Table of Contents

Placeholders in PDMShell

Overview

Placeholders in PDMShell let you substitute values at runtime. Supported commands can use file or folder properties, system values, vault context, PDM variables, and other contextual information to generate values automatically.

Placeholders are not a standalone command. They are evaluated by supported commands when processing the value parameter or other relevant inputs.

Commands Supporting Placeholders

The following commands support placeholders:

Commands Using the Current Folder as the Backing Object (directory parameter):

  • cd: Change the current directory.
  • mkdir: Create a new directory.
  • export: Export commands to a file.
  • addtovault: Add files to the vault with the directory as the backing object.

Commands Using Files or Folders as the Backing Object:

  • rename: Uses the value parameter for renaming files or folders.
  • renamefromsource: The new file is evaluated if the evaluatealiases parameter is specified.
  • setvar: Uses the value parameter to set variables for files or folders.
  • bom: Uses the name parameter to set the exported bom csv name.
  • export: Uses the name parameter to set the exported files name pattern.

Placeholder Reference

The value parameter in supported commands can include placeholders that are replaced with actual values based on the current context. The placeholders differ slightly depending on whether the backing object is a file or a folder.

Placeholders for Files

  • $value: Existing value of the variable. If the existing value is null or empty, this evaluates to an empty string.
  • $name: The file name with extension.
  • $fileNameWithoutExtension: The file name without extension.
  • $extension: The file extension.
  • $id: The file ID.
  • $revision: The current revision of the file (PDM revision, not the PDM variable).
  • $version: The current version of the file.
  • $filePath: The full local path of the file.
  • $folderPath: The full local path of the folder containing the file.
  • $folderName: The name of the folder containing the file.
  • $configuration: configuration name. Only valid for BOM command.
  • [Variable]: @ Variable value.

Placeholders for Folders

  • $value: Existing value of the variable. If the existing value is null or empty, this evaluates to an empty string.
  • $folderName: The name of the parent folder.
  • $folderID: The folder ID.
  • $folderPath: The full local path of the folder.
  • [Variable]: Variable value.

Common Placeholders (Applicable to Both Files and Folders)

  • $localPath: Local path
  • $username: The name of the logged-in PDM user.
  • $username.firstName: The logged-in PDM user's first name when available.
  • $username.lastName: The logged-in PDM user's last name when available.
  • $username.FullName: The logged-in PDM user's full name when available.
  • $username.email: The logged-in PDM user's email address when available.
  • $vaultName: The name of the vault. $vaultname is also supported for compatibility.
  • $yyyy: The current year.
  • $mm: The current month (two digits).
  • $hh: The current hour (two digits).
  • $mi: The current minute (two digits).
  • $ss: The current second (two digits).
  • $date: The current date.
  • $time: The current time in the current locale.
  • $guid: Unique identifier.
  • $tempFolder: User's local temp folder under App Data

Literal \n sequences in evaluated values are converted to Environment.NewLine.

Global Variables

Session global variables use the ${global.Name} syntax. They are set with setglobal, printed with getglobal, and cleared with clearglobal.

setglobal -name Project -value "ABC-100"
rename -filePath "$localPath" -value "${global.Project}-$name"
setvar -variableName Description -filePath "$localPath" -value "${global.Project} - $value"

Global variables are temporary and last only for the current PDMShell session or script run. See Global Variables.

String Functions

Placeholders also support a small set of string functions. Functions are evaluated after placeholders such as $value, $name, and [Variable] have been resolved, so they can be used to manipulate the evaluated text.

String functions use the ${...} syntax:

${left($value, 5)}
${replace($fileNameWithoutExtension, " ", "_")}
${before($fileNameWithoutExtension, "-")}
${regex($fileNameWithoutExtension, "^([^-]+)-", 1)}

Supported functions:

Function Description
${left(value, count)} Returns the first count characters. If count is longer than the value, the whole value is returned.
${right(value, count)} Returns the last count characters. If count is longer than the value, the whole value is returned.
${len(value)} Returns the number of characters in value.
${pos(value, search)} Returns the zero-based position of search in value, or -1 when it is not found.
${replace(value, old, new)} Replaces all occurrences of old with new.
${before(value, search)} Returns the text before search. If search is not found, the original value is returned.
${after(value, search)} Returns the text after search. If search is not found, an empty string is returned.
${regex(value, pattern)} Returns the first regular expression match. If no match is found, an empty string is returned.
${regex(value, pattern, group)} Returns a capture group from the first regular expression match. group can be a group number or group name. If the group is not found, an empty string is returned.

