General

Understanding the different types of Moodle plugins is crucial for developing the right kind of functionality to extend Moodle. Each plugin type serves a specific purpose and integrates with Moodle in a unique way. By exploring existing plugins and their source code, you can gain insights into best practices and common patterns used in Moodle plugin development. For the official documentation of each plugin type, see the Moodle documentation.

General Naming Conventions

Component Name: The component name of a plugin follows the format plugin_type_pluginname. For example, an assignment activity module might be named mod_assignment.
Directory and File Names: The directory name of the plugin should match the plugin name part of the component name. For example, the directory for an assignment plugin should be mod/assignment.

The plugin name must meet the following rules:

It must start with a lowercase latin letter
It may contain only lowercase latin letters, numbers, and underscores
It must end with a lowercase latin letter, or a number
The hyphen, and minus character - are not allowed

Plugin type	Component name (Frankenstyle)	Moodle path	Description
Activity modules	mod	/mod	Activity modules are essential types of plugins in Moodle as they provide activities in courses. For example: Forum, Quiz and Assignment.
Antivirus plugins	antivirus	/lib/antivirus	Antivirus scanner plugins provide functionality for virus scanning user uploaded files using third-party virus scanning tools in Moodle. For example: ClamAV.
Assignment submission plugins	assignsubmission	/mod/assign/submission	Different forms of assignment submissions
Assignment feedback plugins	assignfeedback	/mod/assign/feedback	Different forms of assignment feedbacks
Book tools	booktool	/mod/book/tool	Small information-displays or tools that can be moved around pages
Custom fields	customfield	/customfield/field	Custom field types, used in Custom course fields
Database fields	datafield	/mod/data/field	Different types of data that may be added to the Database activity module
Database presets	datapreset	/mod/data/preset	Pre-defined templates for the Database activity module
LTI sources	ltisource	/mod/lti/source	LTI providers can be added to external tools easily through the external tools interface see Documentation on External Tools. This type of plugin is specific to LTI providers that need a plugin that can register custom handlers to process LTI messages
File Converters	fileconverter	/files/converter	Allow conversion between different types of user-submitted file. For example from .doc to PDF.
LTI services	ltiservice	/mod/lti/service	Allows the implementation of LTI services as described by the IMS LTI specification
Machine learning backends	mlbackend	/lib/mlbackend	Prediction processors for analytics API
Forum reports	forumreport	/mod/forum/report	Display various reports in the forum activity
Quiz reports	quiz	/mod/quiz/report	Display and analyse the results of quizzes, or just plug miscellaneous behaviour into the quiz module
Quiz access rules	quizaccess	/mod/quiz/accessrule	Add conditions to when or where quizzes can be attempted, for example only from some IP addresses, or student must enter a password first
SCORM reports	scormreport	/mod/scorm/report	Analysis of SCORM attempts
Workshop grading strategies	workshopform	/mod/workshop/form	Define the type of the grading form and implement the calculation of the grade for submission in the Workshop module
Workshop allocation methods	workshopallocation	/mod/workshop/allocation	Define ways how submissions are assigned for assessment in the Workshop module
Workshop evaluation methods	workshopeval	/mod/workshop/eval	Implement the calculation of the grade for assessment (grading grade) in the Workshop module
Blocks	block	/blocks	Small information-displays or tools that can be moved around pages
Question types	qtype	/question/type	Different types of question (for example multiple-choice, drag-and-drop) that can be used in quizzes and other activities
Question behaviours	qbehaviour	/question/behaviour	Control how student interact with questions during an attempt
Question import/export formats	qformat	/question/format	Import and export question definitions to/from the question bank
Text filters	filter	/filter	Automatically convert, highlight, and transmogrify text posted into Moodle.
Editors	editor	/lib/editor	Alternative text editors for editing content
Atto editor plugins	atto	/lib/editor/atto/plugins	Extra functionality for the Atto text editor
Enrolment plugins	enrol	/enrol	Ways to control who is enrolled in courses
Authentication plugins	auth	/auth	Allows connection to external sources of authentication
Admin tools	tool	/admin/tool	Provides utility scripts useful for various site administration and maintenance tasks
Log stores	logstore	/admin/tool/log/store	Event logs storage back-ends
Availability conditions	availability	/availability/condition	Conditions to restrict user access to activities and sections.
Calendar types	calendartype	/calendar/type	Defines how dates are displayed throughout Moodle
Messaging consumers	message	/message/output	Represent various targets where messages and notifications can be sent to (email, sms, jabber, ...)
Course formats	format	/course/format	Different ways of laying out the activities and blocks in a course
Data formats	dataformat	/dataformat	Formats for data exporting and downloading
User profile fields	profilefield	/user/profile/field	Add new types of data to user profiles
Reports	report	/report	Provides useful views of data in a Moodle site for admins and teachers
Course reports	coursereport	/course/report	Reports of activity within the course
Gradebook export	gradeexport	/grade/export	Export grades in various formats
Gradebook import	gradeimport	/grade/import	Import grades in various formats
Gradebook reports	gradereport	/grade/report	Display/edit grades in various layouts and reports
Advanced grading methods	gradingform	/grade/grading/form	Interfaces for actually performing grading in activity modules (for example Rubrics)
MNet services	mnetservice	/mnet/service	Allows to implement remote services for the MNet environment (deprecated, use web services instead)
Webservice protocols	webservice	/webservice	Define new protocols for web service communication (such as SOAP, XML-RPC, JSON, REST ...)
Repository plugins		repository	/repository
Portfolio plugins	portfolio	/portfolio	Connect external portfolio services as destinations for users to store Moodle content
Search engines	search	/search/engine	Search engine backends to index Moodle's contents.
Media players	media	/media/player	Pluggable media players
Plagiarism plugins	plagiarism	/plagiarism	Define external services to process submitted files and content
Cache store	cachestore	/cache/stores	Cache storage back-ends.
Cache locks	cachelock	/cache/locks	Cache lock implementations.
Themes	theme	/theme	Change the look of Moodle by changing the the HTML and the CSS.
Local plugins	local	/local	Generic plugins for local customisations
Content bank content types	contenttype	/contentbank/contenttype	Content types to upload, create or edit in the content bank and use all over the Moodle site
H5P libraries	h5plib	/h5p/h5plib	Plugin type for the particular versions of the H5P integration library.
Question bank plugins	qbank	/question/bank	Plugin type for extending question bank functionality.

