Managing Extensions & Store

OpenClip allows users to install community extensions and create custom search or script actions directly from the application interface or terminal.

Extension Store & Remote Installation#

OpenClip features a built-in Extension Store browser in Preferences > Extension Store.

Preferences > Extension Store
├── Browse official & community extensions
├── View extension details, actions, and author metadata
└── Click 'Install' to download and activate extensions instantly

How Remote Installation Works#

1. ExtensionsAPIClient fetches the published extensions catalog.
2. RemoteExtensionInstaller downloads the extension archive .zip or .openclipext bundle.
3. ExtensionManager.installExtension(from:) extracts and verifies the extension in ~/.openclip/extensions/.
4. ExtensionManager reloads the extensions catalog and registers new actions with ActionRegistry.

The official & community catalog is published from the open openclip-extensions repository (a git submodule at Extensions/); build, Releases, and download stats all live there. The app and the store talk only to the extension store API. Cloning the app repo requires git submodule update --init to populate Extensions/.

Manual Installation of Extensions & Scripts#

You can manually install extensions or standalone script files by placing them directly into your local extensions directory:

~/.openclip/extensions/

Installation File Types#

• Extension Bundles (.openclipext): Folders containing manifest.json and code files.
• Zip Archives (.zip): Compressed extension packages automatically unzipped by ExtensionManager.
• Standalone Scripts (.sh, .py, .js, .applescript): Single script files with comment header metadata.

Creating Custom Actions in GUI#

You can create custom web search links or inline shell scripts without writing extension manifests:

1. Open Preferences > Actions.
2. Click + Add Custom Action.
3. Choose the action type:

• URL Template: Enter a title, SF Symbol icon, and URL string (e.g. https://google.com/search?q={query}).
• Shell Script: Enter a script command or inline snippet (e.g. tr '[:lower:]' '[:upper:]').

4. Click Save.

Storage & Persistence#

• Custom actions created in the GUI are written as single-action manifest packages by CustomActionManifestWriter: ~/Library/Application Support is not used; the package lives at ~/.openclip/extensions/<id>/openclip.json and loads through the same extension scan as installed extensions. (custom_actions.json and CustomActionManager are retired.)