Getting Started

View the example plugin that will be built in this tutorial.

This step-by-step tutorial will describe how to create a generic plugin called the “Tutorial Example Plugin”. This plugin will be created for OJS, but the same steps can be followed to create a plugin for OMP or OPS.

Create a directory for the plugin at plugins/generic/tutorialExample and create the following files in that directory.

ojs
│
├─┬ plugins
│ │
│ └─┬ generic
│   │
│   └─┬ tutorialExample
│     ├── TutorialExamplePlugin.php
│     └── version.xml

The directory name must be letters and numbers. No spaces, -, or _ characters are allowed.

TutorialExamplePlugin.php #

Every plugin must have a class which registers and runs the plugin. The file and class name must match the directory name, capitalize the first letter, and add the phrase Plugin at the end. So the directory tutorialExample would require a class named TutorialExamplePlugin in a file named TutorialExamplePlugin.php.

<?php
namespace APP\plugins\generic\tutorialExample;

use PKP\plugins\GenericPlugin;

class TutorialExamplePlugin extends GenericPlugin
{
    public function register($category, $path, $mainContextId = NULL)
    {
        // Register the plugin even when it is not enabled
        $success = parent::register($category, $path);

        if ($success && $this->getEnabled()) {
            // Do something when the plugin is enabled
        }

        return $success;
    }

    /**
     * Provide a name for this plugin
     *
     * The name will appear in the Plugin Gallery where editors can
     * install, enable and disable plugins.
     */
    public function getDisplayName()
    {
        return 'Tutorial Example';
    }

    /**
     * Provide a description for this plugin
     *
     * The description will appear in the Plugin Gallery where editors can
     * install, enable and disable plugins.
     */
    public function getDescription()
    {
        return 'This plugin is an example created for a tutorial on how to create a plugin.';
    }
}

version.xml #

The version.xml provides information required to load the plugin. The <application> must match the directory name. The <type> must be the plugin’s category.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE version SYSTEM "../../../lib/pkp/dtd/pluginVersion.dtd">
<version>
    <application>tutorialExample</application>
    <type>plugins.generic</type>
    <release>1.0.0.0</release>
    <date>2023-05-15</date>
</version>

Go to Settings > Website > Plugins and try to enable and disable your plugin. If there is an error when enabling it, check your plugin against the working example.

Learn how to choose the right plugin category for your plugin.