Plugins

1. Introduction

Rhythmbox plugins are external pieces of code that can be loaded to provide extra functionality that is not found in the normal "vanilla" Rhythmbox. Plugins can do basically everything that Rhythmbox itself could do, and in fact some "core" features like Audio CD support and Internet Radio are actually plugins (although not displayed to users as such).

Rhythmbox plugins are written in two languages: C and Python.

Rhythmbox plugis

2. Types of plugins

There are 3 types of plugins:

Type	Description	Listed in UI	Comments
Core Plugins ( builtin )	Part of rhythmbox source tree	No	Mandatory. Cannot be disabled.
Core Plugins	Part of rhythmbox source tree	Yes	Optional. Can be enabled / disabled in plugin preferences.
Third Party Plugins	Not part of rhythmbox source tree. It is hosted by external repos like GitHub.	Yes	Optional. Can be enabled / disabled in plugin preferences.

3. Core Plugins ( builtin )

Name	Description	Language	Source link
Android devices	Support for Android 4.0+ devices (via MTP)	C	Gitlab Source
Audio CD Player	Support for playing of audio CDs as music source	C	Gitlab Source
Internet Radio	Support for broadcasting services transmitted via the Internet	C	Gitlab Source
Portable Players	Support for generic audio player devices (plus PSP and Nokia 770)	C	Gitlab Source
Power Manager	Inhibit Power Manager from suspending the machine while playing	C	Gitlab Source

4. Core Plugins

Name	Description	Language	Source link
Audio CD Recorder	Record audio CDs from playlists and duplicate audio CDs	C	Gitlab Source
Cover art search	Fetch album covers from the Internet	Python	Gitlab Source
DAAP Music Sharing	Share music and play shared music on your local network	C	Gitlab Source
FM Radio	Support for FM radio broadcasting services	C	Gitlab Source
Grilo media browser	Browse various local and Internet media sources	C	Gitlab Source
IM Status	Updates IM status according to the current song (works with Empathy and Pidgin)	Python	Gitlab Source
Last.fm	Submits song information to Last.fm and plays Last.fm radio streams	C	Gitlab Source
LIRC	Control Rhythmbox using an infrared remote control	C	Gitlab Source
ListenBrainz	Submit your listens to ListenBrainz	Python	Gitlab Source
Magnatune Store	Adds support to Rhythmbox for playing and purchasing from the Magnatune online music store	Python	Gitlab Source
MediaServer2 D-Bus interface	Provides an implementation of the MediaServer2 D-Bus interface specification	C	Gitlab Source
MPRIS D-Bus interface	Provides an implementation of the MPRIS D-Bus interface specification	C	Gitlab Source
Notification	Notification popups	C	Gitlab Source
Portable Players - iPod	Support for Apple iPod devices (show the content, play from device)	C	Gitlab Source
Portable Players - MTP	Support for MTP devices (show the content, transfer, play from device)	C	Gitlab Source
Python Console	Interactive Python console	Python	Gitlab Source
ReplayGain	Use ReplayGain to provide a consistent playback volume	Python	Gitlab Source
Song Lyrics	Fetch song lyrics from the Internet	Python	Gitlab Source
Web remote control	Control Rhythmbox from a web browser	Python	Gitlab Source
Zeitgeist	Inform Zeitgeist about your activity	Python	Gitlab Source

5. Third Party Plugins

For complete list of third party plugins, refer Rhythmbox Third Party Plugins.

6. Writing a new Rhythmbox Plugin

If you are interested in write a new plugin, refer to the plugin writing guide. Plugins can be distributed separately from Rhythmbox itself. If you've written an interesting new plugin, you should consider distributing it yourself.
If you want to add your plugins to the Rhythmbox Third Party Plugins list, please open an issue in Gitlab.