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User’s Guide
Volume 1
Doc ID VIEWSE-UM004C-EN-E
Copyright Notice © 2004 Rockwell Software Inc., a Rockwell Automation company. All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
Portions copyrighted by the Allen-Bradley Company, LLC, a Rockwell Automation Company.
This manual and any accompanying Rockwell Software products are copyrighted by Rockwell
Software Inc. Any reproduction and/or distribution without prior written consent from
Rockwell Software Inc. is strictly prohibited. Please refer to the license agreement for details.
VBA and DCOM, Copyright 1996, 1997 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
This software is based in part on the work of the Independent JPEG Group.
Trademark Notices Allen-Bradley, ControlLogix, RSLinx, RSView, and VersaView are registered trademarks, and
the Rockwell Software logo, RSLogix, RSTools, RSView Machine Edition, RSView ME Station,
RSView Studio, RSView Supervisory Edition, RSView32, A.I. Series, Advanced Interface (A.I.)
Series, ControlNet, Data Highway Plus, DH+, FactoryTalk, MobileView, Object Smart Path,
PanelBuilder, PanelView, SLC, and WINtelligent are trademarks of Rockwell Automation, Inc.
Adobe, Acrobat, and Reader are registered trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated.
TrueType is a trademark of Apple Computer, Inc. AutoCAD is a registered trademark of
Autodesk, Inc. Ethernet is a registered trademark of Digital Equipment Corporation, Intel
Corporation, and Xerox Corporation. Modicon is a registered trademark of Groupe Schneider.
Zip is a trademark of Iomega Corporation. KEPServerEnterprise is a trademark of Kepware
Technologies. ActiveX, Microsoft, OpenType, Visual Basic, Windows, and Windows NT are
registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.
OPC is a registered trademark of the OPC Foundation.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective holders and are hereby acknowledged.
Warranty This Rockwell Software product is warranted in accord with the product license. The product’s
performance will be affected by system configuration, the application being performed, operator
control, and other related factors.
The product’s implementation may vary among users.
This manual is as up-to-date as possible at the time of printing; however, the accompanying
software may have changed since that time. Rockwell Software reserves the right to change any
information contained in this manual or the software at any time without prior notice.
The instructions in this manual do not claim to cover all the details or variations in the
equipment, procedure, or process described, nor to provide directions for meeting every possible
contingency during installation, operation, or maintenance.
Doc ID VIEWSE-UM004C-EN-E
September 2004
Chapter 1
Getting started ...............................................................................................................................1-1
The main parts of RSView Supervisory Edition ........................... 1-1
Features in brief ................................................................................................. 1-3
The RSView Enterprise tools .................................................................... 1-4
The Rockwell Software utilities ............................................................. 1-5
Quick Start steps ............................................................................................... 1-6
Start with a plan ........................................................................................................... 1-6
Chapter 2
Exploring RSView Studio ...................................................................................................2-1
Starting RSView Studio ................................................................................. 2-1
Opening an application ................................................................................. 2-2
Opening the Samples application.............................................................................. 2-2
Exploring the RSView Studio main window ................................... 2-3
The menu bar ............................................................................................................... 2-4
The toolbar ................................................................................................................... 2-4
The Application Explorer........................................................................................... 2-4
The workspace ............................................................................................................. 2-4
Printing.................................................................................................................... 2-19
Selecting a printer ...................................................................................................... 2-19
Setting up the printer ................................................................................................ 2-20
Selecting a network printer....................................................................................... 2-20
Printing at run time ................................................................................................... 2-20
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Chapter 3
Chapter 5
Working with distributed applications ...............................................................5-1
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Selecting the HMI server’s startup and shutdown components........................ 5-20
Setting up redundant HMI servers ...................................................... 5-21
Removing HMI servers ................................................................................ 5-22
Deleting HMI server project files........................................................................... 5-22
Starting and stopping HMI servers and components
manually ................................................................................................................. 5-23
Starting and stopping an HMI server’s components........................................... 5-23
Starting and stopping HMI services........................................................................ 5-23
Chapter 6
Working with stand-alone applications .............................................................6-1
Chapter 7
Setting up communications ............................................................................................7-1
Chapter 8
Working with tags ......................................................................................................................8-1
Tags and the HMI tag database ..............................................................8-1
When to use HMI tags.................................................................................................8-1
Data server tags, HMI tags, and their attributes .....................................................8-2
Basic steps for using tags.............................................................................................8-3
Using data server tags ...................................................................................8-4
Eliminate duplication ...................................................................................................8-4
Access to complex data ...............................................................................................8-4
Setting up data server tags...........................................................................................8-5
Using HMI tags ....................................................................................................8-5
Triggering alarms ..........................................................................................................8-5
Securing tag or device values ......................................................................................8-6
Manipulating data .........................................................................................................8-6
Storing values in RSView’s memory ..........................................................................8-7
Setting up HMI tags ....................................................................................................8-7
Browsing for tags ...............................................................................................8-7
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Using the Tag Browser ............................................................................................... 8-9
Browsing for off-line tags from RSLinx................................................................. 8-10
Browsing for off-line tags in RSLinx Enterprise .................................................. 8-11
Browsing for off-line tags from other OPC servers ............................................ 8-12
Working with tags in the Tag Browser ............................................. 8-12
Displaying tags ........................................................................................................... 8-12
Showing or hiding tag descriptions......................................................................... 8-12
About the Selected Tag box..................................................................................... 8-12
Displaying tag properties .......................................................................................... 8-13
Filtering tags ............................................................................................................... 8-13
Creating, editing, and importing HMI tags ........................................................... 8-14
Using tag references..................................................................................... 8-15
Absolute references ................................................................................................... 8-15
Relative references ..................................................................................................... 8-15
The home area............................................................................................................ 8-16
Logging tag values ......................................................................................... 8-16
Chapter 9
Creating HMI tags .......................................................................................................................9-1
Chapter 10
Creating derived tags...........................................................................................................10-1
About derived tags ......................................................................................... 10-1
How to use derived tags ........................................................................................... 10-2
How to use multiple derived tag components ...................................................... 10-2
Setting up derived tags ............................................................................... 10-2
Using the Derived Tags editor ............................................................... 10-2
Using the Check Syntax button............................................................................... 10-4
Using the Accept and Discard buttons .................................................................. 10-4
Creating a derived tags component................................................... 10-4
About the maximum update rate ......................................................... 10-5
Starting and stopping derived tag processing ........................... 10-5
Ways to start derived tag processing....................................................................... 10-6
Ways to stop derived tag processing....................................................................... 10-7
Chapter 11
Creating alarms...........................................................................................................................11-1
About RSView Supervisory Edition alarms ................................... 11-1
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Summary of features.................................................................................................. 11-2
Setting up alarms for an application ................................................. 11-3
Key concepts ...................................................................................................... 11-4
Alarms for analog HMI tags.................................................................................... 11-4
Alarms for digital HMI tags..................................................................................... 11-8
Alarm severity............................................................................................................. 11-9
Alarm messages.......................................................................................................... 11-9
Alarm log file .............................................................................................................. 11-9
Alarm displays .......................................................................................................... 11-10
Alarm acknowledgment .......................................................................................... 11-13
Alarm suppression ................................................................................................... 11-14
Alarm functions in expressions ............................................................................. 11-14
Acknowledge bit ...................................................................................................... 11-16
Handshake bit........................................................................................................... 11-17
Switching handshaking on...................................................................................... 11-17
Alarm events............................................................................................................. 11-17
Setting up general alarm behavior .................................................... 11-20
Setting up alarm monitoring................................................................................... 11-21
Setting up alarm severities ...................................................................................... 11-23
Setting up alarm messages ...................................................................................... 11-24
Setting up alarm conditions for HMI tags .................................... 11-26
Setting up alarms for analog tags........................................................................... 11-28
Setting up alarms for digital tags............................................................................ 11-28
Setting up alarm logging .......................................................................... 11-28
Specifying when log files are created .................................................................... 11-29
Specifying when log files are deleted ................................................................... 11-30
Setting up logging to a central database ............................................................... 11-31
Exporting alarm log files manually to ODBC format....................................... 11-31
Adding remarks to the alarm log file at run time................................................ 11-32
Suppressing alarm printing ..................................................................................... 11-33
Chapter 12
Logging system activity ....................................................................................................12-1
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Message categories..................................................................................................... 12-4
Setting up FactoryTalk Diagnostics in RSView ......................... 12-6
Logging to a central database................................................................................... 12-7
Setting up message buffering ................................................................................... 12-8
Setting up message routing....................................................................................... 12-9
Using the Diagnostics List ...................................................................... 12-10
Hiding, showing, and moving the Diagnostics List............................................ 12-10
Messages in the Diagnostics List........................................................................... 12-11
Viewing FactoryTalk Diagnostics log files.................................. 12-12
Using the Diagnostics Viewer at run time ........................................................... 12-13
Setting up security to log system activity to a
remote computer ........................................................................................... 12-13
Chapter 13
Using data logging .................................................................................................................. 13-1
Chapter 14
Using events ...................................................................................................................................14-1
About events ....................................................................................................... 14-1
How to use multiple events components .............................................................. 14-2
Setting up events ............................................................................................ 14-2
Using the Events editor .............................................................................. 14-3
Using the Check Syntax button............................................................................... 14-3
Using the Accept and Discard buttons .................................................................. 14-4
Creating an events component ............................................................. 14-4
About the maximum update rate ......................................................... 14-5
Editing events .................................................................................................... 14-5
Starting and stopping event processing ......................................... 14-5
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Ways to start event processing................................................................................. 14-5
Ways to stop event processing................................................................................. 14-6
Chapter 15
Setting up security ................................................................................................................. 15-1
How security works ....................................................................................... 15-1
Security codes ............................................................................................................. 15-2
Before you begin, make lists .................................................................................... 15-2
Summary of the steps to set up security ....................................... 15-2
Finding your way around ............................................................................ 15-4
Setting up user accounts ........................................................................... 15-5
Ensuring the administrator always has access ....................................................... 15-6
Setting up default access ........................................................................................... 15-6
Adding users or groups............................................................................................. 15-7
Removing users or groups........................................................................................ 15-8
Assigning security codes to users or groups.......................................................... 15-9
Assigning login and logout macros ....................................................................... 15-10
Setting up security for commands and macros ....................... 15-10
The Unspecified_Command .................................................................................. 15-11
Setting up security by inclusion ............................................................................. 15-12
Setting up security by exclusion............................................................................. 15-13
Assigning security to a graphic display ........................................ 15-13
Assigning security to an OLE object ............................................... 15-15
Assigning security to an HMI tag ...................................................... 15-16
Preventing users from modifying an application .................... 15-17
Locking users into the RSView SE client environment...... 15-17
Logging in and out ........................................................................................ 15-18
Logging in at run time............................................................................................. 15-18
Logging out at run time .......................................................................................... 15-19
Changing passwords at run time ........................................................................... 15-20
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Testing the appearance of objects in different states ......................................... 16-24
Naming graphic objects .......................................................................................... 16-25
Adding tooltips to objects ...................................................................................... 16-26
Creating a background for a display...................................................................... 16-27
Importing graphic files from third-party applications ......... 16-27
Converting imported objects to RSView native objects.................................... 16-28
Using bitmaps .................................................................................................. 16-28
When a bitmap could help ..................................................................................... 16-30
Using graphic libraries .............................................................................. 16-30
Location of library files ........................................................................................... 16-30
Using tag placeholders ............................................................................. 16-31
Replacing tag placeholders using a parameter file .............................................. 16-32
Assigning parameter files to graphic displays ...................................................... 16-33
Replacing tag placeholders using parameters with the Display command ..... 16-33
Setting up runtime appearance and behavior for a
graphic display .............................................................................................. 16-35
Using the Display Settings dialog box .................................................................. 16-35
Changing the default display settings.................................................................... 16-35
Setting up display properties .................................................................................. 16-36
