44 Packed Project Libraries

• Packed Project Libraries (PPLs) only contain compiled code (no BD)
• when you create a debug build for a PPL, you can view the block diagram of each VI.
• 1 PPL = 1 lvlib
• only public VIs can be seen
• PPLs expose your API (they are not part of the exe)
• cannot create documentation for PPLs by programmatically parsing (must be generated before build from source and copied into the calling project to be included there)
• If a VI calls a PPL compiled for one target, and you open the VI on another target that has a different operating system, the PPL fails to load.
• build exe will be smaller, because compiled PPLs are saved separately
• PPLs show version number in explorer (not working for RT Target?)
• PPLs store dependencies relative to each other
• best practice: store all PPLs in one flat hierarchy
• you can use Diagram Disable Structures to see if you are inside a PPL and use different paths etc
• PPLs are self-contained: All dependencies (eg from vi.lib) will be stored in the PPL as well

  • can lead to multiple copies of the same VI in RAM (FGVs won't work, for example)

• preparation:

  • wrap in lvlib, if not already done
  • for each lvlib use one repository and one lvproj
  • examine dependencies, start bottom-up: libraries, classes, framework, modules
• build options:

  • check: always exclude dependent packed libraries
  • uncheck: connector pane setting callers adapt at run time
• Conditional Disable Structures may be used to build two PPLs with two lvprojs on base of the same VIs
• must be built for each target, can be tricky: dependencies also include PPL e.g. B-PPL needs A-PPL

  • save A-PPL build for windows in PPL-folder
  • open project for building B-PPL for windows
  • B-lvlib-VIs are linked to A-PPL in PPL-folder
  • build B-PPL for windows
  • swtich A-PPL build for windows against A-PPL build for RT Phar Labs in PPL-folder
  • open project for building B-PPL for RT Phar Labs
  • build B-PPL for RT Phar Labs

• if needed, move code which should be replaced into lvlib
• replace lvlib with PPL
• don't forget to move remove old code from lvlib, if you have added it for this process

Normally you would call VIs from vi.lib statically, so that they will be pulled into the PPL. In certain scenarios it might be useful (?) to call a VI outside of the PPL, which needs to happen dynamically. This works with LV native datatypes on the connector pattern only, e.g. if you hand over a class between the PPL and the other VI it won't work out of the box. The class being pulled into the PPL will get namespaced resulting in a new class name which is not compatible with the class outside the PPL. See this thread.

This might be the cause for this error when using Call By Reference:

  Error 1031 occurred at Open VI Reference in PPL.lvlibp:Call By Reference.vi
  Possible reason(s):
  LabVIEW:  VI Reference type does not match VI connector pane.

#todo: solve with inheritance

• since DQMH as a dependency would be pulled into each DQMH-Module-PPL, it may be usefull to create a DQMH-PPL

  • move the three DQMH classes from vi.lib\Delacor\Delacor QMH\Libraries into a lvlib
  • create PPL
  • move the three classes out of the lvlib
• in a DQMH Modul Project:

  • move the three DQMH classes from vi.lib\Delacor\Delacor QMH\Libraries into a lvlib
  • replace lvlib with the created DQMH-PPL
  • move the three classes out of the lvlib
  • now your DQMH module depends on the DQMH-PPL
  • if you create new requests (use scripting tools) they will use the original DQMH and not the DQMH-PPL
  • you need to replace the dependency again
  • these steps should be automated during building ?

• public DQMH Poly Message VI, but implementations are private, I needed to change them to public
• hse-application paths not working out of the box

  • GetVersion should not throw an error (not related to PPL)
• HSE-Framework has a dependency to project.lvlib
• cannot build hse-libraries separatly (circle-dependency: hse-config ↔ hse-application)

The evolution of PPL usage at HSE. Each evolution needs to include the steps from previous evolutions.

example: hse-licence-library

• set build destination for PPL to <reporoot>\PPL
• rat-buildr builds one specific PPL
• rat-packagr creates .zip and rat-deployr copies it to release folder on NAS
• those two steps might be triggered multiple times to generate the PPL for different LV versions, bitnesses, OS

example: hse-licence-editor

• the used PPLs are stored as .zip files at <reporoot>\PPL
• for developing the PPLs must be unpacked, but are added to .gitignore

