FactoryTalk View SE Users Guide Volume 1

VIEWSE-UM004E-EN-E–July 2007 4/24/07 11:32 AM Page 1
View Site Edition
USER’S GUIDE VOLUME 1

PUBLICATION VIEWSE-UM004E-EN-E–August 2007
Supersedes Publication VIEWSE-UM004D-EN-E
Contacting Rockwell Customer Support Telephone — 1-440-646-3434
Online support — http://support.rockwellautomation.com
Copyright Notice © 2007 Rockwell Automation Technologies Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in USA.
This document and any accompanying Rockwell Software products are copyrighted by Rockwell
Automation Technologies Inc. Any reproduction and/or distribution without prior written consent
from Rockwell Automation Technologies Inc. is strictly prohibited. Please refer to the license
agreement for details.
Trademark Notices Allen-Bradley, ControlLogix, FactoryTalk, PLC-2, PLC-3, PLC-5, Rockwell Automation, Rockwell
Software, RSLinx, RSView, the Rockwell Software logo, and VersaView are registered trademarks of
Rockwell Automation, Inc.
The following logos and products are trademarks of Rockwell Automation, Inc.:
RSMACC, RSLogix, Data Highway Plus, DH+, RSView, FactoryTalk View, RSView Studio,
FactoryTalk View Studio, PanelBuilder, PanelView, RSView Machine Edition, RSView ME Station,
and WINtelligent.
FactoryTalk Activation, FactoryTalk Administration Console, FactoryTalk Alarms and Events,
FactoryTalk Automation Platform, FactoryTalk Services Platform, FactoryTalk Diagnostics,
FactoryTalk Directory, FactoryTalk Live Data, RSAssetSecurity, and FactoryTalk Security.
PanelView, RSLinx Classic, RSLinx Enterprise, SLC 5, and SLC 500
Other Trademarks ActiveX, Microsoft, Microsoft Access, SQL Server, Visual Basic, Visual C++, Visual SourceSafe,
Windows, Windows ME, Windows NT, Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and Windows XP are
either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other
countries.
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Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries.
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DeviceNet is a trademark of the Open DeviceNet Vendor Association Inc. (ODVA)
Ethernet is a registered trademark of Digital Equipment Corporation, Intel, and Xerox Corporation.
OLE for Process Control is a registered trademark of the OPC Foundation.
Oracle, SQL*Net, and SQL*Plus are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective holders and are hereby acknowledged.
Warranty This product is warranted in accord with the product license. The product’s performance may be
affected by system configuration, the application being performed, operator control, maintenance,
and other related factors. Rockwell Automation is not responsible for these intervening factors. The
instructions in this document do not cover all the details or variations in the equipment, procedure, or
process described, nor do they provide directions for meeting every possible contingency during
installation, operation, or maintenance. This product’s implementation may vary among users.
This document is current as of the time of release of the product; however, the accompanying
software may have changed since the release. Rockwell Automation, Inc. reserves the right to change
any information contained in this document or the software at anytime without prior notice. It is your
responsibility to obtain the most current information available from Rockwell when installing or
using this product.
Doc ID VIEWSE-UM004E-EN-E
August 2007
2
Contents
Preface
About RSView Enterprise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P-1
About the FactoryTalk View SE documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P-2
What’s in this manual . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P-2
Finding information about FactoryTalk View SE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P-3
Try the User’s Guide and Help first . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P-3
Finding information on the Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P-3
Contacting Rockwell Automation Technical Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P-4
1 • Getting started with FactoryTalk View SE

Welcome to FactoryTalk View Site Edition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
About RSView Enterprise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
About FactoryTalk systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
FactoryTalk Services Platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Finding more information about FactoryTalk services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-3
FactoryTalk View Site Edition software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-4
FactoryTalk View tools and utilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
FactoryTalk View SE features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Quick start: setting up the software you need . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Step 1: Plan the layout of the network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-7
Step 2: Install the FactoryTalk Services Platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-7
Step 3: Install FactoryTalk View SE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-7
Step 4: Install the communications software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-8
Step 5: Install the necessary activation keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Step 6: Set up the FactoryTalk Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-9
Running FactoryTalk View SE without activation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
Exploring the Samples Water application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-10
Creating a new FactoryTalk View SE application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Step 1: Create the application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-13
Step 2: Create a graphic display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-14
Step 3: Test run the application in FactoryTalk View SE Client . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-15
2 • Exploring FactoryTalk View Studio

About FactoryTalk View Studio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1
Opening an application in FactoryTalk View Studio. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-1
Gaining access to the HMI Projects folder. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
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FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE
Opening the Samples Water application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2

Parts of the FactoryTalk View Studio main window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Menu bar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Toolbars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-3
Explorer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4
Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4
Application tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4
Communications tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4
Diagnostics List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-5
Status bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6
Workbook mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6
Showing and hiding items in the main window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-6
Working in the Explorer window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
Moving the Explorer window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-7
Opening and closing folders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Opening component editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-8
Creating and modifying components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
Adding components to an application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-11
About component names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Deleting, removing, and renaming components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-12
Techniques for working in editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-13
Gaining quick access to common actions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-13
Browsing lists and components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Supplying tag names. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Selecting and building commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-14
Building expressions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Printing from FactoryTalk View SE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-15
Selecting a printer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
Printing at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-16
3 • Planning an application
Understanding the process you are automating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-1
Planning the layout of the network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Choose a Windows domain or workgroup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Determine which computers you’ll need . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Planning communications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-4
Determine how to access data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Planning how to monitor and control alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Planning an alarm monitoring and control system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-5
Advantages of using Alarms and Events services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-6
About traditional HMI tag alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7
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CONTENTS
Deciding when to use HMI tags. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7

Design the HMI tag database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7
Designing a dependable control system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8
Plan how to secure the system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8
Plan to use built-in system availability features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-8
Setting up the run-time application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10
Develop a hierarchy of graphic displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10
Create templates to ensure consistency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-11
Apply visual design principles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-11
Plan how to use trends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12
Plan run-time language switching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12
Designing a system that is easy to deploy and maintain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13
Allow for multiple users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-13
Integrating with other applications and customizing the system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-14
4 • Setting up FactoryTalk Directory

About FactoryTalk Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
FactoryTalk Directory in a networked system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-2
FactoryTalk Directory in a FactoryTalk View SE application. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-3
About local applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
Running network applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
Specifying the location of the FactoryTalk Directory server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
Setting up FactoryTalk Directory for a local application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-7
Restoring FactoryTalk Directory when deploying an application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-7
What happens if the Network Directory server is unavailable. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8
Monitoring Network Directory status. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8
5 • Setting up security
About FactoryTalk Security services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-1
About the FactoryTalk Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Finding more information about FactoryTalk Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Gaining initial access to a FactoryTalk system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-3
Logging users on to and off from FactoryTalk View SE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Logging on to the FactoryTalk Directory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-4
Logging on to FactoryTalk View Studio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Logging on to a FactoryTalk View SE Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-6
Deciding how to secure a FactoryTalk View SE application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-8
Securing FactoryTalk View SE applications at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-9
Securing FactoryTalk system resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Setting up FactoryTalk accounts in FactoryTalk View SE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
Setting up accounts in the Runtime Security editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-11
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Removing All Users from the Runtime Security list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14

Specifying login and logout macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-15
Removing Runtime Security accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Setting up run-time security for HMI project components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-16
Assigning security codes to commands and macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-17
Assigning security codes to graphic displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-18
Assigning security codes to OLE objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-18
Assigning security codes to HMI tags. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-19
Other ways to control run-time access to an application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
Lock operators into the run-time environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-20
Use the signature button to control user actions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
About FactoryTalk Security accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-21
About the All Users account. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Specifying which users can set up security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-22
Choosing the types of accounts to use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-23
Organizing users in groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-24
Setting up user and computer accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-25
Creating computer accounts for a network application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-26
Setting up system-wide policies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-27
Setting up security for FactoryTalk system resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Modifying FactoryTalk Security settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-29
Specifying which actions users can perform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-31
Organizing actions into groups. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-32
Understanding inherited permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-33
Breaking the chain of inheritance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-33
Using explicit permissions to override inheritance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-34
Performing secured tasks in FactoryTalk View SE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-35
6 • Working with network applications

About FactoryTalk View Site Edition network applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Parts of a network application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-2
About FactoryTalk systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
Key network application concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
FactoryTalk Network Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-3
FactoryTalk Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
HMI servers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-4
HMI projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
HMI clients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-5
Absolute and relative references. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
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CONTENTS
System availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8

Language switching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8
Creating network applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
About FactoryTalk Security permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-9
Adding areas and servers to a network application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-10
Adding and deleting areas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-10
Adding an HMI server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-10
Adding a data server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-12
Adding a Tag Alarm and Event Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-12
Deciding when to use multiple servers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-12
Running multiple HMI servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-13
About FactoryTalk Security permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-14
Setting up HMI server properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-14
Changing the name of the host computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-15
Specifying how the server starts up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-15
Setting up HMI server redundancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-16
Selecting startup and shutdown components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-17
Starting and stopping an HMI server’s components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-18
Monitoring the status of an HMI server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-19
Deleting HMI servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-19
Deleting HMI server project files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-20
Renaming, deleting, and backing up network applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-21
Backing up and restoring network applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-22
7 • Working with local applications

About FactoryTalk View SE local applications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Parts of a local application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-1
About FactoryTalk systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-2
Key local application concepts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3
FactoryTalk Local Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3
FactoryTalk Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-4
HMI servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-4
HMI projects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-4
HMI clients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-4
Relative references . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-4
Language switching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-5
Creating local applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-5
v
• • • • •
Importing a project into a new application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-5

Adding servers to a local application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-6
Adding a Tag Alarm and Event Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-7
Setting up HMI server properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-7
Selecting startup and shutdown components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
Monitoring the status of an HMI server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-9
Renaming, deleting, copying, and backing up local applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-10
Copying, backing up, and restoring local applications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-11
8 • Setting up communications
About data servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Overview of data server communications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-2
Using multiple data servers in an application. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-3
Setting up communications in FactoryTalk View SE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-4
Adding RSLinx Enterprise data servers to an application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-5
Setting up general properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-6
Setting up RSLinx Enterprise data server redundancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-7
Setting up support for alarms and events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-8
Deleting an RSLinx Enterprise data server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-8
Setting up communications for RSLinx Enterprise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-8
About the Primary and Secondary tabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9
Adding OPC data servers to an application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9
Setting up general properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-10
Setting up OPC data server redundancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-10
Setting up advanced properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-11
Deleting an OPC data server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-13
9 • Working with tags

About data server tags and HMI tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-1
Using direct referencing to eliminate duplication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-1
Using the extended capabilities of HMI tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Using tag data in a FactoryTalk View SE application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Setting up data server tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-3
Setting up HMI tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
Specifying tag names where tag data is needed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-4
Logging tag values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5
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• • • • •
CONTENTS
Observing tag-related limits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5

About tag references . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
Absolute references . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
Relative references . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
The home area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-6
Parts of the Tag Browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-7
Viewing tags in folders. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-8
Showing server names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-9
Finding tags in the home area. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-9
Searching for and selecting tags. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-9
Selecting folders instead of individual tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-10
Displaying a tag’s properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-10
Filtering tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-11
Creating, modifying, and importing HMI tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-12
Browsing for offline tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-12
Browsing for offline tags from RSLinx Enterprise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
Browsing for offline tags from RSLinx Classic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
Browsing for offline tags from other OPC servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-13
10 • Creating HMI tags

About HMI tags. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-1
HMI tag types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-1
Data sources for HMI tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
Organizing HMI tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Naming HMI tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Grouping HMI tags in folders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-3
Viewing tag statistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-4
Parts of the Tags editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-4
Accept and Discard buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-5
Form and spreadsheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-5
Query box . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-6
Folder hierarchy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-6
Creating, modifying, and deleting tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-6
Selecting a data source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-8
Getting HMI tag data from a device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-8
Getting HMI tag data from memory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-9
Creating HMI tags without using the Tags editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-9
Creating tags in a third-party application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-9
Creating tags in other FactoryTalk View editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-10
Importing and exporting tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-10
Importing tags from a PLC database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-10
vii
• • • • •
Defining alarm conditions for HMI tags. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11

Modifying HMI tag and alarm properties at run time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-12
11 • Setting up HMI tag alarms

About HMI tag alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-1
HMI tag alarm features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-2
About FactoryTalk Alarms and Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-2
Key HMI tag alarms concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-3
Alarm thresholds for analog tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-3
Alarm states for digital tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-6
Alarm severity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-6
Alarm messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-7
Alarm log file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-7
HMI tag alarm displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-7
Alarm acknowledgment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-10
Alarm suppression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-10
Alarm functions in expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-11
Acknowledge bit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-12
Handshake bit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-13
Summary of steps for setting up HMI tag alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-13
Setting up general HMI tag alarm behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-14
Setting up alarm monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-15
Setting up alarm severities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-16
Setting up alarm messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-17
Setting up alarm conditions for HMI tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-19
Setting up alarms for HMI analog tags. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-20
Setting up alarms for HMI digital tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-20
Modifying HMI tag and alarm properties at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-20
About FactoryTalk View SE alarm events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-21
Setting up HMI tag alarm logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-23
Specifying where log files are stored or printed. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-24
Specifying when log files are created and deleted . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-24
Setting up periodic logging to a central ODBC database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-25
Exporting alarm log files manually to ODBC format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-25
Adding remarks to the alarm log file at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-26
Viewing HMI tag alarm log files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-27
Alarm log file names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-28
Suppressing alarm logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-29
Suppressing alarm printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-29
Creating an HMI tag alarm summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-30
The parts of an HMI tag alarm summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-31
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• • • • •
CONTENTS
Inserting headings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-31

Choosing fonts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-32
Choosing colors and blink styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-32
Selecting buttons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-33
Choosing the data to display. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-34
Sorting and filtering at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-35
Using tag placeholders to specify alarms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-35
Replacing tag placeholders at run time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-36
Running commands or custom programs for selected alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-37
Using the Execute button to run commands or programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-37
Using the Identify button to run commands or programs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-39
Starting and stopping HMI tag alarm monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-39
Ways to start HMI tag alarm monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-39
Ways to stop HMI tag alarm monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-40
12 • Setting up FactoryTalk alarms

About FactoryTalk Alarms and Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-1
Advantages in using Alarms and Events services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-2
About traditional HMI tag alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-4
Finding more information about Alarms and Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-4
Key FactoryTalk Alarms and Events concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-6
Alarms and events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-6
Alarm servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-6
Level alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-7
Deviation alarms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-9
Digital alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-10
FactoryTalk alarm and event displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-10
Alarm priority and severity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-11
Alarm class . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-12
Alarm states . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-13
Alarm tags. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-13
Alarm status tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-14
Alarm messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-14
Alarm audit, diagnostic, and history logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-14
Summary of basic steps for setting up FactoryTalk alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-15
Setting up system-wide alarm and event policies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-16
Securing access to FactoryTalk alarm information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-17
Working with Rockwell Automation Device Servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-18
Setting up support for Alarms and Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-18
Specifying a device-based alarm source. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-20
Viewing device-based alarm information at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-20
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Working with Tag Alarm and Event Servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-21

Setting up alarm priorities and history logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-22
Viewing tag-based alarm information at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-23
About FactoryTalk Security permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-23
Setting up FactoryTalk tag-based alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-24
Creating tag-based digital alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-24
Creating tag-based level alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-25
Creating tag-based deviation alarms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-27
Viewing all tag-based alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-28
Setting up status tags for tag-based alarms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-28
Setting up tag-based alarm messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-29
Adding variables to alarm messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-30
Specifying tag update rates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-31
Setting up alarm and event history logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-32
Defining an alarm and event log database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-32
Enabling alarm and event history logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-33
Setting up alarm and event displays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-34
About the Alarm and Event graphic library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-34
Setting up an alarm and event summary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-34
Setting up an alarm and event banner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-37
About the alarm and event banner at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-38
Using an alarm summary to monitor and respond to alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-39
The parts of an alarm and event summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-40
Acknowledging alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-41
Resetting latched digital alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-43
Suppressing and disabling alarms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-43
Unsuppressing and enabling alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-44
Working with alarm sources in the Alarm Status Explorer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-45
The parts of an alarm status explorer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-46
Viewing alarm details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-47
Unsuppressing and suppressing alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-48
Disabling and enabling alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-48
Viewing alarm and event history logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-50
The parts of an alarm and event log viewer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-50
Using tags to interact with alarms or obtain their status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-52
Using FactoryTalk alarm functions in expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-54
Retrieving information about the severity of alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-54
Retrieving information about the number of alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-55
Specifying the FactoryTalk alarm source in an expression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-56
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What happens if the alarm source becomes unavailable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-58

Importing and exporting alarms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-59
About import and export formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-60
13 • Setting up language switching

About language switching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-1
Text strings that allow language switching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-2
Text strings that do not allow language switching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-2
Summary of steps for setting up language switching. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-5
Setting up font support for Windows languages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-5
Installing additional Windows languages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-6
Selecting a language for a new FactoryTalk View application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-6
About the current application language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-7
Adding languages to an application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-7
Setting up a default application language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-8
Displaying undefined text strings in the default language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-9
Exporting application text strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-9
Troubleshooting export problems. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-11
Export file formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-11
Working with text strings exported to an Excel spreadsheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-13
Spreadsheet format and content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-13
Maintaining the format of the spreadsheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-14
Modifying or translating text strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-15
Working with duplicate text strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-15
Working with strings exported to a Unicode text file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-16
File name and format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-16
Opening a Unicode text file in Microsoft Excel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-17
Saving a Unicode text file in Microsoft Excel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-17
Differences in format for Unicode files saved in Excel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-18
Saving a Unicode text file in Notepad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-18
File schema . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-18
Working with pairs of double quotes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-19
Working with backslashes and new-line characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-19
Importing translated or modified text strings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-20
Troubleshooting import problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-21
Setting up run-time language switching. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-25
Using the Language command to switch languages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-26
Support for multiple languages in the graphic libraries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-26
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Language support in new graphic libraries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-26

Using the graphic libraries in a multi-language application. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-27
14 • Setting up FactoryTalk system availability

FactoryTalk features that maximize system availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-1
Finding more information about system availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2
Monitoring the status of application servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-2
States for non-redundant and redundant servers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-4
States for redundant servers only . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-5
What happens if a non-redundant HMI server fails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-6
Monitoring the status of the Network Directory server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-7
What happens if the Network Directory server is unavailable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-8
Redundancy as part of a system availability strategy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-8
Planning the layout of a redundant system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-9
About FactoryTalk View SE system limits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-10
Activating FactoryTalk View SE in a redundant system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-11
Setting up redundant servers in FactoryTalk View SE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-12
Setting up a redundant HMI server pair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-13
Specify the Network Directory on the secondary computer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-13
Copy HMI project files to the secondary computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-14
Set up HMI server redundancy options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-14
Replicate changes to the secondary HMI server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-16
Determining the Active HMI server in a redundant pair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-17
When an HMI server is ready to be active or standby . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-17
Specifying On Active and On Standby macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-18
What happens if both servers become active . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-19
Switching the Active and Standby servers manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-20
What happens when the primary HMI server fails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-21
Failing over to the Standby secondary server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-21
Switching back to primary, or staying with the Active server . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-22
Notifying clients when switching back to the primary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-22
Modifying HMI tag and alarm properties at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-23
Modifying HMI tag properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-23
Modifying HMI tag alarm properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-26
Managing HMI data in an online redundant system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-29
Synchronize time clocks on redundant computers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-29
Centralize storage of diagnostic and alarm log data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-30
Determine which server will run events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-30
Synchronize derived tags and data log files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-31
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Monitoring network client and server connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-31

About network glitches. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-32
15 • Logging system activity

About FactoryTalk Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-1
Summary of steps for setting up Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-1
Finding more information about FactoryTalk Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-2
Key FactoryTalk Diagnostics concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-2
Destinations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-2
Message routing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-2
Message categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-3
Setting up FactoryTalk Diagnostics in FactoryTalk View. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-4
Setting up message routing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-5
Logging to a central database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-5
Tracking system events in the Diagnostics List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-7
Working with the Diagnostics List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-7
Viewing messages in the Diagnostics List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-8
Viewing FactoryTalk Diagnostics logs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15-9
16 • Using the FactoryTalk View SE Client object model

and display code
Customizing applications using VBA with FactoryTalk View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-1
Summary of basic steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-2
About procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-2
How VBA code runs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-3
Parts of the VBA integrated development environment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-3
FactoryTalk View SE Client object model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-4
Viewing the objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-7
Finding information about FactoryTalk View SE Client objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-8
Finding information about VBA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16-8
17 • Deploying network applications

About deploying network applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-1
Summary of steps to deploy a network application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-2
Backing up a network application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-3
Backing up FactoryTalk System information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-5
Setting up the FactoryTalk Network Directory server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-5
Specifying the location of FactoryTalk Network Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-6
Moving HMI project files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-6
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• • • • •
Copying an HMI server that is not running . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-7

Copying an HMI server while it is running . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-8
Restoring a network application. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-9
Restoring FactoryTalk System information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-10
Changing HMI server properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-10
Updating the name of the HMI server’s host computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-11
How HMI server components start and stop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-12
Starting and stopping HMI server components manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-12
Stopping and starting HMI services manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-13
Synchronizing redundant HMI servers and projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-14
Moving data server files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-15
Moving RSLinx Enterprise files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-15
Moving RSLinx Classic files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-15
Changing data server properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-16
Setting up the FactoryTalk View SE Clients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-16
Creating a new client configuration file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-17
Copying client setup files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-17
Running the FactoryTalk View SE Clients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-18
Running multiple FactoryTalk View SE Clients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-18
Logging users on to the FactoryTalk View SE Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-19
Locking operators into the run-time environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-19
Administering deployed applications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-20
Monitoring disk space on HMI servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-21
18 • Deploying local applications

About deploying local applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-1
Summary of steps to deploy a local application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-1
Moving a local application. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-3
Backing up and restoring FactoryTalk System information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-4
Changing HMI server properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-5
How HMI server components start and stop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-5
Starting and stopping HMI server components manually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-5
Moving data server files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-6
Changing data server properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-6
Setting up the FactoryTalk View SE Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-7
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Creating a new client configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-7

Running the FactoryTalk View SE Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-8
Logging users on to the FactoryTalk View SE Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-8
Locking operators into the run-time environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-9
Administering deployed applications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-9
19 • Creating graphic displays

About graphic displays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-1
Importing and exporting graphic display XML files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-2
About global object displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-2
Parts of the Graphics editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-3
Viewing display contents in the Object Explorer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-4
Viewing object properties in the Property Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-5
Techniques for working in graphic displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-6
Zooming in and out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-6
Setting up a display grid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-7
Using the toolbars. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-7
Selecting objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-8
Using shortcut menus to perform actions quickly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-8
Techniques for working with graphic objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-8
Duplicating objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-9
Resizing and reshaping objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-9
Arranging objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-10
Flipping objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-14
Rotating objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-15
Grouping objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-15
Ungrouping objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-16
Modifying grouped objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-17
Applying colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-17
Applying pattern styles and colors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-18
Changing line properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-19
Naming graphic objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-19
Assigning tags and expressions to objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-20
Adding tooltips to graphic objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-21
Using tag substitution to replace text strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-21
Creating a background for a display. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-22
Testing graphic displays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-23
Testing the appearance of objects in different states . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-23
Creating and working with global object displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-24
Creating global object displays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-24
xv
• • • • •
Adding standard displays that contain reference objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-25

About global object displays at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-25
Adding process faceplates to an application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-26
Working with faceplates in the Graphics editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-27
Using objects from the graphic libraries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-27
Location of library files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-27
Importing graphic files from third-party applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-27
Using bitmaps in a FactoryTalk View application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-28
When to use a bitmap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-29
Using placeholders to specify tag values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-29
Creating a tag placeholder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-30
Replacing tag placeholders using parameter files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-30
Replacing tag placeholders using the Display command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-31
Setting up tag placeholders for global objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-32
Defining tag placeholders for use in reference objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-32
Modifying global objects that use tag placeholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-35
Setting up the appearance and behavior of a graphic display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-35
Setting up the properties of a graphic display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-35
Setting up the run-time behavior of a graphic display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-40
Setting up displays to open more quickly. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-43
Changing the default display settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-44
Docking displays to the FactoryTalk View SE Client window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-45
Display command parameters for docking displays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-45
About the appearance and behavior of docked displays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-46
Closing docked displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-47
Printing displays at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-48
20 • Creating graphic objects

Types of graphic objects in FactoryTalk View SE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-1
About global objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-2
Setting up the properties of graphic objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-2
Setting up properties common to all objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-3
Creating the different types of drawing objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-4
Drawing a rectangle or square . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-4
Drawing a rounded rectangle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-4
Drawing a polyline or polygon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-5
Drawing an ellipse or circle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-5
Drawing an arc or wedge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-6
Changing the properties of drawing objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-6
Creating text objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-7
Creating a panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-8
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CONTENTS
Adding images into graphic displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-8

Placing images in graphic displays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-8
Adding images to an application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-8
Importing images into graphic displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-9
Pasting images into graphic displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-9
Techniques for working with objects that use data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-9
Specifying tag names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-9
Determining which objects have input focus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-10
Using the keyboard to select objects that can take focus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-10
Removing objects from the tab sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-11
Creating the different types of push buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-11
Creating button push buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-12
Creating momentary push buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-13
Creating maintained push buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-14
Creating latched push buttons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-15
Creating multistate push buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-16
About the run-time error state . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-17
Creating interlocked push buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-17
Creating ramp push buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-18
Creating the different types of data display and input objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-19
Using input objects to retrieve and send data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-20
Shortcut keys for retrieving and sending data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-22
FactoryTalk View commands for retrieving and sending data. . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-23
Parts of the on-screen keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-23
Creating numeric and string display objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-24
Creating numeric and string input objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-25
Creating the different types of indicators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-25
Setting up states for indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-25
Setting up connections for indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-26
Creating multistate indicators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-26
Creating symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-26
Creating list indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-27
Creating the different types of gauges and graphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-27
Using gauges to show limits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-27
Using graphs to compare values. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-28
Creating gauges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-29
Creating bar graphs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-29
Creating scales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-29
Using key objects to simulate keyboard functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-29
Creating the different types of key objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-30
Using the same set of keys with different graphic objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-31
Creating the different types of advanced objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-31
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• • • • •
Creating arrows. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-32

Creating tag labels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-32
Creating time and date displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-33
Creating display list selectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-33
Providing operator instructions in local message displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-34
Setting up local messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-34
Creating local message displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-35
Creating and restoring recipes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-36
Creating a recipe object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-36
Restoring and saving recipe values at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-36
Creating control list selectors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-39
Selecting states in a control list selector. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-39
Using keys to scroll the list. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-39
Setting the Value tag. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-40
Creating control list selectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-40
Creating piloted control list selectors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-41
Selecting states in a piloted control list selector. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-41
Using keys to scroll the list. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-42
Setting the Value tag. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-43
Creating piloted control selectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-44
Specifying the text and value for each state . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-44
Setting up connections for a piloted control list selector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-45
Creating the Alarm and Event objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-46
Creating global objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-46
Creating reference objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-47
Using placeholders to specify values for global objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-48
Adding global objects into the graphic libraries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-48
Setting up the link properties of reference objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-48
LinkAnimation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-49
LinkConnections. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-50
LinkSize . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-50
LinkBaseObject . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-50
Link properties of grouped reference objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-51
Breaking links between reference and base objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-51
Working with OLE objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-51
Creating OLE objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-52
Converting OLE objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-52
Working with ActiveX objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-53
Attributes of ActiveX objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-53
Creating ActiveX objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-54
Setting up ActiveX objects to interact with FactoryTalk View . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-54
Setting up tools in the ActiveX toolbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-54
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CONTENTS
Deploying ActiveX components automatically at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-55

Using electronic signatures to authorize run-time changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-55
Securing tag writes, commands, and downloads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-56
Creating signature buttons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-57
Securing objects in graphic displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-57
Tracking changes using FactoryTalk Diagnostics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-58
21 • Animating graphic objects

About animation in FactoryTalk View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-1
Setting up animation for FactoryTalk View graphic objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-2
Linking animation to tag values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-3
Linking animation to expressions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-3
Linking animation to actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-4
Determining start and end points for a range of motion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-4
Defining the range of motion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-4
Applying animation to object groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-5
Testing animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-6
Viewing the animation applied to objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-6
Copying or duplicating objects with animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-7
About global objects and animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-7
Creating effects using the different types of animation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-7
Showing and hiding objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-8
Changing an object’s color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-8
Changing the level of fill in an object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-11
Moving an object horizontally in a display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-11
Moving an object vertically in a display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-11
Rotating objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-11
Changing the width of an object. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-13
Changing the height of an object . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-13
Setting up touch zones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-13
Creating a horizontal slider. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-13
Creating a vertical slider. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-14
Animating OLE verbs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-14
Using index numbers to navigate to objects in a display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-14
Checking an object’s index number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-15
How tab index numbers work. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-16
Creating a tab sequence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-16
Changing index numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-17
Associating objects and displays with keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-17
Setting up object keys. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-17
Setting up display keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-19
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Viewing the key list at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-19

Setting up object-specific commands using keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-20
Animating ActiveX objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-22
Connecting tags to an ActiveX object’s properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-23
Connecting tags to an object’s methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-25
Connecting tags to an ActiveX object’s events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-25
22 • Setting up navigation
Designing a display hierarchy for an application. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-1
Setting up ways to move among displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-2
Using commands to open, close, and switch displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-2
Choosing display types with navigation in mind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-5
Reducing display call-up time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-6
Setting up keys to run FactoryTalk View commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-6
General rules governing precedence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-7
Precedence and the F1 key. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-7
Precedence and embedded ActiveX objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-7
Precedence and embedded OLE objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-8
Keyboard shortcuts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-8
Creating client keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-10
Running client key components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22-11
23 • Creating expressions
About expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-1
Where you can use expressions in FactoryTalk View SE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-1
Working in the Expression editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-2
Expression components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-3
Checking the syntax of an expression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-4
Cutting, copying, and pasting expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-4
Formatting expressions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-4
Using tag names and tag placeholders in expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-5
Specifying the area with a tag name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-5
Using placeholders to specify tag values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-5
Using constants in expressions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-6
Using operators to modify values in expressions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-6
Arithmetic operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-6
Relational operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-7
Logical operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-7
Bitwise operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-8
Evaluation order of operators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-9
Using built-in functions in expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-11
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CONTENTS
Math functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-11

File functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-12
Time functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-13
Tag functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-15
Security functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-17
Language function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-18
FactoryTalk alarm functions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-18
Using if-then-else logic in expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-19
Nested if-then-else. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-20
24 • Creating embedded variables

About embedded variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-1
Inserting embedded variables. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-1
Creating numeric embedded variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-3
Creating string embedded variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-5
Creating time and date embedded variables. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-7
How embedded variables are displayed at run time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-8
Numeric embedded variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-9
String embedded variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-9
Time and date embedded variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-9
How embedded variables are updated at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-10
25 • Setting up data logging

About data logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-1
Gathering tag data in data log models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-1
Data log storage formats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-2
ODBC database storage format . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-3
Creating data log models . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-4
Specifying the storage format. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-5
Setting up log paths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-5
Setting up and managing data log files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-6
Specifying when to log data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-6
Choosing the data to be logged. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-7
Logging data to ODBC data sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-7
Logging data to an existing ODBC data source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-7
Creating a new ODBC data source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-8
Setting up security to log data to a remote computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-8
Creating new files at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-8
Using the DataLogNewFile command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-9
Switching log paths at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-9
Setting up switching options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-10
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Switching back manually to the primary path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-10

Moving data from the secondary path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-11
Logging on demand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-12
Using the DataLogSnapshot command . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-12
Combining logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-12
Modifying existing data log models. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-13
Changing log paths in the SE Administration Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-13
Making run-time changes without modifying the model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-13
Starting and stopping data logging. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-14
Ways to start data logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-14
Ways to stop data logging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-15
26 • Setting up trends
About trends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-1
Charting current versus historical data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-1
Creating trend objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-2
Providing a name for the trend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-3
Setting up trend properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-3
Testing a trend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-4
The parts of a trend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-5
Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-5
Chart title . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-5
X-axis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-6
X-axis legend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-6
Y-axis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-6
Y-axis legend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-6
Pens. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-7
Legends. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-7
Pen icons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-7
Pen markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-8
Value Bar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-9
Trend chart styles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-9
The Standard chart style . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-10
The XY Plot chart style. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-10
Isolated graphing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-11
Plotting a value across the full width of the chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-12
Choosing trend colors, fonts, lines, and legends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-13
Changing the trend highlight color . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-13
Changing the trend object background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-13
Displaying a current value legend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-14
Displaying a line legend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-15
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CONTENTS
Using shading to compare pens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-15

Using overlays to compare real-time and historical data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-18
Setting up snapshots and overlays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-18
Using trend templates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-20
Applying a consistent appearance to trend charts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-20
Creating a set of different views for the same data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-20
Returning to a standard display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-20
Saving pen attribute data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-20
Loading trend templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-21
About the Trend graphic library . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-21
Working with trends at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-22
Collecting data in the background at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-22
Selecting pens at run time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-23
Modifying trend properties at run time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-23
Scrolling the trend chart at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-24
Displaying the value of pens at various positions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-25
Displaying the difference in pen values for two points . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-26
Zooming the trend chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-27
Panning the trend chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-27
Using the arrow keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-28
Printing the trend chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-28
Using overlays at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-28
Fixing run-time errors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-29
27 • Creating macros
About macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27-1
Macro syntax . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27-1
Specifying parameters in a macro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27-3
Typing macro names that contain spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27-3
Nesting macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27-4
Running macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27-4
Specifying a macro to run when an HMI server starts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27-5
Specifying user login and logout macros . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27-5
28 • Using derived tags

About derived tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-1
How to use derived tags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-1
Parts of the Derived Tags editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-2
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• • • • •
Creating a derived tags component . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-3

About the maximum update rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-4
Using multiple derived tag components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-4
Modifying existing derived tag components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-5
Starting and stopping derived tags processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-5
Ways to start derived tags processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-5
Ways to stop derived tags processing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-6
29 • Using events
About events in FactoryTalk View Site Edition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29-1
Parts of the Events editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29-1
Creating an events component . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29-3
About the maximum update rate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29-4
Using multiple events components. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29-4
Modifying existing event components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29-4
Starting and stopping events processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29-4
Ways to start events processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29-5
Ways to stop events processing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29-5
APPENDICES
A • FactoryTalk View commands

Using commands in a FactoryTalk View SE application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-1
How to use commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-1
Using placeholders in commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-2
Where commands run . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-3
Using absolute and relative references. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-5
How relative references are resolved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-5
Creating symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-6
Important guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-7
Running and building commands. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A-8
B • Setting up DDE communications for HMI tags

Overview of DDE communications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-1
Setting up an HMI server as a DDE client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-2
Creating an HMI tag that uses DDE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-2
xxiv
• • • • •
CONTENTS
Specifying Device as the data source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-2

Syntax for DDE addresses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-3
Scanning for new tag values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-3
C • ODBC database schemas

About the FactoryTalk Diagnostics log table. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-1
HMI tag alarm log table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-1
Data log tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C-3
D • Importing and exporting XML files

About XML . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-1
Exporting graphics data to an XML file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-1
Modifying exported XML files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-2
Saving XML files in Notepad. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-2
Testing XML files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-3
Importing XML files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-3
Error log file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-3
Importing graphic display XML files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-3
Graphic display XML file structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D-4
Index
xxv
Preface
FactoryTalk® View Site Edition is an integrated software package for developing and
running human-machine interface (HMI) applications that involve multiple users and
servers, distributed over a network.
A member of the FactoryTalk family of products, FactoryTalk View Site Edition (also
called FactoryTalk View SE) provides all the tools you need to create powerful,
dependable process monitoring and supervisory control applications.
FactoryTalk View SE software is designed for use with Microsoft® Windows® Server
2003, Windows XP, and Windows 2000 operating systems.
About RSView Enterprise

RSView® Enterprise is the former name of the FactoryTalk View family of software
products.
As of version 5.00 (CPR 9), Rockwell Software products that depend on and can share
FactoryTalk services in an integrated control system have been renamed to represent the
FactoryTalk brand.
The following table shows the new names for members of the product family formerly
known as RSView Enterprise:
RSView name (CPR 7 and earlier) FactoryTalk View name (CPR 9 and later)
RSView Enterprise FactoryTalk View
RSView Supervisory Edition (SE) FactoryTalk View Site Edition (SE)
RSView SE Distributed FactoryTalk View SE (Network)
RSView SE Stand-alone FactoryTalk View SE (Local)
RSView Studio FactoryTalk View Studio
RSView SE Client™ FactoryTalk View SE Client
RSView SE Server™ FactoryTalk View SE Server
RSView SE Administration Console™ FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console
RSView Machine Edition™ (ME) FactoryTalk View Machine Edition (ME)
RSView ME Station™ FactoryTalk View Machine Edition Station
P1
• • • • •
About the FactoryTalk View SE documentation

The FactoryTalk View SE documentation set includes:
Release Notes. Read this information before you begin installing or working with the
software. The Release Notes are available from the FactoryTalk View Site Edition CD
and from the Help menu in FactoryTalk View Studio.
FactoryTalk View Site Edition Installation Guide. This manual contains information
about installing and activating the various FactoryTalk View SE software components.
In addition to the printed copy that comes with the software, the Installation Guide is
available in PDF format, from the FactoryTalk View Site Edition CD and from the
Help menu in FactoryTalk View Studio.
FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide. This manual contains comprehensive
information about designing, developing, and deploying FactoryTalk View SE
applications, as well as reference information.
For ease of printing, the User’s Guide is divided into two volumes. Both volumes are
available in PDF format, from the Help menu in FactoryTalk View Studio. For more
information about the contents of each volume, see “What’s in this manual,” next.
Help. Online procedures and reference information are available from the Help menu
in FactoryTalk View Studio, and from editors and dialog boxes used to develop
FactoryTalk View SE applications.
What’s in this manual

The FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide contains comprehensive information
about designing, developing, and deploying FactoryTalk View SE network and local
applications.
This includes information about how FactoryTalk View SE applications use FactoryTalk
services, and other FactoryTalk products.
The User’s Guide is organized in two volumes, available in PDF format from the Help
menu in FactoryTalk View Studio.
Volume 1 – Designing and Deploying Applications contains information about:
working in the FactoryTalk View SE development environment.
the key features of FactoryTalk View SE network and local applications.
setting up communications for an application, and working with tags.
setting up alarm monitoring and control, using HMI tags and FactoryTalk Alarms and
Events.
P2
• • • • •
• PREFACE
features that support system availability at run time.

deploying applications in a production environment.
Volume 2 – Creating Application Components contains information about:
creating graphic displays and objects for operators to interact with at run time.
animating graphic objects.
gaining access to data using FactoryTalk View expressions and embedded variables.
monitoring historical data using data log models and trends.
using macros and FactoryTalk View commands in an application.
processing data using derived tags and event detection.
To open the User’s Guide

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Help menu, click Online Books.
2. Click the Volume you want to open.
If you are having trouble opening the User’s Guide, you might need to install Adobe Reader.
You can do this from the FactoryTalk View Site Edition installation CD. For details, see the
FactoryTalk View Site Edition Installation Guide.
Finding information about FactoryTalk View SE

There are several ways to find information about using FactoryTalk View SE.
Try the User’s Guide and Help first

The FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide and Help provide comprehensive
information about typical uses of FactoryTalk View SE. If you have a question, the
documentation probably contains the answer.
To find the information you need in either the User’s Guide or the Help, start with the
table of contents and the index, or perform a full-text search.
For more information, see Chapter 7, “Getting the information you need” in the
Finding information on the Internet

If you can’t find the answer to your question in the User’s Guide or Help, try the Web sites
you can connect to from within FactoryTalk View Studio.
P3
• • • • •
The Rockwell Automation Home Page offers general information about

Rockwell Software products and services.
The Rockwell Automation Downloads page provides access to various resources,
including information, drivers, and software extensions that you might need to
develop your FactoryTalk View SE applications.
The Rockwell Automation KnowledgeBase offers a comprehensive, searchable
database of support information for all Rockwell Automation products, including
FactoryTalk View SE.
The FactoryTalk View Series Home Page offers specific information about the
FactoryTalk View family of software products, including FactoryTalk View SE and
FactoryTalk View Machine Edition (ME).
To connect to Web sites from within FactoryTalk View Studio

On the Help menu, click Rockwell Automation on the Web, and then click the name of
the Web site you want to visit.
To connect to any Web site, you must have a web browser installed on the computer, and you
must have an active Internet connection.
Contacting Rockwell Automation Technical Support

If you can’t find the answer to your question in the documentation or on the Internet,
contact Rockwell Automation Technical Support, using one of these methods:
Telephone: 1-440-646-3434
Online: http://support.rockwellautomation.com
Support staff are available Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. local time (North
America only), except on statutory holidays.
When you call

When you call, be at your computer and ready to provide the following information:
the product’s Serial Number and Product Key. If you are using:
FactoryTalk Activation, the Serial Number and Product Key are printed on the
Activation Certificate enclosed with the product software CD.
EvRSI activation, the Serial Number is printed on the Activation disk label.
the product version number
the Coordinated Product Release (CPR) number
P4
• • • • •
• PREFACE
the type of hardware you are using

the names of other Rockwell Automation products installed on the computer
the exact wording of any messages displayed on the computer
a description of what happened and what you were doing when the problem occurred
a description of how you tried to solve the problem
If you are running a FactoryTalk View SE network application, also note:
how many computers are participating in the network application.
whether computers on the network are connected using a Windows domain controller,
or a workgroup.
which FactoryTalk View SE components are installed on participating computers.
which computers are running servers (the FactoryTalk Network Directory server,
FactoryTalk View SE Servers, data servers, or FactoryTalk Tag Alarm and Event
Servers), and whether servers are set up with redundancy.
which computers are running clients (FactoryTalk View SE Client or FactoryTalk
View Studio, or some other FactoryTalk client).
You might also be required to provide information about any FactoryTalk View add-ons
and updates that are installed on the computer.
To view the list of installed add-ons and updates

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Help menu, click About FactoryTalk View
Studio.
2. To view the list of installed updates, click Updates.
3. To view the list of installed add-ons, click Add-Ons.
P5
1 Getting started with FactoryTalk View SE
1 • Placeholder
This chapter describes:
what FactoryTalk® View Site Edition is.
what a FactoryTalk system is.
the FactoryTalk View Site Edition software.
the FactoryTalk View tools and utilities.
how to set up the software you need.
running FactoryTalk View SE without activation.
exploring the Samples Water application.
creating and testing a new network application.
Welcome to FactoryTalk View Site Edition

FactoryTalk View Site Edition is an integrated software package for developing and
running human-machine interface (HMI) applications that involve multiple users and
servers, distributed over a network.
A member of the FactoryTalk View family of products, FactoryTalk View Site Edition
(also called FactoryTalk View SE) provides all the tools you need to create powerful,
dependable process monitoring and supervisory control applications.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, you can create FactoryTalk View SE network or local
applications that mirror your plant or process.
Use the editors in FactoryTalk View Studio to create and test the application components
you need. Then, set up FactoryTalk View SE Clients, to let operators interact with the
application after it is deployed.
About RSView Enterprise

RSView® Enterprise is the former name of the FactoryTalk View family of software
products.
As of version 5.00 (CPR 9), Rockwell Software products that depend on and can share
FactoryTalk services in an integrated control system, have been renamed to represent the
FactoryTalk brand.
1-1
• • • • •
The following table shows the new names for members of the product family formerly
known as RSView Enterprise:
RSView name (CPR 7 and earlier) FactoryTalk View name (CPR 9 and later)
RSView Enterprise FactoryTalk View
RSView Supervisory Edition (SE) FactoryTalk View Site Edition (SE)
RSView SE Distributed FactoryTalk View SE (Network)
RSView SE Stand-alone FactoryTalk View SE (Local)
RSView Studio FactoryTalk View Studio
RSView SE Client™ FactoryTalk View SE Client
RSView SE Server™ FactoryTalk View SE Server
RSView SE Administration Console™ FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console
RSView Machine Edition™ (ME) FactoryTalk View Machine Edition (ME)
RSView ME Station™ FactoryTalk View Machine Edition Station
About FactoryTalk systems

FactoryTalk View SE and other Rockwell Automation software products use a set of
common FactoryTalk services to support certain functions.
An automation and control system that uses FactoryTalk services, and integrates
FactoryTalk products and components, is known as a FactoryTalk system.
FactoryTalk Services Platform

In a FactoryTalk system, the FactoryTalk Services Platform provides common services,
such as diagnostic messages, health monitoring services, and access to real-time data, to
FactoryTalk products participating in an application.
The FactoryTalk Services Platform must be installed wherever FactoryTalk products such
as FactoryTalk View SE will run. Following are the services the platform provides:
FactoryTalk Directory centralizes access to system resources and names (for
example, data tags and graphic displays), for all of the FactoryTalk products and
components participating in an automated control system.
For more information about using FactoryTalk Directory in FactoryTalk View SE
applications, see Chapter 4, Setting up FactoryTalk Directory.
1-2
• • • • •
1 • GETTING STARTED WITH FACTORYTALK VIEW SE
FactoryTalk Security centralizes user authentication and authorization at the

FactoryTalk Directory.
1 • Placeholder
For information about securing FactoryTalk View SE applications, see Chapter 5,
Setting up security.
FactoryTalk Live Data manages connections between FactoryTalk products and
data servers.
For information about data communications in FactoryTalk View SE applications, see
Chapter 8, Setting up communications.
FactoryTalk Diagnostics collects and provides access to activity, status, warning,
and error messages generated throughout a FactoryTalk system.
For information about setting up system diagnostics in FactoryTalk View SE
applications, see Chapter 15, Logging system activity.
FactoryTalk Administration Console is an optional, stand-alone tool for
developing, managing, and securing multiple applications.
You must use FactoryTalk Administration Console to restore network application archives,
and to set up computer accounts after upgrading the FactoryTalk Services Platform.
Otherwise, use FactoryTalk View Studio to develop FactoryTalk View SE applications.
For information about restoring network applications, see Chapter 17, Deploying
network applications. For information about upgrading FactoryTalk View, see the FactoryTalk
View SE Release Notes.
Using these services, FactoryTalk products can share and gain simultaneous access to
resources such as tags and graphic displays, that only need to be defined once in the
system.
FactoryTalk services installed with FactoryTalk View SE

The FactoryTalk Services Platform also supports alarms and events services, and
software-based product activation. These services are installed separately, during
FactoryTalk View SE installation, rather than with the FactoryTalk Services Platform.
For more information about FactoryTalk Alarms and Events and FactoryTalk Activation,
see the list of FactoryTalk View SE software, next.
Finding more information about FactoryTalk services

This manual contains information about designing, developing, and deploying
FactoryTalk View SE applications. This includes information about how FactoryTalk
View uses FactoryTalk services.
1-3
• • • • •
For an overview of what’s in this manual, see page P-2. For detailed information about
FactoryTalk services, concepts, and components, see the FactoryTalk Help.
To open the FactoryTalk Help

On the Windows® Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk
Tools, and then click FactoryTalk Help.
You can also gain access to FactoryTalk Help by clicking Help in dialog boxes used to set
up FactoryTalk components and services.
FactoryTalk View Site Edition software

FactoryTalk View SE consists of several pieces of software you can use to build network
or local HMI applications, customized to your needs.
Depending on the software packages you purchased, you will install one or more of the
following pieces of software.
FactoryTalk Services Platform provides common services (such as diagnostic
messages, health monitoring services, and access to real-time data) to products and
applications in a FactoryTalk system.
You must install the FactoryTalk Services Platform first, on any computer where you plan
to install or run FactoryTalk View SE.
For an overview of the FactoryTalk Services Platform, see page 1-2.
FactoryTalk View Studio is configuration software for developing and testing
FactoryTalk View Studio contains editors for creating complete applications, and includes
client and server software for testing the applications you create. Use the editors to create
applications that are as simple or as complex as you need.
For information about FactoryTalk View Studio features, see Chapter 2, Exploring
FactoryTalk View Studio.
You can also use FactoryTalk View Studio to set up FactoryTalk Security services for the
applications you develop. For more information, see Chapter 5, Setting up security.
FactoryTalk View Studio is also the tool for developing FactoryTalk View Machine Edition
applications. For information about developing machine-level applications, see the FactoryTalk
View Machine Edition User’s Guide.
FactoryTalk View SE Client is software for viewing and interacting with FactoryTalk
View SE local and network applications at run time.
1-4
• • • • •
FactoryTalk View SE Server, also called the HMI server, stores HMI project
components (for example, graphic displays) and serves them to clients. The server also
1 • Placeholder
contains a database of tags, and performs alarm detection and historical data logging
The FactoryTalk View SE Server has no user interface. Once installed, it runs as a set of
‘headless’ Windows services that supply information to clients as they request it.
FactoryTalk Alarms and Events installs behind the scenes during FactoryTalk
View SE installation, and provides system-wide alarm monitoring and control centralized
at the FactoryTalk Directory.
For run-time clients to receive FactoryTalk device-based and tag-based alarm
information, you need to set up application servers to support FactoryTalk Alarms and
Events services. For details, see Chapter 12, Setting up FactoryTalk alarms.
FactoryTalk Activation provides a secure, software-based system for activating
Rockwell Software products and managing software activation files.
For information about activating FactoryTalk View SE software, see the FactoryTalk View
Site Edition Installation Guide.
FactoryTalk View tools and utilities

Depending on the software packages you installed, you also will have installed some or all
of the FactoryTalk and FactoryTalk View tools and utilities.
For a complete list of the tools and utilities software, see Chapter 1 in the FactoryTalk
View Site Edition Installation Guide.
FactoryTalk View SE features

FactoryTalk View SE provides the flexibility and features you need to create powerful
automation systems for your plant or process. For example, you can:
create local applications for parts of the plant or process that are self-contained, and
are not related to other parts of the process.
create complex applications that mirror the layout of a plant or process.
A FactoryTalk View SE network application can contain several servers running on
multiple computers, connected over a network. Multiple client users can connect
simultaneously to a network application.
open and modify network applications remotely, using FactoryTalk View Studio.
use the health monitoring and redundancy features built into FactoryTalk and
FactoryTalk View SE, to support system availability at run time.
1-5
• • • • •
use FactoryTalk Security services to centralize the authentication and authorization of

system users, at the FactoryTalk Directory.
create multi-language applications, that allow operators to switch between up to 40
different languages at run time. In a network application, multiple clients can run in
different languages simultaneously.
modify HMI tag and alarm properties at run time, and have changes take effect at
connected clients, without restarting the clients.
In a redundant network application, changes made at the primary HMI server can be
replicated to the secondary server.
create a complete alarm monitoring system that includes FactoryTalk Alarms and
Events and HMI tag alarms.
Using FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services, FactoryTalk View SE applications can
subscribe to and display device-based alarms, programmed directly into Logix5000
controllers.
customize alarm summaries and banners, to provide specific alarm data rather than
displaying alarms for the entire system.
create global objects in global object displays, and use copies of these objects
throughout an application. When you modify the original object, all linked copies are
also updated.
dock selected displays to an edge of the FactoryTalk View SE Client window, so they
can be viewed in a fixed position, at all times.
use the FactoryTalk View SE Client Object Model and VBA to extend the capabilities
of FactoryTalk View SE, and to share and interoperate with Windows programs such
as Microsoft SQL Server and Microsoft Excel.
create trends that show process variables plotted against time. FactoryTalk View SE
trends can display real-time or historical data, with up to 100 pens (tags) in each trend.
log data simultaneously to the FactoryTalk Diagnostics log and to remote ODBC
databases, to provide various records of production data.
You can view and manipulate the ODBC-format logged data directly, using third-
party programs such as Microsoft Access and Business Objects Crystal Reports®.
Quick start: setting up the software you need

The design of the automation and control system you plan to deploy will determine which
FactoryTalk View SE software components to install and set up on network computers.
1-6
• • • • •
Where you install the software also depends on the type of application:
To develop or run a local application, you must install all the necessary software
1 • Placeholder

(except for OPC data servers) on one computer.
To develop or run a network application, you can install different combinations of
software on each participating computer, depending on needs.
Steps in this section describe the basic tasks involved in setting up the software needed to
develop and run local and network applications. For detailed installation instructions, see
the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Installation Guide.
For information about moving an application to its run-time environment, see Chapter 17,
Deploying network applications or Chapter 18, Deploying local applications.
Step 1: Plan the layout of the network

The layout of the network is particularly important to the design of a network application.
The type and structure of the network can determine which roles participating host
computers will play, including whether any of the servers will run as redundant pairs.
If you are planning a network application that uses more than 10 computers, you must use
a network domain controller. For network applications consisting of 10 computers or
fewer, you can use a Windows workgroup.
Do not run FactoryTalk Directory, or any other application software, on the same computer as a
Windows domain controller.
Step 2: Install the FactoryTalk Services Platform

FactoryTalk View applications depend on FactoryTalk software, such as FactoryTalk
Directory, to run. You must install the FactoryTalk Services Platform first, on any
computer where you plan to install and run FactoryTalk View SE software.
During the FactoryTalk Services Platform installation, the FactoryTalk Network Directory
and Local Directory are set up automatically on the computer.
If you plan to run only the FactoryTalk Directory server on a computer, without any dependent
software, install only the FactoryTalk Services Platform on the computer.
Step 3: Install FactoryTalk View SE

When you install the FactoryTalk View SE software, you can choose to install all the
components on one computer, or to install individual components on separate computers
on the network.
1-7
• • • • •
To develop or run a local application, you must install the FactoryTalk Services Platform
and all the FactoryTalk View SE software on one computer.
In a local application, only OPC data servers can be run on a separate computer.
To develop or run a network application, you can install all the FactoryTalk View SE
software, or just selected components, on participating computers.
For example, you might install only the FactoryTalk View SE Client software on
computers run by operators. Similarly, to distribute server loads across the application,
you might install only the FactoryTalk View SE Server software on server computers.
Step 4: Install the communications software

How you plan to obtain data for an application will determine which communications
software you install.
You can use the RSLinx® software shipped with FactoryTalk View SE, or use other
software and devices that support OPC (OLE for Process Control) communications. Some
of the benefits of these different options are described in the sections that follow.
For more information about setting up communications for a FactoryTalk View SE
application, see Chapter 8, Setting up communications.
When to use RSLinx Enterprise

For communications with Allen-Bradley local and remote devices, and particularly with
Logix5000 controllers, FactoryTalk View provides built-in support via RSLinx
Enterprise.
Use RSLinx Enterprise:
for best performance when communicating with large numbers of clients.
when information is being provided by a Logix5000 controller.
when alias topic shortcuts are not required.
RSLinx Enterprise cannot perform online tasks such as uploading and downloading RSLogix®
5000 files to a controller. If you need to provide this capability, use RSLinx Classic.
When to use RSLinx Classic

For communications with Allen-Bradley local and remote devices, or with a small number
of clients, FactoryTalk View also provides built-in support via RSLinx Classic and
RSLinx Gateway.
1-8
• • • • •
Use RSLinx Classic when:

the information being served to FactoryTalk View SE Servers or FactoryTalk View
1 • Placeholder

SE Clients is local.
the RSLinx data server is installed on the same computer as the FactoryTalk View
SE Server.
You do not need to install an activation key to make RSLinx Classic work, provided you run
RSLinx Classic on the same computer as the FactoryTalk View SE Server.
When to use RSLinx Gateway™

You must use an RSLinx activation key for RSLinx Gateway:
if the information is being served to a third-party OPC client, for example, a
FactoryTalk View SE Client.
if the RSLinx data server is installed on a computer separate from the FactoryTalk
View SE Server. You might do this for performance reasons, or to locate the OPC
server physically close to the process generating data.
Communications with third-party local and remote devices

For communications with non-Allen-Bradley local and remote devices, FactoryTalk
View SE supports OPC (OLE for Process Control), a protocol used to connect to
communication devices via vendor-specific OPC servers.
OPC allows FactoryTalk View to act as a client to other OPC servers. This means that
FactoryTalk View can use third-party OPC servers to retrieve tag values from third-party
controller devices, such as Siemens or Modicon®.
FactoryTalk View supports the OPC-DA 2.0 specification.
Step 5: Install the necessary activation keys

The types of product licenses you require depend on the software you have installed, and
how you intend to use it.
For information about the types of activation you might need, and how to install activation
keys, see Chapter 6, “Activating FactoryTalk View software,” in the FactoryTalk View
Step 6: Set up the FactoryTalk Directory

FactoryTalk Directory is software that allows the parts of an application to find each other
on a computer, or on the network. There are two types of FactoryTalk Directory:
1-9
• • • • •
Local Directory manages applications that are confined to a single computer, for
example, FactoryTalk View SE local applications.
Network Directory manages applications that can consist of multiple clients and
servers on separate computers connected over a network, for example, FactoryTalk
View SE network applications.
Both directories are configured on the computer, when you install the FactoryTalk
Services Platform.
To use the Local Directory as part of a local application, no further setup is required.
To use the Network Directory as part of a network application, you must set up all
participating computers to point at the same Network Directory computer. For more
information, see Chapter 4, Setting up FactoryTalk Directory.
Running FactoryTalk View SE without activation

The FactoryTalk View SE and RSLinx software you install must be licensed for full use.
However, if activation is unavailable, the software can continue to run for a grace period
of up to seven days. The grace period allows time to correct the problem with acquiring
activations, without disrupting critical applications.
For more information about the grace period, see the FactoryTalk Activation Help.
If activation is restored within the seven days, normal operations will resume. If activation
remains unavailable when the grace period expires, the FactoryTalk View SE software
will run in demo mode.
With a network application in demo mode, you can:
create or load up to five HMI servers locally, in FactoryTalk View Studio.
create or load up to five graphic displays per HMI server.
run a local FactoryTalk View SE Client for up to two hours. Remote clients cannot
connect to an application in demo mode.
For more information about activating FactoryTalk View SE, see the FactoryTalk View
Exploring the Samples Water application

The Samples Water application shipped with FactoryTalk View SE is a fully functional
example of a network application.
To explore the FactoryTalk View SE development and run-time environments, open the
Samples Water application in FactoryTalk View Studio and run the Samples Water client.
1-10
• • • • •
To open the Samples Water application

1. On the Windows Start menu, select Programs, and then click FactoryTalk View
1 • Placeholder
Studio.
2. In the Application Type Selection dialog box, click Site Edition (Network), and then
click Continue.
3. In the New/Open Site Edition (Network) Application dialog box, click Samples
Water, select an application language, and then click Open.
In the following illustration, the graphic display named Aeration and the undocked
Objects toolbar are open in the Graphics editor:
For information about working with FactoryTalk View Studio and the editors, see
Chapter 2, Exploring FactoryTalk View Studio.
1-11
• • • • •
To test a display in FactoryTalk View Studio

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the display you want
to test, and then click Open.
2. On the View menu, click Test Display.
To stop testing, on the View menu, click Edit Display.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, you cannot test navigating among displays in an application. To test
navigation, run the application in a FactoryTalk View SE Client.
To run the Samples Water client

On the Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk View,
and then click Samples Water.
The Samples Water client opens at the Overview screen, as shown in this illustration:
Navigate to other
displays in the
application using
touch zones...
...and buttons on
the menu bar.
Switch between
languages in the
application.
View FactoryTalk
alarms in a docked
alarm banner.
View Diagnostics
messages.
1-12
• • • • •
Use the buttons and touch zones provided, to navigate through the Water Samples
application, view alarm summaries and trends, and switch between application languages.
1 • Placeholder
Creating a new FactoryTalk View SE application
You can also create a simple, new application, to exercise some of the development and
run-time features of FactoryTalk View SE. Following are some steps to get you started.
Step 1: Create the application

First, create the application itself, and then add one HMI server or more.
The HMI server stores project components (for example, graphic displays), and serves
these components to clients. The server also contains a database of tags, and performs
alarm detection, and historical data management (logging).
To create a new network application

1. On the Windows Start menu, select Programs, and then click FactoryTalk View
Studio.
2. In the Application Type Selection dialog box, click Site Edition (Network), and then
click Continue.
3. In the New/Open Site Edition (Network) Application dialog box, click the New tab
4. Type a name and description for the application, select an application language, and
then click Create.
The default language displayed in the New tab is the operating system language. You
can accept the default or, in the Language list, select any language that Windows
supports. For more information, see Chapter 13, Setting up language switching.
After creating the application, you can add an HMI server to the root of the application, or
to another area in the application. For this example, add an area to contain the new HMI
server.
To add an area to the application

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the application icon,
and then click New Area.
2. Type a name and description for the area, and then click OK.
To add an HMI server

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the area you just
created, click Add New Server, and then click HMI Server.
1-13
• • • • •
2. In the Add HMI Server Wizard, in the Select Operation window, click Create a new
HMI server, and then click Next.
For information about other options in the Select Operation window, see “Adding an
HMI server” on page 6-10.
3. Type a name and description for the HMI server, and then click Finish.
For details about options in the Add HMI Server Wizard, click Help.
The Add process faceplates dialog box opens, if it’s set to display when you create a new HMI
server. If you don’t want to add faceplates, click Cancel to close the dialog box, without affecting
HMI server creation. For more information about adding faceplates, see page 19-26.
Step 2: Create a graphic display

Adding an HMI server to an application also creates the HMI project, which contains all
of the editors and productivity tools you need to create and modify application
components.
For a list of editors and their functions, see “Opening component editors” on page 2-8. For
instructions about using the editors, click Help in editor dialog boxes.
For this example, use the Graphics editor to create a graphic display, and then add a
graphic object to that display.
To create a new display

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, open the Graphics folder, right-
click the Displays icon, and then click New.
An untitled display opens in the workspace to the right of the Explorer window.
To add a graphic object to the display

1. In the Graphics editor, on the Objects menu, click Drawing, and then click Rectangle.
You can also click the button on the Objects toolbar that represents the object you
want to add.
For details about using the Graphics editor, see Chapters 19 and 20 in Volume 2 of the
FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
2. Position the pointer where you want to draw the rectangle, click and hold the left
mouse button, and then drag the mouse down and to the right.
3. Release the mouse button to place the rectangle on the display.
To save the new display

1. On the File menu, click Close.
1-14
• • • • •
2. Click Yes to save changes and close the display.

3. In the Save dialog box, type a name for the display, and then click OK.
1 • Placeholder
Step 3: Test run the application in FactoryTalk View SE Client
You can test a single display in FactoryTalk View Studio, or test run the application by
creating and running a FactoryTalk View SE Client that connects to it.
At various stages in the development process, it is advisable to give the application a trial
run in the FactoryTalk View SE Client. That way, you can resolve issues that might occur
only at run time.
To run the new application you just created, create a FactoryTalk View SE Client
configuration file that specifies:
the type and name of the application the client will connect to.
the display to run initially, when the client starts. This can be the new display you just
created.
To create a FactoryTalk View SE Client configuration file

1. On the Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk View,
and then click FactoryTalk View Site Edition Client.
2. In the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard, click New, and then follow the instructions
in the wizard.
For details about options in the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard, click Help.
To run the FactoryTalk View SE Client

1. In the Completion Options window of the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard, select
Save configuration and open FactoryTalk View SE Client now.
2. Click Finish.
The graphic display you specified to run initially will open in the FactoryTalk View
SE Client window.
When you are finished testing, use the close button on the client’s title bar to close the
client window.
1-15
2 Exploring FactoryTalk View Studio
2 • Placeholder
what FactoryTalk® View Studio is.
opening an application in FactoryTalk View Studio.
parts of the FactoryTalk View Studio main window.
working in the Explorer window.
techniques for working in editors.
printing from FactoryTalk View SE.
About FactoryTalk View Studio

FactoryTalk View Studio is the configuration software for developing and testing
FactoryTalk View Site Edition (also called FactoryTalk View SE) applications.
FactoryTalk View Studio contains editors for creating complete applications, and contains
software for testing the applications you create. Use the editors to create applications that
are as simple or as complex as you need.
You can also use FactoryTalk View Studio to set up FactoryTalk Security services for the
applications you develop. For more information, see Chapter 5, Setting up security.
Optionally, you can use the FactoryTalk Administration Console to develop, manage, and secure
multiple applications. However, you cannot use the FactoryTalk Administration Console to create
or modify HMI servers and HMI project components.
To run FactoryTalk View Studio

View, and then click FactoryTalk View Studio.
Opening an application in FactoryTalk View Studio

When you start FactoryTalk View Studio, the Application Type Selection dialog box
opens. You can select:
Site Edition (Network) to create or open a FactoryTalk View SE network
application.
Site Edition (Local) to create or open a FactoryTalk View SE local application.
2-1
• • • • •
Machine Edition to create or open a FactoryTalk View Machine Edition application.

For information about developing machine-level applications, see the FactoryTalk
View Machine Edition User’s Guide.
To open an existing application

1. Start FactoryTalk View Studio, select the application type, and then click Continue.
2. In the New/Open ... Application dialog box, click the Existing tab.
3. Click the name of the application you want to open, select an application language,
and then click Open.
If the existing application is not set up to support multiple languages, <Select a Language>
appears in the Language list. You must select a language before you can open the
application. For more information, see Chapter 13, Setting up language switching.
Gaining access to the HMI Projects folder

To open an application in FactoryTalk View Studio, users need Windows read and write
access to the folder that holds the HMI projects.
A Windows user in the Power Users category might not have write access.
To set up write access for Power Users

1. In Windows Explorer, right-click the HMI Projects folder, and then click Properties.
The default path for the HMI Projects folder is C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\
Shared Documents\RSView Enterprise\SE.
2. In the Security tab, select Power Users from the list of group or user names.
3. In the Permissions box below the list of names, select the Allow check box beside Full
Control.
Opening the Samples Water application

To familiarize yourself with the FactoryTalk View Studio development environment, you
can open the Samples Water application that is installed with FactoryTalk View SE.
To open the Samples application

1. Start FactoryTalk View Studio, click Site Edition (Network), and then click Continue.
2. In the Existing tab, click Samples Water, select an application language, and then click
Open.
2-2
• • • • •
2 • EXPLORING FACTORYTALK VIEW STUDIO
Parts of the FactoryTalk View Studio main window
2 • Placeholder
When you create or open an application, its contents are displayed in the FactoryTalk
View Studio main window.
Menu bar
Toolbar
Explorer
window
Workspace
Browse devices
on the network.
View the
application.
Diagnostics List
Status bar
Menu bar
The menu bar contains the menu items for the active window. Each editor has its own set
of menus.
Toolbars
The toolbars contain buttons that provide quick access to commonly used menu items.
When you point to a toolbar button, the name of the button is displayed in a tooltip.
2-3
• • • • •
All FactoryTalk View editors use the Standard toolbar, shown here in its undocked form:
The Graphics editor has additional toolbars that are displayed when you open a graphic
display, global object display, or library.
The following illustration is of the Graphics and Objects toolbars, shown in their
undocked forms:
Explorer
The Explorer is the main tool for working in FactoryTalk View Studio. It provides access
to the editors you use to set up the application and create its components. For more
information about the Explorer, see page 2-7.
Workspace
The workspace is the blank area of the FactoryTalk View Studio window. You can drag
icons to the workspace from the Explorer, to open editors and graphic displays. For
details, see “Working in the Explorer window” on page 2-7.
Application tab
The Application tab contains the Explorer window.
Communications tab
The Communications tab shows the devices on the network available to the computer
hosting RSLinx® Enterprise. Use this tab for setting up network types and browsing
devices on the configured networks.
For more information, see Chapter 8, Setting up communications. For details, see the
RSLinx Enterprise Help.
2-4
• • • • •
Diagnostics List
The Diagnostics List shows information about system activities. It’s located above the
2 • Placeholder
status bar at the bottom of the FactoryTalk View Studio main window.
You can hide, move, resize, and clear messages from the Diagnostics List.
Use the Diagnostics Setup tool to select the types of messages that are displayed in the
Diagnostics List. For details, see “Message routing” on page 15-2, or click Help in the
Diagnostics Setup tool.
Diagnostic messages are preceded by a blue, yellow, or red icon. Blue indicates
information, yellow indicates a warning, and red indicates an error.
To show or hide the Diagnostics List

In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the View menu, click Diagnostics List.
When Diagnostics List has a check mark beside it, the list is visible.
To move the Diagnostics List

1. Click and hold the grab bars at the bottom left of the Diagnostics List.
To detach the
Diagnostics List,
drag the grab bars.
If you can’t see the grab bars, drag the top edge of the Diagnostics List, to make it larger.
2. Drag the list to its new location. To prevent the Diagnostics List from docking
automatically, press and hold the Ctrl key as you drag.
As long as it is undocked, you can resize the Diagnostics List. To do this, click an edge or
corner of the list, and then drag until it’s the size you want.
Removing messages from the Diagnostics List

To remove messages from the Diagnostics List, use one of these methods:
Click Clear, to remove the most recent message (at the top of the list), or to remove the
selected message.
Click Clear All, to remove all the messages in the list.
Removing a message from the Diagnostics List does not delete the message from the
Diagnostics log.
2-5
• • • • •
Status bar
The information that appears in the status bar depends on what you are doing in
FactoryTalk View Studio and where the pointer is. The status bar can provide information
about:
the active window or selected tool.
For example, if you position the pointer over the Open button on the Standard toolbar,
the status bar displays the following message:
the selected graphic object.

For example, if you select an object in the Graphics editor, the status bar displays the
object’s position, size, and name:
Workbook mode
Workbook mode provides a different way to switch between open windows in the
FactoryTalk View Studio workspace.
In workbook mode, windows are tabbed, making them easy to identify and select.
Switching between workbook normal modes

On the View menu, click the Workbook mode option.
Showing and hiding items in the main window

To show or hide elements of the main window (except the menu bar), click items on the
View menu: if there is a check mark beside an item, the item is visible; if there is no check
mark, the item is hidden.
The status bar is visible.

Workbook Mode is off. The Standard
The Explorer Window toolbar is visible.
and Diagnostics List
are hidden.
2-6
• • • • •
Working in the Explorer window
2 • Placeholder
The Explorer is the main tool for working in FactoryTalk View Studio. It provides access
to the editors you use to set up an application, and to create and modify its components.
FactoryTalk
Network Directory
Application name
Area
HMI server
Click the – symbol

to close a folder.
Components are
listed below the
editor’s icon.
Click the + symbol

to open a folder.
Moving the Explorer window

To undock the Explorer, use one of these methods:
Click the Explorer’s title bar, and then drag the window. To prevent the Explorer from
docking automatically, press and hold the Ctrl key as you drag.
Double-click the Explorer’s title bar. This makes the Explorer float in the middle of
the main window. You can then drag it to a new position.
Right-click the Explorer’s title bar, and then click a new docking location: Floating, or
MDI (Multiple Document Interface) Child.
2-7
• • • • •
If you click MDI Child, the Explorer becomes a window that you can move,
minimize, maximize, or restore, within the main window. You cannot move the
Explorer outside the main window.
As long as it is undocked, you can resize the Explorer. To do this, click an edge or corner
of the window, and then drag until it’s the size you want.
Opening and closing folders

The Explorer uses folders to organize editors.
To open or close a folder, use one of these methods:
Click the + or – symbol beside the folder’s icon.
Double-click the folder.
Click the folder, and then press Enter to open or close the folder, depending on its
current state.
Opening component editors

Use the editors in FactoryTalk View Studio to create or modify application components.
Editors are represented by icons in the Explorer window, or by items in menus.
To open an editor, use one of these methods:
Drag the editor’s icon from the Explorer to the workspace.
Right-click the editor’s icon, and then click New or Open.
If the editor can create multiple components, the shortcut menu contains New. If the editor
can only open a single component, the menu contains Open.
On the Tools or Settings menu, click the editor you want to open.
2-8
• • • • •
Following is a list of FactoryTalk View SE editors and their functions. If you can open an
editor from the FactoryTalk View Studio menu bar, the name of the menu is noted.
2 • Placeholder
To do this Use this editor
Set up runtime security accounts for FactoryTalk View, Runtime Security
assign security codes to users and groups, and assign login (Settings menu)
and logout macros.
Assign security codes to FactoryTalk View commands and Runtime Secured Commands
macros. (Settings menu)
Specify the type of system activity to be logged and Diagnostics Setup
where, when, and how it will be logged. (Tools menu)
TIP: The settings you specify in this editor apply only to
the computer you are using.
For HMI tag alarms only, specify what, where, when, and HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup
how alarm activity is to be logged. (Tools menu)
TIP: The settings you specify in this editor apply only to
the computer you are using, and only if the computer
contains an HMI server.
Add languages to an application, set up a default language, Languages
and export and import text strings. (Tools menu)
Open a command line to run FactoryTalk View commands Command Line
and macros.
Create HMI tags and set up HMI tag alarms. Tags
Create graphic displays and global object displays, or open Graphics (Displays, Global
the graphic libraries, to use the library objects. Objects, or Libraries icon)
Add images to an application that are to be used repeatedly Images
in graphic displays.
Create parameter files to specify tag names to substitute Parameters
for tag placeholders in graphic displays, so you can use the
same displays with different tags.
Create recipe files to specify values for input and display Recipes
objects in graphic displays.
Create local message files containing trigger values, and Local Messages
the corresponding messages.
For HMI tag alarms only, set up general features such as Alarm Setup
alarm severities and user messages.
For HMI tag alarms only, display a list of tags that have Suppressed List
alarm notification suppressed.
2-9
• • • • •
To do this Use this editor

Create tags whose values are derived from other tags, or Derived Tags
from functions.
Create events, which are expressions that trigger Events
FactoryTalk View commands or macros.
Create macros to run series of FactoryTalk View Macros
commands.
Re-map the FactoryTalk View SE Client keyboard to run Client Keys
FactoryTalk View commands.
Create data log models to specify where, when, and how Data Log Models
selected tag values will be logged.
Creating and modifying components

The Explorer manages components that represent physical files located in folders under
the application directory.
Displays components
are created using the
Graphics editor.
Displaying components
To display the components associated with a particular editor, use one of these methods:
Click the + sign beside the editor’s icon.
Double-click the editor’s icon.
Click the editor’s icon, and then press Enter.
Any components created with the editor are displayed below the editor’s icon in the tree.
Creating components
To create a new component, use one of these methods:
2-10
• • • • •
Drag the editor’s icon into the workspace.

Right-click the editor’s icon, and then click New.
2 • Placeholder

Opening components
To open a component, use one of these methods:
Double-click the component.
Drag the component into the workspace.
Right-click the component, and then click Open.
Adding components to an application

To add a component to an application, use one of these methods:
Drag the physical file from the Windows Explorer to the Explorer window in
Right-click the editor’s icon, and then click Add Component into Application. When
you use this option, you create a copy of the file in the application.
To add a component using drag and drop

1. In Windows Explorer, locate the file to add to the application.
2. Drag the file to the Explorer window in FactoryTalk View Studio.
The component is added to the Explorer automatically, under the editor used to
modify it.
To add a component using the Add Component option

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the editor used to
create the component you want to add, and then click Add Component into
Application.
For example, to add a graphic display, right-click the Displays icon, and then click
Add Component into Application.
2. Find and select the component you want to add, and then click Open.
Selected components are added to the Explorer, under the editor’s icon.
To select several consecutive components, click the first component you want to select,
press the Shift key, and then click the last component. To select several individual
components, press the Ctrl key, and then click each component.
2-11
• • • • •
About component names

When you name a component in FactoryTalk View Studio, the file name is created on disk
automatically. The component name shown in the Explorer window becomes part of the
file name.
FactoryTalk View supports long file names. With the path included, file names can be up
to 200 characters long. For example, there are 111 characters in the following path and file
name:
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Shared Documents\RSView Enterprise\
SE\HMI Projects\Bakery1\Gfx\Bakery Overview.gfx*
*The path given is for Windows XP or Windows Server 2003. In Windows 2000,
the third folder is named Documents.
The name of the component, Bakery Overview, is only 15 characters long; it could be as
long as 104 characters.
Using component names that contain spaces

Component names can contain spaces, like the graphic display name in the previous
example. When using component names with spaces in commands, you might need to
enclose the component names in double quotes (“ ”).
For example, parameter file names containing spaces must be enclosed in double quotes,
when specified using the /P parameter with the Display command.
For information about FactoryTalk View command syntax, see Appendix A, FactoryTalk
View commands. For details about specific FactoryTalk View commands, see the
FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
Avoiding names that conflict with commands or macros

To avoid problems when issuing commands and macros, do not give macros the same
names as commands. For example, instead of giving a macro the name Display, to avoid
confusion with the Display command, name the macro DisplayScreen instead.
Deleting, removing, and renaming components

In FactoryTalk View Studio, when you:
delete a component, the component and the corresponding physical file are both
deleted.
remove a component, the component is removed from the Explorer window, but the
physical file is not deleted.
rename a component, the component and the physical file are both renamed.
2-12
• • • • •
To delete a component and file

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the component you
2 • Placeholder

want to delete, and then click Delete.
To remove a component
In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the component you
want to remove, and then click Remove.
To rename a component
1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the component you
want to rename, and then click Rename.
2. In the To box, type the new name, and then click OK.
Restoring a component after renaming the physical file

If you rename a physical file in Windows Explorer, you will no longer be able to open the
corresponding component in FactoryTalk View Studio. You must remove the component,
and then add the renamed file back into the application.
To restore a component after changing the physical file name
1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the component, and
then click Remove.
2. Right-click the icon of the editor used to create the component you want to restore,
and then click Add Component into Application.
To restore a graphic display, for example, right-click the Displays icon.
3. Find and select the renamed physical file, and then click Open.
Techniques for working in editors

Many of the editors you will use to develop a FactoryTalk View application have similar
features, that require similar information. Knowing about these features saves time.
Gaining quick access to common actions

Shortcut menus allow quick access to actions you perform frequently, in different
environments.
In the Explorer, everything in the tree hierarchy has a shortcut menu, except the folders. In
the Graphics editor, graphic displays and objects in the displays have shortcut menus.
To open a shortcut menu

Position the pointer over an icon, graphic display, or object, and then right-click.
2-13
• • • • •
Browsing lists and components

The Browse button is displayed beside text boxes. Instead of typing information in a text
box, you can click the Browse button to open:
Browse button a list containing valid entries for the box.
a dialog box or browser, such as the Tag Browser, in which you can search for and
select a valid entry.
an editor in which you can create a valid entry.
Supplying tag names

Tags are stored in devices, data servers, and in the HMI tag database.
Tag names are used, for example, to specify connections for input objects in FactoryTalk
View graphic displays. To supply a tag name, use one of these methods:
Type the name of the tag. You do not have to create the tag in order to use its name,
but be sure to create the tag later, or errors will be reported at run time.
Click the Browse or Tags button (whichever is available) to open the Tag Browser,
where you can select or create a tag.
For more information about tags, see Chapter 9, Working with tags.
Selecting and building commands

FactoryTalk View commands allow you interact with and control application components.
Most commands accept parameters for added precision and control.
You can set up keys and graphic objects to run commands at run time. You can also run
commands from the HMI server’s command line, or create a list of commands in a macro,
and run the macro in places where the commands are required.
Use the Command Wizard for assistance with selecting and building commands.
Opening the Command Wizard

To open the Command Wizard, use one of these methods:
Click the Browse button beside a text box where a command is expected, for example,
in the Press action box for a button object, or in the Command Line.
Double-click in a box where a command is expected or in the Macros editor.
On the Edit menu, click Commands.
2-14
• • • • •
2 • Placeholder
When you click a
category on the left,
commands in that
category are shown
on the right.
To resize the list
boxes, drag this bar
left or right.
When you click a
command, its syntax
is displayed here.
For information about specific FactoryTalk View commands, click Help.
Building expressions
Many editors use expressions to compute values based on tags and functions. Expressions
can be complex logical expressions, or they can be tag names.
For more information, see Chapter 23, “Creating Expressions,” in Volume 2 of the
Printing from FactoryTalk View SE

From each FactoryTalk View SE editor, you can print selected items or the editor’s entire
contents.
To print selections
1. Select the item you want to print, for example, a record in an editor’s spreadsheet.
2. On the File menu, click Print.
3. Under Print Range, click Selection.
To print the entire contents of the window

1. On the File menu, click Print.
2. Under Print Range, click All.
2-15
• • • • •
Selecting a printer
You must install a printer before you can select it.
FactoryTalk View can print to a network printer. For information about installing and
setting up printers, see your Windows documentation.
To select a printer
1. In any FactoryTalk View editor, on the File menu, click Print Setup.
2. If you don’t want to use the default printer, specify another printer.
3. Choose the appropriate orientation and paper options.
Print Setup settings apply to the development computer only. If you plan to run the application on
a different computer, to allow printing at run time, you must set up a printer on that computer.
Printing at run time

To print graphic displays at run time, use the PrintDisplay command.
To let an operator print specific displays, provide a way to run the command for these
displays. For example, create a button object, display key, or client key using PrintDisplay
as the press action.
When you use the PrintDisplay command, FactoryTalk View prints the entire display,
even if parts are covered by other displays. Use the ScreenPrint command if you want to
print an image of whatever shows on the monitor.
For more information about the PrintDisplay command, see the FactoryTalk View Site
Edition Help.
2-16
3 Planning an application
3 • Placeholder
how to understand the process you are automating.
planning the layout of the network.
planning communications.
planning how to monitor and control alarms.
deciding when to use HMI tags.
designing a dependable control system.
setting up the run-time application.
designing a system that is easy to deploy and maintain.
integrating with other applications, and customizing the system.
Understanding the process you are automating

To design an effective control system using FactoryTalk® View Site Edition (also called
FactoryTalk View SE), it is important to understand the process you are automating.
Gather information from a variety of sources, and pay attention to details that might affect
the overall performance of the system. To get planning underway:
talk to operators and other experts who will use the system, to get their input about
ways to optimize plant operations.
talk to management and information systems staff, to find out what they need to
support planning and design decisions.
break up the process into its constituent parts. This will help you visualize how parts
of the automated system might be distributed over a network.
identify the process variables you need, and their locations in the programmable
controllers or devices.
determine which types of data servers the system will use.
determine which processes will generate alarms, and how to monitor alarms.
determine which parts of the process should be secured, and the most efficient ways to
restrict user access.
assess the need for redundancy in different parts of the system.
3-1
• • • • •
Planning the layout of the network

The layout of the network is particularly important to the design of a FactoryTalk
View SE network application.
For information about installing the FactoryTalk View SE software, and about system
requirements that might affect the network design, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition
Installation Guide.
Choose a Windows domain or workgroup

For network applications consisting of more than 10 computers, FactoryTalk View SE
requires a domain controller. The following domains are supported:
Windows® NT4
Windows 2000
Windows Server 2003 (native mode)
Do not install FactoryTalk Directory, the FactoryTalk View SE Server, or any other application
software, on the same computer as a Windows domain controller.
Windows workgroups
For network applications consisting of 10 computers or fewer, FactoryTalk View SE can
be used in a Windows workgroup network environment.
When setting up security for applications in a Windows workgroup, it is recommended
that you use FactoryTalk Directory user accounts. This simplifies account management,
by centralizing security services at the FactoryTalk Directory.
For information about user accounts, see Chapter 5, Setting up security.
For workgroup applications running in Windows XP, you must turn off simple file sharing on each
computer in the workgroup. For more information, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition
Installation Guide.
Determine which computers you’ll need

You can develop and then test a network application on a single computer. However,
network application components are usually distributed over a network, on multiple
computers.
For information about FactoryTalk View SE system requirements and limits related to
running network application components, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition
Installation Guide.
3-2
• • • • •
3 • PLANNING AN APPLICATION
Depending on needs, a network application deployed for production typically involves the
following computers:
3 • Placeholder
One computer running the FactoryTalk Network Directory server
FactoryTalk Directory is software that works like a telephone directory or electronic
address book, allowing the parts of an application to find each other on a computer, or
across a network.
FactoryTalk Network Directory manages network applications. All the computers
participating in a network application must point at the same FactoryTalk Network
Directory
For more information, see Chapter 4, Setting up FactoryTalk Directory.
One or more redundant pairs of computers running FactoryTalk View
SE Server
FactoryTalk View SE Server (also called the HMI server) stores HMI project
components, such as graphic displays, and serves those components to clients.
HMI servers also perform alarm detection and historical data management (logging),
and contain a database of tags.
The FactoryTalk View SE Server software must be installed on computers that are to
run HMI servers. For redundant HMI servers, the software must be installed on both
primary and secondary (or backup) HMI server computers.
For more information about redundant HMI servers, see Chapter 14, Setting up
FactoryTalk system availability.
One or more redundant pairs of computers running data servers
Data servers allow clients access to information in programmable controllers, devices,
and other data servers that comply with the OPC-DA 2.0 specification.
For information about data servers you can use in a FactoryTalk View SE application,
see Chapter 8, Setting up communications or Chapter 6, Working with
network applications.
RSLinx Enterprise is optimized for best performance in applications that use many clients
(more than 10) and large numbers of tags (more than 10,000), even when RSLinx Enterprise
is running on the same computer as the FactoryTalk View SE Server.
If you use an OPC data server instead of RSLinx Enterprise, for best performance, run the
data server on its own, dedicated host computer.
3-3
• • • • •
One or more development computers running FactoryTalk View Studio

FactoryTalk View Studio is configuration software for developing and testing
For information about FactoryTalk View Studio features, see Chapter 2, Exploring
FactoryTalk View Studio is also the tool for developing FactoryTalk View Machine Edition
applications. For information about developing machine-level applications, see the
FactoryTalk View Machine Edition User’s Guide.
One or more operator computers running FactoryTalk View SE Client

The FactoryTalk View SE Client software provides a run-time environment for
operators to interact with FactoryTalk View SE network and local applications.
For information about setting up FactoryTalk View SE Clients, see page 17-16 or see
the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
One or more maintenance computers running FactoryTalk View SE
Administration Console
The FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console is software for administering
FactoryTalk View SE applications after they are deployed.
The Administration Console contains a sub-set of the FactoryTalk View Studio
editors, allowing you to make minor changes to an application without installing
For more information, see “Administering deployed applications” on page 17-20
Planning communications
To plan communications for the control system, gather information about:
the types of controllers or devices in the plant, and the software that is available for
communicating with them. This will help determine the number of data servers the
application needs.
how the application will access and collect data in the controllers and devices.
which systems need to be redundant, to minimize disruptions to clients in the event
that communications are interrupted. This will help determine the number of
redundant data server pairs the application needs.
For more information, see Chapter 8, Setting up communications.
3-4
• • • • •
Determine how to access data

To access values in programmable controllers or devices, you can use data server tags,
3 • Placeholder
HMI tags, or a combination of both.
For many purposes, you can access the values in controllers or devices directly, using a
data server in the application. For some purposes, you will need to use tags from an HMI
server’s tag database.
To determine which method is most appropriate, you need to know what kinds of
controllers or devices you are using, and how the application will communicate with the
controllers or devices.
Collecting only the necessary data

Design the control system so only essential data is collected. This will reduce the
processing power required for data collection, and help control the amount of traffic on
the communication channel or network.
You should also consider data collection requirements when designing the layout of the
programmable controller data tables and the tag database.
Ideally, to decrease network traffic and optimize system response, tag addresses should
reference contiguous blocks of programmable controller data tables.
Planning how to monitor and control alarms

Alarms are an important part of most plant control applications because they alert
operators when something goes wrong.
An alarm can signal that a device or process has ceased operating within acceptable,
predefined limits, or it can indicate breakdown, wear, or a process malfunction. Often, it is
also important to have a record of alarms and whether they were acknowledged.
In FactoryTalk View SE, you can set up a traditional alarm system, using HMI tags.You
can also use FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services, to centralize the distribution of
alarm information from various devices in your application, to run-time clients and logs.
For more information about alarm monitoring and control, see Chapter 11, Setting up HMI
tag alarms, and Chapter 12, Setting up FactoryTalk alarms.
Planning an alarm monitoring and control system

Before deciding on the types of alarm monitoring and control to use in your system, plan:
what conditions will trigger alarms.
how operators will be notified of those alarms.
3-5
• • • • •
what information alarm messages should contain.

what actions will occur in response to those alarms.
which alarms will require additional actions that can be supplied using FactoryTalk
View commands.
Advantages of using Alarms and Events services

There are advantages to using FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services for alarm
monitoring and control, when compared with using traditional, HMI tag alarms.
For example, FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services provide a single, integrated set of
alarm information. This allows a consistent, system-wide view and record of alarm
activity, enabled by alarm servers that support FactoryTalk services.
The decisions you make about setting up alarm monitoring and control, will depend on the
design of your FactoryTalk View SE application, the types of devices the application
requires, and the processes you need to monitor for alarms.
Choosing device-based alarms

Device-based alarms are set up by programming alarm detection instructions directly into
Logix5000 controllers that support built-in alarms.
For a list of Logix5000 controllers that support FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services, see the
FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
If you use device-based alarms, you only have to program alarm instructions once, in the
controller: there is no need to create alarm definitions for HMI tags.
Since alarm detection takes place in the controller, processing is faster, time stamps are
more accurate, and alarm states are preserved more reliably.
FactoryTalk View SE Clients receive device-based alarms by way of Rockwell
Automation Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise), set up to support alarms and events. For
details, see “Working with Rockwell Automation Device Servers” on page 12-18.
Choosing tag-based alarms

Tag-based alarms are set up by specifying alarm conditions for tags in programmable
controllers (PLC-5 or SLC 500), or third-party devices communicating through OPC data
servers, that do not have built-in alarm detection.
Use tag-based alarms as an alternative to using HMI tag alarms, if you want to take
advantage of integrated FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services.
FactoryTalk View SE Clients receive tag-based alarm information, by way of FactoryTalk
Tag Alarm and Event Servers that you add to a FactoryTalk View SE application.
3-6
• • • • •
For details, see “Working with Tag Alarm and Event Servers” on page 12-21, and “Setting
up FactoryTalk tag-based alarms” on page 12-24.
3 • Placeholder
About traditional HMI tag alarms
In a FactoryTalk View SE application, you can also set up alarms for tags in a FactoryTalk
View SE Server’s tag database. These alarms are called HMI tag alarms.
Use a traditional HMI alarm system if your application uses HMI tags for other purposes,
and you want to monitor these tags for alarms.
FactoryTalk View SE Clients receive HMI tag alarm information, by way of the HMI
servers where the HMI tags reside.
HMI tag alarm information is not distributed by FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services.
This means that you cannot monitor and interact with HMI tag alarms, using FactoryTalk
alarm displays and logs.
For more information about HMI tag alarm monitoring, see Chapter 11, Setting up HMI
tag alarms.
Deciding when to use HMI tags

Use HMI tags in an application to provide extended capabilities, such as:
triggering an alarm when the value of an HMI tag crosses a specified threshold.
scaling or offsetting a value before sending it to a programmable controller or device.
security features that prevent unauthorized changes to a tag’s value.
flexible addressing. HMI tags don’t require hard-coded physical addresses or device-
specific variable names. This means you can re-use an application with other devices,
simply by changing the physical addresses the tag names are mapped to.
descriptive tag names, which some controllers or OPC servers do not allow.
For more information about HMI tags, see Chapter 10, Creating HMI tags.
Design the HMI tag database

Before creating an HMI tag database, take the time to plan it. A good design helps reduce
the maintenance time, and can improve device-to-FactoryTalk View response time.
Collect the following information:
process flowcharts (or process and instrument diagrams)
a list of programmable controller data table or register addresses for the application
3-7
• • • • •
HMI tag alarm requirements for the application
Organizing HMI tags

Before creating the HMI tags, plan how to organize them:
Develop naming conventions for the HMI tags. Choose names that are familiar and
logical to everyone. This makes troubleshooting easier.
Group related HMI tags in ways that make most sense for the application. For
example, group all similar devices, or group related areas of the plant floor.
To group related HMI tags, you can create folders in the Tags editor. For greater
organization, create nested folders.
For optimum performance, do not place all HMI tags in the root folder of the database.
It is also recommended that you limit the number of tags in any folder to less than 2000. The
number of tags in a nested folder does not contribute to the number at the folder’s root.
Designing a dependable control system

Planning which parts of the control system to secure and which to make redundant will
help you design a more dependable, available system.
Plan how to secure the system

When planning how to secure the control system, consider:
the types of users or groups of users that require access to different areas of the plant,
or parts of the control system.
Planning security for groups of users is recommended, to simplify management of users with
common security needs.
who will have administrative privileges, for example, to set up security for the system.
whether and when users must log on to the system, or change their passwords.
which HMI project components to secure, for example, to prevent accidental changes
to graphic displays, or to control who can write to certain HMI tags.
whether to restrict access to computers in certain areas of the plant.
For more information, see Chapter 5, Setting up security.
Plan to use built-in system availability features

A complete FactoryTalk system consists of all the networks, devices, and software
applications you have deployed, to monitor and control your plant or process.
3-8
• • • • •
Helping to ensure that the system can provide data in a secure and predictable fashion
depends on a number of variables.
3 • Placeholder
To minimize data loss and down time, and to help ensure that critical parts of your system
are always available to connected clients, FactoryTalk View SE provides these health
monitoring and redundancy features:
Server status monitoring of non-redundant and redundant application servers.
Disconnected operation. For example, connected clients can continue to run when
the FactoryTalk Directory becomes unavailable.
Redundant application servers. In a network application, you can set up
redundancy for application servers.
These include FactoryTalk View SE Servers (also called HMI servers), Device
Servers (RSLinx Enterprise), and OPC data servers (RSLinx Classic, and other OPC
2.0 Data Access servers).
Support for online changes to HMI tag and alarm properties. For information
about this feature, see page 14-23.
Replication of HMI server changes from primary to secondary HMI servers. For
information about this feature, see page 14-16.
Network connection monitoring on each computer (clients and servers) in the
system. For information about this feature, see page 14-31.
For more information, see Chapter 14, Setting up FactoryTalk system availability.
About redundant application servers

In theory, the ideal redundant solution includes at least one backup copy of everything—
hardware, software, networks, and so on. In practice, this is seldom feasible, or even
necessary.
Before setting up redundancy, plan:
which components in the system need to have backups—in other words, decide how
much redundancy is necessary.
where (on which computers) to locate backup systems.
the network layout, and calculate the processing load expected for each computer.
This information can help you plan which parts of an application can share hardware.
In a FactoryTalk View SE network application, you can set up redundant pairs of HMI
servers and data servers. For more information, see Chapter 14, Setting up FactoryTalk
system availability.
3-9
• • • • •
In addition, you can set up FactoryTalk View SE to send HMI tag alarm, data log, and
activity log information to an ODBC-compliant database automatically. You can also set
up an HMI server to buffer data locally if the database becomes unavailable.
For information about:
HMI tag alarm logging, see Chapter 11, Setting up HMI tag alarms.
data logging, see Chapter 25, “Setting up data logging,” in Volume 2 of the
activity logging, see Chapter 15, Logging system activity.
Setting up the run-time application

When designing graphic displays, decide on the best ways for users to navigate through
the application. To assist with navigation:
develop a hierarchy of displays.
create display templates.
apply visual design principles that help users interact with the displays.
For more information about working with:
graphic displays, see Chapter 19, “Creating graphic displays,” in Volume 2 of the
graphic objects, see Chapter 20, “Creating graphic objects,” in Volume 2 of the
Develop a hierarchy of graphic displays

Well-organized graphic displays present information clearly and consistently and guide
users through the system.
A hierarchy is a series of graphic displays that provide progressively more detail as users
move through them. Design the hierarchy to meet the needs of all application users,
including managers, supervisors, and operators.
Before designing individual graphic displays, plan:
an application-wide hierarchy of displays that includes overviews and menus.
how users will navigate through the hierarchy.
which displays to dock inside the FactoryTalk View SE Client window.
3-10
• • • • •
For more information, see Chapter 22, “Setting up navigation,” in Volume 2 of the
3 • Placeholder
Create templates to ensure consistency
To maintain a consistent appearance among all the graphic displays in an application,
present the same information and basic functions in the same places on each display. This
makes it easier for users to find similar elements as they navigate from display to display.
To ensure uniformity, develop displays with common elements that act as templates. Each
time you develop a new display, start with a copy of the appropriate template. For
example, a template might contain:
the company logo.
a title.
the date and time.
navigation buttons.
You can also create parts of the template using global objects. For more information about
global objects, see Chapter 19, “Creating graphic displays,” in Volume 2 of the
Apply visual design principles

When designing graphic displays, apply visual design principles that help operators and
increase their efficiency. Consider employing the following important principles.
Consistency
Be consistent in the use of symbols and color.
Be consistent with button labels and button placement.
When you design several displays, place the same kinds of buttons in the same
positions. For example, if there is a Start button in a certain position in one display,
don’t put a Stop button in the same position in the next display.
Clarity
Use symbols that are easily recognizable. For example, use the conventional ISA
symbols for tanks and valves.
Don’t overload the display with information.
Use standard, clear terminology, and avoid abbreviations or acronyms that the user
might not understand.
3-11
• • • • •
Use colors with recognizable meanings. For example, in Europe and North America
the colors red and green often mean stop and start. Keep color meanings consistent by
assigning red only to Stop buttons, and green only to Start buttons.
Use high-contrast color combinations, such as yellow on blue or dark text on light-
colored backgrounds.
Usability
If you’re designing for a touch screen, place important buttons where they will not be
blocked by a pop-up window. Users can’t press a covered button.
Also ensure that buttons are large enough and spaced far enough apart for users to
touch them easily, even when wearing work gloves.
Ensure there is always a clear way to move between displays.
Plan how to use trends

When designing trends, consider how they will be used in the application. For example,
a trend might be used to:
analyze process trends.
monitor production efficiency.
archive process variables to ensure compliance with government regulations.
Based on such considerations, you can determine which tags need to be plotted on the
same trend, from a data log model, against time, or against another tag.
For more information, see Chapter 26, “Setting up trends,” in Volume 2 of the
Plan run-time language switching

When designing an application that will support multiple languages, consider:
how operators will switch between languages at run time.
For example, you can create buttons that run the Language command when pressed,
for each language the application supports.
whether operators will need to switch languages. If so, ensure that they have sufficient
security privileges to open graphic displays that contain language switching buttons.
displaying the different languages consistently and effectively in graphic displays.
3-12
• • • • •
For example, if you use a caption to identify a button set up to switch to French, the
caption will change whenever a language switch occurs. To avoid this, use an image
3 • Placeholder
of the French flag on the button, instead.
For more information, see Chapter 13, Setting up language switching.
Designing a system that is easy to deploy and maintain

FactoryTalk View SE includes tools and features that can help you create applications that
are easier to use and maintain. For example, you can:
create global objects and distribute copies of the objects throughout the application.
When you modify the global object, the changes are applied to all linked copies.
For more information about global objects, see Chapter 19, “Creating graphic
displays,” in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
create special graphic displays to help deployment and maintenance personnel test an
application, for example, to troubleshoot communications problems.
link parts of an HMI application to logic in programmable controllers, using the
OpenRSLogix5000 command.
For example, you can link actions performed in FactoryTalk View SE to Sequential
Function Charts (SFCs) in RSLogix® 5000, to help operators track the state of
processes that are running in the plant.
For details about using the OpenRSLogix5000 command, see the FactoryTalk View
Site Edition Help.
Allow for multiple users

Behavior that is appropriate in a single-user environment might not be appropriate for
multiple users.
When designing a network application, consider issues such as the following:
If a graphic display that is to run on several clients uses a shutdown macro to stop a
derived tags file, closing the display on any of the clients will stop derived tags
processing.
Since derived tags processing occurs at the HMI server, this would affect all clients
that require the derived data. For more information about derived tags, see Chapter 28
in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
Since tag values are obtained globally, across a network application, do not use them
to store local information. For example, if you use a tag value to indicate the last
display shown, all clients connected to the application will receive the same tag value.
3-13
• • • • •
Integrating with other applications and customizing the system

If you regularly require data from programs such as Microsoft® Excel, or Microsoft SQL
Server, consider using the FactoryTalk View SE Client object model and display code
with VBA to integrate these applications with FactoryTalk View SE.
You can also use the FactoryTalk View SE Client object model to customize the control
system in the following ways:
Add custom alarm events

You can write alarm detection algorithms using PLC logic, and then create events in
FactoryTalk View SE to respond to the algorithms.
Validate operator input

Use VBA logic to validate the operator’s input, for example, to ensure that the value an
operator enters in a numeric input object falls within 10 percent of the value of another
numeric input object.
Create custom operator forms

Use the FactoryTalk View SE Client object model to populate VBA form objects with
data, for use in graphic displays. For example, use list boxes or combo boxes in graphic
displays to allow operators to select options such as recipe items.
Manipulate the FactoryTalk View SE Client window

Write VBA code to arrange graphic displays based on the size of the FactoryTalk View
SE Client window. This allows you to adapt an application dynamically to various
desktop sizes and resolutions.
Send custom messages to the Diagnostics log

Send specific messages to the Diagnostics List and Diagnostics log, to notify the operator
of problems with VBA code.
Secure the system

The FactoryTalk View SE object model allows you to obtain security information about
who is using the system, and to use the security information and events to control access
to the system.
For example, you can restrict a user’s access to a graphic display on a secured computer
by creating code that displays the graphic display on a workstation with a specific
computer name, only when the user is logged in with a particular user name.
3-14
4 Setting up FactoryTalk Directory
4 • Placeholder
what FactoryTalk® Directory is.
using FactoryTalk Directory in a networked system.
specifying the location of the FactoryTalk Network Directory server.
restoring FactoryTalk Directory when deploying an application.
what happens if the Network Directory server is unavailable.
About FactoryTalk Directory

FactoryTalk Directory software works like a telephone directory, or electronic address
book, providing a lookup service that allows parts of an application to find each other on a
single computer, or across a network.
Through the lookup service, application components such as tags and graphic displays can
be stored in their original environments, and yet be made available to all clients
participating in an application.
No duplication is necessary.
FactoryTalk View Site Edition applications use two types of FactoryTalk Directory:
FactoryTalk Local Directory (also called the Local Directory) manages local
applications.
All local application components, except for OPC data servers, must be located on the
same computer.
FactoryTalk Network Directory (also called the Network Directory) manages
Network applications can consist of multiple clients and servers, distributed across
several computers connected over a network.
One Network Directory manages all of the FactoryTalk products that participate in a
single network application.
Both the Local and the Network Directory are set up on the computer, when you install the
FactoryTalk Services Platform. For more information, see the FactoryTalk View Site
Edition Installation Guide.
4-1
• • • • •
FactoryTalk Directory in a networked system

FactoryTalk Directory is one of a set of FactoryTalk common services, used by
FactoryTalk View Site Edition (also called FactoryTalk View SE) and other Rockwell
Automation software products.
An automation and control system that uses FactoryTalk services and integrates
FactoryTalk products and components is known as a FactoryTalk system.
For an overview of FactoryTalk services, see “About FactoryTalk systems” on page 1-2.
The following illustration shows how a FactoryTalk View SE application might be
deployed in a networked FactoryTalk system, along with the Network Directory,
RSLinx®, and RSLogix® software.
FactoryTalk System
FactoryTalk Network Directory
FactoryTalk Security settings,

and system policies
Network Application - Waste Water
FactoryTalk Services Platform

FactoryTalk View SE Server
FactoryTalk View SE Clients
FactoryTalk View Studio
RSLinx Enterprise
RSLogix 5000
PLC-5 controllers Logix5000 controllers
4-2
• • • • •
4 • SETTING UP FACTORYTALK DIRECTORY
In the previous illustration of a networked system, computers hosting FactoryTalk View

SE Clients and FactoryTalk View Studio software use the Network Directory to find
4 • Placeholder
computers hosting FactoryTalk View SE Servers.
This lets clients gain access to various application services and components, such as
FactoryTalk View graphic displays and data log models.
The FactoryTalk View SE Servers in the system use the Network Directory to find
RSLinx Enterprise, to gain access to data on network devices (for example, PLC-5 and
Logix5000 devices), and to update the graphic displays.
FactoryTalk Directory in a FactoryTalk View SE application

In FactoryTalk View Studio, when you create or open an application, the FactoryTalk
Directory that manages the application is represented at the top of the Explorer tree, as
shown in the these illustrations:
Network Directory
(host computer)
Local Directory
(host computer) Application
Application
Area
HMI server HMI server
HMI project HMI project

components components
and editors and editors
Areas
FactoryTalk
FactoryTalk Tag
system settings
Alarm and Event
Server
FactoryTalk
system settings
For a local application (shown on the left), the Explorer displays a Local icon and the
name of the Local Directory’s host computer. For a network application, the Explorer
displays a Network icon and:
localhost, if the Network Directory server is located on the same computer as
the host computer name, if the Network Directory is located on a different computer.
4-3
• • • • •
About local applications

In a FactoryTalk View SE local application, the Local Directory, FactoryTalk View
SE Server, and FactoryTalk View SE Client all must be installed and run on the same
computer.
If necessary, you can add one RSLinx Enterprise data server, or one FactoryTalk Tag
Alarm and Event Server, which also must be installed locally. In a local application, only
OPC data servers can be installed on other computers.
For more information, see Chapter 7, Working with local applications.
Running network applications

A network application can be one of several managed by the same Network Directory, or
it might be the only application using the directory server.
Multiple applications, one Network Directory computer

A single Network Directory can manage multiple applications, allowing multiple
automation systems on the same network.
This means you could develop one application while another is operating in a production
environment. Alternatively, you could run multiple applications simultaneously, with each
application controlling a different facility within a corporate network.
Application users can be members of different domains. If you are not using domains, all
of the computers that connect to the network application must be in the same Windows
workgroup.
Multiple applications, multiple Network Directory computers

A network can also contain more than one computer running the Network Directory
software. This is useful for running multiple network applications that:
are separated by a slow network, for example, a wide-area network (WAN).
To do this, set up one Network Directory at each site on either side of the WAN.
do not need to share data with each other.
Each computer on the network can connect to only one computer running the Network Directory
software. You cannot connect a single computer to multiple FactoryTalk Directory servers.
Specifying the location of the FactoryTalk Directory server

For FactoryTalk View SE network applications, you need to decide which computer will
host the Network Directory server.
4-4
• • • • •
You can run the Network Directory server on the same computer as other FactoryTalk
View software components, or you can run it alone, on a dedicated computer.
4 • Placeholder
After installing FactoryTalk View SE, and before you run FactoryTalk View Studio, the
FactoryTalk View SE Client, or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, you
must use the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility to specify:
localhost on the computer running the Network Directory server.
the name of the computer running the Network Directory server, on every other
computer that is to participate in the application.
For information about deploying all the parts of a network application, see Chapter 17,
Deploying network applications.
To specify localhost on the Network Directory server computer

1. On the computer hosting the Network Directory server, on the Windows Start menu,
select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk Tools, and then click Specify
FactoryTalk Directory Location.
2. You are prompted to log on. Type your name and password, and then click OK.
To use the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, you must log on as a user
with administrative privileges at the Network Directory and in Windows, on the
computer where the utility is running.
3. In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, if the Computer hosting
directory server box displays localhost, click OK.
To specify the
location of the
Network Directory
server, click the
Browse button.
If the Computer hosting directory server box does not display localhost, click the
Browse button.
4-5
• • • • •
4. In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Configuration dialog box, click This computer,
and then click OK.
5. Click OK.
To specify the Network Directory location on computers

participating in the application
1. On the Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk Tools,
and then click Specify FactoryTalk Directory Location.
2. You are prompted to log on to FactoryTalk. Type your name and password, and then
click OK.
3. In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, click the Browse button beside
the box, Computer hosting directory server.
To specify the
location of the
Network Directory
server, click the
Browse button.
4. In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Configuration dialog box, click Remote

computer, type the name of the computer that is running the Network Directory server,
and then click OK.
4-6
• • • • •
4 • Placeholder
To find and select the Network Directory server computer, click the Browse button.
5. Click OK.
To specify a remote computer as the Network Directory server, you must log on as a
user with administrative privileges at the Network Directory and in Windows, on the
remote computer.
6. Repeat steps 1 to 5 on each computer that is to participate in the network application.
Setting up FactoryTalk Directory for a local application

For FactoryTalk View SE local applications, you do not need to do anything to set up the
Local Directory, as the location is set to localhost automatically, during installation of the
software.
For information about deploying all the parts of a local application, see Chapter 18,
Deploying local applications.
Restoring FactoryTalk Directory when deploying an application

After developing and testing a FactoryTalk View SE application, you are ready to move it
to the computer (or set of computers) that will run the application in a live setting, such as
the plant floor. This is called deploying the application.
To deploy a local or a network application, you back up the application first, and then you
restore the backed up components on the designated computers.
When backing up a network application, you choose whether to back up FactoryTalk
system information, such as user accounts and system policies, along with the application.
When backing up a local application, the system information is backed up automatically.
You can choose to exclude the information when you restore the local application.
If you restore backed up FactoryTalk system information with an application archive, the
restore operation replaces information associated with existing applications on the
4-7
• • • • •
computer, that are using the current FactoryTalk Directory. This means that any existing
user accounts, computer accounts, and system policies are overwritten.
If the application archive includes Windows-linked users, and you are restoring the application to
a different Windows domain, the archived users will not be recognized in the new domain.
For more information about backing up and restoring:

FactoryTalk View SE network applications, see Chapter 17, Deploying
FactoryTalk View SE local applications, see Chapter 18, Deploying
local applications.
What happens if the Network Directory server is unavailable

If the Network Directory becomes unavailable while client computers are connected to an
application, the clients will use a local copy of the directory, and continue to run correctly.
There is no need to restart previously connected clients; they will continue to resolve tag
addresses, read and write tag values, acknowledge alarms, and open graphic displays,
even if the tags and displays the clients require were never used before.
While the Network Directory is unavailable, you cannot modify the structure of any
dependent application. For example, you cannot add areas or servers to the application,
create new security accounts, or change system security policies.
When the Network Directory is available again, all dependent clients in the system
resume using the directory automatically.
Monitoring Network Directory status

In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, you can view the current status of
the active Network Directory server:
(connected) means all FactoryTalk products and components participating in a
FactoryTalk system located on the current computer, are connected to and
communicating with the Network Directory server computer.
(read-only) means FactoryTalk system participants on the current computer are
disconnected from the Network Directory server and are retrieving information from a
local cache.
(unknown) means the connection status is temporarily unknown, for example,
because the system is starting up and waiting to determine which server is active, or is
unable to determine the current status.
4-8
• • • • •
To check the status of the Network Directory server

4 • Placeholder
click OK.
To use the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, you must have administrative
privileges at FactoryTalk Directory and in Windows, on the computer where the utility is
running. For more information, see Chapter 5, Setting up security.
3. In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, look for the status of the
Network Directory server beside the label, Computer hosting directory server:
The status of this

Network Directory
server is “connected.”
4-9
5 Setting up security
5 • Placeholder
what FactoryTalk® Security services provide.
gaining initial access to a FactoryTalk system.
logging users on to and off from FactoryTalk View SE.
deciding how to secure a FactoryTalk View SE application.
setting up FactoryTalk accounts in FactoryTalk View SE.
setting up run-time security for HMI project components.
other ways to control run-time access to an application.
working with FactoryTalk Security accounts.
choosing the types of accounts to use.
setting up user and computer accounts.
setting up system-wide policies.
setting up security for FactoryTalk system resources.
understanding inherited permissions.
performing secured tasks in FactoryTalk View SE.
About FactoryTalk Security services

For FactoryTalk products like FactoryTalk View Site Edition (also called FactoryTalk
View SE), the FactoryTalk Directory stores information about which users are allowed
access to the parts of a control system.
FactoryTalk Security uses this information to provide two basic services:
User authentication verifies the user’s identity, and whether a request for service
actually originated with that user.
User authorization verifies the user’s request to access a software resource, based
on the access rights and privileges defined for that user.
For example, when a FactoryTalk View SE network application user logs on to
FactoryTalk View Studio, FactoryTalk Security services verify the user’s identity first.
5-1
• • • • •
If authentication succeeds, security services check permissions assigned to the user, to

authorize actions performed on secured parts of the application.
In a network application, security services also check whether the user is allowed to
perform authorized actions on the current computer.
In addition, FactoryTalk Security services manage system-wide policies, such as how
often users must change their passwords, or whether users can back up and restore
applications. For more information about these policies, see page 5-27.
About the FactoryTalk Directory

The FactoryTalk Directory software works like a telephone directory, or electronic
address book, allowing parts of an application to find each other on a computer, or across
a network. There are two types of FactoryTalk Directory:
FactoryTalk Local Directory (also called the Local Directory) manages
FactoryTalk View SE local applications. All local application components, except for
data servers, must be located on the same computer.
FactoryTalk Network Directory (also called the Network Directory) manages
FactoryTalk View SE network applications. Network applications can involve
multiple clients and servers on several computers, connected over a network.
FactoryTalk Security settings are stored separately for a Local Directory and a Network
Directory, even if both are in use on the same computer.
This means that you must set up security permissions twice—once for the Local Directory
and once for the Network Directory—to give one user access to a local and a network
application on the same computer.
For more information about the FactoryTalk Directory, see Chapter 4, Setting up
Finding more information about FactoryTalk Security

For information about FactoryTalk Security from a FactoryTalk system perspective, and
for detailed setup instructions, see the FactoryTalk Security Quick Start Guide or the
FactoryTalk Security Help.
To open the FactoryTalk Security Quick Start Guide

In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Help menu, click Online Books, and then click
FactoryTalk Security Quick Start Guide.
5-2
• • • • •
5 • SETTING UP SECURITY
To open the FactoryTalk Security Help

5 • Placeholder
and then click FactoryTalk Help.
2. In the Contents tab, open the book, Setting up FactoryTalk Security.
You can also gain access to the FactoryTalk Security Help, by clicking Help in dialog
boxes used to set up security for FactoryTalk resources.
Gaining initial access to a FactoryTalk system

When you install FactoryTalk View SE, during installation of the FactoryTalk Services
Platform, the Local Directory and the Network Directory are set up on the computer.
As part of directory configuration, these FactoryTalk user groups are created:
Windows Administrators is a group linked to Windows users with administrative
privileges on the computer.
Administrators is a group for FactoryTalk users with administrative privileges.
The following illustration shows where to find these groups in FactoryTalk View Studio.
The Windows Administrators group belongs

to the FactoryTalk Administrators group.
Both groups are created during FactoryTalk
Directory installation.
By default, the Windows Administrators group belongs to the FactoryTalk system

Administrators group.
This means that Windows users with administrative privileges on the local computer have
full access to local and network applications, including the ability to set up security for the
FactoryTalk system.
5-3
• • • • •
About the All Users account

During FactoryTalk Services Platform installation, an account named All Users is created
automatically, at the Local Directory and the Network Directory.
When you create a local or a network application, an All Users account is also added
automatically to the Runtime Security list for the application. By default, the account is
allowed all run-time security codes.
All of this means that initially, after the FactoryTalk View SE software is installed, any
FactoryTalk system user you create will be able to open, create, or modify an application
in FactoryTalk View Studio, or run an application in the FactoryTalk View SE Client.
To retain full access for all users, nothing further is required.
To restrict access to FactoryTalk system resources for selected users and computers, you
need to remove the All Users account, create accounts for the users and computers you
want to secure, and then give the accounts the appropriate security permissions.
For more information, see “Deciding how to secure a FactoryTalk View SE application”
on page 5-8.
The All Users account is visible in the Runtime Security editor, but not in the User Groups folder
that contains other FactoryTalk group accounts. For information about removing All Users from
Runtime Security and from the FactoryTalk Directory, see page 5-14 and page 5-22,
respectively.
Logging users on to and off from FactoryTalk View SE

After the FactoryTalk View SE software is installed, all users have full initial access to
network and local applications on the computer.
There is no need to log on, to run FactoryTalk View Studio, the FactoryTalk View SE
Administration Console, or a FactoryTalk View SE Client. The current Windows user is
automatically logged on to FactoryTalk View SE.
However, you do need to log on and off to change users, or to gain access to secured parts
of the FactoryTalk system.
The following sections describe how to log on to and off from FactoryTalk View SE
software components, and the FactoryTalk Directory.
Logging on to the FactoryTalk Directory

To log on to the FactoryTalk Directory in the current Windows session, you can:
open or run a FactoryTalk View SE application in the FactoryTalk View SE Client,
FactoryTalk View Studio, or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console.
5-4
• • • • •
use the Log On to FactoryTalk tool.
5 • Placeholder
To open the Log On to FactoryTalk tool
On the Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk Tools,
and then click Log On to FactoryTalk.
Log on to the Network

or the Local Directory.
The current user is also

the single sign-on user, if
single sign-on is enabled.
Click to change or log

off the current user.
In the illustration, the current Network Directory user is named administrator. If there was no
current user, Not logged on to directory Network would be displayed, the Logon date would
be blank, and there would only be a Log On button in the Log On to FactoryTalk tool.
For more information about logging on to the FactoryTalk Directory, see the FactoryTalk
Security Help.
About single sign-on

Single sign-on is a FactoryTalk Security policy that allows one user access to multiple
FactoryTalk products without having to log on to each product separately.
Single sign-on is set up as a system policy, and is enabled by default.
As long as single sign-on is enabled, and there is a user logged on to the FactoryTalk
Directory, that user’s credentials are checked first when a FactoryTalk product is started.
If FactoryTalk Security services authorize the single sign-on user, there are no further
requests to log on in the current Windows session.
An exception is the Specify FactoryTalk Directory Location tool. To use the tool, or to specify a
remote computer as the Network Directory server, you must log on as a user with administrative
privileges. For details, see page 4-4.
For more information about single sign-on and other FactoryTalk system-wide policies,
see the FactoryTalk Security Help.
5-5
• • • • •
Logging on to FactoryTalk View Studio

To log off the current user in FactoryTalk View Studio, or in the FactoryTalk View SE
Administration Console, on the File menu, click Log Off <Surname> (where UserName is
the name of the current user).
When logging off, you must close the currently open application.
After logging off the current user, on the File menu, you can click Log On to log on a
different user.
If single sign-on is enabled, changing the FactoryTalk View Studio user does not change the
FactoryTalk Directory user. To change the current directory user, you must use the Log On to
FactoryTalk tool. For details, see “Logging on to the FactoryTalk Directory” on page 5-4.
Logging on to a FactoryTalk View SE Client

Following installation of the FactoryTalk View SE software, the All Users account is
automatically added to the Runtime Security list and allowed all run-time security codes.
This gives any FactoryTalk View SE Client user permission to run a client, open displays,
write to tags, and execute commands and macros.
In a secured FactoryTalk system, you must remove the All Users account, add users to the
Runtime Security list, and then give the users the security permissions needed to run an
application. For more information, see page 5-14, page 5-11, and page 5-35, respectively.
Logging on when the client starts up

If single sign-on is enabled, when the FactoryTalk View SE Client starts up, the client will
attempt to log on the current FactoryTalk Directory user.
If there is no user logged on to the FactoryTalk Directory, the client will attempt to log on
the current Windows user if that user is set up as a FactoryTalk Windows-linked user.
If the Windows-linked user is not authorized to run the application, a message box is
presented, asking if another user would like to log on. To open the FactoryTalk View SE
Client Login dialog box (shown in the following illustration), click Retry.
To force all users to log on when a FactoryTalk View SE Client starts up, you can disable
single sign-on. For details, see the FactoryTalk Security Help.
5-6
• • • • •
Changing the current user while the client is running

To allow users to log on to a FactoryTalk View SE Client at run time, provide them with a
5 • Placeholder
way to run the Login (or Logout) command.
For example, in a graphic display, include a button that has the Login command as the
press action. When the current user clicks the button, the FactoryTalk View SE Client
Login dialog box will open.
If single sign-on is enabled, changing the FactoryTalk View SE Client user does not change the
FactoryTalk Directory user. To change the current directory user, you must use the Log On to
FactoryTalk tool. For details, see “Logging on to the FactoryTalk Directory” on page 5-4.
To log on a different user

In the FactoryTalk View SE Client Login dialog box, type the user name and password
of the user that wants to log on, and then click OK.
FactoryTalk user accounts that have the same name, whether the accounts are in the current
domain or from another domain, must log in using the syntax domain\user name.
Logging off the current user at run time

To allow the current FactoryTalk View SE Client user to log off from the client at run
time, provide a way to run the Logout command.
For example, in a graphic display, include a button that has the Logout command as the
press action. When the current user logs off, the following events occur:
1. All currently running displays close.
2. The current user’s logout macro runs, and the user is logged off.
For information about user macros, see “Specifying login and logout macros” on
page 5-15.
3. If the FactoryTalk View SE Client is using an activation key, the key is released and
made available for other clients to use.
4. The FactoryTalk View SE Client Login dialog box opens, to let another user log on.
You can set up the FactoryTalk View SE Client to log off the current user automatically, after a
period of inactivity. For details, click Help in the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard.
Changing the current user’s password at run time

To allow the current FactoryTalk View SE Client client user to change their password at
run time, provide them with a way to run the Password command.
5-7
• • • • •
For example, in a graphic display, include a button that has the Password command as the
press action. When the current user clicks the button, the Change Password dialog box
opens.
To change a password
In the Change Password dialog box, type the current password followed by the new
password (twice), and then click OK.
Whether a FactoryTalk user needs to change passwords, and how often, is set up as a system
security policy. For details, see the FactoryTalk Security Help.
Deciding how to secure a FactoryTalk View SE application

As part of designing a complete FactoryTalk control system, consider how—and to what
extent—you want to secure parts of the system.
You might decide that you only need to secure FactoryTalk View SE applications at run
time; or, you might decide that you need to secure all the FactoryTalk system resources
your application uses.
Make the decision based on what is appropriate for the application and its users. For
example, consider:
the roles that the different users, software, computers, and network devices are to play
in the FactoryTalk View SE application, and in the entire FactoryTalk system.
Keep in mind that security settings held at the FactoryTalk Network Directory apply
to all FactoryTalk products participating in a single network application.
the types of user groups you want to set up accounts for.
Setting up group accounts is recommended, to simplify management of multiple users
with similar needs. For more information, see page 5-24.
5-8
• • • • •
whether some user groups should have access to resources only from specific
computers, or groups of computers.
5 • Placeholder
which user groups should be able to create and modify application components.
which user groups should be able to set up security for the application. For example,
decide who is allowed to create or modify user accounts, or set up system-wide
security policies.
which system-wide security policies are appropriate for the entire control system.
For example, you might require users to change their passwords periodically, or force
users to log on every time they start FactoryTalk View Studio or a FactoryTalk View
SE Client.
which user groups should be able to run applications in the FactoryTalk View
SE Client and, in a network application, which parts of the application users should
have access to.
which HMI project components—FactoryTalk View commands and macros, graphic
displays, OLE objects, or HMI tags—you need to secure at run time.
The choices you make will determine the setup tasks you need to perform.
Securing FactoryTalk View SE applications at run time

FactoryTalk View SE manages run-time access to applications and to FactoryTalk View
commands and macros, graphic displays, OLE objects, and HMI tags.
These are the tasks involved in setting up run-time security for a FactoryTalk View SE
application:
In the Runtime Security editor:
add the FactoryTalk user and group accounts you want to secure.
assign FactoryTalk View security codes (A-P) to the accounts you add.
remove ALL USERS from the list of Runtime Security accounts.
To run an application in the FactoryTalk View SE Client, users and groups in the Runtime
Security list must have at least one FactoryTalk View security code (A-P), in addition to the
Common actions Read and List Children. For more information about FactoryTalk security
permissions, see page 5-35.
In FactoryTalk View SE editors, assign FactoryTalk View security codes

(A-P) to the HMI project components you want to secure.
5-9
• • • • •
You perform these tasks in FactoryTalk View Studio, as shown in following illustration.
To set up run-time security

accounts for an application, To assign security codes
on the Settings menu, click to FactoryTalk View
Runtime Security. commands and macros,
click Runtime Secured
You can also double-click Commands.
the Runtime Security icon
in the Explorer window.
In the Tags and Graphics

editors, assign security
codes to HMI tags,
graphic displays, and
OLE object verbs.
For details, see the following:

“Setting up FactoryTalk accounts in FactoryTalk View SE” on page 5-11
“Setting up run-time security for HMI project components” on page 5-16
“Other ways to control run-time access to an application” on page 5-20
Securing FactoryTalk system resources

FactoryTalk Security services manage access to system resources such as the FactoryTalk
Directory, the application itself, areas within the application, and participating users,
computers, and devices.
These are the tasks involved in securing access to these FactoryTalk system resources:
Remove ALL USERS from the FactoryTalk Local or Network Directory.
Create FactoryTalk accounts for the users, groups, and computers you want to secure.
Assign security permissions to FactoryTalk user and group accounts.
Set up system-wide security and product policies.
For more information, see the following:
“About FactoryTalk Security accounts” on page 5-21
“Setting up user and computer accounts” on page 5-25
“Setting up system-wide policies” on page 5-27
5-10
• • • • •
“Setting up security for FactoryTalk system resources” on page 5-28

“Understanding inherited permissions” on page 5-33
5 • Placeholder

“Performing secured tasks in FactoryTalk View SE” on page 5-35

For comprehensive information and setup instructions, see the FactoryTalk Security Help.
Setting up FactoryTalk accounts in FactoryTalk View SE

To secure a FactoryTalk user’s access to FactoryTalk View SE application components at
run time, you must set up run-time security for the user by:
adding the user’s FactoryTalk account to the Runtime Security list.
giving the account at least one FactoryTalk View security code (A-P).
Optionally, you can also specify login and logout macros for Runtime Security accounts.
For more information, see page 5-15.
After setting up Runtime Security accounts, you can set up the HMI project components
you want to secure. For more information, see page 5-16.
Setting up accounts in the Runtime Security editor

When you add a user or group account to the Runtime Security list, you are creating a
reference only, to an existing FactoryTalk security account.
If you want to add a user that does not exist, you must create the FactoryTalk account first,
and then add the account in the Runtime Security editor.
For information about creating FactoryTalk accounts, see “Setting up user and computer
accounts” on page 5-25.
If you are running multiple applications managed by the same Network Directory, you
have to add FactoryTalk accounts to each application separately.
In a network application containing multiple areas, all of the areas share the same
Runtime Security accounts list.
To open the Runtime Security editor

In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Settings menu, click Runtime Security.
You can also double-click the Runtime Security icon in the Explorer window.
5-11
• • • • •
To add users, or to view

or modify security codes
for the selected account,
click Security Accounts.
To add users and assign security codes to them

1. In the Runtime Security editor, click Security Accounts.
Set up security codes

by user or action.
List of user groups

with levels of access
to securable HMI
project components.
To add FactoryTalk
users or groups, click
Add.
To assign security
codes to the selected
user or group, select
the Allow check boxes.
2. In the Security Settings dialog box, in the Permissions tab, click the User option.
5-12
• • • • •
If you prefer to set up permissions by assigning user accounts to the selected security
code, click Action.
5 • Placeholder
3. Click Add, select the user or group account to add, and then click OK.
If you are setting up security for a network application, you must select a computer account
with the user account, before you can click OK.
4. In the Runtime Security list, select the account you just added.
5. Select the Allow check box beside the FactoryTalk View Security Codes you want to
explicitly allow for the selected account.
To select all of codes A to P, select the Allow check box beside All Actions, or the
check box beside the FactoryTalk View Security Codes heading.
6. Select the Deny check box beside the FactoryTalk View Security Codes you want to
explicitly deny for the selected account.
You can also deny a security code by clearing the Allow check box. If you do this, keep in
mind that an explicit Deny always takes precedence, even over an explicit Allow. This is
important if the account you are setting up security for belongs to more than one group.
For example, if John Doe belongs to one group that allows codes ABC, and to another group
that explicitly denies code B, then John Doe will only allow codes A and C. For more
information, see “Understanding inherited permissions” on page 5-33.
7. Repeat steps 3 to 6, for each user or group account you want to set up with Runtime
Security.
Example – Setting up run-time access to HMI components

Only users assigned the necessary FactoryTalk View security codes can run secured
commands, open secured graphic displays, or write to secured HMI tags at run time.
In this example, three user groups are added to the Runtime Security accounts list, and
given the following security codes:
The Supervisors group is allowed security codes A through P.
The Operators group is allowed security codes B, C, and E.
The Visitors groups is allowed Security B.
Then, the following HMI project components are given security codes:
A graphic display named Overview has security code B.
A graphic display named Boiler has security code C.
5-13
• • • • •
The DisplayClientClose command has security code D.

