Plugin System

The xcore framework is designed around a powerful, modular plugin system. Plugins allow you to extend the core functionality of your application without modifying the kernel.

Architecture

Plugins in xcore are self-contained modules located in the directory specified in integration.yaml (usually ./plugins/).

Types of Plugins

1. Trusted Plugins:
2. Have full access to the system.
3. Typically developed internally.

4. Must be signed if strict_trusted is enabled.

5. Sandboxed Plugins:

6. Run in an isolated environment.
7. Restricted by an AST-based whitelist for imports.
8. Limited resource consumption (CPU, Memory, Disk).

Directory Structure

A typical plugin looks like this:

plugins/
└── my-plugin/
    ├── src/
    │   └── main.py      # Entry point
    ├── plugin.yaml      # Metadata & Resources
    ├── plugin.sig       # Security signature
    └── requirements.txt # Dependencies

Lifecycle Management

xcorecli provides a comprehensive suite of commands to manage the entire plugin lifecycle:

• Development: Local Linking & Scaffolding
• Deployment: Installation & Removal
• Runtime: Load/Unload/Reload
• Discovery: Marketplace
• Security: Signing & Health Checks
• Maintenance: Updates

Top-level Commands

In addition to sub-apps, the plugin group provides several direct commands:

• xcli plugin info <name>: Show detailed manifest and permissions for an installed plugin.
• xcli plugin health: Perform a global health check (signatures, AST, manifests) on all installed plugins.
• xcli plugin remove <name>: Uninstall a plugin and delete its files.

IPC (Inter-Plugin Communication)

Plugins can communicate with each other using the built-in IPC mechanism, which is enforced by the core ServiceContainer.