Development Environment Requirements Overview

Before you start setting up your development environment, you must download the vSphere Client SDK to your working machine and have access to a vCenter Server for Windows or a vCenter Server Appliance instance.

To create a vSphere Client plug-in, your development environment must include the following items.

• A development environment capable of developing Web applications by using JavaScript and HTML.
• A development environment capable of developing Java-based Web applications. You can use the Eclipse IDE or IntelliJ IDEA.
• Access to an instance of vCenter Server for Windows or a vCenter Server Appliance instance to register your plug-in. Plug-in registration allows the vSphere Client to download and install the plug-in.

You can set up the vSphere Client SDK on a machine with Windows or Mac OS operating systems. Before you begin the SDK setup, you can set up your Java environment and Apache Ant, and install and configure the Eclipse IDE or IntelliJ IDEA.