Files
PaperClipAI/packages/plugins/sdk/README.md
T
Nicky LeachandPaperclip 8b4ab65b1c Add plugin-owned project storage and task workspaces (#17001)
## Thinking Path

> - Paperclip is the open source app people use to manage AI agents for
work.
> - Tasks can use isolated repository workspaces.
> - Core currently prepares those repositories on its own filesystem.
> - A storage provider may only expose repositories inside remote agent
computers.
> - Project storage and task workspace preparation must have one
provider owner.
> - This pull request adds that contract and keeps execution as a
separate plugin interface.
> - Core keeps authorization, durable task bindings, and lifecycle
fences.

## Linked Issues or Issue Description

**Subsystem affected**

Plugin SDK, project workspace policy, heartbeat preparation, execution
leases, and workspace lifecycle.

**Problem or motivation**

Core cannot prepare a task workspace when its repository storage is
unavailable on the Core host. An execution lease must not be required
just to prepare persistent storage.

**Proposed solution**

Let one plugin provide project resource lifecycle and workspace prepare,
inspect, restore, and remove behavior. Core reserves a task workspace
before it calls the plugin. The plugin returns an opaque durable
reference. The matching execution plugin receives that reference on its
task RPC.

**Alternatives considered**

Preparing repositories on Core would require a provider mount on Core.
Preparing them only during task launch would tie persistent workspace
lifecycle to execution leases and agent availability.

**Roadmap alignment**

This extends the remote provider model in ROADMAP.md. Related execution
work is in #16978. This PR does not replace that task bridge. Native
execution of managed storage requires the bridge; this change fails
closed when it is absent.

## What Changed

- Add one storage provider declaration with supported modes/strategies,
a capability, a validated RPC contract, and a test harness.
- Persist provider ownership, repository revision, and
execution-workspace identity before external effects. Reconcile retries
with a stable operation ID.
- Prepare provider storage before environment acquisition. Keep Core
filesystem preparation out of this path.
- Pin the durable reference to the matching execution plugin and
validate the lease binding before task dispatch.
- Route inspection, reopen, and removal through the existing lifecycle
process. Keep local data when remote recovery is uncertain.
- Keep the application database pool free during lifecycle locks.
Preserve pending workspace selections, validate source edits before
retirement, and retry unfinished closed storage cleanup.
- Protect provider metadata and live repository sources from caller
edits. Storage edits retire only closed records with confirmed removal;
retired records cannot reopen.

## Verification

- Current head `8214b3ca5`: all 25 provider lifecycle tests pass with
`maxConnections=1`. They cover preparation, inspection, reopening,
removal, a paused provider with responsive ordinary SQL and a competing
source edit, pending selection preservation, rejected source edits,
cleanup retry scheduling, and providers that cache operation results,
and committed cleanup notifications for storage intent and recovered
state.
- Final frozen-tree lifecycle run on `8214b3ca5`: all 318 tests passed
in 10 files, covering workspace services, reopen, compaction, task
binding, project sources, heartbeat preparation, display caching, and
source locks.
- Direct server `tsc --noEmit` passes. The SDK build and all 128 SDK
tests passed during initial verification; later SDK changes are
documentation only.
- Full CI on the previous head `ec5c7209a` passed all 55 applicable
checks; 2 conditional checks skipped. Standard Greptile reviewed current
head `342e6d9c3` at 5/5 with no unresolved threads. All 55 applicable CI
checks passed on `342e6d9c3`; 2 conditional checks skipped. The Slack
browser and CLI startup jobs passed on their single unchanged-head
rerun. Its Apex review returned 4/5 with one pending-restoration issue.
Commit `1b58943b1` reconciles that durable intent before cleanup,
advances the generation without reopening the Core row, and blocks
direct removal or retirement while intent remains unresolved. Standard
Greptile reviewed `1b58943b1` at 5/5 with no new findings. All 54
applicable CI checks passed on `1b58943b1`; 3 conditional checks
skipped. The chat job passed on its single unchanged-head rerun. Apex
then returned 4/5 for a missing cleanup wake after recovery. Commit
`8214b3ca5` atomically registers cleanup intent before storage intent
and recovery-result writes. Its provider test observes real committed
notification hints and the visible advanced generation. Standard
Greptile reviewed `8214b3ca5` at 5/5 with no new findings. All 55
applicable current-head CI checks passed on the first run; 2 conditional
checks skipped. Final Apex verification completed at 5/5 on this exact
head: 38 files reviewed, no new comments, and no unresolved threads. The
PR is ready for review and mergeable.
- The first Apex review found five issues after a standard 5/5:
application-pool starvation, stale pending selections, retirement during
rejected source edits, lost cleanup retries, and reused inspection
identities. Commits `6d72e7fd4` and `342e6d9c3` fix each with regression
coverage. Archive lock waits use dedicated connections, and source edits
fail promptly if the lifecycle is busy. Retirement compares normalized
values. The normalized-source regression initially failed with the
raw-value comparison; after moving the check after normalization, a
clean provider-suite rerun passed all 24 tests at that stage. Those
threads are resolved; the earlier Apex 0/5 is not a passing acceptance
result.
- Earlier local integration attempts could not bind localhost inside the
sandbox. The same suites passed with permission to start local
PostgreSQL.
- The earlier broad local `pnpm test:run` overlapped edits and reported
stale-revision and checkout-path/Git-fixture failures. It was not a
final-tree result. Full CI subsequently passed; the original local
failure remains part of verification history.
- Local repository-wide typecheck/build cannot complete because `cargo`
is unavailable. Direct server TypeScript checks and affected tests pass;
full Rust and build validation comes from CI.
- An earlier browser run on `ff918c5a8` failed in the unchanged
case-filter journey: expected “Done,” received “All statuses,” with an
announcement handler recorded during the assertion. The cause is not
confirmed. [The failed
job](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/actions/runs/39500611857/job/118896954508)
remains verification history. The unchanged shard passed in the next
full CI run on `ec5c7209a`; no UI or fixture change was made.
- Current-head browser shard 2 failed waiting five seconds for the
mocked Slack setup Success heading. This PR changes neither that UI nor
its fixture. [The failed
job](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/actions/runs/39506070513/job/118916021232)
remains verification evidence. The cause is not confirmed; the single
unchanged-shard rerun passed; no UI or fixture change was made, and the
original cause remains unconfirmed.
- The workspace test shard passed its 3,978 general tests, then its CLI
company-import/export fixture timed out after 30 seconds waiting for
startup health before creating any company or workspace. [The failed
job](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/actions/runs/39506070513/job/118916021855)
remains verification history. The child reached external-PostgreSQL
startup without exiting or reporting an exception. Its cause is not
confirmed; the single unchanged-job rerun passed, including the CLI
fixture. No startup or fixture change was made, and the original cause
remains unconfirmed.
- The new cached-removal regression initially failed because its fake
worker advertised availability for unrelated fixture plugins, so another
workspace changed its fake checkout state. Worker availability now
matches the fixture plugin; the complete 25-test provider suite passes.
- On `1b58943b1`, the chat shard timed out polling for one conversation
after an authorized GitHub description edit. [The failed
job](https://github.com/paperclipai/paperclip/actions/runs/39510521657/job/118930193418)
remains evidence. The exact case passes locally against PostgreSQL (1
passed, 1,380 unrelated cases skipped), and this PR changes neither that
test nor its handler. The original cause is unconfirmed; the single
unchanged-job CI rerun passed without a code or fixture change. The
original cause remains unconfirmed.
- The diff was checked for credentials, private references, and
generated artifacts.