1. Activity modules

Purpose: Add new types of activities or resources to courses.

Component Name: mod_pluginname

Examples:

Assignment (mod_assign): Allows teachers to collect work from students, review it, and provide feedback including grades.
Quiz (mod_quiz): Enables the creation of quizzes with a variety of question types like multiple choice, true/false, and short answer.
Forum (mod_forum): Facilitates discussions among students and teachers within a course.
H5P Interactive Content (mod_h5pactivity): Integrates H5P activities, which are interactive HTML5 content types like quizzes, interactive videos, and presentations.
Scheduler (mod_scheduler): Allows teachers to schedule appointments with students.

2. Blocks

Purpose: Add new blocks to the side regions of Moodle pages, providing additional information or functionality.

Component Name: block_pluginname

Examples:

HTML Block (block_html): Allows custom HTML content to be displayed in a block.
Calendar Block (block_calendar_month): Shows the calendar for the current month with links to detailed day views.
Progress Bar (block_progress): Displays a progress bar showing the completion status of activities within a course.
Quickmail (block_quickmail): Provides an easy way for teachers to send emails to students within a course.

3. Themes

Purpose: Customize the look and feel of the Moodle site by changing the design, layout, and styles.

Component Name: theme_pluginname

Examples:

Boost (theme_boost): A modern, responsive theme based on Bootstrap 4, providing a clean and intuitive interface.
Classic (theme_classic): A traditional theme with a simple, familiar layout.
Fordson (theme_fordson): A highly customizable theme with additional layout options and enhanced usability features.
Moove (theme_moove): A modern, responsive theme with a focus on simplicity and user experience.

4. Reports

Purpose: Create new reports for data analysis and tracking within Moodle.

Examples:

Logs (report_log): Provides access to the logs of all activities on the site, courses, and users.
Activity Report (report_activity): Shows detailed activity reports for a course.
Configurable Reports (report_customsql): Allows admins to create custom reports using SQL queries.
Completion Progress (report_completion): Provides a visual overview of students' progress in completing course activities.

5. Auth Plugins

Purpose: Implement custom authentication methods for logging into Moodle.

Examples:

Email-based Self-registration (auth_email): Allows users to create their own accounts using their email addresses.
LDAP Server (auth_ldap): Authenticates users against an LDAP server, commonly used in organizations.
OAuth2 (auth_oauth2): Allows users to log in using their accounts from external services like Google, Microsoft, and Facebook.
CAS Server (auth_cas): Integrates Moodle with a CAS (Central Authentication Service) server for single sign-on.

6. Enrol Plugins

Purpose: Implement custom enrollment methods for courses.

Examples:

Manual Enrolment (enrol_manual): Allows teachers to manually enroll students in their courses.
Self Enrolment (enrol_self): Allows users to enroll themselves in courses, optionally using an enrollment key.
Stripe Payment (enrol_stripepayment): Allows users to pay for course enrollment using the Stripe payment gateway.
PayPal (enrol_paypal): Integrates PayPal for paid course enrollments.

7. Local Plugins

Purpose: Provide additional functionalities that don't fit into other plugin categories.

Examples:

Moodle Mobile Additional Features (local_mobile): Adds additional features to the Moodle Mobile app.
Moodle Integrity Essentials (local_integrity): Provides tools to help maintain the integrity of the Moodle environment.
Cron Locking Improvements (local_cronlock): Enhances the performance and reliability of Moodle's cron system.
User Cleanup (local_usercleanup): Automates the cleanup and deletion of inactive or unwanted user accounts.

8. Admin Tools

Purpose: Provide tools and utilities for site administrators to manage and maintain the Moodle site.

Examples:

Database Search (tool_datasearch): Allows administrators to search and manage the database directly from the Moodle interface.
Security Overview (tool_securityoverview): Provides a report highlighting potential security issues and recommendations.
Task Scheduler (tool_taskscheduler): Allows administrators to schedule and manage various tasks within Moodle.
Multi-factor Authentication (tool_mfa): Implements multi-factor authentication for increased security.

9. Course Formats

Purpose: Define the layout and structure of courses within Moodle.

Examples:

Weekly Format (format_weeks): Organizes course content by weeks.
Topics Format (format_topics): Organizes course content by topics.
Grid Format (format_grid): Displays course sections as a grid of icons, enhancing the visual appeal.
Collapsed Topics (format_collapsedtopics): Allows course sections to be collapsed and expanded for better navigation.

Summary

Understanding the types of plugins available in Moodle allows you to choose the right type for your needs and extend Moodle's functionality effectively. Whether you're adding new activities, customizing the look and feel, or creating new reports, there's a specific plugin type designed to help you achieve your goals. By exploring existing plugins and their source code, you can gain insights into best practices and common patterns used in Moodle plugin development.

Naming conventions in Moodle plugins are crucial for maintaining consistency, avoiding conflicts, and ensuring that plugins are easily identifiable and properly integrated within the Moodle ecosystem. Each plugin type in Moodle has specific naming conventions that developers need to follow. Here is a detailed explanation of the naming conventions for various Moodle plugin types: