bx-compat-cfml: CFML Compatibility Layer

BoxLang is the AI-native software productivity platform for building, modernizing and running applications, with developers and AI agents working together.

Installation

install-bx-module bx-compat-cfml
# CommandBox
box install bx-compat-cfml

Purpose

bx-compat-cfml enables near-zero-code migration of existing Adobe ColdFusion or Lucee CFML applications to BoxLang. It adjusts BoxLang's behavior to match your source engine's quirks around:

• Null handling and empty-string coercion
• Type coercion and comparison behavior
• Server scope population
• JSON parsing and serialization
• Query null handling
• Function return-value behavior
• ColdFusion/Lucee-specific BIFs and component behaviors

Configuration (boxlang.json)

{
  "modules": {
    "compat-cfml": {
      "settings": {
        "engine": "lucee"
      }
    }
  }
}

Engine Options

Value	Description
"lucee"	Emulates Lucee CFML behavior
"adobe"	Emulates Adobe ColdFusion behavior

Behavioral Differences Emulated

Null Handling

// Adobe CF: null is returned as empty string ""
// Lucee: null is returned as actual null value

// With engine: "adobe"
var result = queryExecute( "SELECT NULL AS val", {}, { returntype: "array" } )
result[1].val == ""      // true — null-to-empty-string conversion

// With engine: "lucee" OR native BoxLang
result[1].val == null    // true — null stays null

Type Coercion

// Adobe CF: stricter implicit numeric coercion
// engine: "adobe" emulates Adobe's behavior

// Numeric comparison with strings
"10" > "9"    // Adobe: false (numeric compare: 10 > 9 = true)
"10" > "9"    // Lucee: false (string compare: "1" < "9")

Server Scope

// engine: "adobe" populates server scope with Adobe CF-compatible values
// engine: "lucee"  populates server scope with Lucee CF-compatible values

server.ColdFusion.ProductName    // "ColdFusion" (adobe) or "Lucee" (lucee)
server.ColdFusion.ProductVersion // Engine-specific version string

JSON Parsing

// Adobe CF: integers parsed from JSON as Integer type
// Lucee: integers parsed as Double

// engine: "adobe"
var data = deserializeJSON( '{"count": 5}' )
isInteger( data.count )   // true

// engine: "lucee"
isDouble( data.count )    // true

Migration Workflow

Step 1: Install and Configure

install-bx-module bx-compat-cfml

{
  "modules": {
    "compat-cfml": {
      "settings": {
        "engine": "lucee"
      }
    }
  }
}

Step 2: Run Your Application

BoxLang directly runs .cfc and .cfm files — no conversion needed. Start your application and observe which behaviors differ.

Step 3: Identify Remaining Issues

Typical remaining issues after enabling the compat module:

• Custom CF tags (.cftag) that have no BoxLang equivalent
• Rarely-used Adobe-specific BIFs not in compat layer
• JDBC DataSource configuration differences

Step 4: Incremental BoxLang Migration

Once the app runs with compat, start converting files to native BoxLang:

file.cfc → file.bx        (ColdFusion component → BoxLang class)
file.cfm → file.bxm       (ColdFusion template → BoxLang template)

Remove the compat module once all files are converted and all tests pass.

Key Compatibility Notes

Adobe CF-Specific BIFs Provided

The compat module adds Adobe CF-compatible versions of BIFs that behave differently in native BoxLang:

• isJSON() — Adobe compatibility
• serializeJSON() — Preserves Adobe CF serialization quirks
• queryNew() — Column type handling
• structNew("ordered") — Ordered struct behavior
• Application lifecycle method names (onSessionStart, onCFCRequest, etc.)

Lucee-Specific BIFs Provided

• getApplicationMetadata() — Lucee-style return format
• Null-safe behavior for various BIFs

Common Pitfalls

• ✅ Always specify the correct engine — "lucee" and "adobe" have meaningfully different behaviors
• ❌ This module covers ~95% of migration cases; some Adobe-only features (e.g., <cfgrid>, old forms) have no equivalent
• ✅ Use this as a migration aid, not a permanent target — aim to remove it once your code is converted to native BoxLang
• ❌ Don't enable both engine: "lucee" and engine: "adobe" simultaneously — choose the source engine
• ✅ Check BoxLang compatibility docs at https://boxlang.ortusbooks.com for a full list of covered behaviors