Factory Talk View Studio

Does anybody know where the list of existing applications comes from when you start up Factory Talk View Studio?

I'm going to make an application that allows me to delete multiple apps at once because the application manager isn't cutting it.

It doesn't appear to be looking at the folders in:
I renamed one and it didn't make a difference. I also searched through the registry and couldn't find anything there (although I imagine that it's there somewhere).

I only do SE projects, but that's where they are for me, other than 'SE' in the place of 'ME'

There are all the folders for the projects there, but if you delete a folder, it does not remove it from the existing applications list. So that information must be stored elsewhere.

dmroeder said:

There are all the folders for the projects there, but if you delete a folder, it does not remove it from the existing applications list. So that information must be stored elsewhere.

Click to expand...

Its my belief that you can not delete an application,
What you have to do is go to the Application Manager from, Start, Program, Studio ME, onto the Application Manager and from there you can remove an application.

I have read on this forum that its not wise to remove the applications that came with Studio ME, I think Biz Bikes and conveyor are 2 of the originals, it can make Studio Me stop working correctly.

Gil47 said:

Its my belief that you can not delete an application,

Click to expand...

I fully plan on giving it a shot.

Gil47 said:

What you have to do is go to the Application Manager from, Start, Program, Studio ME, onto the Application Manager and from there you can remove an application.

Click to expand...

I understand how the application manager works. What I am going to do is make my own tool for deleting applications.


See I work for an OEM, so we go through a lot of customers applications. We had 8 or so computers and over time, you get a lot of applications on them. We like to delete them from time to time and as you can imagine, the application manager is way too slow when want to delete many applications.

Gil47 said:

I have read on this forum that its not wise to remove the applications that came with Studio ME, I think Biz Bikes and conveyor are 2 of the originals, it can make Studio Me stop working correctly.

Click to expand...

You can remove the default apps from 5.0. The issue you are referring to was a 4.0 glitch. You were able to remove them in pre 4.0 versions.

Early on in using ME I made the mistake of attempting to delete an application by deleting the folder you mentioned. No good. The references to it exist ALL THROUGH the registry. I had to do a search for the particular applications name and delete it from MANY places. Only then was it ok.

It's probably the registry operation which take so long in the Application Manager. Also, obviously, it's why restoring just a folder does nothing. The Application Manager in its 'restore' function also puts in palce all the registry notations.

Good luck with creating another method for this operation.

When I saw who I was replying to, I had thought I may be stating the obvious to you.

Something that sticks in my mind from a training session is, that a registry setup is created for each application, other than that I cant help, other than to say, it was my belief that when you do a remove in the application manager that the registry setup was also removed.
Again I think I may have just said what you already Know.

Bernies post was not there when I started, I have to learn to type faster.

I've been searching the registry and I have been finding that there are several locations that contain entries for previous applications that were deleted, but are still in the registry. What a mess...

dmroeder said:

I've been searching the registry and I have been finding that there are several locations that contain entries for previous applications that were deleted, but are still in the registry. What a mess...

Click to expand...

That is what I was indicating when you delete you get the mess .
When you remove the Application the Registry is SUPPOSED to clean up.

Maybe a Registry clean up utility may clean out those old deleted settings.

Apparently the application manager doesn't remove all the entries related to an application. In fact, neither does uninstalling the software. I re-installed FT and all it's components. I found a section in the registry that appears to have an entry for every application that I have ever created.

I ran a registry cleaner not too long ago and it doesn't catch them either, at least the one that I used.

You've forgotten about the tiger in the bathroom.

When the Application Manager deletes or renames an application, it is using information about the application that is stored in the FactoryTalk Directory. The FT Directory tells the Application Manager where to find the graphic files, the data logs, the Linx shortcuts, and the Registry entries for a project.

In the case of FTView ME, it's the Local Directory.

Rule #1 of the FactoryTalk Directory is: "Don't **** with it".

Rule #2 of the FactoryTalk Directory is: "Don't forget the administrative password."

Rules #3 through #10 are identical to Rule #1 with a different emphatic profanity.

"Why does it have to be so complicated ?" is a rhetorical question, answered only partially by "because FactoryTalk centralizes services for security, auditing, and administration" and to do that you can't just have an open directory structure that a simple tool manipulates.

I don't like the pokey speed of the FT Application Manager either. I would prefer to be able to select all the applications I want to delete and have the FT Application Manager script through and do them all with my credentials.

This would be a great issue to make a detailed case to the FT developers about, and Automation Fair season is a good time to get their attention.

I think two of our guys are going to Automation Fair, I'll have them bring it up.

I don't mind the speed of the application manager so much, it's just the pain having to do it one app at a time.

I installed an application that monitors the registry and reports all activity. I started application manager and brought it to the point that you say 'yes I am sure I want to delete it'. Then I fired up the registry monitor tool and clicked yes. I'm amazed at how much activity there was.

@Ken_Roach "Why does it have to be so complicated?..."

Thanks. That helps put things in to perspective for me.
I've spent years using Rockwell products frustrated while negotiating its plinco dance of what to chose just to make cool simple control pictures show on on the thousand dollar touchscreen I happen to have in front of me.
::[PLC]Program:Ken_Roach.Mark.Data