ALeX

ph777

|
47 installs
| (0) | Free
Productivity tool for IS ALeX developers
Installation
Launch VS Code Quick Open (Ctrl+P), paste the following command, and press enter.
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ALeX

This extension is a productivity tool for ALeX developers.

Features

Main extension features:

  • Upload PHP actions and parts of XML files with a single key stroke.
  • Snippets to speed up configuration authoring.

For more details see:

The extension is activated once an XML or PHP file is opened or once a connection is selected.

Quick start

Commands

Command Descrition
ALeX: Connection: Select Choose connection ini file.
ALeX: Upload selection Upload XML selection to ALeX.
ALeX: Upload PHP file Upload PHP action to ALeX.
ALeX: Upload XML file Upload XML file to ALeX.
ALeX: Compile selection Compile XML selection and save it to file.
ALeX: Compile XML file Compile XML file and save it to file.
ALeX: Connection: Set password Set ALeX endpoint password.
ALeX: Connection: Reset password Reset ALeX endpoint password.
ALeX: Connection: Info Print ALeX endpoint details.

ALeX: Connection: Select

Use ALeX: Connection: Select to select connection ini file that defines IS ALeX endpoint. IS ALeX endpoint is defined with

  • url - ALeX base URL, e.g. http://localhost/ALeX/current
  • db - ALeX database name
  • user - ALeX user name, dbowner or another powerful user is a good choice
  • password - Optional password, define it for development environments only!

Connection ini file example:

url="http://localhost/ALeX/current"
db="alex"
user="root"
; Never store password for produciton systems.
;pass="mysecretpassword"

The command searches the path from the directory of the active document to the root folder looking for .*.ini and *.ini files. User is offered the list of connection files to select one.

Once you select a connection file, its endpoint details are printed to output. The selected connection file is then used for all commands that talk to ALeX server (like ALeX: Upload).

ALeX: Upload selection

Ctrl+Alt+U Cmd+Alt+U

Use ALeX: Upload selection to upload the selected part of your XML configuration file to ALeX.

The selected part is

  • the current selection block, or
  • the closest <alex-update> block surrounding the current cursor position, if the current selection is empty.

You can use multiple cursor positions to select several blocks.

Command requires a connection file with ALeX endpoint details. Use command ALeX: Connection: Select to select one.

ALeX: Upload PHP file

Ctrl+Alt+U Cmd+Alt+U

Use ALeX: Upload PHP file to upload the current PHP action file to ALeX.

Command requires a connection file with ALeX endpoint details. Use command ALeX: Connection: Select to select one.

ALeX: Upload XML file

Use ALeX: Upload XML file to upload the current XML file to ALeX.

Command requires a connection file with ALeX endpoint details. Use command ALeX: Connection: Select to select one.

ALeX: Compile selection

Ctrl+Alt+K Cmd+Alt+K

Use ALeX: Compile selection command to compile the selected part of your XML configuration file (see ALeX: Upload selection for definition) and save the result to a file.

Compiled XML is saved to build/part.file.compiled.xml if called from file.xml.

Command does NOT upload anything to ALeX server.

ALeX: Compile XML file

Use ALeX: Compile XML file command to compile the whole current file.

Compiled XML is saved to build/file.compiled.xml if called from file.xml.

Command does NOT upload anything to ALeX server.

ALeX: Connection: Set password

Use ALeX: Connection: Set password to set password if one is missing in connection file. Once password is set VSCode remembers it until workspace is closed or a different connection file is selected.

If password is set and connection file contains password too, the one set in VSCode is used.

ALeX: Connection: Reset password

Use ALeX: Connection: Reset password to unset password set with ALeX: Connection: Set password.

ALeX: Connection: Info

Use ALeX: Connection: Info command to print the current ALeX endpoint details to output.

ALeX: Make

Use a set of ALeX: Make commands to invoke alex make command from VSCode. There is a command for each of the most used targets.

Command Meaning
ALeX: Make All Asks whether to reset db. Then it builds and uploads configurations.
ALeX: Make Build Builds configurations. Built configurations can be found in build folder next to alex.json.
ALeX: Make Config Builds and uploads configurations.
ALeX: Make Test Builds and uploads test configurations.

Invoke command in one of the following ways.

  1. From context menu of alex.json file in file explorer.
  2. As a usual command with Ctrl+Shift+P - it will ask you to select one of alex.json files VSCode will find on the paths from the active document to root.

