Extension Points Examples (Beta)

You can extend various functionalities of the MATLAB® desktop using Extension Points. For example, you can add custom items to the Quick Access Toolbar or change the icon or label for a file type in the Files panel.

Includes examples for the following Extension Points. These customizations are enabled as soon as you install the toolbox.

Add an item to the Quick Access Toolbar

mw.desktop.quickAccess - Add a new button to the Quick Access Toolbar that triggers a MATLAB callback function.

Note: This Extension Point is compatible from R2025a onwards.

Add an item to the Files and Projects Panel Context Menus

mw.desktop.fileBrowsers.contextMenu - Add new menu items / submenus to the Files Panel and Projects Panel context menus, that show up conditionally (e.g. for specific filetype selections) and triggers a MATLAB callback function when clicked.

Note: This Extension Point is compatible from R2025a onwards.

Add New Displayed Roots to the Address Bar

mw.desktop.addressBar.displayedRoots - Customize the list of displayed roots in the Address Bar.

Customize File Type Icons and Labels

mw.fileTypes.icons — Specify the icon that displays for a file type in the Files panel, including the File Preview.

mw.fileTypes.labels — Specify the label that displays for a file type in the Files panel, including the Type column and File Preview.

Custom File Name Validation

mw.fileTypes.fileNameValidation — Add filename validation for a file type to ensure the filename is valid when a file of that type / group is created or renamed.

MathWorks Products (https://www.mathworks.com)

Requires MATLAB release R2024b or newer

• New Desktop for MATLAB Beta

Getting Started

Extend MATLAB Using Extension Points (Beta)

You can choose to modify the existing example extensions.json within this toolbox or create your own toolbox using the following instructions.

1. Create a JSON-formatted file named extensions.json and place it in a folder named resources within your toolbox.
2. Add a set of JSON declarations to extensions.json that defines your customizations using the Extension Points.
3. Add the folder containing the resources folder to the MATLAB path. To add the folder to the path, use the addpath function or right-click the folder in the Files panel and select Add to Path > Selected Folders and Subfolders.

License

The license is available in the License.txt file in this GitHub repository.

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