Before deploying your plugin to end-users, you will need to obtain a AIM Plugin Deployment Key from developer.aim.com, and specify this deployment key for the UUID for your class. To simplify things, you can set up different build configurations with the development and deployment keys; for example, you could have a "Debug" configuration with the development key and a "Release" configuration with the deployment key. You can make this happen with conditional compilation in the code shown below:
. . .
namespace MyPlugin
{
///
<summary>
/// Summary description for
Class1.
///
</summary>
#if DEBUG
[GuidAttribute("your-development-key-here")]
#else
[GuidAttribute("your-deployment-key-here")]
#endif
public
class Class1 : IAccPlugin, IAccCommandTarget
{
. . .
Once you have built a "Release" version of your plugin, you will need to generate a fingerprint for your plugin DLL using the acchash.exe tool included in the devtools folder of the SDK. Once you have generated the fingerprint, add the hexadecimal value returned from acchash.exe to your plugin deployment key on the developer.aim.com website. This helps ensure that nobody else can use your deployment key.

At this point, the release DLL is now ready to be distributed on users' machines. For convenience, we have included an NSIS install script that will take the DLL and install and register it on users' machines. To compile the NSIS script, you will need to go to download the latest NSIS build. You can use Notepad to open PluginInstallExample_CSharp.nsi to make modifications specific to your plugin in the script. Finally, compile the NSIS script and the resulting .exe is what you will need to post for users to download. Congratulations, you have just built and deployed your first plugin!
NOTE: If you are deploying a .net or VB plugin you will need to make sure the computer the plugin is being deployed on has .net Framework installed. In addition to register the dll you have just built, you need to use the regasm tool. This tool is installed with the .net Framework, and its usage can be seen in the NSIS install script.
The full code for this sample is available in the SDK under samples/plugins/MyPlugin.
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Questions? Visit
http://developer.aim.com/
Last updated:
03/17/2007