silverstripe-framework/docs/en/topics/module-development.md

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Module Development

Introduction

Creating a module is a good way to re-use abstract code and templates across multiple projects. SilverStripe already has certain modules included, for example "framework" and "cms". These two modules are the core functionality and templates for any initial installation.

If you want to add generic functionality that isn't specific to your project, like a forum, an ecommerce package or a blog you can do it like this;

  1. Create another directory at the root level (same level as "framework" and "cms")
  2. You must create a _config.php inside your module directory, or else SilverStripe will not include it
  3. Inside your module directory, follow our directory structure guidelines

As long as your module has a _config.php file inside it, SilverStripe will automatically include any PHP classes from that module.

Tips

Try to keep your module as generic as possible - for example if you're making a forum module, your members section shouldn't contain fields like 'Games You Play' or 'Your LiveJournal Name' - if people want to add these fields they can sub-class your class, or extend the fields on to it.

If you're using [api:Requirements] to include generic support files for your project like CSS or Javascript, and want to override these files to be more specific in your project, the following code is an example of how to do so using the init() function on your module controller classes:

:::php
class Forum_Controller extends Page_Controller {

   public function init() {
      if(Director::fileExists(project() . "/css/forum.css")) {
         Requirements::css(project() . "/css/forum.css");
      } else {
         Requirements::css("forum/css/forum.css");
      }
      parent::init();	
   }

}

This will use <projectname>/css/forum.css if it exists, otherwise it falls back to using forum/css/forum.css.

Conventions

Configuration

SilverStripe has a comprehensive Configuration system built on YAML which allows developers to set configuration values in core classes.

If your module allows developers to customize specific values (for example API key values) use the existing configuration system for your data.

:::php
// use this in your module code
$varible = Config::inst()->get('ModuleName', 'SomeValue');

Then developers can set that value in their own configuration file. As a module author, you can set the default configuration values.

// yourmodule/_config/module.yml
---
Name: modulename
---
ModuleName:
  SomeValue: 10

But by using the Config system, developers can alter the value for their application without editing your code.

// mysite/_config/module_customizations.yml
---
Name: modulecustomizations
After: "#modulename"
---
ModuleName:
  SomeValue: 10

If you want to make the configuration value user editable in the backend CMS, provide an extension to SiteConfig.

Publication

If you wish to submit your module to our public directory, you take responsibility for a certain level of code quality, adherence to conventions, writing documentation, and releasing updates. See contributing.

Composer and Packagist

SilverStripe uses Composer to manage module releases and dependencies between modules. If you plan on releasing your module to the public, ensure that you provide a composer.json file in the root of your module containing the meta-data about your module.

For more information about what your composer.json file should include, consult the Composer Documentation.

A basic usage of a module for 3.1 that requires the CMS would look similar to this:

{
	"name": "yourname/silverstripe-modulename",
	"description": "..",
	"type": "silverstripe-module",
	"keywords": ["silverstripe", ".."],
	"license": "BSD-3-Clause",
	"authors": [{
		"name": "Your Name",
		"email": "Your Email"
	}],
	"require": {
		"silverstripe/framework": ">=3.1.x-dev,<4.0"
	}
}

Once your module is released, submit it to Packagist to have the module accessible to developers.

Versioning

Over time you may have to release new versions of your module to continue to work with newer versions of SilverStripe. By using composer, this is made easy for developers by allowing them to specify what version they want to use. Each version of your module should be a separate branch in your version control and each branch should have a composer.json file explicitly defining what versions of SilverStripe you support.

The convention to follow for support is the `master` or `trunk` branch of your code should always be the one to work with the `master` branch of SilverStripe. Other branches should be created as needed for other SilverStripe versions you want to support.

For example, if you release a module for 3.0 which works well but doesn't work in 3.1.0 you should provide a separate branch of the module for 3.0 support.

// for module that supports 3.0.1. (git branch 1.0)
"require": {
	"silverstripe/framework": "3.0.*",
}

// for branch of the module that only supports 3.1 (git branch master)
"require": {
	"silverstripe/framework": ">=3.1.*",
}

You can have an overlap in supported versions (e.g two branches for 3.1) but you should explain the differences in your README.md file.

If you want to change the minimum supported version of your module, make sure you create a new branch which continues to support the minimum version as it stands before you update the main branch.

Reference

How To:

Reference:

Provide custom functionality for the developer via:

Follow SilverStripe best practice: