T-IA Connect for VS Code

Explore, edit, and compile Siemens TIA Portal projects directly from VS Code, Cursor, or Windsurf.

This extension connects to a running T-IA Connect server and provides a full development workflow for PLC programming — without leaving your editor.

T-IA Connect Demo

View all screenshots — 28 screenshots showing the complete workflow.

Quick Start

Install the extension from the VS Code Marketplace
Click the T-IA Connect icon in the Activity Bar (left sidebar)
Sign in with your T-IA Connect account (or create one for free)
If T-IA Connect is not installed, follow the download link in the sidebar
Click Launch Headless or Launch with GUI to start the server
Open a TIA Portal project — you're ready to code!

The API key is configured automatically when the server runs on your machine. No manual setup needed.

Features

Project Explorer

Browse your TIA Portal project structure directly in VS Code.

Device tree: PLCs, HMIs, and their contents — blocks, tag tables, UDTs, watch tables
Block folders: hierarchical view matching your TIA Portal structure
Block icons: color-coded by type — OB (blue), FB (green), FC (orange), DB (purple)
Status indicators: block language and consistency state at a glance
Project Dashboard: overview panel with device stats, block counts, tag summaries, and UDT counts

Project Explorer

SCL / STL Editing

Double-click any SCL or STL block to open it with full language support. Edit, save (Ctrl+S), and it's reimported into TIA Portal automatically.

Syntax highlighting — TextMate grammars for SCL and STL
Autocompletion — keywords, types, variables, and built-in functions
Signature Help — parameter hints for 30+ SCL functions
Hover documentation — type info, function docs, system block documentation (TON, CTU, R_TRIG...)
Go-to-Definition — Ctrl+click on local variables or block names (cross-file via API)
Rename Symbol (F2) — rename a variable across the entire file
Diagnostics — compilation errors mapped to precise source lines (regex + symbol search)
Document Outline — hierarchical view of blocks, sections, and variables
15 SCL snippets — FB, FC, OB, DB, IF, FOR, CASE, TON, R_TRIG...
Compilation errors displayed directly in the editor (red/yellow squiggles at the correct line)
Background preloading — blocks are cached after project load for near-instant opening

Save behavior

Ctrl+S (manual save) triggers reimport into TIA Portal + optional auto-compile
VS Code auto-save is ignored — no accidental reimports
Safety timer saves to disk every 5/10/15 minutes without reimporting (configurable)

SCL Editor

LAD / FBD / GRAPH Viewer

Non-editable blocks open in a graphical webview with SVG rendering.

Contact, coil, and box instructions rendered as network diagrams
Parallel branches with vertical merge connectors and wire routing
Interface table with variable types
Read-only — no accidental modifications

LAD Viewer

Create Blocks

Right-click any device in the Project Explorer and select Create Block.

Block types: FB, FC, OB, DB
Languages: SCL, STL, LAD, FBD, GRAPH
SCL/STL blocks include a ready-to-use code template
The project tree refreshes automatically

Compile

Compile a single block or an entire device from the context menu or the Command Palette.

Progress notification with error/warning count
Detailed messages in the Output channel
Compilation errors appear as diagnostics at the correct line in the editor
Keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+Shift+B

Export / Import

Full bidirectional export and import for all project data.

UDTs (User-Defined Types)

Export/import as XML

Watch Tables

Export/import watch and force tables

HMI

Export/import individual HMI screens
Bulk export: screens + tags + connections in one command

Hardware Configuration

Export/import hardware config (AML format)

Export All

One-click export of tags + UDTs + watch tables for a device

Source Control (VCS)

Version your TIA Portal project with Git-based source control, directly in the sidebar.

Export Preview (eye icon) — export the project and detect changes since the last commit
Review — click any changed file to open a read-only side-by-side diff
Commit (checkmark icon) — save the current state with a message

Additional features:

Push / Pull to remote repositories
Branch operations: create, switch, delete, merge
Commit log with diff viewer
Auto-export every minute (changes appear automatically)
Auto-refresh status every 30 seconds
Smart Comparison — normalized XML diff (strips IDs, timestamps, whitespace) to detect real changes
Dependency Sort — topological ordering (Kahn's algorithm) for correct import order
Orphan Cleanup — detect blocks deleted in TIA Portal but still in source control
License check (lock icon if VCS is not included in your edition)

AI Integration

Three complementary AI features for PLC development:

@tia Chat Participant (GitHub Copilot Chat)

Type @tia in GitHub Copilot Chat to interact with your TIA Portal project using natural language.

30 Language Model Tools — project overview, block management, compilation, tags, UDTs, cross-references, PLCSim, VCS, pipelines, hardware
Agentic loop — the AI can chain multiple tool calls (up to 10 rounds) to complete complex tasks
License check — verifies AI license before consuming tokens

Dedicated AI assistant in the secondary sidebar, independent of GitHub Copilot.

Connected to the T-IA Connect server's multi-provider LLM (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Mistral, Ollama)
Chat history, clickable block links, auto-refresh after AI actions
Connection-aware: shows sign-in or offline state when not connected
Localized in French

Copilot Summary

MCP Server (100+ Tools)

The T-IA Connect server exposes a Model Context Protocol server with 100+ tools. The extension auto-generates .vscode/mcp.json so GitHub Copilot Chat can use all MCP tools automatically.

Compatible with: Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, Windsurf, and any MCP client.

PLC Tests

Run PLC tests against PLCSim Advanced from the sidebar.

Automatic license and PLCSim availability checks
Run individual tests or the entire suite
Detailed results: pass/fail badges, step cards, assertions table with expected vs actual values
Duration and timestamps

Cross-References

View cross-references for any block type (SCL, STL, LAD, FBD, GRAPH).

Source and target references with type badges
Read/Write access indicators
Dedicated webview panel alongside the editor

Pipelines (CI/CD)

Define and run CI/CD pipelines for your TIA Portal projects.

List, run, and monitor pipelines
Create from built-in templates
Execution history with step-level details

Workspace Scaffolding

Initialize a TIA-ready workspace with one command:

.gitignore with TIA Portal patterns (.ap, .zap, .tia-temp/)
.github/copilot-instructions.md for GitHub Copilot context
CLAUDE.md for Claude Code context

Authentication

The extension uses two independent layers:

Layer	Purpose	How it works
T-IA Connect Account	Identifies you, checks your license	Sign in via browser — token stored securely in your OS keyring
Server API Key	Authenticates REST calls to the local server	Auto-configured from the local server (no manual copy-paste)

On first launch:

Click Sign In in the sidebar → your browser opens the login page
After login, the extension picks up your session automatically
The API key is retrieved from the local server in the background

Your credentials are stored in the OS credential manager (Windows Credential Manager / macOS Keychain / Linux Secret Service). They are never stored in plain text.

Opening Projects

Use T-IA Connect: Switch Project (Ctrl+Shift+P) to open a project.

Recent projects — your project history, sorted by last access
Browse... — file dialog to pick any .ap17 to .ap21 file
Archives — .zap17 to .zap21 files are supported (prompts for extraction folder)
Default browse location: Documents/Automation

Server Management

The extension can launch and stop the T-IA Connect server for you.

Action	Description
Launch Headless	Runs silently in the background (no window)
Launch with GUI	Opens the full desktop application
Stop Server	Shuts down the server (from the Disconnect menu)

The server is automatically detected if installed in the default location. You can configure a custom path in settings.

Extension Settings

Setting	Default	Description
`tiaConnect.serverUrl`	`http://localhost:9000`	T-IA Connect server URL
`tiaConnect.apiKey`	(auto-configured)	API key (auto-fetched from local server)
`tiaConnect.autoReimportOnSave`	`true`	Reimport blocks on Ctrl+S
`tiaConnect.autoCompileOnReimport`	`false`	Compile after reimport
`tiaConnect.autoSaveInterval`	`5`	Safety auto-save (minutes, 0 = disabled)
`tiaConnect.excludeFromReimport`	`[]`	Block names to skip during auto-reimport
`tiaConnect.executablePath`	(auto-detected)	Path to the T-IA Connect executable
`tiaConnect.autoConfigureMcp`	`true`	Auto-generate MCP config for GitHub Copilot

