Ice supports a plug-in facility that allows you to add new features and install application-specific customizations. Plug-ins are defined using configuration properties and loaded dynamically by the Ice run time, making it possible to install a plug-in into an existing program without modification.
Ice uses the plug-in facility to implement some of its own features. Most well-known is IceSSL, a plug-in that adds a secure transport for Ice communication. Other examples include the logger plug-in and the string converter plug-in.
This section describes the plug-in facility in more detail and demonstrates how to implement an Ice plug-in.