An HMI tag named BoilerTemp has security code E.
This means that members of:
the Supervisors group have full run-time access.
the Operators group can open the Overview and Boiler graphic displays, and can write
to the BoilerTemp tag. Members cannot run the DisplayClientClose command.
the Visitors group can only open the Overview graphic display.
If a user belongs to more than one group, the security codes allowed or denied each group
are combined for that user.
For example, if John Doe belongs to one group that is allowed codes A and B, and to
another group that is allowed C and D, then he is allowed A, B, C, and D.
Or, if John belongs to one group that allows A, B, C, and D, and to another that explicitly
denies B, then John is allowed only A, C, and D.
Removing All Users from the Runtime Security list

Following installation of the FactoryTalk View SE software, all FactoryTalk users have
full run-time access to network and local applications on the computer.
The All Users account is added automatically to the Runtime Security list, for each
network or local application you create. To set up run-time security for individual user or
group accounts, you must remove the All Users account.
You cannot remove the All Users account, until you add at least one other account to the
Runtime Security list.
Removing All Users from the Runtime Security list does not delete the corresponding
account from the FactoryTalk Directory.
This means that parts of the control system will remain unsecured for all users, even after
the account is removed. For example, all users will still be able to create and modify
applications in FactoryTalk View Studio.
To restrict access to FactoryTalk system resources, you must also remove All Users from
the FactoryTalk Directory. For details, see “About the All Users account” on page 5-22.
5-14
• • • • •
To remove the All Users account from the Runtime Security list
1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the Runtime Security
5 • Placeholder
icon, and then click Open.
2. In the Runtime Security editor’s accounts list, click Security Accounts.
3. In the Security Settings dialog box, select the ALL USERS account, and then click
Remove.
Specifying login and logout macros

You can assign a login and logout macro to any user or group account listed in the
Runtime Security editor. The macros will run when the user (or users) log on to or off
from the application at run time.
Any macro component containing any FactoryTalk View command can be a login or
logout macro. For example, a login macro might contain a command to open a specific
graphic display, and a logout macro might contain commands to redefine sensitive keys.
In a network application, a login or logout macro will only run in the area where it’s
located. For example, if you specify a login macro located in the Bottling area, when the
user logs on to the a FactoryTalk View SE Client, the macro will run only if the Bottling
area is the client’s home area.
You specify the client’s home area when you select components for the client configuration file.
For more information, click Help in the FactoryTalk View SE Client wizard.
Type in the macro

boxes, or click the
Browse buttons to find
and select a macro for
the selected user.
In the accounts list,

square brackets [ ]
indicate a user group.
5-15
• • • • •
For more information about logging on and off at run time, see “Logging users on to and
off from FactoryTalk View SE” on page 5-4.
For information about creating macros, see Chapter 27 in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk
View Site Edition User’s Guide.
To assign a login or logout macro to a user account

1. In the Runtime Security editor, click the name of the user or group account you want
to set up with a login or logout macro.
2. Type a macro name in the Login Macro or Logout Macro box.
To find and select a macro in the Command Wizard, click the Browse button.
3. Click Accept.
4. Repeat steps 1 to 3 for each account you want to assign a macro, and then click Close.
If the macro’s name contains spaces, you must enclose the name in quotes.
Removing Runtime Security accounts

Removing a user or group account from the Runtime Security list does not delete the
corresponding FactoryTalk account from the Network or Local Directory.
However, if you delete a user or group from the FactoryTalk Directory, and the account
exists in the Runtime Security list, it will be removed automatically the next time you save
changes in the Runtime Security editor.
You can also remove Runtime Security accounts manually.
To remove accounts from the Runtime Security list

1. In the Runtime Security editor, click Security Accounts.
2. In the Security Settings dialog box, select the user or group account you want to
remove, and then click Remove.
Setting up run-time security for HMI project components

FactoryTalk View SE manages run-time access to FactoryTalk View commands and
macros, graphic displays, OLE objects, and HMI tags.
You set up security for these HMI project components in FactoryTalk View Studio, in
their respective editors.
5-16
• • • • •
Assigning security codes to commands and macros

In the Runtime Secured Commands editor you can create a list of the commands and
5 • Placeholder
macros to be secured, and then assign a security code to each.
Only users or groups assigned the same security code as a particular command or macro
will be able to run the command or macro at run time.
Do not restrict access to the Login command.
To assign security to commands and macros

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Settings menu, click Runtime Secured
Commands.
Type or browse
for a command
or macro.
Select a security
code.
List of secured
commands and
macros
2. In the Command box, type the command or macro you want to secure. To find and
select a command or macro, click the Browse button.
3. Provide an optional description, select a security code, and then click Accept.
For details about options in the Runtime Secured Commands editor, click Help.
About the Unspecified_Command

In the Runtime Secured Commands editor, the first record in the Commands list is called
Unspecified_Command.
Any commands or macros that are not listed as secured commands will use the security
code selected for the Unspecified_Command.
Initially, the security code is the asterisk ( * ) , which means that any user that has at least
one security code will have access to any unspecified commands or macros.
5-17
• • • • •
If you leave the security code for the Unspecified_Command as the asterisk, you have to
list all the FactoryTalk View commands and macros you want to secure, in the Runtime
Secured Commands editor.
Assigning security codes to graphic displays

In the Graphics editor, you can set up security for graphic displays. You can assign a
security code while you are creating a graphic display, or you can assign it later.
Only users or groups assigned the graphic display’s security code will be able to open the
display at run time. Users must have at least one security code assigned to them, to open
graphic displays assigned an asterisk (* ) .
To assign security to a graphic display

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, double-click the graphic display
you want to secure.
2. Right-click in the display, and then click Display Settings.
3. In the Properties tab of the Display Settings dialog box, in the Security list, select a
security code other than the asterisk (* ) , and then click OK.
Select a security code.
Assigning security codes to OLE objects

In the Graphics editor, you can set up security for a graphic object with OLE verb
animation.
Only users or groups assigned the OLE verb’s security code will be able to activate or
modify the OLE object at run time. Users must have at least one security code assigned to
activate OLE objects assigned an asterisk ( * ).
Once an OLE object is activated, there is no way to control what an operator can do within the
associated program. Therefore, the only way you can secure the program is by assigning
security to the OLE object verb in FactoryTalk View.
5-18
• • • • •
To assign security to an OLE object

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, double-click the graphic display
5 • Placeholder
containing the OLE object you want to secure.
2. Right-click the OLE object, click Animation, and then click OLE Verb.
Select a
security code.
3. In the OLE Verb tab, select the verb that you want to secure.
4. In the Security list, select a security code other than the asterisk (* ) .
5. Click Apply.
Assigning security codes to HMI tags

In the Tags editor, you can set up security for an HMI tag, to prevent users from writing to
the tag.
Only users or groups assigned the tag’s security code, will be able to change the tag’s
value at run time. Users must have at least one security code assigned, to change the value
of tags assigned an asterisk (* ) .
You cannot assign a security codes to data server tags. To prevent users from changing the
value of a data server tag, map its address to an HMI tag, and then secure the HMI tag.
5-19
• • • • •
To assign security to an HMI tag

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the Tags icon, and
then click Open.
2. In the Tags editor, select the HMI tag that you want to secure.
Select a security code.
3. In the Security list, select a security code other than the asterisk (* ) .
4. Click Accept.
Other ways to control run-time access to an application

To further restrict access to a FactoryTalk View SE application at run time, you can
prevent users from leaving the FactoryTalk View SE Client environment.
You can also use the FactoryTalk View signature button in an application, to control
selected user actions.
Lock operators into the run-time environment

To lock operators into the run-time environment, you can do one or more of the following:
Limit the ability to manipulate graphic displays, by removing the title bar or
minimize and maximize buttons from selected displays.
To do this, in the Display Settings dialog box, clear the check boxes Title Bar,
Minimize Button, and Maximize Button. For details, see Chapter 19, “Creating
graphic displays,” in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
Limit the ability to manipulate the client window, by removing the title bar or
minimize and maximize buttons from the client.
5-20
• • • • •
To do this, in the FactoryTalk View SE Client wizard, clear the check boxes, Show
title bar, and Show system menu and close button. For details, click Help in the
5 • Placeholder
FactoryTalk View SE Client wizard.
Prevent switching to other applications. To do this, in the FactoryTalk View
SE Client wizard, select the check box, Disable switch to other applications. For
details, click Help in the FactoryTalk View SE Client wizard.
Restrict access to the desktop, using the Desklock tool.
To open Desklock, on the Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software,
FactoryTalk View, Tools, and then click DeskLock. For details about using DeskLock,
click Help within the tool.
Use the signature button to control user actions

To further secure commands, graphic objects, and tags, provide a signature button in a
FactoryTalk View SE graphic display.
With the signature button, you can control operator actions at run time, such as:
setting the value of a tag.
running a command.
downloading values to programmable controllers or devices.
For more information about the signature button, see Chapter 20, “Creating graphic
objects,” in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
About FactoryTalk Security accounts

Every user and group of users requiring access to any secured part of a FactoryTalk
View SE application, must have an account set up at the Network Directory or Local
Directory that manages the application.
For a network application, you can also set up accounts for computers, or groups of
computers, in the application.
Since user and computer accounts are stored at the FactoryTalk Directory, the accounts
you create for a FactoryTalk View SE application are available to any FactoryTalk product
using the same directory.
FactoryTalk Security settings are stored separately for a Local Directory and a Network
Directory, even if both are in use on the same computer.
5-21
• • • • •
This means that you must set up security permissions twice—once for the Local Directory
and once for the Network Directory—to give one user access to a local and a network
application on the same computer.
About the All Users account

During FactoryTalk Services Platform installation, an account named All Users is created
automatically, at the Local Directory and the Network Directory.
This means that initially, after the FactoryTalk View SE software is installed, any
FactoryTalk system user you create will be able to open, create, or modify an application
in FactoryTalk View Studio.
To restrict access to FactoryTalk system resources for selected users and computers, you
need to remove the All Users account, create accounts for the users and computers you
want to secure, and then give the accounts the appropriate security permissions.
Removing All Users from the FactoryTalk Directory also removes the account at all levels
of the directory hierarchy, including any application the directory manages, and the
directory System folder.
This means that all users will no longer have full access to all parts of the control system.
Before removing the All Users account from FactoryTalk Directory, ensure that you have created
at least one other account, that has permission to set up security for the directory. For more
information, see “Specifying which users can set up security,” next.
To remove the All Users account from the FactoryTalk Directory

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the directory node,
and then click Security.
2. In the accounts list, select ALL USERS, and then click Security Accounts.
3. In the Security Settings dialog box, select the ALL USERS account, click Remove,
and then click OK.
If you remove All Users from the FactoryTalk Directory, the corresponding account in the
Runtime Security editor will also be removed. To avoid unexpected results, ensure that you have
set up the necessary run-time accounts, before removing the All Users account.
Specifying which users can set up security

When setting up security, one of the first things you should do is ensure that only a group
of authorized, trusted users is able to change security settings at the FactoryTalk
Directory.
5-22
• • • • •
You can do this by allowing only members of the Administrators group permission to
perform the Configure Security action on the FactoryTalk Directory.
5 • Placeholder
The Administrators group is created automatically, for both the FactoryTalk Network
Directory and Local Directory, during FactoryTalk Services Platform installation. To give
individual users administrative permissions add them to the Administrators group.
A Windows Administrators group is also created and added automatically to the FactoryTalk
Administrators group. This means Windows administrators on the computer can also set up
security. For more information, see “Gaining initial access to a FactoryTalk system” on page 5-3.
For information about setting up security permissions, see page 5-27. For details about
adding users to a group, see the FactoryTalk Security Help.
Choosing the types of accounts to use

In FactoryTalk View Studio, you can create user and user group accounts that:
originate at the FactoryTalk Directory.
refer to Windows users and groups. These are called Windows-linked user accounts.
You can modify the properties of the accounts you create. You can also delete, disable, or
reactivate them. For details, see FactoryTalk Security Help.
Using accounts that originate at the FactoryTalk Directory

When a user that originates at FactoryTalk Directory attempts to access system resources,
FactoryTalk Directory determines whether the user’s name and password are valid, and
whether the account is active or locked out.
Use this type of user or group account when you want to centralize security administration
without relying on a Windows domain, or when the security needs of the Windows
network differ from those of the control network.
For example, you might consider FactoryTalk accounts when:
using a Windows workgroup, instead of a Windows domain.
all operators share the same Windows account to gain access to a computer.
the computer is always logged on under a particular Windows account. In this case,
separate accounts allow different operators to gain different levels of access to the
control system, independent of their access to Windows.
the computer automatically logs on to the Windows network after restarting, so it can
run control programs automatically.
For more information, see FactoryTalk Security Help.
5-23
• • • • •
Using Windows-linked accounts

When a Windows-linked user attempts to access system resources, FactoryTalk Directory
relies on Windows to determine whether the user’s name and password are valid, and
whether the account is active or locked out.
Use this type of user or group account when the security needs of the Windows network
match those of the control system. For example, you might consider Windows-linked
accounts when:
the control system is located in its own domain, perhaps separate from business
systems, and user accounts and passwords can be shared between Windows and
FactoryTalk software programs.
operators can log on and off computers with their own Windows accounts, and the
software programs they use start automatically.
For more information, see FactoryTalk Security Help.
Using both types of user account

If you decide to use both types of FactoryTalk Security user account in an application,
remember that Windows-linked accounts only refer to accounts that already exist at the
Windows domain.
This means that you cannot convert an original FactoryTalk account to a Windows-linked
account, nor can you add a FactoryTalk account to a Windows-linked user group.
Organizing users in groups

Whichever type of FactoryTalk Security account you decide to use, when setting up
security for a FactoryTalk View SE application, it is recommended that you create group
accounts and set up access permissions for them first.
Using group accounts makes it easier to assign and manage permissions for multiple users
with the same security needs. Rather than assigning permissions to each user separately,
you can create accounts for new users, and then add these users to the appropriate groups.
Later, if you want to change an individual user’s permissions, you can move the user’s
account to a different group. You can also change permissions for several individual users
at once, by modifying the group that the users belong to.
You can add Windows-linked groups to FactoryTalk groups. The Windows Administrators group
is added automatically to the FactoryTalk Administrators group during FactoryTalk Directory
installation. For more information, see the FactoryTalk Security Help.
5-24
• • • • •
Setting up user and computer accounts
5 • Placeholder
In FactoryTalk View Studio, create user accounts in the Users and Groups sub folder of
the System folder.
The following illustration shows where to find this folder in the Explorer window.
To set up user accounts,

right-click the User
Groups or Users folder,
and then click New.
To create a new user group

In the Users and Groups folder, right-click the User Groups folder, point to New, and
User group
icon
then click User Group.
For details about options in the New User Group dialog box, click Help.
To create a new user

In the Users and Groups folder, right-click the Users folder, point to New, and then
User icon
click User.
For details about options in the New User dialog box, click Help.
To create a Windows-linked group

In the Users and Groups folder, right-click the User Groups folder, point to New, and
Windows-linked
user group icon
then click Windows-Linked User Group.
For details about options in the New Windows-Linked User Group dialog box, click
Help.
5-25
• • • • •
To create a Windows-linked user

In the Users and Groups folder, right-click the Users folder, point to New, and then
Windows-linked
click Windows-Linked User.
user icon
For details about options in the New Windows-Linked User dialog box, click Help.
Windows-linked accounts refer to existing Windows accounts. If you want to create a new
Windows user or group, you must do so in Windows. For details, see Windows help.
Creating computer accounts for a network application

For FactoryTalk View SE network applications, in addition to specifying which users
have access to system resources, you can specify the computers where they have access.
You do this by creating computer accounts, and then associating the user accounts with a
computer or group of computers, when you set up security permissions.
If you do not want to associate user accounts with specific computers, you can use the All
Computers account when setting up permissions. This account is created automatically at
the Network Directory.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, create computer accounts in the System folder, in the
Computers and Groups folder.
The following illustration shows where to find this folder in the Explorer window.
To set up computer
accounts, right-click the
Computer Groups or
Computers folder, and
then click New.
The Computers and Groups folder does not exist for a local application. You cannot create
computer accounts for applications that are confined to a single computer.
5-26
• • • • •
To create a new computer

In the Computers and Groups folder, right-click the Computers folder, and then click
5 • Placeholder

Computer icon
New Computer.
For details about options in the New Computer dialog box, click Help.
To create a new computer group

In the Computers and Groups folder, right-click the Computer Groups folder, and then
Computer group
click New Computer Group.
icon
For details about options in the New Computer Group dialog box, click Help.
Setting up system-wide policies

In FactoryTalk View Studio you can set up product and system policies that determine
general characteristics of the system.
These specifications are stored at the FactoryTalk Directory and, like all settings in the
System folder, apply to all FactoryTalk products managed by a single Local Directory or
Network Directory.
The following illustration shows you where to find the Policies folder in the Explorer
window.
In the Policies folder,

set up product and
system policies for
an application.
Product policies
Product policies are sets of features that you can secure for the individual products in a
FactoryTalk system.
In FactoryTalk View SE, you can set up product policies for configuring and using secure
web sites under Internet Information Services. For details, click Help in the FactoryTalk
View SE Secure Web Site Setup tool.
For more information about product policies, see the FactoryTalk Security Help.
5-27
• • • • •
System policies
In a FactoryTalk View SE application, you can set up the following system policies:
User rights assignment settings determine which users can backup and restore
FactoryTalk Directory contents, or manually switch the Active and Standby servers in
a redundant server pair.
Health monitoring policy settings define system availability parameters. These
include how often the system checks network connections to remote computers, and
how long a network disruption can last before the system determines that
communications have failed.
Changing health monitoring policy settings can result in unexpected behavior. For most
networks, the default policy settings provide the best results.
Live Data policy settings determine which communications protocol will be used in
a FactoryTalk system distributed over a network.
Changing live data policy settings can result in unexpected behavior. Do not change the
settings in a running production system. For changes to take effect, all computers on the
network must be shut down and restarted.
Audit policy settings determine what security information is recorded while the
system is in use. This includes whether FactoryTalk Diagnostics logs an audit message
when a user attempts an action and is allowed or denied access.
Security policy settings determine general characteristics of security accounts and
passwords. This includes whether single sign-on is enabled, and how many invalid
logon attempts are allowed before an account is locked out.
For details about setting up system policies, see the FactoryTalk Security Help.
Setting up security for FactoryTalk system resources

FactoryTalk Security manages security for system resources including the FactoryTalk
Directory, the application, areas within the application and their contents, and the System
folder and its contents.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, set up user access to these resources by right-clicking their
folders or icons in the Explorer window, and then clicking Security. The following
illustration shows which resources you can secure in this way:
5-28
• • • • •
Set up access to
5 • Placeholder
Set up access to FactoryTalk Directory.
the application.
By default, the
application and the
Set up access to System folder inherit
areas in the permissions set up at
application. the Directory.
HMI servers always

inherit permissions
set up for the parent Set up access to the
area. You cannot set System folder, or any
up access to an HMI of its subfolders.
server separately.
In this way, you can
specify which users
can set up system
policies, or create
user and computer
accounts.
Modifying FactoryTalk Security settings

Use the Security Settings dialog box to add the users or groups of users that are to have
access to the resource, and then allow or deny permission to perform the actions that
define levels of access.
When setting up permissions for a network application, you can associate users and
groups of users with specific computers or groups of computers.
This means you can determine not only who has access to system resources, but from
which computers.
To open the Security Settings dialog box

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the folder or icon for
the resource you want to secure, and then click Security.
5-29
• • • • •
Right-click the Network Directory icon and select

Security, to set up access to the FactoryTalk
Directory. The application and the System folder
inherit permissions set up at the directory.
Set up permissions
by user or action.
List of user groups

with various levels of
access to FactoryTalk
Directory
To add groups (or

individual users) to
the list, click Add.
To set up the user or

group selected in the
Users list, with
permission to perform
actions, select or
clear the Allow and
Deny check boxes.
For details about options in the Security Settings dialog box, click Help.
The Security Settings dialog box in the illustration is for a network application. The
Computers column does not exist in the dialog box for local applications.
To assign FactoryTalk Security permissions to users

1. In the Permissions tab, click the User option for viewing permissions.
You can also set up permissions by action. This means that you select an action and
then specify which users or groups of user can perform the action.
5-30
• • • • •
2. Click Add, select the user or group of users to add, and then click OK.
5 • Placeholder
For a network application, you must associate the user or group of users with a computer, or
group of computers, before you can click OK.
The user or group of users you added should be selected (highlighted) in the Users list,
in the Permissions tab.
3. To explicitly allow permission to perform an action, for the selected user or group of
users, select the Allow check box beside the action.
You can also select the Allow check box beside:
All Actions, to select all the actions that apply to this resource.
a category of actions, such as Common, to select all the actions in the category.
4. To explicitly deny permission to perform an action, for the selected user or group of
users, select the Deny check box beside the action.
5. Repeat steps 2 to 4 for each user or group of users you are setting up with permissions.
6. Click OK.
Any users that are not set up with permissions are removed from the list.
For details about assigning permissions, see the FactoryTalk Security Help.
Specifying which actions users can perform

To secure access to a system resource, you specify which users or groups of users have
permission to perform actions on the resource.
In the previous illustration of the Security Settings dialog box, the Operators group has
permission to perform the Common actions Read and List Children, at the FactoryTalk
Network Directory.
This means that members of the Operators group are allowed to run applications managed
by the directory, in a FactoryTalk View SE Client. For more information about what the
Common actions allow, see the example on page 5-38.
About explicit and implicit permission

Selecting the Deny check box for an action denies permission explicitly. If you do this,
keep in mind that an explicit Deny takes precedence over an explicit Allow. This is
important if the account you are setting up security for belongs to more than one group.
For example, if a user belongs to one group that is allowed to delete applications, and
belongs to another group that is explicitly denied that permission, then the user will not be
allowed to delete applications.
5-31
• • • • •
Alternatively, you can clear the Allow check box for an action, to implicitly deny
permission to perform the action.
In this case, if a user belongs to one group that is allowed to delete application, and
belongs to another group that is implicitly denied that permission, then the user will be
allowed to delete applications.
Organizing actions into groups

To assign more than one action to a user or group of users in a single step, you can
organize actions into groups. For example, you can group actions according to:
roles or jobs (operator, supervisor, maintenance engineer, and so on).
the equipment user have access to (hoppers, mixers, ovens, and so on)
When you add an action group, it appears in the Explorer window, beneath the Action
Groups folder, and in the Security Settings dialog box, under User Action Groups, as
shown in the following illustration.
The newly added group,

Line Operator Actions, appears
in the Explorer window and the
Security Settings dialog box.
You allow or deny permission to perform an action group, just as you allow or deny
permission to perform a single action. For information about assigning permissions, see
page 5-31.
To add an action group

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the Action Groups
folder, and then click New Action Group.
For details about options in the New Action Group dialog box, click Help.
5-32
• • • • •
Understanding inherited permissions
5 • Placeholder
Inheritance means that any security settings you define at the FactoryTalk Directory,
extend to all system resources that the directory manages. These resources include the
application and areas within the application, plus the System folder and its subfolders.
Inheritance allows you to define basic levels of access for a broad set of users, across a
FactoryTalk system. You can then refine security settings for selected users as necessary,
by overriding permissions inherited by the lower-level resources.
In a FactoryTalk View SE application, an HMI server always inherits the permissions
assigned to the area in which it resides. You cannot set up access to an HMI server
separately.
However, the chain of inheritance that starts at the FactoryTalk Directory does not extend
to a user’s ability to access certain HMI project components at run time.
To restrict access to specific FactoryTalk View commands and macros, graphic displays,
OLE objects, or HMI tags, you must secure these components separately, within the
FactoryTalk View SE application.
For details, see “Setting up run-time security for HMI project components” on page 5-16.
To secure individual HMI tags at run time, assign security codes to them in FactoryTalk View. To
control access to tags in general, including HMI and data server tags, allow or deny permission
to perform the Tag action Write Value.
For more information about how inheritance works, see FactoryTalk Security Help.
Breaking the chain of inheritance

You can override inherited permissions by breaking the chain of inheritance.
To break the chain of inheritance

In the Security Settings dialog box for the resource, select the check box, Do not
inherit permissions.
You are prompted to choose one of these options, instead of inheriting permissions:
Copy the inherited permissions and make them explicit for the resource.
5-33
• • • • •
Remove all inherited permission from the resource.
Breaking the chain of inheritance applies to the resource, not to the user or group of users
selected in the Security Settings dialog box.
If you choose to copy inherited permissions, the change is applied to all listed users that have
any inherited permissions. If you choose to remove all inherited permissions, all listed users
that have only inherited permissions are removed from the Security Settings dialog box.
Using explicit permissions to override inheritance

You can also override inheritance by allowing or denying explicit permission to perform
actions on selected resources.
For example, in the table on page 5-38, the Supervisors group has permission to perform
all Common actions, except for Configure Security, at the FactoryTalk Network
Directory.
In the Security Settings dialog box for the application, inherited permissions set up at the
FactoryTalk Directory for the Supervisors group show as gray check marks, as in the
following illustration.
Explicit Allow
Gray check marks Explicit Deny
indicate inherited
permission to
perform these
actions.
To extend or further restrict this group’s access at the application level, you might make
the following explicit changes, to override the inherited permissions:
Select the Allow check box beside the Configure Security action.
Explicitly allowing the Configure Security action on the application means that
Supervisors can set up security for the application, add Runtime Security accounts and
assign security codes to those users, and secure HMI project components.
Select the Deny check box beside the Delete action.
Explicitly denying the Delete action on the application means that Supervisors are
prevented from deleting applications.
5-34
• • • • •
The changes are reflected in the Effective Permissions tab, as shown in the following
illustration.
5 • Placeholder
Check mark means
Configure Security
is allowed.
No check mark
means Delete is
denied.
When setting up permissions, or overriding inherited permissions, keep these rules of

precedence in mind:
Explicit Deny takes precedence over explicit Allow.
Explicit Allow takes precedence over implicit Deny.
When you use explicit permissions (Allow or Deny) to override inheritance on a particular
resource, these permissions become the ones that are inherited by lower-level resources.
Performing secured tasks in FactoryTalk View SE

To perform certain tasks in FactoryTalk View SE, users must have the security
permissions needed for access to the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the
task is to be authorized.
how to assign permissions to users, see page 5-31.
how inherited permissions work, see page 5-33.
Some of the tasks FactoryTalk View SE users can perform require additional permissions.
For information about permissions related to:
switching the Active and Secondary servers in a redundant pair, see page 14-19.
enabling or disabling, suppressing or unsuppressing, or acknowledging FactoryTalk
alarms, see Chapter 12, Setting up FactoryTalk alarms.
5-35
• • • • •
In the Security Settings dialog box, you might also see actions for other FactoryTalk
products, for example, RSLinx Enterprise. For details about product-specific actions, see
the product documentation.
To do this In this component or tool You need these security permissions

Open an existing network or local application FactoryTalk View Studio Common Read
and view its contents. FactoryTalk View SE Common List Children
Administration Console
Run an existing network or local application FactoryTalk View SE Client Common Read
and write to tags. Common List Children
Tag Write Value
At least one security code (A to P) set up
in the Runtime Security editor. For
details, see page 5-11.
The Common actions Read and List Children allow basic access to a network or local system. To increase access, add
security permission, as shown in the remainder of this table.
Open an existing application and modify its FactoryTalk View Studio Common Read
properties. FactoryTalk View SE Common List Children
Administration Console Common Write
Create an application and modify its FactoryTalk View Studio Common Read
properties. Common List Children
Add new areas, HMI servers, data servers, or Common Create Children
Tag Alarm and Event Servers to an Common Write
application.
Modify the properties of existing HMI FactoryTalk View Studio Common Read
servers, data servers, or Tag Alarm and Common List Children
Event Servers. Common Write
Create or modify HMI project components, FactoryTalk View Studio Common Read
for example, graphic displays or derived tags Common List Children
files. Common Create Children
Add HMI project components into an Common Write
application. Common Delete
Delete areas, HMI servers, data servers, or FactoryTalk View Studio Common Read
Tag Alarm and Event Servers from an Common List Children
application. Common Write
Common Delete
5-36
• • • • •
To do this In this component or tool You need these security permissions
5 • Placeholder
Secure access to application resources, for FactoryTalk View Studio Common Configure Security
example, the areas in an application.
Create and administer FactoryTalk user and FactoryTalk View Studio Common Configure Security
computer accounts. Common Create Children
Common Write
Common Delete
Add user accounts to FactoryTalk View (in FactoryTalk View Studio Common Configure Security
the Runtime Security editor). Common Write
Secure FactoryTalk View commands and
macros (in the Runtime Secured Commands
editor).
IMPORTANT: to perform these tasks, the
necessary permissions must be set up at the
application level.
Delete a network or local application. Application Manager Common Read
Common List Children
Common Delete
Rename a network or local application. Application Manager Common Read
Common Write
Copy a local application. Application Manager Common Read
Common Write
To back up and restore applications, in addition to having the following permissions, users must be allowed to back up and
restore FactoryTalk Directory contents. For details, see “To set up User Rights Assignments” on page 17-10.
Back up a network application. FactoryTalk View Studio Common Read
Common Write
Restore a network application. FactoryTalk Administration Common Read
Console Common List Children
Common Write
Back up and restore a local application Application Manager Common Read
Common Write
5-37
• • • • •
Example – Using the Common actions to set up security for user

groups in a FactoryTalk View SE network application
The following table shows how a system administrator might assign the Common actions
to four groups of FactoryTalk View users—Administrators, Engineers, Supervisors, and
Operators—to give them appropriate levels of access to a network application.
For information about overriding inherited permissions, see page 5-33.
To set up this level of access For this group Set up these permissions And then override
at the Network Directory inherited permissions
Full access. Administrators Allow Common actions: No changes.
This includes the ability to: Configure Security Retain inherited
create applications Create Children permissions at all lower-
level resources.
add areas and servers Delete
create HMI project components List Children
set up permissions for all resources the Read
FactoryTalk Directory manages Write
create new user accounts Allow Tag action:
add Runtime Security accounts Write Value
secure HMI project components.
See the previous table in this example, for
a complete list of tasks users with full
access can perform.
Same access as Administrators, except Engineers Allow Common actions: Explicitly deny these
members of this group cannot: same as Administrators Common actions on the
set up security for the Users and Groups Users and Groups folder (in
Allow Tag action: the System folder):
sub folder of the System folder.
Write value Configure Security
create users at the FactoryTalk
Directory. Delete
However, members of this group can Create Children
add Runtime Security accounts, assign Retain all other inherited
security codes to them, and use the permissions.
Runtime Secured Commands editor.
5-38
• • • • •
To set up this level of access For this group Set up these permissions And then override
at the Network Directory inherited permissions
5 • Placeholder
Run-time access (see Operators group, Supervisors Allow Common actions: Explicitly allow these
next), plus, members of this group can: Read Common actions on the
modify existing applications. application:
List Children
modify HMI server properties. Delete
Tag action:
create HMI project components. Write
Write Value
Create Children
Retain all other inherited
permissions.
Run-time access. Members of this group Operators Allow Common actions: No changes.
can only: Read Retain all inherited
load existing applications. List Children permissions at lower-level
However, members of this group cannot resources.
Allow Tag action:
modify HMI server properties, nor view
HMI project components. HMI servers Write Value
show in the Explorer window as locked.
run applications in the FactoryTalk View
SE Client.
write to tags at run time.
IMPORTANT: to restrict access to
individual HMI tags, in the Runtime
Security editor, assign security codes to
this group.
In addition to the Common actions listed, each group in this example is allowed the Tag
action Write Value, which governs general access to HMI and data server tags.
You can also set up run-time security for individual HMI tags. For details, see “Assigning
security codes to HMI tags” on page 5-19.
5-39
6 Working with network applications
6 • Placeholder
what a FactoryTalk® View Site Edition network application is.
key network application concepts.
how to create a network application.
how to add areas and servers to a network application.
setting up HMI server properties.
monitoring the status of an HMI server.
deleting HMI servers.
renaming, deleting, and backing up network applications.
About FactoryTalk View Site Edition network applications

In FactoryTalk View Studio, you can create FactoryTalk View Site Edition network and
local applications. Here’s what a network application looks like, in the Explorer window:
FactoryTalk
Application Network Directory
(host computer name)
Area
HMI server
HMI project
components
and editors
Areas
FactoryTalk Tag
Alarm and Event
Server
FactoryTalk
system settings
Local applications are described in Chapter 7, Working with local applications.
6-1
• • • • •
Parts of a network application

A typical FactoryTalk View Site Edition network application consists of:
areas, including nested areas, that allow you to divide the application into manageable,
logical parts, or to organize it in a way that makes sense for the process it is
controlling.
You can also use areas to separate servers that use the same names, for example, two
HMI servers running projects that contain the same set of graphic displays or tags.
one or more HMI servers, that provide FactoryTalk View components and services
to application clients.
FactoryTalk View applications must contain at least one HMI server. A network
application can contain up to 10 HMI servers, running on different computers on a
network, or up to five redundant HMI server pairs.
HMI project components such as graphic displays, HMI tags, and data log models.
one or more data servers, that allow clients to access information in programmable
controllers, devices, and other data servers that comply with the OPC ®-DA 2.0
specification, with or without the use of HMI tags.
You can use RSLinx® Enterprise and OPC data servers (including RSLinx Classic) in
a network application.
A network application can contain multiple data servers, running on different
computers on a network. You can also set up a redundant pair of host computers for
each data server in the application.
RSLinx Enterprise servers can be set up to subscribe to alarms detected in devices,
such as Logix5000 controllers. For more information, see Chapter 12, Setting up
FactoryTalk alarms.
Every vendor’s OPC data server is different. Some contain their own tag databases, like the
tag database in an HMI server, while others reference the tag databases or addresses that
exist in controllers, as is the case with RSLinx and Logix5000.
a list of users, plus the security codes that allow or deny these users permission to
access secured HMI project components at run time.
optionally, one or more FactoryTalk Tag Alarm and Event Servers, to allow alarm
monitoring and control for tags in devices that do not have built-in alarm detection.
For more information, see Chapter 12, Setting up FactoryTalk alarms.
6-2
• • • • •
6 • WORKING WITH NETWORK APPLICATIONS
The software programs that allow a network application to run—FactoryTalk Network

Directory, the HMI server, the HMI clients, and the OPC data servers—can be located
6 • Placeholder
on different computers on the network.
All computers participating in a network application must point at the same FactoryTalk
Network Directory. For more information, see Chapter 4, Setting up FactoryTalk
Directory.

Automation software products use a set of common FactoryTalk services to support
certain functions, such as diagnostic messages and access to real-time data.
These services, including FactoryTalk Directory, are installed with the FactoryTalk
Services Platform when you install FactoryTalk View SE. For an overview of FactoryTalk
services, see page 1-2.

This manual contains information about developing and deploying FactoryTalk View SE
applications. This includes information about how FactoryTalk View uses FactoryTalk
services.
For additional, detailed information about FactoryTalk systems, services, concepts, and
components, see the FactoryTalk Help.

Key network application concepts

This section presents some of the common terms and concepts used to describe
FactoryTalk View SE network applications.
FactoryTalk Network Directory

FactoryTalk Directory is software that allows the parts of a FactoryTalk View application
to find each other on a computer, or on the network.
6-3
• • • • •
For example, to access graphic displays in a network application, HMI clients use
FactoryTalk Directory to find out which computers on the network are hosting the HMI
servers that provide the displays.
FactoryTalk Network Directory (also called the Network Directory) manages FactoryTalk
View SE network applications. All of the computers participating in a particular network
application must share a common Network Directory, located on a network server.
For more information about FactoryTalk Network Directory, see Chapter 4, Setting up
FactoryTalk Security
FactoryTalk View SE network applications use FactoryTalk Security services to
authenticate and authorize application users.
During FactoryTalk View SE installation, Windows users with administrative privileges
on the computer are set up with full, initial access to FactoryTalk View SE applications
managed by a FactoryTalk Local or Network Directory on the same computer.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, you can create FactoryTalk user, group, and computer
accounts, and then determine which accounts have access to resources such as the
Network Directory, the application, and areas within the application.
HMI servers
HMI servers are software programs that supply information to clients as they request it.
An HMI server stores HMI project components such as graphic displays, and serves these
components to clients. An HMI server also manages a database of tags, detects HMI tag
alarms, and logs historical data.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, first you create a network application, and then you add one
or more HMI servers to the application. Each area or sub-area in a network application
can contain only one HMI server. For information about:
adding an HMI server to an application, see page 6-10.
setting up redundant HMI servers, see page 6-16.
specifying which components will run when an HMI server starts, see page 6-17.
6-4
• • • • •
HMI projects
HMI projects contain graphic displays, data log models, HMI tags, HMI tag alarms, and
6 • Placeholder
other services. An HMI project is created when you add a new HMI server to a
network application.
The HMI project is loaded by the HMI server, either when the first client connects to the
server, or when the operating system initializes. For more information, see “Specifying
how the server starts up” on page 6-15.
HMI clients
HMI clients are software programs that obtain information from, or write information to
HMI servers or data servers. FactoryTalk View Studio, the FactoryTalk View SE
Administration Console, and the FactoryTalk View SE Client are all HMI clients.
Areas
All FactoryTalk View applications have one system-defined area called the application
root area, which has the same name as the application. The application root area can
contain one HMI server, and one or more data servers.
In a network application, you can create additional areas to divide the application into
manageable, logical parts, or to organize it in a way that makes sense for the process it is
controlling.
For example, an area might represent a portion of a process, or a region within the process
facility. An automotive plant could be divided into areas called Press and Fabrication,
Body Shop, Paint Shop, Engine, and Transmission; a bakery could be divided into areas
called Ingredients, Mixing, Baking, and Packaging.
Alternatively, a plant with identical production lines could be divided into areas called
Line 1, Line 2, Line 3, and so on. This would allow you to add new, identical production
lines to the application by copying HMI server projects into new areas.
Each area you add to a network application can contain one or more sub-areas, and one or
more data servers. Each area or sub-area can contain only one HMI server.
About the home area

In a network application, the area that contains a given application component, such as a
graphic display, is called the home area.
When you refer to an application component without specifying the area, FactoryTalk
View SE uses the home area to locate the component.
For example, if an object in a graphic display refers to a tag without specifying an area,
FactoryTalk View assumes that the tag and the display are in the same home area.
6-5
• • • • •
If the tag cannot be found in an HMI server or a data server in the display’s home area, an
error is logged when the display is run.
Absolute and relative references

In a network application, you can use absolute or relative references to refer to application
components, such as graphic displays and tags, when building FactoryTalk View
commands or connecting graphic objects to process data.
Absolute references point directly at a specific component, by referring to the
component’s name and the area (or areas, in the case of nested areas) in which it is
located.
For example, an absolute reference to a graphic display called Detail in an area called
AssemblyLineNorth is:
/AssemblyLineNorth::Detail
An absolute reference to an application’s root area does not include the application’s name,
even though the name is displayed in the root area in FactoryTalk View Studio.
Use absolute references to ensure that a specific component in a specific location is

used, regardless of where it is referenced from.
Relative references point at a component relative to the current server or area. For
example, a relative reference to a graphic display named Detail is simply the display’s
name:
Detail
When a relative reference is used, FactoryTalk View assumes that the component is
located in the current area.
Use relative references, for example, to re-use component names in a network
application for a plant that has identical production lines. Such an application might
contain different areas to represent each production line; however, each area would
contain the same component names.
Absolute reference syntax

When using absolute references:
precede area names with a forward slash (/). Also use forward slashes to separate area
names from other area names.
separate area names from component names with two colons (::).
6-6
• • • • •
Example: Absolute and relative references to tags in the same
6 • Placeholder
graphic display
The graphic display named Detail, use in the previous examples, contains an absolute
reference to a tag named Speed in the AssemblyLineNorth area. The absolute reference is:
/AssemblyLineNorth::Speed
The display also contains a relative reference to a tag named Temp. The relative reference
is the tag’s name:
Temp
If you were to copy the Detail display to an area named AssemblyLineSouth, the display
would still look for the tag named Speed in the AssemblyLineNorth area, because it
contains an absolute reference to that tag.
However, the display would look for the tag named Temp in the AssemblyLineSouth area,
because it contains a relative reference to that tag.
If the tag named Temp cannot be found in the AssemblyLineSouth area when the Detail
display is run, a FactoryTalk Diagnostics error will be logged.
Example: Using absolute and relative references with the Display

command
To create a button that an operator can press to open a display named Overview, use the
Display command in the button’s press action, in one of the following ways:
To create an absolute reference to the display called Overview in the area called
Baking, type:
Display /Baking::Overview
To create an absolute reference to the display called Overview in the area called
Packaging, type:
Display /Packaging::Overview
To create an absolute reference to the display called Overview in the root area of the
application, type
Display /::Overview
To create a relative reference to the display called Overview, in the area where the
Display command is run, type:
6-7
• • • • •
Display Overview
Use the Command Wizard to build commands that take application components as parameters.
The wizard supplies the correct syntax, based on where the component you select is located.
System availability
To minimize data loss and down time, and to help ensure that critical parts of a control
system remain available to connected clients, FactoryTalk View SE provides features such
as server status monitoring, support for online changes, and support for redundant servers.
For information about these and other availability features, see Chapter 14, Setting up
Many of the availability features built into FactoryTalk View SE support both local and network
applications. However, you can only set up redundant servers in a network application.
About HMI server redundancy

In process monitoring and control automation, redundancy refers to the ability of the
system running the process to continue working correctly, when parts of the system
become unavailable or fail.
In a FactoryTalk View SE network application, you can set up redundancy on paired
computers, for critical components such as HMI servers. One computer in the pair hosts
the primary server, and the other hosts the secondary (or backup) server.
In the event that the primary HMI server cannot provide service to application clients, the
system switches to the secondary server, and FactoryTalk View SE Clients continue to
function normally. There is no need to restart client or server computers.
For more information, see “Setting up a redundant HMI server pair” on page 14-13.
For details about setting up redundancy for other application servers, such as third-party OPC
data servers, see the product documentation.
Language switching
The FactoryTalk View language switching feature allows run-time operators to view user-
defined text strings in an application, in up to 40 different languages.
At run-time, multiple FactoryTalk View SE clients connected to the same network
application can run in different languages simultaneously. For more information, see
Chapter 13, Setting up language switching.
6-8
• • • • •
Creating network applications
6 • Placeholder
To create a network application, in FactoryTalk View Studio, first you create the
application, and then you add elements such as areas, HMI servers, data servers, and
FactoryTalk Tag Alarm and Event Servers.
To create a network application

and then click FactoryTalk View Studio.
2. In the Application Type Selection dialog box, select Site Edition (Network), and then
click Continue.
3. In the New/Open Site Edition (Network) Application dialog box, click the New tab.
The application name

can be up to
32 characters long.
The application
language can be any
Windows language.
then click Create.
In the Explorer window, the application icon and name are displayed beneath the
Network Directory icon.
About FactoryTalk Security permissions

By default, after the product software is installed, all FactoryTalk users are able to
perform most development and run-time tasks in a FactoryTalk View SE application.
6-9
• • • • •
However, if you secure parts of the application, you must give users the FactoryTalk
Security permissions needed to perform certain tasks.
To create an application and modify its properties, users must be allowed the following
Common actions, at the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the task is to be
authorized.
To do this Users need these permissions

Create an application and modify its Common Read
Common Write
Common Create Children
For information about assigning security permissions, see Chapter 5, Setting up security.
Adding areas and servers to a network application

A network applications can consist of one or more areas, up to 10 HMI servers (one per
area or subarea), and, if necessary, multiple data servers and FactoryTalk Tag Alarm and
Event Servers. You add these elements to the application, after you create it.
Adding and deleting areas

You can add and delete areas in a network application. You cannot copy areas.
To add an area
1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the application root
or right-click an area name, and then click New Area.
2. In the New Area dialog box, type a name for the area, and an optional description, and
then click OK.
To delete an area
Right-click the area you want to delete, and then click Delete.
When you delete an area, HMI servers and data servers located in the area are not
deleted from disk.
Adding an HMI server

After you create a network application, you must add at least one HMI server, either to the
application’s root area, or to an area you have added.
A network application can contain multiple HMI servers, but each area in an application
can contain only one HMI server.
6-10
• • • • •
To add an HMI server

6 • Placeholder
or right-click an area name, click Add New Server, and then click HMI Server.
2. In the Add HMI Server wizard, in the Select Operations window, click one of the
following options:
Create a new HMI server. When you create an HMI server, the server’s HMI
project is created automatically.
Copy an HMI server that already exists. After you have copied an HMI server,
changes made to the original do not affect the copy, or vice versa.
Import a project from RSView32, FactoryTalk View SE, or FactoryTalk View
Machine Edition, as the basis for the new HMI server. After you have copied a
project, changes made to the original do not affect the copy, or vice versa.
Attach to an existing HMI server without making a copy of the HMI server.
You cannot attach to an existing HMI server that is being used in another application.
3. Click Next, and then follow the instructions in the wizard to finish adding the server.
The Add process faceplates dialog box opens, if it’s set to display when you create a new HMI
server. If you don’t want to add faceplates, click Cancel to close the dialog box, without affecting
server creation. For more information about adding faceplates, see page 19-26.
After adding the HMI server, you can set up its properties. For details, see page 6-14.
Then, you can use editors in the Explorer window to create HMI project components,
such as graphic displays, HMI tags, and data log models.
6-11
• • • • •
Adding a data server

Each area in a network application can contain one or more data servers.
To add an RSLinx Enterprise data server

or right-click an area name, click Add New Server, and then click Rockwell
Automation Device Server (RSLinx Enterprise).
2. Set up server properties, such as the name and location of the server, whether to
provide redundancy using a secondary server, and whether the server will support
alarms and events.
For details, see the RSLinx Enterprise product documentation.
To add an OPC data server

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the application root,
or right-click an area name, click Add New Server, and then click OPC Data Server.
2. Set up properties, such as the name and location of the server, and whether to provide
redundancy using a secondary server.
For details, see the RSLinx Classic (or other OPC data server) product documentation.
For additional information about setting up RSLinx and OPC data servers, see Chapter 8,
Setting up communications.
Adding a Tag Alarm and Event Server

Optionally, you can add FactoryTalk Tag Alarm and Event Servers to an application.
Tag Alarm and Event Servers use FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services to monitor and
control alarms for tags in programmable controllers (PLC-5 or SLC 500) and other
devices, that do not have built-in alarm detection.
For more information about Tag Alarm and Event Servers, see Chapter 12, Setting up
FactoryTalk alarms.
Deciding when to use multiple servers

A network application does not require more than one HMI server or data server, but there
are circumstances in which it is helpful to use additional servers.
For example, adding servers allows you to provide redundant operation for HMI servers
or data servers at run time. It also allows different integrators to work on different HMI
servers, without worrying about name collisions or needing to integrate all the files later.
6-12
• • • • •
Adding servers for redundant operation

You can set up redundant HMI servers and data servers, to allow an application to use
6 • Placeholder
secondary servers in the event that the primary servers goes out of service.
You must set up redundancy separately for each server in an application. For more
information, see Chapter 14, Setting up FactoryTalk system availability.
Adding servers for load balancing

Over time, an HMI project might increase in size, or the number of clients connecting to
an HMI server or data server might increase to the point where the computer running the
server becomes overloaded.
To balance the load, install another HMI server or data server on a separate computer, and
then move some of the HMI project components, or some of the OPC server tags, to the
new server.
This distributes processing more effectively across computers, and provides better
performance.
Running multiple HMI servers

Each area in a network application can contain only one HMI server.
When deploying a network application for production, ensure that there are no more than
two HMI servers running on each host computer. If the HMI servers are primary and
secondary partners in a redundant pair, only one server per computer is permitted.
For more information about system limits and requirements, see the FactoryTalk View Site
Edition Installation Guide.
Providing HMI server names

The FactoryTalk Directory stores HMI server names and does not delete them, even if you
remove an HMI server from all the applications in which it is used, and then delete the
HMI server’s project files.
This means that every HMI server must have a unique name:
You cannot re-use an HMI server’s name, even after you delete the HMI server from
an application.
If multiple users share the same FactoryTalk Directory, the names of all HMI servers
created by all users must be unique.
Similarly, if multiple applications share the same FactoryTalk Directory, the name of
each HMI server in each application must be unique.
6-13
• • • • •

To add servers to an application, or to add or delete areas, users must be allowed the
following Common actions, at the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the
To do this Users need these security permissions

Add new areas, HMI servers, data Common Read
servers, or Tag Alarm and Event Common List Children
Servers to an application. Common Write
Delete an area from an application. Common Read
Common Delete
Setting up HMI server properties

After adding an HMI server to a network application, use the HMI Server Properties
dialog box to:
select a startup type for the HMI server.
set up redundancy for the HMI server, and specify the name of the second computer
that will host the redundant HMI server.
select the components that will run when the HMI server starts up.
specify a macro that will run when the HMI server shuts down.
if redundancy has been set up, specify a macro that will run when the HMI server
becomes active, or goes into standby mode.
change the name of the computer on which the HMI server is running.
You must set up the properties of each HMI server in a network application separately.
6-14
• • • • •
To open the HMI Server Properties dialog box

In FactoryTalk View Studio or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, in
6 • Placeholder

the Explorer window, right-click the HMI server icon, and then click Properties.
For details about options in the HMI Server Properties dialog box, click Help.
Changing the name of the host computer

In the General tab of the HMI Server Properties dialog box, the box labeled Computer
hosting the server, displays the name of the computer on which the HMI server is running.
To change to the name of the host computer, a copy of the HMI server must exist on the
computer that will be the new host.
Specifying how the server starts up

You can set up an HMI server to start on demand, when the first client connects to it, or to
start when the operating system initializes.
6-15
• • • • •
Starting the HMI server when the first client connects to it

An HMI server set up to start on demand is loaded when the first client gains access to the
HMI server project. The server is unloaded when the last client connected to it is closed.
Start HMI servers on demand only when the control system is under development. In a
run-time environment, the HMI server should start when the operating system starts, to
ensure that no HMI tag alarms or logged data are missed.
An unlicensed HMI server can only be set up to start on demand.
Starting the HMI server when the operating system initializes

An HMI server set up to start when the operating system initializes is loaded when
Windows starts up. You must use this option to set up redundancy for the HMI server.
This startup option is also preferred for normal use at run time, as it allows clients to
connect quickly, and ensures that the HMI server will resume operating automatically, if
its host computer is restarted.
Because the HMI server runs as a service, users do not have to log on to Windows to
make the HMI server run.
If you set up redundancy for an HMI server, you can run components when the server
starts up, or you can specify macros to start components when the server becomes active.
To unload an HMI server that starts when Windows starts, you can change its startup type
to on demand, and then close all connected clients.
If you change an HMI server’s startup type, you must restart the server’s host computer for the
change to take effect.
Alternatively, you can use the FactoryTalk View HMI Service Manager to stop HMI
services. For details, see page 17-13.
Setting up HMI server redundancy

To minimize disruptions to clients if the HMI server fails, in the Redundancy tab of the
HMI Server Properties dialog box, select the check box, Provide redundancy using a
secondary server.
This option is available only if the HMI server’s startup type is set to Load and run startup
components when operating system initializes. For more information about HMI server startup
types, see page 6-15.
6-16
• • • • •
Selecting the secondary server

In FactoryTalk View SE, the redundant (or backup) server is called the secondary server.
6 • Placeholder
To specify the secondary server in a redundant pair, in the Redundancy tab of the HMI
Server Properties dialog box, provide the name of the computer hosting the secondary
HMI server.
The settings you specify in the Redundancy tab for the primary HMI server are saved with
the application, and are the same for both the primary and the secondary server. No further
setup is required, on the computer hosting the secondary server.
For more information setting up redundant HMI servers, see Chapter 14, Setting up
Replicating changes to the secondary HMI server

In a FactoryTalk View SE network application, you can modify tag properties and alarm
conditions at run time, and have those changes take effect at connected clients, without
restarting the clients.
In an application containing redundant HMI servers, you can replicate changes made at
the primary server, to the secondary server. For details, see page 14-16.
Selecting startup and shutdown components

In the Components tab of the HMI Server Properties dialog box, select the check box for
each of the items you want to run when the HMI server starts or stops, including:
which components will run when the HMI server starts up.
which macros will run when the HMI server shuts down.
which macros will run when the system switches to the secondary HMI server, or
back to the primary HMI server.
Where required, specify the name of the component. For details about options in the
Components tab, click Help.
For information about macros, see Chapter 27, “Creating macros,” in Volume 2 of the
The order of items in the Components tab is not the order in which the items will run when the
HMI server starts up. If components must run in a particular order, create a macro to start the
components, and then select the macro to run when the HMI server starts.
6-17
• • • • •
Running a macro when the HMI server becomes active

The macro that runs when an HMI server becomes active is called the On active macro.
An HMI server can become active if another HMI server fails, or if it is the active server
at startup time.
Any FactoryTalk View macro can be used as the On active macro. If you have not set up a
secondary server in the Redundancy tab, the option to run an On active macro is not
available.
Running a macro when the HMI server goes into standby mode
The macro that runs when an HMI server goes into standby mode is called the On standby
macro.
For example, when a primary HMI server recovers, the system switches from the active
secondary back to the primary server. Once the primary server becomes active, the
secondary switches to standby, and its On standby macro runs.
Any FactoryTalk View macro can be used as the On standby macro. If you have not set up
a secondary server in the Redundancy tab, the option to run an On standby macro is not
available.
The On standby macro will not run if the active HMI server fails in such a way that it cannot run
the macro, for example, if power to the server computer fails.
Starting and stopping an HMI server’s components

In the HMI Server Properties dialog box, you can run the server’s startup components
manually, or stop all server components running on the computer.
If you have set up redundancy for an HMI server, you can also start or stop the secondary
server’s components manually.
For details about starting and stopping HMI server components, see page 17-12.
Starting and stopping HMI services

Use the FactoryTalk View SE Service Manager to start or stop the HMI services running
on a computer.
When you stop the HMI services, clients are disconnected, all HMI servers running on
the computer are shut down, and the activation keys used by the HMI servers are released.
When you start the HMI services, clients are allowed to connect to HMI servers on the
computer.
For details about starting or stopping HMI services, see page 17-13.
6-18
• • • • •

6 • Placeholder
To modify HMI server properties, users must be allowed the following Common actions,
at the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the task is to be authorized.

