# OSPOS Plugin System
## Overview
The OSPOS Plugin System allows third-party integrations to extend the application's functionality without modifying core code. Plugins can listen to events, add configuration settings, and integrate with external services.
## Installation
### Self-Contained Plugin Packages
Plugins are self-contained packages that can be installed by simply dropping the plugin folder into `app/Plugins/`:
```
app/Plugins/
├── MailchimpPlugin/ # Plugin directory (self-contained)
│ ├── MailchimpPlugin.php # Main plugin class (required - must match directory name)
│ ├── Language/ # Plugin-specific translations (self-contained)
│ │ ├── en/
│ │ │ └── MailchimpPlugin.php
│ │ └── es-ES/
│ │ └── MailchimpPlugin.php
│ └── Views/ # Plugin-specific views
│ └── config.php
```
### Installation Steps
1. **Download the plugin** - Copy the plugin folder/file to `app/Plugins/`
2. **Auto-discovery** - The plugin will be automatically discovered on next page load
3. **Enable** - Enable it from the admin interface (Plugins menu)
4. **Configure** - Configure plugin settings if needed
### Plugin Discovery
The PluginManager recursively scans `app/Plugins/` directory:
- **Single-file plugins**: `app/Plugins/MyPlugin.php` with namespace `App\Plugins\MyPlugin`
- **Directory plugins**: `app/Plugins/MyPlugin/MyPlugin.php` with namespace `App\Plugins\MyPlugin\MyPlugin`
Both formats are supported, but directory plugins allow for self-contained packages with their own components.
## Architecture
### Plugin Interface
All plugins must implement `App\Libraries\Plugins\PluginInterface`:
```php
interface PluginInterface
{
public function getPluginId(): string; // Unique identifier
public function getPluginName(): string; // Display name
public function getPluginDescription(): string;
public function getVersion(): string;
public function registerEvents(): void; // Register event listeners
public function install(): bool; // First-time setup
public function uninstall(): bool; // Cleanup
public function isEnabled(): bool;
public function getConfigView(): ?string; // Configuration view path
public function getSettings(): array;
public function saveSettings(array $settings): bool;
}
```
### Base Plugin Class
Extend `App\Libraries\Plugins\BasePlugin` for common functionality:
```php
class MyPlugin extends BasePlugin
{
public function getPluginId(): string { return 'my_plugin'; }
public function getPluginName(): string { return 'My Plugin'; }
// ... implement other methods
}
```
### Plugin Manager
The `PluginManager` class handles:
- Plugin discovery from `app/Plugins/` directory (recursive scan)
- Loading and registering enabled plugins
- Managing plugin settings
**Important:** The PluginManager only calls `registerEvents()` for enabled plugins. Disabled plugins never have their event callbacks registered with `Events::on()`. This means **you do not need to check `$this->isEnabled()` in your callback methods** - if the callback is registered, the plugin is enabled.
## Available Events
OSPOS fires these events that plugins can listen to:
| Event | Arguments | Description |
|-------|-----------|-------------|
| `item_sale` | `array $saleData` | Fired when a sale is completed |
| `item_return` | `array $returnData` | Fired when a return is processed |
| `item_change` | `int $itemId` | Fired when an item is created/updated/deleted |
| `item_inventory` | `array $inventoryData` | Fired on inventory changes |
| `items_csv_import` | `array $importData` | Fired after items CSV import |
| `customers_csv_import` | `array $importData` | Fired after customers CSV import |
## View Hooks (Injecting Plugin Content into Views)
Plugins can inject UI elements into core views using the event-based view hook system. This allows plugins to add buttons, tabs, or other content without modifying core view files.
