create-vip-workflow-notification-channel

name	create-vip-workflow-notification-channel
description	Scaffold a VIP Workflow notification channel plugin. Use when the user wants to add a custom notification destination like Slack, Teams, Discord, SMS, or any webhook-based service to VIP Workflow.

Create a VIP Workflow Notification Channel

Notification channels deliver workflow event notifications (status changes, SLA breaches, publishing alerts) to external services. Each channel is a standalone WordPress plugin that extends the NotificationChannel base class.

Requirements

Before starting, gather from the user:

1. Destination service -- e.g., Slack, Discord, Teams, Twilio SMS, PagerDuty
2. Plugin slug -- e.g., workflow-channel-slack
3. What credentials are needed? -- webhook URL, API token, phone number, etc.
4. Does it support a test/ping? -- most webhook services do

Plugin Structure

workflow-channel-{name}/
  workflow-channel-{name}.php       # Main plugin file (hooks + asset loading)
  includes/
    class-{name}-channel.php        # Channel class extending NotificationChannel

The plugin directory lives alongside vip-workflow/ in the same parent directory.

Boilerplate

Main plugin file: workflow-channel-{name}/workflow-channel-{name}.php

<?php
/**
 * Plugin Name: Workflow {Display Name} Channel
 * Description: Sends VIP Workflow notifications to {service}.
 * Version: 1.0.0
 * Requires Plugins: vip-workflow
 * Text Domain: workflow-channel-{name}
 *
 * @package WorkflowChannel{PascalName}
 */

declare( strict_types=1 );

namespace WorkflowChannel{PascalName};

if ( ! defined( 'ABSPATH' ) ) {
    exit;
}

define( 'WORKFLOW_CHANNEL_{UPPER_NAME}_DIR', plugin_dir_path( __FILE__ ) );

add_action( 'vip_workflow_register_notification_channels', function( $dispatcher ) {
    require_once WORKFLOW_CHANNEL_{UPPER_NAME}_DIR . 'includes/class-{name}-channel.php';
    $dispatcher->register_channel( new {PascalName}Channel() );
} );

Channel class: workflow-channel-{name}/includes/class-{name}-channel.php

<?php
declare( strict_types=1 );

namespace WorkflowChannel{PascalName};

use VIPWorkflow\Notifications\NotificationChannel;
use VIPWorkflow\Notifications\Notification;
use WP_Error;

class {PascalName}Channel extends NotificationChannel {

    public function get_id(): string {
        return '{name}';
    }

    public function get_name(): string {
        return __( '{Display Name}', 'workflow-channel-{name}' );
    }

    public function get_description(): string {
        return __( 'Send notifications to {service}.', 'workflow-channel-{name}' );
    }

    public function get_icon(): string {
        return 'search';
    }

    
     {
         = ->();
         ! ( [] );
    }

    
     {
         (
             => (
                        => ,
                       => ( ,  ),
                 => ( ,  ),
                    => ,
            ),
            
            
            
            
            
            
        );
    }

    
     {
            = ->();
         = [] ?? ;

         ( (  ) ) {
             ;
        }

        
        
         = (
             => (
                ,
                ->(),
                ->()
            ),
        );

         = ( , (
             => (  =>  ),
                => (  ),
             => ,
        ) );

         ( (  ) ) {
             ;
        }

         = (  );
          >=  &&  < ;
    }

    
     {
            = ->();
         = [] ?? ;

         ( (  ) ) {
              ( , ( ,  ) );
        }

         = (
             => ,
        );

         = ( , (
             => (  =>  ),
                => (  ),
             => ,
        ) );

         ( (  ) ) {
             ;
        }

         = (  );
         (  <  ||  >=  ) {
              (
                ,
                ( ( ,  ),  )
            );
        }

         ;
    }

    
     {
         (
             => ( [] ??  ),
        );
    }
}

Abstract Methods Reference

The NotificationChannel base class requires these abstract methods:

Method	Returns	Purpose
get_id()	string	Unique channel ID (used for storage and API)
get_name()	string	Human-readable display name
get_description()	string	Short description
get_icon()	string	Icon slug from the set in src/admin/components/ideation/assistant-icon.js
is_configured()	bool	Whether the channel is ready to send
send( Notification $notification )	bool	Deliver a notification
test_connection()	true|WP_Error	Verify the connection works
sanitize_settings( array $input )	array	Sanitize form input

Settings are declared, not drawn. Override get_settings_schema() to return an array of field definitions; the base class puts it on the channel's REST payload via to_array(), and the React admin renders the form from it. There is no PHP-rendered settings form — a channel never emits settings markup of its own.

Built-in Base Class Helpers

These are provided by NotificationChannel and should not be overridden:

• $this->get_settings() -- reads stored settings from wp_options
• $this->update_settings( $settings ) -- writes settings

Registration

Channels register via the vip_workflow_register_notification_channels action, which receives a $dispatcher object. Call $dispatcher->register_channel( new YourChannel() ).

Testing

1. Place the plugin directory alongside vip-workflow/
2. Activate it in WordPress admin
3. Go to Integrations > Notification Channels to see the channel
4. Configure the webhook URL and use "Test Connection" to verify
5. Route an event to the channel on the Routing tab, then trigger a workflow transition to test delivery