## Risks

This is an additive provider contract with no database migration.
Existing projects keep their local behavior unless their policy selects
a storage plugin. A selected provider must be ready and enabled. Unknown
or unsafe cleanup fails closed.

Managed native execution depends on #16978. Core refuses a host Runner
fallback. Providers must fence lifecycle generations, preserve ambiguous
retries, and report remote recovery honestly. Provider-specific live
storage and guest mount qualification remain separate from these Core
contract tests.

## Model Used

OpenAI Codex (GPT-6), with repository inspection, code execution, and
tests. The exact model variant was not exposed.

## Checklist

- [x] I have included a thinking path that traces from project context
to this change
- [x] I have specified the model used (with version and capability
details)
- [x] I have checked ROADMAP.md and confirmed this PR does not duplicate
planned core work
- [x] I have searched GitHub for duplicate or related PRs and linked
them above
- [x] I have either linked existing issues or described the issue in-PR
following the relevant issue template
- [x] I have not referenced internal/instance-local Paperclip issues or
links
- [x] My branch name describes the change and contains no internal
ticket id
- [x] I have run tests locally and they pass (affected suites; broad-run
limits are documented above)
- [x] I have added or updated tests where applicable
- [x] I have updated relevant documentation to reflect my changes
- [x] I have considered and documented any risks above
- [x] All Paperclip CI gates are green
- [x] Greptile is 5/5 with no open P2s, recommendations, or follow-ups
- [x] I will address all Greptile and reviewer comments before
requesting merge

---------

Co-authored-by: Paperclip <noreply@paperclip.ing>
2026-10-20 16:35:33 -07:00

58 KiB
Raw Blame History

@paperclipai/plugin-sdk

Official TypeScript SDK for Paperclip plugin authors.

  • Worker SDK: @paperclipai/plugin-sdk — definePlugin, context, lifecycle
  • UI SDK: @paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui — React hooks and slot props
  • Testing: @paperclipai/plugin-sdk/testing — in-memory host harness
  • Bundlers: @paperclipai/plugin-sdk/bundlers — esbuild/rollup presets
  • Dev server: @paperclipai/plugin-sdk/dev-server — static UI server + SSE reload

Reference: doc/plugins/PLUGIN_SPEC.md

Package surface

Import Purpose
@paperclipai/plugin-sdk Worker entry: definePlugin, runWorker, context types, protocol helpers
@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui UI entry: hooks, host navigation, HTTP-safe clipboard copy, shared components, and slot prop types
@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui/hooks Hooks only
@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui/types UI types and slot prop interfaces
@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/testing createTestHarness for unit/integration tests
@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/bundlers createPluginBundlerPresets for worker/manifest/ui builds
@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/dev-server startPluginDevServer, getUiBuildSnapshot
@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/protocol JSON-RPC protocol types and helpers (advanced)
@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/types Worker context and API types (advanced)

Manifest entrypoints

In your plugin manifest you declare:

  • entrypoints.worker (required) — Path to the worker bundle (e.g. dist/worker.js). The host loads this and calls setup(ctx).
  • entrypoints.ui (required if you use UI) — Path to the UI bundle directory. The host loads components from here for slots and launchers.

Install

pnpm add @paperclipai/plugin-sdk

Current deployment caveats

The SDK is stable enough for local development and first-party examples, but the runtime deployment model is still early.

  • Plugin workers and plugin UI should both be treated as trusted code today.
  • Plugin UI bundles run as same-origin JavaScript inside the main Paperclip app. They can call ordinary Paperclip HTTP APIs with the board session, so manifest capabilities are not a frontend sandbox.
  • Local-path installs and the repo example plugins are development workflows. They assume the plugin source checkout exists on disk.
  • For deployed plugins, publish an npm package and install that package into the Paperclip instance at runtime.
  • The current host runtime expects a writable filesystem, npm available at runtime, and network access to the package registry used for plugin installation.
  • Dynamic plugin install is currently best suited to single-node persistent deployments. Multi-instance cloud deployments still need a shared artifact/distribution model before runtime installs are reliable across nodes.
  • The host ships a small shared React component kit through @paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui. Use it for native Paperclip controls; custom React and CSS are still supported.
  • ctx.assets is not part of the supported runtime in this build. Do not depend on asset upload/read APIs yet.

If you are authoring a plugin for others to deploy, treat npm-packaged installation as the supported path and treat repo-local example installs as a development convenience.

Worker quick start

import { definePlugin, runWorker } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk";

const plugin = definePlugin({
  async setup(ctx) {
    ctx.events.on("issue.created", async (event) => {
      ctx.logger.info("Issue created", { issueId: event.entityId });
    });

    ctx.data.register("health", async () => ({ status: "ok" }));
    ctx.actions.register("ping", async () => ({ pong: true }));

    ctx.tools.register("calculator", {
      displayName: "Calculator",
      description: "Basic math",
      parametersSchema: {
        type: "object",
        properties: { a: { type: "number" }, b: { type: "number" } },
        required: ["a", "b"]
      }
    }, async (params) => {
      const { a, b } = params as { a: number; b: number };
      return { content: `Result: ${a + b}`, data: { result: a + b } };
    });
  },
});

export default plugin;
runWorker(plugin, import.meta.url);

Note: runWorker(plugin, import.meta.url) must be called so that when the host runs your worker (e.g. node dist/worker.js), the RPC host starts and the process stays alive. When the file is imported (e.g. for tests), the main-module check prevents the host from starting.

Worker lifecycle and context

Lifecycle (definePlugin):

Hook Purpose
setup(ctx) Required. Called once at startup. Register event handlers, jobs, data/actions/tools, etc.
onHealth?() Optional. Return { status, message?, details? } for health dashboard.
onConfigChanged?(newConfig) Optional. Apply new config without restart; if omitted, host restarts worker.
onShutdown?() Optional. Clean up before process exit (limited time window).
onValidateConfig?(config) Optional. Return { ok, warnings?, errors? } for settings UI / Test Connection.
onWebhook?(input) Optional. Handle POST /api/plugins/:pluginId/webhooks/:endpointKey; required if webhooks declared.

Context (ctx) in setup: config, localFolders, events, jobs, launchers, http, secrets, activity, state, entities, projects, companies, issues, agents, goals, access, authorization, data, actions, streams, tools, metrics, logger, manifest. Worker-side host APIs are capability-gated; declare capabilities in the manifest.

Agents: ctx.agents.invoke(agentId, companyId, opts) for one-shot invocation. ctx.agents.sessions for two-way chat: create, list, sendMessage (with streaming onEvent callback), close. See the Plugin Authoring Guide for details.

Jobs: Declare in manifest.jobs with jobKey, displayName, schedule (cron). Register handler with ctx.jobs.register(jobKey, fn). Webhooks: Declare in manifest.webhooks with endpointKey; handle in onWebhook(input). State: ctx.state.get/set/delete(scopeKey); scope kinds: instance, company, project, project_workspace, agent, issue, goal, run.

Trusted local folders: Declare manifest.localFolders[] and the local.folders capability when a plugin needs an operator-configured company-scoped folder. Use ctx.localFolders.configure(), status(), readText(), and writeTextAtomic() instead of resolving arbitrary filesystem paths yourself. The host validates absolute roots, read/write access, required relative folders/files, traversal attempts, symlink escapes, and writes through temp-file-plus-rename atomic replacement.

