fcxref
======
.. image:: https://badge.fury.io/py/fcxref.svg
:alt: PyPI version
:target: https://badge.fury.io/py/fcxref
----
* `Introduction`_
* `Motivation`_
* `Approach`_
* `Installation`_
* `Usage`_
* `Python API`_
* `Command Line`_
* `Supported FreeCAD Versions`_
* `Changelog`_
* `Contributing`_
Introduction
------------
Manages **F**\ ree\ **C**\ AD e\ **x**\ ternal **ref**\ erences.
"External references" are also known as external links or cross-document references.
The following operations are supported:
1. *Finding* external references
2. *Renaming* external references
3. and *Removing* external references (**not yet implemented**)
Motivation
----------
On `Expressions: Known issues / remaining tasks <https://wiki.freecadweb.org/Expressions#Known_issues_.2F_remaining_tasks>`_, it's mentioned:
There is no expression manager implemented where all expressions in a document are listed, and can be created, deleted, queried, etc.
Large complex FreeCAD projects typically rely on extensive use of cross-document referencing to properties such as aliases in spreadsheets.
When you have dozens of references to the same property, it becomes very difficult to find all the places where references exist or rename the property.
``fcxref`` aims to fill this gap until similiar functionality can be added to FreeCAD core.
See the following related FreeCAD forum discussions for additional motivation:
* `Expression engine - Automatic renaming <https://forum.freecadweb.org/viewtopic.php?t=18049>`_
* `Rename a file containing external links <https://forum.freecadweb.org/viewtopic.php?p=471267>`_
Approach
--------
``fcxref`` relies on parsing the ``Document.xml`` in compressed ``.FCStd`` files.
Installation
------------
Available on the `Python Package Index (PyPI) <https://pypi.org/project/fcxref/>`_.
.. code-block::
pip install fcxref
Usage
-----
There are two ways to use ``fcxref``:
1. via the Python API
2. vai the Command Line
The following 2 sections cover these 2 usage methods with documents in the ``example/`` directory.
Consider you have a ``MainDocument.FCStd`` containing a spreadsheet that drives your model,
and ``ExampleDocument.FCStd`` that references aliases in that spreadsheet.
Python API
----------
find
^^^^
.. code-block:: python
from fcxref import find, Property
base_path = './example'
references = find(base_path, Property('MainDocument', 'Spreadsheet', 'Value'))
print('\n'.join(map(str, references)))
.. code-block::
ExampleDocument Spreadsheet.B1 (content)
ExampleDocument Spreadsheet.A1 (content)
ExampleDocument Spreadsheet.B1 (alias)
ExampleDocument Box.Length (expression)
rename
^^^^^^
The ``rename`` function takes:
1. the base path to look for FreeCAD documents in
2. the name or label of the document
3. the name or label of the object
4. and a 2-element tuple containing the property before and after renaming.
It returns a dictionary where keys are filepaths to updated ``.FCStd`` files,
and values are XML `Element`_ objects representing updated ``Document.xml`` files.
.. _Element: https://docs.python.org/3/library/xml.etree.elementtree.html#xml.etree.ElementTree.Element
.. code-block:: python
from fcxref import rename
base_path = './example'
root_by_document_path = find(base_path, 'MainDocument', 'Spreadsheet', ('Value', 'RenamedValue'))
print(root_by_document_path)
.. code-block::
{'ExampleDocument.FCStd': <Element 'Document' at 0x7efcd281cc20>, 'MainDocument.FCStd': <Element 'Document' at 0x7f4d13c39270>}
Command Line
------------
Upon `installing <#installation>`_ ``fcxref``, the ``fcxref`` command will become globally accessible.
For usage information, pass ``--help`` to each command.
Each command scans for ``*.FCStd`` files recursively from the current working directory.
Thus, you should navigate to a directory where you store your FreeCAD documents before executing ``fcxref`` commands.
.. code-block::
$ fcxref --help ↵
usage: fcxref [-h] [--version] {find,rename} ...
Manage cross-document references to properties.
optional arguments:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
--version show program's version number and exit
Commands:
{find,rename}
find Find cross-document references to a property
rename Rename cross-document references to a property
find
^^^^
.. code-block::
$ fcxref find --help ↵
usage: fcxlink find <document> <object> <property>
Surround arguments containing special characters in quotes (e.g. "<<My Label>>").
positional arguments:
document Document name or label.
object Object name or label.
property Property.
optional arguments:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
Simple Queries
""""""""""""""
.. code-block::
$ fcxref find MainDocument Spreadsheet Value ↵
ExampleDocument.FCStd
ExampleDocument Spreadsheet.B1 (content) [direct]
ExampleDocument Spreadsheet.A1 (content) [indirect]
ExampleDocument Spreadsheet.B1 (alias) [indirect]
ExampleDocument Box.Length (expression) [indirect]
4 references to MainDocument#Spreadsheet.Value across 1 document(s) found.
💡 **TIP:** When using special characters on the command line such as ``<`` and ``>`` for label names, surround the argument in double-quotes.
rename
^^^^^^
.. code-block::
$ fcxref rename --help ↵
usage: fcxlink rename <document> <object> <from_property> <to_property>
Surround arguments containing special characters in quotes (e.g. "<<My Label>>").
positional arguments:
document Document name or label of reference to rename.
object Object name or label of reference to rename.
from_property Property of reference before renaming.
to_property Property of reference after renaming.
optional arguments:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
Simple Renames
""""""""""""""
The ``rename`` command will prompt users for confirmation before modifying any files,
and defaults to "No" if an explicit "Yes" is not provided.
.. code-block::
$ fcxref rename MainDocument Spreadsheet Value RenamedValue ↵
The following 2 document(s) reference MainDocument#Spreadsheet.Value:
ExampleDocument.FCStd
MainDocument.FCStd
Do you wish to rename references to MainDocument#Spreadsheet.RenamedValue? [y/N]
y ↵
2 document(s) updated.
Supported FreeCAD Versions
--------------------------
Currently only FreeCAD 19 and greater is supported.
If changes are minimal, then supporting older versions may be considered.
Changelog
---------
See `Changelog <./CHANGELOG.rst>`__.
Contributing
------------
See `Contributing Guidelines <./CONTRIBUTING.rst>`_.