.................................................................................................................................... 16-43
Displaying graphics more quickly.......................................................................... 16-45
Printing displays at run time ................................................................. 16-46
Chapter 17
Setting up graphic objects ............................................................................................ 17-1
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Setting up what the momentary push button does when it is pressed
and released............................................................................................................... 17-18
Connecting the momentary push button to data................................................ 17-18
Creating maintained push buttons .................................................... 17-18
The error state .......................................................................................................... 17-19
Setting up the appearance of the maintained push button................................ 17-20
Setting up what the maintained push button does when it is pressed
and released............................................................................................................... 17-20
Connecting the maintained push button to data................................................. 17-20
Creating latched push buttons ............................................................ 17-20
The error state .......................................................................................................... 17-21
Setting up the appearance of the latched push button....................................... 17-22
Setting up what the latched push button does when it is latched
and unlatched ........................................................................................................... 17-22
Connecting the latched push button to data ....................................................... 17-22
Creating multistate push buttons ...................................................... 17-22
The error state .......................................................................................................... 17-23
Setting up the appearance of the multistate push button .................................. 17-24
Setting up what the multistate push button does when it is pressed
and released............................................................................................................... 17-24
Setting up whether the multistate push button repeats when held down....... 17-24
Connecting the multistate push button to data................................................... 17-24
Creating interlocked push buttons ................................................... 17-24
Setting up the appearance of the interlocked push button................................ 17-25
Setting up what the interlocked push button does when it is pressed
and released............................................................................................................... 17-26
Connecting the interlocked push button to data ................................................ 17-26
Creating ramp push buttons .................................................................. 17-26
Setting up the appearance and action of the ramp button ................................ 17-27
Setting up a caption and image for the ramp button ......................................... 17-28
Setting up whether the ramp button repeats when held down......................... 17-28
Chapter 18
Animating graphic objects .............................................................................................18-1
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Using color animation .................................................................................. 18-8
Using fill animation ...................................................................................... 18-11
Using horizontal position animation ................................................ 18-12
Using vertical position animation...................................................... 18-12
Using width animation ............................................................................... 18-12
Using height animation ............................................................................. 18-13
Using rotation animation ......................................................................... 18-13
Setting up rotation animation ................................................................................ 18-13
Using touch animation ............................................................................... 18-15
Using horizontal slider animation ...................................................... 18-15
Using vertical slider animation ........................................................... 18-15
Using OLE verb animation ...................................................................... 18-16
Attaching other types of animation to OLE objects ......................................... 18-16
Animating ActiveX controls ................................................................... 18-16
Naming ActiveX objects......................................................................................... 18-17
Connecting tags to an ActiveX object’s properties .............. 18-18
Connecting tags to an object’s methods ...................................... 18-19
Viewing an object’s methods ................................................................................. 18-19
Using the Invoke command to call a method ..................................................... 18-19
Connecting tags to an ActiveX object’s events ...................... 18-20
Using VBA code to make ActiveX objects interact with RSView .................. 18-21
Associating objects and displays with keys .............................. 18-21
Using object keys .......................................................................................... 18-22
Using index numbers to navigate to objects ............................. 18-23
How tab index numbers work ............................................................................... 18-23
Checking an object’s index number ...................................................................... 18-24
Changing index numbers ........................................................................................ 18-25
Creating a tab sequence .......................................................................................... 18-25
Using the Current [tag] parameter with object keys ........... 18-26
Chapter 19
Setting up trends .......................................................................................................................19-1
Chapter 20
Creating expressions ...........................................................................................................20-1
Chapter 21
Creating embedded variables .................................................................................... 21-1
About embedded variables ....................................................................... 21-1
Where you can create embedded variables ................................. 21-2
Creating embedded variables ................................................................. 21-2
Embedded variable syntax........................................................................ 21-3
Numeric embedded variable syntax ........................................................................ 21-3
String embedded variable syntax ............................................................................. 21-4
Time and date embedded variable syntax .............................................................. 21-5
How embedded variables are updated at run time ................. 21-6
How embedded variables are displayed at run time.............. 21-6
Numeric embedded variables................................................................................... 21-7
String embedded variables........................................................................................ 21-7
Time and date embedded variables......................................................................... 21-8
Chapter 22
Creating macros ........................................................................................................................ 22-1
About macros ..................................................................................................... 22-1
Chapter 24
Using the SE client object model and display code .........................24-1
Using VBA with RSView ............................................................................. 24-1
The VBA integrated development environment ........................ 24-2
Opening the VBA IDE ............................................................................................ 24-3
Parts of the VBA IDE ............................................................................................. 24-3
Quick Start steps............................................................................................. 24-4
About procedures ...................................................................................................... 24-5
How VBA code runs ................................................................................................ 24-5
The RSView SE client object model .................................................. 24-5
Viewing the objects ................................................................................................... 24-9
Chapter 25
Setting up a redundant system ................................................................................ 25-1
About redundancy ........................................................................................... 25-1
Setting up a redundant RSView SE system ......................... 25-2
HMI redundancy as part of a complete strategy ...................... 25-3
Protecting against software failures................................................. 25-4
Considering redundancy options ........................................................ 25-6
About failure of FactoryTalk Directory ................................................................. 25-7
Redundant HMI servers ........................................................................................... 25-8
Redundant data servers ........................................................................................... 25-10
Planning the layout of a redundant system ................................ 25-12
An application with a single redundant pair of HMI servers ......................... 25-12
An application with two redundant pairs of HMI servers................................ 25-14
Licensing in a redundant system ....................................................... 25-14
FactoryTalk Directory computer........................................................................... 25-14
RSView SE server software.................................................................................... 25-14
OPC Servers............................................................................................................. 25-15
RSView SE clients ................................................................................................... 25-15
Chapter 26
Deploying distributed applications...................................................................... 26-1
About deploying distributed applications ...................................... 26-1
Overview of deploying distributed applications ........................ 26-2
Setting up the FactoryTalk Directory ............................................... 26-4
Moving the application files ..................................................................... 26-4
Specifying the location of FactoryTalk Directory .................... 26-5
Chapter 27
Deploying stand-alone applications ....................................................................27-1
About deploying stand-alone applications .................................... 27-1
Overview of deploying stand-alone applications...................... 27-2
Moving stand-alone applications ......................................................... 27-3
Changing HMI server properties .......................................................... 27-3
Starting and stopping HMI server components manually . 27-4
Moving data server files ............................................................................. 27-5
Changing data server properties.......................................................... 27-5
Setting up RSView SE clients ................................................................. 27-5
Opening RSView SE clients ..................................................................... 27-7
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Opening the RSView SE client automatically when Windows starts ................ 27-8
How server components start and stop ................................................................. 27-8
Chapter 28
Administering applications ........................................................................................... 28-1
About administering applications ........................................................ 28-1
Administering an application .................................................................. 28-2
Specifying time, date, and number formats ................................. 28-3
Backing up or restoring stand-alone applications ................. 28-3
Monitoring disk space on HMI servers ............................................. 28-4
Chapter A
RSView commands ..................................................................................................................A-1
Using RSView commands ........................................................................... A-1
Where to use commands ........................................................................................... A-1
How to use commands .............................................................................................. A-1
Using placeholders in commands............................................................................. A-2
Precedence ................................................................................................................... A-4
Where commands run................................................................................................ A-4
Using absolute and relative references ........................................... A-6
How relative references are resolved ....................................................................... A-7
Creating symbols .............................................................................................. A-8
Important guidelines ................................................................................................ A-10
Using the command line ............................................................................ A-10
Using the Command Wizard .................................................................... A-11
Chapter B
Setting up DDE communications for HMI tags.........................................B-1
About DDE communications .....................................................................B-1
Overview of DDE communications .......................................................B-2
Chapter C
ODBC database schemas ................................................................................................. C-1
FactoryTalk™ Diagnostics log table ....................................................C-1
Alarm log table ....................................................................................................C-2
Data log tables ....................................................................................................C-5
Chapter D
Exporting text from an application for translation ............................ D-1
About exporting text for translation ................................................... D-1
Text that you cannot export .................................................................... D-2
Text that is part of the software ............................................................................... D-2
Text that is displayed at run time, but cannot be exported.................................. D-3
Text that is not displayed at run time, and cannot be exported .......................... D-4
Exporting text ..................................................................................................... D-5
Importing text ..................................................................................................... D-6
Troubleshooting import problems ........................................................ D-7
Common errors and their causes ............................................................................. D-8
Information for translators ........................................................................ D-9
File name and format ............................................................................................... D-10
Opening the text file in Microsoft Excel .............................................................. D-10
Saving the text file in Microsoft Excel .................................................................. D-11
Differences in file format for files saved in Excel............................................... D-11
Saving the Unicode text file in Notepad ............................................................... D-12
File schema ................................................................................................................ D-12
Chapter E
Importing and exporting XML files ........................................................................E-1
About XML ..............................................................................................................E-1
Creating XML files by exporting .............................................................E-1
Editing XML files ................................................................................................E-2
Saving XML files in Notepad ....................................................................................E-3
Testing XML files ........................................................................................................E-3
Importing XML files ..........................................................................................E-4
Error log file .................................................................................................................E-4
Importing graphic display XML files........................................................................E-4
Graphic display XML file structure .......................................................E-5
For ease of printing, the User’s Guide is divided into two parts, available
from the Help menu in RSView Studio™. For detailed information
about the contents of each guide, see the Bookmarks tab in the online
guides.
You have many options for finding information about how to use
RSView, or how to solve problems with RSView.
To find the answer, use the table of contents and the index in the User’s
Guide and Help.
You can also perform a full-text search on both the Help and the
User’s Guide. For information about using Help and the User’s
Guide, see Chapter 3, “Getting the information you need” in the
RSView Supervisory Edition Installation Guide.
If you can’t find the answer to your question or problem in the User’s
Guide or Help, you can also find information on the World Wide Web.
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To connect to web sites from RSView Studio
On the Help menu, select Rockwell Software on the Web, and then
click the name of the web page you want to view.
The Rockwell Software Discussion Forums are web pages for users of
Rockwell Software products. The forums offer discussion groups, for
exchanging tips and questions with other RSView users.
Telephone: 440-646-5800
Fax: 440-646-5801
http://www.software.rockwell.com, or
http://support.rockwellautomation.com
When you call, be at your computer and ready to give the following
information:
You’ll find this number on the Activation disk label and in the
About RSView Studio dialog box available from the Help menu in
RSView Studio.
a description of what happened and what you were doing when the
problem occurred
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1 Getting started
This chapter describes:
RSView SE Server also called the HMI server, stores HMI project
components (for example, graphic displays), and serves these
components to clients. The server also contains a database of tags, and
performs alarm detection, and historical data management (logging).
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to any computer on the network that participates in RSView
Supervisory Edition applications.
Features in brief
use graphics from the graphic libraries, or import files from other
drawing packages such as CorelDRAW ™, and Adobe®
Photoshop®.
use the RSView SE client Object Model and VBA to share data
with other Windows® programs such as Microsoft SQL Server,
interoperate with other Windows programs such as Microsoft
Excel, and customize and extend RSView to fit the individual
application’s needs.
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DeskLock is software that locks users into the RSView SE client and
prevents them from accessing the Windows desktop and system keys.
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For details about installing software, see the RSView Supervisory Edition
Installation Guide.
After you install RSView Supervisory Edition, and before you create an
application, specify the name of the computer on which the
FactoryTalk Directory server will run.
Use the utility called Specify FactoryTalk Directory Location to set the
name of the FactoryTalk Directory server computer. You will have to
do this on every computer on the network that is to have access to the
applications managed by that FactoryTalk Directory.
For details about how the FactoryTalk Directory software works, see
page 5-6.
Stand-alone applications include one HMI server. You can add one or
more data servers to a stand-alone application. You cannot add areas or
HMI servers to stand-alone applications.
once communications have been set up, how the application will
access values in the programmable controllers or devices.
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provides better performance than RSLinx for RSView when
communicating with large numbers of clients.
Next steps If you are using RSLinx for RSView or RSLinx Gateway,
create an OPC topic in RSLinx for RSView, and then create an OPC
data server in RSView Studio that points at the computer on which
RSLinx for RSView is running. For more information, see step 6.
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RSView conforms to the OPC Data Access (DA) 2.0 specification for
information exchange among automation or control applications, field
systems or devices, and business or office applications.
To access these tags, in RSView Studio specify the tag’s address for
any object you want to connect to data. For example, in a graphic
display, you can type the tag’s address as part of an object’s
expression.
When you browse for tags in devices, the device shortcuts appear in
the tag browser, each representing a device.
When you browse for tags in devices, the OPC topics appear in the
tag browser, each representing a device.
