUri().toURL().toString();
-            renderer.setDocumentFromString(document.html(), baseUrl);
-         }
-         else
-         {
-            renderer.setDocumentFromString(document.html());
-         }
+            pdfBoxRenderer.layout();
+            pdfBoxRenderer.getSharedContext().setPrint(true);
+            pdfBoxRenderer.getSharedContext().setInteractive(false);
 
-         //////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         // register any custom fonts the input supplied //
-         //////////////////////////////////////////////////
-         for(Map.Entry<String, Path> entry : CollectionUtils.nonNullMap(input.getCustomFonts()).entrySet())
-         {
-            renderer.getFontResolver().addFont(entry.getValue().toAbsolutePath().toString(), entry.getKey(), "UTF-8", true, null);
-         }
+            for(Map.Entry<String, Path> entry : CollectionUtils.nonNullMap(input.getCustomFonts()).entrySet())
+            {
+               LOG.warn("Note:  Custom fonts appear to not be working in this class at this time...");
+               pdfBoxRenderer.getFontResolver().addFont(
+                  entry.getValue().toAbsolutePath().toFile(), // Path to the TrueType font file
+                  entry.getKey(),                             // Font family name to use in CSS
+                  400,                                        // Font weight (e.g., 400 for normal, 700 for bold)
+                  IdentValue.NORMAL,                          // Font style (e.g., NORMAL, ITALIC)
+                  true,                                       // Whether to subset the font
+                  PdfBoxFontResolver.FontGroup.MAIN           // ??
+               );
+            }
 
-         renderer.layout();
-         renderer.createPDF(input.getOutputStream());
+            pdfBoxRenderer.createPDF();
+         }
 
          return (output);
       }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/values/BasicCustomPossibleValueProvider.java

@@ -0,0 +1,91 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.values;
+
+
+import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.List;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.values.SearchPossibleValueSourceInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.possiblevalues.QPossibleValue;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** Basic implementation of a possible value provider, for where there's a limited
+ ** set of possible source objects - so you just have to define how to make one
+ ** PV from a source object, how to list all of the source objects, and how to
+ ** look up a PV from an id.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public abstract class BasicCustomPossibleValueProvider<S, ID extends Serializable> implements QCustomPossibleValueProvider<ID>
+{
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   protected abstract QPossibleValue<ID> makePossibleValue(S sourceObject);
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   protected abstract S getSourceObject(Serializable id) throws QException;
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   protected abstract List<S> getAllSourceObjects() throws QException;
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QPossibleValue<ID> getPossibleValue(Serializable idValue) throws QException
+   {
+      S sourceObject = getSourceObject(idValue);
+      if(sourceObject == null)
+      {
+         return (null);
+      }
+
+      return makePossibleValue(sourceObject);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public List<QPossibleValue<ID>> search(SearchPossibleValueSourceInput input) throws QException
+   {
+      List<QPossibleValue<ID>> allPossibleValues = new ArrayList<>();
+      List<S>                  allSourceObjects  = getAllSourceObjects();
+      for(S sourceObject : allSourceObjects)
+      {
+         allPossibleValues.add(makePossibleValue(sourceObject));
+      }
+
+      return completeCustomPVSSearch(input, allPossibleValues);
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/values/QCustomPossibleValueProvider.java

@@ -45,7 +45,7 @@ public interface QCustomPossibleValueProvider<T extends Serializable>
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
-   QPossibleValue<T> getPossibleValue(Serializable idValue);
+   QPossibleValue<T> getPossibleValue(Serializable idValue) throws QException;
 
    /*******************************************************************************
     **

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/values/QPossibleValueTranslator.java

@@ -341,7 +341,7 @@ public class QPossibleValueTranslator
 
       try
       {
-         QCustomPossibleValueProvider customPossibleValueProvider = QCodeLoader.getCustomPossibleValueProvider(possibleValueSource);
+         QCustomPossibleValueProvider<?> customPossibleValueProvider = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(QCustomPossibleValueProvider.class, possibleValueSource.getCustomCodeReference());
          return (formatPossibleValue(possibleValueSource, customPossibleValueProvider.getPossibleValue(value)));
       }
       catch(Exception e)

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/actions/values/SearchPossibleValueSourceAction.java

@@ -424,7 +424,7 @@ public class SearchPossibleValueSourceAction
    {
       try
       {
-         QCustomPossibleValueProvider customPossibleValueProvider = QCodeLoader.getCustomPossibleValueProvider(possibleValueSource);
+         QCustomPossibleValueProvider customPossibleValueProvider = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(QCustomPossibleValueProvider.class, possibleValueSource.getCustomCodeReference());
          List<QPossibleValue<?>>      possibleValues              = customPossibleValueProvider.search(input);
 
          SearchPossibleValueSourceOutput output = new SearchPossibleValueSourceOutput();

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/AbstractMetaDataProducerBasedQQQApplication.java

@@ -29,7 +29,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
 
 /*******************************************************************************
  ** Version of AbstractQQQApplication that assumes all meta-data is produced
- ** by MetaDataProducers in a single package.
+ ** by MetaDataProducers in (or under) a single package.
  *******************************************************************************/
 public abstract class AbstractMetaDataProducerBasedQQQApplication extends AbstractQQQApplication
 {

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/ConfigFilesBasedQQQApplication.java

@@ -0,0 +1,61 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances;
+
+
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.MetaDataLoaderHelper;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** Version of AbstractQQQApplication that assumes all meta-data is defined in
+ ** config files (yaml, json, etc) under a given directory path.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class ConfigFilesBasedQQQApplication extends AbstractQQQApplication
+{
+   private final String path;
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Constructor
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public ConfigFilesBasedQQQApplication(String path)
+   {
+      this.path = path;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QInstance defineQInstance() throws QException
+   {
+      QInstance qInstance = new QInstance();
+      MetaDataLoaderHelper.processAllMetaDataFilesInDirectory(qInstance, path);
+      return (qInstance);
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/MetaDataProducerBasedQQQApplication.java

@@ -0,0 +1,67 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** Version of AbstractQQQApplication that assumes all meta-data is produced
+ ** by MetaDataProducers in (or under) a single package (where you can pass that
+ ** package into the constructor, vs. the abstract base class, where you extend
+ ** it and override the getMetaDataPackageName method.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class MetaDataProducerBasedQQQApplication extends AbstractMetaDataProducerBasedQQQApplication
+{
+   private final String metaDataPackageName;
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Constructor
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public MetaDataProducerBasedQQQApplication(String metaDataPackageName)
+   {
+      this.metaDataPackageName = metaDataPackageName;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Constructor
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public MetaDataProducerBasedQQQApplication(Class<?> aClassInMetaDataPackage)
+   {
+      this(aClassInMetaDataPackage.getPackageName());
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public String getMetaDataPackageName()
+   {
+      return (this.metaDataPackageName);
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/QInstanceEnricher.java

@@ -47,6 +47,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.enrichment.plugins.QInstanceEnri
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QBackendMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QSupplementalInstanceMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeReference;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.dashboard.QWidgetMetaDataInterface;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.fields.AdornmentType;
@@ -210,6 +211,11 @@ public class QInstanceEnricher
     ***************************************************************************/
    private void enrichInstance()
    {
+      for(QSupplementalInstanceMetaData supplementalInstanceMetaData : qInstance.getSupplementalMetaData().values())
+      {
+         supplementalInstanceMetaData.enrich(qInstance);
+      }
+
       runPlugins(QInstance.class, qInstance, qInstance);
    }
 
@@ -330,7 +336,21 @@ public class QInstanceEnricher
 
       if(table.getFields() != null)
       {
-         table.getFields().values().forEach(this::enrichField);
+         for(Map.Entry<String, QFieldMetaData> entry : table.getFields().entrySet())
+         {
+            String         name  = entry.getKey();
+            QFieldMetaData field = entry.getValue();
+
+            ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+            // in case the field wasn't given a name, use its key from the fields map //
+            ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+            if(!StringUtils.hasContent(field.getName()))
+            {
+               field.setName(name);
+            }
+
+            enrichField(field);
+         }
 
          for(QSupplementalTableMetaData supplementalTableMetaData : CollectionUtils.nonNullMap(table.getSupplementalMetaData()).values())
          {
@@ -1390,7 +1410,7 @@ public class QInstanceEnricher
          if(possibleValueSource.getIdType() == null)
          {
             QTableMetaData table = qInstance.getTable(possibleValueSource.getTableName());
-            if(table != null)
+            if(table != null && table.getFields() != null)
             {
                String         primaryKeyField         = table.getPrimaryKeyField();
                QFieldMetaData primaryKeyFieldMetaData = table.getFields().get(primaryKeyField);
@@ -1425,7 +1445,7 @@ public class QInstanceEnricher
          {
             try
             {
-               QCustomPossibleValueProvider<?> customPossibleValueProvider = QCodeLoader.getCustomPossibleValueProvider(possibleValueSource);
+               QCustomPossibleValueProvider<?> customPossibleValueProvider = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(QCustomPossibleValueProvider.class, possibleValueSource.getCustomCodeReference());
 
                Method getPossibleValueMethod = customPossibleValueProvider.getClass().getDeclaredMethod("getPossibleValue", Serializable.class);
                Type   returnType             = getPossibleValueMethod.getGenericReturnType();
@@ -1463,7 +1483,18 @@ public class QInstanceEnricher
       if(enrichMethod.isPresent())
       {
          Class<?> parameterType = enrichMethod.get().getParameterTypes()[0];
-         enricherPlugins.add(parameterType, plugin);
+
+         Set<String> existingPluginIdentifiers = enricherPlugins.getOrDefault(parameterType, Collections.emptyList())
+            .stream().map(p -> p.getPluginIdentifier())
+            .collect(Collectors.toSet());
+         if(existingPluginIdentifiers.contains(plugin.getPluginIdentifier()))
+         {
+            LOG.debug("Enricher plugin is already registered - not re-adding it", logPair("pluginIdentifer", plugin.getPluginIdentifier()));
+         }
+         else
+         {
+            enricherPlugins.add(parameterType, plugin);
+         }
       }
       else
       {

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/QInstanceValidator.java

@@ -42,9 +42,11 @@ import java.util.function.Supplier;
 import java.util.stream.Collectors;
 import java.util.stream.Stream;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.automation.RecordAutomationHandler;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.customizers.TableCustomizerInterface;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.customizers.TableCustomizers;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.dashboard.widgets.AbstractWidgetRenderer;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.metadata.JoinGraph;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.metadata.MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.metadata.MetaDataFilterInterface;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.processes.BackendStep;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.reporting.customizers.ReportCustomRecordSourceInterface;
@@ -63,6 +65,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QSupplementalInstanceMetaDa
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.authentication.QAuthenticationMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.automation.QAutomationProviderMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeReference;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeReferenceLambda;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeType;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.dashboard.ParentWidgetMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.dashboard.QWidgetMetaDataInterface;
@@ -245,6 +248,22 @@ public class QInstanceValidator
       {
          validateSimpleCodeReference("Instance metaDataFilter ", qInstance.getMetaDataFilter(), MetaDataFilterInterface.class);
       }
+
+      if(qInstance.getMetaDataActionCustomizer() != null)
+      {
+         validateSimpleCodeReference("Instance metaDataActionCustomizer ", qInstance.getMetaDataActionCustomizer(), MetaDataActionCustomizerInterface.class);
+      }
+
+      if(qInstance.getTableCustomizers() != null)
+      {
+         for(Map.Entry<String, List<QCodeReference>> entry : qInstance.getTableCustomizers().entrySet())
+         {
+            for(QCodeReference codeReference : CollectionUtils.nonNullList(entry.getValue()))
+            {
+               validateSimpleCodeReference("Instance tableCustomizer of type " + entry.getKey() + ": ", codeReference, TableCustomizerInterface.class);
+            }
+         }
+      }
    }
 
 
@@ -276,7 +295,18 @@ public class QInstanceValidator
       if(validateMethod.isPresent())
       {
          Class<?> parameterType = validateMethod.get().getParameterTypes()[0];
-         validatorPlugins.add(parameterType, plugin);
+
+         Set<String> existingPluginIdentifiers = validatorPlugins.getOrDefault(parameterType, Collections.emptyList())
+            .stream().map(p -> p.getPluginIdentifier())
+            .collect(Collectors.toSet());
+         if(existingPluginIdentifiers.contains(plugin.getPluginIdentifier()))
+         {
+            LOG.debug("Validator plugin is already registered - not re-adding it", logPair("pluginIdentifer", plugin.getPluginIdentifier()));
+         }
+         else
+         {
+            validatorPlugins.add(parameterType, plugin);
+         }
       }
       else
       {
@@ -296,6 +326,17 @@ public class QInstanceValidator
 
 
 
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for validatorPlugins
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public static ListingHash<Class<?>, QInstanceValidatorPluginInterface<?>> getValidatorPlugins()
+   {
+      return validatorPlugins;
+   }
+
+
+
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
@@ -645,6 +686,8 @@ public class QInstanceValidator
             validateSimpleCodeReference("Instance Authentication meta data customizer ", authentication.getCustomizer(), QAuthenticationModuleCustomizerInterface.class);
          }
 
+         authentication.validate(qInstance, this);
+
          runPlugins(QAuthenticationMetaData.class, authentication, qInstance);
       }
    }
@@ -1400,7 +1443,7 @@ public class QInstanceValidator
             //////////////////////////////////////////////////
             // make sure the customizer can be instantiated //
             //////////////////////////////////////////////////
-            Object customizerInstance = getInstanceOfCodeReference(prefix, customizerClass);
+            Object customizerInstance = getInstanceOfCodeReference(prefix, customizerClass, codeReference);
 
