Extension Development Guide

cloudmesh-ai-cmc is designed as a modular framework, allowing developers to easily add new AI-driven capabilities through extensions.

Overview

Extensions are the primary way to extend the functionality of the cmc tool. They are implemented as Python modules and can be distributed as part of the core package, installed via pip, or loaded from a local directory.

Creating an Extension

Using the Scaffolding Tool

The quickest way to start is by using the built-in scaffolding tool, which creates the necessary directory structure and template files:

cmc init-plugin myextension

Manual Implementation

An extension is a Python module that defines a click command. To ensure proper integration and visibility in the registry, your module should include the following metadata:

import click

version = "0.1.0"
description = "My awesome AI extension"
dependencies = []  # List of other plugin names this plugin depends on

@click.command()
def entry_point():
    """Plugin description here."""
    click.echo("Hello from the new plugin!")

Advanced Extensions: The `register` Pattern

For complex tools that require multiple sub-commands, implement a register(cli) function. This allows the extension to attach a group of commands to the main cmc CLI.

import click

@click.command()
def start():
    click.echo("Service started!")

def register(cli):
    @cli.group(name="myservice")
    def service_group():
        """Manage the custom service."""
        pass
    service_group.add_command(start)

Distribution Comparison

Depending on your use case, you can distribute your extension in different ways:

Feature	Core Extension	Pip Extension
Loading	Filesystem Scan	Entry Points
Installation	Copy to `command/`	`pip install`
Update Cycle	Instant (on save)	Requires re-install
Use Case	Rapid Prototyping	Production Release

Plugin Lifecycle Management

Once an extension is created, you can manage it using the plugins command group:

Register: cmc plugins add <path>
Activate: cmc plugins enable <name>
Deactivate: cmc plugins disable <name>
Remove: cmc plugins remove <name>
Verify: cmc plugins check