Reliability of ME Datastore Plus fpr Panelview

[Paul_Pereira]

I have come to the conclusion that ME datastore plus is not very reliable at doing what it is supposed to do. Please prove me wrong so that I can go back to using it (if it wasn't so buggy it proves to be the best logging method). Supposedly I can log 100 tags per second but I find that it freezes the panelview every now and then even when logging 80 tags every 2 seconds.

 

[Ken Roach]

Exactly what model of PanelView Plus are you using, with what firmware ?

Are you storing to onboard storage, removable CF/SD, removable USB, or network file storage ?

Have you closely reviewed the FactoryTalk Diagnostics log to see if there are corresponding error messages ?

Can you correlate the PanelView's "lockup" with a particular set of open displays ? Are you monitoring available memory during operation ?

Does the PanelView Plus recover from its "locked up" condition after a period of time, or do you have to power cycle ?

How are you running the ActiveX; an off-screen non-closable window, or in a window that remains running in the background ?

Are your logged data elements individually addressed by tag names or part of an array ?

 

[Paul_Pereira]

I'm using PV+ 600 with firmware 12. Same happens on firmware 9. I'm writing to the sd card, an original AB 2GB card. The lockup happens regardless of the display that it is on. I am monitoring the available memory all the time. In fact recently I leave it on my terminal info page just to make sure I can see the value of the runtime memory and available memory when it freezes. Both values look good. Runtime memory at time of freezing is the same as during normal operation, about 21mb. No spikes. CPU usage is also the same, about 50%. I have to power cycle the unit each time to recover it else it stays frozen perpetually. The datastore runs on an off screen non closable display. All the tags recorded are individual tags.

Where can I find the diagnostics log?

 

[Ken Roach]

That's fantastic diagnostic work, thank you for posting the details.

Have you tried running the project with the Data Log ActiveX installed and configured, but not actually enabled and running ? Does that still result in a lockup ?

The FactoryTalk Diagnostic log is usually shown on the pop-up diagnostics window, but you can create a Display with a larger version of the FT Diagnostics object.

Most of my experience with the Data Log comes from failure when a removable storage device is unplugged, or a network storage device is disconnected.

I have been wishing for literally decades that PV+ had a robust data logging subsystem instead of an ActiveX object that had to go on a hidden screen. I remember being told in 2003 that it was "coming soon".

 

[widelto]

Paul this is off topic, Do you have time to try python with pylogix and save your data in a csv or xls file.
Dmroeder is the one who administer pylogix , he belongs to PLCS.net , he has a discord where you can see lots of examples over there.

 

[aawilliams85]

I've had poor luck with any removable media.

If I'm going to punish myself and use the ME Datastore Plus control, I write to the onboard storage of the PanelView and use FTP to retrieve the files. You should be able to set it to generate a new file each day, which helps keep the file sizes manageable.

 

[Paul_Pereira]

That's fantastic diagnostic work, thank you for posting the details.

Have you tried running the project with the Data Log ActiveX installed and configured, but not actually enabled and running ? Does that still result in a lockup ?

The FactoryTalk Diagnostic log is usually shown on the pop-up diagnostics window, but you can create a Display with a larger version of the FT Diagnostics object.

Most of my experience with the Data Log comes from failure when a removable storage device is unplugged, or a network storage device is disconnected.

I have been wishing for literally decades that PV+ had a robust data logging subsystem instead of an ActiveX object that had to go on a hidden screen. I remember being told in 2003 that it was "coming soon".

Yes my resolution currently is to keep the datastore controls still running on the on top activex page but with the enable bit set to false. No lock ups when I do this. I will try enabling it and add the diagnostics window to see what happens. I will try then again writing direct to the HMI internal memory. If all else fails I'll try python.

 

[Paul_Pereira]

Paul this is off topic, Do you have time to try python with pylogix and save your data in a csv or xls file.
Dmroeder is the one who administer pylogix , he belongs to PLCS.net , he has a discord where you can see lots of examples over there.

I would like to try this eventually. Sounds like I need to add more hardware? Like I need to add a computer to log the data with python?

 

[Paul_Pereira]

So i tried it again to sdcard this time monitoring the diagnostics list. And nothing. The diagnostics don't indicate any foul play at all at the moment of the crash. Next test is to write to the internal memory of the HMI.

 

[Paul_Pereira]

Finally some success for reference of those who need it. I managed to work with datastore without it killing the panelview. The key was to save not to removable media but to the internal storage of the unit. I used a BAT to copy off the data to removable media.

TLDR: When logging large amounts of data using datastore, LOG to INTERNAL storage, not removable media.