Events

Subscribe in setup with ctx.events.on(name, handler) or ctx.events.on(name, filter, handler). Emit plugin-scoped events with ctx.events.emit(name, companyId, payload) (requires events.emit).

Core domain events (subscribe with events.subscribe):

Event Typical entity
company.created, company.updated company
project.created, project.updated project
project.workspace_created, project.workspace_updated, project.workspace_deleted project_workspace
issue.created, issue.updated, issue.comment.created issue
issue.document.created, issue.document.updated, issue.document.deleted issue
issue.relations.updated, issue.checked_out, issue.released, issue.assignment_wakeup_requested issue
agent.created, agent.updated, agent.status_changed agent
agent.run.started, agent.run.finished, agent.run.failed, agent.run.cancelled run
goal.created, goal.updated goal
approval.created, approval.decided approval
budget.incident.opened, budget.incident.resolved budget_incident
cost_event.created cost
activity.logged activity

Plugin-to-plugin: Subscribe to plugin.<pluginId>.<eventName> (e.g. plugin.acme.linear.sync-done). Emit with ctx.events.emit("sync-done", companyId, payload); the host namespaces it automatically.

Filter (optional): Pass a second argument to on(): { projectId?, companyId?, agentId? } so the host only delivers matching events.

Company context: Events still carry companyId for company-scoped data, but plugin installation and activation are instance-wide in the current runtime. Access and authorization host services require an active company-scoped invocation such as an event, API route, tool run, environment call, or UI bridge call; the requested companyId must match that active scope.

Scheduled (recurring) jobs

Plugins can declare scheduled jobs that the host runs on a cron schedule. Use this for recurring tasks like syncs, digest reports, or cleanup.

  1. Capability: Add jobs.schedule to manifest.capabilities.
  2. Declare jobs in manifest.jobs: each entry has jobKey, displayName, optional description, and schedule (a 5-field cron expression).
  3. Register a handler in setup() with ctx.jobs.register(jobKey, async (job) => { ... }).

Cron format (5 fields: minute, hour, day-of-month, month, day-of-week):

Field Values Example
minute 0–59 0, */15
hour 0–23 2, *
day of month 1–31 1, *
month 1–12 *
day of week 0–6 (Sun=0) *, 1-5

Examples: "0 * * * *" = every hour at minute 0; "*/5 * * * *" = every 5 minutes; "0 2 * * *" = daily at 2:00.

Job handler context (PluginJobContext):

Field Type Description
jobKey string Matches the manifest declaration.
runId string UUID for this run.
trigger "schedule" | "manual" | "retry" What caused this run.
scheduledAt string ISO 8601 time when the run was scheduled.

Runs can be triggered by the schedule, manually from the UI/API, or as a retry (when an operator re-runs a job after a failure). Re-throw from the handler to mark the run as failed; the host records the failure. The host does not automatically retry—operators can trigger another run manually from the UI or API.

Example:

Manifest — include jobs.schedule and declare the job:

// In your manifest (e.g. manifest.ts):
const manifest = {
  // ...
  capabilities: ["jobs.schedule", "plugin.state.write"],
  jobs: [
    {
      jobKey: "heartbeat",
      displayName: "Heartbeat",
      description: "Runs every 5 minutes",
      schedule: "*/5 * * * *",
    },
  ],
  // ...
};

Worker — register the handler in setup():

ctx.jobs.register("heartbeat", async (job) => {
  ctx.logger.info("Heartbeat run", { runId: job.runId, trigger: job.trigger });
  await ctx.state.set({ scopeKind: "instance", stateKey: "last-heartbeat" }, new Date().toISOString());
});

UI slots and launchers

Slots are mount points for plugin React components. Launchers are host-rendered entry points (buttons, menu items) that open plugin UI. Declare slots in manifest.ui.slots with type, id, displayName, exportName; for context-sensitive slots add entityTypes. Declare launchers in manifest.ui.launchers (or legacy manifest.launchers).

Slot types / launcher placement zones

Slot types describe where a component mounts. Most values also exist as launcher placement zones.

Slot type / placement zone Scope Entity types (when context-sensitive)
page Global —
sidebar Global —
routeSidebar Global —
sidebarPanel Global —
settingsPage Global —
dashboardWidget Global —
globalToolbarButton Global —
appShellOverlay (slot only) Signed-in application shell —
detailTab Entity project, issue, agent, goal, run
taskDetailView Entity (task/issue context)
commentAnnotation Entity comment
commentContextMenuItem Entity comment
projectSidebarItem Entity project
toolbarButton Entity varies by host surface
contextMenuItem Entity varies by host surface

Scope describes whether the slot requires an entity to render. Global slots render without a specific entity but still receive the active companyId through PluginHostContext — use it to scope data fetches to the current company. Entity slots additionally require entityId and entityType (e.g. a detail tab on a specific issue).

Entity types (for entityTypes on slots): project | issue | agent | goal | run | comment. Full list: import PLUGIN_UI_SLOT_TYPES and PLUGIN_UI_SLOT_ENTITY_TYPES from @paperclipai/plugin-sdk.

Slot component descriptions

page

A full-page extension mounted at /plugins/:pluginId (global) or /:company/plugins/:pluginId (company-context route). Use this for rich, standalone plugin experiences such as dashboards, configuration wizards, or multi-step workflows. Receives PluginPageProps with context.companyId set to the active company. Requires the ui.page.register capability.

sidebar

Adds a navigation-style entry to the main company sidebar navigation area, rendered alongside the core nav items (Dashboard, Issues, Goals, etc.). Use this for lightweight, always-visible links or status indicators that feel native to the sidebar. Receives PluginSidebarProps with context.companyId set to the active company. Requires the ui.sidebar.register capability.

routeSidebar

A contextual sidebar shown while the current route is a plugin page route with the same routePath. Use this for full-page plugin workspaces that need their own local navigation. It does not replace the app sidebar: the host collapses the main <Sidebar/> to its 64px icon rail (still hover/peek-able) and renders your routeSidebar in a secondary pane beside it, producing [ app rail ][ your sidebar ][ content ]. Receives PluginRouteSidebarProps with context.companyId and context.companyPrefix set to the active company. Requires the ui.sidebar.register capability.

Do not mount RequestCollapsedSidebar (or otherwise try to collapse the app sidebar) from a routeSidebar plugin — the host drives the collapse automatically while your route is active and restores the user's preference when they navigate away. The collapse is a hard invariant: a secondary sidebar always forces the app rail collapsed (hiding its expand toggle), overriding any user pin, but it never mutates the user's saved expanded/collapsed preference — that is restored as soon as they leave your route.

sidebarPanel

Renders richer inline content in a dedicated panel area below the company sidebar navigation sections. Use this for mini-widgets, summary cards, quick-action panels, or at-a-glance status views that need more vertical space than a nav link. Receives context.companyId set to the active company via useHostContext(). Requires the ui.sidebar.register capability.

settingsPage

Replaces the auto-generated JSON Schema settings form with a custom React component. Use this when the default form is insufficient — for example, when your plugin needs multi-step configuration, OAuth flows, "Test Connection" buttons, or rich input controls. Receives PluginSettingsPageProps with context.companyId set to the active company. The component is responsible for reading and writing config through the bridge (via usePluginData and usePluginAction).