Modify HMI server properties. Common Read
Common Write
Monitoring the status of an HMI server

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Server Status dialog box, you can view the operational
status of an HMI server, to determine whether the server is ready to provide service, and
to troubleshoot problems.
For example, an HMI server in the Active state is fully loaded and ready to provide
service to connected clients. A client can be any of FactoryTalk View Studio, a
FactoryTalk View SE Client, or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console.
For more information about server states, see “Monitoring the status of application
servers” on page 14-2.
To open the Server Status dialog box

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the HMI server’s
icon, and then click Server Status.
For details about options in the Server Status dialog box, click Help.
Deleting HMI servers

You can delete an HMI server from an application without deleting the HMI project files.
This allows you to add the HMI server to an application at a later time.
You can also add the HMI server to an application temporarily, while you copy
components to other HMI servers in the application.
6-19
• • • • •
To delete an HMI server

1. Disconnect all clients from the HMI server. (A client is any of FactoryTalk View
Studio, FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, or the FactoryTalk View
SE Client.)
2. Start FactoryTalk View Studio, and then open the application that contains the HMI
server you want to delete.
3. Right-click the HMI server, and then click Delete.
This does not delete the HMI server’s project files.
Deleting HMI server project files

After you delete an HMI server from the application in which it is used, if you choose,
you can also delete the HMI server’s project files.
To delete an HMI server’s project files

1. Disconnect all clients from the HMI server. (A client is any of FactoryTalk View
Studio, the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, or the FactoryTalk View
SE Client.)
2. Use the Windows Explorer to browse to the following folder on the computer hosting
the HMI server:
\Documents and Settings\All Users\Shared Documents\RSView Enterprise\
SE\HMI projects*
*The path given is for Windows XP or Windows Server 2003. In Windows
2000, the third folder is named Documents.
3. Delete the folder that has the same name as the HMI server whose project files you
want to delete.

6-20
• • • • •
To delete an HMI server, users must be allowed the following Common actions, at the
FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the task is to be authorized.
6 • Placeholder
To do this You need these security permissions
Delete an HMI server from an Common Read
application. Common List Children
Common Delete
Renaming, deleting, and backing up network applications

Use the Application Manager tool to rename or delete a network application.
You cannot rename or delete a network application that is in use. Ensure that all users
disconnect from the application first.
To run the Application Manager

Tools, and then click Application Manager.
For details about options in the Application Manager, click Help.
To rename a network application

1. In the Application Manager, click Site Edition (Network), and then click Next.
2. Click Rename application, and then click Next.
3. Follow the instructions in the Application Manager to complete the rename operation.
To delete a network application

1. In the Application Manager, click Site Edition (Network), and then click Next.
2. Click Delete application, and then click Next.
3. Follow the instructions in the Application Manager to complete the delete operation.
When you delete a network application, the HMI servers and data servers set up in it
are not deleted automatically. For details about:
deleting the HMI server files, see page 6-20.
removing a data server and deleting its cache files, see page 8-13.
6-21
• • • • •

To rename or delete an application, users must be allowed the following Common actions,
at the FactoryTalk Directory or application where the task is to be authorized.

Rename a network application. Common Read
Common Write
Delete a network application. Common Read
Common Delete
Backing up and restoring network applications

There are several steps involved in backing up and restoring a FactoryTalk View SE
network application. For details, see Chapter 17, Deploying network applications.
6-22
7 Working with local applications
7 • Placeholder
what a FactoryTalk® View Site Edition local application is.
key local application concepts.
how to create a local application.
how to add servers to a local application.
setting up HMI server properties.
monitoring the status of an HMI server.
renaming, deleting, copying, and backing up local applications.
About FactoryTalk View SE local applications

In FactoryTalk View Studio, you can create FactoryTalk View Site Edition network and
local applications. Here’s what a local application looks like, in the Explorer window:
FactoryTalk
Application Local Directory
(host computer name)
HMI server
HMI project
components,
and editors
FactoryTalk
system settings
Network applications are described in Chapter 6, Working with network applications.
Parts of a local application

A typical FactoryTalk View Site Edition local application consists of:
the application root area. You cannot add areas to a local application.
7-1
• • • • •
an HMI server that provides FactoryTalk View components and services to

application clients.
A local application can contain only one HMI server. The HMI server is created
automatically when the application is created, and has the same name as the
application.
HMI project components such as graphic displays, HMI tags, and data log models.
one or more data servers, that allow clients to access information in programmable
controllers, devices, and other data servers that comply with the OPC ®-DA 2.0
specification, with or without the use of HMI tags.
You can use RSLinx® Enterprise and OPC data servers (including RSLinx Classic) in
a local application.
Local applications support a single RSLinx Enterprise data server, which must run on
the same computer as the application. Only OPC data servers can be located on other
computers.
RSLinx Enterprise servers can be set up to subscribe to alarms detected in devices,
such as Logix5000 controllers. For more information, see Chapter 12, Setting up
FactoryTalk alarms.
Every vendor’s OPC data server is different. Some contain their own tag databases, like the
tag database in an HMI server, while others reference the tag databases or addresses that
exist in controllers, as is the case with RSLinx and Logix5000.
a list of users, plus the security codes that allow or deny these users permission to
access secured HMI project components at run time.
optionally, one or more FactoryTalk Tag Alarm and Event Servers, to allow alarm
monitoring and control for tags in devices that do not have built-in alarm detection.
Most of the software programs that allow a local application to run—FactoryTalk Local
Directory, the HMI server, the HMI clients, and the RSLinx Enterprise data server—must
be located on the same computer. Only OPC data servers can reside on remote computers.
The location of the FactoryTalk Local Directory that manages a local application is set up
automatically, when you install FactoryTalk View Site Edition.

Automation software products use a set of common FactoryTalk services to support
certain functions, such as diagnostic messages and access to real-time data.
7-2
• • • • •
7 • WORKING WITH LOCAL APPLICATIONS
These services, including FactoryTalk Directory, are installed with the FactoryTalk
Services Platform when you install FactoryTalk View SE. For an overview of FactoryTalk
7 • Placeholder
services, see page 1-2.

This manual contains information about developing and deploying FactoryTalk View SE
applications. This includes information about how FactoryTalk View uses FactoryTalk
services.
For additional, detailed information about FactoryTalk services, concepts, and
components, see the FactoryTalk Help.

Key local application concepts

FactoryTalk View SE local applications.
FactoryTalk Local Directory

FactoryTalk Directory is software that allows the parts of an application to find each other
on a computer, or on the network. For example, to access tag values in a data server, HMI
clients use FactoryTalk Directory to find out which computer is hosting the data server.
FactoryTalk Local Directory (also called the Local Directory) manages FactoryTalk
View SE local applications. The Local Directory must reside on the same computer as the
local application.
For more information about FactoryTalk Local Directory, see Chapter 4, Setting up
7-3
• • • • •
FactoryTalk Security
The FactoryTalk Local Directory can use FactoryTalk Security services to authenticate
and authorize users of FactoryTalk View SE local applications.
During FactoryTalk View SE installation, Windows users with administrative privileges
on the computer are set up with full, initial access to FactoryTalk View SE applications
managed by a FactoryTalk Local or Network Directory on the same computer.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, you can create FactoryTalk user and group accounts, and
then determine which accounts have access to resources such as the Local Directory, or
the application.
HMI servers
HMI servers are software programs that supply information to clients as they request it.
An HMI server stores HMI project components such as graphic displays, and serves these
components to clients. An HMI server also manages a database of tags, detects HMI tag
alarms, and logs historical data.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, when you create a local application, the HMI server is
created automatically, and given the same name as the application.
A local application can only contain a single HMI server.
HMI projects
HMI projects contain graphic displays, data log models, HMI tags, HMI tag alarms, and
other services.
The HMI project is created with the HMI server, when you create a local application.The
HMI project is loaded by the HMI server.
HMI clients
HMI clients are software programs that obtain information from, or write information to
HMI servers or data servers. FactoryTalk View Studio, the FactoryTalk View SE
Administration Console, and the FactoryTalk View SE Client are all HMI clients.
Relative references
In a local application, you use relative references to refer to application components, such
as graphic displays and tags, when building FactoryTalk View commands or connecting
graphic objects to process data.
7-4
• • • • •
Relative references point at a component relative to the current application.

For example, a relative reference to a display named Detail is simply the display’s name:
7 • Placeholder
Detail. To set up a button in a graphic display to open the Detail display at run time, use
Display Detail
as the button’s press action.
Language switching
defined text strings in an application, in up to 40 different languages.
For more information, see Chapter 13, Setting up language switching.
Creating local applications

To create a local application, in FactoryTalk View Studio, first you create the application,
and then you add elements such as an RSLinx Enterprise server, a FactoryTalk Tag Alarm
and Event Server, and OPC data servers.
To create a local application

and then click FactoryTalk View Studio.
2. In the Application Type Selection dialog box, select Site Edition (Local), and then
click Continue.
3. In the New/Open Site Edition (Local) Application dialog box, click the New tab.
then click Create.
The Add process faceplates dialog box opens, if it’s set to display when you create a new
application. If you don’t want to add faceplates, click Cancel to close the dialog box, without
affecting application creation. For more information about adding faceplates, see page 19-26.
The application icon and name are displayed in the Explorer window, beneath the
Local Directory icon. When you create a local application, the HMI server is given the
same name as the application.
Importing a project into a new application

You can create a new local application by importing a project from RSView®32™,
FactoryTalk View SE, or FactoryTalk View Machine Edition.
7-5
• • • • •
After you import an HMI project, changes you make to the original project do not affect
the copy, or vice versa.
You cannot import a project into an existing local application.
For details about importing projects, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.

To create an application and modify its properties, users must be allowed the following
Common actions, at the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the task is to be
authorized.

Create an application and modify its Common Read
Common Write
Adding servers to a local application

Local applications can contain only one HMI server, and one RSLinx Enterprise data
server. However, you can add more than one OPC data server, or FactoryTalk Tag Alarm
and Event Servers. You add these elements to the application, after you create it.
To add an RSLinx Enterprise server

click Add New Server, and then click Rockwell Automation Device Server (RSLinx
Enterprise).
2. Set up server properties, such as the name of the server, and whether the server will
support alarms and events.
The location is set to localhost automatically, and cannot be changed. Local applications
support a single RSLinx Enterprise data server, which must run on the same computer as the
application.
7-6
• • • • •
For details, see the RSLinx Enterprise product documentation.
7 • Placeholder
click Add New Server, and then click OPC Data Server.
2. Set up properties, such as the name and location of the server, and whether to provide
redundancy using a secondary server.
For details, see the RSLinx Classic (or other OPC data server) product documentation.
For additional information about setting up RSLinx and OPC data servers, see Chapter 8,
Setting up communications.
Adding a Tag Alarm and Event Server

Optionally, you can add FactoryTalk Tag Alarm and Event Servers to an application.
Tag Alarm and Event Servers use FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services to monitor and
control alarms for tags in programmable controllers (PLC-5 or SLC 500) and other
devices, that do not have built-in alarm detection.

To add servers to an application, users must be allowed the following Common actions, at
the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the task is to be authorized.

Add new data servers or Tag Alarm and Common Read
Event Servers to an application. Common List Children
Common Write
Setting up HMI server properties

After creating a local application, use the HMI Server Properties dialog box to:
add a description of the HMI server.
7-7
• • • • •
select the components that will run when the HMI server starts up.
specify a macro that will run when the HMI server shuts down.
start or stop components manually.
You do not have to specify a startup type for the HMI server in a local application. The HMI server
always starts automatically, when a FactoryTalk View SE Client connects to the application.
To open the HMI Server Properties dialog box

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the HMI server icon,
and then click Properties.
For details about the options in the HMI Server Properties dialog box, click Help.
Selecting startup and shutdown components

In the Components tab of the HMI Server Properties dialog box, select the check box for
each of the items you want to run when the HMI server runs, including:
which components will run when the HMI server starts.
7-8
• • • • •
which macro will run when the HMI server shuts down.
You can also run the HMI server’s startup components, or stop all running components.
7 • Placeholder
For details, see page 18-5.
The order of items in the Components tab is not the order in which the items will run when the
HMI server starts up. If components must run in a particular order, create a macro to start the
components, and then select the macro to run when the HMI server starts.


Modify the properties of an existing Common Read
HMI server. Common List Children
Common Write
Monitoring the status of an HMI server

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Server Status dialog box, you can view the operational
status of an HMI server, to determine whether the server is ready to provide service, and
to troubleshoot problems.
For example, an HMI server in the Active state is fully loaded and ready to provide
service to connected clients. A client can be any of FactoryTalk View Studio, a
FactoryTalk View SE Client, or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console.
For more information about server states, see “Monitoring the status of application

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the HMI server’s
7-9
• • • • •
For details about options in the Server Status dialog box, click Help.
Renaming, deleting, copying, and backing up local applications

Use the Application Manager tool to rename, or delete a local application.
To run the Application Manager

FactoryTalk Tools, and then click Application Manager.
To rename a local application

1. In the Application Manager, click Site Edition (Local), and then click Next.
2. Click Rename application, and then click Next.
3. Follow the instructions in the Application Manager to complete the rename operation.
To delete a local application

1. In the Application Manager, click Site Edition (Local), and then click Next.
2. Click Delete application, and then click Next.
3. Follow the instructions in the Application Manager to complete the delete operation.
For local applications, you can choose whether to delete the HMI server project associated
with the application. For details, click Help within the Application Manager.
For details about removing a data server and deleting its cache files, see page 8-13.

7-10
• • • • •
7 • Placeholder
To rename or delete an application, users must be allowed the following Common actions,
at the FactoryTalk Directory or application where the task is to be authorized.

Rename a local application. Common Read
Common Write
Delete a local application. Common Read
Common Delete
Copying, backing up, and restoring local applications

You also use the Application Manager tool to copy, back up, and restore a local
application. For details, see Chapter 18, Deploying local applications.
7-11
8 Setting up communications
8 • Placeholder
what data servers are.
basic steps for setting up communications in FactoryTalk® View Site Edition.
adding RSLinx® Enterprise data servers to an application.
setting up communications in RSLinx Enterprise.
adding OPC data servers to an application.
About data servers

A data server provides a route to physical devices on the network, allowing applications to
monitor and control the values in those devices.
For example, data servers can connect application clients to programmable controller
values, OPC ® tags (and their value or status information), or named variables in a
Logix5000 controller.
FactoryTalk View Site Edition (also called FactoryTalk View SE) supports the following
types of data servers:
Rockwell Automation Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise) provide best
performance when communicating with Logix5000 controllers, or with many clients.
You can also use RSLinx Enterprise servers to subscribe to device-based alarms and
events. For more information, see Chapter 12, Setting up FactoryTalk alarms.
OPC data servers (including RSLinx Classic) support any data server that
conforms to the OPC-DA 2.0 standard. OPC stands for OLE for Process Control, a
protocol that allows FactoryTalk View to retrieve tag values from:
Rockwell Automation programmable controllers and devices, using RSLinx
Classic or RSLinx Gateway as an OPC server.
RSLinx Classic does not need an activation key if it runs on the same computer as
FactoryTalk View SE Server, and only serves data to FactoryTalk clients, such as
FactoryTalk View SE Client or FactoryTalk Transaction Manager (formerly RSSQL).
RSLinx Gateway can run on any computer in an application, but needs an activation key
to serve data to remote, third-party OPC clients.
third-party controller devices, such as Siemens or Modicon®, using third-party

OPC servers.
8-1
• • • • •
Overview of data server communications

The following illustration shows how FactoryTalk View SE can use RSLinx Enterprise
and OPC data servers for communications.
About FactoryTalk Live Data

As the illustration shows, FactoryTalk Live Data manages connections between data
servers in an application and FactoryTalk client products such as FactoryTalk View SE.
FactoryTalk Live Data reads values from and writes values to the data servers—Live Data
servers such as RSLinx Enterprise, and OPC-DA servers such as RSLinx Classic—and
provides the data to the FactoryTalk client products.
8-2
• • • • •
8 • SETTING UP COMMUNICATIONS
FactoryTalk Live Data is one of a set of common services installed with the FactoryTalk
Services Platform. For information about other FactoryTalk services, see page 1-2.
8 • Placeholder
Using multiple data servers in an application
One FactoryTalk View SE application can use up to 25 data servers. An application can
use multiple data servers to:
balance the processing load for exchanging data.
If CPU usage is high on a computer running one data server, create another data
server on another computer to balance the processing load.
provide data-access redundancy.
To provide redundancy, set up a secondary data server on another computer. On the
primary data server’s computer, change the settings in the Redundancy tab of server’s
Properties dialog box, to switch clients to the secondary server if the primary one fails.
Data server redundancy is only supported in network applications.
communicate simultaneously with more than one type of controller.
For example, you might want to connect application clients to a Rockwell Automation
controller (such as Logix5000), a Modicon controller, and a Siemens controller.
Network applications can use multiple RSLinx Enterprise and OPC data servers, located
on different computers on the network.
Local applications can only use one RSLinx Enterprise server, which must be located on
the same computer as the application. Only OPC data servers can be located on different
computers.
Communicating with multiple controllers

To communicate with multiple controllers in an application, you can set up one data
server or several. Both RSLinx Classic and RSLinx Enterprise can be set up to
communicate with multiple types of controllers simultaneously.
If you have set up RSLinx to communicate with all the controllers in an application, you
can set up a single data server for the application, with an OPC topic or device shortcut for
each controller.
If you have set up multiple remote copies of RSLinx, each of which communicates with a
different controller or network, you will need to set up a data server for each remote copy
of RSLinx you have running.
8-3
• • • • •
Setting up communications in FactoryTalk View SE

These are the basic tasks involved in setting up communications for a FactoryTalk
View SE application:
1. Gather information about the network, and the devices that are connected to it. You
will need this information to set up RSLinx, or another OPC server.
2. Decide which of the following data servers will be used to communicate with devices
on the network:
Rockwell Automation Device Server (RSLinx Enterprise)
RSLinx Classic
any other OPC-DA 2.0-compliant server
RSLinx Enterprise is optimized for best performance in applications that use more
than 10 clients and more than 10,000 tags, even if RSLinx is running on the same computer
as the FactoryTalk View SE Server. For more about selecting a type of server, see page 1-8.
3. Install and set up the data servers that will be used for communications. To use:
RSLinx Enterprise, install the RSLinx product software, add a Rockwell
Automation Device Server (RSLinx Enterprise) to the application, and then set up
the server’s properties. For more information, see page 8-5.
RSLinx Classic, install and set up RSLinx Classic, add an OPC data server to the
application, and then set up the server’s properties. For more information, see
page 8-9.
an OPC server other than RSLinx Classic, install the necessary software, add an
OPC data server to the application, and then set up the server’s properties. For
more information, see the product documentation.
For information about installing RSLinx Enterprise or RSLinx Classic, see the
4. Once the application can communicate with devices, determine how the application
will gain access to values in the devices. You can reference tags in a data server
directly, create HMI tags that use the devices as data sources, or use both methods.
For information about using tags in an application, see Chapter 9, Working with tags.
For specific information about HMI tags, see Chapter 10, Creating HMI tags.
5. Wherever you need to obtain tag values in the application, create connections in
FactoryTalk View SE graphic displays.
8-4
• • • • •
For example, to allow an operator to read and write values for a particular tag, create
an input object in a display, and then connect the object to the tag’s name or address.
8 • Placeholder
For information about supplying tag names for graphic objects, see Chapter 9,
Working with tags, or see Chapter 20, “Creating graphic objects,” in Volume 2 of the

To add or delete a data server, or modify its properties, users must be allowed the
following Common actions, at the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the

Add a data server to an application, and Common Read
modify its properties. Common List Children
Common Write
Delete a data server from an Common Read
application. Common List Children
Common Delete
Adding RSLinx Enterprise data servers to an application

A FactoryTalk View SE network application can contain more than one RSLinx data
server, and you can create multiple data servers in a single area.
A local application can contain only one RSLinx Enterprise data server, which must be
located on the same computer as the application.
To add an RSLinx Enterprise data server

or an area name, click Add New Server, and then click Rockwell Automation Device
Server (RSLinx Enterprise).
8-5
• • • • •
2. In the RSLinx Enterprise Properties dialog box, select options and fill in the boxes in
each tab, as described in the sections that follow. When you are finished, click OK.
Setting up general properties

In the General tab of the RSLinx Enterprise server’s Properties dialog box, type a name
and description for the data server, and specify the name of the computer that will host the
data server.
Name
Type a name for the data server. This name will be displayed in the Explorer window. The
name cannot include dashes or hyphens (–).
Description
Type a description for the data server. For example, the description can consist of the
server’s location, the name of a contact person or number to contact in case of failure, or
version information.
Computer hosting the RSLinx Enterprise server

Type the name of the computer where the RSLinx Enterprise data server is running. To
find and select a computer, click the Browse button.
8-6
• • • • •
You can change the name of the computer hosting the data server, only in a network
application. In a local application, you can only add one RSLinx Enterprise data server,
8 • Placeholder
which must be located on the same computer as the application
Setting up RSLinx Enterprise data server redundancy

To minimize disruptions to clients in the event that the RSLinx Enterprise server becomes
unavailable or fails, set up redundancy for the data server. This option is only available for
In the Redundancy tab of the RSLinx Enterprise server’s Properties dialog box, specify
the name of the secondary (or backup) data server, and whether FactoryTalk View should
switch back to the primary data server when it becomes available again.
In a local application, there is no Redundancy tab in the RSLinx Enterprise Server Properties
dialog box. Local applications do not support data server redundancy.
Provide redundancy using a secondary server

Select this check box to allow data server redundancy. Clear this check box to disallow
data server redundancy.
8-7
• • • • •
Computer running the secondary server

Type the name of the computer where the secondary data server is running. To find and
select a computer, click the Browse button.
Switch back options

To prevent FactoryTalk View SE from switching back to the primary data server when it
becomes available, select the option, Continue using the secondary server even when the
primary becomes available again.
To make FactoryTalk View SE switch back to the primary data server when it becomes
available, select the option, Switch over to the primary server when it becomes available
again.
Setting up support for alarms and events

To allow the RSLinx Enterprise server to use FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services to
receive and send alarms detected in Logix5000 controllers, in the Alarms and Events tab,
select the check box, Enable alarm and event support.
Deleting an RSLinx Enterprise data server

If an RSLinx Enterprise data server is no longer required, you can delete it from the
application.
To delete an RSLinx Enterprise data server

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the RSLinx
Enterprise data server you want to delete, and then click Delete.
Setting up communications for RSLinx Enterprise

Use the RSLinx Communication Setup editor to add or remove drivers and devices, set up
driver and device properties, create device shortcuts, enable shortcuts to support
FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services, or browse for tags in an offline tag file.
To open the Communication Setup editor

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, click the + symbol beside the
RSLinx Enterprise data server icon.
2. Double-click the Communication Setup icon.
For details about options in the Communication Setup editor, click Help.
8-8
• • • • •
About the Primary and Secondary tabs

If you have not set up redundancy for an RSLinx Enterprise data server, the
8 • Placeholder
Communication Setup editor will contain only a Primary tab.
In a network application, if you set up both a primary and a secondary RSLinx Enterprise
data server, the Communication Setup editor has a Primary and a Secondary tab.
You can use these tabs to point RSLinx Enterprise at different networks or different
hardware in case of failure.
When specifying device shortcuts for a redundant server pair, be sure to use exactly the same
shortcut names for the primary and secondary servers. If the names are not the same, tag
references that use these shortcuts will not be able to obtain data reliably.
Adding OPC data servers to an application

Add an OPC data server for use with RSLinx Classic, or for use with a third-party OPC
server such as Modicon.
You can add more than one OPC data server to a local or a network application. In a
network application, on area can contain multiple OPC data servers.
For details about adding RSLinx Enterprise data servers, see page 8-3.

or an area name, click Add New Server, and then click OPC Data Server.
8-9
• • • • •
2. In the OPC Data Server Properties dialog box, select options and fill in the boxes in
each tab. When you are finished, click OK.
Setting up general properties

In the General tab of the OPC Data Server Properties dialog box, type a name and
description for the data server, and specify a computer and an OPC server name.
Name
Type a name for the data server. This name will be displayed in the Explorer window. The
name cannot include dashes or hyphens (–).
Description
Type a description for the data server. For example, it can describe the server’s location,
the name of a contact person or number to contact in case of failure, or version
information.
Computer that will run the OPC server

Type the name of the computer where the OPC server is running. To find and select a
computer, click the Browse button.
The Browse button is available only if you select the option, Server will be hosted on remote
computer.
OPC server name (Prog ID)

Type the programmatic ID of the OPC server. To browse for the programmatic ID, click
the Browse button.
To use RSLinx Classic as the OPC server, click the Browse button, and then click RSLinx
Remote OPC Server.
In a network application, always select RSLinx Remote OPC Server, instead of RSLinx OPC
Server.
Setting up OPC data server redundancy

To minimize disruptions to clients in the event that the OPC server becomes unavailable
or fails, set up redundancy for the data server. This option is only available for network
applications.
In the Redundancy tab of the OPC server’s Properties dialog box, specify the name of the
secondary (or backup) data server, and whether FactoryTalk View should switch back to
the primary data server when it becomes available again.
8-10
• • • • •
8 • Placeholder
For a local application, there is no Redundancy tab in the OPC Data Server Properties dialog
box. Local applications do not support data server redundancy.
Provide redundancy using a secondary server

Select this check box to allow data server redundancy. Clear this check box to disallow
data server redundancy.
Computer running secondary server

Type the name of the computer where the secondary data server is running. To find and
select a computer, click the Browse button.
Switch back options

To prevent FactoryTalk View SE from switching back to the primary data server when it
becomes available, select the option, Continue using the secondary server even when the
primary becomes available again.
To make FactoryTalk View SE switch back to the primary data server when it becomes
available, select the option, Switchback to the primary server when it becomes available
again.
Setting up advanced properties

In the Advanced tab, set up a cache for tags on the data server. A cache lets you view tag
names when you are not connected to the data server.
8-11
• • • • •
Include extended information in the server cache file

Select this check box to make available additional information about tags, for example,
their data types, when you are not connected to the data server.
To create a data server cache

1. To provide the list of tags, ensure that the OPC data server is running, and that devices
are connected.
2. In the Advanced tab of the OPC Data Server Properties dialog box, select the check
box, Include extended information in the server cache file.
3. Click Create Cache, and then click OK.
Synchronizing a data server’s cache

If tags are added, modified, or deleted on the data server, you must synchronize the cache
manually. You can synchronize a data server’s cache only after you have created one.
To synchronize a data server’s cache
1. To provide the list of tags, ensure that the OPC data server is running, and that devices
are connected.
2. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the data server, and
then click Properties.
3. In the Advanced tab of the OPC Data Server Properties dialog box, click Synchronize,
and then click OK.
8-12
• • • • •
Deleting an OPC data server

If an OPC data server is no longer required, you can delete it from the application. When
8 • Placeholder
you delete a data server, its cache files are also deleted.
To delete an OPC data server

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the OPC data server
you want to delete, and then click Delete.
8-13
9 Working with tags
9 • Placeholder
data server tags, HMI tags, and their attributes.
using tag data in a FactoryTalk® View Site Edition application.
how tag references work.
parts of the Tag Browser.
searching for and selecting tags.
browsing for offline tags.
About data server tags and HMI tags

A tag is a logical name that represents a variable in a network device or in local memory
(RAM).
FactoryTalk View Site Edition (also called FactoryTalk View SE) conforms to the OLE
for Process Control ® Data Access (OPC-DA) 2.0 specification, for information
exchange among automation or control applications, field systems or devices, and
business or office applications.
In FactoryTalk View SE network and local applications, you can use one or both of these
types of tags:
Data server tags (also called direct reference tags, or data items in the OPC-DA
specification) provide direct access to the basic attributes of all OPC-DA-compliant
tags, through data servers you add to an application.
HMI tags provide additional properties for run-time security and data manipulation.
HMI tags are created in the Tags editor and stored in an HMI server’s tag database.
For details, see Chapter 10, Creating HMI tags.
Using direct referencing to eliminate duplication

For some uses in an application, using direct references to tags in devices, or to tags
located in an OPC server’s database, offers advantages over using HMI tags.
For example, use data server tags to add, modify, or delete tags in a device without having
to duplicate the changes in the HMI server’s tag database.
9-1
• • • • •
Providing access to complex data types

Some devices (Logix5000 controllers, for example) support data types such as arrays and
structures, which can contain hundreds of member elements.
Use data server tags to reference the tag values directly, and eliminate the need to create
an HMI tag for each member element.
Using the extended capabilities of HMI tags

To take advantage of extended capabilities, such as run-time security, scaling or offsetting
of tag values, or more flexible addressing, create HMI tags in FactoryTalk View Studio,
in the Tags editor.
Securing tag or device values

HMI tags let you secure tag or device values at run time.
For example, to prevent users from changing a value in a device, create an HMI tag for
the device’s address, and then assign a security code to the HMI tag. For details, see
“Assigning security codes to HMI tags” on page 5-19.
Scaling and offsetting values

HMI tags provide scale and offset capabilities, which are not supported by some data
servers.
Use scale and offset to modify the raw data that comes from the network device before it
is saved in the computer’s memory, or to modify a value specified in FactoryTalk View
before it is written to a device or data server.
Scale is a multiplication factor—the value from the device is multiplied by the scale.
Offset is a fixed value—after the value from the device is multiplied by the scale, the
offset amount is added.
Specifying minimum and maximum values

HMI tags allow you to set the minimum and maximum values that can be written to the
network device or data server.
The minimum and maximum values do not affect what is read from the device or server.
For example, if you specify a minimum of 0 and a maximum of 100, FactoryTalk View
would be able to read a value of 200 from a device and store it in memory, but would not
be able to write this value to the device.
To further define a range of values that can be written to a tag, you can specify a minimum and
maximum value for FactoryTalk View SE numeric input objects. For details, see “Validating
operator input,” on page 20-22, in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
9-2
• • • • •
9 • WORKING WITH TAGS
Storing values in memory

Create HMI memory tags to store values without the need for an attached or accessible
9 • Placeholder
device. For example, you can use memory tags to:
store the result of a calculation.
act as a temporary counter or index.
maintain information about the system’s current state, for example, which graphic
display was last displayed.
For more information about HMI memory tags, see Chapter 10, Creating HMI tags.
Reusing HMI tag names

HMI tags do not require hard-coded physical addresses or device-specific variable names.
This means you can reuse an application with other devices, by changing the physical
addresses that the HMI tag names are mapped to.
HMI tags can also have descriptive names. Some controllers and OPC servers do not
allow descriptive tag names.
Using HMI tag alarms

HMI tags also provide an alternative method for triggering an alarm when a tag has a
certain value. You can set up alarm conditions for HMI analog and digital tags.
For more information, see Chapter 11, Setting up HMI tag alarms.
In FactoryTalk View SE, you can also use FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services to monitor
and control alarms. For information, see Chapter 12, Setting up FactoryTalk alarms.
Using tag data in a FactoryTalk View SE application

A FactoryTalk View SE application can use a mix of data server tags and HMI tags,
depending on needs.
Setting up data server tags

To use data server tags, such as those found in Logix5000 and other OPC-compliant
devices, you can refer directly to the tag’s location, wherever the tag data is needed.
These are the basic tasks involved in setting up data server tags for an application:
1. Create the tag in the OPC server or processor, or use an existing tag in the processor.
For information about creating tags:
in OPC-DA servers that have their own tag database, see the documentation
provided with the OPC-DA server.
9-3
• • • • •
in a Logix5000 controller, see the programming software documentation for the

controller.
2. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, add a data server to the
application, if it doesn’t already have one.
3. Connect application components to the data server tags, wherever the application
needs to use the tag values.
For example, in a FactoryTalk View SE graphic display, connect the animation of a
graphic object to a data server tag. At run time, tag values are passed to the object,
changing its appearance as the value changes.
Setting up HMI tags

To use tags stored in an HMI server’s tag database, connect the tags to addresses in
network devices, and then refer to the HMI tags wherever the tag data is needed.
These are the basic tasks involved in setting up HMI tags for an application:
1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, add an HMI server to the
application, if it doesn’t already have one. Each HMI server contains one tag
database.
2. In the Tags editor, create HMI device tags by mapping tag names to data server or
DDE addresses, or create HMI memory tags.
For details, see Chapter 10, Creating HMI tags, or see the FactoryTalk View Site
Edition Help.
3. Connect application components to the HMI tags, wherever the application needs to
use the tag values.
For example, in a FactoryTalk View SE graphic display, connect a numeric input
object to an HMI tag. At run time, tag values are passed to the object, allowing the
operator to read from or write to the tag.
For more information, see Chapter 10, Creating HMI tags.
Specifying tag names where tag data is needed

Specify data server or HMI tag names in an application, wherever live tag data is needed.
For example, you could create a graphic object that represents a vat on a production line,
and then set up the object to show the level of the vat at run time.
To do this, attach Fill animation to the object using a tag that is updated by a network
device that monitors the vat level. At run time, the value of the tag will determine the fill
level of the graphic object.
9-4
• • • • •
In the Animation dialog box, to connect the tag to the fill level, you could use any of these
methods:
9 • Placeholder
Type the tag name.
You can type the name of a tag that doesn’t exist. If you do this, to avoid errors at run time,
when you create the tag, make sure you spell the tag’s name consistently.
Find and select the tag in the Tag Browser.

You can browse while online and connected to a device, or you can browse for tags
from an offline file, such as a PLC program file. For more information, see page 9-7.
Create the tag, if it does not already exist.
Create new data server tags in the device or OPC server. For example, in a Logix5000
device, create the tag using RSLogix® 5000 programming software.
Create new HMI tags in the Tags editor, in FactoryTalk View Studio. For details, see
Chapter 10, Creating HMI tags.
Logging tag values

To log tag values, in FactoryTalk View Studio, create data log models that specify which
values to log, and when. For tags in a data log model to be polled and their values logged,
the data log model needs to be started at run time.
For details about setting up data logging, see Chapter 25 in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk
Observing tag-related limits

Each graphic display in an application can contain up to 3000 references to expressions
or tags (HMI tags and data server tags). This limit includes the tags contained in
embedded variables.
The limit also includes duplicate references. For example, one display can contain only
3000 numeric inputs that refer to tags, even if all 3000 objects refer to the same tag.
Each HMI server in an application can have up to 40,000 HMI tags set up with alarms.
Of these, 10,000 can be HMI analog tags.
RSLinx Enterprise is optimized for best performance in applications that use more than 10 clients
and more than 10,000 tags, even if RSLinx is running on the same computer as the FactoryTalk
View SE Server. For more information about selecting a type of server, see page 1-8.
9-5
• • • • •
About tag references

When you type a tag name, you are creating a reference to the tag.
For example, to animate a graphical representation of a fan in a graphic display, you might
refer to a tag called FanRunning, to use its value for the animation.
FactoryTalk View SE network applications can use absolute or relative references to tags.
Local applications can only use relative references. For more information, see “Absolute
and relative references” on page 6-6.
Absolute references
Absolute references point directly at a specific tag, by referring to the tag’s name and the
area (or areas, in the case of nested areas) in which it is located.
For example, an absolute reference to a tag called Extractor located in the Fans subarea of
the Cooling area is:
/Cooling/Fans::Extractor
Use absolute references to ensure that a specific tag in a specific location is used,
regardless of where it is referenced from.
Relative references
Relative references point at a tag relative to the current server or area. A relative reference
to a tag called Extractor is simply the tag’s name:
Extractor
When a relative reference is used, FactoryTalk View assumes that the tag is located in the
current area.
Use relative references, for example, to re-use component names in a network application
for a plant that has identical production lines. Such an application might contain different
areas to represent each production line; however, each area would contain the same
component names.
The home area

In network applications, the home area is the area in which an application component
(e.g., a tag or graphic display) is located.
When you refer to an application component without specifying the area, FactoryTalk
View SE uses the home area to locate the component.
9-6
• • • • •
For example, if you create a graphic display in the Cooling area, and add a relative
reference to a tag (for example, FanStart), FactoryTalk View SE looks for the tag in the
9 • Placeholder
home area of the graphic display (Cooling).
If the tag cannot be found in an HMI server or a data server in the display’s home area, an
error is logged when the display is run.
Finding the home area in the Tag Browser

In the Tag Browser, the home area in a network application is displayed in bold type, as
shown in the following illustration.
The home area in this

application is called
Waste Water.
The home area contains

two data servers, and
an HMI server.
The Tag Browser composes references to tags automatically, using correct syntax.
If the tags you select are in the home area, the Tag Browser automatically uses relative
references. If the tags are not in the home area, the Tag Browser uses absolute references.
Parts of the Tag Browser

To use a tag in a FactoryTalk View SE application, you can type the tag’s name and path,
or you can use the Tag Browser to search for and select the tag.
Opening the Tag Browser

How you open the Tag Browser depends on where you are in FactoryTalk View SE:
In the Command Wizard, for commands that take tags as parameters, click the Browse
button beside the Tag box.
In the Tags editor, when creating an HMI device tag, click the Browse button beside
the Address box.
In the Graphics editor, in the Animation dialog box, click Tag.
In the Properties dialog box for a graphic object, in the Connections tab, click the
Browse button in the Tag column.
9-7
• • • • •
In the Expression editor, position the cursor where you want to insert the tag name,
and then click Tags.
In the Tags in Model tab in the Data Log Models editor, click the Browse button
beside the Tag[s] to Add box.
Root folder
Area folder
Folders pane
Tags pane
For a better view of

the folders or tags,
drag this bar to the
left or the right.
The tag you select

is displayed here.
Viewing tags in folders

In the Tag Browser, the Folders display on the left shows the application root folder, plus
all the folders that contain tags, in the application’s HMI servers and data servers. In a
network application, there is also a folder representing each area in the application.
To view the tags in a folder, select the folder. In the previous illustration, the InfluentPump
folder is open, and contains the tags displayed on the right.
9-8
• • • • •
Showing server names

By default, the Tag Browser shows folders, but not the HMI servers or data servers the
9 • Placeholder
folders belong to. To display server names, right-click a blank area of the Folders pane,
and then click Show Server Names.
The folders list with

server names hidden.
The same folders list with

server names shown.
Finding tags in the home area

To locate the tags in the home area, right-click a blank area of the folder pane, and then
click Go To Home Area. The home area is selected automatically.
For more information about the home area, see page 9-6.
Searching for and selecting tags

In the Tag Browser, select the folder where you want to search for tags, and then select the
tags you need. You can select a single tag or multiple tags, depending on where you
opened the Tag Browser.
For example, you can select multiple tags when you open the browser from the Data Log
Models editor.
The tag or tags you select can be from a data server or an HMI server. The Selected Tag
box, in the lower part of the Tag Browser, displays the currently selected tag.
If multiple tags can be selected, the box is called Selected Tags, and it displays all
currently selected tags. If multiple servers use the same tag name, the server name is
automatically displayed with the tag name.
9-9
• • • • •
Selecting folders instead of individual tags

You can also select folders in the Tag Browser, for example, to select structure tags for
faceplate objects.
When you select a folder, you select all the member elements in the folder. The folder
name, rather than a tag name, is displayed in the Selected Tag box, as shown in the
following illustration:
The folder you

select is displayed
in the Selected
Tag box.
Displaying a tag’s properties

To display the properties of a tag in the Tag Browser, right-click the tag, and then click
Properties. The Tag Properties dialog box shows information about the tag.
The properties are a snapshot, and do not update in real time. You cannot display the
properties of multiple tags at the same time.
By default, the Tag Browser does not show tag descriptions. To show or hide tag descriptions,
right-click a blank area of the right pane, and then click Show Description.
9-10
• • • • •
9 • Placeholder
Filtering tags
To display only tags whose names match a pattern, type the pattern in the Tag Filter box,
and then press Enter.
The Tag Filter box lists the last 10 filters you applied.
Type the tag

filter here.
To clear the filter,

click <None>
in the list.
9-11
• • • • •
You can create filters using these wildcard characters:
This wildcard character Does this

? Matches any single character.
* Matches any number of characters, including the
backslash (\) character.
To remove a tag filter

In the Tag Browser, in the Tag Filter list, click <None>.
Creating, modifying, and importing HMI tags

In the Tag Browser, you can also create new folders for HMI tags, create and modify the
HMI tags, or import tags from a PLC or SLC™ database.
To perform these actions, right-click in the Tag Browser’s right pane, and select:
New HMI Tag to create a new HMI tag.
Edit HMI Tag to modify an existing HMI tag.
Import PLC Tags to import a tag from another database.
creating HMI tags and modifying their properties, see Chapter 10, Creating HMI tags.
importing tags from a PLC database, see page 10-10 or see the FactoryTalk View Site
Edition Help.
Browsing for offline tags

In the Tag Browser, tags that are available when the application is connected to a device
are located in the Online folder. Tags that are available from an offline file, such as a PLC
program file, are located in the Offline folder.
Offline folder
Online folder
9-12
• • • • •
Browsing for offline tags from RSLinx Enterprise

For each RSLinx Enterprise shortcut in an application, an Offline and Online folder is
9 • Placeholder
displayed in the Tag Browser.
Use the Offline folder to browse for tags in a PLC or Logix5000 program stored on disk.
If the shortcut in RSLinx Enterprise has access to symbols, you can also browse for them
in the Offline folder.
For details about browsing offline for tags or adding symbols to a shortcut in RSLinx
Enterprise, see the RSLinx Enterprise Help.
To browse an offline file in the Communication Setup dialog box

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, double-click the RSLinx
Enterprise icon.
2. Double-click Communication Setup to open the RSLinx Enterprise Communication
Setup dialog box.
3. Click the Browse button beside the Offline Tag File box.
Browsing for offline tags from RSLinx Classic

For each RSLinx Classic topic in an application, an Offline and an Online folder is
displayed in the Tag Browser.
Use the Offline folder to browse for tags in a PLC or Logix5000 program stored on disk.
If the topic in RSLinx has access to symbols, you can also browse for them in the Offline
folder.
For details about adding symbols to a topic in RSLinx, see the RSLinx Classic Help.
Browsing for offline tags from other OPC servers

To browse for offline tags from OPC servers other than RSLinx Classic, set up a data
server cache.
When you are not connected to the device, you will find the offline tags in the same Tag
Browser folder that contains the online tags. (In RSLinx, the offline tags are located in a
separate folder.)
For details about setting up and managing an OPC data server’s cache files, see “Setting
up advanced properties” on page 8-11.
9-13
10 Creating HMI tags
10 • Placeholder
what HMI tags are.
how to organize HMI tags.
parts of the Tags editor.
creating, modifying, and deleting tags.
selecting a data source.
creating HMI tags without using the Tags editor.
defining alarm conditions for HMI tags.
modifying HMI tag properties at run time.
About HMI tags

In FactoryTalk® View Site Edition (also called FactoryTalk View SE), HMI servers in
local or network applications have tag databases that can store HMI tags.
You can use HMI tags in an application, to take advantage of extended properties for
securing tag or device values, manipulating data, or triggering alarms.
You can create HMI tags, or modify the properties of existing tags, in FactoryTalk View
Studio, in the Tags editor. For more information, see “Creating, modifying, and deleting
tags” on page 10-6.
In a network application, you can create or modify HMI tags locally (on the same
computer) or remotely (in FactoryTalk View Studio on a different computer).
HMI tag types

An HMI server’s tag database can contain the following types of tags.
Tag Type of data stored

Analog Range of values.
HMI analog tags can represent variable states such as temperature or
the position of rotary controls.
Digital 0 or 1.
HMI digital tags can represent devices that can only be on or off, such
as switches, contacts, and relays.
10-1
• • • • •
Tag Type of data stored

String ASCII string, series of characters, or whole words (maximum of 82
characters).
HMI string tags can represent devices that use text, such as a bar code
scanner that uses an alphanumeric product code.
System Information generated while the system is running, including HMI tag
alarm information, system time and date, and so on.
FactoryTalk View creates system tags when it creates an HMI project.
The system tags are stored in the tag database, in the folder called
System. You can use system tags anywhere you would use any other
type of tag. You cannot modify system tag properties.
Data sources for HMI tags

When creating an HMI analog, digital, or string tag, you specify the source of the tag’s
values. This is called the data source.
You can specify two types of data source for an HMI tag:
An HMI tag with device as its data source receives data externally, from a source
other than FactoryTalk View SE.
The data can come from a programmable controller or other device via RSLinx®, or
from another OPC ® or DDE data server.
An HMI tag with memory as its data source receives data internally, from
A memory tag can be used to store values internally.
About retentive memory tags

By default, the value of an HMI memory tag reverts to the initial value specified for the
tag, whenever the HMI server containing the tag is shut down and restarted.
To set up a memory tag to retain the last value it was set to, even after the HMI server is
shut down, in the Tags editor, select the Retentive check box for the tag.
A retentive memory tag will always have the last value it had prior to the HMI server
shutting down. In other words, the tag’s value will not revert to the initial value specified
for the tag.
10-2
• • • • •
10 • CREATING HMI TAGS
Organizing HMI tags
10 • Placeholder
To make HMI tags easier to work with, especially if the tag database is large, organize
related tags by establishing naming conventions for them, or by grouping them in folders.
Naming HMI tags

Establishing naming conventions for HMI tags makes using wildcard characters more
effective, when searching for and displaying tags during development and at run time.
Tag names can use up to 255 characters of the following types:
A to Z (upper and lower case)
0 to 9
underscore ( _ ) and dash ( – )
For HMI tags stored in folders, the folder name becomes part of the tag name, and the
backslash that separates folder names counts as one character.
Tag names can be mixed case. Tag names preserve upper and lower case for readability
but they are not case sensitive. For example, the tag name MixerValve1 is the same as
mixervalve1.
Enclosing tag names in brackets

In an expression, tag names that start with a number or contain a dash must be enclosed in
brackets, for example, {N33-0}.
Also use brackets with wildcard characters to represent multiple tags in an expression, for
example, {alarm*}.
For more information about using tags in expressions, see Chapter 23, in Volume 2 of the
Grouping HMI tags in folders

To organize tags, create folders in the Tags editor, for tags that are related to one another.
When naming tags stored in a folder, to separate the folder name from the rest of the tag
name, use a backslash (\). For example, the names of tags in a folder called Pump would
start with Pump\.
To further organize tags, you can also nest folders. For example, if a plant is divided into
zones, you can organize the tag database first by zone, then by machines in the zone, and
10-3
• • • • •
finally by devices in each machine. In this case, the names of tags in the nested folder
might start with Area1\Machine1\Pump.
HMI tags contained in nested folders do not contribute to the total number of tags in the root
folder. For optimum performance, do not store all tags belonging to an HMI server in the root
folder. It is also recommended that you store no more than 2000 tags in any one folder.
For details about creating, duplicating and deleting folders in the Tags editor, see the
Viewing tag statistics

The Tag Statistics dialog box displays the number of tags an HMI server contains, and
provides information about the tags, such as the date the tag database was last modified.
To view tag statistics

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, open the Tags editor.
2. On the View menu, click Tag Statistics.
Parts of the Tags editor

In FactoryTalk View Studio, use the Tags editor to:
create HMI tags and modify their properties.
duplicate and delete HMI tags.
create folders to group related tags.
duplicate, nest, and delete folders.
While the Tags editor is open, use items on the View menu and the toolbar, to control the
editor’s appearance.
To open the Tags editor

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, open the HMI tags folder.
2. Right-click the Tags icon, and then click Open.
You can also double-click the Tags icon, or drag the icon into the FactoryTalk View
Studio workspace.
The main parts of the Tags editor are the form, the query box, the folder hierarchy, and
the spreadsheet, as shown in the following illustration.
10-4
• • • • •
10 • Placeholder
Form
Select this
check box
to add alarm
Query conditions
box for a tag.
Click Alarm to
Folder modify
hierarchy alarms.
Spreadsheet
Accept and Discard buttons

When you enter information in the Tags editor, the Prev and Next buttons change to
Accept and Discard buttons.
Click Accept to save tag and alarm information. Click Discard to cancel changes to a
tag’s’ properties.
Form and spreadsheet

In the upper part of the form, define the basic characteristics of the tag, such as tag name,
type, security, and specifics related to the tag type.
In the lower part of the form, specify the data source (where the tag’s values will come
from).
To define alarm conditions for an analog or a digital tag, select the Alarm check box. To
modify alarms once they have been defined, click the Alarm button.
10-5
• • • • •
Query box
Use the query box to select the tags you want displayed in the spreadsheet.
This allows you to modify tags in different folders without browsing the folder hierarchy.
You can select a single tag by typing the tag name, or select multiple tags by typing
wildcard characters.

Use this wildcard character by itself, to display all the
tags in the tag database.
Folder hierarchy
The hierarchy and spreadsheet work together. The hierarchy shows the tag folders, and the
spreadsheet shows the tags within the folders.
A folder icon called root is always present in the hierarchy window, at the top of the folder
hierarchy. This folder contains all the tag folders you and FactoryTalk View create.
If a folder icon has a plus ( + ) sign on it, the folder contains one or more nested folders. If
the folder’s icon is blank, it does not contain any other folders.
When you nest folders, remember that the backslash in a folder name counts as one
character in the tag name.
Creating, modifying, and deleting tags

Use the Tags editor to create, modify, duplicate, and delete HMI tags.
For details about these operations, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
To create an HMI tag

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, open the HMI Tags folder, and
then double-click the Tags icon.
2. In the Tags editor, if you want to add the new tag to a folder, double-click the folder in
the folder hierarchy window (below the Search For box).
3. To clear the form and position the cursor in the Name box, click New in the form
section of the editor.
If you have opened a folder, the folder’s name is inserted in the Name box
automatically, and the cursor is positioned to the right of the folder name.
10-6
• • • • •
4. Type a name for the tag, and then select its type.
10 • Placeholder
5. In the Tag section, specify any additional information required for the type of tag you
are creating.
6. Select a data source and specify the required information.
7. Select the Alarm box if the tag is to have an alarm set up for it.
For more information, see “Defining alarm conditions for HMI tags” on page 10-11.
8. Click Accept to save the tag to the database.
To modify a tag
1. In the Tags editor, find and select the tag you want to modify.
Tag attributes are displayed in the form section of the editor.
2. Modify selected attributes.
You can modify all parts of an existing tag, except the tag name and tag type.
3. Click Accept to save changes.
To duplicate a tag
1. In the Tags editor, find and select the tag you want to duplicate.
2. On the Edit menu, click Duplicate
You can also click the Duplicate button on the editor’s toolbar.
A new row is inserted below the highlighted row. The new row contains all the same
information except the tag name.
3. In the Tag Name box, type a name for the new tag.
4. Click Accept.
To delete a tag
1. In the Tags editor, find and select the tag you want to delete.
2. On the Edit menu, click Delete.
You can also click the Delete button on the editor’s toolbar.
Delete tags carefully. Once you click Delete, the tag is deleted. There is no confirmation
message, and you cannot undo the deletion.
10-7
• • • • •
Selecting a data source

The data source for an HMI tag can be an external device, or FactoryTalk View.
Getting HMI tag data from a device

An HMI tag with device as its data source receives its data from a source external to
FactoryTalk View. The data can come from:
Allen-Bradley® or SoftLogix 5 programmable controllers through RSLinx.
network devices through an OPC or DDE data server.
another Windows® program through an OPC or DDE data server.
For information about setting up OPC communications, see Chapter 8, Setting up
communications.
For information about DDE communications, see Appendix B, Setting up DDE
communications for HMI tags.
To create a device tag

1. In the form section of the Tags editor, click Device.
2. In the Address box, type the name of the data server tag or DDE item.
To find and select a tag’s address, click the Browse button.
Addressing syntax for OPC tags

The syntax for OPC tag addresses is:
[AccessPath]Address
or
::[AccessPath]Address
where :: is required for addresses that contain an initial colon (: ).
The access path is one of the following:
For communications with an RSLinx OPC server, the access path is the name of a
device shortcut or DDE/OPC topic in RSLinx.
For communications with other OPC servers, the access path may be optional. For
information about the syntax for the access path, see the OPC server documentation.
The square brackets around the access path are part of the syntax. They do not indicate
optional parameters.
10-8
• • • • •
Getting HMI tag data from memory
10 • Placeholder
An HMI tag with Memory as its data source receives its data from internally, from
FactoryTalk View.
To create a memory tag

1. In the form section of the Tags editor, click Memory.
2. In the Initial Value box, type the tag’s starting value.
When you first load an HMI project, a memory tag has the value defined in the Initial
Value box.
To ensure that a memory tag uses a particular value when the project starts, use the Set
or = (Equal) commands in a startup macro to specify the tag’s value.
For details about using macros, see Chapter 27 in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View
Site Edition User’s Guide.
The value of a memory tag can also be set using derived tags, events, or graphic
objects.
3. To have the tag’s value retained when an HMI server shuts down, select the Retentive
check box.
To let the memory tag revert to its initial value the next time an HMI server starts,
clear the Retentive check box.
Creating HMI tags without using the Tags editor

In addition to creating tags in the Tags editor, you can add tags to an HMI server’s tag
database using one of the following methods:
Create the tags in a third-party application, and import them into FactoryTalk View.
Create tags from the Tag Browser.
Import tags from a PLC or SLC ™ database.
Creating tags in a third-party application

You can use a third-party spreadsheet editor such as Microsoft® Excel to create tags, and
then import them into FactoryTalk View using the Tag Import and Export Wizard. For
When you import tags, they can be merged with tags already in the HMI server’s tag
database. This means that any tags in the database with the same name are updated with
the new information.
10-9
• • • • •
Creating tags in other FactoryTalk View editors

Any editor that uses tags has access to the tag database.
To create tags in the Tag Browser

1. To open the Tag Browser, click Tags or the Browse button, whichever is available.
2. In the Tag Browser, open the folder in which you want to create the tag, right-click a
blank area of the Contents pane, and then click New HMI Tag.
For details about creating tags in the Tag Browser, click Help in the browser.
Importing and exporting tags

You can also import PLC or SLC databases into FactoryTalk View using the Tag Import
and Export Wizard. The Tag Import and Export Wizard must be run on the same computer
as the HMI server.
Opening the Tag Import and Export Wizard

To open the wizard, use one of these methods:
In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Tools menu, click Tag Import and Export Wizard.
On the Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk View
Enterprise, Tools, and then click Tag Import and Export Wizard.
For details about options in the Tag Import and Export Wizard, click Help.
Importing tags from a PLC database

To import tags selectively from a PLC database into the FactoryTalk View HMI tag
database, use the Import PLC Tags dialog box.
Tags imported in this way are copied into the database—they are not shared with the
source database. This means changes to tags in FactoryTalk View do not affect the
database from which they have been imported and vice versa.
Opening the Import PLC Tags dialog box

To open the Import PLC Tags dialog box, use one of these methods:
In the Tags editor, click the DB Browser button on the toolbar, or select Other
Databases from the Edit menu.
DB Browser In the Tag Browser, right-click a blank area of the Contents pane, and then click
button in the Import PLC Tags.
Tags editor
10-10
• • • • •
10 • Placeholder
Use the filter to
search for a
particular tag or
set of tags.
You cannot use

wildcards, or filter
beyond a slash.
For example, a
filter containing
B3/1 will not show
B3/10, B3/11,
and so on.
You can import tags from any of these databases:

legacy PLC databases, created using WINtelligent LOGIC 5™ or A.I. 5™, with file
extension .dsc
RSLogix™ 5/500, saved as an external database, with file extension .ctd
RSLogix 5 internal database, with file extension .rsp
RSLogix 500 internal database, with file extension .rss
For PLC and SLC addresses, the Import PLC Tags dialog box shows only addresses that
are used in the symbol or address list of the PLC programming software.
For details about options in the Import PLC Tags dialog box, click Help.
Defining alarm conditions for HMI tags

You can define alarms for HMI analog and digital tags.
At run time, FactoryTalk View scans the tag values in the tag database and compares them
to the limits set for these tags. If a tag value crosses a limit, an alarm is triggered.
10-11
• • • • •
When an HMI tag is set up with an alarm, an X is displayed in the Alm column of the Tags
editor’s spreadsheet. When the tag is selected, the Alarm button in the editor’s form
becomes available.
For more information about setting up an alarm system using HMI tags, see Chapter 11,
Setting up HMI tag alarms.
Modifying HMI tag and alarm properties at run time

In a FactoryTalk View SE network application, you can modify HMI tag and alarm
properties at run time, and have the changes take effect at connected clients, without
HMI tag properties can be modified in FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Tags editor, in the
HMI Tag dialog box (opened from the Tag Browser), or in the Tag Import & Export
Wizard.
HMI tag alarm properties can be modified in the Analog or Digital Alarms editors, opened
from the Tags editor. The AlarmAcceptEdits command must be run for alarm changes to
take effect.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, for a redundant network application, you can also replicate
changes made at the primary server, to the secondary server.
modifying HMI tag properties, see page 14-23.
modifying HMI tag alarm properties, see page 14-26.
replicating changes from the primary to the secondary server, see page 14-16.
10-12
11 Setting up HMI tag alarms
11 • Placeholder
what HMI tag alarms are.
key HMI tag alarms concepts
the steps involved in setting up HMI tag alarms.
setting up general alarm behavior.
setting up alarm conditions for HMI tags.
what FactoryTalk® View SE alarm events are.
setting up HMI tag alarm logging.
viewing HMI tag alarm log files.
suppressing alarm logging.
creating an HMI tag alarm summary.
using tag placeholders to specify alarms.
running commands or custom programs in response to alarms.
starting and stopping HMI tag alarm monitoring.
About HMI tag alarms

In FactoryTalk View Site Edition (also called FactoryTalk View SE), you can specify
alarm conditions for tags you want to monitor in an HMI server’s tag database.
Alarms set up for HMI analog and digital tags are detected at the HMI server.
When an alarm is detected, notification is sent to connected FactoryTalk View SE clients,
where operators can view and acknowledge the alarms in graphic displays.
11-1
• • • • •
HMI tag alarm features

Using HMI tag alarms, you can:
monitor any analog or digital HMI tag for alarms, up to a maximum of 40,000 tags
per HMI server (10,000 of these can be analog tags).
display the most recent 2,000 alarm transactions in an HMI tag alarm summary.
define up to eight different severity levels to distinguish alarms visually.
use system default messages or custom messages to describe HMI tag alarms.
log alarm messages to a file, to a printer, or to both.
suppress HMI tag alarms for maintenance and tuning purposes.
associate a command or macro with an alarm to provide custom handling of the alarm.
share alarm information with other FactoryTalk View SE components. For example,
you can use alarm HMI tag alarm functions in expressions in a graphic display.
use the Acknowledge bit to synchronize alarm acknowledgement on redundant HMI
server pairs.
use the AlarmEvent command to respond to alarm detection algorithms you create for
notification, logging, printing, and for display in HMI tag alarm summaries.
About FactoryTalk Alarms and Events

An HMI tag alarm system only detects alarms set up for tags in an HMI server’s tag
database. HMI tag alarm detection does not include FactoryTalk alarms.
To centralize alarm monitoring and control at the FactoryTalk Directory, set up these
types of FactoryTalk alarms:
device-based alarms, set up by programming alarm detection instructions directly
into Logix5000 controllers.
FactoryTalk View SE Clients receive device-based alarms by way of Rockwell
Automation Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise) that you add to a FactoryTalk View
SE application.
tag-based alarms, set up to specify alarm conditions for tags in older
programmable controllers (PLC-5 or SLC 500), in third-party devices communicating
through OPC data servers, or in an HMI server’s tag database (HMI tags).
FactoryTalk View SE Clients receive tag-based alarms by way of FactoryTalk Tag
Alarm and Event Servers that you add to a FactoryTalk View SE application.
11-2
• • • • •
11 • SETTING UP HMI TAG ALARMS
Key HMI tag alarms concepts
11 • Placeholder
This section presents some of the common terms and concepts used to describe HMI tag
alarm services, components, and data.
Alarm thresholds for analog tags

