"No AppSync API configured" when running "amplify codegen models"

[RandomEngy]

Describe the bug
Model generation doesn't work. It claims that no API is configured, but all indications are that it does have an API.

Amplify CLI Version
4.27.1

To Reproduce
Added an Api from an existing API:
amplify add codegen --apiId df4pcs54qfc7tjy4mzokjtco5y

Ran:
amplify codegen models

Got No AppSync API configured. Please add an API

Ran amplify status:

C:\git\FocalistKotlin>amplify status

Current Environment: prod

| Category | Resource name          | Operation | Provider plugin   |
| -------- | ---------------------- | --------- | ----------------- |
| Api      | Focalist               | No Change |                   |
| Auth     | focalistkotlinxxxxxxxx | No Change | awscloudformation |

In amplifyconfiguration.json:

    "api": {
        "plugins": {
            "awsAPIPlugin": {
                "Focalist": {
                    "endpointType": "GraphQL",
                    "endpoint": "https://xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.appsync-api.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/graphql",
                    "region": "us-east-2",
                    "authorizationType": "AMAZON_COGNITO_USER_POOLS"
                }
            }
        }
    },

I also see all properly populated .graphql files in app\src\main\graphql\com\amazonaws\amplify\generated\graphql

Expected behavior
The model generation works.

Desktop (please complete the following information):

• OS: Windows
• Node Version: 12.16.3

[RandomEngy]

I'm digging into the code and I see that it is looking for resources with providerPlugin === "awscloudformation" . Mine does not have that provider plugin set. It looks like it was generated that way when I added the API.

[SwaySway]

When running amplify add codegen --apiId ... this is generating types for your appsync schema. The schema that is downloaded is an introspection schema which does not have @model directive attached. As using amplify codegen models is used with a DataStore enabled Amplify project.

[RandomEngy]

I had this working earlier. And the AppSync documentation says this can generate types:

What command is supposed to generate types in this case?

It links off to the general "amplify" guide for Android, and the only thing I can find in there mentions "amplify codegen" or "amplify codegen models" which USED to generate working model classes but no longer seem to.

[SwaySway]

If you built your AppSync API outside of Amplify there is portion of the docs here which go over this:
https://docs.amplify.aws/sdk/api/graphql/q/platform/android#configuration

[RandomEngy]

Ahh okay. I think I finally puzzled it out. The actual code generation in this case is done with the gradle plugin com.amazonaws.appsync. I was missing that, so the code was not being generated. I was thrown off by all of the amplify cli "codegen" stuff. I had com.amplifyframework.amplifytools but that wasn't the correct plugin.

Thanks for the help.

[RandomEngy]

And figuring things out even more: There are two types of class generation happening!

1. Classes generated by the com.amazonaws.appsync gradle plugin. They work with the classic aws-android-sdk-appsync library with AWSAppSyncClient.query() and AWSAppSyncClient.mutate(). They can work from graphql that's downloaded from amplify add codegen --apiId ...
2. Classes generated by amplify codegen models . These work with Amplify.API.mutate() and Amplify.API.query() . They require @model type annotations and do not support an API added from amplify add codegen --apiId ... .

The weird part is that the AppSync console prompts you to add via --apiId then links you off to https://docs.aws.amazon.com/appsync/latest/devguide/building-a-client-app.html . You then follow the Android Documentation link and it brings you to https://docs.amplify.aws/lib/graphqlapi/getting-started/q/platform/android . That talks about the "amplify" way of doing things, which doesn't work!

[Taha-Mohsin]

Hey, I'm facing the same issue.
Did you manage to solve this?

[RandomEngy]

Yes, as mentioned in my last update. If you add via API ID then you need to use the old AWSAppSyncClient and Gradle plugin. It does not work via the amplify API.

[github-actions]

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