Most plug-ins will have an update site, making it easy to add and update plug-ins within Eclipse. Steps 1.2.1 and 1.2.2 outline how to setup a connection to an update site. Section 3.0 outlines how to update a plug-in from an already existent update site.

1.1 Find the URL of the update site for the plug-in.

1.2 Create a connection to an update site within Eclipse (The directions may vary slightly depending on what version of Eclipse you are using, but the idea is the same across all 3.x releases. These directions are specific to Eclipse 3.5).

1.2.1 Select Help > Install New Software. The install dialog will appear.

1.2.2 Click add and type in the name and update site for the plugin, as in the following figure. We will be using FindBugs for this example. If you are installing a different plug-in, provide the correct name and update site URL in place of the FindBugs data here.

1.2.3 Click the checkbox next to the update site you just added (in this example, it's called "Findbugs Feature". Click Next.

1.2.4 The following dialog box will appear. Click Next.

1.2.5 Click the radio button next to "I accept the terms of the license agreement". Click Finish.

1.2.6 After Eclipse goes through the process of updating itself (which may take a few moments), you will see the following dialog. Click Yes and wait for Eclipse to restart the workbench. Congratulations, now your new plug-in is installed!

If you have already created an update site for a plug-in, it is easy to look for new updates.

3.1 Select Help > Check for Updates as shown in the following Figure.

3.2 Eclipse will automatically search all the update sites you have provided and come back with a list similar to the one below.

3.3 Check the features that you would like updates for. Click Next. Confirm the list that you selected and click Finish.

3.4 Eclipse will automatically perform the updates you requested. Then you will see the following dialog. Click Yes and wait for Eclipse to restart the workbench. Congratulations, now your new plug-in is installed!