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Manifest Reference

Every plugin requires a manifest.json file. This reference documents every field, type, and API available to plugin developers.

Required Fields

Field Type Description
name string Unique plugin identifier. Use kebab-case (e.g. my-plugin). This is the primary key in the plugin database.
version string Semantic version (e.g. 1.0.0).
description string Short description shown in the marketplace and plugin list.
kind "esm" | "mcp" | "wasm" Plugin runtime kind. Determines how the plugin is loaded.
entryPoint string Path to the module, URL, or WASM binary. Relative to the manifest location.
runtime "deno" | "wasm" Execution target. deno for ESM/MCP, wasm for WebAssembly.
capabilities string[] Declared permissions and extension points. See Capabilities.

Optional Fields

Field Type Description
author string Author name or organization.
homepage string Plugin homepage URL.
license string SPDX license identifier (e.g. MIT).
repository string Source repository URL.
hash string SHA-256 hash of the entry point content for integrity verification.
signature string Optional GPG/JWT signature for trust verification.
dependencies Record<string, string> Other plugins required, keyed by name with semver constraints.
peerDependencies Record<string, string> Host CortexPrism version constraint (e.g. { "cortex": ">=1.0.0" }).
tools ToolDeclaration[] Tool definitions (names, params). ESM plugins provide the implementation in code.
cliCommands CliCommandDeclaration[] CLI subcommand specifications.
ui UiContribution UI panels, widgets, and settings forms.
config ConfigContribution Config schema extensions and defaults.
events string[] Event types the plugin subscribes to. See Plugin Events.

Plugin Kinds

ESM (kind: "esm")

JavaScript/TypeScript modules loaded via dynamic import(). The entry point module exports tools, lifecycle hooks, providers, and CLI commands. This is the most common and flexible plugin type.

Entry point example: ./mod.ts (relative to manifest location)

MCP (kind: "mcp")

Model Context Protocol servers. The entryPoint is a URL to an MCP server. CortexPrism creates a synthetic tool mcp_<pluginName> that wraps JSON-RPC 2.0 calls to the server.

Entry point example: https://my-mcp-server.example.com/rpc

MCP tool interface:

Tool name: mcp_<pluginName>
Params:
  - method (string, required) — JSON-RPC method to call
  - params (object, required) — method parameters

Each call sends POST <entryPoint> with body:

{ "jsonrpc": "2.0", "id": 1, "method": "<method>", "params": { ... } }

MCP plugins declare their tools in the manifest under the tools field for documentation, but the actual execution is handled by the MCP protocol bridge.

WASM (kind: "wasm")

WebAssembly modules. The entryPoint is a .wasm binary path. The WASM runtime expects two exports: plugin_init() and plugin_get_capabilities(). Host functions provided to the WASM instance include env.log, env.http_request, and env.store_get/env.store_set.

Note: WASM tool execution is currently stubbed and not yet implemented.

Capabilities

Capabilities serve dual purpose: they declare what extension points the plugin uses AND what permissions it needs.

Extension Point Capabilities

Value Description
tools Plugin provides Tool[] — tools are registered into the global agent tool registry
cli:commands Plugin provides CLI subcommands via cortex <name>
ui:panel Plugin provides a Web UI panel/tab served by the CortexPrism HTTP server
ui:widget Plugin provides a dashboard widget (HTML, chart, or table)
config:schema Plugin extends the config schema with new settings sections
config:provider Plugin provides an LLM provider factory (registered for agent use)
memory:store Plugin provides a custom memory backend (replaces default vector store)
memory:embedder Plugin provides an embedding provider (replaces default embedding model)
events:listener Plugin subscribes to the event bus — must be paired with the events manifest field
middleware:pre Plugin provides pre-execution middleware (runs before tools execute, can reject/modify args)
middleware:post Plugin provides post-execution middleware (runs after tools execute, can modify results)

