CtrlLens
📖 New here? Visit ctrllens.com for the full introduction, screenshots, and documentation.
This page is a short overview — the website has the complete user guide, setup walkthrough, and feature reference.
Git-native version control, visual diff/merge, and AI-assisted editing for Studio 5000® PLC projects — right inside VS Code. CtrlLens previews and version-controls .ACD / .L5X files, rendering Ladder (RLL), Function Block (FBD), Sequential Function Chart (SFC), and Structured Text.
Features
- Graphical preview — Ladder / FBD / SFC on an interactive canvas; Structured Text in VS Code's native editor with full syntax highlighting.
- Git-native VCS — commit, branch, push/pull, stash, and merge
.ACD / .L5X projects with per-program change tracking.
- Visual diff & merge — side-by-side rung / block / chart diffs and conflict resolution for RLL, FBD, and SFC, plus structural and line-by-line diffs for Structured Text.
- Interactive editing — inline operand & instruction editing, drag-and-drop, undo/redo, and a Studio 5000-style Cam profile editor.
- AI-assisted programming — exposes routine XML and an auto-generated project-schema bundle to Claude Code, Copilot, and Cursor so they write correct, tag-safe PLC code.
- Validation — static checks (tag resolution, operand types, SFC topology, instruction/language compatibility) surfaced in the Problems panel.
Complementary to Studio 5000 — not a replacement
CtrlLens fills the software-engineering gap that Studio 5000 leaves open: Git version control, code review, multi-developer collaboration, CI/CD, and cross-platform access. Project creation, hardware/network configuration, compilation, controller download/upload, and online monitoring stay in Studio 5000.
Free vs Pro
| Capability |
Free |
Pro |
| Preview (Ladder / FBD / SFC / ST / Tags) |
✅ |
✅ |
| ACD ↔ L5X sync |
✅ |
✅ |
| Git VCS (commit / branch / merge …) |
— |
✅ |
| Visual diff & merge UI |
— |
✅ |
| Interactive RLL / FBD / Cam editing |
— |
✅ |
| AI Context bundle |
— |
✅ |
Start free; upgrade to Pro at ctrllens.com.
Requirements
- The
l5xplode / l5xgit CLI tools are bundled with the extension — no setup required.
- ACD ↔ L5X conversion additionally needs the Logix Designer® SDK (Windows only, ships with Studio 5000). It is auto-detected; every other feature — preview, Git, diff, merge, editing — works without it, and
.L5X projects work on all platforms.
📖 Detailed setup, workflow guides, and the full feature reference: ctrllens.com
Studio 5000® and Logix Designer® are products and trademarks of Rockwell Automation. CtrlLens is an independent product and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Rockwell Automation.
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