Question

I need to implement a very small plugin architecture.I am new to MEF so even simple things become complex.
Lets assume I have 2 dlls Client(Executing Assembly) and Server
Within Server I have a folder called “Plugins”

Usually I create a “Plugins” folder in the bin directory of the executingAssembly and all works with this piece of code,How Can I make it work if the plugin folder is in the Server?

    private void LoadPlugins(string folder)
    {
        AggregateCatalog catalog=new AggregateCatalog();
        catalog.Catalogs.Add(new AssemblyCatalog(Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly()));
        catalog.Catalogs.Add(new DirectoryCatalog(folder));
        CompositionContainer container =new CompositionContainer(catalog);
        container.ComposeParts(this);
    }

Any Suggestions?

PS
The plugins will only be used to process logic within the server they are not used at all by the client

Answer 1

Do you want to download the plugins from the server and use them in your client app? If so, you could download them to a specific path and create the catalog over that path. Or you could download each assembly, load it with Assembly.Load() or a similar method, and create an AssemblyCatalog over it.