We are upgrading PowerView’s PRACTICE scripting language to support wide numbers, with the current limit of 64 bits being increased to 2080 bits.

At the same time, we are introducing strict radix checking for numerical constants. This means, that numerical constants must have a radix identifier: 0x prefix for hexadecimal or a . postfix for decimal numbers.

These changes could influence the behavior of some scripts.

The changes will be activated by default starting with PowerView software version 2026.02, by changing the SETUP.RADIX default setting from Hex (hereafter called "previous system") to WideStrict  ("new system")

We strongly recommend checking your scripts in advance regarding compatibility with the new number system. Using the command SETUP.RADIX Hex to keep backward compatibility beyond this time is possible, but not recommended.

Wide Number Support

In the previous system, with default setting SETUP.RADIX Hex, all numbers are treated as signed 64-bit values. In the new system, SETUP.RADIX WideStrict is used as default setting, PowerView accepts up to 2080-bit wide numbers. Future versions may support wider numbers as needed.

The introduction of wide numbers has some side effects that may affect script compatibility.

1. Comparing Hexadecimal Values with Negative Numbers

In the previous system, numbers are treated as signed numbers and thus if the most significant bit (63) is set, the number is interpreted as negative number. Therefore, 0xFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF equals -1. Unsigned 64-bit values are thus not possible in PRACTICE.

In the wide number system introduced in R.2026.02, all numbers are signed, and the sign will not change on arithmetic overflows. Comparisons of a positive number and a negative number will always return FALSE.

Unsigned values may need to be converted to signed values in scripts. For 8-, 16- or 32-bit numbers conversion Powerview functions already exist. A new Powerview function is now available for 64-bit numbers.

2. Shifting Left

In the previous system, the maximum shift value is limited to 63. If the most significant bit (63) is set after the shift, the resulting number is negative.

In the new wide number system, the maximum shift value is not limited. Digits beyond the maximum number width are cut off. The sign of the number will not be affected by this operation.

3. Sign-Extension of Bit Fields

Some scripts make use of the 64-bit signed integer behavior in order to sign-extend a value of a bit field. In the new wide number system, this sign-extension “trick” is not possible, because the number sign is not affected by shift operations.

In order to write backwards-compatible scripts, use the functions CONVert.SignedBITS() or the function CONVert.SignedQuad(), which are dedicated to perform sign-extensions of bit fields:

4. Operations that Rely on 64-bit Integer Overflows

In the previous number system, all arithmetic operations perform modulo 2^64 calculation.

In the new number system, all arithmetic operations that produce results beyond the size limit are unpredictable.

In order to write backwards-compatible scripts, use the function CONVert.SignedQUAD():

5. Converting Negative Values to Unsigned Hexadecimal for Output

If an output command (E.g. PRINT, ECHO, WRITE) is called for a hexadecimal value, the default output format (if no format is specified) is unsigned hexadecimal.

In the previous system, the conversion to unsigned hexadecimal was performed as the two’s complement of a 64-bit number.

In the new wide number system, the two’s complement is also performed, but the resulting number width is the smallest multiple of 64, that is wide enough to hold the resulting value.

Here is a comparison of previous and new output:

In order to achieve consistent output, scripts should make use of output commands with advanced formatting. PowerView provides several commands that allow printf-like formatting.

Use commands with advanced formatting for standard number widths (8, 16, 32, 64 bit), or the FORMAT.HEX() function for arbitrary lengths:

Strict Radix Identifier Requirement

Overview and Time Plan

In order align to PowerView’s numeric constants with modern programming languages like C or Python, the default radix for numeric constants without an explicit radix identifier will be changed in three phases, as detailed in the table below. The change will be performed in parallel to the introduction of the wide number system.

The change will be performed in three phases, accompanied by changing the SETUP.RADIX defaults:

The Changes in Detail

In the previous number system, which defaults to SETUP.RADIX Hex, numerical constants without radix are, by default, interpreted as hexadecimal values. PowerView also supports setting the radix to Decimal. Numbers are interpreted according to below table:

With the introduction of the new wide number system, we will switch the SETUP.RADIX default from Hex to WideStrictWarn or WideStrict. This requires all hexadecimal numbers to start with “0x” and all decimal numbers to end with a “.”. This intermediate step ensures that all numbers used in scripts have radix identifiers and can be interpreted correctly, independent of the SETUP.RADIX setting.

In the new wide number system, numerical constants are interpreted according to below table:

Action Required

We strongly recommend checking your scripts regarding compatibility with the new radix default. As the command SETUP.RADIX WideStrict was already introduced in PowerView build 159006 (April 26, 2023), you have the chance to test and update your scripts before the default setting changes.