Commands

All commands are available via Ctrl+Shift+P:

Project

Command	Description
Sign In	Sign in with your T-IA Connect account
Create Account	Create a new account
Sign Out	Sign out
Connect to Server	Connect and authenticate
Disconnect from Server	Disconnect or stop the server
Launch Server (Headless)	Start server in background
Launch Server (GUI)	Start server with desktop UI
Switch Project	Open a different project
Refresh Project Tree	Reload project structure
Open Settings	Open extension settings

Blocks

Command	Description
Create Block	Create a new FB/FC/OB/DB
Compile Device	Compile all software on a device
Compile Block	Compile a single block
Export Block to File	Export as SimaticML XML
Import SCL/STL File	Import an external source file
Show Cross-References	View block references

Export / Import

Command	Description
Export All	Export tags + UDTs + watch tables for a device
Export HMI Screen	Export a single HMI screen
Export All HMI	Export screens, tags, and connections
Import HMI Files	Import HMI screens/tags/connections
Export Hardware Config	Export hardware configuration (AML)
Import Hardware Config	Import hardware configuration
Initialize Workspace	Generate .gitignore, copilot-instructions, CLAUDE.md

Source Control

Command	Description
Initialize VCS	Initialize source control repository
Export Preview	Detect changes without committing
Commit Changes	Export and commit
Push / Pull	Sync with remote
Branch Operations	Create, switch, delete, merge
Show Commit Log	View history with diffs
Detect Orphans	Find blocks deleted from TIA but still in VCS

Pipelines & Tests

Command	Description
List / Run / History	Manage CI/CD pipelines
Create from Template	Create pipeline from template
Run All PLC Tests	Run the full test suite
Run Test	Run a single test

Requirements

T-IA Connect server v2.1.620+ — t-ia-connect.com
TIA Portal V17-V21 installed on the same machine as the server
Network access to the server (default: http://localhost:9000)

How It Works

VS Code Extension           T-IA Connect Server          TIA Portal
  TypeScript/REST  ──HTTP──>  C# / .NET 4.8  ──Openness──>  V17-V21
             <──SignalR──  (real-time push notifications)

The extension is a lightweight REST + SignalR client. All TIA Portal operations (Openness API calls, compilation, simulation) happen server-side. This means:

No TIA Portal dependency in VS Code
Multi-project: switch between projects without restarting
Multi-client: VS Code, Cursor, and scripts can connect simultaneously
Remote-capable: the server can run on a different machine or VM

Compatibility

Editor	Supported
VS Code 1.85+	Yes
Cursor	Yes
Windsurf	Yes

Localisation

The extension is fully translated in French. It displays in French when VS Code is configured with "locale": "fr". English is the default.

Documentation

Architecture — Code structure, components, data flow
Roadmap — Development status by phase
Changelog — Version history

License

Elastic License 2.0 — FEELAUTOM

This software is source-available. You may use, copy, distribute, and modify it, subject to the limitations in the license. You may not provide it as a hosted/managed service, and you may not circumvent the license key functionality.

The T-IA Connect server requires a separate license — free trial available at t-ia-connect.com.

T-IA Connect for VS Code

FEELAUTOM

T-IA Connect for VS Code

Quick Start

Features

Project Explorer

SCL / STL Editing

Save behavior

LAD / FBD / GRAPH Viewer

Create Blocks

Compile

Export / Import

Tags

UDTs (User-Defined Types)

Watch Tables

HMI

Hardware Configuration

Export All

Source Control (VCS)

AI Integration

@tia Chat Participant (GitHub Copilot Chat)

T-IA Connect Copilot (Sidebar)

MCP Server (100+ Tools)

PLC Tests

Cross-References

Pipelines (CI/CD)

Workspace Scaffolding

Authentication

Opening Projects

Server Management

Extension Settings

Commands

Project

Blocks

Export / Import

Source Control

Pipelines & Tests

Requirements

How It Works

Compatibility

Localisation

Documentation

License