Develop through an editable install

An editable wheel points discovery at the authored plugin root. This keeps selected source files available while you work on them.

Install the Python project in editable mode through a frontend that supports PEP 660:

python -m pip install -e packages/python

Then locate it by Python distribution name:

agent-plugins locate my-project

The printed path is the resolved authored plugin root.

What updates immediately

The editable form of the agent_plugins.json marker stores the authored root and the file paths selected at install time.

• Editing a selected plugin.json, mcp.json, or SKILL.md updates the source file.
• A new Plugin handle reads the current file contents when a document property is first accessed.
• plugin.files and plugin.skills remain limited to names recorded by the agent_plugins.json marker.

When to reinstall

Reinstall the editable distribution after adding, deleting, or moving plugin files:

python -m pip install -e packages/python

This regenerates the agent_plugins.json marker with a fresh build plan. Reinstall after moving the checkout too, because its root contains an absolute authored path.

Refresh a document handle

Manifest, MCP, and skill documents cache their first loaded value or error. Create a fresh handle after editing document contents:

import agent_plugins as ap

plugin = ap.locate("my-project")
print(plugin.manifest.name)

Calling ap.locate() again creates a new Plugin handle, then the next parsed-field access reads the document again.