README

Collapsible DBGrid v1.0

Collapsible DBGrid v1.0 is a reusable Delphi component library for grouped, collapsible, data-aware grids in both VCL and FireMonkey (FMX).

The library provides FMX and VCL grid controls that share a common row model and dataset projection layer. It is intended for Delphi developers who need read-only grouped browsing, collapsible group headers, and dataset selection sync without hand-building that behavior in each application.

Features

• VCL and FMX component implementations
• Shared common runtime package
• Runtime and design-time packages for VCL and FMX
• Group header rows mixed into visible data rows
• Expand/collapse by clicking group headers
• Groups can start collapsed by default
• Dataset selection synchronization from visible data rows
• Design-time preview rows when no active dataset is assigned
• Safe design-time datasource assignment by default
• Documentation and build/install helper scripts included

Basic Use

CollapsibleGrid.DataSource := YourDataSource;
CollapsibleGrid.GroupField := 'YourGroupField';
CollapsibleGrid.KeyField := 'YourPrimaryKeyField';
CollapsibleGrid.StartCollapsed := True;

The component does not create dataset-specific columns by default. Configure the Columns collection at design time for the dataset you are using.

UseActiveDataAtDesignTime defaults to False so assigning a datasource in the IDE does not walk an active query or open database work. Set it to True only when you deliberately want live dataset rows shown in the designer.

Build Requirements

• Windows
• Embarcadero Delphi / RAD Studio
• VCL and/or FireMonkey support, depending on which packages you build

From the project root:

.\tools\build_components.ps1

The build creates a shared common runtime package plus FMX and VCL runtime/design packages. The FMX and VCL packages both depend on CommonCollapsibleDBGridRuntime so shared units are loaded only once by the IDE.

For one-time IDE registration:

.\tools\install_once.ps1

If Delphi is open and package BPLs are locked, use:

.\tools\rebuild_for_ide.ps1

Repository Layout

.
|-- src/          Component source code grouped by Common, FMX, and VCL
|-- packages/     Delphi runtime and design-time package projects
|-- docs/         User and engineering guides
|-- Images/       Image assets used by documentation or the project
|-- samples/      Sample payloads/projects when present
|-- tools/        Build, install, and guide-generation scripts
|-- .gitignore    Files intentionally excluded from Git
`-- .gitattributes Git text/binary handling rules

Files Not Included in Git

This repository intentionally excludes generated and local-only files such as:

• Delphi build output: *.dcu, *.bpl, *.dcp, bin/, Win32/, Win64/, Debug/, Release/
• Delphi local state: *.local, *.identcache, __history/, __recovery/
• Python/tool caches such as __pycache__/ and *.pyc
• Local archives, logs, and temporary files

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.

Copyright (c) 2026 Tommy Martin.

Author

Tommy Martin

• Supports Delphi 12 and later. This package was built on Delphi 13.1.