How do I use it?
The converter is a command-line application (Convert.exe) that accepts several parameters. They are:- L4Solution: Path to the Linx 4 solution file that you want to convert.
- L4Config (optional): Path to the Linx 4 configuration file that accompanies the solution file.
- L5Solution: Path to the Linx 5 solution file that will be created.
- Log (optional): Path to the conversion log file that will be created.
For example:
While the application is running, it will display the current conversion status on the screen. If you've specified a log file (using the command-line parameters), this information will also be captured to disk. Conversion statuses are as follows:
- Verbose: Display information about the program flow, e.g. the component being converted, loading of the solution files, instantiating the Linx 4 and 5 environment, etc. Verbose messages are displayed in the default command-line colour.
- Information: Display information about non-breaking changes that were made to the converted solution. Linx 5 for example follows a more strict naming convention than Linx 4 and invalid names have to be converted to ensure a successful conversion. These messages can also include information about properties that were ignored or replaced with a new Linx 5 equivalent. Information messages are displayed in green.
- Warning: Warnings messages are displayed when a component can only be converted up to a point, but requires some user intervention, either on the Linx 4 or Linx 5 side. Warning messages are displayed in yellow and are repeated at the end of the conversion for convenience.
- Error: Used to display a fatal conversion message. If an error is encountered, the whole conversion will stop. Ensure that you have no validation errors in your Linx 4 solution before you start the conversion. Error messages are displayed in red.
The small print
The converter will (for now) only convert the most commonly-used components. Components that do not contain a Linx 5 equivalent will be included as a missing function in the Linx 5 solution - you won't however be able to use these solutions until you remove the applicable component. Also, be sure to check for any validation errors/warnings in the converted Linx 5 solution after the conversion.
The converter does a one-to-one conversion of the Linx 4 solution and does not try to understand the solution logic. You may therefore end up with a lot of extra components that can sometimes be consolidated into one Linx 5 component, e.g. separate assignments can be done in a single expression.
We want to hear from you
As mentioned, this is the first version of the converter. There are a lot of Linx 4 solutions out there that does a lot of different things, so please let us know if you have any questions, suggestions, feature requests, missing conversions. etc.
