#Hardhat 3 plugin tutorial

In this tutorial, you'll build a simple Hardhat 3 plugin based on the Hardhat 3 plugin template.

#Setting up your dev environment

To follow this tutorial, you need to have Node.js 22+ and pnpm installed on your machine.

You also need to create a new repository based on the Hardhat 3 plugin template. Follow this guide to get started.

#Your first Hardhat 3 plugin

Let's create a plugin that lets users pick an account for each network in their config and store it as myAccount in the NetworkConnection object returned by network.connect(). We'll also define a task to print that account's address.

Your plugin will let users write:

import { network } from "hardhat";

const { myAccount } = await network.connect();
console.log("My account is:", myAccount);

and run:

npx hardhat my-account --network networkName

By implementing this plugin, you'll learn to:

1. Extend the NetworkConnection objects returned by network.connect().
2. Extend the Hardhat Config System, adding custom validation and resolution logic.
3. Add a task that builds on these features.

The complete code for this tutorial is in the tutorial branch of the Hardhat 3 plugin template.