Control Expert

Overview

Copia provides support for Schneider Control Expert (Classic) v14.1-v15.3, with advanced feature support for the following:

Control Expert Topology Manager

This software which was released in version 15.1 is launched using the Control Expert icon on the desktop. The Schneider Control Expert editor is now launched using the Control Expert Classic icon.

When using the Control Expert Topology Manager, it will launch the Control Expert editor to create and edit the project files (STU) in a similar manner, and these STU files are supported by Copia, in a similar manner. It has been observed that the location of these STU files may be in the user AppData folders of the local system. As such, it may be required to adjust repo locations to accommodate these locations, unless the locations can be modified. At this time, Copia does not provide additional guidance or support for the database, server or additional features provided by Topology Manager.

Configuration

Copia supports Schneider Control Expert files, with .STU as the standard and preferred working file format. You can alternatively use either .XEF or .ZEF formats, which may decrease file conversion times. Archive .STA files are also supported, though using these files during development is generally not recommended by Schneider Electric or Copia as they don't contain the database file and are less performant that .STU files.

Copia also has support for rendering of Exported Unity Section files using the .XBD , .XLD, .XDD, .XDB, and .XST formats.

To get set up, simply store the file in a Copia repository. Once you perform the appropriate commit and push operations, you'll be able to see your project file and all of its data from both the Web App and Desktop App.

The .gitignore file in your local repository will be automatically updated to ignore both .BAK and .ZTX file types.

Graphical Display and Differences

General

When the exported project file is selected in the Web App or Desktop App, Copia displays the project tree structure in a way that's familiar to users of the Control Expert (classic) editor. This way, you can easily navigate to a project item or identify differences.

Supported Types

The following types are currently supported for graphical rendering and diffing:

  • Ladder (LAD)

  • Structured Text (ST)

  • Function Block Diagram (FBD)

Changes to additional languages and configurations are displayed in XML to easily identify changes.

If you want to display the logic and changes to protected data, password protection and encryption must be removed or disabled. Otherwise, these items will appear as inaccessible.

View Options

There are several options you can manage while viewing your Schneider Control Expert files in Copia.

  • Show File Content

    This allows you to see the files included in the .STU or .STA files directly, giving you access to the DTM topology file and more

  • Show Unmodified Items

    This setting affects the tree view, and if enabled will display the items that are not modified

  • Show XML

    This displays the difference in a direct XML text-based compare

The View Options dropdown on the left affects items in the project tree, while the one on the right controls more specific viewing settings for items that are in a focus state.

Rung Commenting for Code Review

Copia supports rung commenting for Schneider Control Expert (classic) editor files for both Ladder and Structured Text.

Rung Commenting enhances the Code Review process once someone generates a Pull Request to merge a Branch. During the review process, users can add comments directly to the supported parts of the code.

You can watch an overview of rung commenting in the video below.

The product version in the video may be older than the current release, but the process is still applicable.

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