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Set up communications for use with OPC data servers if you want to
communicate with non-Allen-Bradley devices using a third-party OPC
server. You can have multiple OPC data servers in an application. Each
data server must point at a different OPC server.
When you browse for tags in devices, the OPC topics appear in the tag
browser, each representing a device.
Import an existing HMI tag database using the Tag Import and
Export Wizard.
For details, see Chapter 8, Working with tags, and Chapter 9, Creating hmi
tags.
Use the RSView drawing tools to create graphic objects and text.
You can create simple objects such as ellipses and rectangles, or
create more complex objects such as trends and alarm summaries.
You can also embed ActiveX objects.
Drag and drop ready-made objects from the RSView libraries into
a display.
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For details about setting up logging, see:
user level so you lock users into the RSView SE client. To set up
user-level security, use the DeskLock Tool, included in the Tools
folder.
For details, see Chapter 24, Using the SE client object model and display code.
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2 Exploring RSView Studio
This chapter describes:
When you start RSView Studio, the Product Type Selection dialog box
opens where you select the type of application you plan to work with.
The options are:
2. In the Product Type Selection dialog box, click the icon for the
type of application you want to create, and then click Continue.
Opening an application
3. In the Existing tab, click the name of the application you want to
open, and then click Open.
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2. In the New/Open SE Distributed Application, click the Existing
tab.
3. In the Existing tab, click Samples Water, and then click Open.
Menu bar
Toolbar
Application Explorer
Workspace
Browse devices on
the network
Diagnostics List
Status bar
The toolbar
The toolbar contains buttons for commonly-used menu items to
provide access to the items without opening menus. When you point to
a button on the toolbar, the name of the button is displayed in a tooltip.
Standard toolbar
Graphics toolbar
Objects toolbar
All of the editors use the Standard toolbar. The Graphic Displays and
Graphic Libraries editors have additional toolbars that are displayed
when you open a graphic display in either editor.
The workspace
The workspace is the blank area of the RSView Studio window, to
which you can drag and drop icons from the Application Explorer to
launch editors and open graphic displays. For details, see “Working in
the Application Explorer” on page 2-8.
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The Application tab
This tab shows the Application Explorer.
For details, see “Message routing” on page 12-4 or the Help for the
Diagnostics Setup tool.
1. With the left mouse button, click and hold the grab bars at the
bottom left of the Diagnostics List.
To detach the
Diagnostics List, drag
the grab bars.
When the Diagnostics List is undocked, you can make it any size you
want, for example to view more than one message at a time.
1. Click and hold an edge or corner and drag until the Diagnostics
List is the required size.
Click Clear, to clear the most recent message in the Diagnostics List.
Click Clear All, to clear all the messages in the Diagnostics List.
For example, if you position the pointer over the Open button, the
following message appears in the status bar:
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a selected graphics object.
Workbook mode
Workbook mode provides a way to switch among open windows in
RSView Studio. Use the Workbook mode option on the View menu to
toggle between workbook and normal modes.
Application name
Workspace
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Right-click the Application Explorer’s title bar, and then click a new
docking location: floating, or MDI (Multiple Document Interface)
Child.
To resize the Application Explorer, grab and drag one of its edges.
Folders
The Application Explorer uses folders to organize editors. To open or
close a folder, do one of the following:
Click the folder, and then press Enter to either open or close the
folder depending on its current state.
Right-click the editor’s icon to open the context menu, and then
click New or Open.
Click the Tools menu and then click the editor to select it.
If you can use the editor to create multiple components, the context
menu contains New. If the editor can open only a single component,
the context menu contains Open.
Use this editor To
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Use this editor To
Displaying components
Any components created with the editor appear below the editor in the
tree.
Opening components
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Right-click the component to open the context menu, and then
click Open.
When you add a component in the Application Explorer using the Add
Component into Application option, you are creating a copy of the file
in the application.
1. Right-click the editor that was used to create the component you
want to copy. For example, to add a graphic display component,
right-click the Graphic Displays editor.
To rename a component
3. Click OK.
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2. Right-click the editor used to create the component, for example
the Graphic Displays editor. On the context menu, click Add
Component Into Application.
3. Select the file that the component represents, and then click Open.
To remove a component
2. Click Remove.
2. Click Delete.
Deleting a component deletes both the file reference and the physical
file from disk.
Naming components
When you name a component in RSView Studio, the file name for the
component is created automatically on disk. The component name
becomes part of the file name.
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To open a context menu
Position the mouse pointer over the icon, display, or object, and
then right-click the mouse.
The Browse button appears beside data-entry boxes. You can type
information into the box, or you can click the Browse button to open
Browse button a list containing valid entries for the box, or a search window in which
you can search for and select a valid entry.
Tags are stored in devices, data servers, and in the HMI tag database.
Their names are used in other parts of RSView. You do not have to
create tags in the RSView HMI Tags editor before you work in other
RSView editors.
Type the name of a tag. You do not have to create the tag to use the
tag name, but be sure to create the tag later or errors will be
reported at run time.
For detailed information about tags, see Chapter 8, Working with tags.
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Using expressions
Many editors use expressions to compute values based on tags and
functions. Expressions can be complex logical expressions, or they can
be tag names.
Printing
Each RSView editor has a Print item on its File menu.
To print selections
1. Select the item you want to print. The item can be a record in an
editor’s spreadsheet or it can be an object in a graphic display.
Selecting a printer
You must install a printer before you can select it. For information
about installing a printer, see your Windows documentation.
To select a printer
2. If you don’t want to use the default printer, specify another printer.
When you use the PrintDisplay command RSView prints the entire
display, even if parts are covered by other displays. You can also use the
ScreenPrint command to print an image of whatever shows on the
monitor.
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3 Planning an application
A well-designed application requires planning. To help you plan, this
chapter provides guidelines for:
planning redundancy.
planning communications.
planning alarms.
collecting data.
using trends.
talk to operators and other experts who are going to use the system.
Find out what information they need to optimize plant operations.
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run time, depending on needs, a distributed application typically runs
on the following computers:
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contains a sub-set of the RSView Studio editors so you can make minor
changes to an application without installing RSView Studio.
Planning redundancy
the network layout, and calculate the processing load expected for
each computer. This information can help you plan which parts of
an application can share hardware.
You can set up redundancy for HMI servers and data servers.
Planning communications
Next, plan how the devices on the network will communicate with the
application. This will help you plan the number of OPC servers and
data servers the application needs.
Finally, plan how you will access data in the controllers or devices. For
many purposes you can access the values in controllers or devices
directly, using tags provided by a data server in the application. For
some purposes, however, you will need to set up an HMI tag database.
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security features, to prevent unauthorized changes to a tag’s value.
Before creating an HMI tag database, take the time to plan it. A good
design helps reduce the time required for maintenance, and can
improve device-to-RSView response time.
Collect information
Before creating an HMI tag database, collect this information:
When creating HMI tags, place related tags into folders. For greater
organization, create nested folders.
Planning alarms
Before setting up alarms, plan:
Collecting data
When planning data collection, design the system so only essential data
is collected. Limiting data collection is important because collection
activities require substantial processing power and generate significant
traffic on the communication channel or network.
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programmable controller data tables to reduce network traffic and
optimize system response.
a title.
navigation buttons.
Consistency
When you design several displays, place the same kinds of buttons
in the same positions. For example, if there is a Start button in a
certain position in one display, don’t put a Stop button in the same
position in the next display.
Clarity
Use symbols that are easily recognizable. For example, use the
conventional ISA symbols for tanks and valves.
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Usability
Using trends
When planning trends, consider how they will be used. For example,
will the trend be used to:
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window. This allows you to adapt an application dynamically to various
screen desktop sizes and resolutions.
Secure the system The RSView object model allows you to obtain
security information about who is using the system, and to use the
security information and events to control access to the system. For
example, you can restrict a user’s access to a graphic display on a
secured computer by creating code that displays the graphic display on
a workstation with a specific computer name, only when the user is
logged in with a particular user name.
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4 Setting up FactoryTalk
Directory
This chapter describes:
A network can also contain more than one computer running the
FactoryTalk Directory software. This is useful to:
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To do this, set up one FactoryTalk Directory at each site on either
side of the WAN.
Summary of steps
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To set the FactoryTalk Directory computer to localhost
c. Click OK.
1. On each computer that will have access to the application, click the
Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software,
FactoryTalk Tools, and then click Specify FactoryTalk Directory
Location.
To change the
location of the
FactoryTalk
Directory server,
click the Browse
button.
4. Click OK.
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FactoryTalk Directory information used by the SE client before the
FactoryTalk Directory became unavailable, is cached in memory.
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Key concepts
Areas
The application root area can contain an HMI server, or one or more
data servers. In distributed applications, you can create additional areas
in an application.
Each area can contain one or more sub-areas, and one or more data
servers. Each area or sub-area can contain only one HMI server.
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referred to it using an absolute reference. However, the tag called Temp
will now refer to /AssemblyLineSouth::Temp because you referred to
the Temp tag using a relative reference.
If the Temp tag does not exist in the AssemblyLineSouth area, an error
appears in the FactoryTalk Diagnostics List.
Syntax
Precede area names with a forward slash (/). Also separate area names
from other area names, with a forward slash.
Separate area names from component names with two colons (::).
For information about using absolute and relative references with tags,
see “Using tag references” on page 8-15.
HMI projects contain displays, data log models, alarms, HMI tags and
other services. HMI projects are loaded by HMI servers.
FactoryTalk Directory
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All the computers participating in a particular application share a
common FactoryTalk Directory located on a network server.
Redundancy
In process monitoring and control automation, redundancy refers to
the ability of the system running the process to continue to work
correctly when one or more parts of the system become unavailable, or
fail, by setting up pairs of the critical systems components such as data
servers, on paired computers. One of the servers acts as the primary
server, and the other is the secondary, or backup, server.
Active means that the server is running, and able to serve data to
clients that connect to it.
Standby means that the server is running, and will replace the
active server if the active server fails.
Out of service means that the server has been created, but cannot
be contacted.
You can see the operational status of an HMI server by clicking the
General tab in the HMI Server Properties dialog box. You can also use
VBA code on the client to determine the status of HMI servers.
For details about loading the server manually, see “Starting and
stopping HMI server components manually” on page 26-10.
File synchronization
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If synchronization is required, the files must be synchronized manually
after the changes are made. You can do this by copying the files using
Windows Explorer.
For information about setting up redundancy for OPC data servers, see
“Setting up OPC data server redundancy” on page 7-9.
4. Type a name and description for the application, and then click
Create.
Or, right-click the application icon and select New Area, to create
an area, and then create an HMI server within it.
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7. Work through the dialog boxes to create the HMI server and
project.
To add an area
2. In the New Area dialog box, type a name for the area, and an
optional description, and then click OK.
To remove an area
X Right-click the area you want to remove, and then click Remove.
HMI servers and data servers located in the area are not deleted
from disk.
When you are finished adding an HMI server, you can set up the HMI
server’s properties. For details, see page 5-16.
When you create an HMI server, the server’s HMI project is created
automatically.
After you have copied an HMI server, changes made to the original do
not affect the copy, or vice versa.
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Importing a project from RSView32, SE, or ME
After you have copied a project into the new HMI server, changes
made to the original project do not affect the copy, or vice versa.
You must set up redundancy separately for each HMI server or data
server in an application.
Server restrictions
Server Names
The name of every HMI server must be unique. This means that:
You cannot re-use a name for an HMI server, even after you have
deleted the HMI server.
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If multiple users share the same FactoryTalk Directory, the names
of all HMI servers created by all users must be unique. Similarly, if
multiple applications share the same FactoryTalk Directory, the
name of each HMI server in each application must be unique.
Number of servers
In distributed applications, each area can contain only one HMI server,
and an application can contain no more than two HMI servers.
Each computer can have no more than one HMI server running on it.
If a distributed application needs more than one HMI server, install
each one on a separate computer.
Renaming an application
To rename an application
For details about using the Application Manager tool, click Help.
Deleting an application
The HMI projects and data servers you have set up in the application
are not automatically deleted when you delete a distributed application.
If you intend to delete them, make a list of the HMI servers in the
To delete an application
For details about using the Application Manager tool, click Help.
select the components that will run when the HMI server starts up.
specify macros that will run when the components are shutdown,
and, if redundancy has been set up, when the server goes into
standby mode or becomes active.
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You must set up the properties of each HMI server separately in a
distributed application.
