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SQL Lab Extension Points

SQL Lab provides 4 extension points where extensions can contribute custom UI components. Each area serves a specific purpose and supports different types of customizations. These areas will evolve over time as new features are added to SQL Lab.

Layout Overview​

┌──────────┬─────────────────────────────────────────┬─────────────┐
│          │                                         │             │
│          │                                         │             │
│          │                Editor                   │             │
│          │                                         │             │
│   Left   │                                         │    Right    │
│  Sidebar ├─────────────────────────────────────────┤   Sidebar   │
│          │                                         │             │
│          │                Panels                   │             │
│          │                                         │             │
│          │                                         │             │
│          │                                         │             │
└──────────┴─────────────────────────────────────────┴─────────────┘
Extension PointIDViewsMenusDescription
Left Sidebarsqllab.leftSidebar—✓Menu actions for the database explorer
Editorsqllab.editor✓*✓Custom editors + toolbar actions
Right Sidebarsqllab.rightSidebar✓—Custom panels (AI assistants, query analysis)
Panelssqllab.panels✓✓Custom tabs + toolbar actions (data profiling)

*Editor views are contributed via Editor Contributions, not standard view contributions.

Customization Types​

Views​

Extensions can add custom views (React components) to Right Sidebar and Panels. Views appear as new panels or tabs in their respective areas.

Extensions can add toolbar actions to Left Sidebar, Editor, and Panels. Menu contributions support:

┌───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  [Button] [Button]   [•••]                                    │
├───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│                          Area Content                         │
└───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Action TypeLocationUse Case
Primary ActionsToolbar buttonsFrequently used actions (e.g., run, refresh, add new)
Secondary Actions3-dot menu (•••)Less common actions (e.g., export, settings)

Custom Editors​

Extensions can replace the default SQL editor with custom implementations (Monaco, CodeMirror, etc.). See Editor Contributions for details.

Examples​

Adding a Panel​

This example adds a "Data Profiler" panel to SQL Lab:

import React from 'react';
import { views } from '@apache-superset/core';
import DataProfilerPanel from './DataProfilerPanel';

views.registerView(
  { id: 'my-extension.data-profiler', name: 'Data Profiler' },
  'sqllab.panels',
  () => <DataProfilerPanel />,
);

Adding Actions to the Editor​

This example adds primary, secondary, and context actions to the editor:

import { commands, menus, sqlLab } from '@apache-superset/core';

commands.registerCommand(
  { id: 'my-extension.format', title: 'Format Query', icon: 'FormatPainterOutlined' },
  async () => {
    const tab = sqlLab.getCurrentTab();
    if (tab) {
      const editor = await tab.getEditor();
      // Format the SQL query
    }
  },
);

commands.registerCommand(
  { id: 'my-extension.explain', title: 'Explain Query' },
  async () => {
    const tab = sqlLab.getCurrentTab();
    if (tab) {
      const editor = await tab.getEditor();
      // Show query explanation
    }
  },
);

commands.registerCommand(
  { id: 'my-extension.copy-as-cte', title: 'Copy as CTE' },
  async () => {
    const tab = sqlLab.getCurrentTab();
    if (tab) {
      const editor = await tab.getEditor();
      // Copy selected text as CTE
    }
  },
);

menus.registerMenuItem(
  { view: 'builtin.editor', command: 'my-extension.format' },
  'sqllab.editor',
  'primary',
);
menus.registerMenuItem(
  { view: 'builtin.editor', command: 'my-extension.explain' },
  'sqllab.editor',
  'secondary',
);
menus.registerMenuItem(
  { view: 'builtin.editor', command: 'my-extension.copy-as-cte' },
  'sqllab.editor',
  'context',
);

Next Steps​