### How It Works
1. **Core views define hook points** using the `plugin_content()` helper
2. **Plugins register listeners** for these view hooks in `registerEvents()`
3. **Content is rendered** only when the plugin is enabled
### Step 1: Adding Hook Points in Core Views
In your core view files, use the `plugin_content()` helper to define injection points:
```php
// In app/Views/sales/receipt.php
= plugin_content('receipt_actions', ['sale' => $sale]) ?>
// In app/Views/customers/form.php
= plugin_content('customer_tabs', ['customer' => $customer]) ?>
```
### Step 2: Plugin Registers View Hook
In your plugin class, register a listener that returns HTML content:
```php
class MailchimpPlugin extends BasePlugin
{
public function registerEvents(): void
{
Events::on('customer_saved', [$this, 'onCustomerSaved']);
// View hooks - inject content into core views
Events::on('view:customer_tabs', [$this, 'injectCustomerTab']);
}
public function injectCustomerTab(array $data): string
{
return view('Plugins/MailchimpPlugin/Views/customer_tab', $data);
}
}
```
### Plugin View Files
The plugin's view files are self-contained within the plugin directory:
```php
// app/Plugins/MailchimpPlugin/Views/customer_tab.php
Mailchimp
```
### Helper Functions
The `plugin_helper.php` provides two functions:
```php
// Render plugin content for a hook point
plugin_content(string $section, array $data = []): string
// Check if any plugin has registered for a hook (for conditional rendering)
plugin_content_exists(string $section): bool
```
### Standard Hook Points
Core views should define these standard hook points:
| Hook Name | Location | Usage |
|-----------|----------|-------|
| `view:receipt_actions` | Receipt view action buttons | Add receipt-related buttons |
| `view:customer_tabs` | Customer form tabs | Add customer-related tabs |
| `view:item_form_buttons` | Item form action buttons | Add item-related buttons |
| `view:sales_complete` | Sale complete screen | Post-sale integration UI |
| `view:reports_menu` | Reports menu | Add custom report links |
### Benefits
- **Self-Contained**: Plugin UI stays in plugin directory
- **Conditional**: Only renders when plugin is enabled
- **Data Access**: Pass context (sale, customer, etc.) to plugin views
- **Multiple Plugins**: Multiple plugins can hook the same location
- **Clean Separation**: Core views remain unmodified
## Creating a Plugin
### Simple Plugin (Single File)
For plugins that only need to listen to events without complex UI or database tables:
```php
setSetting('api_key', '');
$this->setSetting('enabled', '0');
return true;
}
public function getConfigView(): ?string
{
return 'Plugins/my_plugin/config';
}
}
```
### Complex Plugin (Self-Contained Directory)
For plugins that need database tables, controllers, models, and views:
```
app/Plugins/
└── MailchimpPlugin/ # Plugin directory
├── MailchimpPlugin.php # Main class - namespace: App\Plugins\MailchimpPlugin\MailchimpPlugin
├── Models/ # Plugin models
│ └── MailchimpData.php
├── Controllers/ # Plugin controllers
│ └── Dashboard.php
├── Views/ # Plugin views
│ ├── config.php
│ └── dashboard.php
├── Language/ # Plugin translations (self-contained)
│ ├── en/
│ │ └── MailchimpPlugin.php
│ └── es-ES/
│ └── MailchimpPlugin.php
└── Libraries/ # Plugin libraries
└── ApiClient.php
```
**Main Plugin Class:**
```php
dataModel === null) {
$this->dataModel = new MailchimpData();
}
return $this->dataModel;
}
public function onCustomerSaved(array $customerData): void
{
if (!$this->shouldSyncOnSave()) {
return;
}
$this->getDataModel()->syncCustomer($customerData);
}
public function install(): bool
{
$this->setSetting('api_key', '');
$this->setSetting('list_id', '');
$this->setSetting('sync_on_save', '1');
return true;
}
public function uninstall(): bool
{
$this->getDataModel()->dropTable();
return true;
}
public function getConfigView(): ?string
{
return 'Plugins/MailchimpPlugin/Views/config';
}
protected function lang(string $key, array $data = []): string
{
$language = \Config\Services::language();
$language->addLanguagePath(APPPATH . 'Plugins/MailchimpPlugin/Language/');
return $language->getLine($key, $data);
}
protected function getPluginDir(): string
{
return 'MailchimpPlugin';
}
}
```
## Internationalization (Language Files)
Plugins can include their own language files, making them completely self-contained. This allows plugins to provide translations without modifying core language files.