For details about filling in the fields of the HMI Server Properties
dialog box, see Help.
You can set an HMI server to be loaded when Windows starts. This
option is for normal use at run time, and is required if you want to set
up redundancy for the HMI server.
This option allows clients to connect quickly, and ensures that the HMI
server can be brought back to normal operation automatically if the
computer on which it is running is restarted.
If you are setting up redundancy for an HMI server, and choose not to
run components when the servers start up, you can specify macros to
start the components only when the server is the active server. For
details about creating macros, see Chapter 22, Creating macros.
IMPORTANT After changing the start type, you must restart the
HMI server computer for the change to take effect.
Because the HMI server runs as a service, users do not have to log into
Windows to make the HMI server run.
You can set up the HMI server to load on demand. This means that the
HMI server is loaded when the first client accesses the HMI server
project, and is unloaded when the last client is closed.
When the HMI server is loaded, the user can edit the server’s HMI
project using RSView Studio, and connect clients to the HMI server.
A client can be RSView Studio, the RSView Administration Console,
or the RSView SE Client.
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Setting up HMI server redundancy
To minimize disruptions to clients if the primary HMI server fails, set
up a redundant HMI server. In RSView, the redundant server is called
the secondary server.
When the primary HMI server becomes available again, the system
automatically switches back to the primary server.
The settings you specify on the Redundancy tab are saved with the
application, and are the same for both primary and secondary HMI
servers. You do not need to specify different settings for the computers
that are hosting the primary and secondary servers.
In the Redundancy tab of the HMI Server Properties dialog box, click
the Provide redundancy using a secondary server, check box to enable
redundancy for this HMI server. Clear this check box to disable
redundancy for this HMI server.
This option is available only if the HMI server startup type is set to
Load and run startup components when operating system initializes.
For details about the HMI server’s startup type, see page 5-17.
Selecting the secondary host computer
In the Redundancy tab of the HMI Server Properties dialog box, type
the name of the computer hosting the secondary HMI server. To
browse for the name of the computer, click the Browse button.
In the Components tab of the HMI Server Properties dialog box, select
the check box for each of the items you want to run when the HMI
server runs. Where required, specify the name of a component.
which macros will run when the HMI server shuts down.
For details about the options in the Components tab, see Help.
The macro that runs when the HMI server becomes active is called the
On active macro. An HMI server can become active if another HMI
server fails, or if it is a primary server at startup time. Any macro can
be used as the On active macro.
If you have not set up a secondary server in the Redundancy tab, the
On active macro is not available.
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Running a macro when the HMI server becomes the standby
HMI server
The macro that runs when the HMI server switches from being active
to being on standby is called the On standby macro.
For example, when the system switches back from the active secondary
HMI server to the primary HMI server after the primary server has
been restored to operation, the primary server first goes into On
standby, and then into Active. When the primary server becomes active
the secondary goes into On standby. The On standby macro will not
run if the active HMI server fails and is unable to run the macro, for
example if the power to the computer fails. Any macro can be used as
the On standby macro.
If you have not set up a secondary server in the Redundancy tab, this
option is not available.
2. Copy the HMI project files from the computer hosting the
primary HMI server to the computer hosting the secondary HMI
server. For details, see “Moving HMI project files” on page 26-6.
1. Disconnect all clients from the HMI server. A client is any of the
following: RSView Studio, RSView Administration Console, or
RSView SE client.
2. Start RSView Studio, and then open the application from which
you want to remove the HMI server.
3. Right-click the HMI server you want to remove, and then click
Remove.
1. Disconnect all clients from the HMI server. A client is any of the
following: RSView Studio, the RSView Administration Console, or
the RSView SE client.
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*The path given is for Windows XP. For Windows 2000, the third
folder is not Shared Documents, but just Documents.
3. Delete the folder that has the same name as the HMI server whose
project files you want to delete.
If you have set up a redundant HMI server, you can also start or stop
the redundant server’s components manually.
When you stop the HMI services manually, clients are disconnected, all
HMI servers running on the computer are shut down, and the
activation keys used by the HMI servers are released.
When you start the HMI services manually, clients are allowed to
connect to HMI servers on the computer.
You do not have to set up FactoryTalk Directory for use with stand-
alone applications. This is done automatically.
Key concepts
HMI project contains displays, log models, alarms, HMI tags and
other services. HMI projects are loaded by HMI servers.
FactoryTalk Directory
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Application, data server
an HMI server.
Creating an application
4. Type a name and description for the application and then click
Create.
After you create a new application, the application icon and name are
displayed in the Application Explorer along with the RSView Studio
editors you will use to create the application components.
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Importing a project into a new application
You can create a new stand-alone application by importing a project
from RSView32™, RSView Supervisory Edition, or RSView Machine
Edition™. For details about importing projects, see Help. You cannot
import a project into an existing application.
After you have copied a project into the new application, changes made
to the original project do not affect the copy, or vice versa.
select the components that will run when the HMI server starts up.
For details about using the HMI Server Properties dialog box, see Help.
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Starting and stopping an HMI server’s
components manually
You can run an HMI server’s startup components, or stop the
components running on an HMI server from within the HMI Server
Properties dialog box.
setting up communications.
OPC stands for OLE for Process Control, a protocol used to connect
RSView® to communication devices via vendor-specific OPC servers.
RSView supports the OPC-DA 2.0 specification.
OPC servers provide a way for RSView to retrieve tag values from:
RSView SE Server’s
HMI tags
Computer running RSView SE Server
Third-party Third-party
RSLinx OPC server
application
with OPC
server support
Allen-Bradley Non-
programmable Allen-Bradley
controller device
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Setting up communications
To set up communications, complete these steps:
1. Gather information about the network, and the devices that are
connected to it. You will need this information to set up RSLinx,
or another OPC server.
For details, see Getting Results with RSLinx, or see Help for RSLinx.
For details about installing RSLinx for RSView, see the RSView
Supervisory Edition Installation Guide.
7. To use HMI tags in the application, open the Tags editor, and then
create device tags that point at addresses in devices. For details
about creating HMI tags, see Chapter 9, Creating hmi tags.
If you do not intend to use HMI tags, but instead will access
addresses in devices directly, skip this step. For details about using
tags, see Chapter 8, Working with tags.
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Types of data servers
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IMPORTANT If an application requires more than 10,000 tags, and is
not using RSLinx Enterprise for communications, place
the OPC data server on its own, dedicated host
computer. This provides best performance.
For details about adding RSLinx Enterprise data servers, see “Adding
RSLinx Enterprise data servers” on page 7-11.
2. In the OPC Data Server Properties dialog box, fill in the fields in
each tab. When you are finished, click OK.
In the General tab, type a name and description for the data server, and
specify a computer and an OPC server name.
Name Type a name for the data server. This will appear in the
Application Explorer in RSView Studio™ and the RSView
Administration Console. The name cannot include dashes or hyphens
(–).
Description Type a description for the data server. For example, it can
describe the server’s location, the name of a contact person or number
to contact in case of failure, or version information.
Computer that will run the OPC server Type the name of the
computer on which the data server will run. To browse for the name of
the computer, click the Browse button.
OPC server name (Prog ID) Type the programmatic ID of the OPC
server. To browse for the programmatic ID, click the Browse button.
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To use RSLinx for RSView as the OPC server, click the Browse button,
and then click RSLinx Remote OPC Server.
In the Redundancy tab, specify the name of the computer that will host
the secondary data server, and specify whether RSView should
continue using the secondary data server or switch back to the primary
data server when it becomes available again.
If tags are added, modified, or deleted on the data server, you must
synchronize the cache manually.
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To synchronize a data server’s cache
For details about adding OPC data servers for use with RSLinx for
RSView or third-party OPC servers, see “Adding OPC data servers”
on page 7-7.
2. In the Data Server Properties dialog box, fill in the fields in each
tab, as described in the sections that follow. When you are finished,
click OK.
In the General tab, type a name and description for the data server, and
specify the name of the computer that will host the data server.
Name Type a name for the data server. This name will appear in the
Application Explorer. The name cannot include dashes or hyphens (–).
Description Type a description for the data server. For example, the
description can consist of the server’s location, the name of a contact
person or number to contact in case of failure, or version information.
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In the Redundancy tab, specify the name of the secondary data server,
and specify whether RSView should switch back to the primary data
server if it becomes available again.
To make RSView switch back to the primary data server when the
primary server becomes available, click Switchback to the primary
server when it becomes available again.
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If you have set up both a primary and a secondary RSLinx Enterprise
data server, both the Primary and the Secondary tabs appear in the
Communication Setup editor.
X Right-click the data server you want to remove, and then click
Remove.
When you remove a data server, its cache files are also deleted.
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8 Working with tags
This chapter describes:
For more information about HMI tags, see Chapter 9, Creating hmi tags.
An application can use a mix of HMI tags and data server tags. To use
data server tags such as those found in ControlLogix® and other OPC-
compliant devices, provide a direct reference to the tag’s location
wherever the application is to use the data.
Tag-related limits
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Each HMI server in an application can have up to 40,000 HMI tags
that have alarms. Of these alarm tags, 10,000 can be analog HMI tags.
IMPORTANT If an application has more than 10,000 tags and does not
use RSLinx® Enterprise for communications, place the
OPC data server on its own, dedicated host computer
for best performance.
1. Type the name of the tag or browse for it, anywhere you plan to
connect an object to live data at run time.
For example, you can set up a graphic object that represents a vat
on a production line so that at run time it will show the level of the
vat. To do this, set up Fill animation for the object using the name
of a tag that is updated by a network device that monitors the level
of the vat. At run time the value of the tag will determine the fill
level of the graphic object.
To use new HMI tags, create them in the Tags editor. For details,
see Help.
If you don’t know the names of tags, you can browse for them. You can
browse while online and connected to a device, or you can browse for
tags from an offline file, for example a PLC program file.
To browse for tags, use the Tag Browser. For details, see page 8-7.
You can type the name of a tag that doesn’t yet exist. If you do this,
when you create the tag, and everywhere you use its name, make sure
that you spell the tag name consistently.
For some uses in an application, data server tags can offer advantages
over HMI tags. For example, using direct references to tags in devices,
or to tags located in an OPC server’s database, can eliminate the need
for duplication or provide access to complex data types.
Eliminate duplication
Using data server tags lets you add, modify, or delete tags in a device
without having to duplicate the changes in the HMI tag database.
Referencing tag values directly eliminates the need for creating an HMI
tag for each member.
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Setting up data server tags
Use HMI tags for triggering alarms and where you need to manipulate
data or secure the values in a device.
Triggering alarms
In RSView, HMI tags provide the only method for triggering an alarm
when a tag has a certain value.
For more information about alarms, see Chapter 11, Creating alarms.
For information about assigning security codes to tags, see Chapter 15,
Setting up security.
Manipulating data
Use HMI tags if the data server you are using does not support scaling
or offsetting a value, or setting minimum or maximum limits on a value
(that is, providing a range of values).
Scale, offset, and minimum/maximum values for analog HMI tags, can
be specified in the Tags editor.
Use scale and offset to modify the raw data that comes from the
network device before it is saved in the computer’s memory, or to
modify a value specified in RSView before it is written to a device or
data server
HMI tags allow you to set the minimum and maximum values that can
be written to the network device or data server. These values do not
affect what is read from the device or server.
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For example, if you specify a minimum of 0 and a maximum of 100,
RSView would be able to read a value of 200 from a device and store it
in memory, but would not be able to write this value to the device.
2. In the tag database, create memory tags, or for device tags, map
each tag name to an OPC or DDE address.
To use a tag, you can type its name and path, or browse for it using the
Tag Browser. The way to open the Tag Browser depends on where you
are in RSView.
In the Animation tabs in the Graphic editor, click the Tag button.
In the Tags in Model tab in the Data Log MoDels editor, click the
browse button beside the Tag[s] to Add box.
The Tag Browser shows the root folder of the application and folders
containing the tags for the application’s HMI and data servers. For a
distributed application, the Tag Browser also shows a folder for each
area, in addition to the root folder.
For details about working with folders in the Tag Browser, see Help.
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Using the Tag Browser
Root folder
Area folder
Folders pane
Tags pane
select a single tag or multiple tags. The ability to select multiple tags
depends on where you have opened the browser. For example,
when you open it in the Data Log Models editor, you can select
multiple tags. In the figure above only a single tag can be selected.