String functions can be nested when the nested function also uses ${...}:

${left(${replace($value, " ", "_")}, 10)}

For example, if $value is ABC 123 DRAFT, the expression above evaluates to ABC_123_DR.

Unknown or invalid function expressions are left unchanged.

When a full command value is wrapped in double quotes, escape quotes inside function arguments with \".

Revision Functions

Revision functions use the same ${...} syntax as string functions. Without a path argument, they require a selected PDM file because the result depends on the file's active workflow state and revision scheme.

Most revision functions also accept an optional file path. Use this when the expression needs to inspect a different PDM file, such as a released PDF that is related to the current SOLIDWORKS file.

Use the display value functions for normal scripts. Counter functions expose the internal numeric position of a revision component and are intended for advanced cases.

Function Description
${revision()} Returns the current full PDM revision display value for the selected file.
${revision("filePath")} Returns the current full PDM revision display value for another PDM file.
${nextRevision()} Returns the next full PDM revision display value based on the selected file's active revision scheme.
${nextRevision("filePath")} Returns the next full PDM revision display value for another PDM file.
${revisionComponentValue("ComponentName")} Returns the current displayed value for a specific revision component.
${revisionComponentValue("ComponentName", "filePath")} Returns the current displayed value for a component on another PDM file.
${nextRevisionComponentValue("ComponentName")} Returns the next displayed value for a specific revision component.
${nextRevisionComponentValue("ComponentName", "filePath")} Returns the next displayed component value for another PDM file.
${revisionComponentCounter("ComponentName")} Returns the current internal numeric counter for a specific revision component.
${revisionComponentCounter("ComponentName", "filePath")} Returns the current internal numeric counter for a component on another PDM file.
${nextRevisionComponentCounter("ComponentName")} Returns the next internal numeric counter for a specific revision component.
${nextRevisionComponentCounter("ComponentName", "filePath")} Returns the next internal numeric component counter for another PDM file.
${revisionNumberName()} Returns the name of the active revision number scheme for the selected file.
${revisionNumberName("filePath")} Returns the active revision number scheme name for another PDM file.
${revisionNumberId()} Returns the internal ID of the active revision number scheme for the selected file.
${revisionNumberId("filePath")} Returns the internal active revision number scheme ID for another PDM file.
${revisionComponents()} Returns a comma-separated list of active revision component names for the selected file.
${revisionComponents("filePath")} Returns a comma-separated list of active revision component names for another PDM file.
${hasRevisionScheme()} Returns true when the selected file's current workflow state has a revision scheme configured.
${hasRevisionScheme("filePath")} Returns true when another PDM file's current workflow state has a revision scheme configured.
${canIncrementRevision()} Returns true when PDM reports that the selected file can increment revision in the current state.
${canIncrementRevision("filePath")} Returns true when PDM reports that another PDM file can increment revision in the current state.
${isRevisionValueValid("A")} Returns true when the supplied value matches the active revision scheme component structure.
${isRevisionValueValid("A", "filePath")} Returns true when the supplied value matches another PDM file's active revision scheme component structure.

Examples:

msgbox -value "Current revision: ${revision()}"
msgbox -value "Next revision: ${nextRevision()}"
setvar -variableName NextRevision -filePath "$localPath" -value "${nextRevision()}"
msgbox -value "Related PDF revision: ${revision(\"$folderPath\\$fileNameWithoutExtension.pdf\")}"

Expression Evaluator

Use the Expression Evaluator to preview placeholders, PDM variables, and string functions before running a command or script.

Using Variables in Placeholders

In addition to named placeholders, you can include PDM variables by enclosing them in square brackets (e.g., [VariableName]). These variables are resolved based on the context of the file or folder.

Example Usage

Here is an example of how to use placeholders in a command:

Renaming a File

rename -filePath 1.sldprt -value "$fileNameWithoutExtension_$yyyy$mm$dd$extension"

Updating a Variable From Its Current Value

setvar -filePath file1.sldprt -variableName Description -value "${replace($value, \"DRAFT\", \"RELEASED\")}"

Renaming With Nested String Functions

rename -filePath "Part 123 Draft.sldprt" -value "${left(${replace($fileNameWithoutExtension, \" \", \"_\")}, 12)}$extension"

Renaming Everything Before a Separator

rename -filePath "ABC-123.sldprt" -value "${before($fileNameWithoutExtension, \"-\")}$extension"

Renaming With a Regular Expression

rename -filePath "ABC-123.sldprt" -value "${regex($fileNameWithoutExtension, \"^([^-]+)-\", 1)}$extension"
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