             TableCustomizers tableCustomizer = TableCustomizers.forRole(roleName);
             if(tableCustomizer == null)
@@ -1461,8 +1504,13 @@ public class QInstanceValidator
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
-   private Object getInstanceOfCodeReference(String prefix, Class<?> clazz)
+   private Object getInstanceOfCodeReference(String prefix, Class<?> clazz, QCodeReference codeReference)
    {
+      if(codeReference instanceof QCodeReferenceLambda<?> lambdaCodeReference)
+      {
+         return (lambdaCodeReference.getLambda());
+      }
+
       Object instance = null;
       try
       {
@@ -1641,21 +1689,26 @@ public class QInstanceValidator
             Set<String> usedStepNames = new HashSet<>();
             if(assertCondition(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(process.getStepList()), "At least 1 step must be defined in process " + processName + "."))
             {
-               int index = 0;
+               int index = -1;
                for(QStepMetaData step : process.getStepList())
                {
+                  index++;
                   if(assertCondition(StringUtils.hasContent(step.getName()), "Missing name for a step at index " + index + " in process " + processName))
                   {
                      assertCondition(!usedStepNames.contains(step.getName()), "Duplicate step name [" + step.getName() + "] in process " + processName);
                      usedStepNames.add(step.getName());
                   }
-                  index++;
 
                   ////////////////////////////////////////////
                   // validate instantiation of step classes //
                   ////////////////////////////////////////////
                   if(step instanceof QBackendStepMetaData backendStepMetaData)
                   {
+                     if(assertCondition(backendStepMetaData.getCode() != null, "Missing code for a backend step at index " + index + " in process " + processName))
+                     {
+                        validateSimpleCodeReference("Process " + processName + ", backend step at index " + index + ", code reference: ", backendStepMetaData.getCode(), BackendStep.class);
+                     }
+
                      if(backendStepMetaData.getInputMetaData() != null && CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(backendStepMetaData.getInputMetaData().getFieldList()))
                      {
                         for(QFieldMetaData fieldMetaData : backendStepMetaData.getInputMetaData().getFieldList())
@@ -2219,8 +2272,7 @@ public class QInstanceValidator
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
-   @SafeVarargs
-   private void validateSimpleCodeReference(String prefix, QCodeReference codeReference, Class<?>... anyOfExpectedClasses)
+   public void validateSimpleCodeReference(String prefix, QCodeReference codeReference, Class<?>... anyOfExpectedClasses)
    {
       if(!preAssertionsForCodeReference(codeReference, prefix))
       {
@@ -2241,7 +2293,7 @@ public class QInstanceValidator
             //////////////////////////////////////////////////
             // make sure the customizer can be instantiated //
             //////////////////////////////////////////////////
-            Object classInstance = getInstanceOfCodeReference(prefix, clazz);
+            Object classInstance = getInstanceOfCodeReference(prefix, clazz, codeReference);
 
             ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
             // make sure the customizer instance can be cast to the expected type //
@@ -2264,6 +2316,11 @@ public class QInstanceValidator
       Class<?> clazz = null;
       try
       {
+         if(codeReference instanceof QCodeReferenceLambda<?> lambdaCodeReference)
+         {
+            return (lambdaCodeReference.getLambda().getClass());
+         }
+
          clazz = Class.forName(codeReference.getName());
       }
       catch(ClassNotFoundException e)

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/SecretsManagerUtils.java

@@ -72,6 +72,18 @@ public class SecretsManagerUtils
     ** and write them to a .env file (backing up any pre-existing .env files first).
     *******************************************************************************/
    public static void writeEnvFromSecretsWithNamePrefix(String prefix) throws IOException
+   {
+      writeEnvFromSecretsWithNamePrefix(prefix, true);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** IF secret manager ENV vars are set,
+    ** THEN lookup all secrets starting with the given prefix,
+    ** and write them to a .env file (backing up any pre-existing .env files first).
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public static void writeEnvFromSecretsWithNamePrefix(String prefix, boolean quoteValues) throws IOException
    {
       Optional<AWSSecretsManager> optionalSecretsManagerClient = getSecretsManagerClient();
       if(optionalSecretsManagerClient.isPresent())
@@ -91,7 +103,9 @@ public class SecretsManagerUtils
                Optional<String> secretValue       = getSecret(prefix, nameWithoutPrefix);
                if(secretValue.isPresent())
                {
-                  String envLine = nameWithoutPrefix + "=" + secretValue.get();
+                  String envLine = quoteValues
+                     ? nameWithoutPrefix + "=\"" + secretValue.get() + "\""
+                     : nameWithoutPrefix + "=" + secretValue.get();
                   fullEnv.append(envLine).append('\n');
                }
             }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/assessment/Assessable.java

@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.assessment;
+
+
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** marker for an object which can be processed by the QInstanceAssessor.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public interface Assessable
+{
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   void assess(QInstanceAssessor qInstanceAssessor, QInstance qInstance);
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/assessment/QInstanceAssessor.java

@@ -0,0 +1,219 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.assessment;
+
+
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.List;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QBackendMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.StringUtils;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** POC of a class that is meant to review meta-data for accuracy vs. real backends.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class QInstanceAssessor
+{
+   private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(QInstanceAssessor.class);
+
+   private final QInstance qInstance;
+
+   private List<String> errors      = new ArrayList<>();
+   private List<String> warnings    = new ArrayList<>();
+   private List<String> suggestions = new ArrayList<>();
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Constructor
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QInstanceAssessor(QInstance qInstance)
+   {
+      this.qInstance = qInstance;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void assess()
+   {
+      for(QBackendMetaData backend : qInstance.getBackends().values())
+      {
+         if(backend instanceof Assessable assessable)
+         {
+            assessable.assess(this, qInstance);
+         }
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   @SuppressWarnings("checkstyle:AvoidEscapedUnicodeCharacters")
+   public String getSummary()
+   {
+      StringBuilder rs = new StringBuilder();
+
+      ///////////////////////////
+      // print header & errors //
+      ///////////////////////////
+      if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeIsEmpty(errors))
+      {
+         rs.append("Assessment passed with no errors! \uD83D\uDE0E\n");
+      }
+      else
+      {
+         rs.append("Assessment found the following ").append(StringUtils.plural(errors, "error", "errors")).append(": \uD83D\uDE32\n");
+
+         for(String error : errors)
+         {
+            rs.append(" - ").append(error).append("\n");
+         }
+      }
+
+      /////////////////////////////////////
+      // print warnings if there are any //
+      /////////////////////////////////////
+      if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(warnings))
+      {
+         rs.append("\nAssessment found the following ").append(StringUtils.plural(warnings, "warning", "warnings")).append(": \uD83E\uDD28\n");
+
+         for(String warning : warnings)
+         {
+            rs.append(" - ").append(warning).append("\n");
+         }
+      }
+
+      //////////////////////////////////////////
+      // print suggestions, if there were any //
+      //////////////////////////////////////////
+      if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(suggestions))
+      {
+         rs.append("\nThe following ").append(StringUtils.plural(suggestions, "fix is", "fixes are")).append(" suggested: \uD83E\uDD13\n");
+
+         for(String suggestion : suggestions)
+         {
+            rs.append("\n").append(suggestion).append("\n\n");
+         }
+      }
+
+      return (rs.toString());
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for qInstance
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QInstance getInstance()
+   {
+      return qInstance;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for errors
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public List<String> getErrors()
+   {
+      return errors;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for warnings
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public List<String> getWarnings()
+   {
+      return warnings;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void addError(String errorMessage)
+   {
+      errors.add(errorMessage);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void addWarning(String warningMessage)
+   {
+      warnings.add(warningMessage);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void addError(String errorMessage, Exception e)
+   {
+      addError(errorMessage + " : " + e.getMessage());
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void addSuggestion(String message)
+   {
+      suggestions.add(message);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public int getExitCode()
+   {
+      if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(errors))
+      {
+         return (1);
+      }
+      else
+      {
+         return (0);
+      }
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/enrichment/plugins/QInstanceEnricherPluginInterface.java

@@ -37,4 +37,13 @@ public interface QInstanceEnricherPluginInterface<T>
     *******************************************************************************/
    void enrich(T object, QInstance qInstance);
 
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   default String getPluginIdentifier()
+   {
+      return getClass().getName();
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/loaders/AbstractMetaDataLoader.java