Permission Capabilities

Value Description
fs:read Read filesystem access
fs:write Write filesystem access
fs:list Directory listing
fs:edit File editing
fs:delete File deletion
fs:search File searching
shell:run Shell command execution
network:fetch Outbound HTTP requests
net:outbound General outbound network access
net:inbound Inbound network (listening)
db:read Database read access
db:write Database write access

PluginModule Exports

ESM plugins export from their entry point module. The loader picks up these exports by name:

Export Type Description
tools Tool[] Tool implementations. Each tool has a definition and execute function.
cliCommands CliCommandDeclaration[] CLI subcommand declarations (redundant with manifest; prefer declaring in manifest).
providers Record<string, ProviderFactory> LLM provider factories keyed by provider kind. Each factory receives plugin config and returns a provider instance with name, defaultModel, complete(), and stream() methods.
onLoad (ctx: PluginContext) => Promise<void> Called when the plugin module is imported. Use for initialization.
onUnload (ctx: PluginContext) => Promise<void> Called when the plugin is disabled/removed. Use for cleanup.
onConfigChange (key: string, value: unknown, ctx: PluginContext) => Promise<void> Called when a config value changes at runtime.

Full Lifecycle Hooks

Plugins can also implement an extended PluginLifecycle interface with these hooks (exported by name from the module):

Hook Signature Called When
onInstall (ctx: PluginContext) => Promise<void> Plugin is first installed (manifest stored, files staged)
onLoad (ctx: PluginContext) => Promise<void> Module is loaded/imported into memory
onActivate (ctx: PluginContext) => Promise<void> Plugin transitions to active status — tools registered, providers bound, events subscribed
onDeactivate (ctx: PluginContext) => Promise<void> Plugin begins disabling — before tools are unregistered
onUnload (ctx: PluginContext) => Promise<void> Module is being unloaded from memory
onUninstall (ctx: PluginContext) => Promise<void> Plugin is being permanently removed (database row deleted, files cleaned)
onConfigChange (key: string, value: unknown, ctx: PluginContext) => Promise<void> A single config value changes at runtime

PluginContext API

Every lifecycle hook and tool execution receives a PluginContext with these properties:

ctx.pluginId: string

The plugin's unique name (from the manifest name field).

ctx.pluginDir: string

Absolute filesystem path to the plugin's directory under ~/.cortex/data/plugins/<name>/.

ctx.state: PluginStateStore

Key-value persistence scoped to this plugin. Data survives plugin reloads.

interface PluginStateStore {
  get(key: string): Promise<string | null>;
  set(key: string, value: string): Promise<void>;
  delete(key: string): Promise<void>;
  list(): Promise<Record<string, string>>;
}

ctx.config: PluginConfigStore

Typed access to the plugin's config section in ~/.cortex/config.json.

interface PluginConfigStore {
  get<T = unknown>(key: string): Promise<T | null>;
  set<T = unknown>(key: string, value: T): Promise<void>;
  getAll(): Promise<Record<string, unknown>>;
}

ctx.logger: PluginLogger

Scoped logger that prefixes messages with [plugin:<name>].

interface PluginLogger {
  info(msg: string): void;
  warn(msg: string): void;
  error(msg: string): void;
  debug(msg: string): void;
}

ctx.host: HostApi

Register/unregister tools at runtime (beyond what's exported from the module).

interface HostApi {
  registerTool(tool: Tool): void;
  unregisterTool(name: string): void;
}

Tool Interface

Plugins that export tools must implement the Tool interface:

interface Tool {
  definition: ToolDefinition;
  execute(args: Record<string, unknown>, context: ToolContext): Promise<ToolCallResult>;
}

interface ToolDefinition {
  name: string;
  description: string;
  params: ToolParam[];
  capabilities: ToolCapability[];
}

interface ToolParam {
  name: string;
  type: 'string' | 'number' | 'boolean' | 'object' | 'array';
  description: string;
  required?: boolean;
  enum?: string[];            // restrict values to this set
}

interface ToolCallResult {
  toolName: string;
  success: boolean;
  output: string;
  error?: string;
  durationMs: number;
}

interface ToolContext {
  sessionId: string;          // current agent session ID
  workingDir: string;         // current working directory
  agentId: string;            // agent executing this tool
  workspaceDir: string;       // agent workspace root
  approvalGate?: (tool: string, command: string) => Promise<boolean>;
}

type ToolCapability =
  | 'fs:read' | 'fs:write' | 'fs:list' | 'fs:edit' | 'fs:delete'
  | 'fs:search' | 'shell:run' | 'network:fetch' | 'db:read' | 'db:write';

Important: The ToolDefinition.capabilities array declares what permissions this specific tool needs at runtime. This is validated against the plugin's declared capabilities in the manifest.

