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Basics & Prerequisites

The same requirements for Backstage development described in the Backstage documentation apply to plugin development. Below are the most important ones:

  • Node.js current LTS version (we recommend using nvm to manage it).
    • Install nvm from here.
  • Yarn version 4.4.1.
    • Enable Corepack: corepack enable, then set Yarn: yarn set version 4.4.1.
  • Git
  • A proper IDE (for example, VS Code).

Plugin guidelines​

A few critical points to consider when developing plugins:

  • Write plugin code in TypeScript.
  • Plan your project structure and folders to accelerate the development process.
  • Develop plugins alongside a vanilla Backstage repo that loads the plugin statically (as a local package).
  • Release plugins as npm packages (one static, one dynamic).
  • Avoid reinventing the wheel—check if a plugin already does what you need.
  • Build your UI with Backstage components and Material UI.

Official documentation​

The official Backstage documentation provides useful information on plugin development. We recommend reading it to gain a better understanding of the process.

important

Backstage frontend and backend systems have changed considerably over time. You may find outdated documentation in many places, as well as legacy plugins that work but do not adapt to the new systems or function as dynamic plugins.

VeeCode Plugin Development​

Continue reading our documentation to learn how to develop plugins for VeeCode DevPortal—the instructions are largely portable to any custom-built Backstage as well. Note that VeeCode DevPortal uses the same approach as Red Hat for dynamic plugins, so RHDH documentation may also be applicable.

Red Hat plugin development​

Much of the RHDH (Red Hat Developer Hub) documentation on plugins is applicable to VeeCode DevPortal plugin development; however, we embed (pre-install) a different set of plugins in DevPortal container images.