dashboardWidget

A card or section rendered on the main dashboard. Use this for at-a-glance metrics, status indicators, or summary views that surface plugin data alongside core Paperclip information. Receives PluginWidgetProps with context.companyId set to the active company. Requires the ui.dashboardWidget.register capability.

detailTab

An additional tab on a project, issue, agent, goal, or run detail page. Rendered when the user navigates to that entity's detail view. Receives PluginDetailTabProps with context.companyId set to the active company and context.entityId / context.entityType guaranteed to be non-null, so you can immediately scope data fetches to the relevant entity. Specify which entity types the tab applies to via the entityTypes array in the manifest slot declaration. Requires the ui.detailTab.register capability.

taskDetailView

A specialized slot rendered in the context of a task or issue detail view. Similar to detailTab but designed for inline content within the task detail layout rather than a separate tab. Receives context.companyId, context.entityId, and context.entityType like detailTab. Requires the ui.detailTab.register capability.

projectSidebarItem

A link or small component rendered once per project under that project's row in the sidebar Projects list. Use this to add project-scoped navigation entries (e.g. "Files", "Linear Sync") that deep-link into a plugin detail tab: /:company/projects/:projectRef?tab=plugin:<key>:<slotId>. Receives PluginProjectSidebarItemProps with context.companyId set to the active company, context.entityId set to the project id, and context.entityType set to "project". Use the optional order field in the manifest slot to control sort position. Requires the ui.sidebar.register capability.

globalToolbarButton

A button rendered in the global top bar (breadcrumb bar) that appears on every page. Use this for company-wide actions that are not scoped to a specific entity — for example, a universal search trigger, a global sync status indicator, or a floating action that applies across the whole workspace. Receives only context.companyId and context.companyPrefix; no entity context is available. Requires the ui.action.register capability.

toolbarButton

A button rendered in the toolbar of an entity page (e.g. project detail, issue detail). Use this for short-lived, contextual actions scoped to the current entity — like triggering a project sync, opening a picker, or running a quick command on that entity. The component can open a plugin-owned modal internally for confirmations or compact forms. Receives context.companyId, context.entityId, and context.entityType; declare entityTypes in the manifest to control which entity pages the button appears on. Requires the ui.action.register capability.

contextMenuItem

An entry added to a right-click or overflow context menu on a host surface. Use this for secondary actions that apply to the entity under the cursor (e.g. "Copy to Linear", "Re-run analysis"). Receives context.companyId set to the active company; entity context varies by host surface. Requires the ui.action.register capability.

commentAnnotation

A per-comment annotation region rendered below each individual comment in the issue detail timeline. Use this to augment comments with parsed file links, sentiment badges, inline actions, or any per-comment metadata. Receives PluginCommentAnnotationProps with context.entityId set to the comment UUID, context.entityType set to "comment", context.parentEntityId set to the parent issue UUID, context.projectId set to the issue's project (if any), and context.companyPrefix set to the active company slug. Requires the ui.commentAnnotation.register capability.

commentContextMenuItem

A per-comment context menu item rendered in the "more" dropdown menu (⋮) on each comment in the issue detail timeline. Use this to add per-comment actions such as "Create sub-issue from comment", "Translate", "Flag for review", or custom plugin actions. Receives PluginCommentContextMenuItemProps with context.entityId set to the comment UUID, context.entityType set to "comment", context.parentEntityId set to the parent issue UUID, context.projectId set to the issue's project (if any), and context.companyPrefix set to the active company slug. Plugins can open drawers, modals, or popovers scoped to that comment. The ⋮ menu button only appears on comments where at least one plugin renders visible content. Requires the ui.action.register capability.

Launcher actions and render options

Launcher action Description
navigate Navigate to a route (plugin or host).
openModal Open a modal.
openDrawer Open a drawer.
openPopover Open a popover.
performAction Run an action (e.g. call plugin).
deepLink Deep link to plugin or external URL.
Render option Values Description
environment hostInline, hostOverlay, hostRoute, external, iframe Container the launcher expects after activation.
bounds inline, compact, default, wide, full Size hint for overlays/drawers.

Capabilities

Declare in manifest.capabilities. Grouped by scope:

Scope Capability
Company companies.read
projects.read
project.workspaces.read
issues.read
issue.comments.read
issue.documents.read
issue.relations.read
issue.subtree.read
agents.read
goals.read
goals.create
goals.update
activity.read
costs.read
issues.orchestration.read
access.members.read
access.invites.read
authorization.grants.read
authorization.policies.read
authorization.audit.read
database.namespace.read
issues.create
issues.update
issues.checkout
issues.wakeup
issue.comments.create
issue.comments.create_human_attributed
issue.documents.write
issue.relations.write
activity.log.write
metrics.write
telemetry.track
database.namespace.migrate
database.namespace.write
external.objects.detect
external.objects.read
external.objects.write
external.objects.refresh
Instance instance.settings.register
plugin.state.read
plugin.state.write
Runtime events.subscribe
events.emit
jobs.schedule
webhooks.receive
api.routes.register
http.outbound
secrets.read-ref
environment.drivers.register
local.folders
Agent agent.tools.register
agents.invoke
access.members.write
access.invites.write
authorization.grants.write
authorization.policies.write
agent.sessions.create
agent.sessions.list
agent.sessions.send
agent.sessions.close
UI ui.sidebar.register
ui.page.register
ui.detailTab.register
ui.dashboardWidget.register
ui.commentAnnotation.register
ui.action.register

Full list in code: import PLUGIN_CAPABILITIES from @paperclipai/plugin-sdk.

External Object Reference Providers

Trusted connector plugins can declare generic external object providers in the manifest. The host owns URL scanning, sanitized canonical URLs, core storage, normalized status rendering, and issue/comment/document write durability. The plugin only identifies provider-owned objects and resolves board-safe status metadata.

objectReferences: [
  {
    providerKey: "mocktracker",
    displayName: "Mock Tracker",
    objectTypes: ["ticket"],
    urlPatterns: ["https://mock.example/tickets/:id"],
    refreshPolicy: { defaultTtlSeconds: 300, staleAfterSeconds: 1800 },
  },
],
capabilities: ["external.objects.detect", "external.objects.read"],

Implement onDetectExternalObjects() to map sanitized URL candidates to providerKey, objectType, provider-stable externalId, and optional display metadata such as displayKey/iconKey. Implement onResolveExternalObject() to return a normalized snapshot with statusCategory, statusTone, statusLabel, optional statusIconKey, board-safe data, and freshness metadata. Slow or failing plugins are isolated: Paperclip logs the failure and continues saving the source issue, comment, or document.

MVP security posture: provider plugins are trusted installs. Manifest capabilities gate host APIs and provider invocation paths, but they are not a sandbox boundary for untrusted marketplace code. Plugin UI is same-origin JavaScript and must not be mounted inline in markdown; inline external-object rendering uses host-owned metadata only. Treat untrusted providers as future work that requires worker sandboxing plus isolated plugin UI.

Restricted Database Namespace

Trusted orchestration plugins can declare a host-owned PostgreSQL namespace:

database: {
  migrationsDir: "migrations",
  coreReadTables: ["issues"],
}

Declare database.namespace.migrate and database.namespace.read; add database.namespace.write when the worker needs runtime writes. Migrations run before worker startup, are checksum-recorded, and may create or alter objects only inside the plugin namespace. Runtime ctx.db.query() allows SELECT from ctx.db.namespace plus manifest-whitelisted public core tables. Runtime ctx.db.execute() allows INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE only against the plugin namespace.

