delphiidepackagecustom-componentbpl

Distributing a design-time package w/third-party UI elements


Now that I am learning more about design time aspects of component development, I have what may turn out to be a couple of IDE "plugins" targeting Delphi 2007 (+ others if compatible).

The forms / UI for these, ideally, will utilize some of the third party components I use regularly. Assuming the licensing is okay to distribute those components for an IDE plugin, etc., what do I need to do differently to prepare the distribution package, as compared to from what one would do on a package with "full source"?

(I hope this question makes sense. Please be kind and ask questions if not).


Solution

  • You need to distribute the BPL compiled for each version of Delphi you will support (Version + Update) and then only distribute the BPL. Set up a Virtual Machine to test it in. The BPL is a special DLL, so you are only distributing a binary, which should work with your licenses.

    Distributing the .PAS or .DCU would violate the license agreement most likely.