Manage Extensions

Use the Extension Manager to register, view currently registered, and load/unload/remove extensions.

Restriction: Ribbon, menus, and toolbars are hidden when an extension is unloaded. To perform a complete internal cleanup, you must restart. The newly introduced customized file menus are not unloaded in 2022.2.
  1. From the menu bar, click File and select Extensions from the file menu.
    The Extension Manager dialog opens.
  2. In the Extension Manager dialog, register and load an extension.
    1. Click Add Extension.
    2. Browse and select the directory with the desired extension.
      Important: The directory must contain the extension.xml file which defines the structure of the extension.
    3. To load the extension, enable the slider.
      Figure 1. Extension Manager with Loaded Extensions


  3. To unload an extension, disable the slider in the Extension Manager dialog.
  4. To unregister an extension, select the desired extension and click Remove in the Extension Manager dialog.
  5. Select the desired extension to see the Extension detailed view containing more information about the extension.
    The detailed view shows the location of the Extension and provides access to additional help in the Description area, if the extension provides it:
    Figure 2. Extension Detailed View


  6. Optional: To start with a pre-defined set of extensions, set the environment variable HWX_PLUGINS to add one or more directories separated by a comma.
    The Remove button for those directories is disabled.
    Figure 3.


  7. Disable the Remove button by using the removable keyword in the general section of the extensions.xml file. 
    <entry name="removable" value="true"/>