By default, the folder pane in the Tag Browser shows folders, but not
the servers they belong to.
Right-click a blank area of the folders pane and then click Show
Server Names.
To locate the tags in the home area, right-click a blank area of the folder
pane, and then click Go To Home Area. The home area is selected
automatically.
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You can use the Offline folder to browse for tags in a PLC program
stored on disk. If the topic in RSLinx has access to symbols, you can
also browse for them in the Offline folder. For details about adding
symbols to a topic in RSLinx, see the RSLinx for RSView Help.
3. Click the Browse button beside the Offline Tag File box.
To browse for off-line tags from OPC servers other than RSLinx for
RSView, set up a data server cache. When you are not connected to the
device, the cached tags appear in the same folders in the Tag Browser
as the online tags. The offline tags are not located in a different folder,
as with RSLinx.
For details about setting up and managing an OPC data server’s cache
files, see “Setting up advanced properties” on page 7-10.
Tags appear in the right pane of the Tag Browser. For information
about selecting, adding and editing tags in the Tag Browser, see Help.
Displaying tags
To display tags, select a folder. Any tags in the folder appear in the right
pane of the Tag Browser.
By default, the Tag Browser does not show tag descriptions. To show
or hide tag descriptions, right-click a blank area of the right pane, and
then click Show Description.
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Displaying tag properties
To display tag properties, right-click a tag in the Tag Browser, and then
click Properties.
The Tag Properties dialog box shows information about the tag. The
properties are a snapshot, and do not update in real time. You cannot
display the properties of multiple tags at the same time.
Filtering tags
To display only tags whose names match a pattern, type the pattern in
the Tag Filter box, and then press Enter.
The context menu in the Tag Browser’s right pane includes three menu
items for manipulating HMI tags:
Import PLC Tags allows you to import a tag from another database.
For information about creating and editing HMI tags, see Chapter 9,
Creating hmi tags. For information about importing tags from a PLC
database, see page 9-12.
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Using tag references
When you type a tag name, you are creating a reference to the tag. For
example, you might refer to a tag called FanRunning to obtain its value
for animating a graphical representation of a fan in a graphic display.
Absolute references
Use absolute references when you want to ensure that you are referring
to a specific tag in a specific location.
Relative references
Relative references are useful if tag names are all the same, but they are
in different areas. This might be the case if you expect to clone identical
areas, for example to represent identical production lines in a plant. For
more information about areas, see page 5-3.
For example, if you create a graphic display in the Cooling area, and add
a relative reference to a tag (for example, FanStart), RSView looks for
the tag in the home area of the graphic display (Cooling). If the tag does
not belong to a data server or HMI server in the home area, an error
will occur when the display runs.
If the tags you select are in the home area, the Tag Browser
automatically uses relative references. If the tags are not in the home
area, the Tag Browser uses absolute references.
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9 Creating HMI tags
This chapter describes:
Use the Tags editor in the HMI Tags folder in the RSView Studio™
Application Explorer, to create and edit HMI tags. In a distributed
application, you can edit a tag database locally (on the same computer)
or remotely (from a different computer).
These tags can represent devices that use text, such as a bar
code scanner that uses an alphanumeric product code.
System Information generated while the system is running, including
alarm information, system time and date, and so on.
Device
An HMI tag with Device as its data source receives its data from a
source external to RSView. The data can come from a programmable
controller or other device via RSLinx®, or from another OPC ® or
DDE data server.
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Memory
An HMI tag with Memory as its data source receives its data internally
from RSView. A memory tag can be used to store values internally.
Retentive memory tags You can specify that a memory tag’s value be
retained even if an HMI server is shut down.
0 to 9
To organize tags, create a folder, and then include tags that are related
to one another. To separate the folder name from the rest of the tag
name, use a backslash (\). For example, tags in the folder called Pump
would start with Pump\.
For greater organization, you can nest folders. For example, if a plant
is divided into zones, you can organize the tag database first by zone,
then by machines in the zone, and finally by devices in each machine.
The result might be Area1\Machine1\Pump.
For details about creating, duplicating and deleting folders, see Help.
The Tag Statistics dialog box provides a summary of how many tags an
application uses, as well as other tag information such as the date the
HMI tag database was last modified. To view tag statistics, the Tags
editor must be open and have focus.
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To view tag statistics
create folders
The Tags editor has these parts: form, query box, folder hierarchy, and
spreadsheet. For details about using the Tags editor, see Help.
Form
Query box
Folder hierarchy
Spreadsheet
In the lower part of the form, define the data source (where the tag’s
values will come from).
Select the Alarm check box to define alarm conditions for an analog or
digital tag. To edit alarms once they have been defined, click the Alarm
button.
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Using the folder hierarchy
The hierarchy and spreadsheet work together. The hierarchy shows the
tag folders, and the spreadsheet shows the tags within the folders.
You can nest folders. If a folder icon has a plus ( + ) sign on it, the
folder contains one or more folders. If the folder’s icon is blank, it does
not contain any other folders.
When you nest folders, remember that the backslash in a folder name
counts as one character in the tag name.
You can also right-click the Tags icon and then click Show.
4. Click the New button in the forms section to clear the form and
position in the cursor in the Name box.
5. Specify the tag name and select its type. If you have opened a
folder, its name is inserted in the Name box.
8. Check the Alarm box if the tag is to have an alarm set up for it.
For descriptions of the options for each type of tag, see Help.
To edit a tag
You can edit all parts of a tag except the tag name and tag type.
To duplicate a tag
A new row is inserted below the highlighted row. The new row
contains all the same information except the tag name.
3. In the Tag Name box, type the name for the new tag.
4. Click Accept.
Delete a tag
2. On the Edit menu, click Delete, or on the toolbar, click the Delete
button.
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Delete tags carefully. Once you click the Delete button, the tag is
deleted. There is no confirmation message, and you cannot undo the
deletion.
The following topics describe the Data Source fields. For details about
setting up analog, digital, and string tag types, see the Help.
An HMI tag with Device as its data source receives its data from a
source external to RSView. The data can come from:
For details about creating HMI tags for use with DDE
communications, see Appendix B, Setting up dde communications for
hmi tags.
1. Click Device.
2. In the Address box, specify the name of the tag in the OPC server,
or specify the DDE item.
You can click the browse button to select the address of the OPC
tag.
[AccessPath]Address or
::[AccessPath]Address
where :: indicates that the address resides in a data server in the home
area.
IMPORTANT The square brackets are part of the syntax. They do not
indicate optional parameters.
For communications with other OPC servers, the access path may
be optional. For information about the syntax for the access path,
see the OPC server documentation.
When you first load an HMI project, a memory tag has the value
defined in the Initial Value box.
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macro to specify the tag’s value. For details about using macros, see
Chapter 22, Creating macros.
The value of a memory tag can also be set using derived tags, events,
or graphic objects.
3. To have the tag’s value retained when an HMI server shuts down,
select the Retentive check box.
If you want the memory tag to revert to its initial value the next time
an HMI server starts, clear the Retentive check box.
When you import tags, they can be merged with tags already in the tag
database, in which case any tags with the same name are updated with
the new information.
2. In the Tag Browser, open the folder in which you want to create
the tag, right-click a blank area of the Contents pane, and then click
New HMI Tag.
DB Browser button in
In the Tags editor, click the DB Browser button on the toolbar, or
the Tags editor select OtherDatabases from the Edit menu.
Use the Import PLC Tags dialog box to import tags selectively from a
PLC database into the RSView HMI tag database. Tags imported in
this way are copied into the database—they are not shared with the
source database. This means changes to tags in RSView do not affect
the database from which they have been imported and vice versa.
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Use the filter to search for a
particular tag or set of tags.
You cannot use wildcards, or
filter beyond a slash. For
example, a filter containing
B3/1 will not show B3/10,
B3/11, and so on.
For PLC and SLC addresses, the Import PLC Tags dialog box shows
only addresses that are used in the symbol or address list of the PLC
programming software.
In RSView Studio, click the Tools menu, and then click Tag Import
and Export Wizard.
If you need help while using the wizard, click the Help button.
When a tag has an alarm set up for it, an X appears in the Alm column
of the Tags editor’s spreadsheet, and the Alarm button in the editor’s
form is highlighted (enabled).
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10 Creating derived tags
This chapter describes:
Use multiple derived tag components to group derived tags that need
to be evaluated at different rates.
2. Set the maximum update rate for the derived tags component in
the Derived Tag Setup dialog box.
Use the Derived Tags editor in RSView Studio™ to create derived tags.
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To open the Derived Tags editor:
2. Right-click the Derived Tags editor and then click New, or drag the
Derived Tags editor from the Application explorer to the
workspace.
You can use any tag to store the result of a derived tag calculation. The
tag must already exist, for example, as an HMI tag (i. e., memory or
device) or in a data server, before you can use it as a derived tag.
1. In the Derived Tags editor, specify the tag that will hold the
derived value and type a description of the tag.
3. Click Accept.
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5. Repeat steps 1 through 4 until all derived tags for the particular
component are defined.
9. Specify the name of the derived tags component and then click
OK.
The maximum update rate also determines the fastest rate at which
data servers can send changes in tag values.
Set the update rate as fast as, or faster than, the rate at which the values
of tags used in the expressions change, unless it is desirable to miss
changes in tag values.
In the Graphic Displays editor, create a button and then specify the
DerivedOn <component> command as the button’s press action.
When the button is pressed, derived tag processing starts.
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For the Login Macro in User Accounts editor, specify the
DerivedOn <component> command, or a macro that contains the
command.
To shut down all the components that are running on the HMI
server, including all derived tag components, stop the components
running on the HMI server manually.
In the Graphic Displays editor, create a button and then specify the
DerivedOff <component> command as the button’s press action.
When the button is pressed, derived tag processing stops.
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11 Creating alarms
This chapter describes:
IMPORTANT You can monitor only HMI tags for alarms. You cannot
monitor data server tags for alarms.
Summary of features
monitor any analog and digital HMI tag for alarms (to a maximum
of 40,000 tags per HMI server, 10,000 of which can be analog).
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Setting up alarms for an application
These are the steps required to set up alarms for an application.
In the Alarm Setup editor, set up general features for all alarms on
an HMI server. This includes:
The alarm log file is a record of alarm incidents. Use the Alarm Log
Setup tool to specify where the alarm log file is stored, and when–
if ever–log files will be created and deleted.
In the Analog or Digital Alarm dialog box in the Tags editor, specify
alarm conditions for each HMI tag you intend to monitor. You can
define alarms for analog and digital tags, but not for string tags.
Thresholds
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Example: Alarm thresholds
Alarm
Threshold security
values Thresholds levels
5,000 6 * 1
4,000 5 * 4
Increasing
3,000 4 8
1,000 2 6
Decreasing
1 1 4
Time
Thresholds must be set up
in ascending order * These alarms are triggered only if the check
box ‘Generate alarms when approaching
normal operating range’ is selected in the
Alarm Setup dialog box.
Variable thresholds
Alarm faults
A variable threshold must not become higher than the threshold above
it or lower than the threshold below it. If this happens, an alarm fault
is generated for the monitored tag. To correct an alarm fault, change
the variable threshold so it does not overlap either of its neighbors.
This can be complex when the neighboring thresholds are also variable,
because these boundaries are determined dynamically at run time.
The tag’s alarm status stays as it was before the fault was generated.
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The alarm fault status bit for the tag is set in the value table. This
notifies other applications that an alarm fault has been generated.
The Alarm Type column in the alarm summary states that the tag is
in ‘Alarm Fault’.
When the faulty thresholds return to their normal operating range, the
alarm fault condition is cleared, the out-of-alarm-fault status is
generated and logged, and alarms for the tag resume normal operation.
Deadband
With some measured values, such as line pressure, tag values can
fluctuate rapidly above and below a critical threshold. Where such
conditions exist, you can create a deadband as a buffer to prevent the
fluctuations from triggering unnecessary alarms.
rpm In alarm
In alarm again
5,000
4,000
Deadband
3,500
3,000
Threshold
2,000 Out of alarm
1,000
0 n
Time
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Alarm severity
When you set up alarm severity, you specify what severity levels mean
and what actions they will trigger. Severity determines the order in
which alarms are displayed in an alarm banner.
