Configure PAtools to interact with SystemLink so that PAtools can send information to SystemLink.

  1. Enter the Server URL that you use for testing.
    When entering the Server URL, use the API URL. For example, if the server URL is https://dev.lifecyclesolutions.ni.com, the URL you must enter is https://dev-api.lifecyclesolutions.ni.com.
  2. Enter your API Key.
    Refer to Creating an API Key in the SystemLink Enterprise User Manual to learn how to create an API key.
  3. Click Test Access to verify that your connection is successful.
  4. Select a SystemLink Workspace.
    When information is uploaded from PAtools to SystemLink, this SystemLink workspace is updated.

Adding an Execution Workflow

An execution workflow defines how a SystemLink test plan should be generated, deployed, started, and stopped.

Examples of actions that you can add to the execution workflow include the following:

  • START_AFTER_DEPLOY
  • GENERATE
  • DEPLOY
  • START
  • ABORT
  • END

Most execution actions in a workflow are carried out by SystemLink calling a salt job on the host computer where that salt job is installed. Alternatively, SystemLink runs a Jupyter notebook that is imported into SystemLink. For example, you might install a salt job on the PCU to start a test. When you click Start in SystemLink, SystemLink calls the salt job, and the salt job executes a script that starts the test on the PCU.

Add and configure a workflow to be included as part of a SystemLink test plan template when uploading a Test Procedure to SystemLink. Each configured workflow is associated with one or more Test Procedure types. When you upload a Test Procedure, the workflow that is associated with the same Test Procedure type as the Test Procedure is included in the test plan template. If a workflow is not defined for a particular Test Procedure type, you cannot upload the Test Procedures of that type to SystemLink.

Before you add a workflow, identify the SystemLink workflow that you want to add in PAtools.
  1. Click the Workflows tab and select New Workflow.
  2. Enter a Name for the workflow.
  3. Optional: Enter a description for the workflow.
  4. Select the Test Procedure Types that apply to the workflow.
    PAtools uses the Test Procedure Types setting to know which workflow to include in a SystemLink test plan template. In this case, the SystemLink test plan template is uploaded for a specific Test Procedure of the same Test Procedure type. A Test Procedure type can only be assigned to one workflow.
  5. To add a manual action, click Add Manual.
  6. To add an action that is executed by a notebook in SystemLink, click Add Notebook.
    You can only add notebooks that are published in SystemLink.
    1. Enter a Notebook Action.
    2. In the SystemLink Scripts web application, navigate to the notebook that you want to add.
    3. Click Edit.
    4. From the EDIT PUBLISHED NOTEBOOK pane, copy the Notebook ID.
    5. In the Workflows tab of the SystemLink Configuration page in PAtools, paste the Notebook ID.
    6. Click Add Parameter to add each of the required parameters.
    7. Enter a parameter Key and Value.
      For example, you can enter PartNumber as the Key and <partNumber> as the Value to have SystemLink pass the part number in your test plan to the notebook when it is executed.
  7. To add an action that is executed by a salt job on a system, click Add Job.
    1. Enter a Job Action.
    2. Optional: Select a System.
      The system that you select executes the job action. If you do not select a system, the job action executes on the system in the scheduled test plan.
      Tip Select a system if you define a GENERATE job action. This ensures that a test is generated on a dedicated test generator machine that runs on Windows. Refer to Setting up a Dedicated Test Generator Machine for more information about the dedicated test generator machine and PAtools Test Generator Software.
    3. Optional: Enter the Timeout (s).
      The default timeout is 120 s. Set the timeout if the run time of the job is longer than the default timeout.
      Note The run time for a GENERATE job is longer than the default timeout.
    4. Click Add Function to add each of the required arguments for the function.
    5. In Function, enter <Python script>.<Python function>
      • Python script location on the Windows test generator machine: C:\ProgramData\National Instruments\salt\var\extmods\modules
      • Python script location on the Linux Real-Time system: /var/lib/salt/minion/extmods/modules
  8. Click Save.

Adding a Dashboard

When you upload a Test Procedure to SystemLink from PAtools, you can select a dashboard to monitor the test when it executes. To do so, add and configure a reference to a SystemLink dashboard in PAtools.

You can create Grafana dashboards in SystemLink to monitor an executing test in real-time. Create a dashboard that displays test data from a running test, such as alarm statuses, temperature, and voltage values. Refer to Visualizing Notebook Data on a Dashboard in the SystemLink Enterprise User Manual for more information about SystemLink dashboards.

You can configure the same dashboard multiple times. For example, you can configure the same dashboard with different values for the variables that you define.

Before you add a dashboard, identify the SystemLink dashboard that you want to add in PAtools.
  1. Click the Dashboards tab and select New Dashboard.
  2. Enter the Name of the dashboard.
  3. Navigate to the dashboard you want to add in the SystemLink web client.
  4. From the dashboard page in the SystemLink web client, copy the dashboard ID from the URL.
    The SystemLink dashboard URL has the following format: https://<systemlink server>/dashboards/d/<dashboard ID>/<dashboard name>
  5. In the Dashboards tab of the SystemLink Configuration page in PAtools, paste the ID in Dashboard Id.
  6. Optional: Enter a Description of the dashboard.
  7. Add Variables as needed for your dashboard.
    1. Click Add Variable.
    2. Enter the variable Key.
    3. Enter a variable Value.
  8. Click Save.