@@ -0,0 +1,510 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders;
+
+
+import java.io.IOException;
+import java.io.InputStream;
+import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.lang.reflect.Method;
+import java.lang.reflect.ParameterizedType;
+import java.lang.reflect.Type;
+import java.math.BigDecimal;
+import java.nio.charset.StandardCharsets;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Arrays;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.LinkedHashMap;
+import java.util.LinkedHashSet;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Set;
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.core.type.TypeReference;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.QMetaDataVariableInterpreter;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.JsonUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.StringUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ValueUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.YamlUtils;
+import org.apache.commons.io.IOUtils;
+import static com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ValueUtils.getValueAsInteger;
+import static com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ValueUtils.getValueAsString;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** Abstract base class in hierarchy of classes that know how to construct &
+ ** populate QMetaDataObject instances, based on input streams (e.g., from files).
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public abstract class AbstractMetaDataLoader<T extends QMetaDataObject>
+{
+   private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(AbstractMetaDataLoader.class);
+
+   private String fileName;
+
+   private List<LoadingProblem> problems = new ArrayList<>();
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public T fileToMetaDataObject(QInstance qInstance, InputStream inputStream, String fileName) throws QMetaDataLoaderException
+   {
+      this.fileName = fileName;
+      Map<String, Object> map = fileToMap(inputStream, fileName);
+      LoadingContext loadingContext = new LoadingContext(fileName, "/");
+      return (mapToMetaDataObject(qInstance, map, loadingContext));
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public abstract T mapToMetaDataObject(QInstance qInstance, Map<String, Object> map, LoadingContext context) throws QMetaDataLoaderException;
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   protected Map<String, Object> fileToMap(InputStream inputStream, String fileName) throws QMetaDataLoaderException
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         String string = IOUtils.toString(inputStream, StandardCharsets.UTF_8);
+         string = StringUtils.ltrim(string);
+         if(fileName.toLowerCase().endsWith(".json"))
+         {
+            return JsonUtils.toObject(string, new TypeReference<>() {});
+         }
+         else if(fileName.toLowerCase().endsWith(".yaml") || fileName.toLowerCase().endsWith(".yml"))
+         {
+            return YamlUtils.toMap(string);
+         }
+
+         throw (new QMetaDataLoaderException("Unsupported file format (based on file name: " + fileName + ")"));
+      }
+      catch(IOException e)
+      {
+         throw new QMetaDataLoaderException("Error building map from file: " + fileName, e);
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    *
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   protected void reflectivelyMap(QInstance qInstance, QMetaDataObject targetObject, Map<String, Object> map, LoadingContext context)
+   {
+      Class<? extends QMetaDataObject> targetClass    = targetObject.getClass();
+      Set<String>                      usedFieldNames = new HashSet<>();
+
+      for(Method method : targetClass.getMethods())
+      {
+         try
+         {
+            if(method.getName().startsWith("set") && method.getParameterTypes().length == 1)
+            {
+               String propertyName = StringUtils.lcFirst(method.getName().substring(3));
+
+               if(map.containsKey(propertyName))
+               {
+                  usedFieldNames.add(propertyName);
+                  Class<?> parameterType = method.getParameterTypes()[0];
+                  Object   rawValue      = map.get(propertyName);
+
+                  try
+                  {
+                     Object mappedValue = reflectivelyMapValue(qInstance, method, parameterType, rawValue, context.descendToProperty(propertyName));
+                     method.invoke(targetObject, mappedValue);
+                  }
+                  catch(NoValueException nve)
+                  {
+                     ///////////////////////
+                     // don't call setter //
+                     ///////////////////////
+                     LOG.debug("at " + context + ": No value was mapped for property [" + propertyName + "] on " + targetClass.getSimpleName() + "." + method.getName() + ", raw value: [" + rawValue + "]");
+                  }
+               }
+            }
+         }
+         catch(Exception e)
+         {
+            addProblem(new LoadingProblem(context, "Error reflectively mapping on " + targetClass.getName() + "." + method.getName(), e));
+         }
+      }
+
+      //////////////////////////
+      // mmm, slightly sus... //
+      //////////////////////////
+      map.remove("class");
+      map.remove("version");
+
+      Set<String> unrecognizedKeys = new HashSet<>(map.keySet());
+      unrecognizedKeys.removeAll(usedFieldNames);
+
+      if(!unrecognizedKeys.isEmpty())
+      {
+         addProblem(new LoadingProblem(context, unrecognizedKeys.size() + " Unrecognized " + StringUtils.plural(unrecognizedKeys, "property", "properties") + ": " + unrecognizedKeys));
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    *
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public Object reflectivelyMapValue(QInstance qInstance, Method method, Class<?> parameterType, Object rawValue, LoadingContext context) throws Exception
+   {
+      if(rawValue instanceof String s && s.matches("^\\$\\{.+\\..+}"))
+      {
+         rawValue = new QMetaDataVariableInterpreter().interpret(s);
+         LOG.debug("Interpreted raw value [" + s + "] as [" + StringUtils.maskAndTruncate(ValueUtils.getValueAsString(rawValue) + "]"));
+      }
+
+      if(parameterType.equals(String.class))
+      {
+         return (getValueAsString(rawValue));
+      }
+      else if(parameterType.equals(Integer.class))
+      {
+         try
+         {
+            return (getValueAsInteger(rawValue));
+         }
+         catch(Exception e)
+         {
+            addProblem(new LoadingProblem(context, "[" + rawValue + "] is not an Integer value."));
+         }
+      }
+      else if(parameterType.equals(Boolean.class))
+      {
+         if("true".equals(rawValue) || Boolean.TRUE.equals(rawValue))
+         {
+            return (true);
+         }
+         else if("false".equals(rawValue) || Boolean.FALSE.equals(rawValue))
+         {
+            return (false);
+         }
+         else if(rawValue == null)
+         {
+            return (null);
+         }
+         else
+         {
+            addProblem(new LoadingProblem(context, "[" + rawValue + "] is not a boolean value (must be 'true' or 'false')."));
+            return (null);
+         }
+      }
+      else if(parameterType.equals(boolean.class))
+      {
+         if("true".equals(rawValue) || Boolean.TRUE.equals(rawValue))
+         {
+            return (true);
+         }
+         else if("false".equals(rawValue) || Boolean.FALSE.equals(rawValue))
+         {
+            return (false);
+         }
+         else
+         {
+            addProblem(new LoadingProblem(context, rawValue + " is not a boolean value (must be 'true' or 'false')."));
+            throw (new NoValueException());
+         }
+      }
+      else if(parameterType.equals(List.class))
+      {
+         Type     actualTypeArgument = ((ParameterizedType) method.getGenericParameterTypes()[0]).getActualTypeArguments()[0];
+         Class<?> actualTypeClass    = Class.forName(actualTypeArgument.getTypeName());
+
+         if(rawValue instanceof @SuppressWarnings("rawtypes")List valueList)
+         {
+            List<Object> mappedValueList = new ArrayList<>();
+            for(Object o : valueList)
+            {
+               try
+               {
+                  Object mappedValue = reflectivelyMapValue(qInstance, null, actualTypeClass, o, context);
+                  mappedValueList.add(mappedValue);
+               }
+               catch(NoValueException nve)
+               {
+                  // leave off list
+               }
+            }
+            return (mappedValueList);
+         }
+      }
+      else if(parameterType.equals(Set.class))
+      {
+         Type     actualTypeArgument = ((ParameterizedType) method.getGenericParameterTypes()[0]).getActualTypeArguments()[0];
+         Class<?> actualTypeClass    = Class.forName(actualTypeArgument.getTypeName());
+
+         if(rawValue instanceof @SuppressWarnings("rawtypes")List valueList)
+         {
+            Set<Object> mappedValueSet = new LinkedHashSet<>();
+            for(Object o : valueList)
+            {
+               try
+               {
+                  Object mappedValue = reflectivelyMapValue(qInstance, null, actualTypeClass, o, context);
+                  mappedValueSet.add(mappedValue);
+               }
+               catch(NoValueException nve)
+               {
+                  // leave off list
+               }
+            }
+            return (mappedValueSet);
+         }
+      }
+      else if(parameterType.equals(Map.class))
+      {
+         Type keyType = ((ParameterizedType) method.getGenericParameterTypes()[0]).getActualTypeArguments()[0];
+         if(!keyType.equals(String.class))
+         {
+            addProblem(new LoadingProblem(context, "Unsupported key type for " + method + " got [" + keyType + "], expected [String]"));
+            throw new NoValueException();
+         }
+         // todo make sure string
+
+         Type     actualTypeArgument = ((ParameterizedType) method.getGenericParameterTypes()[0]).getActualTypeArguments()[1];
+         Class<?> actualTypeClass    = Class.forName(actualTypeArgument.getTypeName());
+
+         if(rawValue instanceof @SuppressWarnings("rawtypes")Map valueMap)
+         {
+            Map<String, Object> mappedValueMap = new LinkedHashMap<>();
+            for(Object o : valueMap.entrySet())
+            {
+               try
+               {
+                  @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
+                  Map.Entry<String, Object> entry = (Map.Entry<String, Object>) o;
+                  Object mappedValue = reflectivelyMapValue(qInstance, null, actualTypeClass, entry.getValue(), context);
+                  mappedValueMap.put(entry.getKey(), mappedValue);
+               }
+               catch(NoValueException nve)
+               {
+                  // leave out of map
+               }
+            }
+            return (mappedValueMap);
+         }
+      }
+      else if(parameterType.isEnum())
+      {
+         String value = getValueAsString(rawValue);
+         for(Object enumConstant : parameterType.getEnumConstants())
+         {
+            if(((Enum<?>) enumConstant).name().equals(value))
+            {
+               return (enumConstant);
+            }
+         }
+
+         addProblem(new LoadingProblem(context, "Unrecognized value [" + rawValue + "].  Expected one of: " + Arrays.toString(parameterType.getEnumConstants())));
+      }
+      else if(MetaDataLoaderRegistry.hasLoaderForClass(parameterType))
+      {
+         if(rawValue instanceof @SuppressWarnings("rawtypes")Map valueMap)
+         {
+            Class<? extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>> loaderClass = MetaDataLoaderRegistry.getLoaderForClass(parameterType);
+            AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>                  loader      = loaderClass.getConstructor().newInstance();
+            //noinspection unchecked
+            return (loader.mapToMetaDataObject(qInstance, valueMap, context));
+         }
+      }
+      else if(QMetaDataObject.class.isAssignableFrom(parameterType))
+      {
+         if(rawValue instanceof @SuppressWarnings("rawtypes")Map valueMap)
+         {
+            QMetaDataObject childObject = (QMetaDataObject) parameterType.getConstructor().newInstance();
+            //noinspection unchecked
+            reflectivelyMap(qInstance, childObject, valueMap, context);
+            return (childObject);
+         }
+      }
+      else if(parameterType.equals(Serializable.class))
+      {
+         if(rawValue instanceof String
+            || rawValue instanceof Integer
+            || rawValue instanceof BigDecimal
+            || rawValue instanceof Boolean
+         )
+         {
+            return rawValue;
+         }
+      }
+      else
+      {
+         // todo clean up this message/level
+         addProblem(new LoadingProblem(context, "No case for " + parameterType + " (arg to: " + method + ")"));
+      }
+
+      throw new NoValueException();
+   }
+
+   ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+   // unclear if the below is needed.  if so, useful to not re-write, but is hurting test coverage, so zombie until used //
+   ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+   ///***************************************************************************
+   // *
+   // ***************************************************************************/
+   //protected ListOfMapOrMapOfMap getListOfMapOrMapOfMap(Map<String, Object> map, String key)
+   //{
+   //   if(map.containsKey(key))
+   //   {
+   //      if(map.get(key) instanceof List)
+   //      {
+   //         return (new ListOfMapOrMapOfMap((List<Map<String, Object>>) map.get(key)));
+   //      }
+   //      else if(map.get(key) instanceof Map)
+   //      {
+   //         return (new ListOfMapOrMapOfMap((Map<String, Map<String, Object>>) map.get(key)));
+   //      }
+   //      else
+   //      {
+   //         LOG.warn("Expected list or map under key [" + key + "] while processing [" + getClass().getSimpleName() + "] from [" + fileName + "], but found: " + (map.get(key) == null ? "null" : map.get(key).getClass().getSimpleName()));
+   //      }
+   //   }
+
+   //   return (null);
+   //}
+
+   ///***************************************************************************
+   // *
+   // ***************************************************************************/
+   //protected List<Map<String, Object>> getListOfMap(Map<String, Object> map, String key)
+   //{
+   //   if(map.containsKey(key))
+   //   {
+   //      if(map.get(key) instanceof List)
+   //      {
+   //         return (List<Map<String, Object>>) map.get(key);
+   //      }
+   //      else
+   //      {
+   //         LOG.warn("Expected list under key [" + key + "] while processing [" + getClass().getSimpleName() + "] from [" + fileName + "], but found: " + (map.get(key) == null ? "null" : map.get(key).getClass().getSimpleName()));
+   //      }
+   //   }
+
+   //   return (null);
+   //}
+
+   ///***************************************************************************
+   // *
+   // ***************************************************************************/
+   //protected Map<String, Map<String, Object>> getMapOfMap(Map<String, Object> map, String key)
+   //{
+   //   if(map.containsKey(key))
+   //   {
+   //      if(map.get(key) instanceof Map)
+   //      {
+   //         return (Map<String, Map<String, Object>>) map.get(key);
+   //      }
+   //      else
+   //      {
+   //         LOG.warn("Expected map under key [" + key + "] while processing [" + getClass().getSimpleName() + "] from [" + fileName + "], but found: " + (map.get(key) == null ? "null" : map.get(key).getClass().getSimpleName()));
+   //      }
+   //   }
+
+   //   return (null);
+   //}
+
+   ///***************************************************************************
+   // **
+   // ***************************************************************************/
+   //protected record ListOfMapOrMapOfMap(List<Map<String, Object>> listOf, Map<String, Map<String, Object>> mapOf)
+   //{
+   //   /*******************************************************************************
+   //    ** Constructor
+   //    **
+   //    *******************************************************************************/
+   //   public ListOfMapOrMapOfMap(List<Map<String, Object>> listOf)
+   //   {
+   //      this(listOf, null);
+   //   }
+
+   //   /*******************************************************************************
+   //    ** Constructor
+   //    **
+   //    *******************************************************************************/
+   //   public ListOfMapOrMapOfMap(Map<String, Map<String, Object>> mapOf)
+   //   {
+   //      this(null, mapOf);
+   //   }
+   //}
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for fileName
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getFileName()
+   {
+      return fileName;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   private static class NoValueException extends Exception
+   {
+      /*******************************************************************************
+       ** Constructor
+       **
+       *******************************************************************************/
+      public NoValueException()
+      {
+         super("No value");
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public void addProblem(LoadingProblem problem)
+   {
+      problems.add(problem);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for problems
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public List<LoadingProblem> getProblems()
+   {
+      return (problems);
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/loaders/ClassDetectingMetaDataLoader.java

@@ -0,0 +1,120 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders;
+
+
+import java.io.InputStream;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Optional;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.implementations.GenericMetaDataLoader;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ClassPathUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ValueUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.memoization.AnyKey;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.memoization.Memoization;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** Generic implementation of AbstractMetaDataLoader, who "detects" the class
+ ** of meta data object to be created, then defers to an appropriate subclass
+ ** to do the work.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class ClassDetectingMetaDataLoader extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<QMetaDataObject>
+{
+   private static final Memoization<AnyKey, List<Class<?>>> memoizedMetaDataObjectClasses = new Memoization<>();
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    *
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public AbstractMetaDataLoader<?> getLoaderForFile(InputStream inputStream, String fileName) throws QMetaDataLoaderException
+   {
+      Map<String, Object> map = fileToMap(inputStream, fileName);
+      return (getLoaderForMap(map));
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    *
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public AbstractMetaDataLoader<?> getLoaderForMap(Map<String, Object> map) throws QMetaDataLoaderException
+   {
+      if(map.containsKey("class"))
+      {
+         String classProperty = ValueUtils.getValueAsString(map.get("class"));
+         try
+         {
+            if(MetaDataLoaderRegistry.hasLoaderForSimpleName(classProperty))
+            {
+               Class<? extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>> loaderClass = MetaDataLoaderRegistry.getLoaderForSimpleName(classProperty);
+               return (loaderClass.getConstructor().newInstance());
+            }
+            else
+            {
+               Optional<List<Class<?>>> metaDataClasses = memoizedMetaDataObjectClasses.getResult(AnyKey.getInstance(), k -> ClassPathUtils.getClassesContainingNameAndOfType("MetaData", QMetaDataObject.class));
+               if(metaDataClasses.isEmpty())
+               {
+                  throw (new QMetaDataLoaderException("Could not get list of metaDataObjects from class loader"));
+               }
+
+               for(Class<?> c : metaDataClasses.get())
+               {
+                  if(c.getSimpleName().equals(classProperty) && QMetaDataObject.class.isAssignableFrom(c))
+                  {
+                     @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
+                     Class<? extends QMetaDataObject> metaDataClass = (Class<? extends QMetaDataObject>) c;
+                     return new GenericMetaDataLoader<>(metaDataClass);
+                  }
+               }
+            }
+            throw new QMetaDataLoaderException("Unexpected class [" + classProperty + "] (not a QMetaDataObject; doesn't have a registered MetaDataLoader) specified in " + getFileName());
+         }
+         catch(QMetaDataLoaderException qmdle)
+         {
+            throw (qmdle);
+         }
+         catch(Exception e)
+         {
+            throw new QMetaDataLoaderException("Error handling class [" + classProperty + "] specified in " + getFileName(), e);
+         }
+      }
+      else
+      {
+         throw new QMetaDataLoaderException("Cannot detect meta-data type, because [class] attribute was not specified in file: " + getFileName());
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QMetaDataObject mapToMetaDataObject(QInstance qInstance, Map<String, Object> map, LoadingContext context) throws QMetaDataLoaderException
+   {
+      AbstractMetaDataLoader<?> loaderForMap = getLoaderForMap(map);
+      return loaderForMap.mapToMetaDataObject(qInstance, map, context);
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/loaders/LoadingContext.java

@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** Record to track where loader objects are - e.g., what file they're on,
+ ** and at what property path within the file (e.g., helps report problems).
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public record LoadingContext(String fileName, String propertyPath)
+{
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public LoadingContext descendToProperty(String propertyName)
+   {
+      return new LoadingContext(fileName, propertyPath + propertyName + "/");
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/loaders/LoadingProblem.java

@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** record that tracks a problem that was encountered when loading files.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public record LoadingProblem(LoadingContext context, String message, Exception exception) // todo Level if useful
+{
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Constructor
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public LoadingProblem(LoadingContext context, String message)
+   {
+      this(context, message, null);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public String toString()
+   {
+      return "at[" + context.fileName() + "][" + context.propertyPath() + "]: " + message;
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/loaders/MetaDataLoaderHelper.java