Alarm messages
For each message, you can use the default message or create a custom
message, and route the messages to a log file, printer, or both.
The alarm log file records alarm incidents that occur. You can set up
how often, if ever, you want log files created and deleted, and view the
alarm log file using the Alarm Log Viewer.
Alarm displays
When alarms are generated, they are recorded in two places: the alarm
log file, and on the HMI server computer where the alarms are
generated. The alarm log viewer displays the records in the alarm log
file. The alarm summary displays the records in the computer’s
memory.
The alarm log viewer displays the contents of the alarm log file. The
contents of this file depend on the severities set up in the Alarm Setup
editor. By default, the log file will have a record for each of the
following alarm incidents:
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Alarm summary
The alarm summary can display alarms from more than one HMI
server. Each HMI server maintains a list of up to 2,000 alarms. As new
alarms occur, they appear at the top of the list.
When the list of alarms at the HMI server is full and a new alarm is
generated, the alarm at the bottom of the list (the oldest alarm) is
acknowledged automatically by the system, and then dropped from the
the list. Alarms that are acknowledged automatically by the system
appear in the alarm log file with SysAk (system-acknowledged) in the
TransType (transaction type) field.
Alarms are also dropped when they are out of alarm, or acknowledged
manually. When alarms are dropped, they are removed from memory.
When the AlarmOff command is issued, the contents of the alarm
summary are erased.
AlarmOff is just one of the RSView commands used with alarms. For
details about this command and others, see Help.
System tags are created and updated by RSView. You can use these tags
anywhere a tag name is required.
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This tag Type Displays this information
Alarm acknowledgment
One acknowledgment is all that is required for all previous and current
alarms for a tag, so alarm log files often show fewer acknowledgments
than alarms.
You can suppress alarm monitoring for tags. This is useful for testing
or for performing repairs or maintenance on a piece of equipment.
ALM_IN_ALARM (tag)
where tag is the name of the tag you want to check for alarms. When a
tag is in alarm, the expression result is 1. When a tag is out of alarm,
the expression result is 0.
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The following expression checks if an alarm has ever been
acknowledged:
ALM_ACK (tag)
When alarm monitoring starts and a tag has never been in alarm, the
ALM_ACK expression returns 1 by default. To reverse this default
behavior, create the registry key Alarm Initially Acked on the computer
running the HMI server. Once you have created the key, change its
string value to False. The key is located at:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Rockwell Software\
RSView Enterprise\Alarm Server
To create or change the key, use the Windows® Regedit32 utility. For
details about using Regedit32, click Help in the Registry editor window.
ALM_ALLACKED (tag*)
Other functions are also used with expressions to monitor alarms. For
more information, see Chapter 20, Creating expressions.
For built-in alarm functions, you can use wildcard characters in the
expression to retrieve information about multiple tags at once.
This wildcard Does this
character
ALM_IN_ALARM (alarm*)
where alarm* represents all tags whose names begin with ‘alarm.’ If one
or more of these tags are in alarm, the expression result is 1. If all of
the tags are out of alarm, the expression result is 0.
Acknowledge bit
An acknowledge bit is a digital tag that can be used for two things:
to acknowledge an alarm, or
When you set up an acknowledge bit for a tag, the HMI server
monitors the value of the acknowledge bit, and automatically
acknowledges the alarm when the value of the acknowledge bit changes
from 0 to 1. This is called a remote acknowledge, and a RmAck
(Remote Acknowledge) transaction is logged to the alarm log file.
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Handshake bit
A handshake bit is a digital tag that can be used to monitor the status
of an alarm.
When you set up a handshake bit for a tag, the HMI server sets the
handshake bit to 1 when the tag goes into alarm. If the Auto Reset
feature is enabled, the HMI server sets the handshake bit to 0 when the
tag goes out of alarm.
Switching handshaking on
By default, handshaking is off. To switch handshaking on, do one of the
following:
Alarm events
You can customize and extend the RSView alarm monitoring system
by writing alarm-detection algorithms using PLC ladder logic, custom
programs, or any other appropriate tools. You can then add alarm
events to the RSView alarm subsystem, to respond to the alarm-
detection algorithms for annunciation, logging, printing, and for
display in alarm summaries.
By using a tag name for an alarm event, you can customize the alarm
features of the tag. For example, you can use alarm events to specify an
You can also use alarm events to provide a tag with more than eight
thresholds.
Alarm events let you create alarms without setting up tags in the tag
database. Event-based alarms work just like tag-based alarms. They
appear in alarm summaries, they can be used with alarm system tags,
and they can be logged to disk or printer.
You can filter event-based alarms the same way you filter tag-based
alarms in alarm summaries. You can acknowledge event-based alarms,
either individually, or with wildcard characters, using the Acknowledge
command. You cannot suppress event-based alarms.
As with tag-based alarms, you can use alarm events with alarm
functions in expressions.
Alarm events are not processed until the AlarmOn command is issued,
and alarm events are no longer processed after the AlarmOff
command is issued.
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Differences between event-based and tag-based alarms
You cannot specify thresholds for analog alarm events. All analog
alarm events have a value of zero.
You cannot specify alarm labels for event-based alarms. That is, you
cannot use the IntoAlarm and OutOfAlarm labels for digital tag-
based alarms, or the threshold labels for analog tag-based alarms.
A name must be associated with each alarm event. The event name can
be a tag defined in the tag database as long as the tag does not have an
alarm defined for it.
Alarm event names can be up to 255 characters long. The alarm event
name can contain the following characters:
A to Z
0 to 9
The alarm event name can be mixed case. Alarm event names preserve
upper and lower case for readability but are not case sensitive. For
example, the alarm event name HopperOverflow is the same as
hopperoverflow.
Event-based alarms appear in the alarm log file in the order in which
the alarm transactions were logged. If you specify a time stamp for
alarm events, alarm transactions could appear out of order in the alarm
log.
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For details about using the Alarm Setup editor, see Help.
In the Setup tab of the Alarm Setup editor you can specify:
how the system behaves when alarms cross back over trigger
thresholds.
An alarm is triggered when the value of an analog tag crosses its alarm
threshold. If the value of the tag fluctuates above and below its alarm
threshold, alarms are triggered each time the tag value rises above the
For more information about how this feature works, see “Thresholds”
on page 11-4.
The system does not check for alarms more frequently than the
maximum update rate specified in the Alarm Setup dialog box.
You should match the maximum update rate to the rate at which you
expect tag values to change. For example, if you are monitoring
temperatures that fluctuate slowly, you can check for alarms less
frequently than if you are monitoring rapidly-changing manufacturing
processes.
If you have set up redundant HMI servers, alarms can be logged and
printed on the active HMI server only, or on both the active and the
standby HMI server.
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Setting up alarm severities
In the Severities tab of the Alarm Setup editor, you can set up logging
destinations for each alarm severity and alarm incident. You can log to
the alarm log file, to a printer, or to both.
Alarm severities
Alarm incidents
Alarm messages appear in the description field of the alarm log file
only. You cannot display them in alarm summaries.
Types of messages
To use the default messages for all alarms and alarm events, do not
change anything. The default messages are used automatically. Alarm
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events use system messages if you don’t specify a log message string
using the /L parameter with the AlarmEvent command.
To create a user-default
message, type a message in
the appropriate box.
To create a custom message, type any message you want. For more
information see Help.
The message can say whatever you want and can use both words and
placeholders. For a list of placeholders, see the table on page 11-25.
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You can set up an alarm for a tag when you create the tag or you can
set it up later.
2. Double-click the Tags icon or right-click the Tags icon and then
click Open.
2. Click the check box beside the Alarm button in the form section of
the Tags editor.
1. Set up the alarm threshold, and then choose the message that will
appear if the threshold is crossed.
2. Set up the messages that are sent when a tag goes out of alarm and
when an operator acknowledges an alarm.
2. Set up the messages that are sent when a tag goes out of alarm and
when an operator acknowledges an alarm.
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whether to log alarm data to a central, ODBC-compliant database.
This step is optional.
IMPORTANT You must run the Alarm Log Setup program on the
same computer as the HMI server that is monitoring
tags for alarms. If you run the Alarm Log Setup program
on a computer that does not contain an HMI server set
up to monitor tags for alarms, the settings will have no
effect.
You can also open the Alarm Log Setup editor by clicking the Start
button, selecting Programs, Rockwell Software, RSView Enterprise,
Tools, and then clicking SE Alarm Log Setup.
For details about using the Alarm Log Setup program, see Help.
Log files are saved in the folder you specify on the Logging tab. For
more information about log files, also see:
“Adding remarks to the alarm log file at run time” on page 11-32.
the schema for the ODBC alarm log table on page C-2.
If the computer’s hard disk is full, alarm logging stops and no more log
files are created. For information about monitoring disk space on
computers running HMI servers, see page 28-4.
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never want files deleted, leave the check boxes under Delete Oldest
Files blank.
Alarm log files are deleted only when a new file is created. If the
application creates a new file each day and deletes the oldest file every
third day, the project will have files for the three previous days’ data, as
well as a file for the current day.
If you have set up File Management to delete the oldest files when a
new one is started, and you are exporting data to an ODBC database,
make sure you export the data before the oldest file is deleted.
Use the Central Logging tab in the Alarm Log Setup editor, to set up
logging to a central, ODBC-compliant database.
If you have set up file management to delete the oldest files when a new
set is started, and you are exporting data to an ODBC database, make
sure you export the data before the oldest files are deleted.
If the table in the database to which you are attempting to export data
is not ODBC compliant, the export will fail. If an ODBC-compliant
table does not exist, RSView will try to create it.
If you have set up file management to delete the oldest files when a new
set is started, and you are exporting data to an ODBC-compliant
database, make sure you export the data before the oldest files are
deleted.
When the operator presses the button, the contents of the alarm log file
are exported to the ODBC database.
For information about the contents of the alarm log ODBC tables, see
page C-2.
Other parameters let you prompt the operator for the text part of the
remark at run time, and log the remark to a printer as well as to the
alarm log file.
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You cannot display alarm log remarks in alarm summaries..
At run time, only one Alarm Log Remark dialog box is displayed at a
time, and the operator must respond to the dialog box before the next
one is displayed.
AlarmOn normally logs alarms to both the alarm log file and the
printer. However, the order in which you issue the AlarmOn and
AlarmPrintOff commands affects what happens at run time.
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Viewing alarm log files
The Alarm Log Viewer displays the contents of alarm log files. The
contents of the alarm log files depend on how you set up alarm
severities in the Alarm Setup editor.
For information about the contents of the alarm log ODBC tables, see
page C-2.
You can display alarm log files stored either on the local computer or
on a remote computer, and you can select the number of log files to be
displayed in the alarm log viewer. Each alarm log file is displayed in a
separate tab in the alarm log viewer.
You can also open it by clicking the Windows Start button, selecting
Programs, Rockwell Software, RSView Enterprise, Tools, and then
clicking SE Alarm Log Viewer.
For information about setting up and using the alarm log viewer,
see Help for the alarm log viewer.
You must include the quotation marks, because there are spaces in
the parameter.
At run time, the viewer may appear behind the RSView SE client
window. This is the result of operating system rules. You can either
bring the viewer to the front manually, or you can work around this
problem programmatically. For details about a programmatic work-
around, see technical note P9029 in the Rockwell Software Support
Library.
MM is the month.
DD is the day.
n is the sequence letter (‘a’, ‘b’, ‘c’, and so on). This letter indicates
the sequence in which the files were created. You can have up to
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26 files (‘a’ to ‘z’) per day. At midnight, the sequence starts at ‘a’
again.
If you are using short file names, or if the path where the log files are
stored does not support long file names, the format for the name is
YYMMDDnz.dat, where YY are the last two digits of the year.
If you are using a network share or UNC path, click ‘This user’, and
then type the name and password of a user that has access to the
network path and database. This applies to step 9 as well.
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4. In the list of applications, under DCOM Config, right-click
RsAlmLogExpServ, and then select Properties.
If you are using a network share or UNC path, click ‘This user’, and
then type the name and password of a user that has access to the
network path and database. This applies to step 9 as well.
The alarm summary is a table that displays the active alarms recorded
in an HMI server. To set up an alarm summary, you decide how many
columns you want the table to have, how wide the columns will be, and
what information the columns will contain. You can also specify the
tags and, in a distributed application, the areas from which you want
data displayed.