### Plugin Language Directory Structure
```
app/Plugins/
└── MailchimpPlugin/
├── MailchimpPlugin.php
├── Language/
│ ├── en/
│ │ └── MailchimpPlugin.php # English translations
│ ├── es-ES/
│ │ └── MailchimpPlugin.php # Spanish translations
│ └── de-DE/
│ └── MailchimpPlugin.php # German translations
└── Views/
└── config.php
```
### Language File Format
Each language file returns an array of translation strings:
```php
'Mailchimp',
'mailchimp_description' => 'Integrate with Mailchimp to sync customers to mailing lists.',
'mailchimp_api_key' => 'Mailchimp API Key',
'mailchimp_configuration' => 'Mailchimp Configuration',
'mailchimp_key_successfully' => 'API Key is valid.',
'mailchimp_key_unsuccessfully' => 'API Key is invalid.',
];
```
### Loading Language Strings in Plugins
The `BasePlugin` class can provide a helper method to load plugin-specific language strings:
```php
protected function lang(string $key, array $data = []): string
{
$language = \Config\Services::language();
$language->addLanguagePath(APPPATH . 'Plugins/' . $this->getPluginDir() . '/Language/');
return $language->getLine($key, $data);
}
protected function getPluginDir(): string
{
return 'MailchimpPlugin';
}
```
### Benefits of Self-Contained Language Files
1. **Plugin Independence**: No need to modify core language files
2. **Easy Distribution**: Plugin zip includes all translations
3. **Fallback Support**: Missing translations fall back to English
4. **User Contributions**: Users can add translations to `Language/{locale}/` in the plugin directory
## Plugin Settings
Store plugin-specific settings using:
```php
// Get setting
$value = $this->getSetting('setting_key', 'default_value');
// Set setting
$this->setSetting('setting_key', 'value');
// Get all plugin settings
$settings = $this->getSettings();
// Save multiple settings
$this->saveSettings(['key1' => 'value1', 'key2' => 'value2']);
```
Settings are prefixed with the plugin ID (e.g., `mailchimp_api_key`) and stored in `ospos_plugin_config` table.
## Namespace Reference
| File Location | Namespace |
|--------------|-----------|
| `app/Plugins/MyPlugin.php` | `App\Plugins\MyPlugin` |
| `app/Plugins/MailchimpPlugin/MailchimpPlugin.php` | `App\Plugins\MailchimpPlugin\MailchimpPlugin` |
| `app/Plugins/MailchimpPlugin/Models/MailchimpData.php` | `App\Plugins\MailchimpPlugin\Models\MailchimpData` |
| `app/Plugins/MailchimpPlugin/Controllers/Dashboard.php` | `App\Plugins\MailchimpPlugin\Controllers\Dashboard` |
| `app/Plugins/MailchimpPlugin/Libraries/ApiClient.php` | `App\Plugins\MailchimpPlugin\Libraries\ApiClient` |
| `app/Plugins/MailchimpPlugin/Language/en/MailchimpPlugin.php` | *(Language file - returns array, no namespace)* |
## Database
Plugin settings are stored in the `ospos_plugin_config` table:
```sql
CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS `ospos_plugin_config` (
`key` varchar(100) NOT NULL,
`value` text NOT NULL,
`created_at` timestamp NOT NULL DEFAULT current_timestamp(),
`updated_at` timestamp NOT NULL DEFAULT current_timestamp() ON UPDATE current_timestamp(),
PRIMARY KEY (`key`)
) ENGINE=InnoDB DEFAULT CHARSET=utf8mb4;
```
For custom tables, plugins can create them during `install()` and drop them during `uninstall()`.
## Event Flow
1. Application triggers event: `Events::trigger('item_sale', $data)`
2. PluginManager recursively scans `app/Plugins/` directory
3. Each enabled plugin registers its listeners via `registerEvents()`
4. Events::on() callbacks are invoked automatically
## Testing
Enable plugin logging to debug:
```php
log_message('debug', 'Debug message');
log_message('info', 'Info message');
log_message('error', 'Error message');
```
Check logs in `writable/logs/`.
## Distributing Plugins
Plugin developers can package their plugins as zip files:
```
MailchimpPlugin-1.0.0.zip
└── MailchimpPlugin/
├── MailchimpPlugin.php
├── Models/
├── Controllers/
├── Views/
├── Language/
│ ├── en/
│ │ └── MailchimpPlugin.php
│ └── es-ES/
│ └── MailchimpPlugin.php
└── README.md # Plugin documentation
```
Users extract the zip to `app/Plugins/` and the plugin is ready to use.