Bridge Setup (Windows)¶

The bridge service is a PowerShell REST API that runs natively on the Windows machine with TwinCAT XAE installed. It is the only Windows-specific component of TcKit.

Requirements¶

Windows 10/11
TwinCAT 3.1 Build 4026 installed
PowerShell 5.1+

Starting the bridge¶

Open PowerShell as Administrator in the TcKit directory:

.\bridge\Start-Bridge.ps1

The bridge listens on http://localhost:8765 by default.

To use a different port:

.\bridge\Start-Bridge.ps1 -Port 9000

Verify the bridge is running¶

Invoke-RestMethod http://localhost:8765/health
# Expected: @{status=ok; version=0.1.0}

Or from another machine:

curl http://<windows-ip>:8765/health

Firewall¶

If the Docker container is on a different machine (or a VM), allow inbound connections on port 8765 in Windows Firewall:

New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "TcKit Bridge" -Direction Inbound -Protocol TCP -LocalPort 8765 -Action Allow

XAE modes¶

Mode	When to use
`attach`	XAE is already open — bridge attaches via `GetActiveObject("TcXaeShell.DTE.17.0")`
`headless`	CI only — bridge spawns an invisible XAE instance

Set XAE_MODE in your .env file.

COM version

TwinCAT 4026 uses TcXaeShell.DTE.17.0. If you are on a different build, verify the COM version string manually before running any scripts.