# Provider Implementation Guide

This guide explains how to implement a new provider for Owlen. Providers are the components that connect to different LLM APIs.

## The `Provider` Trait

The core of the provider system is the `Provider` trait, located in `owlen-core`. Any new provider must implement this trait.

Here is a simplified version of the trait:

```rust
use async_trait::async_trait;
use owlen_core::model::Model;
use owlen_core::session::Session;

#[async_trait]
pub trait Provider {
    /// Returns the name of the provider.
    fn name(&self) -> &str;

    /// Sends the session to the provider and returns the response.
    async fn chat(&self, session: &Session, model: &Model) -> Result<String, anyhow::Error>;
}
```

## Creating a New Crate

1.  **Create a new crate** in the `crates/` directory. For example, `owlen-myprovider`.
2.  **Add dependencies** to your new crate's `Cargo.toml`. You will need `owlen-core`, `async-trait`, `tokio`, and any crates required for interacting with the new API (e.g., `reqwest`).
3.  **Add the new crate to the workspace** in the root `Cargo.toml`.

## Implementing the Trait

In your new crate's `lib.rs`, you will define a struct for your provider and implement the `Provider` trait for it.

```rust
use async_trait::async_trait;
use owlen_core::model::Model;
use owlen_core::Provider;
use owlen_core::session::Session;

pub struct MyProvider;

#[async_trait]
impl Provider for MyProvider {
    fn name(&self) -> &str {
        "my-provider"
    }

    async fn chat(&self, session: &Session, model: &Model) -> Result<String, anyhow::Error> {
        // 1. Get the conversation history from the session.
        let history = session.get_messages();

        // 2. Format the request for your provider's API.
        //    This might involve creating a JSON body with the messages.

        // 3. Send the request to the API using a client like reqwest.

        // 4. Parse the response from the API.

        // 5. Return the content of the response as a String.

        Ok("Hello from my provider!".to_string())
    }
}
```

## Integrating with Owlen

Once your provider is implemented, you will need to integrate it into the main Owlen application.

1.  **Add your provider crate** as a dependency to `owlen-cli`.
2.  **In `owlen-cli`, modify the provider registration** to include your new provider. This will likely involve adding it to a list of available providers that the user can select from in the configuration.

This guide provides a basic outline. For more detailed examples, you can look at the existing provider implementations, such as `owlen-ollama`.