Documentation/4.2/Developers/Tutorials/BundleModulesIntoExtension
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An extension could be seen as a delivery package bundling together one or more Slicer modules. After installing an extension, the associated modules will be presented to the user as built-in ones
The Slicer community maintains a website referred to as the Slicer Extensions Catalog to support finding, downloading and installing of extensions. Access to this website is integral to Slicer and facilitated by the Extensions Manager functionality built into the distributed program.
The Catalog classifies extensions into three levels of compliance:
- Category 1: Fully compliant Slicer Extensions: Slicer license, open source, maintained.
- Category 2: Open source, contact exists.
- Category 3: All other extensions (work in progress, beta, closed source etc).
To publish extensions, developers should consider reading the following pages:
Extensions are packaged against a specific version of Slicer, to be distributed and available for a revision X of Slicer, extensions have to be build against that same revision of Slicer. Otherwise, an extension will be considered as incompatible.
Contents
Extension bundles N modules
CMake variables
In case an extension is expected to bundle more than one module, the following CMake variables could be defined:
List of partially supported CMake variables:
CMake variable | Description |
---|---|
EXTENSION_STATUS
|
Give people an idea what to expect from this code |
Project layout
The code should be organized as illustrated below:
MyExtension <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Top-level folder of the extension project | |-- CMakeLists.txt | |-- MyExtension.png | |-- MyCLIModule | | | |-- CMakeLists.txt | | | |-- MyCLIModule.cxx | | | |-- MyCLIModule.xml . . . . | |-- MyLoadableModule | |-- CMakeLists.txt | |-- qSlicerMyLoadableModuleModule.cxx | |-- qSlicerMyLoadableModuleModule.h . .
Top-level CMakeLists.txt
The top-level CMakeLists.txt
could be organized as reported below:
cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 2.8.8) #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- if(NOT Slicer_SOURCE_DIR) <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_NAME MyExtension) <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_HOMEPAGE "http://www.slicer.org/slicerWiki/index.php/Documentation/4.1/Extensions/${EXTENSION_NAME}") <- - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_CATEGORY "Examples") <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_CONTRIBUTORS "Jean-Christophe Fillion-Robin (Kitware)") <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_DESCRIPTION "This is an example of extension bundling a CLI, a loadable and a scripted module") <- - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_ICONURL "http://viewvc.slicer.org/viewvc.cgi/Slicer4/trunk/Extensions/Testing/LoadableExtensionTemplate/Resources/Icons/LoadableExtensionTemplate.png?revision=19437&view=co") endif() <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- if(NOT Slicer_SOURCE_DIR) find_package(Slicer REQUIRED) include(${Slicer_USE_FILE}) endif() #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- add_subdirectory(MyCLIModule) add_subdirectory(MyLoadableModule) [...] #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- if(NOT Slicer_SOURCE_DIR) <- - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC include(${Slicer_EXTENSION_CPACK}) <- - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC endif() <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC
Possible tweak of Module level CMakeLists.txt
During the development process, it could be useful to be able to build each module against a given slicer build tree without having to build the complete extensions, to do so the CMakeLists.txt
of each module could include find_package(Slicer REQUIRED)
.
For example, the CMakeLists.txt
of MyCLIModule
module that would be bundled into MyExtension
could include the following code:
cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 2.8.8) #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- set(MODULE_NAME MyCLIModule) # Do not use 'project()' #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- if(NOT Slicer_SOURCE_DIR) find_package(Slicer REQUIRED) include(${Slicer_USE_FILE}) endif() [...]
Extension bundles 1 module
This section describes how a developer could write (or update) the CMakeLists.txt
of a regular Slicer module so that it could be packaged and published as an extension.
CMake variables
In case an extension is expected to bundle exactly one module, the CMake variables to define an extension are detailed above.
Project layout
In this case the extension should be organized as illustrated below:
MyLoadableModuleExtension <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Top-level folder of the extension project | |-- CMakeLists.txt | |-- qSlicerMyLoadableModuleExtensionModule.cxx | |-- qSlicerMyLoadableModuleExtensionModule.h . .
Top-level CMakeLists.txt
The top-level CMakeLists.txt
could be organized as reported below:
cmake_minimum_required(VERSION 2.8.8) #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- if(NOT Slicer_SOURCE_DIR) <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_NAME MyLoadableModuleExtension) <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_HOMEPAGE "http://www.slicer.org/slicerWiki/index.php/Documentation/4.1/Extensions/${MODULE_NAME}") <- - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_CATEGORY "Examples") <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_CONTRIBUTORS "Jean-Christophe Fillion-Robin (Kitware)") <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_DESCRIPTION "This is an example of Qt loadable module built as an extension") <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC set(EXTENSION_ICONURL "http://viewvc.slicer.org/viewvc.cgi/Slicer4/trunk/Extensions/Testing/LoadableExtensionTemplate/Resources/Icons/LoadableExtensionTemplate.png?revision=19437&view=co") endif()<- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- set(MODULE_NAME MyLoadableModuleExtension) set(MODULE_TITLE ${MODULE_NAME}) string(TOUPPER ${MODULE_NAME} MODULE_NAME_UPPER) #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- if(NOT Slicer_SOURCE_DIR) find_package(Slicer REQUIRED) include(${Slicer_USE_FILE}) endif() #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- add_subdirectory(Logic) #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- set(MODULE_EXPORT_DIRECTIVE "Q_SLICER_QTMODULES_${MODULE_NAME_UPPER}_EXPORT") [...] #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- slicerMacroBuildQtModule( NAME ${MODULE_NAME} TITLE ${MODULE_TITLE} EXPORT_DIRECTIVE ${MODULE_EXPORT_DIRECTIVE} INCLUDE_DIRECTORIES ${MODULE_INCLUDE_DIRECTORIES} SRCS ${MODULE_SRCS} MOC_SRCS ${MODULE_MOC_SRCS} UI_SRCS ${MODULE_UI_SRCS} TARGET_LIBRARIES ${MODULE_TARGET_LIBRARIES} RESOURCES ${MODULE_RESOURCES} ) #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- if(BUILD_TESTING) add_subdirectory(Testing) endif() #----------------------------------------------------------------------------- if(NOT Slicer_SOURCE_DIR) <- - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC include(${Slicer_EXTENSION_CPACK}) <- - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC endif() <- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - EXTENSION SPECIFIC