FactoryTalk View ME- Online and Offline Tags ?

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Aug 2016
Location
Virginia
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343
Good Afternoon ,

I have a machine that has ControlLogix in it. It was done with RS Logix 5000 v.20.04 . The manuafacture used Windows XP to design there HMI's using FactoryTalk View. So to possibly make changes to the HMI , I need to use a Windows XP laptop. I could do the conversion , but really don't want to do it at the moment.

My question is , it looks like they did the design with offline tags. I forget how to create the offline tags . In the design tab in Communication Setup , I tried to drill down into the tree , to be able to grab the online tags in the processor , but there is nothing there. So I have 2 laptops hooked up , one Windows 7 to make program changes in the ControlLogix that is version 20.04 and another that is Windows XP to "restore the runtime application" and make changes to the application. This laptop has RS Logix 5000 versions 16.00 and 17.00 .

With the XP Laptop I am not using RS Logix 5000 to reach in and grab the tags , correct ? Could it be the RS Linx version is too low , it is 2.57.00.14 ? I have good network connections.

How would I get the offline tags from the RS Logix 5000 version 20.04 on my Windows 7 , don't you save it has a .L5K file ? So I could save that on a thumb drive , I guess. How would I tranfer that so I can get it in my FactoryTalk View Tag Tree has Offline ?

Thanks so much for your help.
 
Just to take a quick step back, what you're looking at are not online or offline tags, at least not in the sense of the HMI program.

HMI tags are stored in the HMI program, and you create them in the "HMI tags" browser.

What you're describing is using direct reference - i.e. pointing directly to a tag in the PLC without the use of a HMI tag. So your limitation is, you can only use tags that already exist in the PLC - you can't create a new PLC tag in FTView Studio.

You might already understand this - apologies if I'm teaching you to suck eggs - but just to make sure we're both working from the same baseline.

When you want to use a direct reference tag, you have three options:
- You can type it into FTView directly, in the "Connection" or "Value" field of your object properties. This is problematic, because you have to get your syntax exactly right, but if you do, it works just fine
- You can configure the RSLinx Enterprise design communications path to point to the PLC in question, and if you are connected to that PLC, then you can use the browser to browse all of the tags in that PLC and select the one you want. This is the "Online" folder
- You can define a path to an offline copy of the PLC program in your RSLinx Enterprise communications setup, and then use the browser to browse all of the tags contained in the offline version of that PLC program. This is the offline folder

So, for what I understand you're trying to do, you just need to tell your RSLinx Enterprise Communications Setup where to find the offline file. You'll see the filepath toward the bottom of the communications path window; browse and select your file, and make sure you apply it to the correct shortcut in the top left window. You might need to click the "refresh all folders" on the tag browser window before it shows up correctly, but then you should be on your way.
 
To browse "online tags" in FactoryTalk View Studio, the RSLinx Enterprise drivers need to be able to connect to, identify, and support the controller.

Connectivity is probably the easiest part; its all Ethernet. But support might be an issue, because the controller you're using might not be supported by your installed version of RSLinx Enterprise.

What version of FTView Studio ME are you running, and what model of controller ? It's possible that your copy of RSLinx Enterprise (that's the built-in data server for FTView, not the same as the RSLinx Classic drivers) can be patched or upgraded to support that model of controller with v20 firmware.
 
To browse "Offline Tags" in FactoryTalk View Studio, three pieces of software have to work in concert: FTView Studio itself, and RSLinx Enterprise, and the RSLogix 5000 / Studio 5000 project (*.ACD) file.

In the RSLinx Enterprise communications setup, there must exist a valid Shortcut to the controller. It doesn't matter if the controller is physically connected, just that there's a Shortcut with a name, that's pointed at a controller.

Also in the RSLinx Enterprise communications setup for that Shortcut, you need to specify the path and filename for a *.ACD file that contains the user program, including its tag database. That's what FTView and RSLinx Enterprise are prying into to find the tags.

My concern is that your FactoryTalk View and RSLinx Enterprise won't know what to do with an *.ACD file from a v20 controller.


Now, none of this applies to "HMI Tags", or to "Import Export". This is strictly the FTView Studio Tag Browser, and its Online and Offline folders.


Lastly... the Offline Tag Browse feature has been flaky since Day One for FactoryTalk View. The number of times I've had to set it up and reboot before it worked correctly far outnumbers the number of times it's worked the first time I set it up.
 
Thanks for the detailed information . In the design tab I did drill down to the processor , expecting to see the tags populate , but I see nothing . Before I left this evening I did download the legacy conversion tool on my XP laptop and the 64 bit Windows 7 . Then I will have both the ControlLogix and the FactoryTalk Application on the 64 bit laptop . I will try the methods you suggested . Thanks again .
 
I've found my offline tags would only show in FT when the .ACD file was on C:/ destination (it works on my VM's Desktop).
Good luck !
 
Just for a little more information - it definitely does work from other locations (I routinely use it from a network drive), but from memory there is a file path length limitation. If the path to the file is too long, it gets "cut off" and then FTView of course can't find the file because the truncated file doesn't exist. Copying the file to the desktop usually solves the problem not because it's putting it on the local drive, but because it's shortening the file path.
 

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