# Shared modules

> Write Python once and import it into any Cloud Management Platform (CMP) plugin

---

Site [llms.txt](/llms.txt)

---

A shared module is a Python file that CMP stores on the appliance and makes available to all plugins, and to other shared modules. Shared modules live at **Admin** > **Shared Modules**, and only CloudBolt admins can manage them. Typical candidates are generated parameter options reused across blueprints and a class that handles connecting to an external API.

## Create a shared module

1. Go to **Admin** > **Shared Modules**.
1. Select **Add** > **Create New**. The same menu offers **Create from Repository**, which pulls the module from a source code repository, and **Upload Shared Module** for an exported one.

   ![Screenshot of the Add dropdown on the Shared Modules page.](/img/cmp/developer-resources/guide/shared-modules/add-shared-module.png)
1. Provide a **Label** and **Module Name**. The module name becomes the Python file name and the name you import, so use a valid Python identifier such as `generated_options`.
1. Select **Upload a script file now**, or **Fetch from URL** and provide a file or URL, or select **Enter code later**.
1. Select **Save**.

   ![Screenshot of the Create Shared Module dialog.](/img/cmp/developer-resources/guide/shared-modules/create-shared-module.png)

## Example: generated options

This module returns the environments a group can deploy to, optionally narrowed to a single resource technology.

```python
from infrastructure.models import Environment
from django.db.models import Q

def generate_options_for_environment (field, rt_name=None, **kwargs):
    """
    Generate a list of environments to choose from. Returns a list of id, name tuples
    """

    group = kwargs.get("group")

    if not group:
        return None

    if rt_name:
        envs = Environment.objects.filter(
            (Q(group__in=[group]) | Q(group=None)) &
            Q(resource_handler__resource_technology__name=rt_name)
        )
    else:
        envs = Environment.objects.filter(
            Q(group__in=[group]) | Q(group=None)
        )


    return [(env.id, env.name) for env in envs if env.is_unassigned == False]
```

## Import and call a module

Import from the `shared_modules` package, using the provided module name:

```python
from shared_modules.generated_options import generate_options_for_environment
```

Then call it like any other Python function. To return every environment:

```python
generate_options_for_environment(None, None, **{"group":None})
```

Or only the AWS environments:

```python
generate_options_for_environment(None, "Amazon Web Services", **{"group":None})
```

## Use a module in a plugin

Add the import to any CloudBolt plugin. On a blueprint's **Build** tab, add an action of type **CloudBolt Plug-in**, then edit its code:

1. Declare the import at the top of the plugin, for example `from shared_modules.generated_options import generate_options_for_environment`.
1. In the plugin's `run` method, add a parameter that draws on the module, for example `env_id = "{{environment}}"`. The parameter then appears on the dialog.
1. Select **Save Code**.

When a user orders the blueprint, the parameter options are sourced from the shared module. See [Develop blueprints](/docs/cmp/developer-resources/guide/blueprints/) for creating the blueprint and [Generated parameter options](/docs/cmp/configure/order-forms-and-pricing/parameters/generated-options/) for how option-generating code is called.

## Edit a module in your IDE

Shared modules are files on the appliance, so you can edit them outside CMP. Connect to the CMP server and open the module in `/var/www/html/cloudbolt/static/uploads/shared_modules/`, such as `generated_options.py`.

Python keeps an imported module in memory, so a change made this way may not be picked up until the process that imported it restarts. If the new code does not take effect, restart Apache with `systemctl restart httpd`.

## Related

- [Generated parameter options](/docs/cmp/configure/order-forms-and-pricing/parameters/generated-options/): A common use for a shared module.
- [Develop blueprints](/docs/cmp/developer-resources/guide/blueprints/): Where plugins that import these modules run.
- [Use Shared Modules](https://github.com/CloudBoltSoftware/cloudbolt-forge/tree/master/how_do_i_videos/use_shared_modules): A video walkthrough in CloudBolt Forge.