WinMerge plugins are custom dlls or scriptlets, written in the COM API, that preprocess data before a comparison. For example, you can use a plugin to extract text data from MS Word files for WinMerge to compare.
A single dll or a scriptlet (
sct
) fileInstalled in the
MergePlugins
subfolder. A number of plugins can be installed for you by WinMerge.Easy to install: To install a plugin that is not included in the WinMerge installation, just copy the plugin file to
MergePlugins
. The plugin is available the next time you open WinMerge. You can find more plugins on the web, written by other developers.
Plugins are grouped into three main categories:
- Editor complement
This type of plugin performs custom operations on selected text in the active editor (File pane) of the File Compare window.
- Unpacker: transform a file to a text format
This type of plugin transforms a compressed file to a viewable format by decompressing it. The original file is not changed: a temporary transformed file is created and loaded in WinMerge.
Unpacker plugins operate on entire files, not to selected text or diffs within files. Therefore, they are available only when you launch file comparisons, from either the Folder Compare window or the Select Files or Folders dialog. Unpacker plugins are not available in the File Compare window.
Sometimes the unpacked file can be repacked (see the details in Available plugins to check whether a plugin supports repacking). Then, you can merge and save the transformed file. The packing is done automatically in this case. To be safe, we suggest that you rename the transformed file when you save it.
Note
When you compare folders, WinMerge can give different results for compressed and uncompressed files. For example, files that are identical when uncompressed might be different if they include the creation date. WinMerge applies the unpacker in all situations, and you are sure to have the same result when you compare a folder, or when you merge two versions of a file.
Example plugin: CompareMSExcelFiles displays the text contents of a Microsoft® Excel file.
- Prediffer: preprocess files to hide some differences
This type of plugin does not operate on the source files displayed in the Compare window. It operates instead on temporary copies of the files, and the copies are then scanned to create the difference list.
Example plugin: IgnoreColumns ignores the differences inside specified columns, while displaying the characters in these columns.
How is WinMerge able to apply the right plugin for a given file? Each plugin specifies a list of file extensions (also listed in each plugin's Available plugins section, under File filter). The extensions are used to associate one or more file types with the plugin: when a compared file's extension matches an extension in the plugin's list, the plugin is considered to be a suggested plugin.
There are separate WinMerge options for the unpacking and prediffer types, described later in this topic, that enable you to apply the plugins either manually or automatically. There is no automatic mode for editor complement plugins.
When you apply plugins to a selected file using automatic mode, WinMerge searches its list of suggested plugins for that file type, and applies the first plugin whose name matches. The search is performed in alphabetical order, so if there are multiple suggested plugins for a file type, only the first one found is applied.
The following subsections describe how to apply each type of plugin. The methods are different for each type of plugin, and also vary depending on whether you are comparing folders or files.
With your cursor in either File pane of the File Compare window, click Plugins → Scripts and choose one of these functions:
Make Uppercase
Make Lowercase
Remove Duplicate Lines
Count Duplicate Lines
Sort Lines Ascending
Sort Lines Descending
Reverse Columns
Reverse Lines
Select Columns...
Select Lines...
Replace...
Apply Filter Command...
Tokenize...
Trim Spaces
Insert Date
Insert Time
The functions are contributed to the Scripts menu by the editor addin and insert datetime plugins.
Note
Editor complement plugins are not available in the Folder Compare window.
Before applying unpacker plugins, you can set its mode to either automatic or manual mode.
To set automatic mode for this type of plugin, click Plugins → Automatic Unpacking.
To set manual mode, click Plugins → Manual Unpacking.
Remember to click F5 to reload the Folder Compare window using the new setting.
To apply plugins when automatic unpacking is set, simply launch a compare operation on a file in the Folder Compare window. If the file's type suggested unpacker plugin (if any) preprocesses the file before WinMerge opens it in the File Compare window.
For example, suppose you right-click an MS Word doc
file and choose Compare (also assume that the CompareMSWordFiles plugin is available). WinMerge converts the doc file (or rather, a copy of it ) to a plain text file and opens it in the File Compare window.
Manual mode enables you to choose a different unpacker plugin than the one that is selected for you in automatic mode. You can also launch the compare using no plugin.
To apply plugins when manual unpacking is set:
Select the file you want to compare.
Click Plugins → Edit with Unpacker.
This menu item is enabled only if the selected file's type is supported by an available unpacking plugin.
In the Select Unpacker dialog:
Configure automatic plugin selection or choose a plugin manually:
To use automatic mode (which applies the first available plugin), verify that <Automatic> is displayed in the File unpacker control.
To choose a different plugin (if available), use the File unpacker control to choose the plugin.
By default, this control lists only suggested plugins for the file type you selected to compare. To see all available plugins, enable the option, Display all packers, don't check the extension.
