ESP8266 – LuaLoader (Integrated Development Environment)

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Informatie (ENG)

LuaLoader is a Windows program for uploading files to the ESP8266 and working with the Lua serial interface. It is compatible with all versions of Windows from Windows 95 to Windows 10.

The terminal window shows the output from the ESP8266 UART and lets you type or paste commands for immediate interpretation and execution.

A selection of buttons are available to automatically type often used commands and to select files for uploading to the ESP8266 file system.

LuaLoader screen

Help Menu

The Help Menu contains links to many ESP8266 and Lua resources. It also has a link to a local folder in which you can keep reference material you have downloaded, such as the pinout of the development board you are using. Saving internet shortcuts to that folder allows the user to add more online direct links to the Help menu.

Tools Menu

The Tools menu links to the latest firmware and the latest flasher applications. Run flasher from the tools menu to automatically switch the com port to the flasher software and see some help on what to do.

Settings Menu

The comm port settings can be used to select the appropriate comm port for your connection. If you have difficulty finding your comm port in the list, or connecting to it, please read the LuaLoader FAQ.

Hide Restart Garbage Data attempts to hide the random characters that appear when the processor restarts. These are actually sent at a different baud rate (usually 74800 baud), but appear as garbage at normal rates.

GPIO Monitor rate sets the repeat rate for automatically displaying port readings or ADC readings with the Read button clock.

Auto Baud Reset drops the baud rate back to 9600 baud when the processor resets so that communications is not lost.

Uploads at 921600 baud. Automatically changes the baud rate for the computer and the ESP8266 when uploading. Not all hardware is capable of this speed.

Upload as Binary. Default to binary mode for all uploads. Recommended.

The Buttons

All buttons have popup help information on mouse over. Many have right click options. A few explanations follow:

Baud Rate. Changes the connection baud rate. A command is also sent to the ESP8266 so the baud rates are changed simultaneously.

DTR and RTS. Toggle the DTR and RTS lines. On some development boards, these lines can be used to change from re-flash to run program modes. Color indicates whether the outputs are high or low. Right click to set the current setting as the default each time the port is connected. Be sure to understand your hardware when using these buttons.

CTS. Color indicates whether the input CTS is high or low.

GPIO Set the IO pins to read or write. Change their values. Read values once or multiple times on a polling schedule. Read the ADC value.

Heap. Print the current Heap (RAM) available. A common cause of restarts is running out of RAM.

Restart. Perform a soft restart. The init.lua file is run automatically on restart.

chipID. Each chip has a unique ID that can be used in a multiple IoT environment.

tmr.stop. Stops one or more of the 7 timers. Right click to set which ones.

Set AP. Set the chip to STATION mode and set the Access Point SSID and Password. The ESP8266 will automatically connect to the access point. The information is saved and after a restart the chip will automatically reconnect within 2 seconds, normally.

Get IP. Get the currently assigned IP address, if any.

Wifi Status. Show the current status of the Wifi connection.

Disconnect. Disconnect from the access point.

Upload File… Upload a file from your hard drive to the ESP8266 in text mode or binary mode. The folder used is now designated as the current workspace and the folder name is added to the File – Workspace menu.

Upload Bin (or Text). Uploads the file named in the edit box below. Right click to select text or binary uploads. Binary uploads test each block with a checksum for data integrity and are faster. However, the LLbin() function in the LLbin.lua file must be loaded first.

File Selection. A dropdown list of files in the current workspace and on the ESP8266. Files on the ESP8266 are marked with a < character. Files which have been modified since the last upload are marked with an explanation point ! If there are modified files, click Upload all changed files to update the system. The < Run file.list shows up if file.list has not been run (to tell LuaLoader what files are on the connected ESP8266).

Edit. Invokes your editor associated with *.lua files to edit the current file. Right click to open the workspace folder in Explorer.

dofile. Executes the dofile() command to execute the file named in the text box above.

remove. Remove the file named in the text box from the ESP8266 file system.

cat. List the contents of the file named in the text box.

Compile. Executes the node.compile() function on the file named in the text box.

do(lc). Executes dofile() on the .lc version of the file named in the text box.

Download. Downloads the selected file in binary. Useful for moving .lc files to the PC for installation on other chips using the Upload Bin command.

Format. Format the flash file system on the ESP8266. Deletes all the files. Format only works if you are running firmware built after 2015.01.05.

file.list. Lists the files in the ESP8266 flash file system. This list populates the drop down menu in the file name text box above.

Custom. Associate a .lua file with this button and rename it. Clicking the button will execute the file by typing it. Useful for clearing GPIOs or checking on variables while debugging. Right click to reset the button or change to a different file.

Download LuaLoader @ benlo.com