In LabVIEW, what is a 'Global Variable'?

A 'Global Variable' in LabVIEW is designed to be accessible from different VIs across an application. This means that you can create a global variable in one VI and then use it in multiple other VIs, allowing for the sharing of data across different sections of a LabVIEW project. This capability is essential for managing state information or configuration settings that multiple parts of the application need to access and modify.

This type of variable is crucial in scenarios where different parts of the program need to communicate or share data without direct connections between them. Global variables help maintain data integrity and simplify programming by offering a centralized point for data manipulation.

In contrast, variables that can only be accessed within a single VI are local variables, which restrict data access to that specific VI. Access from arrays only pertains to a different context and isn’t a characteristic of global variables. Variables specific to a control on the front panel refer to control references and are not accessible outside the scope of the containing VI. Thus, the defining feature of global variables is their accessibility across different VIs in a LabVIEW application.