Update or Refresh All VIs in a TestStand Sequence

You can refresh steps in your TestStand sequence that call LabVIEW VIs using the Update VI/LV NXG VI Calls tool. This tool updates all prototypes at once and requires that the LabVIEW development system is installed on the machine. You can also check and update the prototypes of LabVIEW NXG VIs, provided the LabVIEW NXG Development System or Runtime Engine is installed.

In this article, we discuss two ways of using the tool - from the Sequence Editor Graphical User Interface (GUI) and Programmatically from a CLI (Command-Line Interface).

The Update VI Calls option is not available in TestStand 4.0.1f1 or earlier. In those versions, you must use the TestStand API to programmatically reload module prototypes. Please refer to the Reloading Module Prototypes For All Steps In a TestStand Sequence File example for a TestStand API based solution.

Using the TestStand Sequence Editor

1. In the Sequence Editor, navigate to: Tools » Update VI/LV NXG VI Calls.
   
   
    
   
   
   
2. Select the desired Files to Update and Type of Calls to Update options. In the screenshot below, TestStand will reload the prototypes of all LabVIEW code modules with modified connector panes in the active sequence file Computer Motherboard Test Sequence.seq. This is especially useful when your test sequence has several steps using the same LabVIEW code module and you had to do a small modification to the VI's connector pane.
   
   
    
   
   
   
3. Click Update Calls to reload the VI prototypes.

For details on specific options and behavior, refer to the TestStand Help: Update VI/LV NXG VI Calls Dialog Box article of the TestStand Help.

Using the Command-Line Application (UpdateVICallsApp.exe)

Modern versions of TestStand also include a stand‑alone executable named UpdateVICallsApp.exe:

<TestStand>\Bin\UpdateVICallsApp.exe

This utility performs the same function as the dialog but operates via command‑line arguments — useful for automation, batch processes, and CI/CD environments.

Example: Force reload all Standard VI prototypes in a specific sequence file:

UpdateVICallsApp.exe "C:\My Documents\File.seq" /StandardVI:forceReload

To view available command‑line arguments:

UpdateVICallsApp.exe /? or UpdateVICallsApp.exe /help

More information in the Update VI/LV NXG VI Calls Application section of the TestStand Help article mentioned above.

Additional Information

• When updating NXG VIs, ensure that a LabVIEW NXG Development System or Runtime Engine is installed. LabVIEW NXG reached its final release with NXG 5.1 (2021).
• The Update VI tool requires the LabVIEW Adapter to be configured to use the Development System.

If requirements are unmet, the tool may return errors.