Plugin Events

Plugins subscribe to events by declaring "events:listener" in capabilities and listing event types in the events manifest field (e.g. "events": ["session:start", "tool:post-execute"]).

The globalEventBus singleton dispatches these event types:

Event Type Payload Emitted When
session:start { sessionId: string } A new agent session begins
session:end { sessionId: string } An agent session ends
tool:pre-execute { toolName: string, args: Record<string, unknown> } Before any tool executes
tool:post-execute { toolName: string, result: unknown } After any tool executes
llm:pre-call { provider: string, model: string } Before an LLM API call
llm:post-call { provider: string, model: string, tokensIn: number, tokensOut: number } After an LLM API call
agent:turn-start { sessionId: string, turnId: string } Start of an agent reasoning turn
agent:turn-end { sessionId: string, turnId: string, response: string } End of an agent reasoning turn
config:change { key: string, value: unknown } A global or plugin config value changes
daemon:status { daemon: string, status: 'up' | 'down' } A background daemon status changes

Subscribing to Events in Code

Plugins can also subscribe programmatically via the globalEventBus:

import { globalEventBus } from 'cortex/plugins';

export const onLoad = async (ctx: PluginContext) => {
  globalEventBus.on('tool:post-execute', (event) => {
    ctx.logger.info(`Tool ${event.toolName} completed`);
  });
};

Middleware Capabilities

middleware:pre

Pre-execution middleware runs before any tool executes. The middleware can:

  • Reject the tool call by returning a failure result
  • Modify arguments before execution
  • Log or audit tool usage

Export preMiddleware from your module:

export const preMiddleware = async (toolName: string, args: Record<string, unknown>, ctx: PluginContext) => {
  if (toolName === 'dangerous_tool') {
    return { allowed: false, reason: 'Blocked by safety plugin' };
  }
  return { allowed: true, args }; // optionally modified args
};

middleware:post

Post-execution middleware runs after any tool executes. The middleware can:

  • Modify the result/output
  • Log execution metadata
  • Trigger side effects (notifications, webhooks)

Export postMiddleware from your module:

export const postMiddleware = async (toolName: string, result: ToolCallResult, ctx: PluginContext) => {
  ctx.logger.info(`Tool ${toolName} completed in ${result.durationMs}ms`);
  return result; // optionally modified result
};

ToolDeclaration

{
  "tools": [
    {
      "name": "my_tool",
      "description": "What this tool does",
      "params": [
        { "name": "input", "type": "string", "description": "Input value", "required": true },
        { "name": "mode", "type": "string", "description": "Operation mode", "required": false, "enum": ["fast", "accurate", "balanced"] }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

ToolDeclaration Params

Field Type Description
name string Parameter name (camelCase)
type "string" | "number" | "boolean" | "object" | "array" Parameter type
description string Human-readable description
required boolean Whether the parameter is required (default: false)
enum string[] Allowed values for string parameters

CliCommandDeclaration

{
  "cliCommands": [
    {
      "name": "my-cmd",
      "description": "My custom command",
      "args": [
        { "name": "target", "type": "string", "description": "Target to operate on", "required": true }
      ],
      "options": [
        { "name": "verbose", "type": "boolean", "description": "Verbose output", "flag": "-v" }
      ]
    }
  ]
}
Field Type Description
name string Subcommand name (kebab-case)
description string Shown in cortex --help
args object[] Positional arguments
args[].name string Argument name
args[].type string Argument type
args[].description string Argument description
args[].required boolean Whether required
options object[] Flag options (--name, -v)
options[].name string Option name (long form without --)
options[].type string Option type
options[].description string Option description
options[].flag string Short flag (e.g. -v, -o)