At run time, operators can use the alarm summary to view and interact
with the alarms.
Inserting headings
The Insert menu contains the items that can appear in the summary. To
add a heading for an item, click the item on the Insert menu. You can
add as many items as you want and place them in any order you want.
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system account. When a user acknowledges an alarm, the Operator
Name field changes to the name of the user who acknowledged the
alarm.
Choosing fonts
The header and body fonts can be different. For example, you might
choose a larger font for the header and a smaller font for the body. To
change a font, click the Format menu and then select Body Font or
Header Font, to open the Font dialog box. The list of fonts that appears
depends upon what is installed on the computer.
To increase the size of the header area so a large font is more easily
displayed, drag the divider down.
For details about using the options in the Colors dialog box, see Help.
Selecting buttons
In the Buttons dialog box you can specify which buttons you want on
the button bar in the alarm summary, and where the bar will be
positioned.
2. In the Buttons dialog box, make sure that a check is displayed only
in the check boxes beside the buttons that are to be in the alarm
summary. To clear a check, click the check box.
In addition to providing Filter and Sort buttons that the operator can
use at run time, you can filter or sort alarms permanently at design time.
The result of the design-time filter or sort operation is retained each
time the summary is activated at run time. For more information see
“Choosing data” on page 11-43.
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Changing the button text
To specify the location of the button bar, click Button Bar Position on
the Format menu, and then click a location. In the following
illustration, the button bar is on the left.
Choosing data
Use the Filter and Sort items on the Data menu to specify which alarm
information is displayed.
Using Filter
Alarm information can also be filtered and sorted at run time, but
changes are not saved.
To display tag names with the names of the areas they belong to, click
Display full tag name.
To collect all alarm transactions from the area called Powertrain, type:
/Powertrain::*
To collect alarm transactions from the current area for the tag name
Coolant_East, type:
Coolant_East
To collect alarm transactions from the current area for all tags whose
names begin with Coolant, type:
Coolant*
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To collect alarms from specific areas for tag names that match a
pattern, you can type:
/Powertrain::Coolant*
/Press::FlowValve*
To collect alarms from more than one HMI server, you can type:
/Powertrain::*
/Press::*
You can also use the Areas and Tags buttons to browse for area or tag
names rather than typing them.
Tag placeholders
You can also use tag placeholders to specify the area or tag names you
want to appear in the alarm summary.
/#1::*
or
/Area1/#1/Area3::*
To display alarm transactions from a specific area for a tag whose name
you want to specify at run time, type:
Area::#1
Area::Folder/#1/*
If you use tag placeholders, at run time you must specify the tag or
folder name each placeholder represents, either by using a parameter
file or by specifying the tag or folder names as parameters to the
Display command. If you use a parameter file, it can contain wildcard
characters.
#1 = bean_weight
#2 = bean_level
#3 = bean_temp
To run the display called Canning with the Beans parameter file, type:
Sorting data
Select Sort from the Data menu to open the Sort dialog box. By default,
alarm information is sorted first by date and time, then by severity,
then, in distributed applications, by area name, and finally by tag name.
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This means that alarms are presented chronologically. If two or more
alarms have the same time and date, these alarms are presented in order
of severity. If any alarms have the same time and date and the same
severity, they are then presented by tag name.
For details about using the Sort dialog box, see Help.
With the Execute button, you can specify a command or macro that
operators can run with reference to the highlighted alarm in an alarm
summary. The Execute command can be appended with tag
information derived from the highlighted alarm - for example, the area
name, tag name, alarm type, severity, value, date and time, and the tag
type.
With the Identify button, you can specify a command or macro that
operators can run when a tag is in alarm. Use this button to provide
information about an alarm. For example, use the Display command to
open a display that contains instructions about how to handle a motor
that is running too fast.
Using parameters
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into any position within a command by passing the parameters to a
macro. For details about using parameters with macros, see page 22-3.
Severity and value are shown only for alarms of type IntoAlarm. For
alarm types OutOfAlarm and IntoFault, the severity is 0.
To include the area name in the parameters passed to the command for
the Execute button, select the Insert Area name check box.
If you select the Insert Area name check box, the Area name appears
automatically between the first and second word you type in the
Execute Command Text box. Because you cannot change the position
of the area name, be sure the command shown at the bottom of the
dialog box is syntactically correct before you click OK.
If you select the Tag name check box, to pass tag names as arguments
to the Execute command text, the tag names always include the area
name, whether or not areas are displayed in the alarm summary.
At run time, the area name is the area of the alarm that is highlighted
in the alarm summary.
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You cannot change the order in which parameters are passed to the
command line for the alarm summary Execute button. To use the
alarm summary Execute button with the AlarmLogRemark command,
and have the tag name added correctly to the /T argument, you must
ensure that the argument (/T) appears last on the command line.
If you set up the Execute button to run a custom program, and you
copy the alarm summary from one application to another application,
you must ensure that the custom program is available in the new
application, otherwise the Execute button will not run the program.
To do this, click the Data menu, and then click Display full tag name.
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and alarm monitoring, stop the components running on the HMI
server manually.
operator comments.
Summary of steps
These are the steps required to set up FactoryTalk Diagnostics for an
application.
For details about the schema for the ODBC database, see Appendix C,
odbc database schemas.
Key concepts
The settings for FactoryTalk Diagnostics apply to all Rockwell
Software products installed on a single computer.
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Setting up FactoryTalk Diagnostics involves:
Destinations
If you also set up local log files, you can use them to buffer information
if communications with the database are lost. By default, all system
activity is logged to a local file on each computer.
Message categories
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Severity
Audience
The severities Audit and Information are assigned to tag writes that are
successful. The severities Audit and Error are assigned to tag writes
that fail.
The Secure audience allows auditing tools, such as those required for
US Government 21 CFR Part 11 compliance, to track system activity.
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To open the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Setup tool
In addition to logging to a local log file on each computer, you can also
set up FactoryTalk Diagnostics to log data to a central, ODBC-
compliant database.
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To buffer messages, in the ODBC Destination Setup dialog of the
Diagnostics Setup tool, specify how long messages will remain in the
local log file after they have been exported to the ODBC-compliant
database. This is useful in the event of a network failure, or any other
reason that causes the database to be unavailable. In this case, the
messages remain in the local log file until the buffer time expires. If the
ODBC-compliant database becomes available during that time, the
buffered messages are then exported to the database.
Diagnostics List
Status bar
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Hiding and showing the Diagnostics List
You can detach (undock) the Diagnostics List from the main window,
and then move the Diagnostics List anywhere on the screen.
To undock the Diagnostics List, drag the grab bars at the bottom left
of the Diagnostics List. If you can’t see the grab bars, drag the top edge
of the Diagnostics List to make it a bit larger.
To detach the
Diagnostics List, drag
the grab bars.
When the Diagnostics List is undocked, you can make it any size you
want, for example to view more than one message at a time. To resize
the bar, drag an edge or corner until the bar is the size you want.
To clear messages, click the Clear or Clear All button. Clear removes
the top message or any message that is selected (highlighted). Clear All
removes all the messages. Clearing a message in the Diagnostics List
does not delete the message from the Diagnostics log file.
You can also open it by clicking the Windows Start button, and
selecting Programs, Rockwell Software, Utilities, FactoryTalk
Diagnostics Viewer.
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Using the Diagnostics Viewer at run time
To display the Diagnostics Viewer at run time:
You must include the quotation marks, because there are spaces in
the parameter.
To avoid this, the viewer can be brought to the front manually and
closed it when it is no longer required, or you can work around this
problem programmatically. For details about a programmatic work-
around, see technical note P9029 in the Rockwell Software Support
Library.
If you are using a network share or UNC path, click This user,
and then type the name and password of a user that has access
to the network path and database.
If you are using a mapped network drive, click The interactive
user.
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3. In the Component Services window, double-click Component
Services, double-click the Computers folder, double-click My
Computer, and then double-click DCOM Config.
If you are using a network share or UNC path, click This user,
and then type the name and password of a user that has access
to the network path and database.
If you are using a mapped network drive, click The interactive
user.
Data log is an RSView® component that collects and stores tag values.
You specify which tag values to collect, when to collect them, and
where to store them by defining a data log model.
displayed in trends.
A data log model defines which tags to log data for, when to log the
data, and where to log the data. In the model you also specify the
format of the log files (file set, or ODBC) and when to create and
delete the files, or records. A data log model can contain up to 10,000
tags.
File sets store tag values in proprietary-format files. You cannot view
the contents of these file sets, except in trends. File sets provide faster
performance for historical trends than an ODBC database.
If you log tag values to an ODBC database, you can view the data in
trends, or use third-party, ODBC-compliant tools to analyze and
create reports from the data. If the ODBC database becomes
inaccessible, RSView logs the data to backup files in proprietary
format.
To use data in multiple formats, define multiple data log models for the
same tags.
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Log file sets
Data log files are stored in sets of three. Each file set includes a file for
storing numeric values (either integers or floating point values), text,
and tag names.
RSView names the log file sets using long file names. The maximum
length of a log file set’s name, including its path, is 200 characters. File
sets are named using the following format for the file name:
MM is the month.
DD is the day.
<Log File Identifier String> is a text string you can specify to help
identify the log file. The maximum string length is 20 characters.
For details about the contents of the tables, see page C-5.
ODBC backup files are stored as binary files with the extension .obf.
You cannot view the contents of the .obf files.
The ODBC tables are created with the default names TagTable,
FloatTable, and StringTable. In the Data Log Models dialog box, you
can edit these names before creating the tables, or you can specify the
names of different tables.
If you specify a backup path for an ODBC model, RSView names the
backup log files as described on page 13-3.
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when to create and delete log files.
1. In the Application Explorer, open the Data Log folder and double-
click the Data Log Models icon or right-click the icon and then
click New.
When you select ODBC database as the storage format, type the path
and file name of the ODBC data source, and specify the ODBC tables
that will be used, or create new tables.
To create tables for a new data source, click Create Tables. If RSView
cannot create the tables automatically, you will have to open the
database using its editing tool, and create the tables manually.
To select an existing table from the specified database, click the Browse
button and then select a table in the Select ODBC Table dialog box. To
view the order, type, length, and precision of the fields in the table, click
the table to select it and then click Details.
Set up logging paths in the Paths tab of the Data Log Models editor.
If the storage format is file sets, specify the primary path, and an
optional secondary file path in case the primary path becomes
unavailable.
If the storage format is ODBC, you can specify a backup file path for
the ODBC database.
If you do not do this, when the primary path runs out of disk space,
data logging stops and no more log files are created.
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Setting up and managing data log files
In the File Management tab of the Data Log Models editor, you specify
when to start new files and when to delete old files. If the data log
model uses the ODBC format, data is added continually to the same
database, and this section does not apply. If the data log model uses file
sets, RSView logs the data to sets of files. You can set up an application
to create new file sets:
periodically.
at specified times.
You can also select Never, in which case all data is logged to one file
set. Log files are saved in the folder you specify on the Paths tab.
If a data log model uses file sets, you can set up file management to
delete file sets after a specified period or once a specified number of file
sets has been created. If you never want file sets deleted, clear the check
boxes under Delete Oldest Files.
Data log file sets are deleted only when a new file set is created. If the
application creates a new file set each day and deletes the oldest file set
every third day, there will be file sets for the three previous days’ data,
as well as a file set for the current day.
If a data log model uses the ODBC database format, you can purge old
records from the database using standard relational database tools or
SQL queries. You can also set up RSView to delete (purge) records in
the ODBC database after a specified time.
If you change a model at run time, the changes will not take effect until
you stop data logging and then restart it.
IMPORTANT If a tag that you delete from a data log model is used in
a trend object, be sure to remove all references to the
deleted tag from the trend.
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Changing log paths using the RSView
Administration Console
You can change the log paths after an application has been deployed by
using the RSView Administration Console (you don’t need to use
RSView Studio). You can change the primary and secondary paths for
file sets, and the backup path for ODBC data log models.
There are two ways to prepare tables for data logging to an existing
database:
set up the RSView data log fields in the existing ODBC tables
before setting up a data log model.
1. Add fields for the data log data to the tables in the ODBC
database.
The section “Data log tables” on page C-5 describes the order and
type of fields needed to log data to an ODBC database. Edit the
tables as described in the documentation for the ODBC database
you are using.