Trusted Local Folders

Trusted local plugins can request operator-configured folders per company:

export const manifest = {
  // ...
  capabilities: ["local.folders"],
  localFolders: [
    {
      folderKey: "content-root",
      displayName: "Content root",
      access: "readWrite",
      requiredDirectories: ["sources", "pages"],
      requiredFiles: ["schema.md"],
    },
  ],
};

The host stores the selected path in company-scoped plugin settings and exposes readiness through:

  • GET /api/plugins/:pluginId/companies/:companyId/local-folders
  • GET /api/plugins/:pluginId/companies/:companyId/local-folders/:folderKey/status
  • POST /api/plugins/:pluginId/companies/:companyId/local-folders/:folderKey/validate
  • PUT /api/plugins/:pluginId/companies/:companyId/local-folders/:folderKey

Worker code should access files through ctx.localFolders.readText() and ctx.localFolders.writeTextAtomic(). Relative paths must stay inside the configured root; symlinks that escape the root are rejected.

Scoped API Routes

Manifest-declared apiRoutes expose JSON routes under /api/plugins/:pluginId/api/* without letting a plugin claim core paths:

apiRoutes: [
  {
    routeKey: "initialize",
    method: "POST",
    path: "/issues/:issueId/smoke",
    auth: "board-or-agent",
    capability: "api.routes.register",
    checkoutPolicy: "required-for-agent-in-progress",
    companyResolution: { from: "issue", param: "issueId" },
  },
]

Implement onApiRequest(input) in the worker to handle the route. The host performs auth, company access, capability, route matching, and checkout policy before dispatch. The worker receives route params, query, parsed JSON body, sanitized headers, actor context, and companyId; responses are JSON { status?, headers?, body? }.

Issue Orchestration APIs

Workflow plugins can use ctx.issues for orchestration-grade issue operations without importing host server internals.

Expanded create/update fields include blockers, billing code, board or agent assignees, labels, namespaced plugin origins, request depth, and safe execution workspace fields:

const child = await ctx.issues.create({
  companyId,
  parentId: missionIssueId,
  inheritExecutionWorkspaceFromIssueId: missionIssueId,
  title: "Implement feature slice",
  status: "todo",
  assigneeAgentId: workerAgentId,
  billingCode: "mission:alpha",
  originKind: "plugin:paperclip.missions:feature",
  originId: "mission-alpha:feature-1",
  blockedByIssueIds: [planningIssueId],
});

If originKind is omitted, the host stores plugin:<pluginKey>. Plugins may use sub-kinds such as plugin:<pluginKey>:feature, but the host rejects attempts to set another plugin's namespace.

Blocker relationships are also exposed as first-class helpers:

const relations = await ctx.issues.relations.get(child.id, companyId);
await ctx.issues.relations.setBlockedBy(child.id, [planningIssueId], companyId);
await ctx.issues.relations.addBlockers(child.id, [validationIssueId], companyId);
await ctx.issues.relations.removeBlockers(child.id, [planningIssueId], companyId);

Subtree reads can include just the issue tree, or compact related data for orchestration dashboards:

const subtree = await ctx.issues.getSubtree(missionIssueId, companyId, {
  includeRoot: true,
  includeRelations: true,
  includeDocuments: true,
  includeActiveRuns: true,
  includeAssignees: true,
});

Agent-run actions can assert checkout ownership before mutating in-progress work:

await ctx.issues.assertCheckoutOwner({
  issueId,
  companyId,
  actorAgentId: runCtx.agentId,
  actorRunId: runCtx.runId,
});

Plugins can request assignment wakeups through the host so budget stops, execution locks, blocker checks, and heartbeat policy still apply:

await ctx.issues.requestWakeup(child.id, companyId, {
  reason: "mission_advance",
  contextSource: "missions.advance",
});

await ctx.issues.requestWakeups([featureIssueId, validationIssueId], companyId, {
  reason: "mission_advance",
  contextSource: "missions.advance",
  idempotencyKeyPrefix: `mission:${missionIssueId}:advance`,
});

Use ctx.issues.summaries.getOrchestration() when a workflow needs compact reads across a root issue or subtree:

const summary = await ctx.issues.summaries.getOrchestration({
  issueId: missionIssueId,
  companyId,
  includeSubtree: true,
  billingCode: "mission:alpha",
});

By default, ctx.issues.createComment attributes the comment to the calling plugin's own agent (authorAgentId). A plugin that relays a message a human actually sent — a chat gateway bridging Slack/Telegram replies back onto an issue, for example — can instead attribute the comment to that person by passing actorUserId:

await ctx.issues.createComment(issueId, replyText, companyId, {
  actorUserId: verifiedSlackUser.paperclipUserId,
});

This requires the issue.comments.create_human_attributed capability in addition to issue.comments.create. The host independently verifies that actorUserId is an active human member of the issue's company before applying the comment — a plugin cannot forge attribution to an arbitrary or inactive user id. When the issue has a non-terminal status and an assigned agent, a human-attributed comment also wakes that assignee, the same way a board user's comment does in the web app.

Required capabilities:

API Capability
ctx.issues.relations.get issue.relations.read
ctx.issues.relations.setBlockedBy / addBlockers / removeBlockers issue.relations.write
ctx.issues.getSubtree issue.subtree.read
ctx.issues.assertCheckoutOwner issues.checkout
ctx.issues.createComment issue.comments.create
ctx.issues.createComment with actorUserId issue.comments.create + issue.comments.create_human_attributed
ctx.issues.requestWakeup / requestWakeups issues.wakeup
ctx.issues.summaries.getOrchestration issues.orchestration.read

Plugin-originated mutations are logged with actorType: "plugin" and details fields sourcePluginId, sourcePluginKey, initiatingActorType, initiatingActorId, and initiatingRunId when a user or agent run initiated the plugin work.

UI quick start

import { usePluginData, usePluginAction } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

export function DashboardWidget() {
  const { data } = usePluginData<{ status: string }>("health");
  const ping = usePluginAction("ping");
  return (
    <div style={{ display: "grid", gap: 8 }}>
      <strong>Health</strong>
      <div>{data?.status ?? "unknown"}</div>
      <button onClick={() => void ping()}>Ping</button>
    </div>
  );
}

Hooks reference

usePluginData<T>(key, params?)

Fetches data from the worker's registered getData handler. Re-fetches when params changes. Returns { data, loading, error, refresh }.

import { usePluginData } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

interface SyncStatus {
  lastSyncAt: string;
  syncedCount: number;
  healthy: boolean;
}

export function SyncStatusWidget({ context }: PluginWidgetProps) {
  const { data, loading, error, refresh } = usePluginData<SyncStatus>("sync-status", {
    companyId: context.companyId,
  });

  if (loading) return <div>Loading…</div>;
  if (error) return <div>Error: {error.message}</div>;

  return (
    <div>
      <p>Status: {data!.healthy ? "Healthy" : "Unhealthy"}</p>
      <p>Synced {data!.syncedCount} items</p>
      <p>Last sync: {data!.lastSyncAt}</p>
      <button onClick={refresh}>Refresh</button>
    </div>
  );
}

usePluginAction(key)

Returns an async function that calls the worker's performAction handler. Throws PluginBridgeError on failure.

