# Introduction

If you haven't already downloaded the IcePanel client you can do so by following the instructions on the IcePanel Demo section.

To quickly get up and running with a plugin development environment you can use our Yoeman generator.

npm install --global yo generator-icepanel
# or
yarn global add yo generator-icepanel

yo icepanel

For examples on how to create plugins please check out the official ice-plugins repository.

# Packages

• @icepanel/core - Core elements and base classes for plugin development.
• @icepanel/core-frontend - Angular module and helper services for frontend components.
• @icepanel/webpack - Webpack plugin for compilation and live reloading of IcePacks.

# Plugin types

• AppPlugin - e.g. Apache or MySQL
• ToolPlugin - e.g. terminal or file manager
• EnginePlugin - e.g. Docker or Kubernetes
• NetworkPlugin - e.g. bridge or overlay
• VolumePlugin - e.g. local or bind

# Terminology

• Prototype - The specification for an IcePanel deployment, stored in a icepanel.yml file.
• Environment - The runtime instance of an IcePanel deployment (created from a prototype).
• Designer - The interface for editing a prototype or viewing an environment.
• IcePack - The file format for storing plugins, an IcePack can contain one or more plugins.

# Plugin components

Plugins consist of one or more components which are compiled and executed independently.

• Backend - Interacts with IcePanel core, one instance per deployed item.
• Frontend - Runs in the clients browser, one instance per view opened in the browser.