@@ -0,0 +1,118 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders;
+
+
+import java.io.File;
+import java.io.FileInputStream;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Objects;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.TopLevelMetaDataInterface;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.Pair;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** class that loads a directory full of meta data files into meta data objects,
+ ** and then sets all of them in a QInstance.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class MetaDataLoaderHelper
+{
+   private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(MetaDataLoaderHelper.class);
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    *
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static void processAllMetaDataFilesInDirectory(QInstance qInstance, String path) throws QException
+   {
+      List<Pair<File, AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>>> loaders = new ArrayList<>();
+
+      File directory = new File(path);
+      processAllMetaDataFilesInDirectory(loaders, directory);
+
+      // todo - some version of sorting the loaders by type or possibly a sort field within the files (or file names)
+
+      for(Pair<File, AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>> pair : loaders)
+      {
+         File                      file   = pair.getA();
+         AbstractMetaDataLoader<?> loader = pair.getB();
+         try(FileInputStream fileInputStream = new FileInputStream(file))
+         {
+            QMetaDataObject qMetaDataObject = loader.fileToMetaDataObject(qInstance, fileInputStream, file.getName());
+
+            if(CollectionUtils.nullSafeHasContents(loader.getProblems()))
+            {
+               loader.getProblems().forEach(System.out::println);
+            }
+
+            if(qMetaDataObject instanceof TopLevelMetaDataInterface topLevelMetaData)
+            {
+               topLevelMetaData.addSelfToInstance(qInstance);
+            }
+            else
+            {
+               LOG.warn("Received a non-topLevelMetaDataObject from file: " + file.getAbsolutePath());
+            }
+         }
+         catch(Exception e)
+         {
+            LOG.error("Error processing file: " + file.getAbsolutePath(), e);
+         }
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    *
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   private static void processAllMetaDataFilesInDirectory(List<Pair<File, AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>>> loaders, File directory) throws QException
+   {
+      for(File file : Objects.requireNonNullElse(directory.listFiles(), new File[0]))
+      {
+         if(file.isDirectory())
+         {
+            processAllMetaDataFilesInDirectory(loaders, file);
+         }
+         else
+         {
+            try(FileInputStream fileInputStream = new FileInputStream(file))
+            {
+               AbstractMetaDataLoader<?> loader = new ClassDetectingMetaDataLoader().getLoaderForFile(fileInputStream, file.getName());
+               loaders.add(Pair.of(file, loader));
+            }
+            catch(Exception e)
+            {
+               LOG.error("Error processing file: " + file.getAbsolutePath(), e);
+            }
+         }
+      }
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/loaders/MetaDataLoaderRegistry.java

@@ -0,0 +1,120 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders;
+
+
+import java.lang.reflect.ParameterizedType;
+import java.lang.reflect.Type;
+import java.util.HashMap;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Map;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.implementations.QTableMetaDataLoader;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ClassPathUtils;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ **
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class MetaDataLoaderRegistry
+{
+   private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(AbstractMetaDataLoader.class);
+
+   private static final Map<Class<?>, Class<? extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>>> registeredLoaders                   = new HashMap<>();
+   private static final Map<String, Class<? extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>>>   registeredLoadersByTargetSimpleName = new HashMap<>();
+
+   static
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         List<Class<?>> classesInPackage = ClassPathUtils.getClassesInPackage(QTableMetaDataLoader.class.getPackageName());
+         for(Class<?> possibleLoaderClass : classesInPackage)
+         {
+            try
+            {
+               Type superClass = possibleLoaderClass.getGenericSuperclass();
+               if(superClass.getTypeName().startsWith(AbstractMetaDataLoader.class.getName() + "<"))
+               {
+                  Type actualTypeArgument = ((ParameterizedType) superClass).getActualTypeArguments()[0];
+                  if(actualTypeArgument instanceof Class)
+                  {
+                     //noinspection unchecked
+                     Class<? extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>> loaderClass = (Class<? extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>>) possibleLoaderClass;
+
+                     Class<?> metaDataObjectType = Class.forName(actualTypeArgument.getTypeName());
+                     registeredLoaders.put(metaDataObjectType, loaderClass);
+                     registeredLoadersByTargetSimpleName.put(metaDataObjectType.getSimpleName(), loaderClass);
+                  }
+               }
+            }
+            catch(Exception e)
+            {
+               LOG.info("Error on class: " + possibleLoaderClass, e);
+            }
+         }
+
+         System.out.println("Registered loaders: " + registeredLoadersByTargetSimpleName);
+      }
+      catch(Exception e)
+      {
+         LOG.error("Error in static init block for MetaDataLoaderRegistry", e);
+      }
+   }
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static boolean hasLoaderForClass(Class<?> metaDataClass)
+   {
+      return registeredLoaders.containsKey(metaDataClass);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static Class<? extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>> getLoaderForClass(Class<?> metaDataClass)
+   {
+      return registeredLoaders.get(metaDataClass);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static boolean hasLoaderForSimpleName(String targetSimpleName)
+   {
+      return registeredLoadersByTargetSimpleName.containsKey(targetSimpleName);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static Class<? extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<?>> getLoaderForSimpleName(String targetSimpleName)
+   {
+      return registeredLoadersByTargetSimpleName.get(targetSimpleName);
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/loaders/QMetaDataLoaderException.java

@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ **
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class QMetaDataLoaderException extends Exception
+{
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Constructor
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QMetaDataLoaderException(String message)
+   {
+      super(message);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Constructor
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QMetaDataLoaderException(String message, Throwable cause)
+   {
+      super(message, cause);
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/loaders/implementations/GenericMetaDataLoader.java

@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.implementations;
+
+
+import java.util.Map;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.AbstractMetaDataLoader;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.LoadingContext;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.QMetaDataLoaderException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ **
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class GenericMetaDataLoader<T extends QMetaDataObject> extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<T>
+{
+   private final Class<T> metaDataClass;
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Constructor
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public GenericMetaDataLoader(Class<T> metaDataClass)
+   {
+      this.metaDataClass = metaDataClass;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public T mapToMetaDataObject(QInstance qInstance, Map<String, Object> map, LoadingContext context) throws QMetaDataLoaderException
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         T object = metaDataClass.getConstructor().newInstance();
+         reflectivelyMap(qInstance, object, map, context);
+         return (object);
+      }
+      catch(Exception e)
+      {
+         throw (new QMetaDataLoaderException("Error loading metaData object of type " + metaDataClass.getSimpleName(), e));
+      }
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/loaders/implementations/QStepDataLoader.java

@@ -0,0 +1,85 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.implementations;
+
+
+import java.util.Map;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.AbstractMetaDataLoader;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.LoadingContext;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.QMetaDataLoaderException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.processes.QBackendStepMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.processes.QFrontendStepMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.processes.QStepMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.StringUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ValueUtils;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ **
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class QStepDataLoader extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<QStepMetaData>
+{
+   private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(QStepDataLoader.class);
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QStepMetaData mapToMetaDataObject(QInstance qInstance, Map<String, Object> map, LoadingContext context) throws QMetaDataLoaderException
+   {
+      String stepType = ValueUtils.getValueAsString(map.get("stepType"));
+
+      if(!StringUtils.hasContent(stepType))
+      {
+         throw (new QMetaDataLoaderException("stepType was not specified for process step"));
+      }
+
+      QStepMetaData step;
+      if("backend".equalsIgnoreCase(stepType))
+      {
+         step = new QBackendStepMetaData();
+         reflectivelyMap(qInstance, step, map, context);
+      }
+      else if("frontend".equalsIgnoreCase(stepType))
+      {
+         step = new QFrontendStepMetaData();
+         reflectivelyMap(qInstance, step, map, context);
+      }
+      // todo - we have custom factory methods for this, so, maybe needs all custom loader?
+      // else if("stateMachine".equalsIgnoreCase(stepType))
+      // {
+      //    step = new QStateMachineStep();
+      //    reflectivelyMap(qInstance, step, map, context);
+      // }
+      else
+      {
+         throw (new QMetaDataLoaderException("Unsupported step stepType: " + stepType));
+      }
+
+      return (step);
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/loaders/implementations/QTableMetaDataLoader.java

@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.implementations;
+
+
+import java.util.Map;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.AbstractMetaDataLoader;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.LoadingContext;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.loaders.QMetaDataLoaderException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ **
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class QTableMetaDataLoader extends AbstractMetaDataLoader<QTableMetaData>
+{
+   private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(QTableMetaDataLoader.class);
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QTableMetaData mapToMetaDataObject(QInstance qInstance, Map<String, Object> map, LoadingContext context) throws QMetaDataLoaderException
+   {
+      QTableMetaData table = new QTableMetaData();
+
+      reflectivelyMap(qInstance, table, map, context);
+
+      // todo - handle QTableBackendDetails, based on backend's type
+
+      return (table);
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/instances/validation/plugins/QInstanceValidatorPluginInterface.java

@@ -38,4 +38,13 @@ public interface QInstanceValidatorPluginInterface<T>
     *******************************************************************************/
    void validate(T object, QInstance qInstance, QInstanceValidator qInstanceValidator);
 
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   default String getPluginIdentifier()
+   {
+      return getClass().getName();
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/processes/ProcessSummaryLineInterface.java

@@ -23,7 +23,11 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.processes;
 
 
 import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.List;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.LogPair;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
+import static com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.LogUtils.logPair;
 
 
 /*******************************************************************************
@@ -31,6 +35,45 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.LogPair;
  *******************************************************************************/
 public interface ProcessSummaryLineInterface extends Serializable
 {
+   QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(ProcessSummaryLineInterface.class);
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   static void log(String message, Serializable summaryLines, List<LogPair> additionalLogPairs)
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         if(summaryLines instanceof List)
+         {
+            List<ProcessSummaryLineInterface> list = (List<ProcessSummaryLineInterface>) summaryLines;
+
+            List<LogPair> logPairs = new ArrayList<>();
+            for(ProcessSummaryLineInterface processSummaryLineInterface : list)
+            {
+               LogPair logPair = processSummaryLineInterface.toLogPair();
+               logPair.setKey(logPair.getKey() + logPairs.size());
+               logPairs.add(logPair);
+            }
+
+            if(additionalLogPairs != null)
+            {
+               logPairs.addAll(0, additionalLogPairs);
+            }
+            logPairs.add(0, logPair("message", message));
+
+            LOG.info(logPairs);
+         }
+         else
+         {
+            LOG.info("Unrecognized type for summaryLines (expected List)", logPair("processSummary", summaryLines));
+         }
+      }
+      catch(Exception e)
+      {
+         LOG.info("Error logging a process summary", e, logPair("processSummary", summaryLines));
+      }
+   }
 
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Getter for status

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/processes/QProcessPayload.java

@@ -0,0 +1,162 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.processes;
+
+
+import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.lang.reflect.Method;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.HashSet;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Map;
+import java.util.Optional;
+import java.util.Set;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QRuntimeException;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QRecordEntityField;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ListingHash;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** base-class for bean-like classes to represent the fields of a process.
+ ** similar in spirit to QRecordEntity, but for processes.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class QProcessPayload
+{
+   private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(QProcessPayload.class);
+
+   private static final ListingHash<Class<? extends QProcessPayload>, QRecordEntityField> fieldMapping = new ListingHash<>();
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Build an entity of this QRecord type from a QRecord
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public static <T extends QProcessPayload> T fromProcessState(Class<T> c, ProcessState processState) throws QException
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         T entity = c.getConstructor().newInstance();
+         entity.populateFromProcessState(processState);
+         return (entity);
+      }
+      catch(Exception e)
+      {
+         throw (new QException("Error building process payload from state.", e));
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   protected void populateFromProcessState(ProcessState processState)
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         List<QRecordEntityField> fieldList = getFieldList(this.getClass());
+
+         for(QRecordEntityField qRecordEntityField : fieldList)
+         {
+            Serializable value      = processState.getValues().get(qRecordEntityField.getFieldName());
+            Object       typedValue = qRecordEntityField.convertValueType(value);
+            qRecordEntityField.getSetter().invoke(this, typedValue);
+         }
+      }
+      catch(Exception e)
+      {
+         throw (new QRuntimeException("Error building process payload from process state.", e));
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Copy the values from this payload into the given process state.
+    ** ALL fields in the entity will be set in the process state.
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void toProcessState(ProcessState processState) throws QRuntimeException
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         for(QRecordEntityField qRecordEntityField : getFieldList(this.getClass()))
+         {
+            processState.getValues().put(qRecordEntityField.getFieldName(), (Serializable) qRecordEntityField.getGetter().invoke(this));
+         }
+      }
+      catch(Exception e)
+      {
+         throw (new QRuntimeException("Error populating process state from process payload.", e));
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    *
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static Set<Class<?>> allowedFieldTypes()
+   {
+      HashSet<Class<?>> classes = new HashSet<>(ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.defaultAllowedTypes());
+      classes.add(Map.class);
+      classes.add(List.class);
+      return (classes);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public static List<QRecordEntityField> getFieldList(Class<? extends QProcessPayload> c)
+   {
+      if(!fieldMapping.containsKey(c))
+      {
+         List<QRecordEntityField> fieldList = new ArrayList<>();
+         for(Method possibleGetter : c.getMethods())
+         {
+            if(ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.isGetter(possibleGetter, false, allowedFieldTypes()))
+            {
+               Optional<Method> setter = ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.getSetterForGetter(c, possibleGetter);
+
+               if(setter.isPresent())
+               {
+                  String fieldName = ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.getFieldNameFromGetter(possibleGetter);
+                  fieldList.add(new QRecordEntityField(fieldName, possibleGetter, setter.get(), possibleGetter.getReturnType(), null));
+               }
+               else
+               {
+                  LOG.debug("Getter method [" + possibleGetter.getName() + "] does not have a corresponding setter.");
+               }
+            }
+         }
+         fieldMapping.put(c, fieldList);
+      }
+      return (fieldMapping.get(c));
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/processes/RunBackendStepInput.java