To launch the compare without using any plugin, choose <None> in the File unpacker control.
Click OK to close the Select Unpacker dialog.
Click OK to close the Select Unpacker dialog and launch the file comparison.
You can use the Select Unpacker dialog to apply a plugin when you launch a file comparison from the Select Files or Folders dialog. See Selecting an unpacker for file comparisons for details.
With prediffer plugins, you set the mode (<Automatic> or <None>) or the plugin name for individual files. (Contrast this with unpacker plugins, where you set the mode for all files.) That is, some files in the same folder have different prediffer modes.
To set the mode for one or more files in the Folder Compare window, right-click the files and choose Plugin Settings → Prediffer Settings, then choose one of the submenu options:
<Automatic> selects the first prediffer plugin available for the file type.
<None> means that no prediffer plugin is used.
Click F5 to update the window.
Note
When you open a subfolder during a non-recursive compare, the mode is always reset to <None>.
When you open a file from the Folder Compare window, your prediffer setting for that file is applied before the File Compare window is opened.
In the File Compare window, you can apply a prediffer plugin by clicking Plugins → Prediffer and choosing one of the plugins in the list. Suggested plugins are indicated at the top of the list. The files are compared again after the plugin is applied, so you don't need to rescan the files.
Displays the text contents of a Microsoft® Excel file, stripping away all formatting and embedded objects.
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.xls
, *.xlsx
, *.xlsm
, *.xlsb
, *.xla
, *.xlax
, *.xltx
, *.xltm
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: Yes
Dependency: Microsoft® Excel
Displays the text content of a Microsoft® PowerPoint file, stripping away all formatting and embedded objects.
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.ppt
, *.pptx
, *.pptm
, *.ppa
, *.ppam
, *.pot
, *.potx
, *.potm
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: Yes
Dependency: Microsoft® PowerPoint
Displays the text content of a Microsoft® Visio file, stripping away all formatting and embedded objects.
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.vsd
, *.vsdx
, *.vsdm
, *.vss
, *.vssx
, *.vssm
, *.vst
, *.vstx
, *.vstm
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: Yes
Dependency: Microsoft® Visio
Displays the text content of a Microsoft® Word file, stripping away all formatting and embedded objects.
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.doc
, *.docx
, *.docm
, *.dot
, *.dotx
, *.dotm
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: Yes
Dependency: Microsoft® Word
HTML Prettier with tidy-html5
PrettifyHTML
[arguments
...]
arguments
Command line options passed to the tidy command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.html
, *.htm
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: tidy-html5
XML Prettier with tidy-html5
PrettifyXML
[arguments
...]
arguments
Command line options passed to the tidy command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.xml
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: tidy-html5
JSON Prettier with jq command
PrettifyJSON
[arguments
...]
arguments
Filter or command line options passed to the jq command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.json
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: jq
YAML Prettier with yq command
PrettifyYAML
[arguments
...]
arguments
Filter or command line options passed to the yq command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.yaml
, *.yml
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: yq
CSV Querier with q command
QueryCSV
[arguments
...]
arguments
SQL statement or command line options passed to the q command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.csv
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: q
TSV Querier with q command
QueryTSV
[arguments
...]
arguments
SQL statement or command line options passed to the q command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.tsv
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: q
JSON Querier with jq command
QueryJSON
[arguments
...]
arguments
Filter or command line options passed to the jq command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.json
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: jq
YAML Querier with yq command
QueryYAML
[arguments
...]
arguments
Filter or command line options passed to the yq command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.yaml
, *.yml
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: yq
HTML Validator with tidy-html5
ValidateHTML
[arguments
...]
arguments
Command line options passed to the tidy command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.html
, *.htm
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: tidy-html5
Graphviz Previewer
PreviewGraphviz
[arguments
...]
arguments
Command line options passed to the dot command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.gv
, ,*.dot
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Graphviz
Markdown Previewer
PreviewMarkdown
[arguments
...]
arguments
Command line options passed to the md2html command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.md
, ,*.markdown
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: md4c
PlantUML Previewer
PreviewPlantUML
[arguments
...]
arguments
Command line options passed to the plantuml.jar command
General content extractor with Apache Tika
ApacheTika
[arguments
...]
arguments
Command line options passed to the tika-app.jar
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.*
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Java, Apache Tika
JVM bytecode disassembler with javap
DisassembleJVM
[arguments
...]
arguments
Command line options passed to the javap command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.class
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Java
IL code disassembler with ildasm
DisassembleIL
[arguments
...]
arguments
Command line options passed to the ildasm command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.obj
, *.lib
, *.exe
, *.dll
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Visual Studio
Native code disassembler with dumpbin
DisassembleNative
[arguments
...]
