Grid Options
- Last UpdatedFeb 19, 2026
- 4 minute read
The grid has a configuration menu accessed via a right-click on any column title, and a context menu accessed via a right-click in any row.

Column Setup
Column Setup allows you to choose which columns to display in the grid view and which order to display them.
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To display the Column Setup window, right-click on any column title and select Column Setup from the pop-up menu.
The Column Setup dialog contains the standard columns for the grid along with the attribute columns for the source type.

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To display a Column Name in the grid view, select the required check box in the Visible column
Clearing a check box removes the Column Name from the grid view.
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To change the position of a Column Name in the grid view, select the Column Name and click either the up or down arrows.
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Click OK to update the grid view.
Note: Grid layouts are automatically saved in the folder C:\Documents and Settings\<Current User>\LocalSettings\Application Data\Aveva\PDMS\SchematicInstrumentationAddin with filenames like SchAiInstruments.xml or SchAiLoops.xml.
Settings
Right-clicking on any column title and selecting Settings, displays a settings sub-menu:
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Enable Filtering
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Enable Column Summaries
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Enable Column Sort
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Feedback Colours
Enable Filtering allows you to display a filter row in the grid view. The filter row is used to filter the grid to show only certain records. Instant "on the fly" filtering is achieved by selecting the icon in the column field and selecting a value from the drop-down list.

Further filtering is available by selecting the small icon to the left of a column (field) caption, selecting from the drop-down list and entering a value into the highlighted field. The grid view will automatically refresh to reflect the selected criteria.

Enable Column Summaries displays the
icon in the No of Changes column. Clicking the icon displays the Select Summaries window.

You can check one or all the boxes and click OK to receive a count displayed at the end of the No of Changes column.

Note: Clicking Refresh remove the count.
Enable Column Sort allows you to change the column order.
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Click and hold on the column title and drag the column either left or right into a new position.
Two arrows are displayed to assist you in positioning the column.

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Click Feedback Colours to display a sub-menu:

Note: New Element Row Colour is used when an element is not matched and Compare/Update is able to insert it. The Not Matched Row Colour is used when an element is not matched and Compare/Update is not able to insert it.
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Click any of the options displays a Color Selection window.

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Select Reset Default Feedback Row Colours to revert the options back to their default color settings.
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New Element Row Colour |
Salmon |
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Not Matched Row Colour |
Grey |
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Matched With No Changes Row Colour |
White |
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Matched With Changes Row Colour |
Pale Yellow |
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Linked With No Changes Row Colour |
White |
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Linked With Changes Row Colour |
Pale Yellow |
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Update Fail Row Colour |
Red |
Export to Excel
The current grid layout and contents can be saved to an Excel file.
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Right-click in any column title and select Export to Excel.
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Enter a filename in the file browser window.
Print Preview
You can view a print preview of the current grid layout and content.
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Right-click in any column title and select Print Preview.
Grid Context Menu
Instrument datasheets and details can be displayed when the target is the schematic database and the source is AVEVA Instrumentation.
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Right-click in any row in the Instruments or Loops grid view to display a context menu.
The Instruments grid view displays the following options:
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Instrument Datasheet displays the AVEVA Instrumentation data sheet for the selected instrument.
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Instrument Details displays the AVEVA Instrumentation window for the selected instrument.
The Loops grid view has one option:
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Loop Details displays the AVEVA Instrumentation window for the selection loop.
Note: No context menu exists for the Attribute Details tab.

The diagram view can be displayed when the source is Schematics Database, the selected source item appears on a diagram, and the SVG file is available for that diagram.
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Right-click in any row in the Elements grid view to display a context menu.
Show in Diagram displays the diagram view for the selected source object.