@@ -628,4 +628,15 @@ public class RunBackendStepInput extends AbstractActionInput
    {
       return (QContext.getQInstance().getProcess(getProcessName()));
    }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    ** return a QProcessPayload subclass instance, with values populated from
+    ** the current process state.
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public <T extends QProcessPayload> T getProcessPayload(Class<T> payloadClass) throws QException
+   {
+      return QProcessPayload.fromProcessState(payloadClass, getProcessState());
+   }
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/processes/RunBackendStepOutput.java

@@ -445,4 +445,14 @@ public class RunBackendStepOutput extends AbstractActionOutput implements Serial
       this.processState.setProcessMetaDataAdjustment(processMetaDataAdjustment);
    }
 
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    ** Update the process state with values from the input processPayload
+    ** subclass instance.
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public void setProcessPayload(QProcessPayload processPayload)
+   {
+      processPayload.toProcessState(getProcessState());
+   }
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/reporting/ReportInput.java

@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ import java.util.Map;
 import java.util.function.Supplier;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.reporting.ExportStreamerInterface;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.AbstractTableActionInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code.QCodeReference;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.reporting.QReportMetaData;
 
 
@@ -44,6 +45,7 @@ public class ReportInput extends AbstractTableActionInput
    private ReportDestination reportDestination;
 
    private Supplier<? extends ExportStreamerInterface> overrideExportStreamerSupplier;
+   private QCodeReference                              exportStyleCustomizer;
 
 
 
@@ -208,4 +210,35 @@ public class ReportInput extends AbstractTableActionInput
       return (this);
    }
 
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for exportStyleCustomizer
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QCodeReference getExportStyleCustomizer()
+   {
+      return (this.exportStyleCustomizer);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for exportStyleCustomizer
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setExportStyleCustomizer(QCodeReference exportStyleCustomizer)
+   {
+      this.exportStyleCustomizer = exportStyleCustomizer;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for exportStyleCustomizer
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public ReportInput withExportStyleCustomizer(QCodeReference exportStyleCustomizer)
+   {
+      this.exportStyleCustomizer = exportStyleCustomizer;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/tables/ActionFlag.java

@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables;
+
+
+import java.io.Serializable;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** interface to mark enums (presumably classes too, but the original intent is
+ ** enums) that can be added to insert/update/delete action inputs to flag behaviors
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public interface ActionFlag extends Serializable
+{
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/tables/delete/DeleteInput.java

@@ -24,9 +24,12 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.delete;
 
 import java.io.Serializable;
 import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Set;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.QBackendTransaction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.AbstractTableActionInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.ActionFlag;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.InputSource;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.QInputSource;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.QQueryFilter;
@@ -47,6 +50,8 @@ public class DeleteInput extends AbstractTableActionInput
    private boolean omitDmlAudit = false;
    private String  auditContext = null;
 
+   private Set<ActionFlag> flags;
+
 
 
    /*******************************************************************************
@@ -295,4 +300,65 @@ public class DeleteInput extends AbstractTableActionInput
       return (this);
    }
 
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Set<ActionFlag> getFlags()
+   {
+      return (this.flags);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setFlags(Set<ActionFlag> flags)
+   {
+      this.flags = flags;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public DeleteInput withFlags(Set<ActionFlag> flags)
+   {
+      this.flags = flags;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public DeleteInput withFlag(ActionFlag flag)
+   {
+      if(this.flags == null)
+      {
+         this.flags = new HashSet<>();
+      }
+      this.flags.add(flag);
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public boolean hasFlag(ActionFlag flag)
+   {
+      if(this.flags == null)
+      {
+         return (false);
+      }
+
+      return (this.flags.contains(flag));
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/tables/insert/InsertInput.java

@@ -23,9 +23,12 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.insert;
 
 
 import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Set;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.QBackendTransaction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.AbstractTableActionInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.ActionFlag;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.InputSource;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.QInputSource;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QRecord;
@@ -48,6 +51,8 @@ public class InsertInput extends AbstractTableActionInput
    private boolean omitDmlAudit = false;
    private String  auditContext = null;
 
+   private Set<ActionFlag> flags;
+
 
 
    /*******************************************************************************
@@ -316,4 +321,65 @@ public class InsertInput extends AbstractTableActionInput
       return (this);
    }
 
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Set<ActionFlag> getFlags()
+   {
+      return (this.flags);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setFlags(Set<ActionFlag> flags)
+   {
+      this.flags = flags;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public InsertInput withFlags(Set<ActionFlag> flags)
+   {
+      this.flags = flags;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public InsertInput withFlag(ActionFlag flag)
+   {
+      if(this.flags == null)
+      {
+         this.flags = new HashSet<>();
+      }
+      this.flags.add(flag);
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public boolean hasFlag(ActionFlag flag)
+   {
+      if(this.flags == null)
+      {
+         return (false);
+      }
+
+      return (this.flags.contains(flag));
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/tables/query/QFilterCriteria.java

@@ -33,6 +33,7 @@ import java.util.Set;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.databind.annotation.JsonDeserialize;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.serialization.QFilterCriteriaDeserializer;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.StringUtils;
 
@@ -42,7 +43,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.StringUtils;
  *
  *******************************************************************************/
 @JsonDeserialize(using = QFilterCriteriaDeserializer.class)
-public class QFilterCriteria implements Serializable, Cloneable
+public class QFilterCriteria implements Serializable, Cloneable, QMetaDataObject
 {
    private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(QFilterCriteria.class);
 

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/tables/query/QFilterOrderBy.java

@@ -23,13 +23,14 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query;
 
 
 import java.io.Serializable;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
 
 
 /*******************************************************************************
  ** Bean representing an element of a query order-by clause.
  **
  *******************************************************************************/
-public class QFilterOrderBy implements Serializable, Cloneable
+public class QFilterOrderBy implements Serializable, Cloneable, QMetaDataObject
 {
    private String  fieldName;
    private boolean isAscending = true;

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/tables/query/QQueryFilter.java

@@ -36,6 +36,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.QMetaDataVariableInterpreter;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.QLogger;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.expressions.AbstractFilterExpression;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.expressions.FilterVariableExpression;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.StringUtils;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ValueUtils;
@@ -45,7 +46,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ValueUtils;
  * Full "filter" for a query - a list of criteria and order-bys
  *
  *******************************************************************************/
-public class QQueryFilter implements Serializable, Cloneable
+public class QQueryFilter implements Serializable, Cloneable, QMetaDataObject
 {
    private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(QQueryFilter.class);
 

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/tables/replace/ReplaceInput.java

@@ -22,9 +22,12 @@
 package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.replace;
 
 
+import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Set;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.QBackendTransaction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.AbstractTableActionInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.ActionFlag;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.QQueryFilter;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QRecord;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.UniqueKey;
@@ -39,12 +42,14 @@ public class ReplaceInput extends AbstractTableActionInput
    private UniqueKey           key;
    private List<QRecord>       records;
    private QQueryFilter        filter;
-   private boolean performDeletes                 = true;
-   private boolean allowNullKeyValuesToEqual      = false;
-   private boolean setPrimaryKeyInInsertedRecords = false;
+   private boolean             performDeletes                 = true;
+   private boolean             allowNullKeyValuesToEqual      = false;
+   private boolean             setPrimaryKeyInInsertedRecords = false;
 
    private boolean omitDmlAudit = false;
 
+   private Set<ActionFlag> flags;
+
 
 
    /*******************************************************************************
@@ -303,4 +308,65 @@ public class ReplaceInput extends AbstractTableActionInput
       return (this);
    }
 
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Set<ActionFlag> getFlags()
+   {
+      return (this.flags);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setFlags(Set<ActionFlag> flags)
+   {
+      this.flags = flags;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public ReplaceInput withFlags(Set<ActionFlag> flags)
+   {
+      this.flags = flags;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public ReplaceInput withFlag(ActionFlag flag)
+   {
+      if(this.flags == null)
+      {
+         this.flags = new HashSet<>();
+      }
+      this.flags.add(flag);
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public boolean hasFlag(ActionFlag flag)
+   {
+      if(this.flags == null)
+      {
+         return (false);
+      }
+
+      return (this.flags.contains(flag));
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/actions/tables/update/UpdateInput.java

@@ -23,9 +23,12 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.update;
 
 
 import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Set;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.QBackendTransaction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.AbstractTableActionInput;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.ActionFlag;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.InputSource;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.QInputSource;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QRecord;
@@ -56,6 +59,8 @@ public class UpdateInput extends AbstractTableActionInput
    private boolean omitModifyDateUpdate      = false;
    private String  auditContext              = null;
 
+   private Set<ActionFlag> flags;
+
 
 
    /*******************************************************************************
@@ -385,4 +390,65 @@ public class UpdateInput extends AbstractTableActionInput
       return (this);
    }
 
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Set<ActionFlag> getFlags()
+   {
+      return (this.flags);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setFlags(Set<ActionFlag> flags)
+   {
+      this.flags = flags;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for flags
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public UpdateInput withFlags(Set<ActionFlag> flags)
+   {
+      this.flags = flags;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public UpdateInput withFlag(ActionFlag flag)
+   {
+      if(this.flags == null)
+      {
+         this.flags = new HashSet<>();
+      }
+      this.flags.add(flag);
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public boolean hasFlag(ActionFlag flag)
+   {
+      if(this.flags == null)
+      {
+         return (false);
+      }
+
+      return (this.flags.contains(flag));
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/common/TimeZonePossibleValueSourceMetaDataProvider.java

@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.common;
 
 
 import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Comparator;
 import java.util.List;
 import java.util.TimeZone;
 import java.util.function.Function;
@@ -47,7 +48,7 @@ public class TimeZonePossibleValueSourceMetaDataProvider
     *******************************************************************************/
    public QPossibleValueSource produce()
    {
-      return (produce(null, null));
+      return (produce(null, null, null));
    }
 
 
@@ -56,6 +57,16 @@ public class TimeZonePossibleValueSourceMetaDataProvider
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
    public QPossibleValueSource produce(Predicate<String> filter, Function<String, String> labelMapper)
+   {
+      return (produce(filter, labelMapper, null));
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QPossibleValueSource produce(Predicate<String> filter, Function<String, String> labelMapper, Comparator<QPossibleValue<?>> comparator)
    {
       QPossibleValueSource possibleValueSource = new QPossibleValueSource()
          .withName("timeZones")
@@ -72,6 +83,11 @@ public class TimeZonePossibleValueSourceMetaDataProvider
          }
       }
 
+      if(comparator != null)
+      {
+         enumValues.sort(comparator);
+      }
+
       possibleValueSource.withEnumValues(enumValues);
       return (possibleValueSource);
    }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/dashboard/widgets/WidgetType.java

@@ -66,6 +66,7 @@ public enum WidgetType
    // record view/edit widgets //
    //////////////////////////////
    CHILD_RECORD_LIST("childRecordList"),
+   CUSTOM_COMPONENT("customComponent"),
    DYNAMIC_FORM("dynamicForm"),
    DATA_BAG_VIEWER("dataBagViewer"),
    PIVOT_TABLE_SETUP("pivotTableSetup"),

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/data/QRecord.java

@@ -468,7 +468,7 @@ public class QRecord implements Serializable
     *******************************************************************************/
    public String getValueString(String fieldName)
    {
-      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsString(values.get(fieldName)));
+      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsString(getValue(fieldName)));
    }
 
 
@@ -479,7 +479,7 @@ public class QRecord implements Serializable
     *******************************************************************************/
    public Integer getValueInteger(String fieldName)
    {
-      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsInteger(values.get(fieldName)));
+      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsInteger(getValue(fieldName)));
    }
 
 
@@ -490,7 +490,7 @@ public class QRecord implements Serializable
     *******************************************************************************/
    public Long getValueLong(String fieldName)
    {
-      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsLong(values.get(fieldName)));
+      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsLong(getValue(fieldName)));
    }
 
 
@@ -500,7 +500,7 @@ public class QRecord implements Serializable
     *******************************************************************************/
    public BigDecimal getValueBigDecimal(String fieldName)
    {
-      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsBigDecimal(values.get(fieldName)));
+      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsBigDecimal(getValue(fieldName)));
    }
 
 
@@ -510,7 +510,7 @@ public class QRecord implements Serializable
     *******************************************************************************/
    public Boolean getValueBoolean(String fieldName)
    {
-      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsBoolean(values.get(fieldName)));
+      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsBoolean(getValue(fieldName)));
    }
 
 
@@ -520,7 +520,7 @@ public class QRecord implements Serializable
     *******************************************************************************/
    public LocalTime getValueLocalTime(String fieldName)
    {
-      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsLocalTime(values.get(fieldName)));
+      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsLocalTime(getValue(fieldName)));
    }
 
 
@@ -530,7 +530,7 @@ public class QRecord implements Serializable
     *******************************************************************************/
    public LocalDate getValueLocalDate(String fieldName)
    {
-      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsLocalDate(values.get(fieldName)));
+      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsLocalDate(getValue(fieldName)));
    }
 
 
@@ -540,7 +540,7 @@ public class QRecord implements Serializable
     *******************************************************************************/
    public byte[] getValueByteArray(String fieldName)
    {
-      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsByteArray(values.get(fieldName)));
+      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsByteArray(getValue(fieldName)));
    }
 
 
@@ -550,7 +550,7 @@ public class QRecord implements Serializable
     *******************************************************************************/
    public Instant getValueInstant(String fieldName)
    {
-      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsInstant(values.get(fieldName)));
+      return (ValueUtils.getValueAsInstant(getValue(fieldName)));
    }
 
 

