How to link a new app from Shopify partner dashboard to my local development project

Shopify Apps

Topic summary

Main issue: how to obtain an Admin API access token and link a locally developed Shopify app to an app created in the Partner Dashboard.

Context: The developer’s local app can already create and install itself on a dev store using npm run dev -- --reset. Documentation suggests creating the app in the Partner Dashboard and then connecting local code to it, but the exact steps are unclear.

Key questions:

  • How to connect an existing local project to a Partner Dashboard app instance.
  • Whether there’s a better or preferred method to obtain the Admin API access token for accessing product data.

Latest note/obstacle: A responder points out the docs reference using the --reset flag for this purpose, but they don’t clarify where or how exactly to apply the flag.

Status: No concrete solution or step-by-step guidance provided. The thread remains open with ambiguity around the correct workflow and the use of the --reset flag.

Summarized with AI on January 6. AI used: gpt-5.
1

Hi, I am trying to get the access token for my Shopify admin app so it can access Shopify store product information. Most of the articles I read suggested me to create a new app from the Partner dashboard. However, my current local Shopify app project can already create a new app and have itself installed on my dev store by running npm run dev -- --reset.

From this tutorial https://shopify.dev/docs/apps/getting-started/create I read that I can “Creating an app in the Partner Dashboard, and connecting your local code to the app”.

Can someone explain how this can be done? Or is there a better for me to get access token for my Shopify app?

Thanks

2

Good luck getting a reply in this forum. The documentation says to use the --reset flag for this purpose but the documentation didn’t elaborate on where the flag should be used.