import { useState } from "react";
import { usePluginAction, type PluginBridgeError } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

export function ResyncButton({ context }: PluginWidgetProps) {
  const resync = usePluginAction("resync");
  const [busy, setBusy] = useState(false);
  const [error, setError] = useState<string | null>(null);

  async function handleClick() {
    setBusy(true);
    setError(null);
    try {
      await resync({ companyId: context.companyId });
    } catch (err) {
      setError((err as PluginBridgeError).message);
    } finally {
      setBusy(false);
    }
  }

  return (
    <div>
      <button onClick={handleClick} disabled={busy}>
        {busy ? "Syncing..." : "Resync Now"}
      </button>
      {error && <p style={{ color: "red" }}>{error}</p>}
    </div>
  );
}

useHostContext()

Reads the active company, project, entity, and user context. Use this to scope data fetches and actions.

import { useHostContext, usePluginData } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";
import type { PluginDetailTabProps } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

export function IssueLinearLink({ context }: PluginDetailTabProps) {
  const { companyId, entityId, entityType } = context;
  const { data } = usePluginData<{ url: string }>("linear-link", {
    companyId,
    issueId: entityId,
  });

  if (!data?.url) return <p>No linked Linear issue.</p>;
  return <a href={data.url} target="_blank" rel="noopener">View in Linear</a>;
}

useHostNavigation()

Routes Paperclip-internal plugin links through the host router without a full document reload. Use linkProps() for anchors so the browser still gets a real href for copy-link, modifier-click, middle-click, and open-in-new-tab behavior.

import { useHostNavigation } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

export function WikiSidebarLink() {
  const hostNavigation = useHostNavigation();
  return <a {...hostNavigation.linkProps("/wiki")}>Wiki</a>;
}

linkProps("/wiki") resolves against the active company prefix, so in company PAP it renders href="/PAP/wiki". Already-prefixed paths such as /PAP/wiki are not prefixed again. For button-style commands, call hostNavigation.navigate("/issues/PAP-123").

Avoid raw same-origin hrefs or window.location.assign() for Paperclip-internal navigation from plugin UI. Those bypass the host router and can reload the whole app. External links should keep normal anchors with target="_blank" and rel="noopener noreferrer" as appropriate.

usePluginStream<T>(channel, options?)

Subscribes to a real-time event stream pushed from the plugin worker via SSE. The worker pushes events using ctx.streams.emit(channel, event) and the hook receives them as they arrive. Returns { events, lastEvent, connecting, connected, error, close }.

import { usePluginStream } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

interface ChatToken {
  text: string;
}

export function ChatMessages({ context }: PluginWidgetProps) {
  const { events, connected, close } = usePluginStream<ChatToken>("chat-stream", {
    companyId: context.companyId ?? undefined,
  });

  return (
    <div>
      {events.map((e, i) => <span key={i}>{e.text}</span>)}
      {connected && <span className="pulse" />}
      <button onClick={close}>Stop</button>
    </div>
  );
}

The SSE connection targets GET /api/plugins/:pluginId/bridge/stream/:channel?companyId=.... The host bridge manages the EventSource lifecycle; close() terminates the connection.

UI authoring note

The host provides selected shared UI components through @paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui. Plugins can also use normal React components, their own CSS, or small design primitives inside the plugin package.

Use copyTextToClipboard for every plugin copy action. The host selects the modern Clipboard API in secure contexts and a compatible fallback in plain-HTTP deployments.

import { copyTextToClipboard } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

await copyTextToClipboard("text to copy");

Use the shared components when the plugin needs to look and behave like a native Paperclip surface:

Component Use when
MarkdownBlock Rendering markdown from plugin or host data
MarkdownEditor Editing markdown with the host editor treatment
FileTree Showing serializable workspace/wiki/import paths
IssuesList Embedding a company-scoped native issue list
AssigneePicker Selecting an agent or board user with the same picker as the new issue pane
ProjectPicker Selecting a project with the same picker as the new issue pane
ManagedRoutinesList Showing plugin-managed routines in settings UI

Shared Markdown Components

Plugin UI can render markdown and edit markdown using the same host components used by Paperclip issue comments and documents:

import { MarkdownBlock, MarkdownEditor } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

export function WikiPageEditor() {
  const [body, setBody] = useState("# Wiki page");

  return (
    <>
      <MarkdownBlock content={body} />
      <MarkdownEditor value={body} onChange={setBody} bordered />
    </>
  );
}

MarkdownBlock can opt into Obsidian-style wikilinks when a plugin owns the target URL shape:

<MarkdownBlock
  content={"See [[wiki/entities/paperclip|Paperclip]]."}
  enableWikiLinks
  wikiLinkRoot="/wiki/page"
/>

Shared FileTree

Plugin UI can render the host file tree without importing host internals:

import { FileTree, type FileTreeNode } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

const nodes: FileTreeNode[] = [
  { name: "AGENTS.md", path: "AGENTS.md", kind: "file", children: [] },
  {
    name: "wiki",
    path: "wiki",
    kind: "dir",
    children: [
      { name: "index.md", path: "wiki/index.md", kind: "file", children: [] },
    ],
  },
];

export function WikiFiles() {
  return (
    <FileTree
      nodes={nodes}
      expandedPaths={["wiki"]}
      selectedFile="wiki/index.md"
      onToggleDir={(path) => console.log("toggle", path)}
      onSelectFile={(path) => console.log("select", path)}
    />
  );
}

Shared Assignee and Project Pickers

Use AssigneePicker and ProjectPicker when a plugin needs to create, filter, or configure work against Paperclip entities. Both are controlled components and load their options from the host for the provided company.

import { AssigneePicker, ProjectPicker } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

export function AssignmentControls({ companyId }: { companyId: string }) {
  const [assignee, setAssignee] = useState("");
  const [projectId, setProjectId] = useState("");

  return (
    <>
      <AssigneePicker
        companyId={companyId}
        value={assignee}
        onChange={(value, selection) => {
          setAssignee(value);
          console.log(selection.assigneeAgentId, selection.assigneeUserId);
        }}
      />
      <ProjectPicker
        companyId={companyId}
        value={projectId}
        onChange={setProjectId}
      />
    </>
  );
}

Slot component props

Each slot type receives a typed props object with context: PluginHostContext. Import from @paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui.

Slot type Props interface context extras
page PluginPageProps —
sidebar PluginSidebarProps —
routeSidebar PluginRouteSidebarProps —
settingsPage PluginSettingsPageProps —
dashboardWidget PluginWidgetProps —
globalToolbarButton PluginGlobalToolbarButtonProps —
detailTab PluginDetailTabProps entityId: string, entityType: string
toolbarButton PluginToolbarButtonProps entityId: string, entityType: string
commentAnnotation PluginCommentAnnotationProps entityId: string, entityType: "comment", parentEntityId: string, projectId, companyPrefix
commentContextMenuItem PluginCommentContextMenuItemProps entityId: string, entityType: "comment", parentEntityId: string, projectId, companyPrefix
projectSidebarItem PluginProjectSidebarItemProps entityId: string, entityType: "project"

Example detail tab with entity context:

import type { PluginDetailTabProps } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";
import { usePluginData } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

export function AgentMetricsTab({ context }: PluginDetailTabProps) {
  const { data, loading } = usePluginData<Record<string, string>>("agent-metrics", {
    agentId: context.entityId,
    companyId: context.companyId,
  });

  if (loading) return <div>Loading…</div>;
  if (!data) return <p>No metrics available.</p>;

  return (
    <dl>
      {Object.entries(data).map(([label, value]) => (
        <div key={label}>
          <dt>{label}</dt>
          <dd>{value}</dd>
        </div>
      ))}
    </dl>
  );
}

Launcher surfaces and modals

V1 does not provide a dedicated modal slot. Plugins can either:

  • declare concrete UI mount points in ui.slots
  • declare host-rendered entry points in ui.launchers

Supported launcher placement zones currently mirror the major host surfaces such as projectSidebarItem, globalToolbarButton, toolbarButton, detailTab, settingsPage, and contextMenuItem. Plugins may still open their own local modal from those entry points when needed.

