From c2800ce646952f06a741d59b904eec73938aa058 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001
From: Mike Geppert <mgeppert1@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, 4 Jan 2026 12:52:44 -0600
Subject: [PATCH] Change rule differences to columnar format for easier field
 comparison

- Display rule fields side-by-side in columns like other sections
- Makes it easier to compare State, Once, Length, Free, Rules, etc.
- Consistent formatting with rest of report
---
 device_diff.py | 55 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++---------------
 1 file changed, 39 insertions(+), 16 deletions(-)

diff --git a/device_diff.py b/device_diff.py
index 7723699..4d3e057 100644
--- a/device_diff.py
+++ b/device_diff.py
@@ -278,7 +278,7 @@ class DeviceComparison:
 
     def _print_rule_differences(self, differences: List[Dict], device1_name: str, device2_name: str) -> None:
         """
-        Print rule differences in row format (device per row).
+        Print rule differences in columnar format for easier field comparison.
 
         Args:
             differences: List of difference dictionaries
@@ -288,25 +288,48 @@ class DeviceComparison:
         if not differences:
             return
 
+        # Group differences by rule number
+        rules_by_number = {}
         for diff in differences:
             rule_key = str(diff['key'])
+            rules_by_number[rule_key] = diff
+
+        # Print each rule's details in columnar format
+        for rule_num in sorted(rules_by_number.keys()):
+            diff = rules_by_number[rule_num]
             val1 = diff['device1_value']
             val2 = diff['device2_value']
 
-            print(f"\n{rule_key}:")
+            print(f"\n{rule_num}:")
 
-            # Print Device 1
-            print(f"  {device1_name}:")
-            if isinstance(val1, dict):
-                for key, value in val1.items():
-                    print(f"    {key}: {value}")
-            else:
-                print(f"    {val1}")
+            # Extract all fields from both devices
+            if isinstance(val1, dict) and isinstance(val2, dict):
+                all_fields = set(val1.keys()) | set(val2.keys())
 
-            # Print Device 2
-            print(f"  {device2_name}:")
-            if isinstance(val2, dict):
-                for key, value in val2.items():
-                    print(f"    {key}: {value}")
-            else:
-                print(f"    {val2}")
+                # Calculate column widths
+                max_field_len = max(len(field) for field in all_fields) if all_fields else 10
+                field_width = max(max_field_len, 10)
+
+                dev1_header = device1_name
+                dev2_header = device2_name
+
+                # Calculate value column widths
+                val1_width = max(len(dev1_header), 20)
+                val2_width = max(len(dev2_header), 20)
+
+                # Print header
+                print(f"{'Field':<{field_width}}  {dev1_header:<{val1_width}}  {dev2_header:<{val2_width}}")
+                print("-" * field_width + "  " + "-" * val1_width + "  " + "-" * val2_width)
+
+                # Print each field
+                for field in sorted(all_fields):
+                    v1 = str(val1.get(field, 'N/A'))
+                    v2 = str(val2.get(field, 'N/A'))
+
+                    # Truncate if too long
+                    if len(v1) > val1_width:
+                        v1 = v1[:val1_width-3] + "..."
+                    if len(v2) > val2_width:
+                        v2 = v2[:val2_width-3] + "..."
+
+                    print(f"{field:<{field_width}}  {v1:<{val1_width}}  {v2:<{val2_width}}")