You need both for production. One does not replace the other.
Certification scope and validity
- Who it covers: Individual builders (internal, partner, or customer) who complete the Flows custom apps training path.
- What it covers: Authorization to build Flows custom apps in customer CDF projects.
- Validity: 12 months from the date you claim the certificate.
Prerequisites
Flows custom apps is a pro-code product: you write and maintain the application code. Before you start, confirm that you have:- Proficiency with an agentic coding tool. Cursor or Claude Code is strongly preferred.
- Access to a CDF project where you can build. A development or test project is fine.
- Working familiarity with CDF, the Cognite JavaScript Software Development Kit (SDK), and CDF data modeling concepts.
Completing the certification path
Internal, partner, and customer builders follow the same path:- Take the recommended Cognite Flows Foundation course.
- Attend a one-day hands-on workshop.
- Claim the Cognite Flows builder certificate.
- Generate and register a signing key.
1
Complete the pre-work
Before the enablement session, finish the persona-matched upskilling material your Cognite representative sends you (depending on whether you’re a solution architect, app developer, dashboard creator, platform owner, or operational subject matter expert (SME)).The Cognite Flows Foundation course is recommended.
2
Attend the Flows enablement session
Join the on-site Flows enablement session. The session facilitator reviews the theory at the start. Then you build against live CDF data on real use cases, using the certification skills (
/flows-app-brief, /flows-code-review, /flows-design-review) end to end.3
Receive your badge and certificate
Once you’ve completed the hands-on workshop, claim your certificate and digital badge.
After you claim the certificate, you’re a certified Flows custom apps builder for 12 months.
4
Generate and register a signing key
After you claim the certificate, generate a signing key and register the public key with Cognite. You need this key to publish apps. The private key never leaves your machine.Follow Generate and register a signing key. Cognite support checks the hands-on workshop before adding your public key. When the key is in the registry, use Upload, sign, and publish the app to publish each version.
Recertification
To maintain an active status, recertify before your 12-month certification expires. Recertification is self-serve: retake the latest Academy course and refresh your hands-on work against the current Flows custom apps template and skills.Troubleshooting common issues
Is there a self-serve path to builder certification?
Is there a self-serve path to builder certification?
For initial certification, no. Builders go through the Flows enablement session as the single supported path. Recertification is self-serve once your initial certification is in place.
Can I use demo or mock data during the session?
Can I use demo or mock data during the session?
No. The app you build during the enablement session must operate against live CDF data so the certification skills produce meaningful reports and the session facilitator can assess your work properly.
Is builder certification enough to publish to production?
Is builder certification enough to publish to production?
No. Builder certification qualifies you to build Flows custom apps in production environments. Each app you publish to a production project still needs application certification so Cognite can issue the app certification signature (
.cert.sig). Projects with Dev status skip this signature, but you must still add a developer signature before you publish. See Signatures required to publish.What if my certification expires?
What if my certification expires?
Recertify by retaking the latest Academy course and refreshing your hands-on work. Contact your Cognite representative if you’ve been out of practice for an extended period and want a refresher session.
Further reading
- Application certification — Certify a version of a Flows custom app for production after you complete builder certification.
- Dev status — Request Dev status to publish builder-signed apps on a non-production project without application certification.
- Code signing — Sign bundles with a developer signature.
- Flows custom apps quality guidelines — The 10 design quality questions the design review skill scores against.
- Builder skills — How the certification skills are delivered and refreshed.
- Getting started with Flows custom apps — Scaffold a new app and set up your project.
- Building Flows custom applications — Template capabilities and tooling overview.