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Extending Product Function
Learn how to extend the function of HCL DevOps Deploy (Deploy).
Plug-ins
The HCL plug-ins provide tools for creating component processes and integrations. HCL plug-ins provides plug-ins for several common deployment processes, and others are available to integrate with a wide variety of tools, such as middleware tools, databases, and servers.
Example plug-in
A plug-in consists of one or more steps. A step represents a unit of functionality that can be user-configured and combined with other steps into a process. Creating a plug-in consists in defining its individual steps and then grouping them together for presentation in HCL DevOps Deploy (Deploy).
Step commands
The step's command element specifies the scripting tool that runs the step and identifies the file that contains the actual script.

Extending Product Function
Learn how to extend the function of HCL DevOps Deploy (Deploy).
- Plug-ins
  The HCL plug-ins provide tools for creating component processes and integrations. HCL plug-ins provides plug-ins for several common deployment processes, and others are available to integrate with a wide variety of tools, such as middleware tools, databases, and servers.
  - Creating plug-ins
    You can create your own plug-ins for use with HCL DevOps Deploy (Deploy). A plug-in consists of XML files and supporting script files that the plug-in requires.
  - Example plug-in
    A plug-in consists of one or more steps. A step represents a unit of functionality that can be user-configured and combined with other steps into a process. Creating a plug-in consists in defining its individual steps and then grouping them together for presentation in HCL DevOps Deploy (Deploy).
    - Step properties
      In the context of our discussion, properties are values that are used by the step's command. Step properties are defined with the property element.
    - Step commands
      The step's command element specifies the scripting tool that runs the step and identifies the file that contains the actual script.
      - create_file.groovy
        The create_file.groovy file contains the Groovy script that runs the step's command.
- Creating notification templates
  Notification templates are the basis for emails that the server sends to users after an event occurs on the server. You can create customized notification templates by modifying the default templates provided, or by creating new templates of your own.
- REST API reference
  You can use these REST interfaces to automate tasks.
- Command-line client (CLI) reference
  CLI is a command-line interface that provides access to the HCL DevOps Deploy (Deploy) server. It can be used to find or set properties and to run numerous functions.
- Process-as-code feature
  Programmatically manage processes with PAC language.

Step commands

The step's command element specifies the scripting tool that runs the step and identifies the file that contains the actual script.

The agent that runs the step downloads the plug-in and expects to find the script among the downloaded files. The agent must also have access to the scripting tool. Any other arguments that are required by the script or tool can also be specified with the arg file attribute. The arg file attributes should be defined in the order compatible with the scripting tool.

The Create File command script is written in Groovy. Groovy is scripting language similar to Java™. The following illustration shows a command that runs an external Groovy file that is named create_file.groovy.

An illustration of how you can write an external script and use it as part of a step

This command instructs the Groovy interpreter to run create_file.groovy (more about Groovy and the particulars of this file in the following section).

This line (which is part of every command):

<arg file="${PLUGIN_INPUT_PROPS}"/>

sends a file that contains the properties that are required by the step to the agent. The properties in the file are those properties that are furnished at runtime and others that are defined earlier that are required by the step. See Example plug-in. The ${PLUGIN_INPUT_PROPS} variable resolves to the location of this properties file.

And this line (which is also part of every command):

<arg file="${PLUGIN_OUTPUT_PROPS}"/>

refers to the file returned by the agent after finishing the step. The properties in this file are available to later steps in the process. The ${PLUGIN_OUTPUT_PROPS} variable resolves to the location of this properties file.