An HMI analog tag can trigger a number of alarms when its value crosses various levels,
or thresholds.
You can assign up to eight alarm thresholds, each with a different level of severity to
indicate the alarm’s importance.
The lowest threshold is 1 and the highest is 8. You do not have to use all eight thresholds
for a tag, but the ones you do use must be set up in ascending order. For example, you can
assign thresholds 1, 2, and 8, as long as you assign them in that order.
Thresholds can be increasing (monitoring for a rising value that crosses the threshold) or
decreasing (monitoring for a falling value that crosses the threshold). The tag in the
following example has both increasing and decreasing thresholds.
Example: Alarm thresholds
Alarm
Threshold severity
values Thresholds levels
X*
5000 6 1
X
Increasing 5
4000
X X* 4
3000 4 8
X O
Safe zone
2000 3 8
X O
Decreasing
1000 2 6
1 1 Time 4
Thresholds must be set

up in ascending order
11-3
• • • • •
In this example, a tag’s value changes as it monitors a motor’s revolutions per minute
(rpm). An X in the illustration shows when the tag goes into alarm, and an O shows when
the tag goes out of alarm.
If the motor speed It triggers an alarm of this severity

exceeds 3000 rpm 8
exceeds 4000 rpm 4
exceeds 5000 rpm 1
falls below 5000 rpm* 4
falls below 4000 rpm* 8
falls below 2000 rpm 8
falls below 1000 rpm 6
falls below 1 rpm 4
With the given threshold settings, the motor must run between 2,000 rpm and 3,000 rpm,
or an alarm is triggered.
Alarms will occur when the motor speed falls below 5,000 rpm and 4,000 rpm, and when
it rises above 1 rpm and 1,000 rpm, if the check box, Generate alarms when approaching
normal operating range, is selected in the Alarm Setup editor.
Variable thresholds
Threshold values can be constant or variable. The previous example uses constant
thresholds.
To define a variable threshold, specify a tag name in the Threshold box when setting up
the alarm thresholds for an analog tag. As the value of the specified tag changes, the
threshold changes.
Variable thresholds use more system resources than constant thresholds, due to the continuous
scanning of threshold values, and the processing necessary to detect alarm faults.
Alarm faults
A variable threshold must not become higher than the threshold above it or lower than the
threshold below it. If this happens, an alarm fault is generated for the tag being monitored.
To correct an alarm fault, change the variable threshold so it does not overlap either of its
neighbors. This can be complex when the neighboring thresholds are also variable,
because these boundaries are determined dynamically at run time.
When an alarm fault is generated, the following events occur:
11-4
• • • • •
The tag’s alarm status stays as it was before the fault was generated.
11 • Placeholder
An alarm fault is reported to all alarm reporting devices you have set up, such as the
alarm log file and the printer.
The alarm fault status bit for the tag is set in the value table. This notifies other
applications that an alarm fault has been generated.
‘Alarm Fault’ is posted in the Alarm Type column in the alarm summary.
When the faulty thresholds return to their normal operating range, the alarm fault
condition is cleared, the out-of-alarm-fault status is generated and logged, and alarm
monitoring for the tag returns to normal.
Deadband
With some measured values, such as line pressure, tag values can fluctuate rapidly above
and below a critical threshold. Where such conditions exist, you can create a deadband as
a buffer to prevent the fluctuations from triggering unnecessary alarms.
If the threshold is increasing (monitoring rising values), the deadband range lies below the
threshold. If the threshold is decreasing (monitoring falling values), the deadband lies
above it.
The following illustration shows an increasing threshold of 4,000 rpm with a deadband
value of 500 rpm. The rpm has to fall to 3,500 and then rise above 4,000 before it will
trigger the alarm again.
In alarm
rpm
In alarm again
5000
4000 X X
Deadband
3500 X
Thresholds 3000
Out of alarm
2000
1000
0
n
Time
11-5
• • • • •
A deadband range can be absolute, as in the previous illustration, or it can be a percentage

of the minimum or maximum range for a tag. For example, if the deadband in the
illustration were two percent, its range would be two percent of 5,000 rpm, or 100 rpm.
If a buffer is not required, the deadband must be set up as zero. With a deadband of zero,
alarms will be triggered as soon as the tag value crosses any of its thresholds.
Use the deadband carefully in safety-critical applications. In the preceding illustration, the
variable has to fluctuate by more than 500 rpm before an alarm is triggered again.
Alarm states for digital tags

An HMI digital tag is either on or off. Instead of thresholds, digital tags have alarm states.
To trigger an alarm Create this type of digital alarm
When a tag has a value of 1. On

When a tag has a value of 0. Off
When a tag value changes Any Change*
from 0 to 1 or from 1 to 0
Only when a tag value changes Changes to On*
from 0 to 1.
Only when a tag value changes Changes to Off*
from 1 to 0.
In the table, the asterisk ( * ) indicates change-of-state digital alarm types. These are considered
out of alarm immediately after the change of state.
Alarm severity
HMI tag alarms can range in severity from 1 (most severe) to 8 (least severe), to indicate
different levels of importance.
For example, a level-4 alarm might warn that a vat is half full of liquid, while a level-1
alarm indicates that the vat is about to overflow. Both alarms monitor the same tag but
have different severity levels.
When you set up alarm severity, you specify what the severity levels mean and what
actions they will trigger. Severity determines the order in which alarms are displayed in an
alarm banner.
11-6
• • • • •
Alarm messages
11 • Placeholder
Alarm messages report information about alarms. There are three types of messages you
can set up for HMI tag alarms:
In Alarm messages are generated when tags go into alarm.
Out of Alarm messages are generated when tags goes out of alarm.
Acknowledged messages are generated when operators acknowledge alarms.
For each message type, you can use the default message or create a custom message, and
route the messages to a log file or a printer, or to both destinations.
Alarm log file

The alarm log file records HMI tag alarm incidents. You can view the contents of an alarm
log file in the HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer.
Use the HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup tool to set up how often log files will be created and
deleted. You can also use the tool to set up automatic logging to a central ODBC-
compliant database.
If you export alarm log data to an external ODBC database, you can view records in the
database using third-party, ODBC-compliant applications such as Microsoft® Excel or
Microsoft Visual Basic®.
To manually export the alarm log file to an ODBC database at run time, use the
AlarmLogSendToODBC command. For details, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
HMI tag alarm displays

HMI tag alarm information is recorded in alarm log files and on the HMI server computer
where the alarms were generated.
To display records in the alarm log file, use the HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer.
To display alarm information recorded in the HMI server computer’s memory, use graphic
objects such as the HMI tag alarm summary, in FactoryTalk View SE graphic displays.
HMI tag alarm summaries and alarm log viewers can only display HMI tag alarm information. To
display FactoryTalk alarm information, you must set up the FactoryTalk objects installed with
FactoryTalk View SE. For more information, see Chapter 12, Setting up FactoryTalk alarms.
Alarm log viewer

The HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer displays the contents of the alarm log file. The contents
of the file depend on how severities are defined in the Alarm Setup editor. For details, see
page 11-16.
11-7
• • • • •
By default, the log file will generate a record when:

a tag goes into alarm.
a tag goes out of alarm.
an alarm is acknowledged.
a tag set up with an alarm is suppressed.
an alarm fault is generated.
For information about setting up the alarm log viewer, see page 11-27.
Set up an application so that only essential alarm information is logged. Alarm logging uses
system resources and can slow overall system performance.
Alarm summary
The HMI tag alarm summary is a graphic object, created in the FactoryTalk View SE
Graphics editor, that displays HMI tag alarm information recorded in the HMI server
computer’s memory.
A single HMI tag alarm summary can display alarms from multiple HMI servers located
on different computers. Each HMI server maintains a list of up to 2,000 alarms.
As new alarms occur, they are displayed at the top of the list in the alarm summary. When
the list is full and a new alarm is generated, the alarm at the bottom of the list (the oldest
alarm) is acknowledged automatically by the system, and then dropped from the list.
In the alarm log file, alarms acknowledged automatically by the system are identified by
SysAk (system-acknowledged) in the TransType (transaction type) field.
Alarms are also dropped from the alarm summary when they are out of alarm, and
acknowledged manually. When alarms are dropped, they are removed from memory.
When the AlarmOff command is run, the entire contents of the alarm summary are erased.
AlarmOff is just one of the FactoryTalk View commands used with HMI tag alarms. For details
about AlarmOff and other commands, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
When setting up an HMI tag alarm summary, you can specify which alarm information to
display, and how the information will appear in the alarm summary.
For example, you can specify a different color for each alarm incident: low-severity
alarms could be set up as blue, medium-severity as yellow, and high-severity as red. This
would allow an operator to identify the severity of alarms at a glance.
For information about creating alarm summaries, see page 11-30.
11-8
• • • • •
Graphic displays and objects

FactoryTalk View SE makes HMI tag alarm status information available to graphic
11 • Placeholder
displays through a set of system tags.
You can use these system tags with numeric and string display objects, to show specific
information about HMI tag alarms in graphic displays. For details, see “Alarm system
tags,” next.
You can also attach visibility and color animation to affect the appearance of objects that
display alarm status information.
The HMI Tag Alarm Information graphic library contains alarm-related graphic objects,
for example, an alarm banner, that you can drag into a graphic display. Use the graphic
objects in the library as they are, or modify them to suit the application’s needs.
Alarm system tags

System tags that provide HMI tag alarm status information are created and updated on the
HMI server. You can use these system tags wherever you can specify a tag name in
To display this alarm status information Use this system tag Of type
The most recent, most severe alarm. If an alarm of an equal system\AlarmBanner String
or higher severity occurs, it replaces the first alarm, whether
or not the previous alarm has been acknowledged.
The date of the most recent, most severe alarm. system\AlarmMostRecentDate String
The threshold label of the tag of the most recent, most system\AlarmMostRecentLabel String
severe alarm.
The severity of the most recent, most severe alarm. system\AlarmMostRecentSeverity Analog
The description of the tag of the most recent, most severe system\AlarmMostRecentTagDesc String
alarm.
The name of the tag of the most recent, most severe alarm. system\AlarmMostRecentTagname String
The time of the most recent, most severe alarm. system\AlarmMostRecentTime String
The units of the most recent, most severe alarm. system\AlarmMostRecentUnits String
The number of unacknowledged and suppressed alarms. system\AlarmStatus String
The number of alarm transactions in an unfiltered alarm system\AlarmSummaryItems Analog
summary.
11-9
• • • • •
To display this alarm status information Use this system tag Of type
The number of unacknowledged alarms in an unfiltered system\AlarmSummaryItemsUnacked Analog

alarm summary.
The number of tags with alarms suppressed. system\AlarmSuppressedCount Analog
Alarm acknowledgment
An operator can acknowledge HMI tag alarms displayed in an alarm summary or some
other HMI tag alarm display. Acknowledging an alarm does not correct the condition
causing the alarm, but indicates that the operator is aware of the alarm.
A tag, not an alarm, is acknowledged: a single tag might cause several alarms.
For example, a tag representing temperature might trigger Warm, Hot, and Overheat
alarms by the time it is acknowledged. The tag could also go in and out of alarm several
times before being acknowledged.
One acknowledgment is all that is required for all previous and current alarms for a tag, so
alarm log files often show fewer acknowledgments than alarms.
Acknowledging alarms
To acknowledge HMI tag alarms, you can use any of these methods:
Click Acknowledge or Acknowledge All in the HMI tag alarm summary.
Use the FactoryTalk View command Acknowledge by itself, or with parameters to
name a tag or group of tags.
Use the FactoryTalk View command AcknowledgeAll. For details, see the
Unacknowledged alarms remain outstanding until the HMI tag alarm summary is full,
alarm monitoring is turned off, or the system is shut down.
Alarm suppression
You can suppress alarm monitoring for single or multiple HMI tags. This is useful for
testing or for performing repairs or maintenance on a piece of equipment.
To suppress alarm monitoring, use the FactoryTalk View command SuppressOn. To view
a list of the tags not being monitored, use the Suppressed List. You can also turn
monitoring back on from this list.
For details about using the SuppressOn and SuppressOff commands, see the FactoryTalk
View Site Edition Help.
11-10
• • • • •
Alarm functions in expressions
11 • Placeholder
When an HMI tag goes into alarm, or a FactoryTalk View SE alarm event occurs,
information about the alarm is recorded along with the value of the tag or alarm event.
Using expressions, you can retrieve this information on a tag-by-tag basis.
Checking for HMI tags in alarm

If the system detects that an HMI tag is in alarm, it sets an internal alarm bit, and then
resets the bit when the tag is out of alarm.
The following expression checks if an HMI tag is in alarm:
ALM_IN_ALARM (tag)
where tag is the name of the HMI tag you want to check for alarms.
When a tag is in alarm, the expression result is 1. When a tag is out of alarm, the
expression result is 0.
One way to use this expression is to animate the visibility of a graphic object in a display.
When the tag goes into alarm, the ALM_IN_ALARM expression is set to 1, making the
object visible. This is an effective way to draw the operator’s attention to the alarm.
Checking for acknowledged HMI tag alarms

The following expression checks if an HMI tag alarm has ever been acknowledged:
ALM_ACK (tag)
The expression ALM_ACK returns 1 if an alarm has been acknowledged. If a tag goes
out of alarm without being acknowledged, the expression returns 0.
When alarm monitoring starts, the ALM_ACK expression returns 1 by default, for tags that have
never been in alarm. To reverse the default behavior, create the registry key Alarm Initially Acked
on the computer running the HMI server. Then, change the key’s string value to False.
To create or change the key, use the Windows® Regedit32 utility. The key is located at:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Rockwell Software\RSView Enterprise\
Alarm Server
For details about using the Regedit32 utility, click Help in the Registry editor window.
The following expression checks if several alarms, of a specified pattern, have ever been
acknowledged:
ALM_ALLACKED (tag*)
11-11
• • • • •
The expression ALM_ALLACKED (tag*) returns 1 if all tags that match the pattern
have been acknowledged. If any of the tags have not been acknowledged, the expression
returns 0.
Other functions are also used with expressions to monitor alarms. For a complete list of
the alarm functions, see “Tag functions” on page 23-15, in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk
If a graphic display requires more than 20 HMI tag alarm functions, for performance reasons
it is better to use the alarm functions in derived tags. For details, see the FactoryTalk View
Site Edition Help.
Using wildcard characters in alarm expressions

For built-in alarm functions, you can use wildcard characters in the expression to retrieve
information about multiple tags at once.

For example, the following expression checks if any of a group of tags is in alarm:
ALM_IN_ALARM (alarm*)
where alarm* represents all tags whose names begin with ‘alarm.’
If one or more of these tags are in alarm, the expression result is 1. If all of the tags are out
of alarm, the expression result is 0.
Using wildcard characters in alarm expressions might affect performance, if the pattern matches
a large number of tags.
Acknowledge bit
An acknowledge bit is a digital tag that can be used to:
acknowledge an HMI tag alarm.
monitor the acknowledged state of an HMI tag alarm.
When you set up an acknowledge bit for a tag, the HMI server monitors the value of the
acknowledge bit and acknowledges the alarm automatically, when the value of the
acknowledge bit changes from 0 to 1.
In the alarm log file, this transaction is identified by RmAck (Remote Acknowledge) in
the TransType (transaction type) field.
11-12
• • • • •
When an operator acknowledges an alarm, the acknowledge bit is set to 1. If the Auto
Reset feature is enabled, the HMI server resets the acknowledge bit to 0 when the tag
11 • Placeholder
goes back into alarm.
The acknowledge bit must be set up as a digital tag in the HMI tag database. For details
about setting up an acknowledge bit, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
The HMI server monitors the value of each acknowledge bit tag. Using many acknowledge bits
can slow down the system considerably.
Handshake bit
A handshake bit is a digital tag that can be used to monitor the status of an HMI tag alarm.
When you set up a handshake bit for a tag, the HMI server sets the handshake bit to 1
when the tag goes into alarm. If the Auto Reset feature is enabled, the HMI server sets the
handshake bit to 0 when the tag goes out of alarm.
The handshake bit must be set up as a digital tag in the HMI tag database. For details
about setting up a handshake bit, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
Switching handshaking on
Handshaking is turned off by default. To switch handshaking on, you can:
use the /H parameter with the AlarmOn command.
use the HandshakeOn command.
For information about FactoryTalk View SE handshake commands, see the FactoryTalk
View Site Edition Help.
Summary of steps for setting up HMI tag alarms

Following are the tasks involved in setting up HMI tag alarms in a FactoryTalk View SE
application. Each task is described in detail, in subsequent sections of this chapter:
1. In the Alarm Setup editor, set up the attributes of all alarms on an HMI server:
in the Setup tab, specify the maximum update rate, behavior if HMI server
redundancy is set up, and whether to generate alarms for analog tags when their
values approach normal range.
in the Severities tab, specify the logging destination and type of notification for
the alarm severity levels (1 through 8) and for alarm events.
in the User Msgs tab, create user default messages to use in place of system
default message, when alarms occur.
11-13
• • • • •
2. Use the HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup tool to set up the alarm log file. You can specify
where the file is stored, and when (or whether) log files will be created and deleted.
3. In the Tags editor, in the Analog or Digital Alarm editor, specify alarm conditions for
each HMI tag you want to monitor. You can define alarms for analog and digital tags,
but not for string tags.
4. In the Graphics editor, set up alarm information displays. In graphic displays, you can:
set up alarm summaries.
embed numeric or string displays that use alarm functions or alarm system tags.
provide ways to start and stop alarm monitoring.
The FactoryTalk View AlarmOn and AlarmOff commands control alarm monitoring on the
HMI server. How you choose to start and stop alarm monitoring is particularly important
for network applications. For details, see page 11-39.
Setting up general HMI tag alarm behavior

Use the Alarm Setup editor to specify the general features of all HMI tag alarms for a
given HMI server. In the:
Setup tab, specify general behavior for alarm monitoring and annunciation.
Severities tab, set up logging and alarm behavior for individual severities.
User Msgs tab, create custom alarm messages to use in place of the default system
messages.
For details about options in Alarm Setup editor tabs, click Help.
To open the Alarm Setup editor

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, open the HMI Tag Alarms
folder.
2. Right-click the Alarm Setup icon, and then click Open.
You can also double-click the Alarm Setup icon, or drag the icon into the FactoryTalk
View Studio workspace.
11-14
• • • • •
11 • Placeholder
Set up alarm
severities.
Create alarm
messages to
replace system
messages.
Setting up alarm monitoring

In the Setup tab of the Alarm Setup editor, you can specify:
how the system behaves when alarms cross back over trigger thresholds.
how often the system checks for new alarms.
where alarms are logged and printed when redundant HMI servers are in use.
Alarm trigger thresholds

An HMI tag alarm is triggered when the value of an analog tag crosses a specified alarm
threshold.
If the value of the tag fluctuates above and below its alarm threshold, alarms are triggered
each time the tag value rises above or falls below the threshold value. You can specify
whether to use this feature. For an example of how it works, see page 11-3.
Specifying how often the system checks for alarms

The system does not check for alarms more frequently than the maximum update rate
specified in the Alarm Setup editor.
Match the maximum update rate to the rate at which you expect tag values to change. For
example, if you are monitoring temperatures that fluctuate slowly, check for alarms less
frequently than if you are monitoring manufacturing processes that change rapidly.
11-15
• • • • •
Setting up alarm monitoring on redundant servers

If you have set up redundant HMI servers, HMI tag alarms can be logged and printed on
the active HMI server only, or on both the Active and the Standby HMI server.
For more information, see Chapter 14, Setting up FactoryTalk system availability.
For HMI tag alarm states to be synchronized properly, the clocks on the primary and secondary
HMI servers must be kept synchronized to a time server. If the clocks are not synchronized, when
a fail-over occurs, multiple alarms or inconsistent information might display in an alarm summary.
Setting up alarm severities

In the Severities tab of the Alarm Setup editor, you can set up logging destinations and
annunciation options for each HMI tag alarm severity and alarm incident.
For each severity or incident, you can log to the alarm log file, to a printer, or to both. You
can also specify how notification is handled, for alarms of particular severities.
Alarm severities
Alarm incidents
Alarm or incident What is logged (to file, printer, or both)

Severity 1 through 8 In Alarm messages.
Out of alarm Out of Alarm messages (for any severity that has been set
up to log In Alarm messages).
11-16
• • • • •
Alarm or incident What is logged (to file, printer, or both)
11 • Placeholder
Acknowledged Acknowledged messages (for any severity that has been
set up to log In Alarm messages).
Fault All Fault messages.
Suppression All Suppression messages.
When logging to a printer, you can use only continuous-feed printers, such as dot-matrix printers.
Page printers, such as laser printers, are not supported.
Setting up alarm messages

Alarm messages report information about HMI tag alarms. When setting up alarm
messages, you can use the system defaults, or you can define the content of each message.
To create a user-
default message,
type the message in
the appropriate box.
You can create user

messages for logging
to a file or a printer.
In the User Msgs tab of the Alarm Setup editor, you can define the content of:
In Alarm messages, which are logged when an analog tag’s alarm threshold has been
crossed, or when a digital tag has changed state.
Out of Alarm messages, which are logged when a tag is no longer in alarm.
Acknowledged messages, which are logged when an alarm has been acknowledged.
11-17
• • • • •
For details about options in the User Msgs tab, click Help.
Alarm messages appear in HMI tag alarm log files, not in HMI tag alarm summaries.
Defining the content of the message

To define the content of a message, use any combination of system default messages, user
default messages, and custom messages.
System default messages are a series of placeholders. At run time, these placeholders
are replaced with information about the alarm that has been triggered.
This placeholder Is replaced with

\C Current value of the tag.
\D Date when the message is sent.
\L Alarm label specified in the Alarm Label field of the
Analog Alarm and Digital Alarm editors.
\N Name of the tag in alarm.
\S Description of the tag in alarm.
\T Time when the message is sent.
\U Units specified in the Units field, in the Tags editor.
\V Threshold value that was crossed.
\C, \L, \U, and \V do not contain any information when used in alarm Acknowledged messages.
The system default messages are used automatically, for all alarms and alarm events. For
alarm events, they are used if you don’t specify a log message string using the /L
parameter with the AlarmEvent command. For details, see the FactoryTalk View Site
Edition Help.
Example: Message placeholders

An out-of-alarm message set up like this:
\11D \8T Tag \10N is out of alarm.
is displayed like this at run time:
01/22/06 11:45:02 Tag PUMP3 is out of alarm.
11-18
• • • • •
The width of a column in a message is the number of spaces specified between the
backslash and the placeholder character. In this example, the date column has 11 spaces
11 • Placeholder
(\11D), the time has 8 spaces (\8T), and the tag name has 10 spaces (\10N).
User default messages are messages you create to replace the system default
messages. You can use both words and placeholders to define user defaults.
Custom messages apply on a per-tag basis. You set them up in the Tags editor, in the
Alarm Messages tab in either of the Analog or Digital Alarm editors.
To create a custom message, type any message you want. You can use both words and
placeholders to define custom messages.
Setting up alarm conditions for HMI tags

In the Tags editor, for each analog and digital tag you want to monitor for alarms, use the
Analog Alarm and Digital Alarm editors to specify conditions that will trigger an alarm.
To open the Tags editor

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, open the HMI Tags folder, right-
click the Tags icon, and then click Open.
To add an alarm to
the selected tag, click
the Alarm check box
or button.
When a tag has an

alarm defined for it,
an X appears in the
Alm column.
11-19
• • • • •
You can set up alarms for a tag when you create the tag, or you can set up alarms later.
To add alarm conditions to an analog or digital tag

1. In the spreadsheet section of the Tags editor, select the analog or digital tag you want
to set up alarm conditions for.
2. In the form section of the Tags editor, select the check box beside the Alarm button.
To modify alarm conditions already set up for a tag

1. In the spreadsheet section of the Tags editor, select the analog or digital tag with alarm
conditions, that you want to modify.
2. In the form section of the Tags editor, click Alarm.
Setting up alarms for HMI analog tags

These are the tasks involved in setting up alarms for HMI analog tags:
1. Set up the alarm threshold, and then choose the message to display if the threshold is
crossed.
2. Set up the messages that are sent when a tag goes out of alarm and when an operator
acknowledges an alarm.
3. Set up advanced features, such as deadband and handshake.
For details about options in the Analog Alarm editor, click Help.
Setting up alarms for HMI digital tags

These are the tasks involved in setting up alarms for HMI digital tags:
1. Set up alarm states.
2. Set up the messages that are sent when a tag goes out of alarm and when an operator
acknowledges an alarm.
3. Set up advanced features, such as handshake.
For details about options in the Digital Alarm editor, click Help.

In a FactoryTalk View SE network application, you can modify HMI tag and alarm
properties at run time, and have the changes take effect at connected clients, without
11-20
• • • • •
HMI tag properties can be modified in FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Tags editor, in the
HMI Tag dialog box (opened from the Tag Browser), or in the Tag Import & Export
11 • Placeholder
Wizard.
HMI tag alarm properties can be modified in the Analog or Digital Alarms editors, opened
from the Tags editor. The AlarmAcceptEdits command must be run for alarm changes to
take effect.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, for a redundant network application, you can also replicate
changes made at the primary server, to the secondary server.
modifying HMI tag properties, see page 14-23.
modifying HMI tag alarm properties, see page 14-26.
replicating changes from the primary to the secondary server, see page 14-16.
About FactoryTalk View SE alarm events

You can customize and extend HMI tag alarm monitoring, by writing alarm-detection
algorithms using PLC ladder logic, custom programs, or other appropriate tools.
You can then add alarm events to the HMI tag alarm subsystem, to respond to the alarm-
detection algorithms for annunciation, logging, printing, and display in alarm summaries.
By using a tag name for an alarm event, you can customize the alarm features of the tag.
For example, you can use alarm events to provide a tag with more than eight thresholds.
You can also use alarm events to specify an alarm’s time stamp.
Since alarms are scanned in the background, alarms that occur rapidly might be displayed
out of sequence in FactoryTalk View SE, because they might all be scanned at the same
time, and therefore produce the same time stamp.
If the sequence in which alarms occur is important, you might want to record accurate
time stamps for HMI tag alarms by buffering the alarms in the PLC, and then using alarm
events to record the alarms with accurate time stamps in FactoryTalk View SE.
To create a FactoryTalk View SE alarm event, use the AlarmEvent command. For details,
see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
How event-based alarms work

FactoryTalk View SE alarm events let you create alarms without using HMI tags. Event-
based alarms work just like HMI tag alarms. You can:
display and filter event-based alarms in HMI tag alarm summaries.
11-21
• • • • •
acknowledge event-based alarms individually, or with wildcard characters, using the

Acknowledge command.
use event-based alarms with alarm system tags.
log event-based alarms to disk or printer.
You can also use FactoryTalk View SE alarm events with HMI tag alarm functions in
expressions.
In FactoryTalk View SE, or in alarm-detection algorithms you create for the application,
you can stamp event-based alarms with the current time, or with a specific date and time.
Alarm events are not processed until the AlarmOn command is run, and alarm events are no
longer processed after the AlarmOff command is run.
How event-based alarms differ from HMI tag alarms

FactoryTalk View SE alarm events differ from HMI tag alarms in the following ways:
You cannot specify thresholds for analog alarm events. All analog alarm events have a
value of zero.
You cannot specify alarm labels for event-based alarms. That is, you cannot use the
IntoAlarm and OutOfAlarm labels for HMI digital tag alarms, or the threshold labels
for HMI analog tag alarms.
You cannot suppress event-based alarms.
Alarm events have no acknowledge and handshake bits.
You cannot use the Identify feature with event-based alarms, to run a command,
macro, or custom program.
Event-based alarms are not retained after the AlarmOff command is run, or after the
HMI server shuts down.
Naming alarm events

You must provide a name for each alarm event you create. The event name can be a tag in
the HMI server’s tag database, as long as the tag has no alarm conditions set up for it.
Alarm event names can be up to 255 characters long and can contain the following
characters:
A to Z
0 to 9
underscore ( _ ) and dash (–)
11-22
• • • • •
When an alarm event name starts with a number or contains a dash, enclose the name in
brackets { } when you use it in an expression, for example, {N33-0}.
11 • Placeholder
Also use brackets when using wildcard characters to represent multiple alarm events in an
expression, for example, {alarm*}.
Alarm event names preserve upper and lower case for readability but are not case
sensitive. For example, the alarm event name HopperOverflow is the same as
hopperoverflow.
How event-based alarms are logged

The alarm log file displays event-based alarms in the order in which the alarm
transactions were logged. If you specify a time stamp for alarm events, the alarm log
could display the transactions out of order.
About alarm event types

Use the AlarmEvent command to create into-alarm and out-of-alarm events. Multiple
into-alarm events can be processed for the same event name before an out-of-alarm event
is received.
Use the InAndOutOfAlarm event type for change-of-state alarms. An out-of-alarm event
is ignored if no into-alarm events preceded it.
Setting up HMI tag alarm logging

Use the HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup tool to specify:
where to store alarm log files.
when alarm log files are created or deleted.
optionally, whether to log alarm data to a central, ODBC-compliant database.
Alarm logging must be set up on the computer running the HMI server that is monitoring tags for
alarms; otherwise, the settings will have no effect.
Alarm logging must also be set up separately, for each computer running an HMI server that is
monitoring tags for alarms. If two HMI servers are running on a single computer, the alarm log file
will contain entries for both HMI servers.
Opening the HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup tool

To open the HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup tool, use one of these methods:
In FactoryTalk View Studio or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, on
the Tools menu, click HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup.
11-23
• • • • •
Tools, and then click SE HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup.
For more information about HMI tag alarm log files, see:
“Adding remarks to the alarm log file at run time” on page 11-26.
“Viewing HMI tag alarm log files” on page 11-27.
the schema for the ODBC alarm log table on page C-1.
Specifying where log files are stored or printed

In the Logging tab of the HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup tool, you can specify where alarm
log files are stored on the computer. The default location is:
SE\AlarmLog*
If alarm information is being logged to a printer, you can also specify where the
information will be printed.For details about options in the Logging tab, click Help.
Specifying when log files are created and deleted

In the File Management tab of the HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup tool, you can specify when
alarm log files are created and deleted.
You can set up the system to create new log files periodically, or you can prevent new files
from being created.
11-24
• • • • •
In each 24-hour period, up to 26 new files can be created. If you attempt to create a 27th
file, FactoryTalk View continues logging data to the 26th file. At midnight, the sequence
11 • Placeholder
starts again with the first new file for the new day.
You can set up file management to delete log files after a specified period, or once a
specified number of files have been created. Files scheduled to be deleted are deleted
whenever a new file is created.
For example, if you set up logging to start a new file daily, and to delete the oldest files
every third day, the system will save alarm log files for the current day and for the three
previous days. The oldest file is deleted whenever a new file is created.
To never delete files, clear the check boxes under Delete oldest files.
For details about the options in the File Management tab, click Help.
If file management is set up to delete the oldest files when a new file is started, and you are
exporting data to an ODBC database, make sure you export the data before the oldest file is
deleted, or the oldest data will be lost.
Monitoring disk space

If the computer’s hard disk is full, alarm logging stops and no more log files are created.
For information about monitoring disk space on computers running HMI servers, see
page 17-21.
Setting up periodic logging to a central ODBC database

In the Central Logging tab of the HMI Tag Alarm Log Setup tool, you can set up logging
to a central, ODBC-compliant database.
Central logging works by exporting the contents of the alarm log file periodically to an
ODBC-compliant database. FactoryTalk View supports the following ODBC-compliant
databases: Sybase SQL Server, Oracle, and Microsoft SQL Server.
For details about options in the Central Logging tab, click Help.
Setting up security to log alarms to a remote computer

If you are logging HMI tag alarms to an ODBC database that is not located on the HMI
server’s computer, you must change certain DCOM security settings. For details, see the
Exporting alarm log files manually to ODBC format

You can also use the FactoryTalk View command AlarmLogSendToODBC, to export
alarm log file contents manually to an ODBC-compliant database.
11-25
• • • • •
If the specified database table is not ODBC compliant, the export will fail. If the table
does not exist, FactoryTalk View will try to create one.
When you export data to an ODBC table, FactoryTalk View keeps track of the data in a
control file called Alarm.exp, which is located in the same path that stores the alarm log
.dat files. Whenever you export data, only the newest data is exported.
However, if the control file is deleted, all the alarm log data in the .dat files is exported
when the AlarmLogSendToODBC command is run.
Example: Exporting alarm log files to ODBC format on demand

To export the contents of the alarm log files to an ODBC-compliant database on demand,
create a graphic display containing a button that uses the AlarmLogSendToODBC
command as its press action.
When the operator presses the button at run time, the contents of the alarm log file will be
exported to the ODBC database.
The AlarmLogSendToODBC command exports only the records added to the alarm log
files since the last export.
For information about the contents of the alarm log ODBC tables, see page C-1.
Adding remarks to the alarm log file at run time

Use the AlarmLogRemark command to add information to the HMI tag alarm log file at
run time.
Parameters for the command let you add a text comment, the alarm severity, and the tag
name to the alarm log file. Other parameters let you prompt the operator for the text part
of the remark, and log the remark to a printer, in addition to the alarm log file.
You cannot display alarm log remarks in HMI tag alarm summaries.
Use the /P parameter with

the AlarmLogRemark
command, to prompt the
operator to type a remark
for the alarm log file.
11-26
• • • • •
At run time, only one Alarm Log Remark dialog box is displayed at a time, and the
operator must respond to the dialog box before the next one is displayed. For details about
11 • Placeholder
using AlarmLogRemark, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
Alarm logging must be turned on before you can use the AlarmLogRemark command. To start
alarm logging, run the AlarmLogOn command. For details, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition
Help.
Viewing HMI tag alarm log files

The HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer displays the contents of the alarm log file. The contents
of the file depend on how severities are defined in the Alarm Setup editor. For details, see
page 11-16.
You can display alarm log files stored on the local computer or on a remote computer, and
you can select the number of log files to be displayed in the alarm log viewer. Each alarm
log file is displayed in a separate tab in the HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer.
For information about the contents of the alarm log ODBC tables, see page C-1.
Opening the alarm log viewer

To open the HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer, use one of these methods:
In FactoryTalk View Studio or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, on
the Tools menu, click HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer.
Tools, and then click SE HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer.
To open the alarm log viewer Help

Tools, and then click SE HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer Help.
To display the alarm log viewer at run time

1. In a graphic display, create a button that an operator can use to open the HMI Tag
Alarm Log Viewer.
2. For the button’s press action, type the following command:
AppStart “C:\Program Files\Rockwell Software\RSView Enterprise\
AlarmLogViewer.exe”
11-27
• • • • •
You must include the quotation marks, because there are spaces in the parameter.
At run time, due to operating system rules, the alarm log viewer might open behind the
FactoryTalk View SE Client window. If you are unaware of this, and try to open the viewer again,
another instance will open. This could result in multiple viewers being open at the same time.
To avoid this, you can bring the viewer to the front manually, and close it when it is no longer
required. You can also use the programmatic solution documented in Answer ID 9041, in the
Rockwell Automation KnowledgeBase. For help gaining access to the KnowledgeBase, see
“Finding information on the Internet” on page P-3.
Alarm log file names

HMI tag alarm information is stored in file sets, in proprietary format.
When an alarm log file is created, it is named automatically. The name is based on the date
the file was created and the type of data it contains.
The format for the name is YYYYMMDDnz.dat, where:
YYYY are the four digits of the year.
MM is the month.
DD is the day.
n is the sequence letter (‘A’, ‘B’, ‘C’, and so on). This letter indicates the sequence in
which the files were created. You can have up to 26 files (‘A’ to ‘Z’) per day. At
midnight, the sequence starts at ‘a’ again.
z is the file type: ‘L’ (uppercase L) is for alarm.
If you are using short file names, or if the path where the log files are stored does not
support long file names, the format for the name is YYMMDDnz.dat, where YY are the
last two digits of the year.
Example: HMI tag alarm log file name

The log file named 20061015BL.dat was created in the year 2006, month 10, and day 15.
The ‘B’ indicates that this is the second file created that day. The ‘L’ (uppercase L)
indicates that this is an alarm log file.
11-28
• • • • •
Suppressing alarm logging
11 • Placeholder
You can suppress alarm monitoring for specified HMI tags. This is useful for testing or
performing repairs or maintenance on equipment.
To suppress alarm monitoring, use the SuppressOn command. To suppress all alarms for
the specified tags, run the SuppressOn command before the AlarmOn command. For
details about using these commands, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
Use the Suppressed List to see which tags are not being monitored for alarms, and to turn
alarm monitoring back on.
To open the Suppressed List

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, in
the Explorer window, open the HMI Tag Alarms folder.
2. Right-click the Suppressed List icon, and then click Open.
You can also double-click the Suppressed List icon, or drag the icon into the
FactoryTalk View Studio workspace.
To turn off suppression

for a tag, click the
tag name, and then
click Suppress Off.
Click All Off to turn

off suppression for
all tags in the list.
For more information about the Suppressed List, click Help.
You cannot open the Suppressed List at run time, from a FactoryTalk View SE Client.
Suppressing alarm printing

To suppress alarm printing for all HMI tags, use the AlarmPrintOff command. To reset
alarm printing, use the AlarmPrintOn command.
11-29
• • • • •
Using AlarmOn and AlarmPrintOff in the correct order

When the AlarmOn command is run, and HMI tag alarm monitoring is started, alarms are
logged to the alarm log file and to a printer, if both destinations are set up. To stop logging
to the printer, you can run the AlarmPrintOff command.
The order in which AlarmOn and AlarmPrintOff run affects what happens at run time:
If AlarmOn runs first, alarms are logged to the alarm log file and the printer until
AlarmPrintOff is run.
If AlarmPrintOff runs first, followed by AlarmOn, alarms are logged to the alarm log
file, but not to the printer. To restart logging to the printer, you would have to run
AlarmPrintOn.
The AlarmPrintOff and AlarmPrintOn commands are not retained across FactoryTalk
View sessions. If you run AlarmPrintOff before AlarmOn in the current session, alarms
will not print to the printer.
However, if you then shut down FactoryTalk View SE, restart it, and run the AlarmOn
command, alarms will be logged to both the alarm log file and the printer, until you run
AlarmPrintOff.
Creating an HMI tag alarm summary

The HMI tag alarm summary is a table that displays the active alarms recorded in an HMI
server (or servers). At run time, operators can use alarm summaries in FactoryTalk View
graphic displays to view and interact with alarms.
You can create a new alarm summary object in a display, or use the pre-built alarm
summary available in the HMI Tag Alarm Information graphic library.
To create a new HMI tag alarm summary object

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the Displays icon,
and then click Open.
2. On the Objects menu, select Advanced, and then click HMI Tag Alarm Summary.
3. Drag the mouse diagonally on the display, to describe the approximate size of the
alarm summary, and then release the mouse button.
The object can be part of the display, or it can fill the entire graphic display.
For details about creating an HMI tag alarm summary, see the FactoryTalk View Site
Edition Help.
11-30
• • • • •
The parts of an HMI tag alarm summary
11 • Placeholder
A new HMI tag alarm summary object in a graphic display looks like this:
Use commands on
the Insert menu to
insert headings in
the header area.
Use the mouse to

move the split bar
up and down.
Alarm information is
displayed in the
alarm summary’s
body at run time.
Use commands on
the Format menu to
specify the position
of the button bar,
and the buttons it
contains.
When setting up an alarm summary, you determine how many columns the table will
have, how wide the columns will be, and what information the columns will contain.
You can also specify the HMI tags and areas (in a network application) that will provide
information to the alarm summary.
Inserting headings
Use headings from the Insert menu (shown in the next illustration) to define what
information is displayed in the HMI tag alarm summary at run time.
To add a heading, click an item on the menu, and then click on the header area in the alarm
summary. You can add any number of headings, and place them in any order.
Insert the Operator Name heading to include an operator’s name. When a tag goes into alarm,
the Operator Name column will show the name of the Windows system account. When a user
acknowledges an alarm, the column will show the name of that user.
11-31
• • • • •
When you click an item on the Insert menu, two boxes appear in the
alarm summary. Drag the boxes to position them. Drag the handles
on the boxes change the width of the column.
In local applications, the Insert menu does not contain an Area Name heading.
Choosing fonts
The header and body fonts in an HMI tag alarm summary can be different. For example,
you might choose a larger font for the header and a smaller font for the body.
To change a font, on the Format menu, click Bod installed on the computer.
To accommodate a larger font in the header area, increase the size of the area by dragging
the split bar down.
Choosing colors and blink styles

To specify the color or blink style of an item in the HMI tag alarm summary, on the
Format menu, click Colors. In the Colors dialog box, you can specify colors for:
Severity 1 through 8 messages.
Out of Alarm and Fault State messages.
Header, body, and button areas.
You can also set up the blink style for:
Severity 1 through 8 messages.
11-32
• • • • •
Out of Alarm and Fault State messages.
11 • Placeholder
For details about options in the Colors dialog box, click Help.
Selecting buttons
In the Buttons dialog box, you can specify where in the HMI tag alarm summary the
button bar will be positioned, and which buttons it will contain.
For descriptions of the individual buttons, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
To select the buttons for an HMI tag alarm summary

1. In the alarm summary editor, on the Format menu, click Buttons.
2. In the Buttons dialog box, select the check box beside each button that is to be in the
alarm summary. To leave a button out, clear the check box.
You can provide Filter and Sort buttons for the operator to use at run time. You can also set up
sorting and filters for the alarm summary at design time. The result of the design-time filter or sort
operation is retained each time the alarm summary is activated at run time. For more information,
see “Choosing the data to display” on page 11-34
To position the button bar

1. In the alarm summary editor, on the Format menu, click Button Bar Position.
2. Click a location.
In the following illustration, the button bar is on the left:
11-33
• • • • •
To change the button text

1. Double-click the button you want to change.
2. In the Text box, type new text for the button.
Choosing the data to display

You can set up sorting and filters for an HMI tag alarm summary, to determine how and
what alarm information is displayed at run time. For network applications, you can also
display full tag names in the alarm summary.
Displaying area names with tag names

To display tag names with the names of the areas they belong to, on the Data menu, click
Display full tag name.
This option is not available for local applications.
Sorting alarm information

Use Sort to specify the order in which alarm information is displayed. You can sort
filtered or unfiltered data. For details about options in the Sort dialog box, click Help.
You cannot sort by area name in local applications.
Filtering alarm information

Use Filter to select information, that is, to specify information that you do want displayed
in the alarm summary. Anything you don’t specify in the filter will not displayed in the
alarm summary. For details about options in the Filter dialog box, click Help.
You cannot filter by area name in local applications.
Examples: Using area and tag names in filters

To collect all alarm information from the area called Powertrain, type:
/Powertrain::*
To collect alarm information from the current area for the tag name Coolant_East, type:
Coolant_East
To collect alarm information from the current area for all tags whose names begin with
Coolant, type:
Coolant*
11-34
• • • • •
To collect all alarm information for the current area, type:
11 • Placeholder
*
To collect alarms from specific areas for tag names that match a pattern, you can type:
/Powertrain::Coolant*
/Press::FlowValve*
To collect alarms from more than one HMI server, you can type:
/Powertrain::*
/Press::*
You can also use the Areas and Tags buttons to browse for area or tag names, instead of
typing them.
Sorting and filtering at run time

By default, alarm information in an HMI tag alarm summary is sorted first by date and
time, then by severity, then by area name (network applications only), and then by tag
name.
This means that alarms are presented in chronological order: if two or more alarms have
the same time and date, they are presented in order of severity; if any alarms have the
same time and date and the same severity, they are presented by tag name.
Add Filter and Sort buttons to the button bar, to let the operator change the type or order
of information displayed in the alarm summary. Changes made to filter and sort criteria at
run time are not saved.
Using tag placeholders to specify alarms

You can also use tag placeholders to specify areas, subareas, or folder names for the tags
you want to display in an HMI tag alarm summary.
Examples: Using tag placeholders to specify areas and tags

A tag placeholder is the cross-hatch character (#) followed by a number from 1 to 500.
The placeholder can also contain wildcard characters and folder names.
In the first example, the placeholder #1 represents the name of an area you want to display
alarm information from, for all tags in the area (indicated by the wildcard).
/#1::*
11-35
• • • • •
You can also use a placeholder to represent the name of a subarea:

/Area1/#1/Area3::*
In the next example, the placeholder #1 represents the name of a tag in the specified area:
Area::#1
You can also use a placeholder to represent the name of a folder containing tags in the
specified area:
Area::Folder/#1/*
For more information about using tag placeholders in graphic displays, see page 19-29 in
Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
Replacing tag placeholders at run time

If you use tag placeholders, at run time you must substitute a tag, area, or folder name for
each placeholder, either by using a parameter file or by specifying the names as
parameters with the Display command.
If you use a parameter file, it can contain wildcard characters.
Example: Using a parameter file to replace tag placeholders

A parameter file called Beans specifies which tag names to substitute for placeholders #1,
#2, and #3 in a graphic display:
#1 = bean_weight
#2 = bean_level
#3 = bean_temp
To run the display called Canning with the Beans parameter file, you would use the
following command:
Display Canning /PBeans
The Display command parameter /P loads the specified parameter file with the display:
For more information about replacing tag placeholders in graphic displays, see
Chapter 19, “Creating graphic displays,” in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View Site Edition
User’s Guide.
11-36
• • • • •
Running commands or custom programs for selected alarms
11 • Placeholder
In an HMI tag alarm summary, use the Execute and Identify buttons to run a command,
macro, or custom program, in response to an alarm.
Using the Execute button to run commands or programs

Use the Execute button to specify a command, macro or custom program for the operator
to run with reference to the highlighted alarm.
You can also use parameters with the Execute command, to pass data derived from the
highlighted alarm to the command or custom program.
For example, you might specify Remark as the Execute command, to transfer information
about the highlighted alarm to the FactoryTalk Diagnostics log.
To append the tag value and the severity of the alarm, you would select Severity and Value
from the list of parameters that can be used with the Execute command.
Severity and value are shown only for alarms of type IntoAlarm. For alarm types OutOfAlarm and
IntoFault, the severity is always 0.
Appending Execute command parameters

Parameters are appended to the Execute command in the same order they are listed in the
Execute Command dialog box.
You can substitute parameters into any position within a command by passing the
parameters to a macro. For details about using parameters with macros, Chapter 27,
“Creating macros,” in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
Execute command parameters are separated by a space, unless you select the check box,
Separate Parameters with commas.
A space is not added automatically to the end of the command text. If you are using parameters,
to insert a space between the end of a command, macro, or custom program and the first
parameter, be sure to type the space at the end of the command text.
Adding area names to parameters

To include the area name with parameters for the Execute command, in the Execute
Command dialog box, select the check box Insert Area name.
At run time, the area of the alarm highlighted in the alarm summary will be inserted
between the first and second word in the Execute Command Text box.
Since you cannot change the position of the area name, when setting up the Execute
command, ensure that the syntax shown at the bottom of the dialog box is correct before
you click OK.
11-37
• • • • •
Alternatively, you can use a macro to substitute the parameters into any position within
the command.
If you add the Tag name parameter to the Execute command, the area name is always included,
even if the area is not displayed in the alarm summary.
Using Execute to run a custom program

If you set up the Execute button to run a custom program, and you copy the alarm
summary from one application to another, you must ensure that the custom program is
available in the new application, otherwise the Execute button will not run the program.
Example: Using AlarmLogRemark with the Execute button

To prompt the operator to add a remark to the alarm log file, in the Execute Command
dialog box, type AlarmLogRemark /P /T in the Execute Command Text box, and then
select the Tag name parameter, as shown in the following illustration.
At run time:
the /P parameter for the AlarmLogRemark command displays a prompt for the
operator, to enter a remark.
11-38
• • • • •
the /T parameter for the AlarmLogRemark command logs a string in the Tagname
column of the alarm log file.
11 • Placeholder
The Tag name parameter for the Execute command records the name of the tag
highlighted in the alarm summary, in the Tagname column of the alarm log file.
You cannot change the order in which parameters are passed to the command line for the
alarm summary Execute button.
To use the alarm summary Execute button with the AlarmLogRemark command, and
have the tag name added correctly to the /T parameter, ensure that the /T parameter is
positioned last on the command line.
For details about using the AlarmLogRemark command, see “Adding remarks to the
alarm log file at run time” on page 11-26, or see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
Using the Identify button to run commands or programs

Use the Identify button to specify a command, macro or custom program that the operator
can run when an HMI tag is in alarm, to provide additional information about the alarm.
For example, use the Identify button to run the Display command, to open a display that
contains instructions about how to handle a motor that is running too fast.
For information about setting up the Identify button, see the FactoryTalk View Site
Edition Help.
Starting and stopping HMI tag alarm monitoring

There are many ways to start and stop HMI tag alarm monitoring. Choose the way that
works best for the application.
To provide the operator with a way start and stop HMI tag alarming, use FactoryTalk
View commands and macros in conjunction with graphic objects. For details about
FactoryTalk View command syntax, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
Ways to start HMI tag alarm monitoring

To start alarm monitoring, use any of these methods:
In the HMI Server Properties dialog box, in the Components tab, select the Alarming
check box. Alarm monitoring will start the next time the HMI server runs, or when
the HMI server’s components are started manually.
11-39
• • • • •
In the Macro editor, use the AlarmOn command in a macro. Specify the macro in the
HMI Server Properties dialog box, in the Components tab. Alarm monitoring will
start when the HMI server runs.
In the Graphics editor, create a button object with AlarmOn as the press action. Alarm
monitoring will start when the button is pressed.
In the Graphics editor, attach touch animation to a graphic object, with AlarmOn as
the action. Alarm monitoring will start when the object is touched.
In the Events editor, type the AlarmOn command in the Action box for an event.
At the command line in FactoryTalk View Studio (or the FactoryTalk View SE
Administration Console), type AlarmOn and then press Enter.
If the HMI server performing alarm monitoring is not in the home area, in the preceding
examples, you must include the area name in the AlarmOn command. For details about using
the AlarmOn command, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
Ways to stop HMI tag alarm monitoring

To stop all the components that are running on the HMI server, including data log models,
event components, derived tag components, and alarm monitoring, stop the components
running on the HMI server manually.
For details about stopping components manually:
in network applications, see page 17-12.
in local applications, see page 18-5.
To stop alarm monitoring only, use any of these methods:
In the Graphics editor, create a button object with AlarmOff as the press action. Alarm
monitoring will stop when the button is pressed.
In the Graphics editor, attach Touch animation to a Graphic object, with AlarmOff as
the action. Alarm monitoring will stop when the object is touched.
In the Events editor, type the AlarmOff command in the Action box for an event.
At the command line in FactoryTalk View Studio (or the FactoryTalk View SE
Administration Console), type AlarmOff and then press Enter.
If the HMI server performing alarm monitoring is not in the home area, in the preceding
examples, you must include the area name in the AlarmOff command. For details about using
the AlarmOff command, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
11-40
12 Setting up FactoryTalk alarms
12 • Placeholder
what FactoryTalk® Alarms and Events is.
key FactoryTalk alarm concepts.
the basic steps involved in setting up FactoryTalk alarms.
setting up system-wide alarm and event policies.
working with Rockwell Automation Device Servers.
working with Tag Alarm and Event Servers.
setting up FactoryTalk tag-based alarms.
setting up alarm and event history logging.
setting up alarm and event displays.
using an alarm and event summary to monitor and respond to alarms.
working with alarm sources in the Alarm Status Explorer.
viewing alarm and event history logs.
using tags to interact with alarms or to obtain alarm status.
using FactoryTalk alarm functions in expressions.
importing and exporting alarms.
About FactoryTalk Alarms and Events

In FactoryTalk View Site Edition (also called FactoryTalk View SE), you can set up a
traditional alarm system, using HMI tags.
You can also use FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services, to centralize the distribution of
device-based and tag-based alarm data to run-time clients, through FactoryTalk alarm
servers that you add to a FactoryTalk View SE application.
12-1
• • • • •
The choices you make will depend on factors such as the design of your application, the
processes you need to monitor for alarms, the types of devices used in the application, and
whether you want to build alarm detection into those devices.
Advantages in using Alarms and Events services

There are advantages in using FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services for alarm
monitoring and control, when compared with using traditional, HMI tag alarms.
FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services offers a single, integrated set of alarm
information, distributed through supporting alarm servers. This allows for a consistent
view of device-based and tag-based alarm activity, across a FactoryTalk system.
Alarms and Events services are also integrated with FactoryTalk Security services. This
means you can set up FactoryTalk system users and computers with different levels of
access to alarm sources and data.
Choosing FactoryTalk device-based alarms

FactoryTalk device-based alarms are set up by programming alarm instructions directly
into Logix5000 controllers that support built-in alarm detection.
Following are some reasons why you might choose device-based alarms, when compared
with using HMI tag alarms.
Using device-based alarms Using HMI tag alarms

Alarm detection instructions are Alarm detection is programmed in the
programmed once, in the controller. controller, and in FactoryTalk View SE.
To set up HMI tag alarms, first you must
create the HMI tags, which are mapped to
tags in the controller. Then, in a separate
step, you must add alarm conditions to the
HMI tags you want to monitor.
This duplication of programming effort can
lead to errors.
Alarms are processed once, in the Alarms are processed in the controller, and
controller. Data polling is eliminated. in FactoryTalk View SE.
This reduces network overhead, speeds up To monitor alarms, the HMI software polls
alarm detection, and improves overall tags in the controller. If alarms are detected,
system performance. the HMI software notifies clients.
Alarm states are managed, processed, and Alarm states are stored on the HMI server
preserved in the controller. computer. If the computer is disconnected
from the network, or if the HMI server fails
or is restarted, alarm states might be lost.
12-2
• • • • •
12 • SETTING UP FACTORYTALK ALARMS
Using device-based alarms Using HMI tag alarms
12 • Placeholder
Time stamps are applied in the controller. Time stamps are applied on the HMI server
This makes time stamps more accurate. computer.
Also, the same time stamp is delivered to To ensure that time stamps are accurate and
multiple servers and clients. consistent, clocks at server and client
TIP: If multiple controllers are used in an computers must always be synchronized.
application, to ensure accurate time stamps,
synchronize the controller clocks.
The following illustration shows how device-based alarm information flows, from a
Logix5000 controller, to operators running FactoryTalk View SE clients.
FactoryTalk Alarms 4
and Events services
routes alarm data to
Alarm and Event
objects in FactoryTalk
View graphic displays. Operators running
5
FactoryTalk View
Device server notifies 3 SE Clients monitor
FactoryTalk Alarms and interact with
and Events services of alarms in graphic
alarm state changes. Alarm and Event displays.
History log
2 Controller detects alarm conditions and

notifies device server (RSLinx Enterprise,
for example) of alarm state changes.
1
RSLogix 5000 alarm detection
instructions are programmed
into the controller.
FactoryTalk View SE Clients receive device-based alarm data by way of Rockwell

Automation Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise) that you add to a FactoryTalk View SE
application.
12-3
• • • • •
For more information, see “Working with Rockwell Automation Device Servers” on
page 12-18.
RSLogix™ 5000 version 16 or later, is required to program alarm instructions into a Logix5000
controller. For a complete list of controllers in the Logix5000 family, that support FactoryTalk
Alarms and Events services, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Choosing FactoryTalk tag-based alarms

FactoryTalk tag-based alarms are set up by specifying alarm conditions for tags in devices
that do not have built-in alarm detection.
Use tag-based alarms to include these devices in an integrated FactoryTalk Alarms and
Events system.
You can set up tag-based alarms for tags in older programmable controllers (PLC-5 or
SLC 500), for tags in third-party devices communicating through OPC data servers, or for
HMI tags in an HMI server’s tag database.
You can also set up tag-based alarms for Logix5000 controllers that do support device-
based alarms, if you prefer not to set up built-in alarm detection.
FactoryTalk View SE Clients receive tag-based alarm data by way of Tag Alarm and
Event Servers that you add to a FactoryTalk View SE application. For more information,
see “Working with Tag Alarm and Event Servers” on page 12-21.
About traditional HMI tag alarms

HMI tag alarms are set up by specifying alarm conditions for HMI tags in a FactoryTalk
View SE Server’s tag database.
Use a traditional HMI tag alarm system if your application uses HMI tags for other
purposes, and you want to monitor these tags for alarms.
FactoryTalk View SE Clients receive HMI tag alarm information by way of the
FactoryTalk View SE Servers (also called HMI servers) that contain the HMI tags.
HMI tag alarm data is not managed by FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services. To
monitor and respond to HMI tag alarms, you must use the HMI tag alarm displays and
logs available in FactoryTalk View SE.
For details, see Chapter 11, Setting up HMI tag alarms.
Finding more information about Alarms and Events

This chapter provides an overview of key FactoryTalk Alarms and Events concepts, and
describes some of the basic tasks involved in setting up FactoryTalk alarms in a
FactoryTalk View SE application.
12-4
• • • • •
For example, this manual contains basic information about:
12 • Placeholder
setting up Rockwell Automation Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise), so that
FactoryTalk View SE Clients can receive FactoryTalk device-based alarm
information.
setting up Tag Alarm and Event Servers, so that FactoryTalk View SE Clients can
receive FactoryTalk tag-based alarm information.
setting up run-time alarm monitoring and control, using the FactoryTalk objects
available in FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Graphics editor.
setting up FactoryTalk alarm and event history logs, and viewing alarm history
information.
For information about creating FactoryTalk View SE applications and components, see
other chapters in this manual, or see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
This manual does not contain information about using RSLogix 5000 to program alarm
instructions into Logix5000 controllers. For details, see the RSLogix 5000 documentation or see
the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Quick Start Guide.
Opening the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help

For comprehensive information about FactoryTalk Alarms and Events, including detailed
setup instructions, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
To open the Help, use one of these methods:
On the Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk Tools,
and then click FactoryTalk Help.
In the FactoryTalk Help file, open the book FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Click Help in editors and dialog boxes used to set up alarm and event objects and logs.
Opening the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Quick Start Guide

For step-by-step instructions about setting up FactoryTalk Alarms and Events quickly,
from a FactoryTalk system perspective, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Quick
Start Guide.
To open the Quick Start Guide, in FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Help menu, click
Online Books, and then click FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Quick Start Guide.
12-5
• • • • •
Key FactoryTalk Alarms and Events concepts

FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services, components, and data.
Alarms and events

A FactoryTalk Alarms and Events system produces two types of events:
Condition-related events are associated with changes in an alarm’s state. For
example, a condition-related event is generated when an alarm changes to In Alarm,
Acknowledged, Return to Normal or Disabled.
Also known as alarms, alarm conditions, or alarm activity, condition-related events
are recorded in FactoryTalk alarm and event displays and logs.
Tracking-related events are associated with monitoring or auditing changes to the
FactoryTalk system. For example, a tracking-related event is generated when an
operator acknowledges an alarm.
Tracking-related events associated with alarm activity are recorded in FactoryTalk
alarm and event logs only.
For details about these types of events, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Alarm servers
FactoryTalk Alarms and Events services make alarm information available to subscribing
FactoryTalk View SE Clients through two types of alarm servers:
Rockwell Automation Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise) provide access to
alarms detected in Logix5000 controllers that support built-in alarm detection.
Tag Alarm and Event Servers provide access to alarms set up for tags in:
older devices (PLC-5 or SLC 500) that don’t support built-in alarm detection.
third-party devices communicating through OPC data servers.
an HMI server’s tag database (HMI tags).
You can also set up tag-based alarms for Logix5000 controllers that do support device-based
alarms, if you prefer not to set up built-in alarm detection.
For information about setting up alarm servers in a FactoryTalk View SE application, see:
“Working with Rockwell Automation Device Servers” on page 12-18.
“Working with Tag Alarm and Event Servers” on page 12-21.
12-6
• • • • •
Level alarms
12 • Placeholder
A level alarm compares an analog value against predefined limits (also called thresholds)
and triggers an alarm when a limit is exceeded. For information about setting up tag-based
level alarms, see page 12-25.
Level alarm limits

When defining a level alarm, you can assign any of the following limits, with different
levels of severity:
High High
High
Low
Low Low
The High and High High alarm conditions monitor for a rising value, and the Low and
Low Low conditions monitor for a decreasing value.
Example: Alarm limits
Values Limits Severity
6000 High High 1000

X O
Increasing
4000 High 750
X O
Safe zone
3000 Low 500
X O
Decreasing
1000 Low Low 250
Time
In this example, a tag’s value changes as it monitors a motor’s revolutions per minute
(rpm). An X in the illustration shows when the alarm condition goes into alarm, and an O
shows when the alarm condition returns to normal.
12-7
• • • • •
With the given limit settings, the motor must run between 3000 rpm and 4000 rpm (the
safe zone), or an alarm will be triggered.
If the motor speed It triggers an alarm of this severity

exceeds 4000 rpm 750 (High limit)
exceeds 6000 rpm 1000 (High High limit)
falls below 3000 rpm 500 (Low limit)
falls below 1000 rpm 250 (Low Low limit)
Variable limits and alarm faults

