In this article, you will learn the different ways to export a Control module and where the modules are then stored.

Exporting a Module

If you have a PIXERA Control CORE or ENTERPRISE license, you are able to export custom modules for sharing or for future use. This should work for all future releases of PIXERA, and in most cases, should be backwards compatible. The caveat being, if new PIXERA libraries or features were used to create your module, it should be double-checked that the module still functions in older versions of PIXERA. 

To export a module, right-click the yellow title bar at the top of the module window. You will see a window pop up that has a list of options. Within this list are quite a few options for exporting and updating a module:

• Export Files
• Export Files To Library
• Re-Export To Library
• Update From Library
• Store In Own Aux Directory
• Export For Editing
• Update From Edited
• Show Edited In Explorer
   

So what does it all mean?

Export Files

Using the Export Files options allows you to export your entire module as a single json file and store it anywhere you'd like.

Export Files To Library

Using Export Files To Library allows you to export your entire module as a json file to the following path:

C:\ProgramData\AV Stumpfl\Pixera\control_library_user

Storing your file in this directory allows it to be natively accessible with all versions of PIXERA. The next time you open PIXERA, you will see your custom module in at the bottom of the Control Library modules list. 

If you create folder structures within this directory using Windows File Explorer, you will see those folders here as well. In my example below, you can see my module listed in the root of the Control Library, MyFirstModule, as well as a folder I made named Personal.

Export Files To Library, along with it's complimentary options (Re-Export To Library and Update From Library) are my preferred exporting options.

Re-Export To Library

Re-Export To Library will only populate in your list of options once you have first exported your module to library.

Using Re-Export To Library will simply overwrite/update the json file in the path used for Export To Library:

C:\ProgramData\AV Stumpfl\Pixera\control_library_user

This update will be immediately available for use within your current PIXERA session, so dragging and dropping a new copy of your module into the Control workspace will show the recent updates.

Update From Library

Using Update From Library will update your module based on edits you've made to the json file outside of PIXERA from the Export To Library directory:

C:\ProgramData\AV Stumpfl\Pixera\control_library_user

This means you can make edits to your module via the json file in your own editing environment or IDE, then update the module in Control with all of your new modifications.

Store In Own Aux Directory

Using Store In Own Aux Directory, by default, will create a folder named projectname_aux_files within the root of your project folder with the following structure:

• Project Folder
  • exportmodules_aux_files
    • ModuleName
      • main.json
      • html_root 
        • (any necessary html files for your project)

This module's files will now travel with your specific project folder. The html folder is only used if you have UI elements in your module that carry specific html information.

For example, if I open exportmodules_aux_files/MyFirstModule, I will see:

To find where this export is stored, you can always right-click the module's title bar and select Show Aux Directory In Explorer.

Export For Editing

Similar to Export Files, Export For Editing exports your module as a single json file, but instead of storing it anywhere, it defaults to storing it in the following path:

C:\ProgramData\AV Stumpfl\Pixera\exported_content

This allows you to edit your module outside of PIXERA, and instead, within your preferred development environment or IDE. Because it is stored in the ProgramData directory, it will always be natively accessible by all version of PIXERA.

Update From Edited

Update From Edited is a compliment to Export For Editing. If you are developing your module in your own editor or IDE, you can right-click the title tab of the module and select Update From Edited and PIXERA will update your module with the most recent edits from your outside editing environment from the path:

C:\ProgramData\AV Stumpfl\Pixera\exported_content

Find In Explorer

At the end of the day, if you have a module in the Control > Library tab and you are not sure exactly where it lives, you can right-click the name of the module and select Show In Explorer.

PIXERA 25.1 INTER 60 | 25. April 2025 | R.J.