Where to start?

[z0ltan]

Hello all,


Years back when I did VI-SDK development, the situation was like this - the documentation sucked, but it wasn't too difficult to get one's head around the limited documentation and available features in VMware world.


Now, I have to work on a project to develop customized vCenter plugins for vSphere 5.5 and above, and while the documentation still sucks, it's become extremely difficult to navigate one's way around this messy lake of jargons, high falutin' names, and general lack of coordination on the VMware site. 


Does anybody have any handy tips to get started on? I already have the vSphere Web Client documentation. So where do I start to make sense of it all if all I want is to develop a plugin for vSphere 5.5 and above? 


Cheers,


Timmy


 

[laurentsd]

The Web Client SDK bits comes with a lot of samples, and a tutorial doc for Flex or HTML plugins  (see docs/ and samples/ directories).  I would start there.

Let us know what specific part of the documentation can be improved. Thanks!

[z0ltan]

Thanks, laurentsd. I suppose I'll start off there, and get back in case I run into any issues!

Cheers,

Timmy

[z0ltan]

Just another quick question  - I know that the vSphere thick client (desktop client) will probably be deprecated in the future. However, is the process for developing plugins for the Web Client and the thick client essentially different? Or is it that with minimal effort I could deploy my solution to both platforms?


Thanks!


 

[laurentsd]

We don't recommend to develop plugins for the C# client anymore since it's going to be deprecated but if you really need a plugin for both clients you should start with a script plugin for the C# client, and then either run it as is in the Web Client or convert it to a full HTML plugin if you want to take advantage for the added extensibility of the Web client.

[z0ltan]

Hmmm... okay, thanks for the response, mate. I think I can go with the Web Client alone for the prototype, and maybe I can follow the course you've outlined for the final deliverables. Thanks for the help! Much appreciated.