Limits can be constant or variable. Variable limits are derived from the value of another
tag. As the value of the specified tag changes, the limit changes.
A variable limit must not become higher than the limit above it, or lower than the limit
below it. If this happens, an alarm fault is generated for the tag being monitored.
To correct an alarm fault, you must change the variable limit so it does not overlap either
of its neighbors. This can become complex when the neighboring limits are also variable,
because these boundaries are determined dynamically at run time.
When the faulty limits return to their normal operating range, the alarm fault is cleared,
the out-of-alarm-fault status is generated and logged, and normal alarm monitoring for the
alarm condition resumes.
Deadband
With some types of measured values, such as line pressure, tag values can fluctuate
rapidly above and below a critical limit.
Where such conditions exist, you can create a deadband as a buffer zone to prevent the
fluctuations from re-triggering unnecessary alarms.
For the High and High High alarm conditions, the tag value must drop below the alarm
limit minus the deadband, before the alarm condition goes Normal (Out of Alarm). For
the Low and Low Low alarm conditions, the tag value must go above the alarm limit plus
the deadband, before the alarm condition goes Normal.
In the following illustration, an increasing limit of 4000 rpm, with a deadband value of
500 rpm, means that the rpm has to fall to 3500 and then rise above 4000, before the rpm
value will trigger an alarm again.
12-8
• • • • •
rpm In alarm
12 • Placeholder
In alarm again
High High limit 5000
High limit 4000 X X

Deadband
3500 O
Low limit 3000
Return to normal
2000
Low Low limit 1000
0
n
Time
A deadband range can only be an absolute (constant) value. If a buffer is not required, the
deadband must be set up as zero.
With a deadband of zero, alarms will be triggered as soon as the tag value crosses any of
its limits.
For information about how deadbands work with deviation alarms, see the FactoryTalk
Alarms and Events Help.
Use the deadband carefully in safety-critical applications. In the preceding illustration, for
example, the variable has to fluctuate by more than 500 rpm before an alarm is triggered again.
Deviation alarms
A deviation alarm compares the value of an input tag to the value of a target for a
deviation value.
The target can be either a constant or a tag, but the deviation value can only be an absolute
value (a constant, not a tag value).
If the target differs from the input tag by greater or less than the deviation value, an alarm
occurs.
In the following illustration, an X shows when the tag goes into alarm, and an O shows
when the tag returns to normal.
12-9
• • • • •
Deviation-High
Limit
X O XO
Constant Target
X O
Deviation-Low
Limit
X
For information about setting up tag-based deviation alarms, see page 12-27.
Digital alarms
A digital alarm monitors the value of a tag or input for either of these alarm conditions:
the value is equal to 0, or the value is not equal to zero.
FactoryTalk Alarms and Events does not support tag-based, digital change-of-state
alarms. Change-of-state alarms are triggered by any change in the digital tag being
monitored, or when the tag’s value changes to either 0 or 1.
If you want to set up digital change-of-state alarms, use HMI digital tags. For more information,
see Chapter 11, Setting up HMI tag alarms.
Digital alarms can be latched. This means that the digital alarm will remain In Alarm,
even if its alarm condition returns to normal, until an operator resets the alarm.
For information about setting up tag-based digital alarms, see page 12-24.
FactoryTalk alarm and event displays

To monitor and respond to FactoryTalk device-based and tag-based alarms at run time, use
the following FactoryTalk Alarm and Event objects, embedded in FactoryTalk View SE
graphic displays.
Alarm and event objects do not display HMI tag alarms. To monitor and respond to HMI tag
alarms, you must use the HMI tag alarm objects available in FactoryTalk View SE. For details,
see Chapter 11, Setting up HMI tag alarms.
Alarm and event summary

The alarm and event summary displays alarm information from Rockwell Automation
Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise) and Tag Alarm and Event Servers that support
FactoryTalk Alarms and Events.
12-10
• • • • •
Use the alarm and event summary to view, acknowledge, suppress, and disable the alarms
on display. The alarm and event summary also provides a detail view of selected alarms.
12 • Placeholder
An alarm and event summary can display alarms from more than one area and alarm
server in a FactoryTalk View SE application.
For information about setting up an alarm and event summary, see page 12-34.
Alarm and event banner

The alarm and event banner can display up to 5 of the highest priority, most severe, and
most recent alarms in the FactoryTalk system.
Use the alarm and event banner to monitor and acknowledge the critical system alarms.
You can also open an alarm and event summary, from an alarm and event banner.
For information about setting up an alarm and event banner, see page 12-37.
Alarm status explorer
The alarm status explorer shows all of the alarm sources in an application.
Use the alarm status explorer to view alarm sources, suppress or unsuppress, and enable or
disable alarms.
For information about setting up an alarm status explorer, see page 12-45.
Alarm and event log viewer

The alarm and event log viewer displays the information stored in the alarm and event
logs generated by the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Historian.
Use the alarm and event log viewer to view, sort, filter, and print historical alarm and
event information.
For information about setting up an alarm and event log viewer, see “Viewing alarm and
event history logs” on page 12-50.
Alarm priority and severity

An individual alarm in a FactoryTalk system can have a severity value of 1 to 1000, as
well as a priority value that covers a range of severities.
Priority values group severities into levels of urgency that an operator can easily identify.
Alarm priorities can be defined in an alarm server (Rockwell Automation Device Server
or Tag Alarm and Event Server), or in the FactoryTalk Directory.
12-11
• • • • •
If priority values are not defined in an alarm server, then the following system-wide
settings, preset in the FactoryTalk Directory, are in effect for all alarm servers in the
directory.
This priority value Includes this range of severities
Urgent 751 to 1000
High 501 to 750
Medium 251 to 500
Low 1 to 250
You can change the range of severities associated with a given priority value.
If you change the settings held in the FactoryTalk Directory, the changes will apply to all
FactoryTalk alarm servers the directory manages. For more information, see “Setting up
system-wide alarm and event policies” on page 12-16.
If priority values are defined at an alarm server, the server-defined priorities take
precedence over the system-wide priorities.
You can set up server-defined priorities in the Properties dialog box for the Rockwell
Automation Device Server or Tag Alarm and Event Server. For details, see the
Alarm class
Use alarm classes to further group related alarms, based on characteristics other than
priority and severity.
For example, you might group alarms based on their function, to make it easier for
operators to identify alarms related to temperature, pressure, tank levels, equipment
running, or valves that fail to open or close.
To create an alarm class, in the Alarm and Event Setup editor, in any of the Digital, Level,
or Deviation Properties dialog boxes, type the class name in the Alarm class box, or select
one from the list of classes.
12-12
• • • • •
Each time you create a new alarm class, it is added to the list. In the previous illustration,
for example, Pump temperature will be listed with Equipment running, the next time you
12 • Placeholder
create an alarm.
For more information about alarm classes, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Alarm states
Alarm states indicate the current status of an alarm.
When displayed in an alarm and event summary or banner, an alarm condition can have
one of the following states.
This icon Indicates the alarm condition has this state
In Alarm and Unacknowledged
In Alarm and Acknowledged
Normal and Unacknowledged
For more information, see “Using an alarm summary to monitor and respond to alarms”
on page 12-39.
Alarm tags
Tags that you can use to obtain and change the state of an alarm are called alarm tags.
Use alarm tags to monitor and interact with alarms at run time, without the need for an
operator to use alarm and event objects in a graphic display.
For example, an operator can use the OperAck (or OperAckAll) alarm tag to acknowledge
an alarm when it occurs.
To use alarm tags for an alarm, in the Alarm Setup editor, in the alarm’s Properties dialog
box, you must select the check box, Show Alarm as a Tag (shown in the next illustration).
After you set up an alarm to show as a tag, you can select the alarm in the Tag Browser,
and then select the alarm tags you want to use. For more information, see “Using tags to
interact with alarms or obtain their status” on page 12-52.
12-13
• • • • •
Alarm status tags

Alarm status tags let you use handshaking to keep alarm state changes synchronized with
a controller (PLC-5 or SLC 500).
For example, if an Acknowledged status tag is specified for an alarm, when an operator
acknowledges the alarm, the status tag is set to 1.
You can use status tags to handshake changes in the In Alarm, Disabled, Suppressed, and
Acknowledged alarm states.
To assign status tags to tag-based alarms, in the Alarm and Event Setup editor, select the
Status Tags tab in any of the Digital, Level, or Deviation Properties dialog boxes. For
more information, see page 12-28.
Alarm messages
Alarm messages report information about alarms.
For each alarm condition, you can create a message, or specify an existing message, that
will appear in alarm displays when the alarm condition occurs. You can also use
placeholders and insert variables in alarm messages.
To create and modify tag-based alarm messages, in the Alarm and Event Setup editor,
select the Messages tab or open any of the Digital, Level, or Deviation Properties dialog
boxes. For more information, see “Setting up tag-based alarm messages” on page 12-29.
Alarm audit, diagnostic, and history logs

FactoryTalk Alarms and Events generates three types of messages for logging:
Audit messages are generated in response to actions performed in alarm and event
objects, such as modifying or acknowledging an alarm.
FactoryTalk Diagnostics routes audit messages to the Local Log (and to the
FactoryTalk Audit Log, if you have the FactoryTalk AssetCentre software installed).
You can look at audit messages logged the Local Log in the Diagnostics Viewer.
Diagnostic messages inform operators of system activity, in the form of
information, error, and warning messages.
FactoryTalk Diagnostics routes these messages to a Diagnostics Local Log, the
Diagnostics List, and to a central ODBC log, if one is available. You can look at
diagnostic messages in the Diagnostics Viewer.
Historical alarm and event messages record all the alarm activity that occurs at
an alarm server at run time.
12-14
• • • • •
The Alarm and Event Historian manages connections between alarm servers and
databases, and logs data from each alarm server to an alarm history database.
12 • Placeholder
You can look at historical alarm information in the Alarm and Event Log Viewer.
For information about FactoryTalk Diagnostics, see the FactoryTalk Help. For more
information about historical alarm and event logging, see page 12-32.
The Alarm and Event Historian is installed with the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events software.
To log alarm and event data, you must also install Microsoft SQL Server separately, on
computers where data will be stored. For details, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Summary of basic steps for setting up FactoryTalk alarms

To set up FactoryTalk alarm monitoring, plan the design of the FactoryTalk View SE
application first, and decide which processes you want to monitor for alarms.
Then, in FactoryTalk View Studio, create the application and set up the FactoryTalk
Alarms and Events components you need. Following are the basic tasks involved:
1. Set up system-wide alarm and event policies for the application.
For information, see “Setting up system-wide alarm and event policies” on
page 12-16.
2. If the application is to use device-based alarms, in RSLogix 5000, program alarm
instructions into Logix5000 controllers that support built-in alarm detection.
For information, see the RSLogix 5000 documentation.
3. To let run-time clients receive device-based alarm data, add one or more Rockwell
Automation Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise) to the application, and set up the
servers to support alarms and events.
For information, see “Working with Rockwell Automation Device Servers” on
page 12-18.
4. If the application is to use tag-based alarms, add one or more Tag Alarm and Event
Servers.
For information, see “Working with Tag Alarm and Event Servers” on page 12-21.
5. In the Alarm and Event Setup editor, create digital, level, and deviation alarm
conditions, for the tags you want to monitor for alarms.
For information, see “Setting up FactoryTalk tag-based alarms” on page 12-24.
12-15
• • • • •
6. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Graphics editor, set up FactoryTalk alarm and
event objects in graphic displays, to monitor and interact with device-based and tag-
based alarms at run time.
For information, see “Setting up alarm and event displays” on page 12-34.
7. Set up historical alarm and event logging.
For information, see “Setting up alarm and event history logging” on page 12-32.
8. Set up FactoryTalk View SE Clients to run the graphic displays.
For information, see “Setting up the FactoryTalk View SE Clients” on page 17-16.
Setting up system-wide alarm and event policies

FactoryTalk Alarms and Events policies are stored at the FactoryTalk Directory and apply
system-wide, to all alarm servers the directory manages.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, you can modify system-wide alarm settings, such as the
range of severities set up for alarm priority values, and whether to send audit messages to
the alarm and event log.
You can also modify the severity settings associated with system events, such as loss of
connection to a controller, or with events that track operator actions, such as
acknowledging an alarm.
To modify system-wide alarm settings

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, expand the System, Policies,
System Policies, and FactoryTalk Alarms and Events folders.
2. Double-click System Settings.
3. In the System Settings Properties dialog box (shown in the following illustration),
modify special events, event buffering, and alarm priority settings, as needed.
To modify the severity range for alarm priorities, change the values in the Low boxes only.
Priorities defined at an alarm server override the system-wide settings held at the FactoryTalk
Directory.
12-16
• • • • •
12 • Placeholder
For details about options in the System Settings Properties dialog box, click Help.
To modify severity settings for system events

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, expand the System, Policies,
System Policies, and FactoryTalk Alarms and Events folders.
2. Double-click Severity Settings.
3. In the Severity Settings Properties dialog box, modify the severity values associated
with selected system events.
For details about options in the Severity Settings Properties dialog box, click Help.
Securing access to FactoryTalk alarm information

For FactoryTalk products like FactoryTalk View SE, the FactoryTalk Directory stores
information about which users are allowed access to the parts of a control system.
You can secure access to alarms, and to alarm information in an application, by
determining which users are allowed to perform alarm-related actions, or gain access to
areas that contain alarm servers.
12-17
• • • • •
Sections in this chapter that describe alarm-related actions, such as enabling or disabling
alarms, include information about the security permissions needed to perform these
actions. For details, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
For information about restricting access to parts of a control system, and about assigning
FactoryTalk Security permissions, see Chapter 5, Setting up security, or see the
FactoryTalk Security Help.
Working with Rockwell Automation Device Servers

To allow FactoryTalk View SE Clients to receive and display FactoryTalk alarms detected
in Logix5000 controllers, do the following:
1. Add one or more Rockwell Automation Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise) to a
FactoryTalk View SE network application.
In a local application, you can only add one RSLinx Enterprise server, which must
reside on the same computer as the application.
2. Set up the device server to support FactoryTalk Alarms and Events.
3. Create shortcuts in RSLinx Enterprise, to the Logix5000 controllers that are detecting
alarms, and enable the device shortcuts to support FactoryTalk Alarms and Events.
This manual does not contain information about how to use RSLogix 5000, to program alarm
instructions into Logix5000 controllers, nor does it describe how to set up redundancy for these
controllers. For details, see the product documentation.
To add an RSLinx Enterprise server to a network application

1. In the FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the application
name or an area, click Add New Server, and then click Rockwell Automation Device
Server (RSLinx Enterprise).
2. Provide a name and an optional description, and then specify the name of the
computer hosting RSLinx Enterprise.
Setting up support for Alarms and Events

After you add an RSLinx Enterprise server to an application, you must set up the server to
support FactoryTalk Alarms and Events.
To do this, in the server’s Properties dialog box (shown in the next illustration), select the
check box, Enable alarm and event support.
12-18
• • • • •
12 • Placeholder
To enable alarm and
event support for this
device server, select
this check box.
Once you enable alarm

and event support,
you can set up server-
assigned priorities, and
enable alarm and event
history logging on the
server’s host computer.
To enable history
logging, select this
check box, and then
select an existing
database definition.
To enable alarm and event history logging on the computer running the device server,
select the check box, Enable history.
If you enable logging, you must specify a database definition for the server. For more
information, see “Setting up alarm and event history logging” on page 12-32.
Optionally, you can set up server-assigned priority values for the alarm server.
To modify the severity range for alarm priorities, change the values in the Low boxes only.
Priorities defined at an alarm server override the system-wide settings held at the FactoryTalk
Directory.
For details about options in the Alarms and Events tab, click Help.
12-19
• • • • •
Specifying a device-based alarm source

In RSLinx Enterprise, in the Communication Setup editor, create shortcuts to device-
based alarm sources in an application. Then, enable the shortcuts to support alarms and
events.
To open the Communication Setup editor

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, expand the RSLinx Enterprise
server icon, and then double-click Communication Setup.
This device shortcut...
...is set up to support

Alarms and Events.
For details about options in the Communication Setup editor, click Help.
Viewing device-based alarm information at run time

The FactoryTalk alarm and event objects available in FactoryTalk View SE allow run-
time operators to monitor and respond to FactoryTalk alarm information, and to view
alarm and event history logs.
You can set up these objects to receive data from any FactoryTalk alarm server in an
application, as long as the server is set up to support FactoryTalk Alarms and Events.
For information about setting up an:
alarm and event summary, see page 12-34.
alarm and event banner, see page 12-37.
alarm status explorer, see page 12-45.
alarm and event log viewer, see page 12-50.
12-20
• • • • •
12 • Placeholder
To add or delete a Rockwell Automation Device Server, or to modify its properties, users
must be allowed the following Common actions, at the FactoryTalk Directory,
application, or area where the task is to be authorized.

Add a Rockwell Automation Device Common Create Children
Server to an application. Common List Children
Common Read
Common Write
Change device server properties. Common List Children
Common Read
Common Write
Delete a device server. Common List Children
Common Read
Common Delete
Working with Tag Alarm and Event Servers

To include tags in older devices (PLC-5 or SLC 500) that don’t have built-in alarm
detection, in third-party devices communicating through OPC data servers, or in an HMI
server’s tag database, in an integrated FactoryTalk Alarms and Events system:
1. Add one or more Tag Alarm and Event Servers to a FactoryTalk View SE network
application.
2. In the Alarm and Event Setup editor, create tag-based digital, level, and deviation
alarm definitions, create alarm messages, and specify tag update rates. For more
information, see “Setting up FactoryTalk tag-based alarms” on page 12-24.
To add a Tag Alarm and Event Server to a network application

1. In the FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the application
name or an area, click Add New Server, and then click Tag Alarm and Event Server.
2. Provide a name and an optional description, and then specify the name of the
computer hosting the alarm server.
12-21
• • • • •
Setting up alarm priorities and history logging

To enable alarm and event history logging on the computer running the Tag Alarm and
Event Server, select the check box, Enable history, as shown in the next illustration.
To override priority
settings at the
FactoryTalk Directory,
select this check box.
To modify the severity

range for a priority,
change the value in
the Low boxes.
To enable history
logging, select this
check box, and then
select an existing
database definition.
If you enable logging, you must specify a database definition for the server. For more
information, see “Setting up alarm and event history logging” on page 12-32.
Optionally, you can set up server-assigned priority values for the Tag Alarm and Event
Server. To modify the severity range, change values in the Low boxes only.
Priority values set up at an alarm server override the system-wide settings held at the
For details about options in the Priorities and History tab, click Help.
12-22
• • • • •
Viewing tag-based alarm information at run time
12 • Placeholder
The FactoryTalk alarm and event objects available in FactoryTalk View SE allow run-
time operators to monitor and respond to FactoryTalk alarm information, and to view
alarm and event history logs.
You can set up these objects to receive data from any FactoryTalk alarm server in an
application, as long as the server is set up to support FactoryTalk Alarms and Events.
For information about setting up an:
alarm and event summary, see page 12-34.
alarm and event banner, see page 12-37.
alarm status explorer, see page 12-45.
alarm and event log viewer, see page 12-50.

To add or delete a Tag Alarm and Event Server, or to modify its properties, users must be
allowed the following Common actions, at the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area
where the task is to be authorized.

Add a Tag Alarm and Event Server to Common Create Children
an application. Common List Children
Common Read
Common Write
Modify alarm and event server Common List Children
properties. Common Read
Common Write
Delete an alarm and event server. Common List Children
Common Read
Common Delete
12-23
• • • • •
Setting up FactoryTalk tag-based alarms

Set up tag-based alarms to include the following in an integrated FactoryTalk Alarms and
Events system:
older devices (PLC-5 or SLC 500) that don’t support built-in alarm detection
third-party devices communicating through OPC data servers
HMI tags in an HMI server’s tag database.
You can also set up tag-based alarms for Logix5000 controllers that do support device-based
alarms, if you prefer not to set up built-in alarm detection.
In the Alarm and Event Setup editor, you can create and modify three types of alarms:
Digital alarms are either on or off. A digital alarm is triggered when the tag being
monitored has a value of 1, or a value of 0.
Level alarms obtain data from analog tags. A level alarm is triggered when the value
of the tag being monitored crosses predefined limits. A single tag can generate several
alarms of different severities, at various limits (also called thresholds).
Deviation alarms compare the value of an input tag to the value of a target for a
deviation value. A deviation alarm is triggered when the target differs from the input
tag by greater or less than the deviation value.
To open the Alarm and Event Setup editor

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, expand the Tag Alarm and Event
Server you want to set up alarms for.
2. Double-click Alarm and Event Setup, or right-click the icon, and then click Open.
Creating tag-based digital alarms

In the Digital tab of the Alarm and Event Setup editor, you can view all the digital alarms
set up for this Tag Alarm and Event Server, create a new digital alarm, modify or delete an
existing digital alarm, and refresh the list of digital alarms.
To create a new digital alarm

1. In the Alarm and Events Setup editor, click the Digital tab, and then click New on the
editor’s toolbar.
12-24
• • • • •
Name the alarm

and specify the tag
12 • Placeholder
being monitored.
Specify the alarm

condition and the
corresponding
severity value.
Select to make
the alarm latched.
Select to require
acknowledgement.
Select to expose
the alarm as a tag.
Specify a minimum
alarm duration.
Create or select an
alarm message.
Associate tags
with the alarm.
Select a class for

the alarm.
Associate a
FactoryTalk View
command with the
alarm.
2. In the Digital tab, set up properties such as the alarm’s name, input tag, condition, and
severity, whether acknowledgement is required, and whether the alarm is latched.
3. In the Status Tags tab, set up status tags for the alarm.
For details about options in the Digital Alarm Properties dialog box, click Help.
Creating tag-based level alarms

In the Level tab of the Alarm and Event Setup editor, you can view all the level alarms set
up for this Tag Alarm and Event Server, create a new level alarm, modify or delete an
existing level alarm, and refresh the list of level alarms.
12-25
• • • • •
To create a new level alarm

1. In the Alarm and Events Setup editor, click the Level tab, and then click New on the
editor’s toolbar.
Name the alarm

and specify the tag
being monitored.
Define alarm limits

and corresponding
severity values.
Specify a minimum
alarm duration.
Define a deadband
value ( 0 means no
buffer is required).
Select to require
acknowledgement.
Select to expose
the alarm as a tag.
Select a class for
the alarm.
Associate a
FactoryTalk View
command with the
alarm.
2. In the Level tab, set up properties such as the alarm’s name, input tag, level, limit type,
limit value, and severity, and whether acknowledgement is required.
3. In the Messages and Status Tags tabs, set up messages and status tags for the alarm.
For details about options in the Level Alarm Properties dialog box, click Help.
12-26
• • • • •
Creating tag-based deviation alarms
12 • Placeholder
In the Deviation tab of the Alarm and Event Setup editor, you can view all the deviation
alarms set up for this Tag Alarm and Event Server, create a new deviation alarm, modify
or delete an existing deviation alarm, and refresh the list of deviation alarms.
To create a new deviation alarm

1. In the Alarm and Events Setup editor, click the Deviation tab, and then click New on
on the editor’s toolbar.
Name the alarm

and specify the tag
being monitored.
Define the target,

severity, condition,
and deviation
values.
Select to require
acknowledgement.
Select to expose
the alarm as a tag.
Specify a minimum
alarm duration.
Define a deadband
value ( 0 means no
buffer is required).
Create or select an
alarm message.
Associate tags
with the alarm.
Select a class for

the alarm.
Associate a
FactoryTalk View
command with the
alarm.
2. In the Deviation tab, set up properties such as the alarm’s name, input tag, target type,
target value, deviation value, and severity, and whether acknowledgement required.
3. In the Status Tags tab, set up status tags for the alarm.
12-27
• • • • •
For details options in the Deviation Alarm Properties dialog box, click Help.
Viewing all tag-based alarms

The All Alarms tab of the Alarm and Event Setup editor, displays all the digital, level, and
deviation alarms set up for this Tag Alarm and Event Server.
The properties displayed for each alarm can include the alarm name, input tag, condition,
and severity, and whether acknowledgement is required for the alarm. For details, click
Help in the All Alarms tab.
For information about the properties that digital, level, and deviation alarms have in
common, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Use buttons on the Alarm and Event Setup editor’s toolbar, shown in the following
illustration, to perform actions quickly in each of the editor’s tabs.
Make a copy of the Modify the selected

selected alarm definition. alarm definition.
Create a new digital, Open Help.
deviation, or level alarm.
Refresh the alarm list.
Delete the selected
alarm definition. Save changes to any
alarms in the list.
Setting up status tags for tag-based alarms

Digital tags that you assign to alarm states are called alarm status tags.
Alarm status tags let you use handshaking to keep alarm state changes synchronized with
a controller (PLC-5 or SLC 500).
12-28
• • • • •
For example, if an Acknowledged status tag is specified for an alarm, when an operator
acknowledges the alarm, the status tag is set to 1.
12 • Placeholder
For digital, level, and deviation alarms, you can assign tags to the Disabled, Suppressed,
In Alarm, and Acknowledged states.
For level alarms, you can assign different In Alarm and Acknowledged status tags, for
each alarm level (High High, High, Low, or Low Low).
Status tags provide alarm state information. Do not write to tags assigned as status tags.
To assign status tags to a tag-based alarm

1. In the Alarm and Event Setup editor, click the Digital, Level, or Deviation tab.
2. Create a new alarm, or select the alarm you want to assign status tags to.
3. Click the Status Tags tab, and then type or browse for the digital tags to be used as
status tags
Setting up tag-based alarm messages

Alarm messages report information about alarms.
In the Alarm and Event Setup editor, the Messages tab displays all of the messages created
for alarms in the Tag Alarm and Event Server.
For each message listed in the Messages tab, the ID column displays a message identifier,
and the Usage column displays the number of alarms currently using the message.
You can create new messages or modify existing ones using the Alarm Message Editor.
Opening the Alarm Message Editor

To open the Alarm Message Editor, use one of these methods:
In the Alarm and Event Setup editor, click the Messages tab, and then click the New
icon on the editor’s toolbar.
In either of the Digital or Deviation Alarm Properties dialog box, click Edit under the
Message box.
In the Level Alarm Properties dialog box, click the Messages tab, and then click Edit
under any of the message boxes.
For level alarms, you can create different messages for each alarm level (High High,
High, Low, Low, Low). The alarm limit must be selected in the Level tab, for the
message box to be available.
12-29
• • • • •
Type the message

text in this box.
Select a variable
to insert in the
alarm message.
Click to insert the

selected variable,
where the cursor is
positioned.
Message identifier
For details about options in the Alarm Message Editor, click Help.
Modifying an existing alarm message

To modify an existing alarm message, use one of these methods:
In the Alarm and Event Setup editor, click the Messages tab, and then double-click the
the message you want to modify.
In the Digital, Level, or Deviation Alarm Properties dialog box, under the Message
box, click Edit.
When you modify an message, changes are copied wherever the message is used. To check the
number of alarms a message is assigned to, in the Alarm and Event Setup editor, click the
Messages tab. The number is displayed beside the message, in the Usage column.
Adding variables to alarm messages

In the Alarm Message Editor, you can embed one or more variables into alarm messages.
For example, you might embed variables for the input tag value and the alarm’s severity.
At run time, the message will display the value of the tag and the alarm severity, at the
times the message is logged.
For details about embedding variables in an alarm message, and the syntax that variables
use, click Help in the Alarm Message Editor.
For information about using variables in other parts of a FactoryTalk View SE application,
see Chapter 24 in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
12-30
• • • • •
Using tag placeholders in alarm messages

Tag placeholders are another type of variable you can add to an alarm message, to include
12 • Placeholder
specific values in the message at run time.
In the Alarm Message Editor, in the Variable list, select up to four tag placeholders (Tag1,
Tag2, Tag3, Tag4) to add to an alarm message. Then, specify the tag to associate with the
placeholder, in the Alarm Properties dialog boxes where the message is used.
In the following illustration, the Tag1 placeholder in the alarm message variable is
associated with a tag named Admin\SetArea.
At run time, the tag

placeholder in this
variable...
...will be updated
with this tag’s value.
For details about using tag placeholders in an alarm message, click Help in the Alarm
Properties dialog box.
In addition to providing values to alarm message variables, the values of associated tags can be
displayed with alarm conditions or used to filter information in an alarm and event summary or
log viewer.
For information about using tag placeholders in other parts of a FactoryTalk View SE
application, see Chapter 19, “Creating graphic displays,” in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk
Specifying tag update rates

The tag update rate determines how frequently to update the values of tags being
monitored for alarms.
The rate at which the system checks for alarms, will not be faster than the specified tag
update rate. The default rate is 2 seconds.
In the Tag Update Rates tab, specify a rate for each tag being monitored for alarms. Base
the rate on how often you expect tag values to change.
For example, if you are monitoring temperatures that change slowly, you can check for
alarms less often than if you are monitoring manufacturing processes that change rapidly.
12-31
• • • • •
Setting up alarm and event history logging

FactoryTalk Alarms and Events generates messages to record the alarm activity that
occurs at tag-based and device-based alarm servers in an application.
The Alarm and Event Historian software, which is installed with FactoryTalk Alarms and
Events, logs alarm information to the databases set up to store logged data. It also
manages connections and data buffering between alarm servers and their databases.
FactoryTalk Alarms and Events also generates audit and diagnostic messages. For information
about logging and viewing these messages, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Following are the tasks involved in setting up FactoryTalk alarm logging:

Install Microsoft SQL Server and supporting components, on computers that will host
alarm and event log databases. For details, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events
Help.
Create database definitions at the FactoryTalk Directory. For more information,
“Defining an alarm and event log database,” next.
Set up support for alarm and event history logging, for each alarm server in an
application. For more information, see page 12-33.
Set up alarm and event log viewers to display logged data at run time. For more
information, see “Viewing alarm and event history logs” on page 12-50.
Defining an alarm and event log database

The FactoryTalk Alarm and Event Historian routes FactoryTalk alarm-related data from
alarm servers to Microsoft SQL Server databases. Information is logged when:
a tag goes into alarm or returns to normal.
an alarm is acknowledged.
an alarm is suppressed or unsuppressed.
an alarm is enabled or disabled.
an alarm fault is generated or cleared.
an alarm is reset.
Database definitions are stored in the FactoryTalk Directory, and can be shared by
multiple alarm servers in an application.
You specify the database definition an alarm server will use, in the server’s Properties
dialog box. For more information, “Enabling alarm and event history logging,” next.
12-32
• • • • •
To create an alarm and event log database definition

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, expand the System and
12 • Placeholder
Connections folders.
2. Right-click the Databases folder, and then click New Database.
For details about options in the Alarm and Event Historian Database Properties dialog
box, click Help.
Enabling alarm and event history logging

To set up an alarm server to log alarm activity, for each Rockwell Automation Device
Server (RSLinx Enterprise) and Tag Alarm and Event Server in an application, you must
enable alarm and event history logging, and then select a database for storing the data.
You do this in the alarm server’s Properties dialog box, in the Alarm and Event History
section, as shown in the following illustration. For details, click Help.
Enable logging.
Select a database.
The database name
and host computer
are displayed here.
Modify the cache

file path.
Select a language
for logged alarm
messages.
For an RSLinx Enterprise server, Alarm and Event History settings are in the Alarms and Events
tab. For a Tag Alarm and Event server, the settings are in the Priorities and History tab.
To view the alarm servers using a database definition

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, expand the System,
Connections, and Databases folders.
2. Right-click the database definition you want to check, and then click Properties.
3. In the Alarm and Event Historian Database Properties dialog box, click Show Usage.
12-33
• • • • •
Setting up alarm and event displays

To monitor and respond to FactoryTalk alarms at run time, use FactoryTalk alarm and
event objects hosted in FactoryTalk View SE graphic displays.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Graphics editor, you can create the following objects:
Use the alarm and event summary to view, acknowledge, suppress, and disable
alarms from multiple FactoryTalk alarm sources. For information about setting up an
alarm and event summary, see “Setting up an alarm and event summary,” next.
Use the alarm and event banner to monitor and acknowledge the most serious
FactoryTalk alarms in the system. For information about setting up an alarm and event
banner, see page 12-37.
Use the alarm and event log viewer to view, sort, filter, and print historical alarm
information. For information about the alarm and event log viewer, see page 12-50.
Use the alarm status explorer to view alarm sources, suppress or unsuppress, and
enable or disable alarms. For information about the alarm status explorer, see
page 12-45.
For detailed setup instructions, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
About the Alarm and Event graphic library

The Alarm and Event graphic library contains a pre-configured FactoryTalk alarm and
event summary, and buttons you can use to acknowledge FactoryTalk alarms.
Use the objects in the library as they are, or drag them into a graphic display, and then
modify them to suit the needs of your application.
To open the Alarm and Event library

In FactoryTalk View Studio, open the Graphics folder, double-click the Libraries icon,
and then double-click Alarm and Event. You can also drag the Alarm and Event
library into the FactoryTalk View Studio workspace.
Setting up an alarm and event summary

When setting up an alarm and event summary, you specify which alarm information will
be displayed at run time, and how the information will appear in the summary.
For example, to allow an operator to identify the priority of alarms at a glance, you can
specify a different color for each priority—blue for low, yellow for medium, orange for
high, and red for urgent.
A FactoryTalk alarm and event summary can occupy part of a FactoryTalk View SE
graphic display, or it can fill the entire display.
12-34
• • • • •
To create an alarm and event summary object

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, expand the application, area, and
12 • Placeholder
HMI server icons, where you want to create the alarm and event summary display.
Alarm and event
summary tool 2. To create a new graphic display, expand the Graphics folder, right-click Displays, and
then click New.
3. In the Graphics editor, on the Objects menu, click Alarm and Event, and then click
Summary. You can also click the alarm and event summary tool, on the Graphic
editor’s toolbar.
4. Drag the alarm and event summary tool on the graphic display, to the desired size and
shape, and then release the mouse.
You can move and resize the Alarm and Event Summary Design View object, as
needed. To set up properties, double-click the object (or right-click, and then click
Properties).
Following is an overview of alarm and event summary properties. For details about
options in the Alarm and Event Summary Properties dialog box, click Help.
Setting up the overall appearance of the summary display

In the Appearance tab, set up which parts of the alarm and event summary to display at
run time. For example, you can determine whether the summary will include a vertical
scroll bar, the details pane, or a toolbar.
You can also set up fonts, text color, and background color, for various parts of the
summary display. For example, you can set up a font, text color, and icon size for the
toolbar.
Choosing the columns and toolbar buttons to display

In the Columns tab, set up which columns to show in the alarm and event summary, and in
what order. You can also set up the heading text, and the alignment and format of
information displayed in each column. Use the Sample column to preview your selections.
In the Toolbar tab, you can set up which buttons will show in the alarm and event
summary’s toolbar. You can also set up the caption, tooltip, and format of each button.
Choosing the status bar contents

In the Status Bar tab, set up which information to display in the status bar, and in what
order. You can also set up tooltips for the status bar.
Setting up event subscriptions

In the Event Subscription tab, specify the areas and alarm sources from which the alarm
and event summary will obtain data.
12-35
• • • • •
You can subscribe to events from any area or alarm source in an application, as long as the
source is set up to support FactoryTalk Alarms and Events. You can also filter event
subscriptions by priority (Urgent, High, Medium, or Low).
Once you determine where the alarm information will come from, you can decide how to
filter and sort the information, to control what appears in the alarm and event summary.
By default, all information generated at the alarm source is displayed.
Setting up filter and sort criteria

In the Display Filter tab, set up filters for the alarm and event summary, that the operator
can apply at run time.
You can build filter criteria using the event fields provided. You can also select an initial
display filter for the alarm and event summary.
Create filters based on what you want to include in the alarm and event summary, not what you
want to exclude. Anything you don’t specify in the filter will not be displayed at run time.
In the Sort tab, specify which criteria will be used to sort information in the alarm and
event summary, and in what order (ascending or descending).
For information about filtering and sorting information in an alarm an event summary at
run time, see “Using an alarm summary to monitor and respond to alarms” on page 12-39.
Choosing colors and blink styles for the alarm states

In the States tab, set up text and background colors for the different alarm states (In Alarm
Unacknowledged, In Alarm Acknowledged, and Normal Unacknowledged), and the
priorities (Urgent, High, Medium, and Low) for each state.
You can also select whether alarm messages blink in the alarm and event summary, and at
what rate (slow, medium, or fast). Use the Sample column to preview your selections. To
test the blink rate, click Test Rates.
Determining run-time behavior and appearance

In the Behavior tab, determine to what extent the operator can interact with the alarm and
event summary at run time. For example, determine whether the operator can resize
columns, or sort information by clicking on column headings.
In the Common tab, set up the size and position of the alarm and event summary, and give
the object a name. You can also determine whether the summary will present a tooltip, or
show a highlight when it has focus in the graphic display.
12-36
• • • • •
Setting up an alarm and event banner
12 • Placeholder
When setting up an alarm and event banner, you specify which alarm information will be
displayed at run time, and how the information will appear in the banner.
For example, to notify operators when the most severe alarms occur, set up these alarms to
blink and sound an alarm bell. To further indicate severity, adjust the alarm bell beep rate.
A FactoryTalk alarm and event banner can be docked to the inside of the FactoryTalk
View SE Client window. For more information, see page 12-39.
To create an alarm and event banner object

HMI server icons, where you want to create the alarm and event banner display.
Alarm and event
banner tool 2. To create a new graphic display, expand the Graphics folder, right-click Displays, and
then click New.
Banner. You can also click the alarm and event banner tool, on the Graphic editor’s
toolbar.
4. Drag the alarm and event banner tool on the graphic display, to the desired size and
You can move and resize the Alarm and Event Banner Design View object, as needed.
To set up properties, double-click the object (or right-click, and then click Properties).
Following is an overview of alarm and event banner properties. For details about
options in the Alarm and Event Banner Properties dialog box, click Help.
Setting up the appearance of the banner display

In the General tab, set up the appearance of the alarm list and the status bar. For example,
you can set up the font, text color, and number of rows in the alarm list.
You can also determine the behavior, when an operator interacts with the banner, such as
whether double-clicking a row causes an action.
Choosing the columns and toolbar buttons to display

In the Columns tab, set up which columns to show in the alarm and event banner, and in
what order. You can also set up the column width, and the alignment and format of
information displayed in each column. Use the Sample column to preview your selections.
Choosing the status bar contents

In the Status Bar tab, set up which information and buttons to display in the status bar, and
in what order. You can also set up tooltips for the status bar.
12-37
• • • • •
Setting up event subscriptions

In the Event Subscription tab, specify the areas and alarm sources from which the alarm
and event banner will obtain data.
You can subscribe to events from any area or alarm source in an application, as long as the
source is set up to support FactoryTalk Alarms and Events.
You can also filter event subscriptions by priority (Urgent, High, Medium, or Low).
When subscribing to events for an alarm banner, keep in mind that the purpose of the alarm and
event banner is to make operators aware of the most serious alarms in a process or area.
Choosing colors and blink styles for the alarm states

In the States tab, set up text and background colors for the different alarm states (In Alarm
Unacknowledged, In Alarm Acknowledged, and Normal Unacknowledged), and the
priorities (Urgent, High, Medium, and Low) for each state.
You can also select whether alarm messages blink in the alarm and event banner, or sound
an alarm bell, and at what rate.
Use the Sample column to preview your selections. To test blink and audible notification
rates, click Test Rates.
Determining run-time behavior and appearance

In the Common tab, set up the size and position of the alarm and event banner, and give
the object a name. You can also determine whether the banner will present a tooltip, or
show a highlight when it has focus in the graphic display.
About the alarm and event banner at run time

The alarm and event banner shows only the most serious alarms and events in the system,
allowing operators to focus on the ones that need immediate attention.
You can set up the appearance and behavior of the alarm banner, but it can only show up
to five of the most recent, most severe alarms. An operator can use the alarm banner to:
acknowledge the selected alarm (and enter an optional comment).
silence alarms.
enable or disable the alarm bell.
The alarm bell is a feature of the alarm and event banner only. In an alarm and event
summary, alarms cannot be set up to sound a bell when they occur.
run the command associated with an alarm.
12-38
• • • • •
refresh the alarm list.
12 • Placeholder
open an alarm and event summary.
For more information, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Docking a banner display to the run-time client window

At run time, graphic displays can be docked to an edge of the FactoryTalk View SE Client
window, allowing operators to gain access to certain displays at all times.
For example, to allow an operator to continuously monitor the most serious alarms in an
application, dock an alarm banner display to the top or bottom of the client window.
Example: Docking an alarm banner when the FactoryTalk View

SE Client starts up
To dock an alarm banner display to the bottom edge of the FactoryTalk View SE Client
window when the client starts up, follow these steps:
1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, create a macro that contains the command
Display <Alarm Banner> /DB
where Alarm Banner is the name of the graphic display that contains the alarm banner.
/DB is the Display command parameter for docking a display at the bottom of the FactoryTalk
View SE Client window. For a full list of docking parameters, see page 19-44 in Volume 2 of
the FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
2. In the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard, in the Components window, select the
macro that contains the Display command for docking the banner.
3. Save the client configuration file.
When you start the client, the alarm banner will be attached to the bottom edge of the
client window.
Opening and closing other graphic displays will not interfere with the position or
appearance of the docked banner display.
Using an alarm summary to monitor and respond to alarms

The alarm and event summary is a table that displays active alarm notifications received
from the FactoryTalk alarm servers in a FactoryTalk View SE application.
12-39
• • • • •
Alarm and event summaries are hosted in graphic displays created in FactoryTalk View
Studio, and run in the FactoryTalk View SE Client.
A single alarm and event summary can subscribe to alarm notifications from multiple
alarm servers in an application.
At run time, an operator can use an alarm and event summary to monitor alarm activity,
and to acknowledge, suppress, disable, or reset active alarms. For more information about
these actions, see subsequent sections in this chapter.
You can also use alarm tags to suppress, unsuppress, enable, and disable alarms. For more
information, see “Using tags to interact with alarms or obtain their status” on page 12-52.
The parts of an alarm and event summary

The following illustration shows an alarm and event summary at run time.
Alarm and event Select an
summary toolbar alarm filter.
Alarm list and In the status bar, view the number of alarms in View details for the Drag to see more of the
column headings the list, and how entries are filtered and sorted. selected entry. alarm list, or more details.
12-40
• • • • •
An alarm and event summary is composed of:
12 • Placeholder
an alarm list, that displays alarms that need the operator’s attention.
an optional status bar, that provides information about the contents of the alarm and
event summary, such as the name of the filter applied to the list view.
an optional details pane, that shows the attributes of the currently selected alarm.
a shortcut menu, and an optional toolbar, for alarm-related operations.
The following sections describe some of the ways you can use an alarm and event
summary at run time. For details, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Filtering and sorting information at run time

An operator can filter and sort the information that appears in the alarm list at run time.
To filter information in the alarm list, the operator can do one of the following:
Select from a predefined list of filters, set up for the alarm and event summary at
design time.
Clear the current filter. This refreshes the alarm list, to show all alarm information
generated by alarm sources the alarm and event summary subscribes to. For
information about event subscriptions, see page 12-38.
Create a custom filter. For details, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
To sort alarm information, if the alarm and event summary allows, the operator can click
column headings. If the Configure Sorting button is available on the toolbar, operators can
also select new sorting criteria.
Changes made to the sort order and custom filter at run time are not saved. The next time the
alarm and event summary is displayed, it will use the sort order defined for it at design time.
Acknowledging alarms
Operators acknowledge alarms to show they are aware that the alarms have occurred.
Acknowledging an alarm does not correct the condition that caused the alarm. For the
alarm condition to return to normal, the value of the tag being monitored must be within
normal range.
A single tag will generate several alarms if its value crosses more than one alarm limit
(also called a threshold). A tag representing temperature, for example, might trigger both
Hot and Overheat alarms before it can be acknowledged. In this case, each alarm
condition must be acknowledged separately.
12-41
• • • • •
A single tag might also generate alarms and then return to normal range several times,
before it can be acknowledged. In this case, only the most recent alarm condition can be
acknowledged.
In an alarm and event summary, an operator can acknowledge:
one or more selected alarms (and enter an optional comment).
all alarms currently visible in the alarm list
all alarms, including those that aren’t visible in the current page of the alarm list.
If an alarm filter is applied, acknowledging all alarms excludes alarms that have been
filtered from the list.
For information about the security permissions an operator needs to perform alarm actions
at run time, see “About FactoryTalk Security permissions” on page 12-44.
For details about acknowledging alarms, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Most alarms are configured to require acknowledgement. If you want specific alarms to always
be in an acknowledged state, in the Alarm and Event Setup editor for these alarms, clear the
check box Acknowledge required.
Acknowledging the selected alarm

To acknowledge selected alarms in an alarm and event summary, use one of these
Acknowledge methods:
selected alarm
Select the alarms, and then click the toolbar button Acknowledge selected alarm.
Select the alarms, right-click, and then click Acknowledge.
Acknowledging all alarms

To acknowledge all alarms in an alarm and event summary, use one of these methods:
Acknowledge
page of alarms To acknowledge all currently visible alarms, click the toolbar button Acknowledge
page of alarms.
To acknowledge all alarms, including those that aren’t visible in the current page of
Acknowledge
the list, click the toolbar button Acknowledge all alarms contained in the list.
all alarms If an alarm filter is applied, acknowledging all alarms excludes alarms that have been
filtered from the list.
To provide the button, Acknowledge all alarms contained in the list, you must select it in the
Toolbar tab of the alarm and event summary’s Properties dialog box.
12-42
• • • • •
Resetting latched digital alarms
12 • Placeholder
Digital alarms can be latched. This means that the digital alarm will remain In Alarm,
even if its alarm condition returns to normal, until an operator resets the alarm.
An operator can only reset a latched alarm when the alarm condition returns to normal.
Otherwise, the attempt to reset the alarm will fail and generate an error.
For information about the security permissions an operator needs, to perform alarm
actions at run time, see “About FactoryTalk Security permissions” on page 12-44.
For details about setting up and resetting digital latched alarms, see the FactoryTalk
To reset a latched alarm

1. In the alarm and event summary, select one or more alarms to reset, and then click the
toolbar button Reset selected alarm.
Reset 2. In the Reset Alarm dialog box, type an optional comment, and then click Reset. The
selected alarm
comment is recorded with the reset alarms, in the alarm and event log.
Suppressing and disabling alarms

Suppress alarms that are not needed temporarily, for example, if they are interfering with
another alarm that is the root cause of the condition you need to correct.
Suppressed alarms do not appear in alarm and event summaries or banners. However, they
are recorded in the alarm and event log.
To completely prevent alarm detection for an alarm, disable the alarm. For example, you
might disable an alarm for diagnostic or maintenance purposes.
Disabling a latched digital alarm while the Tag Alarm and Event Server is running, causes the
alarm to become unlatched.
For information about the security permissions an operator needs to perform alarm actions
at run time, see “About FactoryTalk Security Permissions,” next.
To suppress alarms
1. In the alarm and event summary, select one or more alarms, and then click the toolbar
button, Suppress selected alarm.
Suppress 2. In the Suppress Alarm dialog box, type an optional comment, and then click Suppress.
selected alarm
The comment is recorded with the suppressed alarms, in the alarm and event log.
12-43
• • • • •
To disable alarms
1. In the alarm and event summary, select one or more alarms, and then click the toolbar
button, Disable selected alarm.
Disable 2. In the Disable Alarm dialog box, type an optional comment, and then click Disable.
selected alarm
The comment is recorded with the disabled alarms, in the alarm and event log.
Unsuppressing and enabling alarms

Since suppressed and disabled alarms do not appear in alarm and event summaries or
banners, to unsuppress or enable alarms, you must use the Alarm Status Explorer.
You can set up an alarm status explorer in a FactoryTalk View SE graphic display. For
You can also open a stand-alone Alarm Status Explorer at run time, by clicking Display
the Alarm Status Explorer, on the alarm and event summary toolbar. For more
information, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.

To use alarm and event objects to interact with alarms, users must be allowed the
following Common and Alarming actions, in the area where the alarm server resides.

Acknowledge an alarm. Common Read
Alarming Acknowledge
Reset a latched alarm. Common Read
Alarming Reset
Enable or disable an alarm. Common Read
Alarming Enable/Disable
12-44
• • • • •
12 • Placeholder
Suppress or unsuppress an alarm. Common Read
Alarming Suppress
Working with alarm sources in the Alarm Status Explorer

The alarm status explorer shows all of the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events alarm sources
and alarms in an application.
Use the alarm status explorer to view alarm sources, and to suppress, unsuppress, enable,
or disable alarms. The alarm status explorer is the only FactoryTalk alarm and event
object you can use to unsuppress and enable alarms.
You can also use alarm tags to suppress, unsuppress, enable, and disable alarms. For more
information, see “Using tags to interact with alarms or obtain their status” on page 12-52.
To create an alarm status explorer

HMI server icons, where you want to create the alarm status explorer display.
Alarm status
explorer tool 2. To create a new graphic display, expand the Graphics folder, right-click Displays, and
then click New.
Status Explorer. You can also click the alarm status explorer tool, on the Graphic
editor’s toolbar.
4. Drag the alarm status explorer tool on the graphic display to the desired size and
shape, and then release the mouse. You can move and resize the alarm status explorer
object, as needed.
5. To set up properties, right-click the object, and then click Properties. For details about
options in the Alarm Status Explorer Properties dialog box, click Help.
To set the width of the application and area display, and of columns in the alarm
source list, double-click the alarm status explorer object. This places the object in Edit
mode, so that you can drag column headers and the vertical split bar.
The design-view alarm status explorer contains a default tree-view of an application named
Line1, with Machine1 and Machine2 areas, and subareas. To view the actual application, test
the graphic display in FactoryTalk View Studio, or run it in a FactoryTalk View SE Client.
At
12-45
• • • • •
The parts of an alarm status explorer

The following illustration shows an alarm status explorer at run time.
Application and areas Drag to enlarge the list. Alarm source filter Alarm status explorer tool bar
Status bar Alarm state Suppressed Alarm name Path to alarm source Shortcut menu
An alarm status explorer is composed of:

an alarm list, that shows all the alarms contained in the selected areas (and sub-areas).
an optional tree view of the application, and the areas that contain alarm sources.
a status bar, that provides information about the contents of the alarm status explorer,
such as the number of alarms in the selected alarm source.
a shortcut menu, and an optional toolbar, for performing common operations.
For details about using an alarm status explorer at run time, see the FactoryTalk Alarms
and Events Help.
At run time, you can also open a stand-alone Alarm Status Explorer, by clicking Display the
Alarm Status Explorer button in the alarm and event summary toolbar. For details, see the
Browsing alarm sources

In the tree view on the left side of the alarm status explorer, expand folders representing
the application, and areas in the application, to find alarm sources.
If the selected area or sub-area contains alarms, the alarms will display in the alarm list on
the right side of the explorer.
12-46
• • • • •
Refreshing the alarm list

If alarms are added or deleted after the alarm status explorer is opened, the alarm list is not
12 • Placeholder
updated dynamically.
Refresh
alarm list To display the most recent list of alarms and their current states, on the alarm status
explorer’s toolbar, click Refresh alarm list.
Viewing alarm details

To view details for the selected alarm, on the alarm status explorer’s toolbar, click View
details (or right-click the alarm, and then click View Alarm Details).
View details
The Alarm Details dialog box (shown in the following illustration) shows the last time an
alarm was disabled or enabled, and suppressed or unsuppressed, and by whom. You can
also view information about the most recent alarm condition, and the priority and severity
associated with the alarm.
Alarm condition details vary, depending on the type of alarm. For a level alarm, for
example, details are listed for each alarm level (High High, High, Low, and Low Low).
For details about options in the Alarm Details dialog box, click Help.
You can also view alarm details from an alarm and event summary.
12-47
• • • • •
Unsuppressing and suppressing alarms

Use the alarm status explorer to suppress and unsuppress alarms.
Suppress alarms that are not needed temporarily, for example, if they are interfering with
another alarm that is the root cause of the condition you need to correct.
Suppressed alarms do not appear in alarm and event summaries or banners. However, they
are recorded in the alarm and event log. To resume monitoring the alarm in alarm and
event objects, unsuppress it.
The Suppressed column in an alarm status explorer indicates whether an alarm is currently
suppressed.
To check when, why, and by whom the alarm was suppressed, right-click the alarm, and
then click View Alarm Details. For more information about the Alarm Details dialog box,
see page 12-47.
To unsuppress an alarm
1. In the alarm status explorer, select one or more suppressed alarms, and then click the
toolbar button, Unsuppress selected alarm.
Unsuppress
selected alarm 2. In the Unsuppress Alarm dialog box, type an optional comment, and then click
Unsuppress.
To suppress an alarm
1. In the alarm status explorer, select one or more alarms, and then click the toolbar
button, Suppress selected alarm.
Suppress
selected alarm 2. In the Suppress Alarm dialog box, type an optional comment, and then click Suppress.
Disabling and enabling alarms

Use the alarm status explorer to disable and enable alarms.
Disable alarms to completely prevent alarm detection for the alarm. For example, you
might disable an alarm for diagnostic or maintenance purposes. To restore alarm detection
for an alarm, enable the alarm.
Disabling a latched digital alarm while the Tag Alarm and Event Server is running, causes the
alarm to become unlatched.
The State column in an alarm status explorer indicates whether an alarm is currently
disabled.
To check when, why, and by whom the alarm was disabled, right-click the alarm, and then
click View Alarm Details.
12-48
• • • • •
For information about the Alarm Details dialog box, see page 12-47.
12 • Placeholder
To enable an alarm
1. In the alarm status explorer, select one or more disabled alarms, and then click the
toolbar button, Enable selected alarm.
Enable selected
alarm 2. In the Enable Alarm dialog box, type an optional comment, and then click Enable.
To disable an alarm
1. In the alarm status explorer, select one or more alarms, and then click the toolbar
button, Disable selected alarm.
Disable selected
alarm 2. In the Disable Alarm dialog box, type an optional comment, and then click Disable.

To use alarm and event objects to interact with alarms, users must be allowed the
following Common and Alarming actions, in the area where the alarm server resides.

Enable or disable an alarm. Common Read
Alarming Enable/Disable
Suppress or unsuppress an alarm. Common Read
Alarming Suppress
12-49
• • • • •
Viewing alarm and event history logs

The Alarm and Event Log Viewer displays the contents of alarm and event history logs.
When you create an alarm and event log viewer, you select which local or remote database
to query, from the list of database definitions held in the FactoryTalk Directory.
To create an alarm and event log viewer

HMI server icons, where you want to create the alarm and event log viewer.
Alarm and event
log viewer tool 2. To create a new graphic display, expand the Graphics folder, right-click Displays, and
then click New.
Log Viewer. You can also click the alarm and event log viewer tool, on the toolbar.
4. Drag the alarm and event log viewer tool on the graphic display to the desired size and
The Alarm and Event Log Viewer Design View object is placed in the display. You
can move and resize the object, as needed.
To set up properties, double-click the object. For details about options in the
Properties dialog box, click Help.
The parts of an alarm and event log viewer

The following illustration shows an alarm and event log viewer at run time.
An alarm and event log viewer is composed of:
an event list, that shows all the data in the specified alarm and event log.
an optional status bar, that provides information about the contents of the event list,
such as the number of events, and whether a filter is applied to the display.
a shortcut menu, and an optional toolbar, for performing common operations.
an optional details pane, that shows the attributes of the currently selected event.
For details about using an alarm and event log viewer at run time, see the FactoryTalk
To view alarm-related activity that is sent to diagnostic and audit logs, use the FactoryTalk
Diagnostics List or Log Viewer. For details, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
12-50
• • • • •
Select an Alarm and event Event list and

alarm filter. log viewer toolbar column headings
12 • Placeholder
In the status bar, view the number of events in View details for the Drag to see more of the
the list, how the events are filtered, and which selected event. event list, or more details.
database is being queried.
Refreshing the event list

To display the most recent alarm activity logged to the selected database, on the alarm and
event log viewer’s toolbar, click Refresh alarm list.
Refresh alarm
list button Filtering information at run time
To filter information in the event list, an operator can do one of the following:
Select from a predefined list of filters, set up for the alarm and event log viewer at
design time.
Clear the current filter. This refreshes the event list, to show all the alarm data stored
in the database being queried.
12-51
• • • • •
Using tags to interact with alarms or obtain their status

Alarm tags let you monitor and interact with alarms without the need for an alarm and
event object in a graphic display.
Use alarm tags when an alarm display, such as an alarm and event summary, is not
available for responding to alarms. You can use alarm tags to acknowledge, enable,
disable, suppress, unsuppress, or reset alarms.
For example, to let an operator acknowledge a tag-based alarm, expose the alarm as a tag,
and then provide a way for the operator to set the OperAck (or OperAckAll) alarm tag
to 1. For an example, see page 12-53.
You can also use alarm tags to obtain information about an alarm’s state. For a list of
alarm tags and their functions, and for information about device-based alarm tags, see the
You can also use FactoryTalk alarm functions in expressions to obtain information about alarms.
Following is an illustration of how alarm tags are displayed in the Tag Browser.
Level_Alm1 is a tag-
based alarm definition
exposed as a tag.
When you select the

alarm in the Tag Browser,
its alarm tags become
visible in the right-hand
window.
You can use the Oper*

tags to let an operator
respond to instances of
the alarm at run time.
12-52
• • • • •
To expose an alarm as a tag

1. In the Alarm and Event Setup editor, open the Alarm Properties dialog box for the
12 • Placeholder
digital, level, or deviation alarm you want to expose as a tag.
2. In the Digital, Level, or Deviation tab, select the check box, Show Alarm as a Tag.
Example: Using alarm tags to acknowledge an alarm

An operator is expected to acknowledge alarms associated with a faceplate in a graphic
display that does not contain an alarm and event summary or banner.
To let the operator acknowledge High High alarm conditions for the alarm, named
Level_Alm1, you might try the following these steps:
1. In the Alarm and Event Setup editor, open the Properties dialog box for Level_Alm1,
and then select the check box, Show Alarm as a Tag.
2. In FactoryTalk View Studio, open the graphic display the operator will be monitoring,
and then create this text object: High High Alarm.
In the text object’s Properties dialog box, select red as the Fore color. Make the object
big enough to catch the operator’s attention when it becomes visible.
3. Right-click the text object, point to Animation, and then click Visibility.
4. To make the High High Alarm object visible when a High High alarm occurs for
Level_Alm1:
In the Expression box, type Level_Alm1.HHInAlarm.
For the Expression true state, select Visible.
5. In the Animation dialog box, click the Touch tab. To let the operator acknowledge the
alarm by clicking on the High High Alarm object:
in the Press action box, type Optionally, run a command or macro as the release
action, to notify the operator’s supervisor when the alarm is acknowledged.
At run time, when the High High Alarm object becomes visible, the operator can press
the object to acknowledge the alarm.
The object will remain visible until the alarm returns to normal. When that happens, the
HHInAlarm status tag is reset to 0, making the High High Alarm text object invisible.
For more information about setting up animation for FactoryTalk View graphic objects,
12-53
• • • • •

To write to alarm tags, users must be allowed the following Alarming and Tag actions, in
the area where the alarm server resides.
To write to this alarm tag To perform this action You need these security permissions
OperAck, OperAckAll Acknowledge an alarm. Alarming Acknowledge
OperReset Reset an alarm Alarming Reset
OperEnable Enable an alarm Alarming Enable/Disable
OperDisable Disable an alarm Alarming Enable/Disable
OperSuppress Suppress an alarm Alarming Suppress
OperUnsuppress Unsuppress an alarm Alarming Suppress
AlarmCountReset Reset the alarm count Tag Write Value
Using FactoryTalk alarm functions in expressions

To retrieve information about FactoryTalk alarms for individual tags, or for groups of
tags, use FactoryTalk alarm functions in expressions.
You can use the FactoryTalk alarm functions wherever expressions are supported in a
FactoryTalk View SE application. For example, use an alarm function to set up a numeric
display object, or define a derived tag.
FactoryTalk alarm functions in expressions will not return information for suppressed alarms.
For more information about alarm suppression, see page 12-43, or see the FactoryTalk Alarms
and Events Help.
For information about creating expressions, see Chapter 23 in Volume 2 of the

Retrieving information about the severity of alarms

FactoryTalk View SE provides alarm functions you can use in expressions, to retrieve the
highest severity value of specified alarms that are acknowledged or unacknowledged.
12-54
• • • • •
Use the high severity functions to alert operators when high-severity alarms occur. For
example, you could set up a graphic object to turn red and blink, if the specified function
12 • Placeholder
returns a value greater than 900 for alarms in the operator’s area.
Highest severity value of acknowledged alarms

The following expression returns the highest severity value associated with the specified
alarms, for alarms that have been acknowledged:
AE_HighSeverityAcked(“AlarmName”)
where AlarmName is an absolute or relative path to one or more FactoryTalk alarms. For
information about specifying the alarm source, see page 12-56.
The expression result is an integer, from 1 to 1000, if any of the alarms specified has the
state In Alarm and Acknowledged. The expression result is 0, if none of the alarms has the
state In Alarm and Acknowledged.
Highest severity value of unacknowledged alarms

The following expression returns the highest severity value associated with the specified
alarms, for alarms that are unacknowledged:
AE_HighSeverityUnAcked(“AlarmName”)
The expression result is an integer from 1 to 1000, if any of the alarms specified has the
state In Alarm and Unacknowledged. The expression result is 0, if none of the alarms is In
Alarm and Unacknowledged.
Retrieving information about the number of alarms

FactoryTalk View SE provides alarm functions you can use in expressions, to retrieve the
the number of specified alarms that are acknowledged, unacknowledged, or
acknowledged and returned to normal.
Use the alarm count functions, for example, to alert operators when a number of alarms
are waiting to be acknowledged.
Each alarm condition for an alarm is counted. For example, if both the High and High
High alarm conditions are active for a level alarm the In Alarm count will be 2.
Number of acknowledged alarms

The following expression returns the number of specified alarms that have been
acknowledged:
AE_InAlmAckedCount(“AlarmName”)
12-55
• • • • •
The expression result is an integer, from 1 to the total number of alarms specified, if any
of the alarms has the state In Alarm and Acknowledged. The expression result is 0, if none
of the alarms is In Alarm and Acknowledged.
Number of unacknowledged alarms

The following expression returns the number of specified alarms that are
unacknowledged:
AE_InAlmUnackedCount(“AlarmName”)
The expression result is an integer from 1 to the total number alarms specified, if any of
the alarms has the state In Alarm and Unacknowledged. The expression result is 0, if none
of the alarms is In Alarm and Unacknowledged.
Number of unacknowledged alarms returned to normal

The following expression returns the number of specified alarms that are
unacknowledged, but have returned to normal:
AE_NormalUnackedCount(“AlarmName”)
The expression result is an integer from 1 to the total number of FactoryTalk alarms in the
system, if any of the alarms specified has the state Normal and Unacknowledged. The
expression result is 0, if none of the alarms is Normal and Unacknowledged.
Specifying the FactoryTalk alarm source in an expression

When you use a FactoryTalk alarm function in an expression, you must specify the alarm
source, in double quotes.
In the Expression editor, you can type the path to the alarm source, or click Alarm to open
to find and select alarms. For details about using the Alarm Source Browser, see the
Using absolute and relative references to alarms

In a FactoryTalk alarm function, you can specify an absolute or a relative path to one or
more alarms. An absolute path has the format:
12-56
• • • • •
/<AreaPath>::<AlarmName>
where
12 • Placeholder
AreaPath indicates the area (or areas) in the application where the alarm source
resides.
AlarmName indicates the name of the alarm.
For example, /MixerArea/MixerLine1::[CLX1]Line1MixingTank1, is a valid absolute
reference to an alarm named [CLX]Line1MixingTank1.
A relative path has the format:
[::]<AlarmName>
where
AlarmName indicates the name of the alarm.
In a relative reference, the colons ( : ) preceding the alarm name are optional. For
example, MixingTank1 is a valid relative reference to an alarm named MixingTank1.
For more information about using absolute and relative references in FactoryTalk
View SE applications, see page 6-6.
Using wildcards to specify multiple alarms

In a FactoryTalk alarm function, you can use wildcard characters in the alarm name
portion of the path to the alarm source, to retrieve information about multiple tags at once.

