Installing a plugin

We can install a plugin in three different ways. One way is to use the deploy.bat or deploy.sh script, another way is to use the install-plugin command in GShell, and the third way is to use the Administration Console to install a plugin from a plugin repository. We will discuss each of these methods:

• Using deploy.bat or deploy.sh file:

  The deploy.bat or deploy.sh script is found in the <GERONIMO_HOME>/bin directory. It has an option install-plugin, which can be used to install plugins onto the server. The command syntax is shown below:

  deploy install-plugin <path to the plugin car file>
  

  Running this command, and passing the path to the plugin .car archive on the disk, will result in the plugin being installed onto the Geronimo server. Once the installation has finished, an Installation Complete message will be displayed, and the command will exit.

• Using GShell:

  Invoke the gsh command from the command prompt, after changing the current directory to <GERONIMO_HOME>/bin. This will bring up the GShell prompt. In the GShell prompt, type the following command to install the plugin:

  deploy/install-plugin <path to the plugin car file>
  

  Please note that, you should escape special characters in the path by using a leading "" (back slash) before the character.

  Another way to install plugins that are available in remote plugin repository is by using the list-plugins command. The syntax of this command is as given below:

  deploy/list-plugins <URI of the remote repository>
  

  If a remote repository is not specified, then the one configured in Geronimo will be used instead. Once this command has been invoked, the list of available plugins in the remote repository is shown, along with their serial numbers, and you will be prompted to enter a comma separated list of the serial numbers of the plugins that you want to install.

• Using the Administration Console:

  The Administration Console has a Plugins portlet that can be used to list the plugins available in a repository specified by the user. You can use the Administration Console to select and install the plugins that you want from this list. This portlet also has the capability to export applications or services in your server instance as Geronimo plugins, so that they can be installed on other server instances. See the Plugin portletsection for details of the usage of this portlet.