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Uploading and managing visualization extensions

Extensions extend the functionality of the Qlik Cloud analytics platform by enabling custom visualizations for Qlik Sense apps. You can upload and edit extensions from the Administration activity center.

Qlik Cloud Government noteThird-party extensions are supported in Qlik Cloud Government. However, the use of third-party extensions might need to be defined and approved as part of an Agency Authority to Operate, depending on the security and compliance requirements your organization follows.

Guidelines for creating and uploading extensions

Follow these guidelines when creating and uploading visualization extensions to Qlik Cloud.

For a visual demo about adding and using extensions, see Using third-party visualization extensions in Qlik Cloud and Extensions and API keys.

ZIP file limits for extensions

  • Maximum ZIP file size: 30 MB

  • Maximum file size of files in ZIP: 30 MB

  • Maximum number of files in ZIP: 500

  • Maximum uncompressed total file size of files in ZIP: 100 MB

Best practices

  • Minify your code files.

  • Include only necessary files. Ensure the ZIP file contains only the required files for your extension to function properly.

  • Review extensions and their code before uploading. For more information, see Visualization extensions.

Required base files for an extension

Ensure your extension ZIP file includes the following essential files:

  • .qext: Extension metadata file

  • .js: JavaScript code for the extension

  • .html: HTML code for rendering the extension

  • .css: Custom CSS for styling the extension

External hosting of image files

Do not upload image files (for example, GIF, PNG, JPG) within the extension ZIP file. Instead, host them externally on a personal application server, an S3 bucket, or a public content management system. Reference these external images in your extension code.

Referencing external code files and content

You can reference code files and content in your primary extension code, but this requires implementing a Content Security Policy (CSP) on the tenant. For more information, see Managing Content Security Policy (CSP).

If your extension makes requests to external resources, those resource origins must be allowlisted in the CSP, or the extension will be blocked from rendering.

Unsupported features

The following features are not supported:

Bundled extensions

Qlik Cloud does not support ZIP files containing other extension ZIP files.

QVF and QVD files

Do not include Qlik Sense QVF or QVD files in the extension ZIP file, as these are not accessible from the extension service. Remove these files before uploading the extension.

To upload a QVF or QVD file to the Qlik Cloud tenant, use one of the following methods:

  • Upload an app in the Create page of the Analytics activity center.

  • Upload an app using qlik-cli.

  • Upload a QVD in the Create page of the Analytics activity center.

  • Upload a QVD using Qlik DataTransfer.

Unsupported file formats

For security reasons, extensions cannot contain files with disallowed MIME types. MIME types (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) are a standard way to indicate the nature and format of a file. Uploading will fail if your extension contains, for example, an executable file or a ZIP file.

The following MIME types are not allowed:

  • 'application/octet-stream'
  • 'application/x-coredump'
  • 'application/x-dosexec'
  • 'application/x-executable'
  • 'application/x-java-applet'
  • 'application/x-object'
  • 'application/x-sharedlib'
  • 'application/zip'
  • 'text/x-shellscript'
  • 'text/x-awk'
  • 'text/x-gawk'
  • 'text/x-msdos-batch'
  • 'text/x-nawk'
  • 'text/x-php'

All files in an extension must have both a file name and a file extension. Files that do not comply will be ignored. Examples of ignored files include .gitignore and README.

Adding and managing extensions

Extensions are managed in the Extensions page in the Administration activity center.

In the Extensions table:

  • Name refers to the metadata name in the QEXT file.

  • QEXT version indicates the metadata version in the QEXT file.

  • QEXT filename is the unique identifier and the name of the extension definition file.

You can filter extensions by tags.

Adding a new extension

Do the following:

  1. In the Administration activity center, go to Extensions.

  2. Click Add.

  3. Click Browse to select an extension file, or drop a file in the designated area.

  4. Optionally, add tags.

  5. Click Publish.

Information noteYou cannot upload an extension with the same QEXT filename as an existing one.

Editing an extension

Do the following:

  1. In the Administration activity center, go to Extensions.

  2. On the extension you want to edit, click More and select Edit.

    The editing panel is displayed with options for replacing the existing extension and adding or removing tags.

  3. Save your changes.

Deleting an extension

Deletion of extensions can impact all resources, affecting all users within the tenant.

Do the following:

  1. In the Administration activity center, go to Extensions.
  2. Select the extensions you want to delete.
  3. Click Delete.

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