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/data/QRecordEntity.java

@@ -49,6 +49,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ListingHash;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ObjectUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils;
 import static com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.LogUtils.logPair;
 
 
@@ -325,13 +326,13 @@ public abstract class QRecordEntity
          List<QRecordEntityField> fieldList = new ArrayList<>();
          for(Method possibleGetter : c.getMethods())
          {
-            if(isGetter(possibleGetter))
+            if(ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.isGetter(possibleGetter, true))
             {
-               Optional<Method> setter = getSetterForGetter(c, possibleGetter);
+               Optional<Method> setter = ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.getSetterForGetter(c, possibleGetter);
 
                if(setter.isPresent())
                {
-                  String           fieldName       = getFieldNameFromGetter(possibleGetter);
+                  String           fieldName       = ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.getFieldNameFromGetter(possibleGetter);
                   Optional<QField> fieldAnnotation = getQFieldAnnotation(c, fieldName);
 
                   if(fieldAnnotation.isPresent())
@@ -378,19 +379,19 @@ public abstract class QRecordEntity
          List<QRecordEntityAssociation> associationList = new ArrayList<>();
          for(Method possibleGetter : c.getMethods())
          {
-            if(isGetter(possibleGetter))
+            if(ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.isGetter(possibleGetter, true))
             {
-               Optional<Method> setter = getSetterForGetter(c, possibleGetter);
+               Optional<Method> setter = ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.getSetterForGetter(c, possibleGetter);
 
                if(setter.isPresent())
                {
-                  String                 fieldName             = getFieldNameFromGetter(possibleGetter);
+                  String                 fieldName             = ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.getFieldNameFromGetter(possibleGetter);
                   Optional<QAssociation> associationAnnotation = getQAssociationAnnotation(c, fieldName);
 
                   if(associationAnnotation.isPresent())
                   {
                      @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
-                     Class<? extends QRecordEntity> listTypeParam = (Class<? extends QRecordEntity>) getListTypeParam(possibleGetter.getReturnType(), possibleGetter.getAnnotatedReturnType());
+                     Class<? extends QRecordEntity> listTypeParam = (Class<? extends QRecordEntity>) ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.getListTypeParam(possibleGetter.getReturnType(), possibleGetter.getAnnotatedReturnType());
                      associationList.add(new QRecordEntityAssociation(fieldName, possibleGetter, setter.get(), listTypeParam, associationAnnotation.orElse(null)));
                   }
                }
@@ -583,4 +584,31 @@ public abstract class QRecordEntity
       return (null);
    }
 
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static String getTableName(Class<? extends QRecordEntity> entityClass) throws QException
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         Field  tableNameField = entityClass.getDeclaredField("TABLE_NAME");
+         String tableNameValue = (String) tableNameField.get(null);
+         return (tableNameValue);
+      }
+      catch(Exception e)
+      {
+         throw (new QException("Could not get TABLE_NAME from entity class: " + entityClass.getSimpleName(), e));
+      }
+   }
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    ** named without the 'get' to avoid conflict w/ entity fields named that...
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public String tableName() throws QException
+   {
+      return (getTableName(this.getClass()));
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/data/QRecordEntityField.java

@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ import java.math.BigDecimal;
 import java.time.Instant;
 import java.time.LocalDate;
 import java.time.LocalTime;
+import java.util.Map;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QValueException;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ValueUtils;
 
@@ -170,6 +171,11 @@ public class QRecordEntityField
          {
             return (ValueUtils.getValueAsByteArray(value));
          }
+
+         if(type.equals(Map.class))
+         {
+            return (ValueUtils.getValueAsMap(value));
+         }
       }
       catch(Exception e)
       {

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/data/QRecordWithJoinedRecords.java

@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data;
 
 import java.io.Serializable;
 import java.util.LinkedHashMap;
+import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Map;
 import java.util.function.BiFunction;
 
@@ -198,4 +199,62 @@ public class QRecordWithJoinedRecords extends QRecord
       return (rs);
    }
 
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public Map<String, List<QRecord>> getAssociatedRecords()
+   {
+      return mainRecord.getAssociatedRecords();
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QRecord withAssociatedRecord(String name, QRecord associatedRecord)
+   {
+      mainRecord.withAssociatedRecord(name, associatedRecord);
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QRecord withAssociatedRecords(Map<String, List<QRecord>> associatedRecords)
+   {
+      mainRecord.withAssociatedRecords(associatedRecords);
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public void setAssociatedRecords(Map<String, List<QRecord>> associatedRecords)
+   {
+      mainRecord.setAssociatedRecords(associatedRecords);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QRecord withAssociatedRecords(String name, List<QRecord> associatedRecords)
+   {
+      mainRecord.withAssociatedRecords(name, associatedRecords);
+      return (this);
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/helpcontent/HelpContentMetaDataProvider.java

@@ -82,6 +82,7 @@ public class HelpContentMetaDataProvider
       table.getField("key").withFieldAdornment(AdornmentType.Size.LARGE.toAdornment());
       table.getField("content").withFieldAdornment(AdornmentType.Size.LARGE.toAdornment());
       table.getField("content").withFieldAdornment(new FieldAdornment(AdornmentType.CODE_EDITOR).withValue(AdornmentType.CodeEditorValues.languageMode("html")));
+      table.getField("content").withGridColumns(12);
 
       if(backendDetailEnricher != null)
       {

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/MetaDataProducerHelper.java

@@ -177,6 +177,18 @@ public class MetaDataProducerHelper
       /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
       // sort them by sort order, then by the type that they return, as set up in the static map //
       /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+      sortMetaDataProducers(producers);
+
+      return (producers);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public static void sortMetaDataProducers(List<MetaDataProducerInterface<?>> producers)
+   {
       producers.sort(Comparator
          .comparing((MetaDataProducerInterface<?> p) -> p.getSortOrder())
          .thenComparing((MetaDataProducerInterface<?> p) ->
@@ -191,11 +203,10 @@ public class MetaDataProducerHelper
                return (0);
             }
          }));
-
-      return (producers);
    }
 
 
+
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Recursively find all classes in the given package, that implement MetaDataProducerInterface
     ** run them, and add their output to the given qInstance.
@@ -417,7 +428,7 @@ public class MetaDataProducerHelper
          return (null);
       }
 
-      ChildJoinFromRecordEntityGenericMetaDataProducer producer = new ChildJoinFromRecordEntityGenericMetaDataProducer(childTableName, parentTableName, possibleValueFieldName);
+      ChildJoinFromRecordEntityGenericMetaDataProducer producer = new ChildJoinFromRecordEntityGenericMetaDataProducer(childTableName, parentTableName, possibleValueFieldName, childTable.childJoin().orderBy(), childTable.childJoin().isOneToOne());
       producer.setSourceClass(entityClass);
       return producer;
    }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/MetaDataProducerMultiOutput.java

@@ -86,7 +86,7 @@ public class MetaDataProducerMultiOutput implements MetaDataProducerOutput, Sour
    {
       List<T> rs = new ArrayList<>();
 
-      for(MetaDataProducerOutput content : contents)
+      for(MetaDataProducerOutput content : CollectionUtils.nonNullList(contents))
       {
          if(content instanceof MetaDataProducerMultiOutput multiOutput)
          {

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/QAuthenticationType.java

@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata;
  *******************************************************************************/
 public enum QAuthenticationType
 {
+   OAUTH2("OAuth2"),
    AUTH_0("auth0"),
    TABLE_BASED("tableBased"),
    FULLY_ANONYMOUS("fullyAnonymous"),

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/QInstance.java

@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata;
 
 
 import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Collections;
 import java.util.HashMap;
 import java.util.LinkedHashMap;
 import java.util.LinkedHashSet;
@@ -30,6 +31,7 @@ import java.util.List;
 import java.util.Map;
 import java.util.Set;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.customizers.TableCustomizers;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.metadata.JoinGraph;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.metadata.MetaDataAction;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.exceptions.QException;
@@ -65,6 +67,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.security.QSecurityKeyType;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.scheduler.schedulable.SchedulableType;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ListingHash;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.StringUtils;
 import io.github.cdimascio.dotenv.Dotenv;
 import io.github.cdimascio.dotenv.DotenvEntry;
@@ -116,8 +119,13 @@ public class QInstance
    private QPermissionRules defaultPermissionRules = QPermissionRules.defaultInstance();
    private QAuditRules      defaultAuditRules      = QAuditRules.defaultInstanceLevelNone();
 
+   private ListingHash<String, QCodeReference> tableCustomizers;
+
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrated to metaDataCustomizer")
    private QCodeReference metaDataFilter = null;
 
+   private QCodeReference metaDataActionCustomizer = null;
+
    //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
    // todo - lock down the object (no more changes allowed) after it's been validated? //
    //  if doing so, may need to copy all of the collections into read-only versions... //
@@ -1247,7 +1255,7 @@ public class QInstance
       {
          this.supplementalMetaData = new HashMap<>();
       }
-      this.supplementalMetaData.put(supplementalMetaData.getType(), supplementalMetaData);
+      this.supplementalMetaData.put(supplementalMetaData.getName(), supplementalMetaData);
       return (this);
    }
 
@@ -1495,6 +1503,7 @@ public class QInstance
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Getter for metaDataFilter
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrated to metaDataCustomizer")
    public QCodeReference getMetaDataFilter()
    {
       return (this.metaDataFilter);
@@ -1505,6 +1514,7 @@ public class QInstance
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Setter for metaDataFilter
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrated to metaDataCustomizer")
    public void setMetaDataFilter(QCodeReference metaDataFilter)
    {
       this.metaDataFilter = metaDataFilter;
@@ -1515,6 +1525,7 @@ public class QInstance
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Fluent setter for metaDataFilter
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrated to metaDataCustomizer")
    public QInstance withMetaDataFilter(QCodeReference metaDataFilter)
    {
       this.metaDataFilter = metaDataFilter;
@@ -1586,4 +1597,107 @@ public class QInstance
       return (this);
    }
 
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for metaDataActionCustomizer
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QCodeReference getMetaDataActionCustomizer()
+   {
+      return (this.metaDataActionCustomizer);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for metaDataActionCustomizer
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setMetaDataActionCustomizer(QCodeReference metaDataActionCustomizer)
+   {
+      this.metaDataActionCustomizer = metaDataActionCustomizer;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for metaDataActionCustomizer
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QInstance withMetaDataActionCustomizer(QCodeReference metaDataActionCustomizer)
+   {
+      this.metaDataActionCustomizer = metaDataActionCustomizer;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for tableCustomizers
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public ListingHash<String, QCodeReference> getTableCustomizers()
+   {
+      return (this.tableCustomizers);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for tableCustomizers
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setTableCustomizers(ListingHash<String, QCodeReference> tableCustomizers)
+   {
+      this.tableCustomizers = tableCustomizers;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for tableCustomizers
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QInstance withTableCustomizers(ListingHash<String, QCodeReference> tableCustomizers)
+   {
+      this.tableCustomizers = tableCustomizers;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QInstance withTableCustomizer(String role, QCodeReference customizer)
+   {
+      if(this.tableCustomizers == null)
+      {
+         this.tableCustomizers = new ListingHash<>();
+      }
+
+      this.tableCustomizers.add(role, customizer);
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QInstance withTableCustomizer(TableCustomizers tableCustomizer, QCodeReference customizer)
+   {
+      return (withTableCustomizer(tableCustomizer.getRole(), customizer));
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for tableCustomizers
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public List<QCodeReference> getTableCustomizers(TableCustomizers tableCustomizer)
+   {
+      if(this.tableCustomizers == null)
+      {
+         return (Collections.emptyList());
+      }
+
+      return (this.tableCustomizers.getOrDefault(tableCustomizer.getRole(), Collections.emptyList()));
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/QMetaDataObject.java

@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata;
+
+
+import java.io.Serializable;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** interface common among all objects that can be considered qqq meta data -
+ ** e.g., stored in a QInstance.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public interface QMetaDataObject extends Serializable
+{
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/QSupplementalInstanceMetaData.java

@@ -22,28 +22,21 @@
 package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata;
 
 
+import java.util.function.Supplier;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.QInstanceValidator;
-import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
 
 
 /*******************************************************************************
  ** Base-class for instance-level meta-data defined by some supplemental module, etc,
  ** outside of qqq core
  *******************************************************************************/
-public abstract class QSupplementalInstanceMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
+public interface QSupplementalInstanceMetaData extends TopLevelMetaDataInterface
 {
 
-   /*******************************************************************************
-    ** Getter for type
-    *******************************************************************************/
-   public abstract String getType();
-
-
-
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
-   public void enrich(QTableMetaData table)
+   default void enrich(QInstance qInstance)
    {
       ////////////////////////
       // noop in base class //
@@ -55,7 +48,7 @@ public abstract class QSupplementalInstanceMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataI
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
-   public void validate(QInstance qInstance, QInstanceValidator validator)
+   default void validate(QInstance qInstance, QInstanceValidator validator)
    {
       ////////////////////////
       // noop in base class //
@@ -68,9 +61,33 @@ public abstract class QSupplementalInstanceMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataI
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
    @Override
-   public void addSelfToInstance(QInstance qInstance)
+   default void addSelfToInstance(QInstance qInstance)
    {
       qInstance.withSupplementalMetaData(this);
    }
 
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   static <S extends QSupplementalInstanceMetaData> S of(QInstance qInstance, String name)
+   {
+      return ((S) qInstance.getSupplementalMetaData(name));
+   }
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   static <S extends QSupplementalInstanceMetaData> S ofOrWithNew(QInstance qInstance, String name, Supplier<S> supplier)
+   {
+      S s = (S) qInstance.getSupplementalMetaData(name);
+      if(s == null)
+      {
+         s = supplier.get();
+         s.addSelfToInstance(qInstance);
+      }
+      return (s);
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/TopLevelMetaDataInterface.java