1. Specify the name of the existing ODBC data source in the ODBC
Data Source field of the Data Log Models editor. For more
information, see Help.
To create a new ODBC data source, use the ODBC Data Source
Administrator in Control Panel. For details about using the ODBC
Data Source Administrator, click Help in the ODBC Data Source
Administrator window. You can create the tables for the new data
source using either method described previously.
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RSView checks periodically to determine whether the primary file path
has become available again. If it has become available, RSView switches
back automatically.
RSView also checks the status of the primary path if the secondary path
becomes unavailable, and will switch back if possible. If both paths are
unavailable, RSView buffers the data. If the buffer fills and both paths
are still unavailable, RSView empties the buffer (the data in the buffer
is lost) and begins storing new data in the buffer. RSView continues
checking both paths until one becomes available.
If the data log file is locked, data is buffered for the time specified for
Maximum time to buffer data in the Advanced Configuration dialog
box, and then a new set of files is created on the primary path. If the
secondary path is not set up, the data is buffered for 10 minutes (the
default value for maximum time). If the maximum time is set to 0, a
new file is started immediately.
If the model is logging to the secondary path and the file is locked, the
behavior is the same: the data is buffered, and then a new file is created
when the specified time period has elapsed.
You can also switch back to the primary path or ODBC database
manually, using the DataLogSwitchBack command (see page 13-11) or
the DataLogMergeToPrimary command (see page 13-12). You cannot
switch manually from the primary path or ODBC database to the
secondary or backup path.
For models that use the file set format, RSView creates a new file set
each time the logging path changes.
You can switch back to the primary path manually using the
DataLogSwitchBack command with these parameters: <component> or
* (asterisk). DataLogSwitchBack <component> (where <component> is
a data log model name) switches logging for the specified data log
model. DataLogSwitchBack * switches logging for all data log models
When you begin writing to, or reading from a data log model, RSView
sends a message to the FactoryTalk™ Diagnostics log if there are files
on the secondary or backup path. You must move data manually from
the secondary or backup path to the primary path or ODBC database
using the DataLogMergeToPrimary command with these parameters:
<component> or * (asterisk).
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format, RSView merges the data in the ODBC backup files into the
ODBC database, and then continues logging to the ODBC database.
You can create new ODBC backup files and new file sets using the
DataLogNewFile command with these parameters: <component> or *
(asterisk).
If a data log model uses the ODBC format, the command creates a
new set of backup files if RSView is logging to the backup path when
you issues this command. If RSView is logging to the ODBC database,
RSView logs an End Snapshot and then a Begin Snapshot when you
issue this command.
If a data log model uses file sets, DataLogNewFile starts a new file set
regardless of when new files have been set up to start for the data log
model. The new file set is created in the same location that RSView is
currently logging to.
DataLogSnapshot * records tag values for all tags in all running models
at the instant the command is executed.
You can use this command anywhere you can issue an RSView
command or macro. For example, enter the command as the action for
an event.
Operators can also use this command at run time. For details, see
“Providing a way to log on demand” on page 13-15.
When the tag called motor_fault goes into alarm, and the tag called
new_batch_started is 1, the DataLogSnapshot <component>
command runs. All tags in the model will then be logged (not just the
tag in alarm).
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Combining logging
You can combine periodic or on-change logging with on-demand
logging. This allows data to be captured at particular times, as well as
when a particular event occurs.
To combine logging
creating a display key or client key and using the command as the
press action—operators can then press a key to take a data log
snapshot.
9. In the Datalog Read Server Properties dialog box, click the Identity
tab.
To change the settings for the data log program files and read
server in Windows XP
1. On the computer on which you want to run data logging, click the
Windows Start button, and then click Run.
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2. In the Open box, type dcomcnfg, and then press Enter.
11. In the Rockwell Datalog Read Server Properties dialog box, click
the Identity tab.
These changes take effect immediately, but only apply to the current
logging session. When you stop and restart logging, RSView uses the
logging rate and log file identifier specified in the data log model.
For details about RSView commands and command syntax, see Help.
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In the Macros editor, create a macro that contains the command,
DataLogOn <component>. In the Startup editor, select this macro in
the Startup Macro list. To start more than one data log model,
specify multiple DataLogOn <component> commands in the macro.
You can manually stop all the components that are running on the
HMI server, including data log models, event components, derived tag
components, and alarm monitoring.
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14 Using events
This chapter describes:
setting up events.
editing events.
About events
Events are expressions that trigger actions. Expressions are equations
containing tag values, mathematical operations, if–then–else logic, and
other built-in RSView® functions. Actions are RSView® commands,
symbols, or macros. An action could, for example, initiate a snapshot
of tag values using the DataLogSnapshot command or change a tag
value using the Set command.
If you do not know how to use expressions, see Chapter 20, Creating
expressions.
Setting up events
The steps for setting up events are:
2. Set the maximum update rate for the events component in the
Events Setup dialog box.
3. Save the events component and give it a name. The file extension
.eds is added by the system.
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Using the Events editor
2. Right-click the Events icon and then click New, or drag the Events
editor’s icon from the Application Explorer to the workspace.
3. Click Accept.
9. Specify the name of the events component and then click OK.
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About the maximum update rate
The maximum update rate is the fastest rate at which event expressions
in the event component can be evaluated. It also determines the fastest
rate at which data servers can send changes in tag values.
Set the maximum update rate separately for each event component.
Set the update rate as fast as, or faster than, the rate at which the values
of tags used in the expressions change, unless it is desirable to miss
changes in tag values.
Editing events
You can edit events during development or when you run the
application.
If you change the event component while running the application, the
changes don’t take effect until the component is stopped and then
restarted.
There are many ways to start and stop event processing. Choose the
way that works best for the application.
For the Login Macro in User Accounts editor, specify the EventOn
<component> command, or a macro that contains the command.
To stop all the components that are running on the HMI server,
including event components, stop the components running on the
HMI server manually.
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To stop a single event component, use any of these methods:
Security codes
RSView has 17 security codes: an asterisk (*) and the letters A
through P. The asterisk is for unlimited access, and the letters are for
limited access.
The letters are not hierarchical—all letters provide the same level of
security. You do not have to use all of the security codes, nor do you
have to assign the codes in a particular order. For example, you can
choose to use only the codes D and P, and you can assign P before you
assign D.
the graphic displays, OLE objects with verb animation, and tags to
be secured.
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assign a security code (A through P) to each user or group.
You can assign combinations of security codes (for example B,
D, and E) to users or groups, allowing each user or group to
access a different set of features. If a group or user is not
assigned any letters, they cannot open displays, run commands,
or write to tags even if a component has an asterisk (*) assigned
to it. THis is because the asterisk means codes A through P, not
‘free access’.
4. In the Tags editor, set up security for the HMI tags that will
require it.
Only users with the specified security code can open the application
in RSView Studio, or the RSView Administration Console.
users who belong to the Operators group can access the Boiler
graphic display and the DataLogOn command. This group can also
access any graphic displays that have unlimited security assigned to
them.
the Administrator has full access to the system at run time, and can
open the application in RSView Studio, or the RSView
Administration Console.
users who log on to the system as Guest can only access the Boiler
graphic display and any displays that do not have security assigned
to them.
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To assign security codes to Use the For details, see
Any users not in the RSView User Accounts list will not have access to
the secured parts of the application or be able to open an RSView SE
client.
To create new users you need to set up new accounts in Windows. For
details about creating users and groups in Windows, see Windows
Help.
When setting up accounts, first create a ‘super user’ account for the
system administrator. Be sure to select all security codes (A through P).
In the forms section of the User Accounts editor, the security codes A
through P are displayed in the Security Codes frame with a check box
beside each. The default is for all check boxes to be selected. When you
add a user to the RSView User Accounts list, the default security codes
are assigned to them, which you can edit as needed.
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You can edit the default set of security codes to represent the level of
access most users will have. This will eliminate the need to edit the
security codes for each user or group manually. Since all users will
probably not have the same level of access, you will still have to edit
some user’s access manually.
2. In the Default User Codes dialog box, clear the check boxes beside
the codes that average user will not have access to.
3. Click OK.
To add users from a Windows domain, the network must have at least
one Windows server acting as a domain controller.
You can use local workstation domains provided that all computers
participating in the application have identical sets of user accounts and
passwords, are in the same Windows workgroup, and all users
participating in the workgroup have administrative rights.
2. In the Windows Domain box, click the down arrow to display the
domains and then click the name of a domain from which you
want to add users.
4. To move the selected names, click the Move button (>). To move
all the names, click the Move All button (»).
5. Click OK.
The name of the user or group is deleted from the RSView User
Accounts list. The user or group is not deleted from the Windows
domain.
The security codes of the user or group are deleted from the User
Accounts editor.
If you remove users from the Windows domain, they are not removed
automatically from the RSView user list. You must remove the users
from the RSView user list manually.
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2. In the RSView User Accounts list, click the user name or group
name to be deleted.
1. In the User Accounts editor, click the name of the user or group
whose security codes are to be changed.
2. In the Security Codes area, make sure there is a check mark in the
check box beside each security code the user to have access to.
3. Clear the check boxes beside the codes the user or group is not
supposed to have access to.
4. Click Accept.
5. Repeat steps 1 through 4 for each user or group, and then click
Close.
Any macro component can be a login or logout macro and can contain
any RSView command. For example, a login macro could contain a
command to bring up a graphic display for an area of the plant. A
logout macro could contain commands to redefine sensitive keys.
For the login and logout macros to be executed, they must be in the
area from which the Login or Logout command was executed.
For more information about macros, see Chapter 22, Creating macros.
1. In the User Accounts editor, click the name of the user or group to
be assigned a login or logout macro.
2. Type the name of a macro in the Login Macro box and Logout
Macro box. If the macro’s name contains spaces, it must be
enclosed in quotes.
3. Click Accept.
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You can also set up security for commands using the Signature button
in a graphic display to control the actions an operator can perform at
run time, for example:
issuing a command.
For details about using the Signature button, see page 17-67.
The Unspecified_Command
The first record in the Secured Commands list is called
Unspecified_Command. Any commands or macros that are not in the
list use the security code selected for the Unspecified_Command.
3. In the Security Code list, select a code for the command or macro.
4. You can type a remark in the Description field to describe the level
of security provided.
5. Repeat steps 2 through 4 for each command and macro, and then
click Close.
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Setting up security by exclusion
3. In the Security Code list, select a letter as the security code for the
command or macro.
4. You can type a remark in the Description field to describe the level
of security provided.
Include the Login and Logout commands and assign them the *
security code.
You can also set up security for objects in a graphic display using the
Signature button to control the actions an operator can perform at run
time, for example:
For details about using the Signature button, see page 17-67.
2. In the Properties tab of the Display Setting dialog box, click the
arrow beside the Security Code box, and then select a security code
other than the asterisk (*).
3. Click OK.
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Assigning security to an OLE object
1. In the Graphic Displays editor, select the OLE object you intend
to secure.
2. Right-click the OLE object and select Animation from its context
menu.
4. In the OLE Verb list, click the verb you intend to secure.
5. In the Security list, click a security code and then click Apply.
Assign security to an HMI tag to restrict write access to the tag. This
prevents users who are not assigned the tag’s security code from
changing the tag’s value. You can assign security to HMI tags only. You
cannot assign security to data server tags.
You can also secure tags using the Signature button in a graphic display,
to control the actions an operator can perform at run time, for
example:
issuing a command.
For details about using the Signature button, see page 17-67.
3. In the Security list, click a security code, and then click Accept.
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Preventing users from modifying an application
You can set up security for an entire application, so that only those
users who have the required security code can open the application in
RSView Studio or the RSView Administration Console.
To secure an application
3. Click OK.
In the Display Settings dialog box, clear the Title Bar, Minimize Button,
and Maximize Button check boxes. For details, see page 16-39.
preventing users from accessing the desktop. This is set up using the
DeskLock tool in the RSView Tools program folder. For details
about using the DeskLock tool, see DeskLock Help.
The user name should include the domain name. If there is more than
one domain in the user list, the domain name must be specified when
logging in.
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If the user does not provide a domain name, the first user in the user
accounts list, minus the domain name, that matches the user name in
the dialog box, is verified.
You can also set up an RSView SE client to log out automatically after
a specified period of inactivity. For details, see Help for the SE client
wizard.
2. The current user’s logout macro is run and the user is logged out.
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