Manual
Table Of Contents
- Table of Contents
- Preface
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Creating and Redistributing LNS Device Plug ins
- 3 How Plug ins Work with Directors
- How Plug ins Are Represented in the LNS Object Server
- How Plug ins are Installed and Made Visible to LNS
- How Plug ins Implement the Registration Command
- How Plug ins Respond to Commands from a Director Other than Registration
- How Directors Launch and Manipulate Plug ins
- What Plug ins Do When They Run in Standalone Mode
- Responding to Property Reads and Writes
- Uninstallation Issues
- Appendix A Standard Plug in Commands
- Appendix B Standard Plug in Properties
- Appendix C Standard Plug in Object Classes
- Appendix D Standard Plug in Exceptions
Purpose
This document describes how to write LNS plug-ins using .NET programming languages such as C#
and Visual Basic .NET. After reading this document, you should understand the basic mechanics of
how plug-ins work, and how to write a plug-in using the LNS Plug-in Framework.
Audience
Users of this document should have a basic understanding of the LNS Object Server, and experience
programming in C#, Visual Basic .NET, or another .NET programming language.
Software Requirements
Software requirements for computers running the LNS Plug-in Framework Developer’s Kit are listed
below:
• Microsoft Windows Vista™, Microsoft Windows XP, Windows 2000, or Windows Server 2003.
Echelon recommends that you install the latest service pack available from Microsoft for your
version of Windows.
• Microsoft .NET Framework Version 2.0 Redistributable Package. To check whether your
computer has this software and download it (if necessary), go to the Microsoft Windows Update
Web page at
http://update.microsoft.com.
• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Professional Edition or higher. Microsoft Visual Studio Express
editions may work, but they have not been tested.
• LNS Server Turbo Edition (3.22 or later).
• LNS Turbo plug-in director application. This may be the LonMaker Integration Tool Turbo
Edition (3.2 or later) or the LNS Turbo ADK Plug-in Director example application.
Content
This guide includes the following content:
•
Introduction: Describes the types of plug-ins that are used with LONWORKS networks, and it
describes how director applications request actions from plug-ins. Explains how the LNS Plug-in
Framework allows plug-ins to function in the .NET environment and interface with COM-based
director applications.
•
Creating and Redistributing LNS Device Plug-ins: Explains how to create an LNS device plug-in
project using the LNS Plug-in Framework Developer’s Kit, how to debug your plug-ins, and how
to create an installation project for your plug-in so that you can provide it to users.
•
How Plug-ins Work with Directors: Summarizes the life cycle of a plug-in. It describes how
plug-ins make themselves known to directors, how plug-ins let directors know what they can do,
and how directors and plug-ins interact. Provides examples of how these tasks should be
performed.
• Appendixes: Includes listings of standard plug-in commands, properties, classes, and exceptions;
a glossary that provides definitions for key terms and concepts associated with programming
plug-ins; and a demonstration of plug-in behavior using the example ACME C# plug-in that is
installed by the LNS Plug-in Framework Developer’s Kit.
Related Manuals
The following manuals provide supplemental information to the material in this guide. You can
download these documents from Echelon’s Web site at
www.echelon.com.