D 2018-07-04T20:48:33.999
L plugin\smeta\sdata
N text/x-markdown
P 2cb97c0b0168c2ea8c5cd5b8647c8b5caacc3f90
U mario
W 8498
## plugin meta data
This summary explains the cross-language comment format for **feature management** as used within ClickyColoury.
See also [pluginspec](http://fossil.include-once.org/pluginspec/) for a detailed description.
Its purpose for ClickyColoury is to simplify script/plugin organization. Menu-structuring is a rather trivial use case for "plugin meta data".
Incidentally it enforces proper documentation however.
* Which is particular interesting for PowerShell, as a common scheme
is largely absent. (ASCII-art code comments are somewhat rampant. Which is precisely what PMD is meant to combat.)
* The built-in PowerShell DocBlock scheme is largely unsuitable (as is the case for most other languages):
* no custom fields via `Get-Help` supported.
* not even .PARAM useful (missing type infos)
* repurposing .NOTES would still require a custom key:value scheme therein
* As much as DocBlocks make sense for function-level API docs, they are semantically pointless for file-level documentation.
* The `menu.psm1` implements a somewhat complete extractor now.
* Supports both `#`-comment blocks, as well as `<#` blocks.
* config: scheme is also used for vars: now
* `Extract-PluginMeta` is public domain.
## meta block
Each tools/* script should have a top-level comment with meta fields:
# api: multitool
# version: 0.1
# title: TITLE/INFO
# description: WELL, DESCRIPTION
# type: inline
# category: BETA
# key: x5|name|dsquery
# keycode: Ctl+F7
# config: -
#
# More comments here …
This is basically a YAML structure in a comment. Which in some form
or another is already used by most programmers. This spec just defines
a few standard and custom fields.
<style>
main .content table tr:nth-child(odd) { background: #f3f3f3; }
</style>
## meta fields
Well, most of those are pretty self-explanatory:
| key | usage / defaults |
-------------------------------------------------------------------
|**api:** | always "multitool" here (original project name) |
|**version:** | mostly decoration |
|**title:** | Used as button / menu inscription |
|**description:**| short summary of what the plugin does |
|**type:** | script execution mode (implied default is "inline") |
|**category:** | menu category, alphanumeric only, |
| status: | mostly decoration |
| author: | mostly decoration |
| license: | mostly decoration / unused |
| src: | mostly decoration (source code origin) |
| config: | list of config options (pseudo JSOL format) |
| vars: | list of extra script parameters (like config:) |
| depends: | ought to list prerequired plugins, e.g. depends: funcs_base |
| encoding: | "utf-8" if Unicode used (this field is used like in Ruby/Python; though entirely decorative for Powershell) |
| key: | regex for the CLI mode |
| keycode: | shortcut for the GUI mode (unimplemented) |
| param: | additional input / obsolete: use vars: {} dict now |
| hidden: 0 | if set, omits the toolblock area |
| nomenu: 1 | hide menut entry (see `hidden:`) |
| repeat: 1 | for CLI version: asks if script should be repeated |
| clipboard: auto | add script output to clipboard automatically (not enabled) |
| shortcut: 7 | add icon to shortcut toolbar/ribbon (custom sorting) |
| sort: 123 | largely unused, but can influence script ordering |
Normally the display and menu arrangement of scripts is driven by key: and title: -
both grouped by category: of course. In specific cases `sort:` might be used to
override it.
### type:
The execution mode influences how scripts are run:
| type:inline | runs within CC output pane (default) |
| type:window | starts script in standalone CLI powershell window |
| type:cli | equivalent to type:window, but for the CLI version (which interprets it as "inline") |
| type:init | run once during initialization |
| type:init-gui | run once during GUI construction (in WPF runspace) |
| type:main | internal functions (this is decoration for the modules/* |
### config:
The `config:` field is the only structured plugin meta data entry. It allows to
describe/predefine some `$cfg.vars`. It follows the JSOL-style scheme:
# config:
# { name: threaded, type: bool, value: 0, title: GUI runspace? }
# { name: domain, type: str, value: WORKWORK }
It's not used much, but for the configedit.ps1 script and the %APPDATA% file.
Most default options are preset in the starter.ps1 still.
Purpose is to have *plugins* define custom global settings. Tools/scripts may
use them still. (Because; why not?)
### vars:
`vars:` is now used to enlist extra script/tool input variables. It's structured like `config:`, as the usage is nearly identical. It supports following types:
# vars:
# { name: hosty, type: str, value: $machine, title: host name }
# { name: use_ping, type: bool, value: 1, description: ... }
# { name: csv, type: text, value: "long text...", description: multiline input }
# { name: flag, type: select, value: "abc|def|xyz", description: combobox }
There's also a `type: button` which effectively behaves like a boolean. As well as `type: file` to bring up a file open/save dialog (= result variable holds a filename). Note that there's no decided implementation for text/multiline parameter passing to external scripts yet.
The older **`# param: extra, vars`** list is still supported, but obsolete now. Just to elaborate on the purpose of both:
* The `vars:`/`param:` meta field is primarily meant for scripts that run in `window`/`cli` mode, so the vars can be passed per cmdline.
* Standard field and variable names are: machine, username, bulkcsv.
Those become $machine, $username vars autoamtically in the GUI. (But not in the CLI version...)
* Listing an unknown field name here, <s>adds a text input or dropdown field to one of the toolblocks</s> brings up an input box now.
* Comboboxes are created whenever a like-named "data/combobox.fieldname.txt"
file exists. (Or better with a predefined `select:` type and list now.)
* For `inline` scripts any extra field becomes available as `$extra` or `$var3` etc.
* The GUI `Read-Host` wrapper interprets the field names from `Param($x=(Read-Host "extravar"), …)`
to return the right GUI text field value.
* For CLI (type:window) scripts, the standard+extraneous field names are passed as CMD arguments. = Which is the whole point of the `#param:` field.
* For `vars:` the order of entries is likewise significant for CLI argument passing.
</blockquote>
### key: a1|b2|c3
The `key:` field defines an entry for the CLI interface. The prompt there expects a shortcut to invoke scripts with. If a tool/ doesn't have one, it won't be available.
Mainly it just lists one or two alternatives to invoke a script:
# key: s5|start5
So the prompt would allow you to enter "s5" or "s5" for example.
Most scripts that expect input like a username or hostname can be started with "s5 localhost" or "s5 user123" as well. (The prompt supports arguments, yes.)
But back to the key: **regex**. You can define more complex alternatives like:
s5|sta?r?t|or-?else|teee+st
It's sometimes convenient to add more flexibility and typo support, but avoid listing a hundred spellings or aliases of course.
## Repo scan:
This fossil setup already provides the means to implement a full plugin/update system later on:
[http://fossil.include-once.org/repo.json/clickycoloury/tools/\*/\*.ps1](http://fossil.include-once.org/repo.json/clickycoloury/tools/*/*.ps1)
## alternative: $menu list
CC does not strictly depend on PMD comments. However, the alternative
would be to manually manage a script array:
$menu = @(
@{
title = "Locked out users"
description = "do some stuff"
category = "cmd"
fn = "tools\script5.ps1'
type = "inline"
},
@{
title = "Other tool"
description = "do some stuff"
category = "extras"
fn = "tools\other_scr.ps1'
type = "inline"
},
)
Which, let's be honest, is enticing to noone.
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