Inductive

Overview

Copia provides native Git support for Ignition 8, as recommended by Inductive Automation. No additional advanced features are provided at this time. The configuration below is provided to assist in the configuration of Copia and Ignition. In addition, we recommend you also review the Inductive Automation resources for additional details.

Resources

• https://inductiveautomation.com/ignition/

• https://inductiveautomation.com/resources/article/ignition-8-deployment-best-practices

Configuration

The configuration below is based on the "Ignition 8 Deployment Best Practices" resources provided above, but adapted to make it easier for users to set up the product in Copia. This workflow stores all Ignition projects into a single repository.

In this section, we are going to assume:

• The user has already created a Copia account

• You are working on your Ignition development system.

• You have downloaded, installed and configured the Copia Desktop App

Let's get started!

1. Open the Copia desktop app on the PC which has the Ignition projects directory

2. Select File -> Add local repository...

3. Navigate to the Ignition projects directory using the "Choose" button (replacing the <IGNITION INSTALL DIRECTORY> in the image below with the correct path). Copia will identify that it is not currently a repository, and ask if you would like to create it. Click "create a repository".

4. You will be asked for a name and description for the new repository. I have changed them, as seen below, and we recommend adding a README, so that you can update it later, if needed. (a .gitattributes and .gitignore file will be automatically added, as well)

5. Now you have created your repository locally, you just need to publish it to Copia. Click the "Publish Repository" button.

6. Now update this information with the name and description used in Step #4, choose the correct organization and press "Publish repository"

7. We will now update the gitignore, by selecting the Repository Settings

8. In the Repository Settings, selected the "Ignored files" section and add ".resources/" to the bottom of the list, and press "Save"

9. Add a backup of the tags, images and Gateway, if applicable. As recommended by Inductive Automation, put the them into the project directory:

   • Export the tags from the Designer into a tags.json file.

   • Use the Image Management Tool in the Designer to export all images to a folder called “images”.

   • Make a Gateway backup.

10. Back in the Copia Desktop app, you should now see the gateway backup, gitignore, tags.json and "images" folder with its contents. Add a commit summary and description, and press "Commit to Main", and then "Push" your changes to Copia

11. Inductive Automation recommends creating a branch for both Development and Testing. This is accomplished easily via the desktop all, following the Standard Workflow in the Branching section. Once for Development and another time for Testing.

12. On the dedicated development and testing machines (or VMs), install the Copia desktop app. You can then "Clone" the repository by first selecting "File -> Clone repository..."

13. Select "app.copia.io at the top, use the filter field to narrow your selections, and choose the repo you want to clone. In the local path, make sure to edit it to reflect the "Ignition Install Directory + /data/projects". Press Clone.

From this point forward, you can follow along using the Inductive Automation document linked above to add auto-commits, if desired (Step #8, in that document). On each system, use the Copia Desktop app to pull changes, push commits and switch branches, as needed. Copia fully supports merging, as well, for updating the Main from the development or testing branch.