Siemens S7 back-up

Hi all

Noticed a couple of threads popped up with regard to backing-up programs... so I'll jump on the bandwagon...

At my current prison we mainly use Siemens S7. We tend to back-up on a monthly basis.

Using STEP7 SIMATIC MANAGER v5.4 we create a new project and UPLOAD STATION TO PG so that we suck out of the PLC the hardware and software compilations. We then access the previous version of the program and copy the SYMBOLS file to the new back-up.

Is this the way you Siemens Gurus do it?

regards
s.f

No, I only back-up DB's that have been changed via VAT tables.

I make this as little as possible as I create a 'Settings' DB which contains most things that are configurable, then if I need to change anything, modify that DB and download it, that maintains the integrity of the DB.

I bet all your DB's have lost their symbols.

The best way to ensure you have proper back-up's is to have a decent change procedure where any changes are documented and master copies of the code are kept.

Only one copy is the master and when someone needs to make a change, sign it out and lock it, make the changes, zip up a new master after the change and then hand in the 'new' master to the storage / back up master files.

We keep USB backups in all the panels. Whenever a change is made then the new version of the software is archived on to the USB stick with the format "Machine_ID_ddmmyy" (for example: "Packer16_271010").

This way the USB sticks can hold multiple copies of the program but it is easy to find the latest version.

When we compare the program to the PLC version we only upload the code blocks that are different (FC's and FB's) and don't upload the DB's. This is because invariably in our software the DB's are only used as storage for variables and are constantly changing as the machines are running.

For the odd machine that uses the DB's to store product specific program data etc then I use the "update" button after a compare and that seems to preserve the comments within the DB's (S7 v5.5).

Also, once every 3 months we do a complete backup of every machine onto a separate hard drive and this is kept in a fire-proof safe.

;-)