Publishing and versions

Publishing involves creating a plugin listing and submitting a version for moderation. The listing appears in the public catalog after the first version is approved. You need a Block Display account and a prepared plugin file.

Plugin identity

Before publishing, distinguish these four values:

Value	Where it is used
@name in JS	The plugin name when installing a local file.
@namespace in JS	The identifier used to save a local file and replace an existing installation.
Listing slug	The permanent identifier in the catalog and page URL. Used as the namespace when installing from the catalog.
Version	Read from @version for a local file; taken from the selected published version for a catalog installation.

For each release, use the same version in the header and catalog form, and align the namespace with the slug. Otherwise, local and catalog installations with different identifiers will be separate plugins. During installation, catalog metadata takes precedence over the file header, including the name, description, author, and icon.

Check the file structure and metadata. The local loader does not require @version and defaults to 1.0.0 when it is omitted, but the version submission form requires a number.

Prepare the submission

For the listing, prepare the following:

Field	Requirements
Plugin name	Required, up to 70 characters.
Icon	A required JPG, PNG, or WebP image, up to 10 MB and 24 million pixels. It is cropped to a centered square and converted to a 256 × 256 WebP image.
Plugin slug	A unique value of 4-64 characters: lowercase Latin letters, digits, and hyphens. A hyphen cannot be the first or last character. The slug cannot be changed after creation.
Description	Optional text, up to 1,000 characters, without HTML formatting.

An example slug is my-useful-plugin. Briefly describe what the tool does, its main actions, and any significant limitations, including dependencies on editor internals if applicable.

For the version, prepare the following:

Field	Requirements
Version	Three numeric parts separated by dots, such as 1.0.0. Suffixes such as -beta are not supported.
JavaScript file	One nonempty UTF-8 .js file, up to 512 KB. Upload the file itself, not a ZIP archive.
Changelog	Optional text, up to 1,000 characters. For the first release, you can list the main features.

The number format is a catalog form requirement. It does not impose additional rules on the meaning of each numeric part. For maintenance, use a clear version sequence and describe changes in behavior.

Before submitting, install the exact prepared file in Release. Check the main workflow, closing and reopening windows, project integrity, and behavior after a restart. See the full list of test scenarios.

Publish through Dev Studio

1. Sign in to your Block Display account. Click your avatar in the top menu and select Dev Studio, or open Dev Studio directly.
2. Click Publish or select New plugin in the sidebar.
3. Fill in the name, icon, slug, and optional description. Click Publish plugin.
4. The version list for the new listing opens. The plugin is not yet in the public catalog.
5. Click Add a new plugin version, enter the version number, choose the .js file, and optionally fill in the changelog.
6. Click Submit version. The version list will show the Under moderation status.

Screenshots are optional. After creating the listing, click Edit plugin. In the Screenshots section, click Add screenshots. You can upload up to five JPG, PNG, or WebP images. Each must be at least 1280 px wide and 720 px high, no larger than 10 MB, and no more than 24 million pixels.

The first screenshot is the main one. Reorder screenshots by dragging them or using the arrows. Screenshots are saved as soon as they are uploaded; they can be replaced or removed.

Check the moderation result in Dev Studio > Versions for your plugin:

• An approved version receives the Approved status and Current label. After the first approval, the plugin becomes publicly available in the catalog.
• If a version is rejected, fix the file and submit it again. You may reuse the number of a rejected version.
• A version still under moderation can be deleted and uploaded again.

Verify installation and updates

Find your plugin through Browse > BDE Plugins, the plugins section, or the Community plugins link in Dev Studio. Its page URL is formed from the slug: https://www.block-display.com/plg/my-useful-plugin/.

The page includes a description, screenshots, comments, a history of approved versions, Install for the web editor, and Open in BDEngine App. In the editor, the user selects a version and confirms installation. My plugins then offers to restart BDEngine. The new version starts running after that restart.

Verify installation from the catalog page even if the local .js already worked: check the selected version and displayed metadata, rule out a second test copy with a different namespace, and repeat the main workflow. The user instructions are in editor plugins.

To release an update, keep the existing listing. Open Dev Studio > Versions > Add a new plugin version, enter a new number, upload the changed .js, and submit it for moderation. The previous approved version remains available while the update is being reviewed. After approval, the new version becomes current. You cannot reuse the number of an already approved version.

Approving a new version does not replace code inside an editor that is already open. The user installs the update and restarts BDEngine. Include the transition from the previous version in your checks for every release.