Declarative launcher example:

{
  "ui": {
    "launchers": [
      {
        "id": "sync-project",
        "displayName": "Sync",
        "placementZone": "toolbarButton",
        "entityTypes": ["project"],
        "action": {
          "type": "openDrawer",
          "target": "sync-project"
        },
        "render": {
          "environment": "hostOverlay",
          "bounds": "wide"
        }
      }
    ]
  }
}

The host returns launcher metadata from GET /api/plugins/ui-contributions alongside slot declarations.

When a launcher opens a host-owned overlay or page, useHostContext(), usePluginData(), and usePluginAction() receive the current renderEnvironment through the bridge. Use that to tailor compact modal UI vs. full-page layouts without adding custom route parsing in the plugin.

Project sidebar item

Plugins can add a link under each project in the sidebar via the projectSidebarItem slot. This is the recommended slot-based launcher pattern for project-scoped workflows because it can deep-link into a richer plugin tab. The component is rendered once per project with that project’s id in context.entityId. Declare the slot and capability in your manifest:

{
  "ui": {
    "slots": [
      {
        "type": "projectSidebarItem",
        "id": "files",
        "displayName": "Files",
        "exportName": "FilesLink",
        "entityTypes": ["project"]
      }
    ]
  },
  "capabilities": ["ui.sidebar.register", "ui.detailTab.register"]
}

Minimal React component that links to the project’s plugin tab (see project detail tabs in the spec):

import {
  useHostNavigation,
  type PluginProjectSidebarItemProps,
} from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

export function FilesLink({ context }: PluginProjectSidebarItemProps) {
  const hostNavigation = useHostNavigation();
  const projectId = context.entityId;
  const projectRef = projectId; // or resolve from host; entityId is project id
  return (
    <a {...hostNavigation.linkProps(`/projects/${projectRef}?tab=plugin:your-plugin:files`)}>
      Files
    </a>
  );
}

Use optional order in the slot to sort among other project sidebar items. See §19.5.1 in the plugin spec and project detail plugin tabs (§19.3) for the full flow.

Toolbar launcher with a local modal

Two toolbar slot types are available depending on where the button should appear:

  • globalToolbarButton — renders in the top bar on every page, scoped to the company. No entity context. Use for workspace-wide actions.
  • toolbarButton — renders on entity detail pages (project, issue, etc.). Receives entityId and entityType. Declare entityTypes to control which pages the button appears on.

For short-lived actions, mount the appropriate slot type and open a plugin-owned modal inside the component. Use useHostContext() to scope the action to the current company or entity.

Project-scoped example (appears only on project detail pages):

{
  "ui": {
    "slots": [
      {
        "type": "toolbarButton",
        "id": "sync-toolbar-button",
        "displayName": "Sync",
        "exportName": "SyncToolbarButton",
        "entityTypes": ["project"]
      }
    ]
  },
  "capabilities": ["ui.action.register"]
}
import { useState } from "react";
import {
  useHostContext,
  usePluginAction,
} from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

export function SyncToolbarButton() {
  const context = useHostContext();
  const syncProject = usePluginAction("sync-project");
  const [open, setOpen] = useState(false);
  const [submitting, setSubmitting] = useState(false);
  const [errorMessage, setErrorMessage] = useState<string | null>(null);

  async function confirm() {
    if (!context.projectId) return;
    setSubmitting(true);
    setErrorMessage(null);
    try {
      await syncProject({ projectId: context.projectId });
      setOpen(false);
    } catch (err) {
      setErrorMessage(err instanceof Error ? err.message : "Sync failed");
    } finally {
      setSubmitting(false);
    }
  }

  return (
    <>
      <button type="button" onClick={() => setOpen(true)}>
        Sync
      </button>
      {open ? (
        <div
          role="dialog"
          aria-modal="true"
          className="fixed inset-0 z-50 flex items-center justify-center bg-black/40 p-4"
          onClick={() => !submitting && setOpen(false)}
        >
          <div
            className="w-full max-w-md rounded-lg bg-background p-4 shadow-xl"
            onClick={(event) => event.stopPropagation()}
          >
            <h2 className="text-base font-semibold">Sync this project?</h2>
            <p className="mt-2 text-sm text-muted-foreground">
              Queue a sync for <code>{context.projectId}</code>.
            </p>
            {errorMessage ? (
              <p className="mt-2 text-sm text-destructive">{errorMessage}</p>
            ) : null}
            <div className="mt-4 flex justify-end gap-2">
              <button type="button" onClick={() => setOpen(false)}>
                Cancel
              </button>
              <button type="button" onClick={() => void confirm()} disabled={submitting}>
                {submitting ? "Running…" : "Run sync"}
              </button>
            </div>
          </div>
        </div>
      ) : null}
    </>
  );
}

Prefer deep-linkable tabs and pages for primary workflows. Reserve plugin-owned modals for confirmations, pickers, and compact editors.

Real-time streaming (ctx.streams)

Plugins can push real-time events from the worker to the UI using server-sent events (SSE). This is useful for streaming LLM tokens, live sync progress, or any push-based data.

Worker side

In setup(), use ctx.streams to open a channel, emit events, and close when done:

const plugin = definePlugin({
  async setup(ctx) {
    ctx.actions.register("chat", async (params) => {
      const companyId = params.companyId as string;
      ctx.streams.open("chat-stream", companyId);

      for await (const token of streamFromLLM(params.prompt as string)) {
        ctx.streams.emit("chat-stream", { text: token });
      }

      ctx.streams.close("chat-stream");
      return { ok: true };
    });
  },
});

API:

Method Description
ctx.streams.open(channel, companyId) Open a named stream channel and associate it with a company. Sends a streams.open notification to the host.
ctx.streams.emit(channel, event) Push an event to the channel. The companyId is automatically resolved from the prior open() call.
ctx.streams.close(channel) Close the channel and clear the company mapping. Sends a streams.close notification.

Stream notifications are fire-and-forget JSON-RPC messages (no id field). They are sent via notifyHost() synchronously during handler execution.

UI side

Use the usePluginStream hook (see Hooks reference above) to subscribe to events from the UI.

Host-side architecture

The host maintains an in-memory PluginStreamBus that fans out worker notifications to connected SSE clients:

  1. Worker emits streams.emit notification via stdout
  2. Host (plugin-worker-manager) receives the notification and publishes to PluginStreamBus
  3. SSE endpoint (GET /api/plugins/:pluginId/bridge/stream/:channel?companyId=...) subscribes to the bus and writes events to the response

The bus is keyed by pluginId:channel:companyId, so multiple UI clients can subscribe to the same stream independently.

Streaming agent responses to the UI

ctx.streams and ctx.agents.sessions are complementary. The worker sits between them, relaying agent events to the browser in real time:

UI ──usePluginAction──▶ Worker ──sessions.sendMessage──▶ Agent
UI ◀──usePluginStream── Worker ◀──onEvent callback────── Agent

The agent doesn't know about streams — the worker decides what to relay. Encode the agent ID in the channel name to scope streams per agent.

