FactoryTalk View Project question/s

Greetings from Michigan

I am required to make some minor edits to an existing PVPlus1000 project.

To ensure I'm backed up in case of any issues downloading new project to the PV, I have uploaded the existing project that is currently on the PV and saved locally on my machine. Can this project file be transferred back to the PV in case of issues using the transfer utility program? I "assume" that it can since it is a .mer file. I ask because my new project .mer file is twice the size of the uploaded one from the PV, and all I really did was add two buttons. So now I'm leery. I need to positively ensure that I can easily transfer the old program project back to the PV in case I run into problems transferring the new, edited program.

When creating the runtime project, I linked the shortcut that I created to a device on the right hand pane under “Runtime(Target)” and then created the runtime project. Is this correct? As that is my understanding from reading the documentation. The Design(Local) is for if you want to test the application from your development machine (?). I had to manually add the micrologix processor to the “RunTime(Target)” pane as that side does not browse the network like the “Design(Local)” side does. Correct?

As long as I have a solid backup plan to be able to put existing PV program back on the PV, I'm fine. That's my biggest concern right now before I proceed with the download.

Thanks

The simplest thing I can say to you to do is, if the PanelView is available for testing, go ahead and transfer the backup copy you pulled of the terminal back on to it. Then load it and run it. This is the most sure fire way for you to know that it will work if something goes wrong.

Having said that. Once you have successfully uploaded a backup copy of the MER file, it should be perfectly fine to download again. MER stands for "Machine Edition Runtime". This is the correct compiled runtime file for running applications on PanelView Plus terminals.

Why is the existing MER file smaller than the new one?

If the project is the same, except for your small edit, then it is most likely that the original MER file was created without the option for conversion to an editable application file, called MED (Machine Edition Development) file. This means that only the necessary information to run the application was compiled into the MER file.

Your edited MER file is most likely set to allow conversion to an editable application MED file. This means that all necessary information to run the application, and all necessary information to develop the application are compiled into the MER file, making it much bigger.

Yes, the Runtime (Target) tab is where you setup the shortcut to the controller that the PanelView will communicate with at runtime. It is an offline path you are setting, so yes, it is not browsing. RSLinx Enterprise, that you see at the top, will be running on the terminal in a similar fashion to what you see on the runtime (Target) tab.

You sound like you're good to go!

Regards,
George

Thanks George. That worked. All good now.

Thanks for the help.