For example, the following expression will return the total number of In Alarm and
Acknowledged alarms, for all alarms in the Logix5000 device referenced by the shortcut
MixerController, in the subarea named MixerLine1, in the area named MixerArea:
AE_InAlmAckedCount (“/MixerArea/MixerLine1::[MixerController]*”)
You cannot use wildcard characters in the area portion of an alarm source path. For example,
you cannot specify /MixerArea/Mixer*:: for the area path, in the previous example.
Using placeholders to specify the alarm name

In a FactoryTalk alarm function, you can use placeholders in the alarm name portion of
the path to the alarm source.
12-57
• • • • •
A placeholder is the cross-hatch character (#) followed by a number from 1 to 500, as

shown in the following example:
AE_InAlmAckedCount (“/MixerArea/MixerLine1::[CLX]Line1.Mixer_#1”)
When the graphic display containing the placeholder runs, the placeholder must be
replaced with an actual value. You can do this using a parameter file, or by specifying the
tag names as parameters of the Display command.
For more information, see “Using placeholders to specify tag values” on page 19-29, in
Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk View Site Edition User’s Guide.
What happens if the alarm source becomes unavailable

When a FactoryTalk alarm function in an expression is first initialized, only alarms from
connected alarm servers are counted in the evaluation.
At run time, if a FactoryTalk alarm function refers to an alarm source that becomes
unavailable, the function is evaluated but returns nothing to the expression evaluation.
For example, a device-based alarm function is not counted, if the corresponding alarm is
deleted from the Logix5000 controller, or if the RSLinx Enterprise alarm server:
loses its connection to the Logix5000 controller that is detecting alarms.
begins or is in the process of downloading a program.
switches from run to test program mode.
experiences a major or non-recoverable program fault.
cannot subscribe to all of the alarms at the Logix5000 controller.
If the condition causing the disconnection is resolved, the expression can be reevaluated,
with the restored alarm function included.
About controller status system alarms

When an alarm source becomes unavailable, the system generates a special type of alarm,
called a controller status alarm, in alarm and event displays and logs.
Controller status alarms provide information about the condition behind an alarm source
disconnection.
An expression that contains a FactoryTalk alarm function will return 0, if the alarm function
references an alarm from a disconnected controller. Provide a way for operators to monitor for
controller status alarms, so that they can confirm whether 0 is a valid expression value.
Following is an illustration of a controller status alarm in an alarm and event summary.
12-58
• • • • •
12 • Placeholder
For details about controller status alarms and the conditions that cause them, see the
RSLinx Enterprise Help.
Importing and exporting alarms

Tag-based alarms and alarm messages can be exported from and imported into a Tag
Alarm and Event Server.
For example, you might export and import alarms and messages to:
move or copy alarms from one Tag Alarm and Event Server to another.
create alarms using programming tools such as Microsoft Visual Basic or C++, and
then import the program’s output file.
add alarms to an exported alarm file, using Microsoft Excel. You can then import the
file, with the new alarms.
modify alarms in an exported file, by searching for one set of tags, and then replacing
the tags with another set. You can then import the file, with the modified alarms.
translate alarm messages into other languages.
generate reports about alarms.
convert alarms from one alarm and events system to another, using conversion
programs.
For details about importing and exporting alarms and messages, see the FactoryTalk
12-59
• • • • •
To export alarms and messages

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the Tag Alarm and
Event Server containing the alarms you want to export, and then click Import and
Export.
2. In the Alarm Import and Export Wizard, click the export operation that uses the
desired format, and then click Next.
3. To complete the export operation, follow the instructions on the screen.
For details about options in the Alarm Import and Export Wizard, click Help.
To import alarms and messages

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the Tag Alarm and
Event Server into which you want to import tags, and then click Import and Export.
2. In the Alarm Import and Export Wizard, click the import operation that uses the
desired format, and then click Next.
3. To complete the import operation, follow the instructions on the screen.
For details about options in the Alarm Import and Export Wizard, click Help.
About import and export formats

FactoryTalk Alarms and Events supports Microsoft Excel Workbook (.xls) and XML
(.xml) import and export formats.
Use Microsoft Excel to modify existing alarms, for example, to translate text strings into
foreign languages, or to search and replace text across multiple alarms. Microsoft Excel
2000, XP, and 2003 formats are supported.
Use XML to create alarms programmatically, using third-party tools, and then generate an
XML file that you can import.
You can also use the XML format to back up alarms, or to move definitions from one Tag
Alarm and Event Server to another.
When importing or exporting large numbers of alarms, use the XML format for faster
performance.

12-60
• • • • •
To export and import alarms, users must be allowed the following Common actions, in the
area where the alarm server resides.
12 • Placeholder
Export alarm definitions or messages Common Read
Import alarm definitions or messages Common Read
Common Write
12-61
13 Setting up language switching
13 • Placeholder
what language switching is.
text strings that do and do not allow language switching.
the basic steps involved in setting up language switching.
setting up font support for Windows® languages.
selecting a language for a new FactoryTalk® View application.
adding languages to an application.
setting up the default application language.
exporting application text strings.
working with exported Microsoft® Excel spreadsheets.
working with exported Unicode text files.
importing translated or modified text strings.
setting up run-time language switching.
support for multiple languages in the graphic libraries.
About language switching

defined text strings in an application in up to 40 different languages.
FactoryTalk View SE Clients can run in any of the languages an application supports. In a
network application, multiple clients can run in different languages at the same time.
With language switching you can:
develop an application in one language, export the user-defined text strings for the
application, and then import translated strings for up to 40 languages into the same
application.
deploy a network application across different countries, allowing operators in each
location to view the application in their own language.
allow operators in multilingual countries to use the language of their choice.
13-1
• • • • •
import application components developed in different countries into a single

application that supports multiple languages.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, use the Language Configuration dialog box to export text
strings for one language or for all languages in an application.
You can translate or modify the exported strings, and then import them back into the
application. For information about:
exporting text strings, see page 13-9.
importing translated text, see page 13-20.
Text strings that allow language switching

In applications that support multiple languages, the following types of text strings can be
viewed in different languages at run time:
captions, tool tip text, time and date embedded variables, and numeric embedded
variables defined for FactoryTalk View graphic objects
titles typed in the Display Settings dialog box, for FactoryTalk View graphic displays
FactoryTalk View local messages
FactoryTalk View text objects
A text object with its SizeToFit property set to True might change in size when displayed in
different languages.
text strings defined for FactoryTalk Alarm and Event summaries, banners, and log
viewers. For details, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
Specifying time, date, and numeric formats

During development or at run time, FactoryTalk View uses the Windows regional settings
for the current application language when you enter, modify, or display text strings in an
application.
Windows regional settings specify the time, date, and numeric formats for different
languages in use on the local computer.
Text strings that do not allow language switching

Certain types of text strings in FactoryTalk View do not allow language switching.
13-2
• • • • •
13 • SETTING UP LANGUAGE SWITCHING
Text that is exported, but does not allow language switching

If you export text strings for a single application language to a Unicode text file, the
13 • Placeholder
caption property of any third-party ActiveX objects will be exported. However, even if
these strings are translated, they will not allow language switching at run time.
Text that is visible at run time, but cannot be exported

The following user-defined text strings are visible at run time, but cannot be exported for
translation:
command strings, including those you type for the Remark command
tag descriptions for tags in the HMI tag database
the text of HMI tag alarm messages
headings in an HMI tag alarm summary
Alarm Fault List messages displayed in FactoryTalk Alarm and Event summaries,
banners, and log viewers
string constants in expressions, and in all components that use expressions
For example, you might use string constants in expressions if an application displays
different strings in a string display object, based on the result of an expression.
the text displayed in the title bar of the FactoryTalk View SE Client window
Text that is part of the FactoryTalk View software

The following text strings are part of the FactoryTalk View Studio or FactoryTalk View
SE Client software, and cannot be exported for translation:
tooltips on buttons belonging to the FactoryTalk View Studio or FactoryTalk View
SE Client software, for example, the buttons on FactoryTalk View Studio toolbars
text in the on-screen keyboard or numeric keypad
text in the FactoryTalk View SE Client Login dialog box
text in the Recipe dialog box
Text displayed in FactoryTalk View SE system tags

You can use system tags in an application to display text in graphic displays. For example,
the tag, system\dateandtimestring, displays the current date and time.
Text in the following system tags is always displayed in the format prescribed by the
language of the Windows operating system:
System\Time
13-3
• • • • •
System\Date
System\DateAndTimeString
System\MonthString
System\AlarmMostRecentDate
System\AlarmMostRecentTime
System\AlarmStatus
Text that is not visible at run time

Some text that you define for an application is never visible to an operator at run time. For
that reason, FactoryTalk View deliberately does not export this text. The properties of
graphic objects shown in the following table are such text strings.
Has these properties, defined using

In this product This graphic object text that cannot be exported
FactoryTalk View Site Edition and all objects Name
FactoryTalk View Machine Edition Description
Image
St_Image
LinkedObject
Display list selector St_Display
St_Parameter
FactoryTalk View Site Edition Recipe Value
Numeric input TagName
and string input
Numeric display Expression
and string display
Tag label TagName
PropertyName
Caption
Trend All properties, except ChartTitle, Pen
Description, and EngineeringUnits.
These three properties are exported.
FactoryTalk View Machine Edition Goto display button Display
Parameter
Local message display MessageFile
Alarm list, alarm banner, FilteredTriggers
and alarm status list
Macro button Macro
13-4
• • • • •
Summary of steps for setting up language switching
13 • Placeholder
These are the tasks involved in setting up language switching for an application:
1. Install the Windows languages that the application will use.
2. Select a language in which to create the application and its components.
3. Add the languages you want the application to support.
You can add languages to an application before or after you export the application’s text
strings. To translate multiple languages at once, add languages before exporting the text
strings.
4. Export the application text strings for translation.

5. Import translated text strings for each of the supported languages.
6. Provide ways for operators to switch between the application languages at run time.
To set up FactoryTalk View SE Clients:
1. On client computers, install the Windows languages that the application supports.
2. In client setup files, specify an initial language for the client to run in.
exporting application text strings, see page 13-9.
importing translated strings, see page 13-20.
setting up language switching at run time, see page 13-25.
Setting up font support for Windows languages

To ensure that fonts used in a FactoryTalk View application display correctly, regardless
of the current language, install all of the Windows languages the application will use.
For example, certain Chinese characters will not display correctly in an application that
uses the Tahoma font style.
If you want Tahoma to display all Chinese characters, ensure that Chinese is installed on
development and run-time computers.
For details about installing languages, setting up font support, and setting up Windows
locales, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
On computers running Windows XP or Windows Server 2003, installing a language provides

complete font support for that language. On computers running Windows 2000, additional setup
might be required. For details, see the Windows 2000 Help.
13-5
• • • • •
Installing additional Windows languages

From the Regional and Language Options (or Regional Options) dialog box, you can
install any additional languages needed to enable Windows font support.
To install additional languages in Windows XP

1. In the Control Panel, double-click the Regional and Language Options icon.
2. In the Languages tab, under Supplemental language support, select the appropriate
check box, and then click OK.
For details, see Windows Help.
To install additional languages in Windows 2000

1. In the Control Panel, double-click the Regional Options icon.
2. In the General tab, under Language settings for the system, select the languages or
language groups you want to install, and then click OK.
For details, see Windows 2000 Help.
Selecting a language for a new FactoryTalk View application

When you create a new FactoryTalk View application, you must select a language for the
application. The language you select becomes the default application language.
After setting up the application’s components, such as data servers, HMI servers, and
graphic displays, you can export text strings in the application for translation. Then, you
can import translated strings for languages you add to the application.
To translate multiple languages at once, add languages to the application first, and then
export text strings for all the languages to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. For details, see
“Exporting application text strings” on page 13-9.
To select a language when creating a new application

1. Start FactoryTalk View Studio, select an application type, and then click Continue.
2. In the New/Open Site Edition (...) Application dialog box, click the New tab
3. Type an application name, select an application language, provide an optional
description, and then click Create.
When creating a new application, you select a language from the full list of languages that
Windows supports, as shown in the following illustration.
13-6
• • • • •
13 • Placeholder
When creating a
new application,
you can select any
of the languages
Windows supports.
About the current application language

When opening an existing application, you select a language from the list of languages the
application supports. The language you select becomes the current application language.
For example, if an application supports English and Spanish, and you select Spanish when
you open the application, then Spanish is the current application language.
When you save application components, such as graphic displays, the text strings they
contain will be saved in Spanish. Text strings in the application that are unavailable in
Spanish, will be treated as undefined.
Undefined text strings in an application display as question marks ( ? ), unless the
application is set up to display undefined strings in the default language. For more
information, see “Setting up a default application language” on page 13-8.
Adding languages to an application

Use the Language Configuration dialog box to add the languages you want the application
to support.
You can add up to 40 languages to an application, before or after you export the
application’s text strings for translation.
13-7
• • • • •
To translate multiple languages at once, add languages to the application first, and then
export text strings for all the languages, to a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. For details, see
“Exporting application text strings” on page 13-9.
You cannot switch dynamically between application languages, while developing an application.
To change the current language, you must close the application, and then select a different
language when you re-open the application.
To add languages to an application

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Tools menu, click Languages.
2. In the Language Configuration dialog box, click Add.
Default language
for this application
is English. Application
languages
Current language and RFC1766
for this application names.
(selected in the
New/Open dialog
Export
box) is French.
text strings.
Add languages Import

to the application. text strings.
Set the selected

language as the
default.
3. In the Add Language dialog box, select the language to add, and then click OK.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for each language you want to add to the application.
For details about options in the Language Configuration dialog box, click Help.
Setting up a default application language

The language you select when creating a new application becomes the default language
for the application.
13-8
• • • • •
To change the default language, open the Language Configuration dialog box, select an
application language from the list, and then click Set as Default (shown in the previous
13 • Placeholder
illustration).
A check mark beside the language you selected indicates that it is the default application
language. For information about using the default language to display undefined text
strings, see “Displaying undefined text strings in the default language,” next.
When you open an existing FactoryTalk View SE application, if the application supports
several languages and no default is specified, the following dialog box opens, so that you
can select a default language.
Select a default
language for an
application.
Displaying undefined text strings in the default language

By default, any undefined text strings in a FactoryTalk View application, that cannot be
viewed in the current application language, are displayed as a question mark (? ) .
If you prefer undefined strings to display in a specific language, in the Language
Configuration dialog box, set up that language as the default application language, and
then select the check box, Display undefined strings using the default language.
For example, use this option to always view displays used for maintenance purposes in
English, regardless of the current application language.
Using this option will also ensure that local message strings display correctly, when you
switch application languages at run time.
Exporting application text strings

Use the Language Configuration dialog box to export text strings in an application, in
order to translate or modify them.
If the application contains multiple languages, you can export text strings for the selected
language only, or for all languages in the application.
13-9
• • • • •
To export strings only for the currently selected (highlighted) language, and save them to
a text file in Unicode format, select the option, Export strings for <aa-BB> to one or more
Unicode text files (where aa-BB is the RFC1766 code for the selected language).
For details about modifying Unicode text files in Microsoft Excel and in Notepad, see the
FactoryTalk View SE Help.
To export strings for all languages in the application, and save them to a Microsoft Excel
spreadsheet, select the option, Export strings for all languages to an Excel spreadsheet.
This option allows you to translate or modify multiple languages at the same time.
If you export all strings in an application, you can choose to optimize duplicate strings
during the export operation. This means that any string that occurs multiple times in the
application will be displayed only once in the Excel spreadsheet. For more information,
see “Working with duplicate text strings” on page 13-15.
If the application contains only one language, you can still select the option Export strings for all
languages to an Excel spreadsheet, if you want to save strings to a spreadsheet instead of a
Unicode text file.
To export text strings in an application

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Tools menu, click Languages.
2. In the Language Configuration dialog box, click Export. This opens the String Import
Export Wizard.
If you are exporting strings for a single language only, before you click Export, in the list of
application languages, select the language of the strings you want to export.
3. Select to export strings either for the selected language, or for all languages in the
application.
4. Click Next, and then follow the instructions in the String Import Export Wizard.
For details about options in the String Import Export Wizard, click Help.
Before exporting text in an application, ensure that all the HMI project components containing
text to be exported are not in use. If project components are being modified remotely, and they
have not been saved, the exported file might not contain the unsaved changes.
If you cancel the export operation while it is in progress, any text files created prior to canceling
might not be complete.

13-10
• • • • •
13 • Placeholder
To export application text strings, users must be allowed the following Common actions,

Export text strings from an application. Common List Children
Common Read
Common Write
Troubleshooting export problems

If errors occur during an export operation, or if you cancel the export while it is in
progress, a message is logged to the Diagnostics List and log file.
In addition, export errors are displayed in a log file called ExportErrors.txt, which is saved
in the following folder on the local computer:
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Shared Documents\RSView Enterprise\
Strings*
Existing export error log files are overwritten for each subsequent export operation that
generates errors.
Export file formats

During the export operation, files containing the exported text strings are saved by default
in the following folder on the local computer:
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\RSView Enterprise\Strings*
The type of file saved depends on the type of export operation. Text strings exported:
for all application languages, are saved in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.
for the selected application language, are saved in a Unicode text file.
For more information about exporting application text strings, see page 13-9.
13-11
• • • • •
Excel spreadsheet file format

Text strings exported for all languages in an application are saved in an Excel spreadsheet.
The format for the file name is <application>_<export version>.xls, where:
<application> is the name of the application.
<export version> is a number indicating the export version.
The first time text strings are exported from an application, the export version is 1.
Subsequent export files for the same application are appended with 2, 3, 4 and so on.
The Excel spreadsheet contains additional information about the exported strings, for
example, the names of the HMI servers and graphic displays that contain the strings. For
Unicode text file format

Text strings exported for the selected application language are saved in a text file in
Unicode format.
For network applications, text strings from each HMI server in the application are
exported to separate text files. The file name format is <application>_<area>_<HMI
server>_<RFC1766>.txt, where:
<application> is the name of the application.
<area> is the name of the area.
<HMI server> is the name of the HMI server containing the exported text strings.
<RFC1766> is the RFC1766 name associated with the language selected for the
export operation.
In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Language Configuration tool, the Add Language dialog box
provides a list of Windows languages and their RFC1766 names. For information about how
to open the Add Language dialog box, see page 13-8.
For local applications, which contain only one HMI server, text strings are exported to a
single, Unicode text file with the format <application><HMI server><RFC1766>.txt.
For information about the format and schema of Unicode text files, see page 13-16.
13-12
• • • • •
Working with text strings exported to an Excel spreadsheet
13 • Placeholder
This section contains important information for translators, about working with exported
Microsoft Excel spreadsheets.
FactoryTalk View requires that parts of the Excel spreadsheet file remain as they were
when exported. To ensure that the spreadsheet can be imported successfully after it has
been modified, give the information in this section to translators.
Spreadsheet format and content

Text strings exported for all languages in an application are saved to an Excel spreadsheet.
This allows you to translate or modify multiple languages at the same time.
The following illustration shows the format of the exported spreadsheet:
The spreadsheet provides the following information, for each exported text string:
Server identifies the name of the HMI server that contains the exported text string.
For network applications, which can contain multiple HMI servers, the server name
format is /<application>/<area>:<HMI server>. For local applications, which can
contain only one HMI server, the format is /<application>:<application>.
HMI server names in the Server column are case sensitive. Ensure that server names in the
spreadsheet match those in the application. If not, some strings might not be imported.
Component Type identifies the type of component that contains the text string. The
component type can be either a standard graphic display or a global object display.
Component Name indicates the name of the standard display, global object display,
or local message file that contains the text string.
Description identifies where the text string is used in the standard display or global
object display.
13-13
• • • • •
REF displays a unique reference number beside the first instance of each text string
with duplicates in the HMI server.
A REF column appears in the spreadsheet with each application language, only if the
check box, Optimize duplicate text strings, was selected for the export application.
The <RFC1766 name> column contains the exported text strings. The number of
columns depends on the number of languages in the application, when the strings were
exported.
The column heading is the RFC1766 name for the language of the text strings in that
column. For example, en-US is the RFC1766 name of English (United States).
In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Language Configuration tool, the Add Language
dialog box provides a list of Windows languages and their RFC1766 names. For
details, see “Adding languages to an application” on page 13-7.
The first column containing exported text strings will be for the default application language, if
one is specified. Columns for all other application languages will follow, in alphabetical order.
Maintaining the format of the spreadsheet

To ensure that the spreadsheet can be imported successfully, you must preserve parts of
the spreadsheet’s format.
Do not change the default order of the Server, Component Type, Component Name
and Description columns.
Do not insert any blank rows or columns in the spreadsheet. The import operation will
stop at a blank row or column. Anything after that will not be imported.
You can change the order of the columns containing the text strings for each language.
However, if you move one of these columns, remember to move the associated REF
column with it, if one exists.
The REF column must always be to the left of the strings column.
Do not delete a REF column, or any of the unique duplicate string identifiers in a REF
column.
Do not delete a row that contains a unique duplicate string identifier in the REF
column.
13-14
• • • • •
Modifying or translating text strings
13 • Placeholder
In the spreadsheet, translate only the **UNDEFINED** text strings for each application
language.
In the following illustration, for example, all the text strings for Danish (da-DK) need to
be translated:
In the da-DK column, **REF:104** indicates a duplicate instance of the undefined string
in the first row. In this case, translate only the undefined string. The duplicate will be
translated automatically, when the spreadsheet is imported into the application.
For more information about duplicate text strings, see “Working with duplicate text
strings,” next.
Undefined text strings in an application always export as **UNDEFINED**, regardless of whether

you have selected the option, Display undefined text strings in the default language. For more
information about this option, see “Setting up a default application language” on page 13-8.
Working with duplicate text strings

If the check box, Optimize duplicate strings, was selected for the export operation, text
strings that occur multiple times in the application will be displayed only once in the
Excel spreadsheet.
In the following illustration, the text string Primary Treatment is marked with the unique
identifier REF:15. Duplicate instances of the Primary Treatment string are marked with
the same, unique identifier.
13-15
• • • • •
Unique reference number Duplicate strings replaced

attached to first instance with Primary Treatment
of Primary Treatment. reference number.
Only the first instance of the Primary Treatment string needs to be translated or modified.
The duplicate references will be updated automatically, when the spreadsheet is imported.
The REF column should only contain valid duplicate string identifiers. Do not delete any of these
identifiers, or type any other text in the REF column.
The optimization process will also translate an undefined string, if the string has been
translated elsewhere in the spreadsheet. In these cases, duplicate undefined text strings do
not have to be translated manually.
In the illustration, for example, you would only have to translate Primary Treatment string
once into Swedish (sv-SE). Other, undefined instances of the same string will be
translated automatically, when the spreadsheet is imported.
Working with strings exported to a Unicode text file

This section contains important information for translators, about the format and schema
of exported Unicode text files.
FactoryTalk View requires that parts of the Unicode text file remain as they were when
exported. To ensure that the text file can be imported successfully, after it has been
modified, give the information in this section to translators.
File name and format

Text strings exported for the selected application language are saved in a text file in
Unicode format.
13-16
• • • • •
You can rename the exported file, for example, to distinguish the translated version from
the original. However, to import the text successfully, you must ensure that the file is
13 • Placeholder
saved as tab-delimited text, in Unicode Text format.
Opening a Unicode text file in Microsoft Excel

When you open the text file in Microsoft Excel, the Text Import Wizard opens.
To specify the file format (Step 1)

1. In Step 1 under Original data type, click Delimited.
2. In the Start import at row box, type or select 1.
3. In the File origin list, click Windows (ANSI).
4. Click Next.
To specify the field delimiter (Step 2)

1. Select the Tab check box. If any other check boxes are selected, clear them.
2. Make sure you clear the check box Treat consecutive delimiters as one.
3. Click Next.
To specify the column data format (Step 3)

1. If it is not selected already, under Column data format, click General.
2. Click Finish.
Saving a Unicode text file in Microsoft Excel

When you click Save, Excel warns that the file may contain features that are not
compatible with Unicode text.
1. When prompted to keep the workbook in Unicode format which leaves out
incompatible features, click Yes.
2. When closing the file, you are prompted to save changes. Click Yes.
3. You can save the file using its original name, or you can type a new name.
4. When prompted again to keep the workbook in Unicode format which leaves out
incompatible features, click Yes.
13-17
• • • • •
Differences in format for Unicode files saved in Excel

If you use Notepad to open a Unicode text file that was saved in Excel, you will notice
some differences from a file edited and saved in Notepad.
You do not have to change the format of the file before you import it into FactoryTalk View Studio.
The differences are:

Double quotes surrounding the string definitions are removed for most strings.
String definitions containing embedded double quotes or other characters that Excel
treats as special characters, such as commas, are enclosed within double quotes.
Any embedded double quotes are converted to a pair of double quotes.
Saving a Unicode text file in Notepad

When saving the file, save it using the Unicode encoding option in the Save As dialog
box.
File schema
Comments
The text file uses the # symbol as a comment delimiter if it is the first character on a line.
Header
The first seven lines of the text file contain header information that must not be translated
or modified.
Body
The body of the text file starts on line eight, and includes the following fields:
Field Component type Component name String reference “String definition”

Example Graphic Display Pump station 1 “Stop motor”
The file is sorted alphabetically by component name, and then numerically by string
reference number.
Each string reference number refers to a different object in the component. In the
preceding example, string reference 1 might refer to a push button in the graphic display
called Pump station.
13-18
• • • • •
In the translated text file, the only text that needs to be modified is the text inside the
quotation marks in the string definition column. For example, translated into German, the
13 • Placeholder
file would look like this:
Field Component type Component name String reference “String definition”

Example Graphic Display Pump station 1 “Motor abschalten”
Do not change the entries in the component name column, unless the component was
renamed in the application after the text was exported.
Do not modify the component type or string reference number. The string reference number is
unique to FactoryTalk View. Modifying the component type or string reference number prevents
FactoryTalk View from identifying the object correctly, when you import the text.
Working with pairs of double quotes

If a text string contains double quotes, the whole string definition must also be enclosed in
double quotes. For example:
Call “Duty Manager"
must be entered in the string file as:
“Call “Duty Manager””
Importing text containing multiple sets of double quotes

If the string definition contains an odd number of double quotes next to each other, they
will be rounded to an even number and each pair will be imported as one double quote.
For example, the string:
“Call “““Duty Manager””
will be imported as:

Call “Duty Manager”
Working with backslashes and new-line characters

To force text to begin on a new line, precede the text with the backslash character \ and the
new line character n. For example:
Motor\nabschalten
is displayed in the application as:
13-19
• • • • •
Motor
abschalten
To make a backslash appear in the application, type two backslashes (\\). For example, to
include the characters \n in the text, type \\n.
Importing text containing multiple backslashes

If the imported text file contains an odd number of backslashes next to each other, one of
the backslashes will be ignored.
For example, the string:
Seven\\\Eight
is imported into the application as:

Seven\Eight
Importing translated or modified text strings

Use the Language Configuration dialog box to import text strings into an application, after
translating or modifying them.
To avoid import errors, ensure that text files and spreadsheets to be imported are
translated according to the prescribed formats and schema. For important information to
share with translators, see:
“Working with text strings exported to an Excel spreadsheet” on page 13-13.
“Working with strings exported to a Unicode text file” on page 13-16.
If you are importing text into a network application, you can import text for multiple HMI
servers at the same time.
Text strings that exist in an application, but do not exist in the import file, are not deleted
or modified during the import operation. This allows you to import only text strings that
have been modified.
To import text strings into an application

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Tools menu, click Languages.This opens the
Language Configuration dialog box.
2. Export text strings currently in the application, to create a backup.
If necessary, you can use the backup to restore text already saved in any application
language, if an error occurs while importing, or if you cancel the import before it is
complete. For details about exporting text, see page 13-10.
13-20
• • • • •
3. Click Import. This opens the String Import Export Wizard.
13 • Placeholder
If you are importing strings from a Unicode text file, before you click Import, in the list of
application languages, select the language of the strings you are about to import.
4. Choose to import strings from a Unicode text file into the selected application
language, or from a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet into all application languages
defined in the spreadsheet.
5. Follow the instructions in the String Import Export Wizard.
For details about options in the String Import Export Wizard, click Help.
Before importing text into an application, ensure that the HMI project components involved are
not in use. If components are being modified remotely, and the changes are saved after you
import text, the imported text will be overwritten.
If you cancel an import while it is in progress, any text strings changed prior to canceling are not
restored to their original values. To restore text strings as they were originally saved in the
application, import the text from the backup file you created in step 2 of this task.

To import text strings into an application, users must be allowed the following Common
actions, at the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the task is to be
authorized.

Import text strings into an application. Common List Children
Common Read
Common Write
Troubleshooting import problems

If errors occur during an import operation, or if you cancel the import while it is in
progress, a message is logged to the Diagnostics List and log file.
In addition, import errors are displayed in a log file called ImportErrors.txt, which is
saved in the following folder on the local computer:
13-21
• • • • •
C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\RSView Enterprise\Strings*

Existing import error log files are overwritten for each subsequent import operation that
generates errors.
If it appears that some, but not all, of the text in an HMI server has been modified, the
import might have been canceled. If you cancel the import before it is complete, any text
strings that were changed are not restored to their original values.
To restore the original text in the application, import the text from the backup text file you
created in step 2 on page 13-20.
If it appears that text has been imported for some HMI servers but not for others, check
the ImportErrors.txt file for an error message. The causes of common errors and their
remedies are described in the following tables.
Common errors when importing Unicode text files

The following table describes error messages that might be logged in the ImportErrors.txt
file, while a Unicode text file is being imported into an application.
‘Line x’ in the error messages refers to the line number in the text file.
Error message Cause and solution

ServerName defined in FileName.txt does not exist. The name of the HMI server is invalid. If the HMI server was
None of the strings in this file were imported. renamed, open the file, and then correct the name of the HMI
server.
File “FileName”, Line x. ComponentType is not a The component type has been modified in the text file. Open
valid component type for the application. The string the text file, and then correct the text for the component type.
was not imported.
File “FileName”, Line x. ComponentName is not a The component name has been modified in the text file, or in
valid component for the application. The string was the application. Open the text file, and then correct the text for
not imported. the component name.
File “FileName”, Line x. The string reference must The string reference number has been modified in the text file,
be an unsigned long integer value between 1 and and the new string reference number is invalid. Open the
4294967295. The string was not imported. backup text file, and then copy the correct string reference
number into the translated text file.
13-22
• • • • •
13 • Placeholder
File “FileName”, Line x. The string was not used in This error occurs if:
the application and was not imported. the string reference number has been modified in the text file,
and the new string reference number is not used in the

application. Open the backup text file, and then copy the
correct string reference number into the translated file.
the object was deleted from the application after the text was
exported. If this is correct, ignore the error.
File “FileName”, Line x. The string definition must The translated string definition includes embedded double
be contained within double quotes. The string was quotes, but the string definition itself was not enclosed in
not imported. double quotes.
Open the text file, and then enclose all string definitions
containing embedded double quotes in double quotes. For
example, the string definition Start "Backup motor" must be
enclosed in double quotes, like this:
"Start "Backup motor""
File “FileName”, Line x. Invalid line format! A line in the import file does not contain all the component
name or string reference number fields.
The import continues with the next line in the file. Open the
backup text file, and then copy the missing fields into the
translated text file.
Unable to open {FileName.txt}. None of the strings The text file could not be opened. Make sure the text file is in
from this file were imported. the folder from which you are importing files, and that you can
open the text file in Notepad or Microsoft Excel.
Common errors when importing Excel spreadsheet files

file, while a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet file is being imported into an application.

String import was interrupted by the user. User canceled or interrupted the string import operation.
“RFC1766 Name” does not exist in this application. Language associated with a column in the spreadsheet does not
No strings for this language were imported. exist in the application. No strings associated with this language
will be imported.
The import will continue, but there will be no further attempt to
import strings for this language.
13-23
• • • • •

“Component Type” is not valid. No strings for this Component type for a string in the spreadsheet is not valid. No
component type were imported. strings associated with this component type will be imported.
The import will continue, but there will be no further attempts
to import strings and no further error messages logged, for this
component type. Valid component types are “Graphic Display”
and “Global Object Display.”
“Server Name” does not exist in this application. No Server name associated with a string in the spreadsheet does not
strings for this server were imported. exist in the application. No strings associated with this server
will be imported.
server.
“Server Name” is unavailable. No strings for this Server name associated with a string in the spreadsheet exists,
server were imported. but the HMI server is not available. No strings associated with
this server will be imported.
server.
“Server Name_Component Type_Component Component name for a string in the spreadsheet does not exist
Name” does not exist in this application. No strings in the application. No strings associated with this component
for this component were imported. name will be imported.
component name.
“Server Name_Component Type_Component Description for a string in the spreadsheet does not exist in the
Name_Description” does not exist in this application. No strings with this description will be imported.
application. No strings for this component were The import will continue, but there will be no further attempts
imported. to import strings and no further error messages logged, for this
description.
“Optimized Duplicate String Reference” is pointing Optimized duplicate string reference in the spreadsheet refers to
to a string that does not exist in the spreadsheet. No a string that does not exist.
strings with this optimized duplicate string reference The import will continue, but there will be no further attempts
were imported. to import strings and no further error messages logged, for this
duplicate string reference.
Unable to save “Display Name.” No strings for this A graphic display or global object display cannot be saved. The
component name were imported. import will continue.
Unable to open “Display Name.” No strings for this A graphic display or global object display cannot be opened.
component name were imported. The import will continue.
13-24
• • • • •
13 • Placeholder
Unable to import strings into “HMI Server Name” as The currently logged on user does not have FactoryTalk
the currently logged in user doesn’t have write Security Common Write access to the area containing the HMI
access to the area. server whose strings are being imported.
Applies to FactoryTalk View SE network applications. No
strings associated with this server will be imported. However,
the import will continue for any other HMI servers in the
application.
Unable to import strings as the currently logged in The currently logged on user does not have Common Write
user doesn’t have write access to the application. access to the application whose strings are being imported.
Applies to FactoryTalk View SE local and FactoryTalk View
ME applications. No application strings will be imported.
Unable to import one or more strings, as one or A spreadsheet cell containing a string for a language is not
more cells were not formatted as text or numeric formatted for text or numeric values. The string in that cell will
values. not be imported. The import will continue. This error will only
be reported once for a single import operation.
Unable to import one or more strings, as one or A spreadsheet cell containing a server name, component type,
more cells were not formatted as text or numeric component name, description, or string reference is not
values. formatted for text or numeric values.
No strings in that row will be imported. The import will
continue. This error will only be reported once for a single
import operation.
Unable to import the spreadsheet, as one or more of A header cell is not formatted for text or numeric values. No
the header cells were not formatted as text or strings will be imported into the application. The import will
numeric values. stop.
Common errors when importing local messages

file, while local message text is being imported into an application.

Unable to save “Local Message File Name.” No Imported local message file cannot be saved. The import will
strings for this component name were imported. continue.
Unable to open “Local Message File Name.” No Imported local message file cannot be opened. The import will
strings for this component name were imported. continue.
Setting up run-time language switching

When you create a FactoryTalk View SE Client configuration file, you select the initial
run-time language from the list of application languages. Once the client is running, the
operator can switch from the initial language to any other application language.
For information about setting up client files, see page 17-16.
13-25
• • • • •
Using the Language command to switch languages

In FactoryTalk View SE, use the Language command to switch languages at run time.
The Language command uses the following syntax:
Language <RFC1766 name>
where <RFC1766 name> is a code name for the language you want to switch to.
To allow language switching at run time, provide the operator with a way to run the
Language command, for each language the application supports. For example, create
buttons in a graphic display that use the Language command as the press action.
To find the RFC1766 name associated with a Windows language, open the Add Language
dialog box in FactoryTalk View Studio. For details, see “Adding languages to an
application” on page 13-7.
If you create buttons to allow language switching at run time, be aware that button captions will
be translated when a language switch occurs. To avoid confusion, use graphics instead of text to
represent the different languages. For example, use an image of a country’s flag on a button.
Support for multiple languages in the graphic libraries

By default, text strings in the graphic libraries installed with FactoryTalk View SE never
display as undefined. Instead, they always display in the language they were shipped in,
regardless of the current application language.
You can set up individual libraries to support multiple languages. If you do this, however,
the text strings will display only in the current application language. In any other
language, the strings will display as undefined.
To set up support for multiple languages in a graphic library

shipped with FactoryTalk View SE
1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, double-click the Libraries icon,
right-click the graphic library you want to modify, and then click Open.
2. Right-click the library display, and then click Display Settings.
3. In the Properties tab, select the check box, Support Multiple Languages.
4. Click OK.
Text strings in the graphic library are saved in the current application language.
Language support in new graphic libraries

By default, new graphic libraries that you create for an application support multiple
languages.
13-26
• • • • •
You can set up a new library to display text strings only in the current application
language. If you do this, however, text strings in the new library that use some other
13 • Placeholder
language will be deleted when you save the change.
To remove support for multiple languages in a new graphic library

1. Right-click the library display, and then click Display Settings.
2. In the Properties tab, clear the check box, Support Multiple Languages.
3. Click OK.
Only text strings for the current application language are saved as language-neutral
strings.
Using the graphic libraries in a multi-language application

To use the contents of graphic libraries in an application, you can add an entire library into
the Displays folder, or you can copy one object or more from a library into an existing
graphic display.
If the graphic library you want to use supports multiple languages, and you add the entire
library into the Displays folder, all text strings are copied with the library.
If you copy an object from the library into a graphic display, only text strings that use an
application language are copied with the object. Text strings that use a language the
application does not support are deleted.
13-27
14 Setting up FactoryTalk system availability
14 • Placeholder
what it means to maximize availability in a FactoryTalk® system.
monitoring the status of application servers.
monitoring the status of the FactoryTalk Network Directory server.
redundancy as part of a system availability strategy.
setting up a redundant HMI server.
determining the Active HMI server in a redundant pair.
switching the Active and Standby HMI servers manually.
what happens when the primary HMI server fails.
modifying HMI tag and alarm properties at run time.
managing HMI data in an online redundant system.
monitoring network client and server connections.
upgrading software components in a deployed system.
FactoryTalk features that maximize system availability

A complete FactoryTalk system consists of all the networks, devices, and software
applications you have deployed, to monitor and control your plant or process.
Helping to ensure that the system can provide data in a secure and predictable fashion
depends on a number of variables.
To minimize data loss and down time, and to help ensure that critical parts of your system
are always available to connected clients, FactoryTalk View Site Edition (also called
FactoryTalk View SE) provides these health monitoring and redundancy features:
Server status monitoring of non-redundant and redundant application servers. For
Disconnected operation. For example, connected clients can continue to run when
the FactoryTalk Directory becomes unavailable. For information, see page 14-7.
14-1
• • • • •
Redundant application servers. In a network application, you can set up

redundancy for the following types of application servers:
FactoryTalk View SE Servers (also called HMI servers). For information about
setting up redundant HMI servers, see page 14-13.
Rockwell Automation Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise). For information about
setting up redundant RSLinx Enterprise servers, see the product documentation.
OPC data servers, including RSLinx Classic. For information about setting up
redundant OPC servers, see the product documentation.
Support for online changes to HMI tag and alarm properties. For information
about this feature, see page 14-23.
Replication of HMI server changes from primary to secondary HMI servers. For
information about this feature, see page 14-16.
Network connection monitoring on each computer (clients and servers) in the
system. For information about this feature, see page 14-31.
Many of the availability features built into FactoryTalk View SE support both local and network
applications. However, you can only set up redundant servers in a network application. For more
information about local applications, see Chapter 7, Working with local applications.
Finding more information about system availability

This manual contains information about the availability features built into FactoryTalk
View SE, and how they can help protect your application against software failures.
This manual does not describe how to protect the hardware, the control system, the
information network, the operating system, or any other supporting software your
FactoryTalk View SE applications might use.
For information about these components, see the product documentation. For additional
information about FactoryTalk availability features, see the FactoryTalk Help.

Monitoring the status of application servers

In FactoryTalk View Studio, or in the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, you
can monitor the operational status of servers in a FactoryTalk View SE application, to
determine whether the servers are ready to provide service, and to troubleshoot problems.
14-2
• • • • •
14 • SETTING UP FACTORYTALK SYSTEM AVAILABILITY
In the Server Status dialog box, you can:
14 • Placeholder
check the status of non-redundant and redundant FactoryTalk View SE Servers,
Rockwell Automation Device Servers (RSLinx Enterprise), and FactoryTalk Tag
Alarm and Event Servers.
specify switchover options. For example, you can specify whether to always switch
back to the primary server, if it’s available.
switch the Active and Standby servers manually. For more information, see
page 14-20.

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the server’s icon, and
then click Server Status.
Host computer name

and status of the
primary HMI server
Host computer name

and status of the
secondary HMI server
Specify whether the

system should switch
to the primary server,
whenever it is available.
Click to switch Active and

Standby servers
manually.
The illustration is of the Server Status dialog box for the primary HMI server in a redundant pair.
For a non-redundant server, the dialog box displays only the primary computer name and status,
and the switchover options are unavailable.
14-3
• • • • •
States for non-redundant and redundant servers

The Server Status dialog box will display any of the following states for non-redundant
and redundant application servers.
A server with this status Has these characteristics

Loading The server is loading into memory.
You can set up an HMI server to load when the
operating system starts, or on demand (when the
first client connects to the server).
An HMI server can be made redundant only if it
is set up to load when the operating system starts.
Starting The server is initializing with data.
For example, the HMI server is loading its HMI
project, or uploading names from a controller.
Ready to provide service The server is finished initializing data and
synchronizing with its partner, and is ready to
provide service to clients.
Redundant servers are either ready to be active,
or ready to be standby. For more information, see
“States for redundant servers,” next.
Active The Active server is ready to accept client
connections and provide service to clients.
For redundant servers, if the Active server’s
partner fails, the status will change to Active
(Can’t reach partner). For more information, see
“States for redundant servers,” next.
<Host> unreachable A client computer cannot contact the computer
hosting the server.
For example, this state applies if communications
fail between the client and the computer hosting
the Network Directory server or the HMI server.
Failed The server can no longer provide service.
This would occur, for example, if a supporting
service is unhealthy. For information about what
happens when an HMI server fails, see page 14-6
and page 14-21.
14-4
• • • • •
14 • Placeholder
Not loaded The server is not loaded.
For example, an HMI server set up to start on
demand does not load until a client connects to it.
States for redundant servers only

The Server Status dialog box will display any of the following states for redundant
application servers only, as long as a partner is defined for the server.

Synchronizing with standby The server becoming the Active server is
synchronizing with its Standby partner.
After restarting, for example, an Active server
will try to get a copy of the Standby server’s state
information, before going into service. This
ensures that the latest state information is used.
If the Standby server is unavailable, or if it fails
during synchronization, the Active server will go
into service without its partner’s latest state
information.
Synchronized - ready to be Active The server becoming the Active server has
finished synchronizing with its partner, and is
ready to become active.
Synchronizing with active The server becoming the Standby server is
synchronizing with its Active partner.
After restarting, for example, a Standby server
will try to get a copy of the Active server’s state
information, before becoming standby. This
ensures that the latest state information is used.
If the Active server is unavailable, or if it fails
during synchronization, the Standby server will
become standby without its partner’s latest state
information.
Synchronized - ready to be Standby The server becoming the Standby server has
finished synchronizing with its partner, and is
ready to become standby.
14-5
• • • • •

Active (Can’t reach partner) The server is ready to provide service to clients,
but its partner is not ready or cannot be located.
This state is also displayed if the Active server’s
partner has not been defined.
Standby The Standby server is ready to accept client
connections and provide service to clients, in the
event that the Active server fails.
If the Active server fails, the Standby server’s
status will change to Active (Can’t reach partner)
and the Standby server will provide service to
connected clients.
Not configured A secondary server is not configured.
What happens if a non-redundant HMI server fails

An Active, non-redundant HMI server might fail due to any of the following conditions:
The HMI server is shut down with its host computer, from the Windows Start menu.
The HMI server is shut down using the FactoryTalk View HMI Service Manager tool.
For information about the Service Manager, see “Stopping and starting HMI services
manually” on page 17-13.
The HMI server is disconnected from the network. For information about how the
system monitors network connections, see page 14-31.
The HMI server is found to be unhealthy, because an essential service has stopped
functioning.
The HMI server’s host computer has a power failure.
When an HMI server fails, if the server is not set up with redundancy, it is taken out of
service. Within 5 seconds, Diagnostic messages are logged at connected client computers,
notifying operators of the failure.
Clients that were connected when the failure occurred will continue to run, using a local
cache of directory information.
However, any data or services the failed HMI server provides, such as HMI tag values,
derived tags, command processing, or data logging, will be unavailable. For example,
graphic objects connected to HMI tags in the server’s database will show in outline form.
If connected clients are receiving data from other HMI or data servers, that service will
not be interrupted.
14-6
• • • • •
When the failed HMI server is restored, all connected clients in the system can resume
receiving data from the server, without having to be restarted.
14 • Placeholder
Monitoring the status of the Network Directory server
FactoryTalk Directory software works like a telephone directory, or electronic address
book, providing a lookup service that allows parts of an application to find each other on a
single computer, or across a network.
Through the lookup service, application components such as tags and graphic displays can
be stored in their original environments and be available to all clients participating in an
application. No duplication is necessary.
The FactoryTalk Network Directory (also called the Network Directory) manages
FactoryTalk View SE network applications.
All of the client and server computers participating in a given network application must
point at the same Network Directory.
In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, you can view the current status of
the Network Directory server:
(connected) means that all FactoryTalk products and components participating in a
FactoryTalk system, located on the current computer, are connected to and
communicating with the Network Directory server computer.
(read-only) means that FactoryTalk system participants on the current computer are
disconnected from the Network Directory server and are retrieving information from a
local cache.
(unknown) means that the connection status is temporarily unknown, for example,
because the system is starting up and waiting to determine which server is active, or is
unable to determine the current status.
To check the status of the Network Directory server

click OK.
3. In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, look for the status of the
Network Directory server beside the label, Computer hosting directory server:
14-7
• • • • •
The status of this

Network Directory
server is (connected).
What happens if the Network Directory server is unavailable

The Network Directory server cannot be made redundant. Instead, if the Network
Directory becomes unavailable while client computers are connected to an application,
the clients continue to run, using a local cache of directory information.
There is no need to restart previously connected clients; they will continue to resolve tag
addresses, read and write tag values, acknowledge alarms, and open graphic displays,
even if the tags and displays the clients require were never used before.
While the Network Directory is unavailable, you cannot modify the structure of any
dependent application.
For example, you cannot add areas or servers to the application, create new security
accounts, or change system security policies.
When the Network Directory is available again, all dependent clients in the system
resume using the directory automatically.
Redundancy as part of a system availability strategy

The more protection you provide, the more dependable the entire control system will be,
in the event any hardware or software component fails.
The level of system availability increases with the number of redundant system
components. To protect against:
programmable controller failures, use redundant programmable controllers. For
example, Rockwell Automation’s Logix5000 platform allows transferring control
from a primary controller to a redundant controller when a failure occurs.
programmable controller network failures, install redundant programmable
controller networks, such as a Rockwell Automation’s ControlNet® network.
information network failures, install a redundant Ethernet® network with a
backup domain controller, network cables, and network interface cards.
14-8
• • • • •
host computer hardware failures, provide backup computers to host application

software such as FactoryTalk View SE.
14 • Placeholder
FactoryTalk software failures, set up redundant FactoryTalk View SE and
RSLinx® Enterprise application servers.
Planning the layout of a redundant system

The servers you can use in a FactoryTalk View SE network application are separate
entities, which can be hosted on any computer on the network.
This allows some flexibility, when it comes to designing a redundant system architecture.
However, there are system requirements for running the FactoryTalk software, that you
should keep in mind.
To support the availability of the FactoryTalk Network Directory, for example, it is
recommended that you host the directory server on a computer you intend to keep
running.
This might be the same computer used to host a FactoryTalk View SE Server, or an
RSLinx Enterprise server.
Do not run the FactoryTalk Network Directory on the same computer as a Windows domain
controller.
Example: An application with two redundant HMI server pairs

In its simplest form, a redundant FactoryTalk View SE application might consist of one
pair of redundant FactoryTalk View SE Servers (also called HMI servers), and one pair of
redundant RSLinx Enterprise servers.
In this example, two redundant server computer pairs host primary and secondary HMI
servers and RSLinx Enterprise data servers.
The FactoryTalk Network Directory (on the first primary computer in the following illustration)
cannot be made redundant. For information about what happens when the Network Directory
fails, see page 14-8.
14-9
• • • • •
FactoryTalk View
SE Clients
FactoryTalk Network FactoryTalk View FactoryTalk View FactoryTalk View

Directory SE Server SE Server SE Server
FactoryTalk View RSLinx Enterprise RSLinx Enterprise RSLinx Enterprise
SE Server
RSLinx Enterprise
Only one application server of any type, whether it’s a primary or secondary server, can
run on a single host computer. When designing a control system, observe this and the
other limits described in “About FactoryTalk View SE system limits,” next.
The overall design of the control system will ultimately depend on the application’s size
and computing needs, and on the level of redundancy required to support the entire
system.
For information about setting up redundancy for devices, networks, and other types of
servers the system might use, see the documentation for the specific hardware or software.
About FactoryTalk View SE system limits

In a network application deployed for production, one server computer can host these
software components:
the FactoryTalk Network Directory.
14-10
• • • • •
one FactoryTalk View SE Server (also called an HMI server).
14 • Placeholder
one data server (RSLinx Enterprise, RSLinx Classic, or another OPC ®-DA server).
one Tag Alarm and Event Server.
If the application requires more servers, use multiple host computers to distribute the load.
FactoryTalk View SE redundant component limits

For best results when running redundant FactoryTalk View SE components in a network
application, observe these limits:
50 is the maximum number of FactoryTalk View SE Clients that can have
simultaneous access to an network application.
10 is the maximum number of redundant FactoryTalk View SE Servers that can be
used in a network application. (The limit comprises 5 pairs of primary and secondary
servers.)
1 is the maximum number of redundant FactoryTalk View SE Servers that can be
hosted on a single computer.
You might use one computer to host multiple HMI servers while developing an application.
When deploying the application, however, ensure the primary and secondary HMI servers in
redundant pairs are hosted on separate computers.
For information about FactoryTalk View SE platform requirements that might affect the
design of a redundant system, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Installation Guide.
For information about limits and requirements that apply to redundant data servers
(RSLinx Enterprise, RSLinx Classic, or another OPC ®-DA server), see the product
documentation.
Activating FactoryTalk View SE in a redundant system

To further maximize the availability of HMI data in a redundant FactoryTalk system,
ensure that FactoryTalk View SE software components can obtain the necessary
activations.
The FactoryTalk View SE Server software must be installed and activated on the primary
and the secondary HMI server in a redundant pair.
To ensure that HMI servers and FactoryTalk View SE Clients can always obtain
activation, it is recommended that activation be provided locally, on server and client host
computers.
14-11
• • • • •
For more information about activating FactoryTalk View software, see Chapter 6 in the
For information about activating data servers, including RSLinx Enterprise and RSLinx
Classic, see the product documentation.
The FactoryTalk Network Directory is part of the integrated FactoryTalk architecture, and does
not require separate licensing in a network application.
Setting up redundant servers in FactoryTalk View SE

You can specify an alternate server for any FactoryTalk View SE Server (also called the
HMI server), RSLinx Enterprise server, or OPC data server (including RSLinx Classic) in
a network application.
In FactoryTalk View SE, the alternate (or backup) server in a redundant server pair is
called the secondary server
Summary of steps
In FactoryTalk View Studio, after you develop and test the network application, do the
following for any type of application server you want to make redundant:
1. Install and activate the necessary software on the secondary computer.
For information about installing the FactoryTalk View SE software, see the
2. In Windows Explorer, copy any necessary files from the primary server computer to
the secondary server computer.
3. On the secondary server computer, specify the location of the FactoryTalk Network
Directory.
4. In the primary server’s Properties dialog box, set up redundancy options, and specify
the name of the secondary server computer.
5. Ensure that data on the primary and secondary servers is identical:
For HMI servers, you can manually replicate changes from the primary to the
secondary server. For details, see page 14-16.
For data servers, settings for topics and networks, for example, must be identical.
For information about setting this up, see the product documentation.
For specific information about setting up redundancy for HMI servers, see “Setting up a
redundant HMI server pair,” next.
14-12
• • • • •
Setting up a redundant HMI server pair
14 • Placeholder
These are the steps involved in setting up a redundant FactoryTalk View SE Server (also
called an HMI server), in a FactoryTalk View SE network application:
1. On the secondary server computer:
install and activate the FactoryTalk View SE Server software. For details, see the
specify the location of the Network Directory for the application. For details, see
Chapter 4, Setting up FactoryTalk Directory.
copy the primary HMI server’s project files to the secondary server computer. For
2. On the primary sever computer:
set up redundancy options, and specify the secondary server computer name. For
to ensure that settings for the redundant pair are identical, replicate changes from
the primary to the secondary server. For details, see page 14-16.
Specify the Network Directory on the secondary computer

After installing the FactoryTalk View SE Server software on the secondary server
computer, specify the location of the FactoryTalk Network Directory for the application.
To specify the Network Directory location

To open the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, you must log on as a user with
administrative privileges at the Network Directory and in Windows, on the computer where
the tool is running. For more information, see Chapter 5, Setting up security.
the box, Computer hosting directory server.
14-13
• • • • •
3. Click Remote computer, type the name of the Network Directory server computer, and
then click OK.
To specify a remote computer as the Network Directory server, you must log on as a user
with administrative privileges at the Network Directory and in Windows, on the remote server.
Copy HMI project files to the secondary computer

It is easiest to copy an HMI server when it is not running.
If the HMI server you want to copy is running, stop the server before copying the HMI
project files. If you’re not sure whether the HMI server is running, follow the steps on
page 17-8, for copying an HMI server while it is running.
To stop a running HMI server

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the HMI server’s
icon, and then click Properties.
2. In the Properties dialog box, ensure that the Startup type is set to On Demand.
3. Stop any clients (FactoryTalk View Studio, the FactoryTalk View SE Administration
Console, or FactoryTalk View SE Client) that might be connected to the HMI server.
To copy the HMI project files to the secondary computer

1. In Windows Explorer on the primary server computer, copy the HMI project folder,
which has the same name as the HMI server, from the following location:
\Documents and Settings\All Users\Shared 1 Enterprise\ SE\HMI
Projects\*
2. In Windows Explorer on the secondary server computer, paste the HMI project folder
into the same location.
Set up HMI server redundancy options

In the primary HMI server’s Properties dialog box, in the Redundancy tab, you can set up
an HMI server to fail over to a secondary server, when the primary server fails.
You can also specify whether the system will switch back to the primary server
automatically, or continue using the secondary server, after service is restored. Use this
option to avoid unnecessary disruptions in the flow of data from the HMI server to clients.
14-14
• • • • •
Settings in the Redundancy tab are saved with the application, and apply to both the
primary and the secondary server. No further setup or special programming is required on
14 • Placeholder
the secondary server computer, or on computers hosting FactoryTalk View SE Clients.
To set up redundancy in the Properties dialog box

2. Select the option, Load and run startup components when operating system initializes.
Servers set up to start On demand cannot be made redundant.
3. In the Redundancy tab, select the check box, Provide redundancy using a secondary
server.
4. Specify the name of the secondary HMI server’s host computer, and the switchover
option for this redundant server pair.
For details about options in the Redundancy tab, click Help.
14-15
• • • • •
Replicate changes to the secondary HMI server

While the primary HMI server is active, you can modify HMI project components, such
as graphic displays, configuration files, and log files. However, any changes you make on
the primary server are not synchronized automatically on the secondary server.
To synchronize server settings and contents, you must replicate changes manually, from
the primary to the secondary server.
The state of the primary server must be Active and the state of the secondary server must
be Standby. For information about server states, see “Monitoring the status of application
During replication, all configuration files associated with the primary HMI server and
project are copied. This includes settings in the Components tab of the primary server’s
Properties dialog box.
For example, if an On Active and a Shutdown macro are specified for the primary server,
the settings will be copied to the secondary during replication. This means that the same
macros specified for the primary server, will run when the secondary server becomes
active or shuts down.
Files that aren’t copied to the secondary server during replication are data log files
generated at run time, and the HMI tag database cache.
HMI server replication is only available for redundant application server pairs in a
FactoryTalk View SE network application.
To replicate changes from the primary to the secondary server

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the primary HMI
server’s icon, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Redundancy tab, and then click Replicate Primary to Secondary.
Follow the instructions on screen. After replication is complete, the secondary server
is restarted.
The Replicate Primary to Secondary button is available only if the primary server is active
when you select the Redundancy tab. For replication to succeed, the primary server must
remain active for the duration of the operation.