Worker:

ctx.actions.register("ask-agent", async (params) => {
  const { agentId, companyId, prompt } = params as {
    agentId: string; companyId: string; prompt: string;
  };

  const channel = `agent:${agentId}`;
  ctx.streams.open(channel, companyId);

  const session = await ctx.agents.sessions.create(agentId, companyId);

  await ctx.agents.sessions.sendMessage(session.sessionId, companyId, {
    prompt,
    onEvent: (event) => {
      ctx.streams.emit(channel, {
        type: event.eventType,       // "chunk" | "done" | "error"
        text: event.message ?? "",
      });
    },
  });

  ctx.streams.close(channel);
  return { sessionId: session.sessionId };
});

UI:

import { useState } from "react";
import { usePluginAction, usePluginStream } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/ui";

interface AgentEvent {
  type: "chunk" | "done" | "error";
  text: string;
}

export function AgentChat({ agentId, companyId }: { agentId: string; companyId: string }) {
  const askAgent = usePluginAction("ask-agent");
  const { events, connected, close } = usePluginStream<AgentEvent>(`agent:${agentId}`, { companyId });
  const [prompt, setPrompt] = useState("");

  async function send() {
    setPrompt("");
    await askAgent({ agentId, companyId, prompt });
  }

  return (
    <div>
      <div>{events.filter(e => e.type === "chunk").map((e, i) => <span key={i}>{e.text}</span>)}</div>
      <input value={prompt} onChange={(e) => setPrompt(e.target.value)} />
      <button onClick={send}>Send</button>
      {connected && <button onClick={close}>Stop</button>}
    </div>
  );
}

Agent sessions (two-way chat)

Plugins can hold multi-turn conversational sessions with agents:

// Create a session
const session = await ctx.agents.sessions.create(agentId, companyId);

// Send a message and stream the response
await ctx.agents.sessions.sendMessage(session.sessionId, companyId, {
  prompt: "Help me triage this issue",
  onEvent: (event) => {
    if (event.eventType === "chunk") console.log(event.message);
    if (event.eventType === "done") console.log("Stream complete");
  },
});

// List active sessions
const sessions = await ctx.agents.sessions.list(agentId, companyId);

// Close when done
await ctx.agents.sessions.close(session.sessionId, companyId);

Requires capabilities: agent.sessions.create, agent.sessions.list, agent.sessions.send, agent.sessions.close.

Exported types: AgentSession, AgentSessionEvent, AgentSessionSendResult, PluginAgentSessionsClient.

Testing utilities

import { createTestHarness } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/testing";
import plugin from "../src/worker.js";
import manifest from "../src/manifest.js";

const harness = createTestHarness({ manifest });
await plugin.definition.setup(harness.ctx);
await harness.emit("issue.created", { issueId: "iss_1" }, { entityId: "iss_1", entityType: "issue" });

Bundler presets

import { createPluginBundlerPresets } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/bundlers";

const presets = createPluginBundlerPresets({ uiEntry: "src/ui/index.tsx" });
// presets.esbuild.worker / presets.esbuild.manifest / presets.esbuild.ui
// presets.rollup.worker / presets.rollup.manifest / presets.rollup.ui

Local dev server (hot-reload events)

paperclip-plugin-dev-server --root . --ui-dir dist/ui --port 4177

Or programmatically:

import { startPluginDevServer } from "@paperclipai/plugin-sdk/dev-server";
const server = await startPluginDevServer({ rootDir: process.cwd() });

Dev server endpoints:

  • GET /__paperclip__/health returns { ok, rootDir, uiDir }
  • GET /__paperclip__/events streams reload SSE events on UI build changes

Persistent application shell contributions

An appShellOverlay slot uses ui.action.register and the standard PluginWidgetProps context. It survives navigation and unmounts on account or company changes, sign-out and onboarding. Plugins own panel accessibility and request cleanup. See the distribution and lifecycle contract.

Project storage and task workspaces

A storage provider declares workspaceProvider: { modes: ["isolated_workspace"], strategies: ["git_worktree"] }, workspaces.manage, and resourceLifecycle: ["project"] (with events.subscribe). The same plugin must implement onResourceLifecycle and onWorkspaceOperation. Project lifecycle creates and retains the storage; workspace operations manage task checkouts in that storage. Execution remains a separate environment driver contract.

Set project.executionWorkspacePolicy.storageProviderPluginId to the installed plugin's UUID. Core then reserves an execution-workspace row and binds the task before it calls onWorkspaceOperation. Projects without this setting keep their current local behavior. Existing managed workspaces retain their original owner.

The hook receives a company, project, source revision, execution-workspace ID, lifecycle generation, deadline, and stable operation ID. Run and agent IDs are optional context. A storage hook must work without an environment lease, a live agent, or a filesystem mount on Core. It must reconcile ambiguous retries before repeating side effects. Use the workspace ID and generation to fence provider operations; the operation ID identifies a retry of the same request. Fresh inspections get a new operation ID so provider result caches cannot reuse an earlier checkout status. Prepare and removal retries retain their IDs.

  • prepare creates or restores the checkout. It returns an opaque, durable WorkspaceProviderBinding, a branch, and the starting commit. branchMode: "existing" must use an existing logical branch and must never reset its history. A provider may materialize a local ref from a confirmed existing remote branch. Retried preparation must keep local work. Providers may reject modes or strategies they do not support.
  • inspect reports tracked, untracked, and ignored/local-only changes, the current commit, merge state, and whether remote storage can recover it. Use null when a remote recovery or merge check is unknown.
  • remove checks the expected commit again and confirms removal. Busy, failed, unsafe, and uncertain removal must throw. Core requires a clean checkout and affirmative remote recovery or merge evidence before requesting removal.

References contain the installed plugin ID, project/source/workspace IDs, source revision, and opaque provider coordinates. They must not contain secrets. Core stores no local cwd for managed rows. /workspaces/<id> is a logical path in Core's existing run metadata; Core must not use it for filesystem access.

For the initial execution integration, select a task-capable environment driver from the same plugin. Core validates declared modes and strategies before it reserves a workspace. Core pins the binding on the environment lease and supplies it as PluginEnvironmentTaskParams.workspace. The execution hook resolves the provider reference to guest mounts and the actual working directory. Core rejects an execution driver from a different plugin. Native execution also requires the plugin Runner task bridge; Core refuses to fall back to a host Runner when that bridge is unavailable. This does not require merging the storage and execution interfaces.

Core's existing archive, reopen, and terminal cleanup fences also cover provider workspaces. The plugin must prevent project storage retirement while its task workspaces still contain local data. Repository source and storage owner changes are blocked while live managed workspaces depend on them. An authorized storage owner or source edit retires closed workspaces whose provider removal is confirmed; retired records cannot reopen. Inspection reconciles a pending restoration with its recorded request, advances its generation, and keeps the Core row closed. Cleanup must then inspect that generation afresh; it cannot reuse an earlier removal receipt. Direct removal refuses unresolved restoration intent. Core commits storage intent and recovery results with cleanup notifications so incremental terminal-workspace sweeps revisit changed records. Pending deletion is replayed before inspection, including after a lost removal result. File browsing and other Core-host filesystem operations are unavailable for managed storage.

Use createWorkspaceProviderHarness from @paperclipai/plugin-sdk/testing to validate hook inputs and outputs without allocating an execution environment.