Modules

Menu: Development → Modules
Deep link: /_Admin/development/modules?SiteId={siteGuid}

Modules are installable Kooboo extensions: package views, APIs, scripts, static assets, and module.config in an isolated directory, expose capabilities via site routes, and can be edited in dev mode. Suitable for e-commerce plugins, form components, admin panels, and other reusable packages.

Permissions

List and dev mode: module (view). Create, import, online toggle, settings, export, share require module·edit; multi-select Delete requires module·delete.

Difference from site Code / View

	Modules	Development → Code / Views
Structure	Isolated directory (view/, api/, code/, etc.) + module.config	Single site resource records
Routes	Auto-register /_ModuleName/{part}	Per page / Code routes
Config	module.config + admin Settings dialog	No unified module config
Admin entry	module.config menu → site left menu (iframe)	None
Scripts	k.module.* (module context only)	k.site.codes, etc.

Script API: k.module.

How to Open

1. In Edit Menu, enable Development → Modules.
2. Open Development → Modules in the left sidebar.

Module list

Toolbar

Button	Permission	Description
Create	module·edit	New module dialog
Import	module·edit	Upload module zip (import dialog)
Search	module·edit	Kooboo app store online search and install

List table

Column / action	Description
Name	Click name to edit in dev mode (dev-mode?activity=modules&moduleId=...)
Online	Toggle whether module is active (ScriptModule/UpdateStatus)
Backend	If module has backend/ views, Manage button (different from menu sidebar below — Mount site admin menu)
Settings	Module settings dialog (settingDefines from module.config)
Readme	Renders root Readme.md (Markdown)
Export	Download current module zip
Share	Share to Kooboo package repository (confirmation required)

Supports multi-select Delete.

New module dialog

Enter Name (1–50 chars, letter or digit first). Creates module record and default directory (module.config, Readme.md, etc.); click name in list to continue in dev mode.

Import dialog

Field	Description
Name	Name after import; duplicate prompts replace confirmation
File	Module zip

On success refreshes list; Monaco module cache cleared for new code.

Module settings dialog

Settings reads root module.config (JSON). settingDefines describes admin fields (input, number, select, switch, textarea, etc.); save writes site-side module Settings (runtime: k.module.config).

Same file's menu mounts module to site admin left menu (next section), unrelated to Settings dialog — edit module.config in dev mode.

When never saved, form initializes from settingDefines defaultValue.

Readme

Readme icon opens Readme.md Markdown preview for installers.

Edit in dev mode

Click list Name (or dev mode sidebar Modules activity). Left groups by resource type:

Type	Directory	Purpose
root	Root files	module.config, Readme.md, event.js, task scripts, etc. (root files usually not deletable)
view	view/	Module pages (SSR/templates)
api	api/	Module API scripts (ModuleApi: reference)
code	code/	Reusable scripts (module: reference, e.g. main / index)
css / js	Static assets	Styles and scripts
img / file	Binary	Images and other files; upload supported
backend	backend/	Module admin UI (list Manage button)

Text files edit in right tabs (Monaco); Save, Refresh, Preview for views, etc. + beside group title creates files; binary types support Upload.

Dev mode top bar More returns to this list; Return exits current module file tree.

Mount site admin menu (menu)

Add menu object in module.config to show module as its own entry in site admin left menu (not the same as list Manage). On site admin login, Kooboo scans online modules' module.config; modules with both name and menu inject into sidebar.

Clicking loads module page in main area via iframe (route module-menu/:module, query url = resolved module view address).

Requirements

Condition	Description
Module online	List Online toggle on
module.config has name	Package name, matches module resource name
menu configured	See table below
Refresh admin	After menu change, re-enter site admin or refresh to reload moduleMenus

menu fields

Field	Required	Description
name	Yes	Sidebar display name
nameTranslation	No	Multilingual text, keys are language codes (e.g. zh, en) for current admin user language
parent	No	Under a top-level admin menu; value is that menu's menu.name in routes (e.g. content, commerce) — menu overview
url	No	Module view relative path (e.g. dashboard.html); empty uses default start view
icon	No	Icon: usually filename under img/, resolved as /_ModuleName/img/{filename}?SiteId=...
children	No	Sub-menu array; each item has name, nameTranslation, url (relative view path)

With children, sidebar shows expandable parent; each child row; child url resolves to /_ModuleName/{path}?SiteId={siteGuid}.

Example config

{
  "name": "my_shop_plugin",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "description": "Shop extension",
  "menu": {
    "name": "Shop Plugin",
    "nameTranslation": {
      "zh": "店铺插件",
      "en": "Shop Plugin"
    },
    "parent": "commerce",
    "url": "admin/dashboard.html",
    "icon": "plugin-icon.svg",
    "children": [
      {
        "name": "Order sync",
        "url": "admin/orders.html"
      },
      {
        "name": "Inventory",
        "url": "admin/stock.html"
      }
    ]
  },
  "settingDefines": []
}

• Example adds Shop Plugin under Commerce (parent: "commerce"), default view/admin/dashboard.html.
• view/admin/*.html can read Settings via k.module.config.
• If url starts with http:// or https://, module path is not prepended (external admin link).

vs list Manage button

	menu sidebar	List Manage
Config	module.config → menu	Module backend/ views + backendViewUrl from admin API
Entry	Daily site admin left menu	Development → Modules list row
Typical use	Operators using module features	Developers opening module backend during dev

Both can coexist: operators use sidebar, developers use list Manage for backend/.

Routes and access

On create, Kooboo registers routes like:

/_ModuleName/{part}

{part} is view, api, static path, etc. (module renderer). On name conflict, system tries ModuleName2, ModuleName3, … until available.

In module scripts, current module root URL is k.module.baseUrl (module execution context only).

Typical workflow

1. Create or Import / Search install.
2. In dev mode, write view/, api/, code/, maintain module.config, Readme.md.
3. For operator admin, configure menu and matching view/ pages in module.config.
4. Open Settings in list, fill settingDefines (maps to k.module.config).
5. Turn Online on; refresh site admin for sidebar; verify front-end /_ModuleName/....
6. Export zip or Share to package repo for other sites.

Related

Doc	Description
k.module	config, task, localFile, module.config conventions
Site admin menu overview	Top-level name values for menu.parent
Code	Site-level CodeBlock / API
Development overview	Development group index
Development · Jobs	Site k.site.runJob (different from module k.module.task)