Creating transformation providers in plug-ins

You can add transformation providers to existing Eclipse plug-ins that declare instances of the extension point named com.ibm.xtools.transform.core.transformationProviders. A transformation provider is the mechanism that defines transformations, which appear as transformation elements in the plug-in manifest file.

Before you begin

You must have a plug-in manifest file open in the manifest editor. The manifest file must contain at least one instance of the transformation provider extension point.

About this task

Typically, a transformation plug-in contains one transformation provider; however, you can add transformation providers to organize the transformations in the plug-in manifest editor. Organizing transformations in this way affects only how transformations are displayed in the manifest editor. For example, if a project contains transformations for multiple domains, you might create a transformation provider for each domain. Creating multiple transformation providers does not change the order in which transformations run.

To add a transformation provider to a plug-in:

Procedure

  1. In the plug-in manifest editor, on the Extensions tab, in the pane under the All Extensions area, click an instance of the transformation provider extension point and click Add.
    Tip: You can also right-click an instance of a transformation provider extension point; then click New > Extension.
  2. In the New Extension wizard, on the Extension Point Selection page, on the Extension Wizards tab, click Transformation Templates, click Transformation Providers, and click Next.
  3. In the Transformation Providers wizard, on the New Transformation Provider page, specify the information about the package that contains the transformation provider.
    Note: For more information about the other fields on this page and the remaining pages in the wizard, see the context-sensitive help by pressing F1 when that page is displayed in the product. If you are using the Linux platform, for more information about the other fields on this page and the remaining pages in the wizard, see the context-sensitive help by pressing Shift+F1 when that page is displayed in the product.
  4. Optional: To complete the remaining pages in the wizard, click Next.
  5. Click Finish.

Results

A new transformation provider and transformation element are added to the plug-in manifest file, and are displayed in the plug-in manifest editor, on the Extensions tab, under the All Extensions area. In the Eclipse plug-in, the src/project name/transformationProvider folder contains the generated Java files for the transformation provider and the transformation. The transformation provider registers the transformation with the transformation service.
Note: If you create a new project by using the Plug-in with Transformation template, you can specify this information on the New Transformation Provider page of the New Transformation Authoring Project wizard.

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