mRemoteNG/IMPLEMENTATION_NOTES.md

Connection Frame Color Feature - Implementation Summary

Overview

This implementation adds a "Connection Frame Color" feature to mRemoteNG that allows users to visually distinguish between different connection environments (e.g., production, test, development) by displaying a colored border around connection panels.

Feature Request Context

The feature was requested in issue to prevent accidental operations on production systems. The user cited DBeaver database management tool as an example, which uses a red frame to indicate production database connections.

Implementation Details

1. Data Model (Connection/ConnectionFrameColor.cs)

Created an enum with the following values:

• None (default): No colored border
• Red: Intended for production environments
• Yellow: Intended for staging/UAT environments
• Green: Intended for test environments
• Blue: Intended for development environments
• Purple: Intended for custom/other environments

2. Property Addition (Connection/AbstractConnectionRecord.cs)

• Added ConnectionFrameColor property to the base connection record class
• Property is categorized under "Display" section in PropertyGrid
• Uses EnumTypeConverter for proper display in PropertyGrid
• Includes localized descriptions

3. Inheritance Support (Connection/ConnectionInfoInheritance.cs)

• Added ConnectionFrameColor inheritance property
• Allows folders to set a frame color that child connections can inherit
• Follows the same pattern as other inheritable properties

4. Serialization

XML Serialization (Config/Serializers/ConnectionSerializers/Xml/)

• XmlConnectionNodeSerializer28.cs: Serializes ConnectionFrameColor as an XML attribute
• XmlConnectionsDeserializer.cs: Deserializes ConnectionFrameColor from XML
• Includes inheritance attribute handling (InheritConnectionFrameColor)
• Backward compatible: old files without this attribute will default to None

CSV Serialization (Config/Serializers/ConnectionSerializers/Csv/)

• CsvConnectionsSerializerMremotengFormat.cs: Added ConnectionFrameColor to CSV export
• Includes both value and inheritance columns
• Maintains CSV column order consistency

5. Visual Rendering (Connection/InterfaceControl.cs)

• Added custom Paint event handler to InterfaceControl
• Draws a 4-pixel colored border around the connection panel when ConnectionFrameColor is set
• Uses specific colors:
  • Red: RGB(220, 53, 69) - Bootstrap danger red
  • Yellow: RGB(255, 193, 7) - Warning yellow
  • Green: RGB(40, 167, 69) - Success green
  • Blue: RGB(0, 123, 255) - Primary blue
  • Purple: RGB(111, 66, 193) - Purple
• Border is drawn inside the control bounds to avoid clipping

6. Localization (Language/Language.resx)

Added language resources for:

• ConnectionFrameColor: "Connection Frame Color"
• PropertyDescriptionConnectionFrameColor: Description shown in PropertyGrid
• FrameColorNone: "None"
• FrameColorRed: "Red (Production)"
• FrameColorYellow: "Yellow (Staging/UAT)"
• FrameColorGreen: "Green (Test)"
• FrameColorBlue: "Blue (Development)"
• FrameColorPurple: "Purple (Custom)"

7. Documentation (mRemoteNGDocumentation/howtos/connection_frame_color.rst)

Created comprehensive documentation including:

• Overview and purpose
• Step-by-step usage instructions
• Visual examples
• Inheritance explanation
• Best practices for environment organization
• Troubleshooting guide

Technical Design Decisions

Why 4-pixel border?

• Wide enough to be immediately noticeable
• Not so wide as to obscure content
• Consistent with modern UI design patterns

Why these specific colors?

• Colors chosen based on common conventions:
  • Red = danger/production (universal warning color)
  • Yellow = caution/staging (standard warning color)
  • Green = safe/test (universal "go" color)
  • Blue = development (calm, neutral)
  • Purple = custom (distinct but not alarming)
• Colors use accessible, high-contrast RGB values

Why enum instead of custom color picker?

• Simpler UI (dropdown vs color picker)
• Ensures consistency across team/organization
• Prevents confusion from too many color choices
• Follows principle of "convention over configuration"
• Can be extended in future if needed

Why inherit from Panel?

• InterfaceControl is already a Panel (see InterfaceControl.Designer.cs)
• Panel has built-in Paint event support
• No need for additional controls or complexity

Backward Compatibility

• Old connection files (without ConnectionFrameColor attribute) automatically default to None
• No migration needed
• Feature is completely opt-in
• Does not affect existing functionality

Testing Recommendations

When testing this feature, verify:

1. Property Display: ConnectionFrameColor appears in PropertyGrid under Display section
2. Enum Values: All color options appear in dropdown
3. Visual Rendering: Border appears when color is selected and connection is active
4. Inheritance: Setting on folder and enabling inheritance on child works correctly
5. Serialization:
   • Save connection with frame color set
   • Close and reopen file
   • Verify color is preserved
6. CSV Export: ConnectionFrameColor appears in exported CSV
7. Backward Compatibility: Open old connection files without errors

Future Enhancements (Out of Scope)

Potential future improvements:

• Custom color picker support
• Border width customization
• Border style options (solid, dashed, etc.)
• Tab header color indicator in addition to panel border
• Global warning when connecting to production (confirmation dialog)
• Audit logging for production connections

Files Modified

1. mRemoteNG/Connection/ConnectionFrameColor.cs (NEW)
2. mRemoteNG/Connection/AbstractConnectionRecord.cs
3. mRemoteNG/Connection/ConnectionInfo.cs
4. mRemoteNG/Connection/ConnectionInfoInheritance.cs
5. mRemoteNG/Connection/InterfaceControl.cs
6. mRemoteNG/Config/Serializers/ConnectionSerializers/Xml/XmlConnectionNodeSerializer28.cs
7. mRemoteNG/Config/Serializers/ConnectionSerializers/Xml/XmlConnectionsDeserializer.cs
8. mRemoteNG/Config/Serializers/ConnectionSerializers/Csv/CsvConnectionsSerializerMremotengFormat.cs
9. mRemoteNG/Language/Language.resx
10. mRemoteNGDocumentation/howtos/connection_frame_color.rst (NEW)

Code Review Checklist

• Property follows existing naming conventions
• Enum values are localized
• Inheritance support implemented
• XML serialization/deserialization working
• CSV serialization updated
• Visual rendering implemented
• Documentation created
• Backward compatibility maintained
• No breaking changes
• Code follows existing patterns in codebase