OpenWGA 7.6 - OpenWGA Concepts and Features
Plugins
OpenWGA Plugins are extensions to the OpenWGA platform which enhance its functionality in a variety of possible ways.
Possible extensions are, to name a few:
- Web Apps "out of the box"
- Additional designs for use with custom web applications
- Additional platform services, special web services for example
- Support for new Types of database server, content store databases, data sources or authentication types
- Additional WebTML encoders or elements
- Modules and tools for OpenWGA development
The OpenWGA distribution already comes with a number of default plugins which are always available. Among those is the OpenWGA content manager, the authoring application of OpenWGA and the OpenWGA admin client, its administrative UI. Both are plugins that provide web apps "out of the box", as content manager and admin client are directly available for use when the plugin is installed.
A plugin consists of:
- The plugin design, normally contained in a plugin file
- A plugin content store which is automatically created on installation and can be used by the plugin to store data.
Together these building parts form the plugin application, as which any active plugin is published on an OpenWGA server. These generally work just like a regular OpenWGA applications. Plugin applications however have an automatically generated database key consisting of the prefix "plugin-" plus a part of the plugins name. Regarding OpenWGA Content Manager this is normally "plugin-contentmanager", for example.
What a plugin offers under its database key via HTTP is completely up to the plugin. Some do not publish anything and therefor are not browsable. Others may offer complete application functionality, just like admin client and content manager do.