@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata;
  ** Interface for meta-data classes that can be added directly (e.g, at the top
  ** level) to a QInstance (such as a QTableMetaData - not a QFieldMetaData).
  *******************************************************************************/
-public interface TopLevelMetaDataInterface extends MetaDataProducerOutput
+public interface TopLevelMetaDataInterface extends MetaDataProducerOutput, QMetaDataObject
 {
 
    /*******************************************************************************

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/audits/QAuditRules.java

@@ -22,10 +22,13 @@
 package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.audits;
 
 
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
+
+
 /*******************************************************************************
  **
  *******************************************************************************/
-public class QAuditRules
+public class QAuditRules implements QMetaDataObject
 {
    private AuditLevel auditLevel;
 

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/authentication/OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData.java

@@ -0,0 +1,320 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2022.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.authentication;
+
+
+import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonIgnore;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.QInstanceValidator;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QAuthenticationType;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.modules.authentication.QAuthenticationModuleDispatcher;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.modules.authentication.implementations.OAuth2AuthenticationModule;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.StringUtils;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** Meta-data to provide details of an OAuth2 Authentication module
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData extends QAuthenticationMetaData
+{
+   private String baseUrl;
+   private String tokenUrl;
+   private String clientId;
+   private String scopes;
+
+   private String userSessionTableName;
+   private String redirectStateTableName;
+
+   ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+   // keep this secret, on the server - don't let it be serialized and sent to a client! //
+   ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+   @JsonIgnore
+   private String clientSecret;
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Default Constructor.
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData()
+   {
+      super();
+      setType(QAuthenticationType.OAUTH2);
+
+      //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+      // ensure this module is registered with the dispatcher //
+      //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+      QAuthenticationModuleDispatcher.registerModule(QAuthenticationType.OAUTH2.getName(), OAuth2AuthenticationModule.class.getName());
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public void validate(QInstance qInstance, QInstanceValidator qInstanceValidator)
+   {
+      super.validate(qInstance, qInstanceValidator);
+
+      String prefix = "OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData (named '" + getName() + "'): ";
+
+      qInstanceValidator.assertCondition(StringUtils.hasContent(baseUrl), prefix + "baseUrl must be set");
+      qInstanceValidator.assertCondition(StringUtils.hasContent(clientId), prefix + "clientId must be set");
+      qInstanceValidator.assertCondition(StringUtils.hasContent(clientSecret), prefix + "clientSecret must be set");
+      qInstanceValidator.assertCondition(StringUtils.hasContent(scopes), prefix + "scopes must be set");
+
+      if(qInstanceValidator.assertCondition(StringUtils.hasContent(userSessionTableName), prefix + "userSessionTableName must be set"))
+      {
+         qInstanceValidator.assertCondition(qInstance.getTable(userSessionTableName) != null, prefix + "userSessionTableName ('" + userSessionTableName + "') was not found in the instance");
+      }
+
+      if(qInstanceValidator.assertCondition(StringUtils.hasContent(redirectStateTableName), prefix + "redirectStateTableName must be set"))
+      {
+         qInstanceValidator.assertCondition(qInstance.getTable(redirectStateTableName) != null, prefix + "redirectStateTableName ('" + redirectStateTableName + "') was not found in the instance");
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter, override to help fluent flows
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData withBaseUrl(String baseUrl)
+   {
+      setBaseUrl(baseUrl);
+      return this;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for baseUrl
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getBaseUrl()
+   {
+      return baseUrl;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for baseUrl
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setBaseUrl(String baseUrl)
+   {
+      this.baseUrl = baseUrl;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter, override to help fluent flows
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData withClientId(String clientId)
+   {
+      setClientId(clientId);
+      return this;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for clientId
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getClientId()
+   {
+      return clientId;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for clientId
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setClientId(String clientId)
+   {
+      this.clientId = clientId;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter, override to help fluent flows
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData withClientSecret(String clientSecret)
+   {
+      setClientSecret(clientSecret);
+      return this;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for clientSecret
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getClientSecret()
+   {
+      return clientSecret;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for clientSecret
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setClientSecret(String clientSecret)
+   {
+      this.clientSecret = clientSecret;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for tokenUrl
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getTokenUrl()
+   {
+      return (this.tokenUrl);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for tokenUrl
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setTokenUrl(String tokenUrl)
+   {
+      this.tokenUrl = tokenUrl;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for tokenUrl
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData withTokenUrl(String tokenUrl)
+   {
+      this.tokenUrl = tokenUrl;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for userSessionTableName
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getUserSessionTableName()
+   {
+      return (this.userSessionTableName);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for userSessionTableName
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setUserSessionTableName(String userSessionTableName)
+   {
+      this.userSessionTableName = userSessionTableName;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for userSessionTableName
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData withUserSessionTableName(String userSessionTableName)
+   {
+      this.userSessionTableName = userSessionTableName;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for redirectStateTableName
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getRedirectStateTableName()
+   {
+      return (this.redirectStateTableName);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for redirectStateTableName
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setRedirectStateTableName(String redirectStateTableName)
+   {
+      this.redirectStateTableName = redirectStateTableName;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for redirectStateTableName
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData withRedirectStateTableName(String redirectStateTableName)
+   {
+      this.redirectStateTableName = redirectStateTableName;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for scopes
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getScopes()
+   {
+      return (this.scopes);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for scopes
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setScopes(String scopes)
+   {
+      this.scopes = scopes;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for scopes
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public OAuth2AuthenticationMetaData withScopes(String scopes)
+   {
+      this.scopes = scopes;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/authentication/QAuthenticationMetaData.java

@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.authentication;
 import java.util.HashMap;
 import java.util.Map;
 import com.fasterxml.jackson.annotation.JsonFilter;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.instances.QInstanceValidator;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QAuthenticationType;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.TopLevelMetaDataInterface;
@@ -225,4 +226,15 @@ public class QAuthenticationMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
       return (this);
    }
 
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public void validate(QInstance qInstance, QInstanceValidator qInstanceValidator)
+   {
+      //////////////////
+      // noop at base //
+      //////////////////
+   }
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/branding/Banner.java

@@ -0,0 +1,269 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.branding;
+
+
+import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.util.LinkedHashMap;
+import java.util.Map;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** element of BrandingMetaData - content to send to a frontend for showing a
+ ** user across the whole UI - e.g., what environment you're in, or a message
+ ** about your account - site announcements, etc.  
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class Banner implements Serializable, Cloneable
+{
+   private Severity severity;
+   private String   textColor;
+   private String   backgroundColor;
+   private String   messageText;
+   private String   messageHTML;
+
+   private Map<String, Serializable> additionalStyles;
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public enum Severity
+   {
+      INFO, WARNING, ERROR, SUCCESS
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public Banner clone()
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         Banner clone = (Banner) super.clone();
+
+         //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+         // copy mutable state here, so the clone can't change the internals of the original //
+         //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+         if(additionalStyles != null)
+         {
+            clone.setAdditionalStyles(new LinkedHashMap<>(additionalStyles));
+         }
+
+         return clone;
+      }
+      catch(CloneNotSupportedException e)
+      {
+         throw new AssertionError();
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for textColor
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getTextColor()
+   {
+      return (this.textColor);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for textColor
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setTextColor(String textColor)
+   {
+      this.textColor = textColor;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for textColor
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Banner withTextColor(String textColor)
+   {
+      this.textColor = textColor;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for backgroundColor
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getBackgroundColor()
+   {
+      return (this.backgroundColor);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for backgroundColor
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setBackgroundColor(String backgroundColor)
+   {
+      this.backgroundColor = backgroundColor;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for backgroundColor
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Banner withBackgroundColor(String backgroundColor)
+   {
+      this.backgroundColor = backgroundColor;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for additionalStyles
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Map<String, Serializable> getAdditionalStyles()
+   {
+      return (this.additionalStyles);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for additionalStyles
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setAdditionalStyles(Map<String, Serializable> additionalStyles)
+   {
+      this.additionalStyles = additionalStyles;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for additionalStyles
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Banner withAdditionalStyles(Map<String, Serializable> additionalStyles)
+   {
+      this.additionalStyles = additionalStyles;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for messageText
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getMessageText()
+   {
+      return (this.messageText);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for messageText
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setMessageText(String messageText)
+   {
+      this.messageText = messageText;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for messageText
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Banner withMessageText(String messageText)
+   {
+      this.messageText = messageText;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for messageHTML
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public String getMessageHTML()
+   {
+      return (this.messageHTML);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for messageHTML
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setMessageHTML(String messageHTML)
+   {
+      this.messageHTML = messageHTML;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for messageHTML
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Banner withMessageHTML(String messageHTML)
+   {
+      this.messageHTML = messageHTML;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for severity
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Severity getSeverity()
+   {
+      return (this.severity);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for severity
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setSeverity(Severity severity)
+   {
+      this.severity = severity;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for severity
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Banner withSeverity(Severity severity)
+   {
+      this.severity = severity;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/branding/BannerSlot.java

@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.branding;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** interface to define keys for where banners should be displayed.
+ ** expect frontends to implement this interface with enums of known possible values
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public interface BannerSlot
+{
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/branding/QBrandingMetaData.java

@@ -22,6 +22,9 @@
 package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.branding;
 
 
+import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.util.LinkedHashMap;
+import java.util.Map;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.TopLevelMetaDataInterface;
 
@@ -30,7 +33,7 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.TopLevelMetaDataInterface;
  ** Meta-Data to define branding in a QQQ instance.
  **
  *******************************************************************************/
-public class QBrandingMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
+public class QBrandingMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface, Cloneable, Serializable
 {
    private String companyName;
    private String companyUrl;
@@ -39,9 +42,45 @@ public class QBrandingMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
    private String icon;
    private String accentColor;
 
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrate to use banners map instead")
    private String environmentBannerText;
+
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrate to use banners map instead")
    private String environmentBannerColor;
 
+   private Map<BannerSlot, Banner> banners;
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QBrandingMetaData clone()
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         QBrandingMetaData clone = (QBrandingMetaData) super.clone();
+
+         //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+         // copy mutable state here, so the clone can't change the internals of the original //
+         //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
+         if(banners != null)
+         {
+            clone.banners = new LinkedHashMap<>();
+            for(Map.Entry<BannerSlot, Banner> entry : this.banners.entrySet())
+            {
+               clone.banners.put(entry.getKey(), entry.getValue().clone());
+            }
+         }
+
+         return clone;
+      }
+      catch(CloneNotSupportedException e)
+      {
+         throw new AssertionError();
+      }
+   }
+
 
 
    /*******************************************************************************
@@ -267,6 +306,7 @@ public class QBrandingMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Getter for environmentBannerText
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrate to use banners map instead")
    public String getEnvironmentBannerText()
    {
       return (this.environmentBannerText);
@@ -277,6 +317,7 @@ public class QBrandingMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Setter for environmentBannerText
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrate to use banners map instead")
    public void setEnvironmentBannerText(String environmentBannerText)
    {
       this.environmentBannerText = environmentBannerText;
@@ -287,6 +328,7 @@ public class QBrandingMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Fluent setter for environmentBannerText
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrate to use banners map instead")
    public QBrandingMetaData withEnvironmentBannerText(String environmentBannerText)
    {
       this.environmentBannerText = environmentBannerText;
@@ -298,6 +340,7 @@ public class QBrandingMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Getter for environmentBannerColor
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrate to use banners map instead")
    public String getEnvironmentBannerColor()
    {
       return (this.environmentBannerColor);
@@ -308,6 +351,7 @@ public class QBrandingMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Setter for environmentBannerColor
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrate to use banners map instead")
    public void setEnvironmentBannerColor(String environmentBannerColor)
    {
       this.environmentBannerColor = environmentBannerColor;
@@ -318,6 +362,7 @@ public class QBrandingMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Fluent setter for environmentBannerColor
     *******************************************************************************/
+   @Deprecated(since = "migrate to use banners map instead")
    public QBrandingMetaData withEnvironmentBannerColor(String environmentBannerColor)
    {
       this.environmentBannerColor = environmentBannerColor;
@@ -334,4 +379,52 @@ public class QBrandingMetaData implements TopLevelMetaDataInterface
    {
       qInstance.setBranding(this);
    }
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for banners
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Map<BannerSlot, Banner> getBanners()
+   {
+      return (this.banners);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Setter for banners
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public void setBanners(Map<BannerSlot, Banner> banners)
+   {
+      this.banners = banners;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Fluent setter for banners
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public QBrandingMetaData withBanners(Map<BannerSlot, Banner> banners)
+   {
+      this.banners = banners;
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public QBrandingMetaData withBanner(BannerSlot slot, Banner banner)
+   {
+      if(this.banners == null)
+      {
+         this.banners = new LinkedHashMap<>();
+      }
+      this.banners.put(slot, banner);
+
+      return (this);
+   }
+
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/code/InitializableViaCodeReference.java

@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** an object which is intended to be constructed via a CodeReference, and,
+ ** moreso, after it is created, then the initialize method here gets called,
+ ** passing the codeRefernce in - e.g., to do additional initalization of the
+ ** object, e.g., properties in a QCodeReferenceWithProperties
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public interface InitializableViaCodeReference
+{
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   void initialize(QCodeReference codeReference);
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/code/QCodeReference.java

@@ -23,13 +23,14 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code;
 
 
 import java.io.Serializable;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
 
 
 /*******************************************************************************
  ** Pointer to code to be ran by the qqq framework, e.g., for custom behavior -
  ** maybe process steps, maybe customization to a table, etc.
  *******************************************************************************/
-public class QCodeReference implements Serializable
+public class QCodeReference implements Serializable, Cloneable, QMetaDataObject
 {
    private String    name;
    private QCodeType codeType;
@@ -58,6 +59,25 @@ public class QCodeReference implements Serializable
 
