How do you use version control for plugin/extension development

I mainly build websites and SVN has worked out just find in terms of setting up a repository for the websites code. I am going to start working on some extensions/plugins that can be used on certain web applications, such as Wordpress, Magen开发者_如何学Goto, or any other type of web application. What the application is, doesn't really matter.

What I am looking for is the best way to setup a repository for the plugin that I am developing, while being able to check it out and use it in one of the web applications that I am building it for. I don't want the code of the web application added to the repo, I want only the code that has to do with the plugin in the repo.

Obviously there are standard folders that I would create the plugin with, which exist inside these other applications and it could not be standalone. Is it something where I would have to import my plugin to the repo and then check it out inside of my web application structure, then ignore all files that are not in the repo. How do you maintain that going forward? Obviously there could be new files added to the application, and you might want to add files to the plugin, would it just be a constant battle of finding what to ignore?

I don't want to import the plugin, into the repo, then check it out, and also export it, placing the exported version into the web application and then any change I do in the web application to get the functionality of the plugin fixed or changed, I would have to make sure to also do in the checked out version.

Seems like there has to be a better process of working on plugins that are dependant on applications to work, while only having the code of the plugin checked into the repository.

You may want to look in to SVN Externals

"An externals definition is a mapping of a local directory to the URL—and possibly a particular revision—of a versioned resource."

It seems like it may be exactly what you need.