Setup for development with PyCharm¶
To develop Dragonfly extensions, we recommend using PyCharm as the environment of development. This section describes how to do the setup and debug your program.
Installing Dragonfly¶
Install Dragonfly as usual. The recommended installation path is C:\Program Files\Dragonfly.
Note
In this documentation page, the installation path will be identified as DRAGONFLY_INSTALLATION_PATH.
Before getting further, make sure the application is running properly, then exit the program.
Registering DLLs¶
Start a Windows Command Prompt as administrator. Set the current directory as the DRAGONFLY_INSTALLATION_PATH. Execute registerDLLs.bat. Close that window.
Downloading and installing PyCharm¶
Download and install PyCharm. The free Community Edition has all the required features.
Setup to start PyCharm¶
In a file browser, go to the folder DRAGONFLY_INSTALLATION_PATH. Copy the file setEVarsForPythonIDE.bat in a folder with writing permission (example, the Desktop). Edit that copied file with a text editor, like Notepad. Add the path to the PyCharm executable at the end of the file. Save and close the file. Rename the file with a more relevant name, like startPyCharm.bat.
Starting PyCharm¶
Execute the file created at the previous step (renamed startPyCharm.bat). This will start PyCharm with specific environment variables required by Dragonfly.
Warning
Executing this .bat file should always be done to be able to start Dragonfly from PyCharm, even after the setup procedure is completed. Not doing so will prevent Dragonfly to start from PyCharm:
Configuring the project in PyCharm¶
On the Welcome page, select Open, and browse to C:\ProgramData\ORS\Dragonfly(version)\python. Click OK.
Go to File/Settings… to open the Settings. On the left sidebar, click on Project: python/Project Interpreter. In the field Project Interpreter should be found the Python interpreter 3.6 (C:\ProgramData\ORS\Dragonfly(version)\Anaconda3\python.exe). If this is not the case, click on the cog wheel on the top-right, then select Add Local. Browse to the C:\ProgramData\ORS\Dragonfly(version)\Anaconda3 directory, select python.exe and click OK. Make sure this is now the selection in the field Project Interpreter.
Still in the Settings window, on the left sidebar, click on Project: python/Project Structure. On the right side, click on Add Content Root. Browse to C:\Users\yourusername\AppData\Local\ORS\Dragonfly(version)\pythonUserExtensions. Click OK. Click again on Add Content Root. Browse to C:\ProgramData\ORS\Dragonfly(version)\pythonAllUsersExtensions. Click OK. Click OK to exit the Settings panel.
PyCharm will have to run processes for the specified Python Interpreter. Wait until the process Updating Indices is completed.
Go to Run/Edit Configurations… to open the Run/Debug Configurations. Click on the + sign to add a new configuration and select Python. Set a name in the Name field, like Start Dragonfly. In the Script field, type C:\ProgramData\ORS\Dragonfly(version)\python\OrsMinimalStartupScript.py. In the Python interpreter field, make sure Python 3.6 (C:\ProgramData\ORS\Dragonfly(version)\Anaconda3\python.exe) is selected. In the Working directory field, type the DRAGONFLY_INSTALLATION_PATH directory. Click OK to accept these changes and exit the Run/Debug Configurations panel.
Removing exception breakpoints¶
Go to Run/View Breakpoints… to open the Breakpoints window. Uncheck the Python Exception Breakpoint. Click on Done.
Run Dragonfly from PyCharm¶
Click on the Debug icon to start Dragonfly in debug mode, where breakpoints are active. Click on the Run icon to start Dragonfly in run mode, where breakpoints are not active, but the application responds faster.
Note
If the application is not starting and the exit code in the console is -760 or a message is displayed concerning the minimal OpenGL version, you may need to specify the graphic card to use when running the batch file startPyCharm.bat.
You may either start the batch file by specifying each time a graphic card supporting the minimal OpenGL version (this option is available when starting the batch file from a shortcut) or change the default graphics processor (in which case, a reboot may be required in order for the changes to take effect).
Debugging while running Dragonfly¶
When starting in Debug, you can break the execution on specific lines. While paused, you can use the debug console to examine and/or modify existing values. To do so, show the Python prompt and type your commands at the prompt.
Using the Python console embedded in PyCharm¶
It is sometimes useful to try some Python commands in a separate Python console. In PyCharm, you can view the Python console from the View/Tool Windows/Python Console.
When in a Python console, all the modules of the Dragonfly project are accessible even if the application is not started. You can also connect the debugger to break in the executed code.
