Mastering Adobe UXP: Building Modern Plugins

Goodbye CEP, Hello UXP

For a decade, we built Adobe plugins using CEP (Chromium Embedded Framework). It was basically a browser tab running inside Photoshop. While powerful, it was resource-heavy and felt "webby".

UXP (Unified Extensibility Platform) changes the game. It uses a modern JavaScript engine that maps directly to native UI controls.

Why Switch?

1. Performance: UXP plugins load instantly.
2. Native Look: Buttons and inputs look exactly like the host app directly out of the box.
3. Security: No more loose permissions.

Setting Up Your First Plugin

You'll need the UXP Developer Tool.

{
    "manifestVersion": 4,
    "id": "YOUR_ID",
    "name": "My First Plugin",
    "version": "1.0.0",
    "main": "index.html",
    "host": [
        { "app": "PS", "minVersion": "22.0" }
    ]
}

interacting with the Document

UXP introduces the new batchPlay command for efficient actions, but strictly typed DOM APIs are getting better every day.

const { app } = require("photoshop");

async function createNewDoc() {
    await app.createDocument({ width: 800, height: 600 });
}

It's a great time to be a creative developer.