Plugin
Plugins extend what ZCode can do. A single plugin can bundle skills, commands, subagents, and MCP servers, so teams can package reusable tooling into one extension and enable it from a single workspace.
Beta — Plugin management is still in Beta. The flow and available sources may continue to change.
What A Plugin Contains
A single plugin can bundle several capabilities. ZCode detects which components a plugin includes from its directory layout and shows them as badges or counts in the list:
| Component | Description |
|---|---|
| Skill | Skill files that teach the Agent specific ways of working |
| Command | Quick commands invoked with / |
| Agent | Subagents registered together with the plugin |
| MCP servers | External tool servers registered with the plugin, shown under the Plugin MCP servers group in the MCP list |
| Hook | Automation hooks triggered on specific events |
| LSP | Language servers that add completion, diagnostics, and more for a language |
When you enable a plugin, its runnable components — skills, commands, and MCP servers — are registered into the current workspace; disabling it disables them together.
Browse And Install Plugins
Open Settings -> Plugins and switch to the Marketplace tab to discover plugins. The catalog groups plugins by their marketplace source, with a recommended section at the top, search across all sources, and pagination per marketplace.
Plugin management requires an open workspace. If you see "Open a workspace to manage plugins," open any project / workspace first. When the list looks stale, click Refresh in the top-right corner to re-fetch the latest plugins and marketplace info.
Once you find a plugin, click Get on its card to install it — the status moves through "Installing…" to "Installed." Newly installed plugins are enabled by default, and their components are available immediately.
Click any plugin to open its detail view, where ZCode loads the exact skills, commands, agents, and MCP servers it bundles — each with a short description — so you can see what it adds before installing.
Import A Custom Marketplace Source
You are not limited to the built-in catalog. In the Marketplace tab, click the + button next to the search box to add your own marketplace source:
- Click + to open the Add marketplace popover.
- Paste a marketplace source — a GitHub repository (e.g.
owner/repoor its URL), a Git URL, or a local path. - Click Add (or press Enter).
Once added, the plugins published by that source show up in the catalog grouped under its name, and you can browse and install them like any other plugin. If a source can't be added, the input stays open with an error so you can correct it.
Built-in Plugins
ZCode ships with a set of official plugins. Two are enabled out of the box; the rest are bundled and ready to turn on when you need them.
| Plugin | Capability | Default |
|---|---|---|
| document-skills | Built-in skills for generating documents such as DOCX and PDF | Enabled |
| skill-creator | Create and edit your own local skills | Enabled |
| android-emulator | Android development workflow and emulator automation | Off by default |
| ios-simulator | iOS development workflow and simulator automation (macOS) | Off by default |
| restore-legacy-sessions | Migrate and restore sessions from older versions | Off by default |
The mobile-development plugins android-emulator and ios-simulator stand out: once enabled, ZCode Agent can drive the Android emulator or iOS simulator directly — building and running, installing and launching, and verifying the UI all within the same conversation. No more bouncing between an IDE, a simulator, and the command line, so mobile development stays smooth and fast.
Manage Plugins
The Installed tab lists the plugins on this machine. Each entry shows the name, version, source tag, and the counts of the skills, commands, MCP servers, and other components it bundles.
From this page you can:
- Filter plugins by name or description with the search box at the top.
- Filter by enabled or disabled status.
- Check the source tag of each plugin, such as
Officialor the name of a marketplace you imported. - Enable or disable a plugin with the switch on the right.
- Click a plugin entry to see the exact skills, commands, MCP servers, and other components it contains, and to uninstall it. Built-in official plugins can only be disabled, not uninstalled.
Because plugin changes require reloading the Agent runtime, ZCode refreshes the affected skills and sessions automatically after you enable or disable a plugin so the change takes effect. Disabling a plugin removes all of its components from the session immediately; re-enabling it restores them.
Configure Plugins
Some plugins need parameters before they can work — a default device, a toggle, or a path, for example. In the Installed tab, open the plugin, go to its detail dialog, expand Advanced info at the bottom, and fill in the fields under Configuration. Required fields are marked "Required"; click Save configuration when done.
Fields marked as sensitive (such as API keys) show "This value can be configured once secure storage is connected" and can't be entered in the UI yet. For such plugins, prepare the key at the system level following the plugin's instructions.
Using Installed Plugins
Once a plugin is enabled, its capabilities show up in the corresponding places in the client automatically, with no extra setup:
| Capability | Where to use it |
|---|---|
| Skills | Trigger automatically when relevant; you can also type / in the input box and pick from the Skills group. View them all under the Plugin skills group in Settings -> Skills. |
| Commands | Type / in the input box and pick from the Commands group; search by keyword for commands or skills. |
| Subagents | Can be dispatched automatically to handle tasks during a conversation; view them under the Plugin subagents group in Settings -> Subagents (from plugins, read-only). |
| MCP servers | Shown as Plugin MCP servers under Settings -> MCP, loaded automatically as the plugin is enabled or disabled. |