4. Map catalogs

• Catalogs are built by the supplier; a catalog cannot be created or edited in TCEPro.
• Access is granted per catalog, as a whole, not per unit or per map.
• All catalogs with open access work simultaneously — there is no need to pick a catalog before opening a firmware file.
• Catalogs are not part of the installer: the program downloads them itself after sign-in.
• A catalog is tied to your license and your computer. A file copied to a colleague will not open for them.
• Access is bought on the account page. The Open the purchase catalogue button in the program opens the right page of your account in the browser.

File → Map catalogues… (Ctrl+Shift+K), or the Open the catalogue manager… button in the settings. The window is separate and does not block the main one: while catalogs are downloading, you keep working.

It is a flat list — one row per catalog, without folders by manufacturer. A catalog does not belong to one make: it may hold different unit manufacturers and different families at once. Instead of a tree, a catalog has tags — words assigned by the supplier.

Above the list — the "Search by name, tag or ID…" field (the ID is the catalog identifier, shown in the details panel), a status filter (All / Licensed / Not downloaded / Need an update / No access / Problems), a tag filter and the Refresh the list button. If nothing matches the criteria, a "Nothing found" page appears with a Reset the filters button.

On the right — the details panel for the selected catalog: State, Catalogue ID, Artifact version (the catalog version number), Updated, File, Tags, and for problem catalogs — Error or Not mounted: reason. While nothing is selected, the panel prompts: "Select a catalogue on the left".

Statuses:

Buttons at the bottom of the window (also in the row's context menu): Download, Update, Delete local copy, Cancel download, the More ▾ menu (Retry download, Contact support, Check access, Show in Explorer, Copy catalogue ID) and Remembered choices… (§4.4). An unavailable action stays visible but grayed out, and its tooltip explains why.

Keys in the window: Ctrl+F — to the search field, F5 — refresh the list, Delete — delete the local copy, Esc — close the window.

Special states of the window:

• without sign-in the list is empty, with the caption "The catalogue list appears after you sign in";
• if the window was opened from a locked-catalog screen (§4.5), a bar "Only catalogues for the selected block are shown (N of M)" appears above the list with a Show all button;
• without a connection, a banner above the list reads "The server is unavailable. Local catalogues are shown; the purchase list and updates are not available. Last synchronisation: …";
• for catalogs without access, the tooltip reminds you: "Already paid? Press "Refresh the list" — access appears within a minute of payment".

Delete local copy deletes only the file from disk. Access is kept — the catalog can be downloaded again at any time. If map windows from this catalog are open, the program warns you and offers Save the project and delete.

Downloading. Select the rows and press Download. Two catalogs download at a time, the rest wait in the queue; the catalog needed by an already open firmware goes first. A queue bar appears above the list with a Cancel all button (with confirmation). Closing the window does not interrupt the download: progress is visible in the main window's status bar ("Catalogues: 3 / 7 · Downloading 47 % (1 of 2)"), and clicking it opens the window again. When a catalog is ready, a notice "Catalogue "…" is ready" appears.

An interrupted or failed download does not damage what is already installed: the partially downloaded file is deleted, the previous copy stays, and the status becomes "Download failed".

Updating. Outdated catalogs are fetched automatically, in the background, without asking:

• the catalog from which a firmware is currently open is not switched to the new version while that firmware is open — the new version applies on the next open;
• a failed update leaves the previous version working;
• the update is reported by the notice "Catalogue "…" was updated automatically: v9 → v11";
• if your connection is metered or slow, switch off Settings → Preferences… → General → Update catalogues automatically. Updates are then started by hand with the Update button.

When a firmware file is opened, the program looks for the unit in all catalogs with open access. Which catalog the unit was taken from is shown in the status bar (the "Catalogue: …" element) and in the "Identity" panel, "Source" group; the tree title then reads "Maps — ".

Hover over the "Catalogue: …" element — the tooltip shows the tags, the identifier, the version, "Why chosen" and, if the unit exists elsewhere too, "The block is also described in other catalogues". Clicking opens a menu:

Reopening asks for confirmation: the map windows close, the undo history is cleared, the edits in the firmware are kept.

If one unit is described in two catalogs at once, the program chooses by itself, by these rules from top to bottom:

1. Firmware fingerprint match — the catalog whose unit fingerprint matched your file. The most reliable sign: it is about the contents of the file.
2. Your previous choice — if you have already resolved this case and asked to remember it.
3. Catalog priority assigned by the supplier.
4. The newer version of the catalog.

If the only difference is the version, the choice is made silently. If the catalogs are completely equal, the "Block found in several catalogues" dialog appears with the columns Catalogue / Tags / Why chosen / Version / Maps — pick the one you need and, if you wish, tick "Remember this choice for this block". Remembered decisions are viewed and reset in the "Map catalogues" window, the Remembered choices… button: a table Software ID / Block ID / Catalogue / When and the buttons Reset the selected one, Reset all.

A unit is taken from one catalog as a whole. The maps of one unit are never assembled from two catalogs, even if the second one has maps the first lacks: mixing addresses from different sets is a straight road to ruining a unit.

When comparing firmware (§13), if the files were identified by different catalogs, the program warns: "The firmwares were identified by different catalogues: reference — …, compared file — …".

The program says so plainly rather than "the file is not supported". You see the "The block was recognised, but access to the catalogue is not open" screen:

• what was recognized in the file — the file name, the Software ID and Block ID (the program and unit identifiers read from your firmware), the recognition confidence;
• which catalog is needed — its name and tags;
• the buttons Open the purchase catalogue, Check access, Copy the request details, Catalogue manager, Why am I seeing this?.

You see nothing about the contents of such a catalog — neither map names nor how many there are. Until access is open, the catalog is closed as a whole.

Next:

1. Press Open the purchase catalogue and arrange access on the account page.
2. Return to TCEPro — the program re-checks access by itself.
3. When access opens, an "Access granted" banner appears with the text "Catalogue "…" is now available. File size: …" and the buttons Download and open the firmware / Later.
4. If you do not want to wait, Check access does the same on demand.

Variants of the same screen:

If access to a catalog is revoked while you are working, the message "Access to the catalogue this firmware was opened from has been revoked. The map windows of that catalogue will be closed" appears with a Save the project and close button — the edits are not lost.

The program tells the causes apart and names each one — there is no generic "catalog unavailable":

In none of these cases does the program modify or delete the catalog file on disk. A problem with one catalog does not stop the others.

%LOCALAPPDATA%\TCEPro\catalogs\ — one file per catalog, with the file name equal to the catalog identifier. There is no need to open, edit or move these files by hand; the regular operations are Show in Explorer and Delete local copy in the "Map catalogues" window.