How do I structure a plugin architecture?

A plugin architecture allows developers to create extensible applications. It involves defining a core application that enables the loading of plugins at runtime. Below is a simple example of how to structure a plugin architecture in C++.

// Core application class class Application { public: void loadPlugin(Plugin* plugin) { plugin->initialize(); plugins.push_back(plugin); } void run() { for (auto& plugin : plugins) { plugin->execute(); } } private: std::vector plugins; }; // Plugin interface class Plugin { public: virtual ~Plugin() {} virtual void initialize() = 0; virtual void execute() = 0; }; // Example plugin implementation class ExamplePlugin : public Plugin { public: void initialize() override { // Plugin initialization code } void execute() override { // Code to execute the plugin } }; int main() { Application app; ExamplePlugin examplePlugin; app.loadPlugin(&examplePlugin); app.run(); return 0; }

Plugin architecture C++ extensible applications software design patterns