Publishing Your Plugin

Learn how to publish and share your Volt plugins with the community.

Prerequisites

Before publishing, ensure your plugin:

✅ Has a unique ID
✅ Includes proper documentation
✅ Follows best practices
✅ Has been thoroughly tested
✅ Includes a README with usage instructions

Plugin Package Structure

my-awesome-plugin/
├── package.json          # NPM package configuration
├── README.md            # Plugin documentation
├── LICENSE              # License file
├── src/
│   ├── index.ts        # Main plugin file
│   ├── types.ts        # Type definitions
│   └── components/     # React components
├── dist/               # Compiled output
└── examples/           # Usage examples

Package.json Configuration

{
  "name": "@volt-plugins/my-awesome-plugin",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "description": "An awesome plugin for Volt",
  "main": "dist/index.js",
  "types": "dist/index.d.ts",
  "keywords": ["volt", "plugin", "launcher"],
  "author": "Your Name",
  "license": "MIT",
  "peerDependencies": {
    "react": "^19.0.0",
    "@tauri-apps/api": "^2.0.0"
  },
  "devDependencies": {
    "typescript": "^5.0.0",
    "@types/react": "^19.0.0"
  },
  "volt": {
    "pluginType": "frontend",
    "requiredVersion": ">=1.0.0"
  }
}

Build Your Plugin

TypeScript Configuration

Create a tsconfig.json:

{
  "compilerOptions": {
    "target": "ES2020",
    "module": "ESNext",
    "lib": ["ES2020", "DOM"],
    "jsx": "react",
    "declaration": true,
    "outDir": "./dist",
    "strict": true,
    "esModuleInterop": true,
    "skipLibCheck": true,
    "moduleResolution": "node"
  },
  "include": ["src/**/*"],
  "exclude": ["node_modules", "dist"]
}

Build Script

Add build script to package.json:

{
  "scripts": {
    "build": "tsc",
    "prepublishOnly": "npm run build"
  }
}

Documentation

README Template

# My Awesome Plugin

> An awesome plugin for Volt that does amazing things

## Installation

```bash
npm install @volt-plugins/my-awesome-plugin
```

## Usage

```typescript
import MyAwesomePlugin from "@volt-plugins/my-awesome-plugin";

// Register the plugin
registerPlugin(new MyAwesomePlugin());
```

## Configuration

| Option    | Type      | Default | Description               |
| --------- | --------- | ------- | ------------------------- |
| `enabled` | `boolean` | `true`  | Enable/disable the plugin |
| `apiKey`  | `string`  | `''`    | Your API key              |

## Examples

### Basic Usage

```typescript
const plugin = new MyAwesomePlugin({
  apiKey: "your-api-key",
});
```

## Features

- ⚡ Lightning fast
- 🎨 Beautiful UI
- 🔧 Highly customizable
- 📦 Zero dependencies

## License

MIT © Your Name

Publishing to NPM

Step 1: Create an NPM Account

Create an account at npmjs.com

npm login

Step 3: Publish

npm publish --access public

Publishing to GitHub

Step 1: Create Repository

Create a new repository on GitHub for your plugin.

Step 2: Add GitHub Actions

Create .github/workflows/publish.yml:

name: Publish Package

on:
  release:
    types: [created]

jobs:
  publish:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3

      - name: Setup Node.js
        uses: actions/setup-node@v3
        with:
          node-version: "20"
          registry-url: "https://registry.npmjs.org"

      - name: Install dependencies
        run: npm ci

      - name: Build
        run: npm run build

      - name: Publish to NPM
        run: npm publish --access public
        env:
          NODE_AUTH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.NPM_TOKEN }}

Step 3: Create Release

git tag v1.0.0
git push origin v1.0.0

Then create a release on GitHub.

Plugin Registry

Submit your plugin to the official Volt Plugin Registry:

Fork the Volt Plugin Registry
Add your plugin to plugins.json:

{
  "id": "my-awesome-plugin",
  "name": "My Awesome Plugin",
  "description": "An awesome plugin for Volt",
  "author": "Your Name",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "repository": "https://github.com/yourusername/my-awesome-plugin",
  "npm": "@volt-plugins/my-awesome-plugin",
  "category": "productivity",
  "tags": ["search", "utility"],
  "verified": false
}

Create a pull request

Versioning

Follow Semantic Versioning:

MAJOR version: Breaking changes
MINOR version: New features (backwards compatible)
PATCH version: Bug fixes

# Patch release (1.0.0 → 1.0.1)
npm version patch

# Minor release (1.0.0 → 1.1.0)
npm version minor

# Major release (1.0.0 → 2.0.0)
npm version major

Testing Before Publishing

Test your plugin locally:

# In your plugin directory
npm link

# In Volt's directory
npm link @volt-plugins/my-awesome-plugin

Maintenance

Update Dependencies

Keep your dependencies up to date:

npm outdated
npm update

Security

Run security audits:

npm audit
npm audit fix

Deprecation

If you need to deprecate a version:

npm deprecate @volt-plugins/my-awesome-plugin@1.0.0 "Version 1.0.0 is deprecated, please upgrade to 2.0.0"

Community Guidelines

Be responsive to issues and pull requests
Keep your README up to date
Add CHANGELOG.md to track changes
Include tests when possible
Follow the Code of Conduct

Support

Ready to publish? Make sure to check the Best Practices guide first!

Publishing Guide