  • lvproj. contains a virtual folder PPL which contains the used .lvlibp
  • source code which is using PPLs always refers to those PPLs inside the project repo
• for building with rat, the zips need to be extracted, before the project is being opened

  • add <reporoot>\Source\unzip PPLs.vi
  • set XXX_INIT_CUSTOM_VI: “/unzip PPLs.vi” in rat.yml
  • save unzipped PPLs from init stage for other stages (see gitlab dependencies)

  artifacts:
      paths:
      - PPL/*.lvlibp

not implemented, yet

challenges:

• the installed VIs should contain the version → source distribution should be build
• multiple PPLs as zip files need to be included into one VIP, after installation only the correct one will be present at <vi.lib>.
• VIs should be able to link to dependency PPL statically

Problems

• when building the source distribution, no .lvlibp file can be present, because of files output hierarchy
• when building the VIP the projects VIs will be broken, because .lvlibp is missing and VIPBuilder will abort

ideas:

• call the dependency PPLs dynamically
• exclude ppl from source dist and use a post-built-custom-vi to copy content from <root>\PPL to <buildSpecDest>\PPL

challenge: While creating the PPL the dependent PPLs need to be present. While building the VIP, only the zip files needs to be present - but also the zip files just created in this pipeline. example: hse-licence-manager

• create additional <name>-vip.lvproj file with a source distribution build specification

  • create additional wrapper VIs at Source\VIP which dynamically call the installed PPL, if needed
  • add <reporoot>\PPL as autopopulating folder (to allow zip files, which are created later)
  • add <reporoot>\Source\unzip PPLs.vi
  • in src_dist buildspec include PPL folder and needed sources; built into <reporoot>\builds\src_dist
  • when building the source distribution, make sure, that no .lvlibp file is present at <reporoot>\PPL
• configure .vipb file

  • use <reporoot>\builds\src_dist as Source Directory
  • create PPL destination e.g. <vi.lib>Hampel Software Engineering\HSE Licence Manager\PPL and use this for the PPL folder
  • deploy unzip PPLs.vi to the correct level in the hierarchy e.g. \PPL or \Source
  • add Post-Install Custom Action.vi which calls the installed unzip PPLs.vi
  • add Post-Uninstall Custom Action.vi which deletes the installed folder (because unpacked .lvlibp won't get deleted automatically)
• have one or multiple pipelines which build, package and deploy the PPL as zip to the NAS

  • add PPL_BLDR_CLEARBUILDDEST: “FALSE” in rat.yml to allow building into <reporoot>\PPL and having dependency PPL there at the same time
• after the build PPL stages, have a stage to build the VIP
• to copy the needed zip files back into <reporoot>\PPL add VIP_INIT_COLLECTDESTINATION: “../PPL” in rat.yml

• Resolution of Pseudopaths in LabVIEW (Per-Target Invocation of Packed Project Libraries) (NI Forums)
• Code Trafficking: Smuggling Your Best Software @ 27:00 (NIWeek 2019, LabVIEWWiki)
• AF PPL on linux RT (Actor Framework, NI Forums)
• Caveats and Recommendations for Packed Project Libraries (NI Online Help)
• Manual specification of dependency locations without including dependencies in build spec (LabVIEW Idea Exchange)
• Polymorph (Idea Exchange)
• Best practice when using an DQMH API in PPL Plugins (NI Forums)
• (my) DQMH PPL and VILIB PPL best practices (NI Forums)
• Re: (Bigger) DQMH Project, Number of Modules and VI's (NI Forums)
• NIWeek 2019/Effectively Using Packed Project Libraries
• Debugging Symptoms - Build Namespacing - Missing VIs in Compiled Executable or PPL Code Appears to not Run
• Debugging Symptoms - Packed Project Library PPL Dependencies - Searching for Dependencies Dialog When Running Executable