The following is included the README file of the NMIS8 source code, you can find the original here: https://github.com/Opmantek/nmisnmis8/blob/masternmis8_dev/install/plugins/README
For a NMIS 9 reference guide, please check the following documentation.
NMIS
...
plugins
...
...
NMIS
...
code
...
plugins
...
are
...
meant
...
to
...
augment
...
and
...
extend
...
the
...
update
...
and
...
collect
...
functionality,
...
if
...
and
...
when
...
classic
...
modelling
...
doesn't
...
suffice
...
to
...
handle
...
a
...
particular
...
scenario.
...
Each plugin
...
must
...
be
...
valid
...
perl,
...
be
...
named
...
X.pm,
...
must
...
have
...
a
...
'package
...
X;'
...
line,
...
and
...
its
...
package
...
name
...
must
...
not
...
clash
...
with
...
the
...
other
...
NMIS
...
components.
...
the
...
plugin
...
MUST
...
NOT
...
use
...
Exporter
...
to
...
export
...
anything
...
from
...
its
...
namespace.
it's
...
recommended
...
that
...
the
...
plugin
...
have
...
a
...
version
...
declaration
...
right
...
after
...
the
...
package
...
line,
...
i.e.
...
'our
...
$VERSION
...
=
...
"1.2.3";'
...
The plugin
...
may
...
load
...
extra
...
perl
...
modules
...
with
...
use
...
or
...
require,
...
but
...
it
...
must
...
not
...
use
...
any
...
package-level
...
global
...
variables.
...
all
...
its
...
variables
...
and
...
any objects that
...
it
...
might
...
create
...
must
...
have
...
local
...
scope.
...
A plugin
...
can
...
offer
...
one
...
or
...
more
...
of
...
the
...
functions
...
update_plugin(),
...
collect_plugin()
...
after_update_plugin()
...
or
...
after_collect_plugin().
collect_plugin
...
and
...
update_plugin
...
---------------------------------
...
These functions
...
will
...
be
...
called
...
for
...
each
...
node
...
in
...
sequence,
...
independently (and
...
possibly
...
in
...
separate
...
processes),
...
at
...
the
...
end
...
of
...
the collect/update
...
operation.
...
all
...
existing
...
valid
...
plugins
...
will
...
be
...
loaded,
...
and all available
...
update_plugin()/collect_plugin()
...
functions
...
will
...
be
...
applied
...
to every node
...
regardless
...
of
...
the
...
plugins
...
success
...
or
...
failure
...
indications.
the
...
calling
...
interface
...
is
...
the
...
same
...
for
...
both
...
functions:
| Code Block |
|---|
sub update_plugin(node => nodename, sys => live sys object, |
...
config => read-only configuration object/hash) |
...
sub collect_plugin(node => nodename, sys => live sys object, |
...
config => configuration object/hash, treat as read-only) |
...
The plugin
...
can
...
modify
...
any
...
node
...
attributes
...
via
...
sys
...
where
...
required.
...
it
...
may
...
call
other
...
nmis
...
code
...
(but
...
care
...
needs
...
to
...
be
...
taken
...
of
...
nmmis
...
config/table
...
caching
...
if
...
that
...
is
...
done).
...
neither
...
the
...
local
...
config
...
object
...
nor
...
the
...
global
...
nmis
...
config
must
...
be
...
modified
...
by
...
a
...
plugin.
return
...
values:
-
...
(0
...
or
...
undef,rest
...
ignored)
...
means
...
no
...
changes
...
were
...
made,
...
or
...
that
...
the
plugin
...
declined
...
to
...
run
...
altogether
...
(because
...
this
...
node
...
has
...
a
non-matching
...
model
...
for
...
example)
-
...
(1,rest
...
ignored)
...
means
...
changes
...
were
...
made
...
to
...
the
...
sys
...
object,
...
and
...
nmis
will
...
save
...
the
...
nodeinfo
...
and
...
view
...
components.
-
...
(2,list
...
of
...
error
...
messages)
...
means
...
the
...
plugin
...
failed
...
to
...
work
...
and
...
NMIS
should
...
please
...
log
...
the
...
error
...
messages.
...
no
...
nodeinfo/view
...
saving
...
will
...
be
...
performed.
after_update_plugin()
...
and
...
after_collect_plugin():
-------------------------------------------------
these
...
functions
...
will
...
be
...
called
...
ONCE
...
at
...
the
...
end
...
of
...
the
...
respective
...
operation,
after
...
all
...
the
...
nodes
...
were
...
handled.
...
there
...
is
...
thus
...
no
...
node
...
context
...
for
...
these
plugin
...
functions.
just
...
like
...
with
...
the
...
per-node
...
functions,
...
all
...
existing
...
valid
...
plugins
...
will
...
be
...
loaded
...
and
...
all
...
available
...
after_update_plugin()/after_collect_plugin()
...
functions
...
will
...
be
...
run
...
in
...
sequence.
the
...
calling
...
interface
...
is
...
the
...
same
...
for
...
both
...
functions:
sub
...
after_update_plugin(nodes
...
=>
...
list
...
of
...
nodes
...
that
...
were
...
handled,
...
sys
...
=>
...
live
...
sys
...
object,
...
config
...
=>
...
read-only
...
configuration
...
object/hash)
sub
...
after_collect_plugin(nodes
...
=>
...
list
...
of
...
nodes
...
that
...
were
...
handled,
sys
...
=>
...
live
...
sys
...
object,
config
...
=>
...
configuration
...
object/hash,
...
treat
...
as
...
read-only)
the
...
sys
...
object
...
is
...
the
...
'global'
...
one
...
used
...
for
...
calculating
...
system-wide
...
metrics
and
...
so
...
on.
...
the
...
plugin
...
can
...
modify
...
any
...
attributes
...
via
...
sys
...
where
...
required.
...
it
...
may
...
call
...
other
...
nmis
...
code
...
(but
...
care
...
needs
...
to
...
be
...
taken
...
of
...
nmis
...
config/table
...
caching
...
if
...
that
...
is
...
done).
...
neither
...
the
...
local
...
config
...
object
...
nor
...
the
...
global
...
nmis
...
config
...
must
...
be
...
modified
...
by
...
a
...
plugin.
return
...
values:
-
...
(0
...
or
...
undef,rest
...
ignored)
...
means
...
no
...
changes
...
were
...
made,
...
or
...
that
...
the
plugin
...
declined
...
to
...
run
...
altogether
...
(for
...
example,
...
because
...
the
...
environment
...
doesn't
...
match
...
the
...
plugin's
...
needs)
-
...
(1,rest
...
ignored)
...
means
...
changes
...
were
...
made
...
to
...
the
...
sys
...
object,
...
and
...
nmis
should
...
save
...
the
...
nodeinfo
...
and
...
view
...
components.
-
...
(2,list
...
of
...
error
...
messages)
...
means
...
the
...
plugin
...
failed
...
to
...
work
...
and
...
NMIS
should
...
please
...
log
...
the
...
error
...
messages.
...
no
...
nodeinfo/view
...
saving
...
will
...
be
...
performed.