🔌 Plugin System

Content Outline

Comprehensive guide to PyMapGIS’s extensible plugin architecture:

1. Plugin Architecture Overview

• Plugin system design principles
• Registry-based plugin management
• Plugin lifecycle management
• Dependency injection and resolution
• Plugin isolation and security

2. Plugin Types

• Data Source Plugins: Custom data source implementations
• Format Handler Plugins: New file format support
• Operation Plugins: Custom spatial operations
• Visualization Plugins: Custom mapping backends
• Authentication Plugins: Custom auth providers
• Service Plugins: Custom web service types

3. Plugin Development Framework

• Base plugin classes and interfaces
• Plugin registration mechanisms
• Configuration and settings management
• Error handling and validation
• Testing framework for plugins

4. Data Source Plugin Development

• DataSourcePlugin interface implementation
• URL scheme handling and routing
• Authentication and authorization
• Caching integration
• Error handling and recovery

5. Plugin Discovery and Loading

• Automatic plugin discovery mechanisms
• Entry point-based plugin loading
• Dynamic plugin loading and unloading
• Plugin dependency management
• Version compatibility checking

6. Plugin Configuration

• Configuration schema definition
• Settings validation and defaults
• Environment variable integration
• Runtime configuration updates
• Configuration persistence

7. Plugin Testing

• Plugin testing framework
• Mock and fixture support
• Integration testing strategies
• Performance testing for plugins
• Compatibility testing procedures

8. Plugin Distribution

• Plugin packaging standards
• PyPI distribution guidelines
• Version management and compatibility
• Documentation requirements
• License and legal considerations

9. Built-in Plugin Examples

• Census data source plugin
• TIGER/Line plugin implementation
• Cloud storage plugins (S3, GCS, Azure)
• Authentication provider plugins
• Visualization backend plugins

10. Plugin Security

• Security considerations and best practices
• Input validation and sanitization
• Sandboxing and isolation
• Permission and access control
• Vulnerability assessment

11. Performance Considerations

• Plugin loading performance
• Memory usage optimization
• Caching strategies for plugins
• Parallel plugin execution
• Resource management

12. Community and Ecosystem

• Plugin development guidelines
• Community plugin registry
• Plugin review and approval process
• Support and maintenance
• Contribution guidelines

13. Advanced Plugin Features

• Plugin composition and chaining
• Event-driven plugin architecture
• Plugin communication mechanisms
• Hot-swapping and dynamic updates
• Plugin monitoring and metrics

14. Troubleshooting and Debugging

• Plugin debugging techniques
• Common plugin issues
• Error diagnosis and resolution
• Performance profiling
• Support and community resources

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This guide will provide complete documentation for developing, testing, distributing, and maintaining plugins for PyMapGIS, with examples and best practices.