Optional plugins, workspaces and apps

Petti 1.4 · User documentation

You do not need plugins to browse or edit SQLite. Use these tools when you want a specialized action or interface.

Want to create your own? Start with the plugin quickstart, downloadable examples and the developer documentation.

Enable a bundled tool

Choose Tools → Command Palette… (⌘⇧P).
Expand Installed plugins.
Choose Enable… for a tool, read its requested permissions and approve only if you want that access.
Select an available action and run it with the appropriate database or cell selected.

Bundled tools start disabled. JSON Tools, Database Tools and Embedding Inspector are examples. Some commands need a single loaded text cell: select it before opening the palette. Plugins may also add inspectors, previewers, importers, exporters or jobs rather than ordinary commands.

Install a local plugin

Choose Install Local Plugin… in the palette and select a .petti-plugin folder. Review installation, then enable it separately. Installation does not itself grant execution permission. Changed package contents require renewed approval. Invalid packages, unsupported API versions and duplicate identifiers are rejected or shown with errors. There is no public plugin marketplace in 1.4.

Plugins run through a restricted, separate helper. They do not receive unrestricted file access, network access or raw database handles. File and clipboard operations use Petti’s explicit selection/review flow. Permission approval still matters: a tool with write permission can propose changes to your data.

The database lock still applies

A plugin cannot override read-only mode or the editing license. Write actions require the applicable unlocked state and review. Snapshot-backed save flows show proposed changes before committing them together. These changes are not cell Undo operations. Cancellation after a successful commit does not reverse the commit; inspect the result and retained recovery snapshot.

Open a workspace

With a database open and a compatible plugin enabled, choose Workspaces… in the palette. Select a match and choose Open Workspace. Pages, Records and Jobs depend on the plugin. View Raw Database returns to the normal database browser; the underlying data remains ordinary SQLite.

Workspace matching does not automatically modify a random database. If nothing matches, use the raw browser or check which schema the plugin expects.

Create a Petti App database

Choose File → New Database…. Use a blank SQLite database or an available template. A template may require an enabled plugin, configuration and optional sample data. Review those choices and choose a new destination.

App Database actions can explicitly adopt a compatible existing database or upgrade an owned schema. Those are deliberate, snapshot-backed changes, not something that happens merely by opening a file. Ordinary databases receive no Petti metadata unless you explicitly adopt them. Notes App and Analytics Workbook demonstrate the optional platform; they are not a promise of every future vertical app or connector.

Cancel or disable

Jobs show progress, results or errors and offer cancellation. They run within time and resource limits; they are not unlimited background computation. Disable a tool under Installed plugins to revoke its active access. If a run times out, narrow its input rather than assuming it completed. Persistent history and snapshots should be checked before retrying any write whose outcome is uncertain.