 
 
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QCodeReference clone()
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         QCodeReference clone = (QCodeReference) super.clone();
+         return clone;
+      }
+      catch(CloneNotSupportedException e)
+      {
+         throw new AssertionError();
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
    /*******************************************************************************
     **
     *******************************************************************************/
@@ -179,5 +199,4 @@ public class QCodeReference implements Serializable
       this.inlineCode = inlineCode;
       return (this);
    }
-
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/code/QCodeReferenceWithProperties.java

@@ -0,0 +1,59 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2025.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.code;
+
+
+import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.util.Map;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** a code reference that also has a map of properties.  This object (with the
+ ** properties) will be passed in to the referenced object, if it implements
+ ** InitializableViaCodeReference.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public class QCodeReferenceWithProperties extends QCodeReference
+{
+   private final Map<String, Serializable> properties;
+
+
+
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   public QCodeReferenceWithProperties(Class<?> javaClass, Map<String, Serializable> properties)
+   {
+      super(javaClass);
+      this.properties = properties;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for properties
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Map<String, Serializable> getProperties()
+   {
+      return properties;
+   }
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/dashboard/nocode/WidgetAdHocValue.java

@@ -62,7 +62,8 @@ public class WidgetAdHocValue extends AbstractWidgetValueSource
          context.putAll(inputValues);
       }
 
-      Function<Object, Object> function = QCodeLoader.getFunction(codeReference);
+      @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
+      Function<Object, Object> function = QCodeLoader.getAdHoc(Function.class, codeReference);
       Object                   result   = function.apply(context);
       return (result);
    }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/fields/QFieldMetaData.java

@@ -40,11 +40,13 @@ import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.actions.tables.query.QQueryFilter;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QField;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QRecordEntity;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.help.HelpRole;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.help.QHelpContent;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.possiblevalues.QPossibleValueSource;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.security.FieldSecurityLock;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.StringUtils;
 import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.ValueUtils;
 import static com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.LogUtils.logPair;
@@ -54,7 +56,7 @@ import static com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.logging.LogUtils.logPair;
  ** Meta-data to represent a single field in a table.
  **
  *******************************************************************************/
-public class QFieldMetaData implements Cloneable
+public class QFieldMetaData implements Cloneable, QMetaDataObject
 {
    private static final QLogger LOG = QLogger.getLogger(QFieldMetaData.class);
 
@@ -187,7 +189,7 @@ public class QFieldMetaData implements Cloneable
    {
       try
       {
-         this.name = QRecordEntity.getFieldNameFromGetter(getter);
+         this.name = ReflectiveBeanLikeClassUtils.getFieldNameFromGetter(getter);
          this.type = QFieldType.fromClass(getter.getReturnType());
 
          @SuppressWarnings("unchecked")
@@ -238,7 +240,7 @@ public class QFieldMetaData implements Cloneable
 
             if(StringUtils.hasContent(fieldAnnotation.defaultValue()))
             {
-               ValueUtils.getValueAsFieldType(this.type, fieldAnnotation.defaultValue());
+               withDefaultValue(ValueUtils.getValueAsFieldType(this.type, fieldAnnotation.defaultValue()));
             }
          }
       }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/fields/WhiteSpaceBehavior.java

@@ -0,0 +1,174 @@
+/*
+ * QQQ - Low-code Application Framework for Engineers.
+ * Copyright (C) 2021-2024.  Kingsrook, LLC
+ * 651 N Broad St Ste 205 # 6917 | Middletown DE 19709 | United States
+ * contact@kingsrook.com
+ * https://github.com/Kingsrook/
+ *
+ * This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify
+ * it under the terms of the GNU Affero General Public License as
+ * published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the
+ * License, or (at your option) any later version.
+ *
+ * This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
+ * but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
+ * MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.  See the
+ * GNU Affero General Public License for more details.
+ *
+ * You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero General Public License
+ * along with this program.  If not, see <https://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
+ */
+
+package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.fields;
+
+
+import java.io.Serializable;
+import java.util.ArrayList;
+import java.util.Collections;
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.Objects;
+import java.util.function.Function;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.actions.values.ValueBehaviorApplier;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.data.QRecord;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QInstance;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.tables.QTableMetaData;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.utils.CollectionUtils;
+
+
+/*******************************************************************************
+ ** Field behavior that changes the whitespace of string values.
+ *******************************************************************************/
+public enum WhiteSpaceBehavior implements FieldBehavior<WhiteSpaceBehavior>, FieldBehaviorForFrontend, FieldFilterBehavior<WhiteSpaceBehavior>
+{
+   NONE(null),
+   REMOVE_ALL_WHITESPACE((String s) -> s.chars().filter(c -> !Character.isWhitespace(c)).collect(StringBuilder::new, StringBuilder::appendCodePoint, StringBuilder::append).toString()),
+   TRIM((String s) -> s.trim()),
+   TRIM_LEFT((String s) -> s.stripLeading()),
+   TRIM_RIGHT((String s) -> s.stripTrailing());
+
+
+   private final Function<String, String> function;
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   WhiteSpaceBehavior(Function<String, String> function)
+   {
+      this.function = function;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public WhiteSpaceBehavior getDefault()
+   {
+      return (NONE);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public void apply(ValueBehaviorApplier.Action action, List<QRecord> recordList, QInstance instance, QTableMetaData table, QFieldMetaData field)
+   {
+      if(this.equals(NONE))
+      {
+         return;
+      }
+
+      switch(this)
+      {
+         case REMOVE_ALL_WHITESPACE, TRIM, TRIM_LEFT, TRIM_RIGHT -> applyFunction(recordList, table, field);
+         default -> throw new IllegalStateException("Unexpected enum value: " + this);
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   private void applyFunction(List<QRecord> recordList, QTableMetaData table, QFieldMetaData field)
+   {
+      String fieldName = field.getName();
+      for(QRecord record : CollectionUtils.nonNullList(recordList))
+      {
+         String value = record.getValueString(fieldName);
+         if(value != null && function != null)
+         {
+            record.setValue(fieldName, function.apply(value));
+         }
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public Serializable applyToFilterCriteriaValue(Serializable value, QInstance instance, QTableMetaData table, QFieldMetaData field)
+   {
+      if(this.equals(NONE) || function == null)
+      {
+         return (value);
+      }
+
+      if(value instanceof String s)
+      {
+         String newValue = function.apply(s);
+         if(!Objects.equals(value, newValue))
+         {
+            return (newValue);
+         }
+      }
+
+      return (value);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public boolean allowMultipleBehaviorsOfThisType()
+   {
+      return (false);
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public List<String> validateBehaviorConfiguration(QTableMetaData tableMetaData, QFieldMetaData fieldMetaData)
+   {
+      if(this == NONE)
+      {
+         return Collections.emptyList();
+      }
+
+      List<String> errors      = new ArrayList<>();
+      String       errorSuffix = " field [" + fieldMetaData.getName() + "] in table [" + tableMetaData.getName() + "]";
+
+      if(fieldMetaData.getType() != null)
+      {
+         if(!fieldMetaData.getType().isStringLike())
+         {
+            errors.add("A WhiteSpaceBehavior was a applied to a non-String-like field:" + errorSuffix);
+         }
+      }
+
+      return (errors);
+   }
+
+}

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/frontend/QFrontendFieldMetaData.java

@@ -55,6 +55,7 @@ public class QFrontendFieldMetaData implements Serializable
    private String       possibleValueSourceName;
    private String       displayFormat;
    private Serializable defaultValue;
+   private Integer      maxLength;
 
    private List<FieldAdornment> adornments;
    private List<QHelpContent>   helpContents;
@@ -85,6 +86,7 @@ public class QFrontendFieldMetaData implements Serializable
       this.defaultValue = fieldMetaData.getDefaultValue();
       this.helpContents = fieldMetaData.getHelpContents();
       this.inlinePossibleValueSource = fieldMetaData.getInlinePossibleValueSource();
+      this.maxLength = fieldMetaData.getMaxLength();
 
       for(FieldBehavior<?> behavior : CollectionUtils.nonNullCollection(fieldMetaData.getBehaviors()))
       {

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/frontend/QFrontendProcessMetaData.java

@@ -48,6 +48,8 @@ public class QFrontendProcessMetaData
    private String  label;
    private String  tableName;
    private boolean isHidden;
+   private Integer minInputRecords;
+   private Integer maxInputRecords;
 
    private QIcon icon;
 
@@ -72,6 +74,8 @@ public class QFrontendProcessMetaData
       this.tableName = processMetaData.getTableName();
       this.isHidden = processMetaData.getIsHidden();
       this.stepFlow = processMetaData.getStepFlow().toString();
+      this.minInputRecords = processMetaData.getMinInputRecords();
+      this.maxInputRecords = processMetaData.getMaxInputRecords();
 
       if(includeSteps)
       {
@@ -213,4 +217,27 @@ public class QFrontendProcessMetaData
    {
       return icon;
    }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for minInputRecords
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Integer getMinInputRecords()
+   {
+      return minInputRecords;
+   }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    ** Getter for maxInputRecords
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   public Integer getMaxInputRecords()
+   {
+      return maxInputRecords;
+   }
+
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/help/QHelpContent.java

@@ -25,6 +25,7 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.help;
 import java.util.Collections;
 import java.util.HashSet;
 import java.util.Set;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
 
 
 /*******************************************************************************
@@ -41,7 +42,7 @@ import java.util.Set;
  ** May be dynamically added to meta-data via (non-meta-) data - see
  ** HelpContentMetaDataProvider and QInstanceHelpContentManager
  *******************************************************************************/
-public class QHelpContent
+public class QHelpContent implements QMetaDataObject
 {
    private String        content;
    private HelpFormat    format;

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/layout/QAppChildMetaData.java

@@ -22,11 +22,14 @@
 package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.layout;
 
 
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
+
+
 /*******************************************************************************
  ** Interface shared by meta-data objects which can be placed into an App.
  ** e.g., Tables, Processes, and Apps themselves (since they can be nested)
  *******************************************************************************/
-public interface QAppChildMetaData
+public interface QAppChildMetaData extends QMetaDataObject
 {
    /*******************************************************************************
     **

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/layout/QAppSection.java

@@ -24,12 +24,13 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.layout;
 
 import java.util.ArrayList;
 import java.util.List;
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
 
 
 /*******************************************************************************
  ** A section of apps/tables/processes - a logical grouping.
  *******************************************************************************/
-public class QAppSection implements Cloneable
+public class QAppSection implements Cloneable, QMetaDataObject
 {
    private String name;
    private String label;

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/layout/QIcon.java

@@ -22,6 +22,9 @@
 package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.layout;
 
 
+import com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.QMetaDataObject;
+
+
 /*******************************************************************************
  ** Icon to show associated with an App, Table, Process, etc.
  **
@@ -31,7 +34,7 @@ package com.kingsrook.qqq.backend.core.model.metadata.layout;
  ** Future may allow something like a "namespace", and/or multiple icons for
  ** use in different frontends, etc.
  *******************************************************************************/
-public class QIcon
+public class QIcon implements Cloneable, QMetaDataObject
 {
    private String name;
    private String path;
@@ -58,6 +61,25 @@ public class QIcon
 
 
 
+   /***************************************************************************
+    **
+    ***************************************************************************/
+   @Override
+   public QIcon clone()
+   {
+      try
+      {
+         QIcon clone = (QIcon) super.clone();
+         return clone;
+      }
+      catch(CloneNotSupportedException e)
+      {
+         throw new AssertionError();
+      }
+   }
+
+
+
    /*******************************************************************************
     ** Getter for name
     **
@@ -154,6 +176,4 @@ public class QIcon
       this.color = color;
       return (this);
    }
-
-
 }

qqq-backend-core/src/main/java/com/kingsrook/qqq/backend/core/model/metadata/messaging/ses/SendSESAction.java

@@ -216,11 +216,16 @@ public class SendSESAction
       {
          LOG.warn("More than one FROM value was found, will send using the first one found [" + partyList.get(0).getAddress() + "].");
       }
+      Party fromParty = partyList.get(0);
+      if(fromParty.getAddress() == null)
+      {
+         throw (new QException("Cannot send SES message because a FROM address was not provided."));
+      }
 
       /////////////////////////////
       // return the from address //
       /////////////////////////////
-      return (partyList.get(0).getAddress());
+      return (getFullEmailAddress(fromParty));
    }
 
 
@@ -267,15 +272,15 @@ public class SendSESAction
       {
          if(EmailPartyRole.CC.equals(party.getRole()))
          {
-            ccList.add(party.getAddress());
+            ccList.add(getFullEmailAddress(party));
          }
          else if(EmailPartyRole.BCC.equals(party.getRole()))
          {
-            bccList.add(party.getAddress());
+            bccList.add(getFullEmailAddress(party));
          }
          else if(party.getRole() == null || PartyRole.Default.DEFAULT.equals(party.getRole()) || EmailPartyRole.TO.equals(party.getRole()))
          {
-            toList.add(party.getAddress());
+            toList.add(getFullEmailAddress(party));
          }
          else
          {
@@ -332,4 +337,22 @@ public class SendSESAction
 
       return amazonSES;
    }
+
+
+
+   /*******************************************************************************
+    **
+    *******************************************************************************/
+   private String getFullEmailAddress(Party party)
+   {
+      if(party.getLabel() != null)
+      {
+         return (party.getLabel() + " <" + party.getAddress() + ">");
+      }
+
+      /////////////////////////////
+      // return the from address //
+      /////////////////////////////
+      return (party.getAddress());
+   }
 }