UiContribution

{
  "ui": {
    "panels": [
      { "id": "my-panel", "title": "My Panel", "icon": "star", "htmlPath": "./ui/panel.html" }
    ],
    "widgets": [
      { "id": "my-widget", "title": "My Widget", "type": "html", "config": {} }
    ],
    "settings": [
      {
        "section": "General",
        "fields": [
          { "key": "apiKey", "label": "API Key", "type": "secret", "defaultValue": "", "description": "Your API key for authentication" },
          { "key": "maxRetries", "label": "Max Retries", "type": "number", "defaultValue": 3, "description": "Maximum retry attempts" },
          { "key": "enabled", "label": "Enabled", "type": "boolean", "defaultValue": true },
          {
            "key": "mode", "label": "Mode", "type": "select",
            "defaultValue": "auto",
            "options": [
              { "label": "Automatic", "value": "auto" },
              { "label": "Manual", "value": "manual" }
            ]
          }
        ]
      }
    ]
  }
}

Panel Declaration

Field Type Description
id string Unique panel identifier
title string Tab title in the Web UI
icon string Icon name (optional)
htmlPath string Path to HTML file relative to manifest

Widget Declaration

Field Type Description
id string Unique widget identifier
title string Widget title
type "html" | "chart" | "table" Widget rendering type
config object Widget-specific configuration

UiSettingField Types

Type Description
text Single-line text input
number Numeric input
boolean Checkbox toggle
select Dropdown with options array
secret Password field (masked input)

UiSettingField Properties

Field Type Description
key string Config key name
label string Display label
type "text" | "number" | "boolean" | "select" | "secret" Input type
defaultValue any Default value
options { label: string, value: string }[] Choices for select type
description string Help text (optional)

ConfigContribution

{
  "config": {
    "providers": [
      { "kind": "my-provider", "label": "My Provider", "defaultModel": "my-model-v1" }
    ],
    "settings": {
      "defaultEndpoint": "https://api.example.com"
    }
  }
}
Field Type Description
providers object[] LLM provider declarations
providers[].kind string Provider identifier used in config
providers[].label string Display name
providers[].defaultModel string Default model name
settings object Default config values for this plugin

Trust Levels

Level Sandbox Permissions
untrusted Worker sandbox Limited to declared permissions
signed Worker sandbox Broader permissions based on signature
trusted In-process Full declared permissions

Trust level is set at install time and can be changed via cortex plugins permissions <name>.

PluginStatus States

Status Description
unloaded Plugin not currently loaded in memory
loading Plugin module is being imported/initialized
active Plugin is loaded, tools registered, running normally
unloading Plugin is being disabled and cleaned up
error Plugin failed to load or encountered a fatal error

Database Schema

Plugins are stored in the CortexPrism database. Each plugin gets a row with these columns:

Column Type Description
name TEXT Primary key — plugin identifier
version TEXT Current installed version
type TEXT Plugin kind (esm, mcp, wasm)
runtime TEXT Execution target (deno, wasm)
entry TEXT Entry point path/URL
manifest_json TEXT Full manifest as JSON string
declared_permissions TEXT Comma-separated capabilities
effective_permissions TEXT Resolved permissions after overrides
author TEXT Author name
description TEXT Plugin description
license TEXT SPDX license
source TEXT Install source URL/path
integrity_hash TEXT SHA-256 hash of entry point
enabled INTEGER 0 or 1
status TEXT Current PluginStatus
trust_level TEXT Trust level (untrusted, signed, trusted)
error_message TEXT Last error message if status is error
load_attempts INTEGER Number of load attempts
installed_at TEXT ISO timestamp
updated_at TEXT ISO timestamp
last_load_at TEXT ISO timestamp
dependencies_json TEXT JSON of dependencies and peerDependencies
config_schema_json TEXT JSON of ui.settings for form rendering