First, you need to make the options object part of your view-model. Then, upon changes, update the datePicker with the new options.
This way, you can add any of the options (like dayNames and dateFormat etc) to your options object, and the binding handler will update the component automatically.
For example (changing minDate dynamically):
var viewModel = {
myDate: ko.observable(new Date("12/01/2013")),
setToCurrentDate: function() {
this.myDate(new Date());
},
options: {
// make sure you're using an observable to wrap the value
minDate: ko.observable(new Date())
},
changeMinDate: function(){
this.options.minDate(new Date('01/01/2015'));
}
};
And in the binding-handler (adding subscription to changes on options):
ko.bindingHandlers.datepicker = {
init: function(element, valueAccessor, allBindingsAccessor) {
var $el = $(element);
var opts = allBindingsAccessor().datepickerOptions;
//initialize datepicker with some optional options
var options = ko.mapping.toJS(opts) || {};
$el.datepicker(options);
//handle the field changing
ko.utils.registerEventHandler(element, "change", function() {
var observable = valueAccessor();
observable($el.datepicker("getDate"));
});
//handle disposal (if KO removes by the template binding)
ko.utils.domNodeDisposal.addDisposeCallback(element, function() {
$el.datepicker("destroy");
});
// subscribe to all changes in the options object
ko.computed(function(){
var options = ko.mapping.toJS(opts) || {};
for (var i in options)
$el.datepicker('option', i, options[i]);
});
},
update: function(element, valueAccessor) {
var value = ko.utils.unwrapObservable(valueAccessor()),
$el = $(element),
current = $el.datepicker("getDate");
if (value - current !== 0) {
$el.datepicker("setDate", value);
}
}
};
See Fiddle