1. Introduction
A modern car is run by an on-board computer — the engine control unit (ECU). Inside it lives the firmware: the program plus a set of tuning tables called maps. TCEPro is a program for viewing and editing those maps from a firmware file (.bin).
A firmware file on its own is a long run of unlabeled numbers. Where each map sits in it and how to read its values is described in map catalogs. The supplier prepares the catalogs; the program downloads them itself once you have been granted access.
Three things worth understanding from the very start:
- There can be many catalogs. Access is granted per catalog, as a whole: one you have bought, another not yet.
- All the catalogs you have access to work simultaneously. When you open a firmware file, you do not pick a catalog and do not need to know which one describes the unit — the program searches all of them at once.
- You do not create or edit catalogs — the supplier builds them.
1.1. Capabilities
| Area | What the program can do |
|---|---|
| Account | Sign-in through the browser; license check in the background; offline work for up to 24 hours without a connection |
| Catalogs | The "Map catalogues" window: your catalogs and the ones you can buy; search, filters by status and tag; download, update, delete the local copy; catalog details; remembered choices |
| Projects | .tceproj files: firmware, edits, undo history, window layout, flags, notes, checkpoints; open by double-clicking in Explorer |
| Firmware | Import of .bin, .rom, .mod files, drag-and-drop into the window, unit recognition, the "Identity" panel with the basis for the match |
| Viewing | Map tree, table in real units, charts (line, surface, three-dimensional view), error maps (fault codes) |
| Editing | Cells and axes, point mode and smoothing, copy and paste, bulk operations, interpolation, area rescaling; shared-axis warning |
| History | Undo and redo, list of steps, return of a map or of the selected cells to the original state, named checkpoints |
| Value views | "Delta", "Deviation %" and "Original" modes; highlighting of changed cells; baseline chart over the current one |
| Comparison | A second firmware next to the first: the tree shows only the differences; carry the differences across in one action |
| Search | Tree filter by name and flag; search of maps by cell value |
| Workspace | Several map windows, ready-made layouts, table scale, moving between maps |
| Saving | Export of the firmware to a new file; checksum recalculation for Bosch, Volkswagen Group (VAG) and Mercedes-Benz |
| Reliability | Session recovery after a crash; check for program updates |
| Settings | Language, themes, fonts, colors of the heatmap, the tree and the difference highlighting, keyboard shortcuts |
Important. Working with maps is possible only after signing in (menu Account → Sign in to your account). Sign-in is completed in the browser (§3.1). Registration and purchase of catalog access are done on the account page in the browser, not in the program.
1.2. The program window
- On the left — the "Maps" side panel: the map tree of the recognized unit, with search and a flag filter. Next to it there may be the "Identity" panel (hidden by default).
- In the center — the workspace with map windows: every open map has its own window with a table and, if you wish, a chart.
- At the top — the menu and four toolbars (§17.3).
- At the bottom — the status bar: progress of operations, input error messages, the state of catalogs and downloads, the source of the open unit (§4.4).
The usual flow: open a firmware file → the map tree appears on the left → click a map → a window with the table opens → edits are visible immediately and recorded in the undo history → exporting the firmware or saving the project writes the result to disk.
Updated November 14, 2026 · for TCEPro 0.40.0