workspace sdk components

About components

Components are the extension points of the Workspace SDK. They allow modules to add functionality to Security Center client applications such as Security Desk and Config Tool. Each component type serves a specific purpose: rendering content in tiles, adding widgets to dashboards, extending maps, encoding credentials, and more.

Not all component types are available in both applications. Dashboard widgets require Security Desk. Other component types such as map components, credential components, and image extractors are available in both applications.

Shared components are a separate mechanism from Workspace.Components. Use Workspace.SharedComponents and Monitor.SharedComponents to consume built-in shared UI components. For details, see About shared components.

Component base class

All components inherit from a specialized abstract class such as ContentBuilder, TileWidgetBuilder, or DashboardWidgetBuilder. These classes inherit from the Component base class, which provides the shared registration and initialization infrastructure.

Do not inherit from Component directly. Each specialized component class seals the Type property to return a predefined identifier that the system uses to route the component to the correct consumer. Inheriting from Component directly produces a component that the system does not know how to use.

Component members

Member	Kind	Description
Name	Property (abstract)	Display name for the component.
UniqueId	Property (abstract)	Unique identifier for this component instance. Each component must return a distinct GUID.
Type	Property (abstract)	Component type identifier. Sealed by each specialized class. Do not override this yourself.
IsAvailable	Property	Whether the component is currently available. Defaults to false. Set to true after initialization.
Workspace	Property	The workspace instance. Available after Initialize(Workspace) is called.
Initialize(Workspace)	Method	Initializes the component with the workspace. Call this before registering the component.
Initialize()	Method (protected virtual)	Override to perform setup after Workspace is available. Called by Initialize(Workspace).

Registering components

Register and unregister components through Workspace.Components:

public class SampleModule : Module
{
    private MyContentBuilder m_component;

    public override void Load()
    {
        m_component = new MyContentBuilder();
        m_component.Initialize(Workspace);
        Workspace.Components.Register(m_component);
    }

    public override void Unload()
    {
        Workspace.Components.Unregister(m_component);
    }
}

ComponentCollection members

Member	Description
Register(Component)	Register a component with the workspace.
Unregister(Component)	Remove a component from the workspace.
this[Guid type]	Get all registered components of the specified type as a ReadOnlyCollection<Component>.
this[Guid type, Guid id]	Get a specific component by type and unique identifier.
Count	The number of registered components.

Component types

The SDK provides the following component types. Each type has a dedicated abstract class to inherit from.

Tile and content components

These components extend Security Desk's tile-based monitoring interface.

Component	Base class	Description
Content builder	ContentBuilder	Controls what appears inside tiles. Handles entity drag-and-drop, events, and alarms by producing ContentGroup and Content objects. The system calls builders in priority order and uses the first non-null result.
Tile widget	TileWidgetBuilder	Adds collapsible panels to the right-side controls area when a tile is selected. Displays supplementary information or controls related to the tile content.
Tile view	TileViewBuilder	Renders overlays and custom visualizations directly inside the tile area. Supports placement over video, below the toolbar, or as full-tile content.
Tile properties	TilePropertiesBuilder	Adds configuration tabs to the bottom of the right-side controls panel alongside the built-in "General" tab.

For content builder implementation details, see About content builders.

For tile widget, tile view, and tile properties implementation details, see Creating tile extensions.

Dashboard components

Component	Base class	Description
Dashboard widget	DashboardWidgetBuilder	Adds widgets to Security Desk dashboards. The builder creates DashboardWidget instances that provide visual content and configuration options.

For dashboard widget implementation details, see Creating dashboard widgets.

Map components

These components extend Security Center's mapping capabilities. Map components are available in both Security Desk and Config Tool.

Component	Base class	Description
Map panel	MapPanelBuilder	Adds panels to the map interface.
Map searcher	MapSearcher	Implements map search. Override Search(MapSearcherContext) to return IList<MapSearcherResult> with matching locations.
Map importer	MapImporter	Imports external map data. Returns MapImporterResult.
Map object provider	MapObjectProvider	Supplies custom objects for display on maps.
Map object view	MapObjectViewBuilder	Builds visual representations of custom map objects.
Map layer	MapLayerBuilder	Adds custom overlay layers to maps.
Map designer tool	MapDesignerTool	Adds tools to the map designer in Config Tool.
Map designer widget	MapDesignerWidget	Adds widgets to the map designer in Config Tool.

For map component implementation details, see Extending maps.

Credential components

These components extend cardholder and credential management. They are available in both Security Desk and Config Tool.

Component	Base class	Description
Badge printer	BadgePrinter	Implements badge printing through IBadgeService.
Credential encoder	CredentialEncoder	Encodes credential data to external hardware. Override Encode(CredentialEncoderData).
Credential reader	CredentialReader	Reads credential data from external hardware. CardholderCredentialReader provides a specialized variant for cardholder workflows.
Cardholder fields extractor	CardholderFieldsExtractor	Imports cardholder data from external sources such as HR systems, vCard files, or custom integrations. Extracts fields like name, email, photo, credentials, and group assignments.

For badge printer implementation details, see About badge printers.

For credential encoder implementation details, see About credential encoders.

For credential reader implementation details, see About credential readers.

For cardholder fields extractor implementation details, see About cardholder fields extractors.

Image and media components

Component	Base class	Description
Image extractor	ImageExtractor	Captures images from external sources for cardholder photos, custom fields, and entity thumbnails. Available in both Security Desk and Config Tool.
Timeline provider	TimelineProviderBuilder	Provides data for timeline visualizations. The TimelineProvider class inherits from DependencyObject, not Component. Register providers through TimelineProviderBuilder.

For image extractor implementation details, see About image extractors.

For timeline provider implementation details, see About timeline providers.

Other components

Component	Base class	Description
Pinnable content builder	PinnableContentBuilder	Creates visual content for pinnable popups (floating panels) in monitor windows.
Logon provider	LogonProvider	Customizes sign-in behavior for Security Center client applications.
Custom action	CustomActionBuilder	Adds custom actions to the event-to-action system. The builder creates CustomActionView instances for configuring the action.
Incident	IncidentBuilder	Adds custom incident types to the incident management system. The builder creates IncidentView instances for editing incident data.

For pinnable content builder implementation details, see About pinnable content builders.

For logon provider implementation details, see About logon providers.

For custom action implementation details, see About custom actions.

For incident implementation details, see About incidents.