arguments
Command line options passed to the dumpbin command
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.obj
, *.lib
, *.exe
, *.dll
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Visual Studio
Applys filter command
ExecFilterCommand
[command
]
command
command to execute. %1 in the command is replaced with the filename
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Makes characters uppercase
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Makes characters lowercase
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Removes duplicate lines
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Counts duplicate lines
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Sorts lines ascending
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Sorts lines descending
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Reverses columns
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Reverses lines
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Selects some columns
SelectColumns
[ranges
]
SelectColumns
[-v
] [-i
] [-g
] [-e
patterns
]
ranges
list of column ranges to select. (e.g. -3,5-10,30-)
patterns
regular expression
-v
select non-matching columns
-i
ignore case
-g
enable global flag
-e
use
patterns
for matching
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Selects some lines
SelectLines
[ranges
]
SelectLines
[-v
] [-i
] [-e
patterns
]
ranges
list of line ranges to select. (e.g. -3,5-10,30-)
patterns
regular expression
-v
select non-matching lines
-i
ignore case
-e
use
patterns
for matching
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Replaces text with another text
Replace
[-i
] [-e
] [text_to_find
] [text_to_replace
]
text_to_find
text to find
text_to_replace
text to replace
-i
ignore case (only for -e)
-e
treat the specified text as a regular expression
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Tokenizes selection
Tokenize
[patterns
]
patterns
regular expression for tokenizing. (e.g. [^\w]+)
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: Yes
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
Trim spaces
Category: Unpacker
File filter: *.nomatch
Plugin arguments: No
Packing: No
Settings dialog support: No
Dependency: Windows Script Host
This plugin ignores characters at specified columns. The first column is number 1.
Note that this plugin does not support files with tabs: the plugin does not fail, but all tabs are be treated as normal characters.
To specify columns, use plugin settings dialog or rename the dll
using following fields as parameters:
- Delimiters between ranges: _ or ,
- Delimiters between min and max: anything else
- Min and max are included.
- When max = min, max can be omitted.
Example1.IgnoreColumns
examples
IgnoreColumns _ 3 _ 10 - 20 _ 32 - 33.dll
- Ignore all characters at column 3, and in columns 10 to 20, and 32 to 33.
IgnoreColumns_1,30 to 40.dll
- Ignore all the characters in column 1, and in columns 30 to 40.
Category: Prediffer
File filter: *.txt
Plugin arguments: Yes
The plugin ignores comments within //
... and /*
... */
delimiters in C, C++, PHP and JavaScript files.
Category: Prediffer
File filter: *.cpp
, *.cxx
, *.h
, *.hxx
, *.c
, *.php
, *.js
, *.cs
, *.ts
Plugin arguments: No
Settings dialog support: No
This plugin is for files with fields and commas as delimiters (CSV files, for example). It ignores the delimiter characters. The first field is number 1.
To specify the delimiters, use plugin settings dialog or rename the dll
using the same parameter fields used for IgnoreColumns.
Category: Prediffer
File filter: *.csv
Plugin arguments: Yes
Settings dialog support: Yes
This plugin is for files that use fields and tabs as delimiters (for example, Excel files saved in the *.txt
format). It ignores the delimiter characters. The first field is number 1.
To specify the delimiters, use plugin settings dialog or rename the dll
using the same parameter fields used for IgnoreColumns.
Category: Prediffer
File filter: *.txt
Plugin arguments: Yes
Settings dialog support: Yes
This plugin ignores the leading line numbers in text files (for example, NC and BASIC files).
Category: Prediffer
File filter: *.nc
Plugin arguments: No
Settings dialog support: No
Requirement: Visual Basic runtime library
Adds some functions to the Plugins → Scripts menu:
- Make Uppercase convert the selection to UPPER CASE.
- Make Lowercase convert the selection to lower case.
- Remove Duplicate Lines remove duplicate lines in the selection.
- Count Duplicate Lines remove duplicate lines in the selection and insert the number of duplicate lines on the right.
- Sort Lines Ascending sort the selection in ascending order.
- Sort Lines Descending sort the selection in descending order.
- Reverse Columns reverse columns in the selection.
- Reverse Lines reverse lines in the selection.
- Select Columns... select some columns in the selection.
- Select Lines... select some lines in the selection.
- Replace... replace text in the selection with another text.
- Apply Filter Command... replace the selection with the output of the specified filter command. Specifying %1 in the argument of the filter command replaces it with the filename of the active pane.
- Tokenize... replaces the token delimiter with a newline in the selection.
- Trim Spaces remove spaces at the beginning and end of lines in the selection.
Category: Editor complement
File filter: *
Settings dialog support: No
Some editor complement plugins require this optional component from Microsoft®.
It should already be included in your version of Windows, unless you use some really old pre Windows XP version.
Some plugins require the Visual Basic runtime library to work.
You can use the Run-Time Redistribution Pack from Microsoft®. If you don't need the plugin, you can safely remove it.