Nowadays, there’s a lot of talk in the automation space about text-based IDEs 🗒️. Many of the main automation vendors understand the value of using version control tools like Git during development—but we still have a long way to go 🚧. Here’s an example of an older HMI framework that is not Git-friendly. On the surface, it appears to store its data in XML files, so that’s text-based, right? Wrong. ❌ In this case, when I move a button a few pixels over in the IDE, many of my XML files are modified behind the scenes. This leads to a diff like the one I’m showing below: a meaningless series of changes because the IDE decided to add a space to every XML tag. The advent of modern IDEs is upon us 🚀: Beckhoff’s PLC++, B&R’s Automation Software 6, and Siemens’ Simatic AX, to name a few. These tools all claim better integration with modern software standards, and I’m hopeful that we can finally move away from noisy Git diffs ✨. What are your thoughts? Have you faced similar frustrations when using version control with automation tools? #IndustrialAutomation #Git #VersionControl #SoftwareDevelopment #ModernIDEs #Engineering #PLCProgramming
Could just use the git -w to ignore white space. That would eliminate all the changes displayed here.
Nice tot see the new IDE's and looking forward to them. But no fear of missing out because some still have a big way to go to production. So it has to fit the project and customer. P.s. for me it looks like your problem is caused by a external tool. Or the AS version was already changed in a previous commit.
Is it critical? If it at least detects a change all you need is a PLC / HMI software that has good comparison tool. Then put everything from the machine in Git. Put a Edge PC on your machine. Figure out a way to get the updated programs from the Edge PC to all your machine components. You are at least a decade or 3 ahead in the Automation world. If you pick the right components you can update both the parameters and firmware. Chose components that can update without the need of specialty software.
VC4 is text based(XML) but hard to maintain in text form. VC4 started at 2004 and correspond within the time of creation….
What do you think of Schneider tools
Man this post makes me feel super old-school - Automation & Git? mmmm... I'm usually more concerned with Electrical, Instrumentation, Fluid mechanics/dynamics and rudimentary Thermodynamics and how that integrates into the control system in a practical fashion. I really have to start thinking about the GIT side of things.
Founder, Design-Ops for Process Manufacturing
3wWhat is the workflow? Are you using an external editor? An any case the IDE should not suddenly decide to add spaces unless it has been set up like this.