More on alex.json in usage help of alex make command.

alex make --help

Snippets

Document initialization

Abbreviation Description
aus Basic XML settings for ALeX XML configuration and <alex-update-sequence> root element

Update blocks

Abbreviation Description
au General <alex-update> block
auj <alex-update> for jobs
aup <alex-update> for parameters
aupg <alex-update> for parameter groups
auphp <alex-update> for PHP actions
aur <alex-update> for a role

Universal blocks

Abbreviation Description
an <alex-node>
aa <alex-attribute>
al <alex-link>

Parameter group blocks

Abbreviation Description
pg <alex-node> for a parameter group
ad <alex-display>
adf <alex-display> block with flags
ap <alex-link> to a parameter
aacpa ALeX actions custom panel - set custom actions
aacpo ALeX actions custom popup - set custom actions
act <alex-action>
call <call> in action definition
aapa ALeX actions panel - modify standard actions
aapo ALeX actions popup - modify standard actions
aaxi <xi:include> to modify standard actions

Parameter blocks

Abbreviation Description
p <alex-node> for a general parameter
pdat <alex-node> for a date parameter
pmulti <alex-node> for a multicatalog parameter
pref <alex-node> for a catalog parameter
pstr <alex-node> for a string parameter
ptab <alex-node> for a table parameter

Rights blocks

Abbreviation Description
aur <alex-update> for a role
ar <alex-right>

PHP

Abbreviation Description
php <alex-node> for a PHP action
classa class Action_ template (for PHP)
trigger Trigger method template (for PHP)

Jobs blocks

Abbreviation Description
ajf <alex-node> for a filtering job
ajp <alex-node> for a PHP job

Filter blocks

Abbreviation Description
af <alex-filter>
afc <alex-condition>

Editor title bar

An upload action is displayed in editor title bar (in top-right corner) in XML and PHP files. For XML files it uploads the current selection.

If Alt is pressed, then compile action is available instead upload in XML files.

Requirements

This extension requires command alex to be installed.

Extension Settings

Path

Set path to alex executable, if it is not on path including alex, alex.bat, or alex.php.

On Windws it's better to set path to alex.php.

{
    "alex.path": "/path/to/bin/alex",
    // or
    "alex.path": "C:\\mypath\\alex.php"
}

PHP

If path to alex.php is set in alex.path, you can set path to PHP binary to run it, otherwise php is epxected on path.

{
    "alex.php": "/path/to/bin/php"
}

This setting is ignored if alex.path is not set to a path to alex.php but e.g. to alex or alex.bat.

Known Issues

  • Check you have the latest alex-tools installed.

Release Notes

0.0.25

  • New schema for alex.json make files

0.0.24

  • Fix ALeX: Connection: Create cannot be run from command palette.
  • Fix double ALeX: Make All in explorer context menu.

0.0.23

  • New: ALeX: Upload XML command in editor title with alternative ALeX: Upload XML fragment (with Alt key)
  • New: ALeX: Compile XML command in editor title with alternative ALeX: Compile XML fragment (with Alt key)

0.0.22

  • Password optimizations:
    • Missing password is dispalyed in ALeX status bar item with (no password).
    • All server actions ask for password if it is not set.
    • Not providing a password always aborts the action.

0.0.21

  • Create new connection.

0.0.20

  • Asks for connection file automatically on commands that need connection.
  • Asks for password automatically when connection file is without a password.
  • New status bar item dislaying connection. Selects another connection on click.
  • Fix ALeX: Make for connection files without a password.
  • Requires latest alex-tools.

0.0.19

  • New ALeX: Make commands in file explorer's context menu on alex.json files, or directly callable with a dialog to select alex.json file

0.0.18

  • Opt XML snippets for PHP action class

0.0.16

  • Fix XML snippet for role rights

0.0.15

  • PHP snippets with type hints in docblock to support intellisense

0.0.14

  • Fix aus snippet

0.0.13

  • Fix activation events

0.0.11

  • Quick start
  • New ALeX: Upload XML file command to upload the whole XML file
  • Old ALeX: Upload command split to ALeX: Upload selection and ALeX: Upload PHP file
  • Icon in editor title bar for upload (or compile with Alt) actions in XML and PHP files
  • Documentation

0.0.8

  • Path to php in alex.php setting.

0.0.7

  • PHP snippets

0.0.6

  • Documentation

0.0.5

  • Set/Reset password
  • XML snippets
  • Documentation

0.0.4

  • Key alex.path in settings.json to configure path to alex CLI command
  • Multiple selections compilied always in document order
  • Command message displayed in status bar upon command start
  • XML snippets
  • Modified keybindings

0.0.1

  • Initial release of ALeX extension