Projects¶

What Is a project

A project contains elements with which a Q Application is made. It includes the following elements:

objects, object types, variables, variable types, methods
multimedia and graphical resources
NetLogic (see NetLogic), to implement custom application logics written in C#.

Binary and text formats

Projects can be created in binary or text format (open format readable/editable by code editor). The text format is useful when designing in a collaborative environment with version control to consult and collaborate on the project outside of Q Studio (see Projects in text format). When a new project is created, the text format is the default format.

Projects at Design Time and Runtime

The project development step is called design time. In this step, the source project also includes a Visual Studio project to manage the customized application logics written in C# (see NetLogic).

The execution phase of a project on a target is defined as runtime. For projects in binary format, the project in a Q Application is compiled, i.e. it consists of a set of binary files, in particular a subset of the elements of the source project and other binary files automatically included. In this compiled project, the C# files become a .NET assembly.

Project Compatibility

Projects created with previous versions of Q Studio can also be opened and processed with later versions. To do this, simply open the project: Q Studio can automatically update the project and all its modules to the current version. During the update, a backup copy of the original version of the project is created.

Warning

It is not possible to open an updated project with an older version of Q Studio afterwards.

Projects on the File System

Every project is contained in a folder on the file system with the same name. Below is an example of a project in binary format called Project:

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Each source project has the following file and folder structure:

Project	Content
Binary format	The project file, with .uniqo extension. A file with extension .uniqo.design. Contains accessory elements which are only required at design time, e.g., tag importers, ProjectFiles folder. This is a folder containing all files used in the project, including images, fonts and documents. It contains the following subfolders: NetSolution. Contains all the C# files to create customized application logics (see NetLogic). PKI. It contains private, public and refused certificates for OPC UA authentication.
Text format	The project file, with .uniqo extension. Contains general information on the project and references to the Q Platform modules in use. A file with extension .uniqo.design. Contains general information on the project and references to other Q Platform modules necessary for accessory elements only required at design time. Nodes folder. Contains the following files: a text file in YAML format, ProjectName.yaml, for the root node of the project, which contains the related properties and references to the other main nodes of the project. a folder for each project folder node (UI, Model, etc.), containing a YAML file that describes its related information model (UI.yaml, Model.yaml, etc.). ProjectFiles folder. This is a folder containing all files used in the project, including images, fonts and documents. It contains the following subfolders: NetSolution. Contains all the C# files to create customized application logics (see NetLogic). PKI. It contains private, public and refused certificates for OPC UA authentication.

Project

Content

Binary format

The project file, with .uniqo extension.
A file with extension .uniqo.design. Contains accessory elements which are only required at design time, e.g., tag importers,
ProjectFiles folder. This is a folder containing all files used in the project, including images, fonts and documents. It contains the following subfolders:
- NetSolution. Contains all the C# files to create customized application logics (see NetLogic).
- PKI. It contains private, public and refused certificates for OPC UA authentication.

Text format

The project file, with .uniqo extension. Contains general information on the project and references to the Q Platform modules in use.
A file with extension .uniqo.design. Contains general information on the project and references to other Q Platform modules necessary for accessory elements only required at design time.
Nodes folder. Contains the following files:
- a text file in YAML format, ProjectName.yaml, for the root node of the project, which contains the related properties and references to the other main nodes of the project.
- a folder for each project folder node (UI, Model, etc.), containing a YAML file that describes its related information model (UI.yaml, Model.yaml, etc.).
ProjectFiles folder. This is a folder containing all files used in the project, including images, fonts and documents. It contains the following subfolders:
- NetSolution. Contains all the C# files to create customized application logics (see NetLogic).
- PKI. It contains private, public and refused certificates for OPC UA authentication.

Project Backup

Q Studio automatically creates a backup a project in the following cases:

when a project is saved
when a project is updated to make it compatible with a more recent version of Q Studio
every time the project is updated to try to repair a corrupted project (see Restoring a Project)

Backup Folders

The backup folder found in the following path contains one folder for every project:

%localappdata%\ASEM\UNIQO\QStudio\Backups\[Project Name]

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Each of these folders consists of other subfolders with different types of backups:

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Below is a description of these folders:

Automatic: three backups , performed when saving the project
Recovery: backup performed when a corrupt project is opened and repair attempted in Q Studio (see Restoring a Project)
Upgrade: backups performed when updating the project to make it compatible with a newer version of Q Studio