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• • • • •
14 • Placeholder
Modify the HMI server properties. Common Read
Common Write
Determining the Active HMI server in a redundant pair

At run time, either the primary or the secondary HMI server in a redundant pair can be in
an active or a standby state:
The Active server is actively providing data and services (for example, graphic
displays and event processing) to connected clients.
The Standby server is ready to provide data and services to connected clients, in the
event that the Active server fails.
The primary and secondary servers communicate about their status, and determine which
server should be active and which should be standby, based on redundancy options set up
in the primary server’s Properties dialog box.
If you select the option, Switch over to the primary server when it becomes active, the
redundant server pair will agree that, whenever it is ready, the primary server will always
become the Active server.
If you select the option, Continue to use the secondary server when the primary server
becomes available again, the redundant server pair will agree that the currently Active
server will always remain active.
For information about setting up redundancy for an HMI server, see page 14-14. For
information about other server states, see “Monitoring the status of application servers”
on page 14-2.
When an HMI server is ready to be active or standby

Application servers become active or standby only when they are ready, that is, when they
are capable of accepting and processing requests from connected clients.
An HMI server is considered to be ready when:
the server is able to provide project components, such as graphic displays and macros.
the server is able to receive and run commands.
14-17
• • • • •
HMI tag and HMI tag alarm services are started and completely initialized.
all alarmed HMI tags are on scan and ready to detect alarms.
HMI tag alarm state synchronization is finished. For more information, see
“Synchronize time clocks on redundant computers” on page 14-29.
For information about when other application servers (RSLinx Enterprise data servers, for
example) are ready to be active or standby, see the product documentation, or see Help.
Specifying On Active and On Standby macros

In the primary HMI server’s Properties dialog box, in the Components tab, you can select
to run macros when the primary server becomes active or standby.
For example, you might specify an On Active macro that contains commands to run a
certain event component and data log model, when the server becomes active.
Then, you might use the On standby macro to stop those components, when the server
becomes standby.
In the Components tab, you can also start and stop components manually, on both the
primary and the secondary HMI server. For details about options in the Components tab,
click Help.
If an On Active macro contains many commands (or other macros), it might not finish running
before the HMI server is finished becoming active. This means that the macro might still be
running, when the server is ready to accept requests from clients.
Ensuring that macros finish running

If the Active HMI server in a redundant pair fails while a command or macro is running,
the command or macro stops running, during failover to the Standby server.
You might have to re-run the command or macro when the failover process finishes, and
the Standby server becomes active.
14-18
• • • • •
What happens if both servers become active
14 • Placeholder
If a network disconnection breaks communications between the primary and secondary
HMI server computers, it is possible for both servers to be in an active state, when the
network is restored.
In a partitioned network, for example, where a switch exists between the primary and
secondary host computers, clients on the primary server side of the switch would remain
connected to the Active primary server, when a network break occurs.
Meanwhile, on the secondary server side of the switch, the secondary server would detect
that the primary server has failed, and become active. Clients on that side of the switch
would connect to the newly Active secondary server.
When the network is restored, if redundancy options are set up to continue using the
Active secondary server, then both the primary and the secondary HMI servers would
remain active.
If that happens, the HMI servers would use the following criteria to determine whether the
primary or the secondary server should be active:
If one HMI server in the redundant pair has more clients connected to it, then the
server with the most clients will become the Active server.
The server with the least clients will become the Standby server, and the clients
connected to this server will reconnect to the new, Active server.
If the HMI servers have an equal number of clients connected them, the primary
server will become active, and the secondary server will go on standby.
Determining which HMI tag alarm state to use

During the network disconnection, HMI tag alarm states are maintained at both the Active
primary and the Active secondary HMI server.
When the network is restored, after the HMI servers determine which server will be
active, the following criteria are used to determine which alarm states to retain:
most recent user input to alarm information—if the time stamp for most recent user
input is the same at both servers, use the number of alarm transactions.
number of alarm transactions—if the number of alarm transactions is the same at both
servers, use the greatest interval between the first and last transaction.
greatest interval between first and last alarm transaction—if the interval between the
first and last transaction is the same at both servers, use the most recent transaction.
If all alarm state criteria are the same at the primary and secondary HMI servers, the state
of HMI tag alarms on the primary server is used at the new, Active HMI server.
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• • • • •
Switching the Active and Standby servers manually

When the Active HMI server in a redundant pair fails, the system fails over automatically
to the Standby server, as long as it is ready and able to provide service.
If the system fails over to the secondary server, and the secondary server becomes active,
when service is restored to the primary server, either the system will switch back
automatically to the primary server, or the secondary server will remain active.
This depends on the switchback option you have selected in the Redundancy tab of the
primary HMI server’s Properties dialog box. (You can also select a switchover option in
the Server Status dialog box.)
If you select the option, Continue using the secondary server even when the primary
server becomes available again, then the secondary server will remain active, unless you
manually switch the Active and Standby servers.
If you select the switchover option, Switch over to the primary server when it becomes available,
you cannot switch the Active and Standby servers manually.
To switch the Active and Standby HMI servers

2. In the Server Status dialog box, click Switchover.
The Server Status display should reflect the switch, for both servers.
If the server currently on standby is not ready to become active, then the manual switchover will
not occur. For information about when an HMI server is ready, see page 14-17.

To switch the Active and Standby servers manually, users must have permission to
perform the switch operation, under User Rights Assignments for the system.
To set up the User Rights Assignment for switching servers

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, open the System folder.
2. In the System Policies folder, double-click User Rights Assignments.
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• • • • •
3. Under Manage Servers, click Manual server switchover, and then click the Browse
button in that row, beside Configure Security.
14 • Placeholder
4. Select the Allow check box, beside users you want to give permission to switch
servers.
For information about FactoryTalk Security, see Chapter 5, Setting up security.
What happens when the primary HMI server fails

Following are some conditions that might cause the primary, Active HMI server in a
redundant pair to fail:
The HMI server is shut down with its host computer, from the Windows Start menu.
The HMI server is shut down using the FactoryTalk View HMI Service Manager tool.
For information about the Service Manager, see “Stopping and starting HMI services
manually” on page 17-13.
The HMI server is disconnected from the network. For information about how the
system monitors network connections, see page 14-31.
The HMI server is found to be unhealthy, because an essential service has stopped
functioning.
The HMI server’s host computer has a power failure.
Within 5 seconds, Diagnostic messages are logged at connected client computers,
notifying operators of the server failure.
Failing over to the Standby secondary server

When the primary HMI server in a redundant pair fails, the system automatically fails
over to the secondary server.
If the secondary server is on standby, and ready to become active, it becomes the Active
server. If the secondary server is unavailable, the HMI server is taken out of service.
Clients that were connected at the time of the failure, start using the Active secondary
server within 30 seconds of it becoming active.
Clients will only connect to an Active server.
If for some reason the secondary server cannot finish becoming active, then the server is
taken out of service. For information about when an HMI server becomes active, see
“Determining the Active HMI server in a redundant pair” on page 14-17.
If both primary and secondary servers become active, then the servers decide which will be the
Active server. For more information, see page 14-19.
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• • • • •
Switching back to primary, or staying with the Active server

When service is restored at the primary server, either the system will switch back to the
primary server automatically, or the secondary server will remain active.
This depends on the switchover option you select in the Redundancy tab of the HMI
server’s Properties dialog box. For details options in the Properties dialog box, click Help.
You can also select a switchover option in the Server Status dialog box.
Continuing to use the secondary server

If you select the switchover option, Continue using the secondary server even when the
primary server becomes available again, the secondary server will stay the Active server,
even if the primary server is ready.
Continuing to use the secondary server allows you to choose when to switch back to the
primary server. When you’re ready, you can manually change the Active and Standby
servers. For more information, see page 14-19.
Clients will remain connected to the healthy Active server, until you perform the manual
switchover, or until the currently Active secondary server fails.
If the Active secondary server fails, as long as the primary server is on standby and ready
to provide service, then the primary server will become the new, Active server.
Switching back automatically to the primary server

If you select the switchover option, Switch over to the primary server when it becomes
available, the system will switch back automatically, from an Active secondary to a
restored primary server.
Connected clients will switch back to the Active primary server, as soon as it is ready.
Choosing to switch to the primary server means the primary server is always preferred.
You cannot manually change the Active and Standby servers, if you select this option.
If you choose not to switch back automatically to the primary server, the primary server
will go on standby when service is restored, until the Active secondary server fails.
If that happens, the failover and switch-back cycle begins again.
Notifying clients when switching back to the primary

During a switch back to the primary server, the server notifies connected clients when it is
ready to provide service, and then waits for a specified time period for clients to respond.
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• • • • •
After the time period expires, the server becomes active even if there are clients that have
yet to respond.
14 • Placeholder
The predefined amount of time the server waits before becoming active is two minutes.
You can change the time period, by modifying the system policy setting, Maximum delay
before server is active.
The policy setting, Maximum delay before server is active, applies only during a switch back to
the primary server. It does not apply when the system is failing over to the secondary server.
To change the time a server waits becomes active

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, expand the System folder,
double-click the Policies folder, and then double-click the System Policies folder.
2. Double-click Health Monitoring Policy, and then select Maximum delay before server
is active.
3. Click the box that shows the number of minutes. To select another number, click the
up or down arrow beside the box.

You can make changes to HMI tags and their alarm properties while a FactoryTalk
View SE network application is running, and have those changes take effect without
restarting clients.
This means that you don’t have to stop HMI servers or the application from running, in
order to make or deploy these changes. Critical application components can remain
available to connected clients, while you are updating the HMI servers.
Modifying HMI tag properties

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Tags editor, you can modify the properties of HMI tags
while an application is running.
Some of the changes you can make will be visible immediately, on connected clients.
Other changes require some other event to occur, before the change takes effect.
For example, if you change the Security Code assigned to an HMI tag, the new security
check will not occur until there is an attempt to write to the tag. When that happens, the
tag write will be validated against the new Security Code.
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• • • • •
When HMI tag property changes take effect

The following table lists the HMI tag properties you can modify at run time, and what
needs to happen before each change takes effect.
Use information in the table to ensure that the changes you make are reflected as
expected, at connected clients.
The Name and Tag Type properties of an HMI tag cannot be modified, after the tag is created.
If you change this property For this type of HMI tag The change takes effect when
Security code Any HMI tag An attempt is made to write to the tag, from a
The Security Code property is read using VBA code.
The Security Code property is shown in the Tag Browser.
Description Any HMI tag A graphic display using the Description property, in a tag
label object or in a trend’s pen, is test run in FactoryTalk
View Studio or opened in a FactoryTalk View SE Client.
The Description property is read using VBA code.
The Description property is shown in the Tag Browser.
Data Source Type Any HMI tag Immediately. The Value property is updated to use the
new Data Source Type as soon as the property is
modified.
The Data Source Type cannot be modified if the tag is
currently active.
Address Any HMI tag Immediately. The Value property is updated to use the
new Address as soon as the property is modified.
Minimum or Maximum HMI analog tags An attempt is made to write to the tag, from a
FactoryTalk View SE Client, FactoryTalk View Studio,
or the HMI server.
A graphic display using the Minimum or Maximum
property, in a tag label object (Low EU or High EU) or in
a trend’s pen, is test run in FactoryTalk View Studio or
opened in a FactoryTalk View SE Client.
The Minimum or Maximum property is read using VBA
code.
The Low EU or High EU property is shown in the Tag
Browser.
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• • • • •
14 • Placeholder
Units HMI analog tags A graphic display using the Units property, in a tag label
object (Engineering Units) or in a trend’s pen, is test run
in FactoryTalk View Studio or opened in a FactoryTalk
View SE Client.
The Units property is read using VBA code.
The Engineering Units property is shown in the Tag
Browser.
An HMI tag alarm summary object is displayed for the
first time, in a FactoryTalk View SE Client, and the HMI
tag alarm system is running. After the initial display,
additional changes to the Units property will not show
until the client is restarted.
Data Type HMI analog tags Immediately. The Value property is updated to use the
new Read/Write Data Type, if the modification causes the
tag’s value to change.
Or when:
An attempt is made to write to the tag, from a
or the HMI server.
The Canonical Data Type of the Tag object is read using
VBA code.
The Item Canonical Data Type property is shown in the
Tag Browser.
Scale HMI analog tags with Immediately. The Value property is updated to use the
Device as data source new Scale value as soon as the property is modified.
Offset HMI analog tags with Immediately. The Value property is updated to use the
Device as data source new Offset value as soon as the property is modified.
Initial Value HMI analog tags with The tag’s Data Source Type is changed from Device to
Memory as data source Memory.
The Initial Value property is read using VBA code.
The Initial Value property is shown in the Tag Browser.
The HMI server is started.
Retentive Any HMI tag with Immediately, if the tag is not in use. Otherwise, the
Memory as data source change takes effect when the HMI server is started.
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• • • • •
Off Label or On Label HMI digital tags A graphic display using the Off Label or On Label
property, in a tag label object (Contact Close Label or
Contact Open Label) is opened in a FactoryTalk View
SE Client.
The Off Label or On Label property is read using VBA
code.
The Contact Close or Contact Open property is shown in
the Tag Browser.
Length HMI string tags Immediately. The Value property is updated to use the
new Length value as soon as the property is modified.
Or when:
An attempt is made to write to the tag, from a
or the HMI server.
The Length property is read using VBA code.
The Length property is shown in the Tag Browser.
Modifying HMI tag alarm properties

You can modify the properties of HMI tag alarms at run time. For the changes to take
effect, you must run the AlarmAcceptEdits command.
When AlarmAcceptEdits runs, all alarm property changes made since the last time
AlarmOn was run, are reflected in HMI tag alarm summaries on connected clients.
Optionally, you can specify an area name when you run the AlarmAcceptEdits command.
If you do this, only changes made in the specified area, since AlarmOn was last run, will
take effect. For details, click Help in the Command Wizard.
If you run AlarmAcceptEdits while a redundant HMI server pair is synchronizing alarm states, the
secondary HMI server will not contain the latest changes. To update the secondary server, you
must replicate changes made on the primary server. For details, see page 14-16.
Example: Modifying HMI tag alarms in a redundant HMI server pair

To ensure that changes to HMI tag alarm properties are copied to the secondary server in a
redundant HMI server pair, follow these steps:
1. Modify the property. For example, change the severity for an analog alarm threshold.
2. Run the AlarmAcceptEdits command.
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• • • • •
3. Replicate the change to the secondary HMI server. For instructions, see page 14-16.
14 • Placeholder
If you replicate changes from the primary to the secondary HMI server before running the
AlarmAcceptEdits command, the primary and secondary HMI projects will not be synchronized.
How alarm property changes take effect

The following table lists the HMI tag alarm properties you can modify at run time, and the
effect each change will have, the next time AlarmAcceptEdits is run.
Use information in the table to ensure that the changes you make are reflected as
expected, in HMI tag alarm summaries on connected clients.
The AlarmAcceptEdits command is for HMI tag alarms only. The command is not required to
effect online changes to alarm definitions in a Tag Alarm and Event Server. For information about
modifying FactoryTalk tag-based alarm properties, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
If this property Is changed to this value This is what happens when AlarmAcceptEdits is run
Alarmed True The newly alarmed tag is monitored for alarms.
(Alarmed or Not Alarmed) Additionally, existing alarm events with the same name
as the newly alarmed tag are removed from HMI tag
alarm summaries.
False Existing alarm transactions for the tag are removed from
HMI tag alarm summaries.
Label Any change New alarm transactions reflect the new Label value.
Existing alarm transactions continue to use the old Label
value.
Severity Any change If the tag is currently in alarm, a new alarm transaction is
generated, based on the new Severity value.
Analog Level Level is added Existing alarm transactions for the tag are removed from
Level is added or removed If the change results in a new alarm state for the tag, a
new alarm transaction is generated based on the new
state.
Analog Threshold Any change If the change results in a new alarm state for the tag, a
state.
14-27
• • • • •
Analog Direction Increasing or Decreasing Existing alarm transactions for the tag are removed from
If the change results in a new alarm state for the tag, a
state.
Digital Alarm Type On (from Off) A new alarm transaction is generated.
or If the tag is currently in alarm, the transaction is
Off (from On) OutofAlarm; if the tag is currently out of alarm, the
transaction is InAlarm.
Any Change, Changes to On, If the tag is currently in alarm, an OutofAlarm transaction
or Changes to Off is generated.
(from Off or On)
On If the tag’s value is On, a new alarm transaction is
(from Any Change, Changes generated.
to On, or Changes to Off) If the tag’s value is Off, no new transaction is generated,
and existing alarm transactions remain in HMI tag alarm
summaries.
Off If the tag’s value is Off, a new alarm transaction is
(from Any Change, Changes generated.
to On, or Changes to Off) If the tag’s value is On, no new transaction is generated,
and existing alarm transactions remain in HMI tag alarm
summaries.
In Alarm Messages Any change The change takes effect, for any new or existing alarm
Out of Alarm Messages transactions associated with the modified tag.
Acknowledge Messages TIP: The AlarmAcceptEdits command will not apply
Identification changes to the contents of User Default messages, for the
Out of Alarm Label InAlarm Messages, Out of Alarm Messages, and
Deadband Acknowledge Messages properties.
Acknowledge (bit) Any change The change takes effect, for any new or existing alarm
transactions associated with the modified tag.
If an Acknowledge Bit tag is added with the Auto Reset
property set to True, the Acknowledge Bit tag is set to 0.
14-28
• • • • •
14 • Placeholder
Handshake (bit) Any change The change takes effect, for any new or existing alarm
transactions associated with the modified tag.
If a Handshake Bit tag is added, and alarming is started
with handshaking turned on (AlarmOn /H), and if the
alarm tag is in alarm, the Handshake Bit tag is set to 1.
If a Handshake Bit tag is added with the Auto Reset
property set to True, and alarming is started with
handshaking turned on (AlarmOn /H), and if the alarm
tag is not in alarm, the Handshake Bit tag is set to 0.
Managing HMI data in an online redundant system

To help ensure that HMI data generated in an online redundant system is as accurate and
accessible as possible, keep the following considerations in mind.
Synchronize time clocks on redundant computers

HMI servers manage the synchronization of HMI tag alarm states, between primary and
secondary servers.
For example, if there are five unacknowledged alarms at the primary server when it fails,
the same five alarms will appear at the secondary server, when the failover is complete.
Alarm states are also synchronized when the system switches back to the primary server.
To ensure tight synchronization of alarm states, synchronize clocks on the primary and
secondary HMI server computers to a time server.
If the clocks are not synchronized, when a failover occurs, multiple alarms or inconsistent
information might be displayed in HMI tag alarm summaries, on connected clients.
You can set up a Microsoft® Windows® domain to include a time-synchronization service. For
details, see Windows Help for setting up the domain.
About alarm monitoring on the secondary server

While the primary HMI server is active, the secondary server runs its alarm monitoring
system in backup mode. This means that alarm states are synchronized even if you have
not set up the secondary server to start alarm monitoring on demand.
The backup mode that runs on the secondary server only keeps alarm states synchronized;
it does not detect alarms.
When the system fails over to the secondary server, alarm monitoring starts on that server
automatically, as if it was running on the primary server.
14-29
• • • • •
When the system switches back to the primary server, alarm monitoring starts on that
server automatically, while the secondary server returns to standby mode.
If FactoryTalk View SE is monitoring a large number of HMI tags for alarms, it is possible that
alarms might be missed for tags that go into and out of alarm quickly. This might happen while
the system is failing over to the secondary or switching back to the primary server.
Centralize storage of diagnostic and alarm log data

Diagnostic log files are stored on every computer where system activity is generated.
For network applications, it is highly recommended that you log diagnostic and HMI tag
alarm information to a central ODBC database, such as Microsoft SQL Server, even for
HMI servers that are not redundant.
A central, system-wide ODBC log can be made secure and redundant through features of
the database. Central logs also simplify troubleshooting, by letting you search all
diagnostic information in one location.
For additional protection, it is also recommended that you set up FactoryTalk View SE’s
local diagnostic and alarm logs to buffer logged data, in the event that communications
with the ODBC database are lost.
For information about setting up a central ODBC database:
for diagnostic logs, see Chapter 15, Logging system activity.
for HMI tag alarm logs, see Chapter 11, Setting up HMI tag alarms.
Determine which server will run events

Events that are triggered by an event detector, are not synchronized specifically between
primary and secondary HMI servers.
However, it is possible to manage which server is responsible for detecting and running
events, so that only one server is active at a time.
Use an HMI server’s On Active and On Standby macros, to run the EventOn command
(starts event detection) when the HMI server becomes active, and to run the EventOff
command (stops event detection) when the HMI server goes on standby.
This will automatically ensure that event detection is only running on the Active (primary
or secondary) HMI server.
For information about On Active and On Standby macros, see page 14-18.
For information about creating macros, see Chapter 27 in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk
14-30
• • • • •
Synchronize derived tags and data log files
14 • Placeholder
To keep derived tags and data logs synchronized, ensure that the same derived tags
components and data log models are running on the primary and secondary computers.
You can also keep memory tags synchronized, if their values are the result of derived tags.
For information about replicating changes from the primary to the secondary HMI server,
see “Replicate changes to the secondary HMI server” on page 14-16.
Monitoring network client and server connections

The health monitoring system monitors network connections on all computers hosting
application clients and servers, in a network application.
The system does the following connection monitoring:
The computer detection interval sets how often the system attempts to detect
whether a computer exists on the network. The default interval is 2 seconds.
The network failure detection interval sets how often the system attempts to
verify the health of the network connection to remote computers. The default interval
is 2 seconds.
The maximum network glitch sets the amount of time used to distinguish a
temporary network disruption from an actual communications failure. For more
information, see “About network glitches,” next.
The maximum delay before server is active sets the maximum amount of time
during a switch back to the primary server, that the server will wait for clients to
respond, before it becomes active. For more information, see “Notifying clients when
switching back to the primary” on page 14-22.
You can change the default settings, in the Health Monitoring Policy Settings dialog box.
14-31
• • • • •
To change Health Monitoring Policy Settings

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, expand the System folder,
double-click the Policies folder, and then double-click the System Policies folder.
2. Double-click Health Monitoring Policy.
3. Select the policy setting you want to change, click the box showing the amount of time
for the setting, and then click the spin buttons, to select a different amount of time.
Settings in the System folder, including the Health Monitoring Policy Settings, are stored at the
FactoryTalk Network Directory, and apply to all application servers the directory manages.
About network glitches

Sometimes communications across a network are temporarily disrupted, for fractions of
seconds, by noise or brief disconnections.
When this happens, it is possible for the Standby server in a redundant pair to lose contact
with its Active partner, and assume it must become the Active server.
To prevent the Standby server from becoming active before it’s necessary, the health
monitoring system distinguishes a temporary disconnection—called a network glitch—
from an actual communications failure.
If the Standby server can re-establish contact with its Active partner within a set time
period, then it remains on standby. If the time period expires before contact is re-
established, then the Standby server becomes the Active server.
The default time period that defines a network glitch is 5 seconds. You can change the
definition, by modifying the policy setting, Maximum network glitch. For details, see “To
change Health Monitoring Policy Settings” on page 14-32.
In a partitioned network, if clients are connected to both partners in the redundant pair on either
side of a network switch, it is possible for both the primary and the secondary server to become
active. For more information, see “What happens if both servers become active” on page 14-19.
14-32
15 Logging system activity
15 • Placeholder
what FactoryTalk® Diagnostics is.
key FactoryTalk Diagnostics concepts.
setting up FactoryTalk Diagnostics in FactoryTalk View.
tracking system events in the Diagnostics List.
viewing FactoryTalk Diagnostics logs.
About FactoryTalk Diagnostics

FactoryTalk Diagnostics records information about system activity, including:
command and macro usage
operator comments
system messages and errors
errors from the communication network
tag read and write activity
This information can be:
viewed in the Diagnostics List or the Diagnostics Viewer.
archived for future processing or analysis.
exported to ODBC format while online.
Exporting to ODBC format let you analyze the data in third-party, ODBC-compliant
tools such as Microsoft® Excel, and Business Objects Crystal Reports®.
Summary of steps for setting up Diagnostics

These are the tasks involved in setting up FactoryTalk Diagnostics for a FactoryTalk
View SE application:
1. Decide which computers on the network need to log system activity.
2. On each computer where system activity will be logged, use the FactoryTalk
Diagnostics Setup tool to set up destinations, and message routing.
For more information, see “Setting up message routing” on page 15-5.
15-1
• • • • •
3. To log system activity to a central, ODBC-compliant database, first set up the

database, and then, in the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Setup tool, set up the ODBC
Database destination.
For more information, see “For details about message routing options, click Help in
the Diagnostics Setup tool.” on page 15-5.
Finding more information about FactoryTalk Diagnostics

For additional information about FactoryTalk Diagnostics, and for detailed setup
instructions, see the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Help.
To open the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Help

1. On the Windows® Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk
2. In the Contents tab, open the book, Diagnostic messages. Look under:
Log diagnostic messages for information about FactoryTalk Diagnostics
logging.
View diagnostic messages for information about the Diagnostics Viewer.
You can also gain access to the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Help by clicking Help in
dialog boxes used to set up Diagnostics logging and the viewer.
Key FactoryTalk Diagnostics concepts

FactoryTalk Diagnostics services.
Destinations
FactoryTalk Diagnostics messages can be sent to various destinations, including the
message log on the local computer, an ODBC-compliant database, and the Diagnostics
List in FactoryTalk View Studio, or the FactoryTalk View SE Client.
By default, system activity is logged locally on each computer.
Message routing
Message routing lets you specify which destinations receive messages of a certain
severity, for a certain audience. This ensures that information is provided to the
appropriate person and place. For example, you might decide to:
route messages that contain information about system activity, and warnings about
things that might go wrong, to the local log.
15-2
• • • • •
15 • LOGGING SYSTEM ACTIVITY
This would allow a control systems engineer to analyze system activity and
performance, and make corrections during scheduled maintenance times.
15 • Placeholder
route errors that require immediate action to the FactoryTalk Diagnostics List, and to
the local log.
At run time, if the FactoryTalk Diagnostics List is visible, an operator can alert the
plant’s control systems engineer to problems such as tag errors, as they occur.
During scheduled maintenance time, the engineer can use the errors, together with
warning or information messages recorded in the local log, to analyze operation of the
system and make the necessary corrections.
For more information, see “Setting up message routing” on page 15-5.
Message categories
FactoryTalk Diagnostics messages are categorized by severity and audience.
To route messages, you specify a destination for messages of a particular severity and
audience. For example, you can specify the FactoryTalk Diagnostics List as the
destination for Errors that have Operator as the audience.
You cannot change the audience or the severity categories assigned to Diagnostics messages.
For example, you cannot specify that a Developer receive all messages of the Error type.
Message severity
FactoryTalk View SE uses four message severities:
Errors indicate that a process or action has failed. For example, an error might
indicate that a tag’s value could not be written, or an ActiveX® object is missing.
Warnings indicate that a process or action might not function correctly, or might
eventually fail if preventive action isn’t taken.
For example, if an ActiveX object in a graphic display is a different version than the
one installed at the FactoryTalk View SE Client, a warning is logged to indicate the
mismatch. Mismatched ActiveX controls might not behave as expected at run time.
Information messages indicate that a process or action has completed successfully.
For example, an information message is logged when a user logs on to the system.
Audit messages indicate that the system configuration has been changed.
FactoryTalk View SE records an Audit message for all tag writes, and whenever a component
is added, removed, or deleted from a multi-component editor, such as the Data Log Models,
Graphics, or Macros editor.
15-3
• • • • •
Message audience
FactoryTalk View SE uses three message audiences: Operator, Engineer, and Developer.
FactoryTalk View assigns the Operator audience for all messages it generates, except for
messages with the Audit severity. Audit messages, including tag write confirmations, are
assigned the Developer or Engineer audience.
The Secure audience is reserved for auditing tools, such as those required for US
Government 21 CFR Part 11 compliance, to track system activity.
How tag writes are categorized

The severities assigned to tag writes that succeed Audit and Information. Severities
assigned to tag writes that fail are Audit, Information, and Error.
The audiences assigned to tag writes that succeed or fail are Developer and Secure.
Setting up FactoryTalk Diagnostics in FactoryTalk View

Use the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Setup tool to set up message routing, logging to a central
database, and the local log, on each computer where system activity is to be logged.
You must run the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Setup tool separately, on each computer where
system activity is to be logged. FactoryTalk Diagnostics settings apply to all the FactoryTalk
products installed on a single computer.
To open the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Setup tool

In FactoryTalk View Studio or in the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console,
on the Tools menu, click Diagnostics Setup.
Click here to
view destinations.
Specify the local

log’s maximum
size, where to store
the log, and when
to overwrite entries.
Set up logging to
a central database.
Specify which
destinations will
receive which
messages.
For details about options in the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Setup tool, click Help.
15-4
• • • • •
Setting up message routing
15 • Placeholder
When you set up message routing, you specify where messages associated with a
particular audience and severity will be logged.
For example, you can specify that tag write messages logged for the Developer audience
are sent to the local log, to the Diagnostics list, or to neither destination.
All messages are logged as Error, Warning, or Information, with the audience Operator.
The exception is tag write messages, which are logged as Information and Audit, with the
audiences Developer and Secure.
If messages for a particular combination of audience and severity are not routed to a destination,
they will not be logged.
For more information about audience and severity, see “Message categories” on
page 15-3.
For details about message routing options, click Help in the Diagnostics Setup tool.
Logging to a central database

In addition to logging information locally on each computer, you can set up FactoryTalk
Diagnostics to log to a central, ODBC-compliant database.
15-5
• • • • •
Central logging works by exporting the contents of the local log periodically, to an
ODBC-compliant database. FactoryTalk View supports Sybase SQL Server, Oracle, and
Microsoft SQL Server ODBC-compliant databases.
Logging to central database allows you to set up redundancy for Diagnostics logs. You
can use the local log to buffer information, if communications with the ODBC-compliant
database are lost.
For details about central logging options, click Help in the Diagnostics Setup tool. For
information about the ODBC tables, see the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Help.
If you have set up FactoryTalk Diagnostics to overwrite events in the local log, make sure
messages are logged to the ODBC-compliant database, before the oldest events are deleted.
Setting up message buffering

FactoryTalk Diagnostics messages are stored in the computer’s local log and exported to
an ODBC-compliant database at the interval you specify.
To buffer messages, in the ODBC Database Destination Setup window, specify how long
messages will remain in the local log after they have been exported.
This is useful in the event that the ODBC-compliant database becomes unavailable, for
example, due to a network failure. In such cases, messages will remain in the local log
until the buffer time expires.
15-6
• • • • •
If the ODBC-compliant database becomes available before the buffer time expires, the
buffered messages will be exported to the database.
15 • Placeholder
Tracking system events in the Diagnostics List
To keep track of what is happening when an application is running, use the Diagnostics
List in FactoryTalk View Studio, the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, or the
To include system activity messages in the Diagnostics List, they must be routed to the
list. For information about routing messages, see page 15-5.
The Diagnostics List

in FactoryTalk View
Studio.
For the FactoryTalk View SE Client, the option to show, hide or undock the Diagnostics List is set
up when you create a client file. For details, click Help in the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard.
Working with the Diagnostics List

When FactoryTalk View Studio first starts, the Diagnostics List is visible and is docked
above the status bar in the FactoryTalk View main window.
Showing or hiding the Diagnostics List

To show or hide the Diagnostics List in FactoryTalk View Studio (or the FactoryTalk
View SE Administration Console), click Diagnostics List on the View menu. When
Diagnostics List has a check mark beside it, the list is visible.
15-7
• • • • •
Moving the Diagnostics List

You can detach (undock) the Diagnostics List from the main window, and then move the
Diagnostics List anywhere on the screen.
To undock the Diagnostics List, drag the grab bars at the bottom left of the Diagnostics
List. If you can’t see the grab bars, drag the top edge of the Diagnostics List to make it
larger.
To detach the
Diagnostics List,
drag the grab bars.
To prevent the Diagnostics List from docking automatically while you move it, hold down
the Ctrl key on the keyboard.
Resizing the Diagnostics List

When the Diagnostics List is undocked, you can make it any size you want. For example,
to view more than one message at a time, make the list larger.
To resize the Diagnostics List, drag an edge or corner until the list is the desired size.
Viewing messages in the Diagnostics List

Messages in the Diagnostics List are preceded by a blue, yellow, gray, or red icon: blue
indicates information, yellow indicates a warning, gray indicates an audit message, and
red indicates an error.
The following illustration shows a warning and an information message:
An ellipsis indicates a truncated message.

To view the entire message, resize the Diagnostics List.
The types of messages logged to the Diagnostics List depend on how message routing is
set up in the Diagnostics Setup tool.
Clearing messages in the Diagnostics List

To clear messages in the Diagnostics List, use one of these methods:
To clear the most recent message (at the top of the list), or the selected message, click
Clear.
15-8
• • • • •
To clear all messages in the list, click Clear All.
15 • Placeholder
Clearing a message in the Diagnostics List does not delete the message from the
Diagnostics log.
Viewing FactoryTalk Diagnostics logs

Use the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Viewer to view the contents of Diagnostics logs.
To open the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Viewer

In FactoryTalk View Studio or in the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console,
on the Tools menu, click Diagnostics Viewer.
Alternatively, on the Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software,
FactoryTalk Tools, and then click Diagnostics Viewer.
For details about setting up and using the viewer, on the viewer’s Help menu, click
FactoryTalk Diagnostics Viewer Help.
To open the Diagnostics Viewer at run time

1. In an FactoryTalk View graphic display, create a button that an operator can use to
open the Diagnostics Viewer.
2. For the button’s press action, type the following command:
AppStart “C:\Program Files\Rockwell Software\RSView
Enterprise\ActivityLogViewer.exe”
You must include the quotation marks, because there are spaces in the parameter.
At run time, due to operating system rules, the Diagnostics viewer might open behind the
FactoryTalk View SE Client window. If you are unaware of this, and try to open the viewer again,
another instance will open. This could result in multiple viewers being open at the same time.
To avoid this, you can bring the viewer to the front manually, and close it when it is no longer
required. You can also use the programmatic solution documented in Answer ID 9041, in the
Rockwell Automation KnowledgeBase. For help gaining access to the KnowledgeBase, see
“Finding information on the Internet” on page P-3.
15-9
16 Using the FactoryTalk View SE Client
16 • Placeholder
object model and display code
how you can use VBA with FactoryTalk® View Site Edition.
the VBA integrated development environment.
the objects in the FactoryTalk View SE Client object model.
how to find information about FactoryTalk View SE Client objects.
how to find information about VBA.
Customizing applications using VBA with FactoryTalk View

Use the FactoryTalk View SE Client object model with Microsoft® Visual Basic® for
Applications (VBA) code in graphic displays to customize and extend the capabilities of
the FactoryTalk View SE Client.
For example, you can use the object model and display code to do the following:
Use data with other applications. If you regularly require FactoryTalk View data for
use in programs such as Microsoft Excel or SQL Server, consider using the FactoryTalk
View SE Client object model and VBA display code to integrate these applications with
FactoryTalk View.
Create custom forms for operators. You can use VBA to create custom forms, for
example, pop-up dialog boxes that an operator can interact with at run time.
You can also use VBA logic to validate operator input, for example, to ensure that the
value an operator enters in a numeric input object falls within the correct range of values.
Design intuitive graphic displays. Use the FactoryTalk View SE Client object
model to provide ActiveX® controls with data, for use in graphic displays.
For example, use list boxes or combo boxes in graphic displays to allow an operator to
select options such as recipe items.
Manipulate the FactoryTalk View SE Client window. Write VBA code to arrange
graphic displays based on the size of the FactoryTalk View SE client window. This allows
you to adapt an application dynamically to various desktop sizes and resolutions.
16-1
• • • • •
Send custom messages to the Diagnostics log. Send specific messages to the
Diagnostics List and Diagnostics log, to record operation conditions and events through
VBA code.
Secure the system. The FactoryTalk View SE Client object model allows you to
obtain security information about who is using the system, and to use the security
information and events to control access to the system.
For example, you can restrict a user’s access to a graphic display by creating code that
opens the graphic display only when the user is logged in with a particular security code.
Summary of basic steps

There are two basic tasks involved in working with the FactoryTalk View SE Client object
model and VBA:
1. Create the graphic display and the graphic objects you want to write display code for.
Display code is saved with a graphic display. Before you can write VBA code that
manipulates graphic objects, you must create the graphic display and the graphic
objects in FactoryTalk View Studio.
For details about creating graphic displays, see Chapter 19 in Volume 2 of the
2. In the VBA Integrated Development Environment (VBA IDE), using the Visual Basic
programming language, write procedures in the code window for the module called
ThisDisplay.
For an overview of the VBA IDE, see page 16-3. For information about opening Help
for VBA, see “To open VBA Help” on page 16-8.
This chapter highlights aspects of VBA that are unique to FactoryTalk View Studio and
describes how to open the VBA IDE from FactoryTalk View graphic displays.
This chapter does not include detailed information about using VBA —it is assumed that
you are familiar with the VBA environment and Visual Basic programming language.
About procedures
A procedure is a named block of code that runs as a unit. Examples of procedures are
Visual Basic subroutines and functions. The module called ThisDisplay contains the
procedures that you create to run in response to a display’s events.
VBA procedures can call procedures in other user forms or modules. For information
about creating Visual Basic procedures, see VBA Help.
16-2
• • • • •
16 • USING THE FACTORYTALK VIEW SE CLIENT OBJECT MODEL AND DISPLAY CODE
How VBA code runs
16 • Placeholder
The VBA procedures you create are called in response to events that occur in a graphic
display at run time.
Events that can be used in this way are defined in the Display Client object model, and
include actions such as the display being opened and animated, mouse clicks, and so on.
Parts of the VBA integrated development environment

The integrated development environment for Visual Basic for Applications (VBA IDE),
is available from the FactoryTalk View Graphics editor.
Use the VBA IDE to create, test, and debug VBA procedures. VBA procedures can be
designed to run in response to events that occur in FactoryTalk View graphic displays at
run time.
To open the VBA IDE

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, open the graphic display you
want to write display code for.
2. On the Edit menu, click VBA Code.
Project
Explorer
window
Properties
window
Procedure or
Code window
For information about opening VBA Help, see page 16-8.
16-3
• • • • •
Project Explorer window

For each graphic display, a VBA project named DisplayCode is created. The Project
Explorer shows the VBA project for each graphic display that is open in the Graphics
editor.
Each project contains a FactoryTalk View Studio Objects folder. This folder contains a
module called ThisDisplay, which represents the graphic display.
The module called ThisDisplay contains the code that interacts with objects on the
display. It can contain any number of procedures.
You can create additional VBA modules and user forms. To use the procedures in these
modules, you must call them from procedures that exist in the module called ThisDisplay.
Properties window
This window lists the property settings for the code modules, class modules, and the VBA
user forms and the objects on those forms.
Procedure or code window

This window is where you write and modify VBA procedures.
In ThisDisplay, any FactoryTalk View SE Client objects that raise events are listed in the
drop-down list at the upper left of the window. When an object is selected in the list, the
object’s events are listed in the drop-down list on the right.
FactoryTalk View SE Client object model

The FactoryTalk View SE Client object model contains objects that represent the features
of the SE Client. Using these objects, you can interact with an SE Client by writing code
that is run when an object event occurs.
VBA can interact with the following objects in the FactoryTalk View SE Client Object
Model:
This object in the model Represents this feature, collection, or graphic object
ActiveXControl Properties and methods implemented by FactoryTalk
View graphics, with those of an ActiveX object.
AlarmSummary The HMI tag alarm summary.
Application The FactoryTalk View SE Client container program.
Use this object to gain access to the FactoryTalk View
graphics object model.
Arc The arc object.
Arrow The arrow object.
16-4
• • • • •
16 • Placeholder
BackspaceButton The backspace button object. This object works like the
Backspace key on a keyboard.
BarGraph The bar graph object.
Button The button object.
ControlListSelector The control list selector object.
Display A graphic display.
DisplayListSelector The display list selector object.
Displays A collection of Display objects.
Element Any graphic object in a graphic display.
The Element object contains the base properties and
methods for all FactoryTalk View objects. These base
properties and methods are merged with object-specific
properties, methods, and events.
Elements A collection of Element objects.
Ellipse The ellipse object.
EmbeddedOLE Third-party, embedded objects such as Excel charts.
EndButton The end button object. This object works like the End key
on a keyboard.
EnterButton The enter button object. This object works like the Enter
key on a keyboard.
Freehand The freehand object.
Gauge The gauge object.
Group Objects that are grouped together on a display.
To write VBA code that responds to a group’s events, you
must create the group in a graphic display before you
open the VBA IDE.
If you don’t create the group first, the Group object will
not generate events, and code written for the group will
not respond to the group’s events at run time.
HomeButton The home button object. This object works like the Home
key on a keyboard.
Image The image object.
InterlockedPushButton The interlocked push button object.
LatchedPushButton The latched push button object.
Line The line object.
ListIndicator The list indicator object.
LocalMessageDisplay The local message display object.
16-5
• • • • •
MaintainedPushButton The maintained push button object.
MomentaryPushButton The momentary push button object.
MoveDownButton The move down button object. This object works like the
Down arrow key on a keyboard.
MoveLeftButton The move left button object. This object works like the
Left arrow key on a keyboard.
MoveRightButton The move right button object. This object works like the
Right arrow key on a keyboard.
MoveUpButton The move up button object. This object works like the Up
arrow key on a keyboard.
MultistateIndicator The multistate indicator object.
MultistatePushButton The multistate push button object.
NumericDisplay The numeric display object.
NumericInput The numeric input object.
PageDownButton The page down button object. This object works like the
Page Down key on a keyboard.
PageUpButton The page up button object. This object works like the
Page Up key on a keyboard.
Panel The panel object.
Picture The bitmap object.
PilotCtrlListSelector The piloted control list selector object.
Polygon The polygon object.
PolyLine The polyline object.
PolyPolygon The polypolygon object.
RampButton The ramp button object.
Recipe The recipe object.
RoundedRectangle The rounded rectangle object. Use the polygon object to
represent FactoryTalk View rectangle objects.
Scale The scale object.
StringDisplay The string display object.
StringInput The string input object.
StringList A collection of unique strings.
Symbol The symbol object.
Tag The tag object. Use the Tag object to provide run-time
information for a tag, or to set the value of a tag.
TagGroup A collection of Tag objects.
TagLabel The tag label object.
16-6
• • • • •
16 • Placeholder
Text The text object.
TimeDateDisplay The time and date display object.
Wedge The wedge object.
Viewing the objects

Use the Object Browser in the VBA IDE to view the FactoryTalk View SE Client objects.
To open the Object Browser

To open the Object Browser, use one of these methods:
Right-click anywhere in the Code window, and then click Object Browser.
On the View menu, click Object Browser.
Click anywhere in the code window and then click F2.
To display only
FactoryTalk View
SE Client objects,
click DisplayClient.
To view all FactoryTalk

View SE Client
constants, properties,
methods, and events,
click <globals>.
Click any object to view

its properties, methods,
and events.
16-7
• • • • •
Finding information about FactoryTalk View SE Client objects

The FactoryTalk View SE Help contains detailed information about the objects,
properties, methods, and events in the FactoryTalk View SE Client object model.
To open context-sensitive Help

In the Object Browser, click the item, and then press F1, or click the ? button on the
toolbar.
Alternatively, in a line of code in the code window, you can highlight the name of a
FactoryTalk View object, a property, or a method, and then press F1.
To open object model Help

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console,
click Help, and then click Contents.
2. In the Contents list, double-click Creating Graphic Displays.
3. In the list of topics, do one of the following:
For a list of overview topics, double-click Creating VBA Display Code.
For details about the objects, double-click Using the FactoryTalk View SE Client
Object Model.
Help topics for VBA code and the FactoryTalk View SE Client object model open in a
separate window, on top of the FactoryTalk View Help window.
To return to the FactoryTalk View Help window, close the FactoryTalk View SE Client
object model Help window.
Finding information about VBA

If you’re new to Visual Basic, you might want to look at these Microsoft publications:
Visual Basic Getting Started
Visual Basic Programmer’s Guide
To open VBA Help

On the Help menu in the VBA IDE, click Microsoft Visual Basic Help.
Alternatively, in any area of the IDE, press F1.
16-8
17 Deploying network applications
17 • Placeholder
what it means to deploy a FactoryTalk® View Site Edition application.
backing up a FactoryTalk View SE network application.
setting up the FactoryTalk Network Directory server.
specifying the location of FactoryTalk Network Directory.
moving HMI project files.
restoring a network application.
changing HMI server properties.
how HMI server components start and stop.
synchronizing redundant HMI servers and projects.
moving data server files.
changing data server properties.
setting up FactoryTalk View SE Clients.
running the FactoryTalk View SE Clients.
locking operators into the run-time environment.
administering deployed applications.
monitoring disk space on HMI servers.
About deploying network applications

Once you finish developing and testing a FactoryTalk View Site Edition network
application, you are ready to move the application to the computers that will run it in a
live setting, such as the plant floor.
The process of moving a FactoryTalk View SE application to its run-time environment is
called deploying the application.
This manual describes how to move a FactoryTalk View SE network application to its run-time
environment. For information about installing the FactoryTalk View SE software, see the
17-1
• • • • •
Summary of steps to deploy a network application

There are several tasks involved in deploying a FactoryTalk View SE network application.
Each task in the following summary is described in detail, in subsequent sections of this
chapter.
Use the summary to create a checklist, to help deploy your application. Make sure to add
tasks that aren’t in the summary, but are part of the process you are automating. Other
tasks might include setting up data servers or database software, and so on.
If you are deploying an application that contains Tag Alarm and Event Servers, for information
about moving these servers, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
1. Back up application information. In FactoryTalk View Studio on the

development computer, back up application information required by FactoryTalk
Network Directory (also called Network Directory).
For details, see “Backing up a network application” on page 17-3.
2. Set up the Network Directory server computer. On the designated Network
Directory computer, ensure that the FactoryTalk Services Platform software is
installed, and then use the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility to specify
this computer as the server host.
For details, see “Setting up the FactoryTalk Network Directory server” on page 17-5.
3. Specify the location of the Network Directory. On all computers that will
participate in the application (except the Network Directory server), use the
FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility to specify the name of the computer
hosting the Network Directory.
For details, see “Specifying the location of FactoryTalk Network Directory” on
page 17-6.
4. Move the HMI project files. Use Windows® Explorer to copy HMI project files
from the development computer (or computers) to the FactoryTalk View SE Server
host computer (or computers).
For details, see “Moving HMI project files” on page 17-6.
5. Restore application information. In the FactoryTalk Administration Console on
the Network Directory server computer, restore the backed up application
information.
For details, see “Restoring a network application” on page 17-9.
6. Set up HMI server properties. In FactoryTalk View Studio, for each HMI server
in the application, use the HMI Server Properties dialog box to change server
17-2
• • • • •
17 • DEPLOYING NETWORK APPLICATIONS
properties as necessary. For example, change the name of the server’s host computer,
to ensure correct run-time behavior of the HMI server.
17 • Placeholder
For details, see “Changing HMI server properties” on page 17-10.
7. Move the data server files. To deploy data servers, use Windows Explorer to
copy their files from the development computers to host computers.
For details, see “Moving data server files” on page 17-15.
8. Set up data server properties. In FactoryTalk View Studio, for each data server
in the application, use the RSLinx® Enterprise or OPC Server Properties dialog box to
change server properties as necessary. For example, change the name of the server’s
host computer, to ensure correct run-time behavior of the data server.
For details, see “Changing data server properties” on page 17-16.
9. Set up the FactoryTalk View SE Clients. At run time, operators connect to a
network application and interact with graphic displays using FactoryTalk View
SE Clients.
If you have already set up FactoryTalk View SE Client files for the application, you
can copy the files to their new host computers. You do not have to modify the files
after copying them.
To create new FactoryTalk View SE Client configuration files, run the FactoryTalk
View SE Client Wizard. For details about:
creating client files, see Help for the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard.
deploying clients, see “Setting up the FactoryTalk View SE Clients” on
page 17-16.
10. Start the FactoryTalk View SE Clients and test the application. To test the
application after deploying it, run the deployed FactoryTalk View SE Clients.
For more information, see “Running the FactoryTalk View SE Clients” on page 17-18.
Backing up a network application

On the development computer, back up application information that the FactoryTalk
Network Directory requires, such as user account information, application languages, area
and HMI server names, HMI server component lists, and RSLinx configuration files.
17-3
• • • • •
The application backup operation excludes HMI project files. You must move these files
to the designated FactoryTalk View SE Server host computers separately. For details, see
“Moving HMI project files” on page 17-6.
Before you back up an application, make sure that you record the user names and passwords of
administrative users set up for the application.
To back up an application
1. In FactoryTalk View Studio on the development computer, open the application you
want to back up.
2. In the Explorer window, right-click the application icon, and then click Backup.
3. Specify an archive name and location, and then click OK.
Optionally, you can back up FactoryTalk System information with the application. For
information about this option, see “Backing up FactoryTalk System information” on
page 17-5. For details about options in the Backup dialog box, click Help.
The application information is saved to an archive file with a .bak extension, in the
location you specified.
To back up multiple applications managed by the same FactoryTalk Network Directory, use the
FactoryTalk Administration Console. For details, see the FactoryTalk Help.

To back up a network application, users must be allowed the following Common actions

Back up a network application. Common Read
Common Write
To back up a network application, users must also have permission to backup and restore
directory contents, under User Rights Assignments for the system.
17-4
• • • • •
To set up User Rights Assignments

17 • Placeholder
For information about setting up security for backup and restore operations, click Help in
the User Rights Assignments Properties dialog box.
Backing up FactoryTalk System information

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, the top-level System folder contains
FactoryTalk Security information, including the user and user group accounts set up for
all applications using the FactoryTalk Network Directory (also called Network Directory).
To archive this information, and preserve user accounts referenced in FactoryTalk
View SE, you must select the check box, Backup System in archive, when you back up
the application.
Restoring archived FactoryTalk System information replaces any user or computer accounts set
up for existing applications using the current Network Directory. For more information about
restoring the Network Directory, see page 17-9.
Setting up the FactoryTalk Network Directory server

Make sure the FactoryTalk Services Platform software is installed on the computer that is
to host the Network Directory, and that the computer hosting the directory is set up as
localhost.
To set up the Network Directory server

1. On the computer that will host the Network Directory server, on the Windows Start
menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk Tools, and then click Specify
FactoryTalk Directory Location.
To use the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, you must have administrative
privileges at the Network Directory and in Windows, on the computer where the utility is
running. For more information, see Chapter 5, Setting up security.
3. In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Location Utility, if the Computer hosting

directory server box displays localhost, click OK.
4. If the Computer hosting directory server box does not display localhost, click the
Browse button.
17-5
• • • • •
5. In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Configuration dialog box, click This computer,
and then click OK.
6. Click OK.
Specifying the location of FactoryTalk Network Directory

On each computer that will participate in the network application, specify the location of
the Network Directory that is to manage the application.
To specify the location of the Network Directory

Computer hosting directory server.
4. In the FactoryTalk Directory Server Configuration dialog box, click Remote
computer, and then type the name of the computer that is running the Network
Directory server.
To find and select the Network Directory server computer, click the Browse button.
5. Click OK.
To specify a remote computer as the Network Directory server, you must log on as a
user with administrative privileges at the Network Directory and in Windows, on the
remote computer.
6. Repeat steps 1 to 5 on each computer (other than the Network Directory computer)
that is to participate in the network application.
For more information, see Chapter 4, Setting up FactoryTalk Directory.
Moving HMI project files

The application backup and restore operations do not include the HMI projects that belong
to an application. You have to move the HMI project files manually, from the
development computer to the new FactoryTalk View SE Server host computers.
HMI project files are stored in the following location:
17-6
• • • • •

SE\HMI Projects\*
17 • Placeholder
The folders that contain the HMI project files, have the same name as the HMI servers in
the Explorer window. For example, the project files belonging to an HMI server named
Water, would be stored in the HMI Projects folder, in a subfolder named Water.
To move HMI project files, use Windows Explorer to copy the project folder on the
development computer, and then paste it into the HMI Projects folder, on the new server
host computer.
When moving HMI project files, be sure to copy the entire project folder and paste it into the
correct location on the new server computer. Do not use cut instead of copy; otherwise, the
project folder might not have the necessary security settings.
Before moving the HMI project files, ensure that the FactoryTalk View SE Server
software is installed and the location of the Network Directory is specified, on the new
host computer.
For information about installing FactoryTalk View SE, see the FactoryTalk View Site
Edition Installation Guide. For information about specifying the Network Directory, see
page 17-6.
After moving the project files, update the name of the computer hosting the HMI server
computer name. For details, see page 17-10.
Copying an HMI server that is not running

It is easiest to copy an HMI server when it is not running.
If the HMI server you want to copy is running, stop the server before copying the HMI
project files. If you’re not sure whether the HMI server is running, follow the steps in
“Copying an HMI server while it is running,” next.
To stop a running HMI server

2. In the Properties dialog box, ensure that the Startup type is set to On Demand.
3. Stop any clients (FactoryTalk View Studio, the FactoryTalk View SE Administration
Console, or FactoryTalk View SE Client) that might be connected to the HMI server.
17-7
• • • • •
To copy the HMI project files to a computer

1. In Windows Explorer on the development computer, copy the HMI project folder,
which has the same name as the HMI server, from the following location:
SE\HMI Projects\*
2. In Windows Explorer on the new server computer, paste the HMI project folder into
the same location.
Copying an HMI server while it is running

You can also make a copy of an HMI server while it is running, for example, to back up
changes made while the server was online.
To do this, use the HMIBackup utility to copy the HMI server files on the source
computer to a temporary folder. You can then use Windows Explorer to copy the files
from the temporary folder to the new HMI server host computer.
To copy an HMI server while it is running

1. Download and then install the HMIBackup utility. (For details, see the next task.)
2. Run the HMIBackup utility to back up the HMI server.
3. Copy the backed up HMI project folders to this location on the new HMI server host
computer:
SE\HMI Projects\*
To download and install the HMIBackup utility

1. Download the HMIBackup utility. For instructions, search for Answer ID 30310 in the
Rockwell Automation KnowledgeBase. For help gaining access to the
KnowledgeBase, see “Finding information on the Internet” on page P-3.
2. Extract the utility to the local drive of the computer where the HMI server is located.
A folder called HMIBackup is created in the folder you specify, and the HMIBackup
utility is located in this folder. The document HmiBackupRestoreHelp.pdf contains
information about installing and running the utility.
17-8
• • • • •
Restoring a network application
17 • Placeholder
Restore the application information that the FactoryTalk Network Directory needs, from
the archive you created on the development computer.
To restore a network application

1. On the Windows Start menu, select Program Files, Rockwell Software, and then click
FactoryTalk Administration Console.
2. Select Network Directory, and then click OK.
You will be prompted to log on, if you do not have administrative privileges on the local
computer or at the Network Directory. For details, see the FactoryTalk Help.
You are prompted to log on. To restore the application, the user logging on must have
the security permissions described in “About FactoryTalk Security permissions,” next.
3. In the Explorer window, right-click the Network Directory icon (at the top of the
Explorer tree), and then click Restore.
4. Specify the archive to restore, and then follow the instructions in the dialog box.
For details about options in the Restore dialog box, click Help.

To restore a network application, users must be allowed the following Common actions, at
the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the task is to be authorized.

Restore a network application. Common Read
Common Write
To restore a network application, users must also have permission to backup and restore
directory contents, under User Rights Assignments for the system.
17-9
• • • • •

Restoring FactoryTalk System information

Restoring archived FactoryTalk System information replaces all FactoryTalk Security
user and computer accounts set up for existing applications using the current FactoryTalk
Network Directory.
Users logged on to the current directory must log back on to FactoryTalk View SE and the
Network Directory, once the restore operation is complete.
For example, if an application is open in FactoryTalk View Studio when your restore the
Network Directory, the application will close and you will have to log back on, before you
can create or open another application.
Restoring archived FactoryTalk System information replaces any user accounts set up for
existing applications using the current Network Directory.
a different Windows domain, then the archived users will not be recognized in the new domain.
Changing HMI server properties

To update HMI servers in the deployed application, use the HMI Server Properties dialog
box to specify:
the name of the computer where the HMI server is located.
when the HMI server loads.
The HMI server can load when the computer starts up (recommended for a production
system), or when the first client attempts to connect to the server.
which application components will start automatically when the HMI server starts.
You can also start or stop components manually and, if you have set up redundancy,
start and stop components for the primary and the secondary server.
the name of the computer hosting the secondary server, if you have set up HMI server
redundancy.
17-10
• • • • •
In the HMI Server Properties dialog box, you can also view the HMI server’s name and
project file path, the number of existing graphic displays, and the maximum number of
17 • Placeholder
displays allowed.
For network applications, you must set up HMI server properties separately, for each
HMI server in the application. For information about setting up properties, see page 6-14.
Updating the name of the HMI server’s host computer

After copying an HMI server from one computer to another, you must change the name of
the computer on which the HMI server is running. You can do this on the computer where
the HMI server is running, or on a remote computer.
To change the name of the HMI server computer

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio or in the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, in
the Explorer window, right-click the HMI server, and then click Properties.
If the HMI server’s host computer name needs to be updated, the server will not load when
you open the application. However, you can still open the HMI Server’s Properties dialog box.
2. In the box, Computer hosting the server, type the name of the new host computer. To
find and select the new computer, click the Browse button.


Common Write
17-11
• • • • •
How HMI server components start and stop

An HMI server’s startup type determines when its components will start and stop running.
If the HMI server is set to load when the operating system initializes, the server’s startup
components run after the operating system is started, and the HMI server is loaded.
Startup components do not run when you run a connected FactoryTalk View SE Client.
However, if the HMI server is set to load on demand, disconnecting the last client
(FactoryTalk View SE Client or FactoryTalk View Studio) will unload the server, and stop
any running components.
For more information about HMI server startup types, see “Specifying how the server
starts up” on page 6-15.
Starting and stopping HMI server components manually

You can start or stop HMI server components manually, for each HMI server in a network
application.
To start HMI server components manually

the Explorer window, right-click the HMI server and then click Properties.
2. In the HMI Server Properties dialog box, click the Components tab.
3. Click Run Startup Components.
To stop HMI server components manually

3. Click Stop All Running Components.
All components stop running, including alarms, data log models, derived tag
components, and event components.
If a shutdown macro is specified in the Components tab, the Shutdown macro will run.
17-12
• • • • •
Stopping and starting HMI services manually
17 • Placeholder
Use the FactoryTalk View SE Service Manager to stop or start the HMI services running
on a computer. Once the HMI services are started, clients can connect to HMI servers on
the computer.
When you stop the HMI services manually, clients are disconnected, all HMI servers running
on the computer are shut down, and the activation keys used by the HMI servers are released.
To stop HMI services manually

Tools, and then click FactoryTalk View SE Service Manager.
2. In the FactoryTalk View HMI Service Manager window, click Stop.

3. To close the FactoryTalk View HMI Service Manager window, click Close.
4. Use the Windows Task Manager to ensure that the server-side processes have been
unloaded, as shown in the following illustration.
Stopping the services can take several minutes, depending on the number of HMI
servers running on the computer.
17-13
• • • • •
Wait until all

instances of the
HMI tag alarm
services have been
removed from
memory.
To start HMI services manually

Tools, and then click FactoryTalk View SE Service Manager.
2. In the FactoryTalk View HMI Service Manager window, click Start.
3. To close the FactoryTalk View HMI Service Manager window, click Close.
Synchronizing redundant HMI servers and projects

If you have set up redundancy for one or more HMI servers in an application, synchronize
the HMI projects on the primary and secondary computers, whenever you make changes
to the project on either server.
This ensures that you are running identical copies of the HMI server on both computers.
To synchronize server settings and contents, you must replicate changes manually, from
the primary to the secondary server.
During replication, all configuration files associated with the primary HMI server and
project are copied, except for data log files generated at run time, and the HMI tag
database cache.
To replicate changes from the primary to the secondary server

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, right-click the primary HMI
server’s icon, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Redundancy tab, and then click Replicate Primary to Secondary. Follow the
on-screen instructions. After replication complete, the secondary server is restarted.
HMI server replication is only available for redundant application server pairs in a FactoryTalk
View SE application. The state of the primary server must be Active, and the state of the
secondary server must be Standby, for the duration of the replication operation.
17-14
• • • • •
Moving data server files
17 • Placeholder
This section explains how to move files belonging to RSLinx Enterprise and RSLinx
Classic. For details about copying third-party OPC data servers, see the documentation
supplied with the OPC server.
Moving RSLinx Enterprise files

The device shortcuts for RSLinx Enterprise data servers are saved with information about
the FactoryTalk View SE application on the computer that is running FactoryTalk
Directory.
When you back up and restore application information for the FactoryTalk Directory, the
setup information for RSLinx Enterprise data servers is included. For details about the
backing up and restoring applications, see page 17-3 and page 17-9.
Moving RSLinx Classic files

After installing the RSLinx Classic software on the target computer, copy the data server’s
setup files manually.
To copy data server files for RSLinx Classic

1. On the Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, RSLinx, and then
click Backup Restore Utility.
In the RSLinx Backup Restore window, click Backup.
2. Select a folder for the backup file, type a name for the file, and then click Save.
3. Copy the backup file from the source computer to the target computer.
4. On the target computer, on the Windows Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell
Software, RSLinx, and then click Backup Restore Utility.
5. In the RSLinx Backup Restore window, click Restore.
6. In the Open dialog box, browse for the backup file you copied from the source
computer, and then click Open to restore the RSLinx configuration.
17-15
• • • • •
Changing data server properties

After copying a data server from one computer to another, you must change the name of
the computer on which the data server is running.
To change the name of the data server computer

1. Start FactoryTalk View Studio or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console,
and then open the application.
2. In the Explorer window, right-click the data server and then click Properties.
3. In the text box, Computer that will run the OPC server box, type the name of the
computer that is hosting the RSLinx or OPC-DA 2.0 data server. To find and select the
computer name, click the Browse button.
4. If you are setting up redundancy for the data server, specify the properties of the
secondary data server in the Redundancy tab. For details, see “Setting up OPC data
server redundancy” on page 8-10.

To modify data server properties, users must be allowed the following Common actions,

data server. Common List Children
Common Write
Setting up the FactoryTalk View SE Clients

The FactoryTalk View SE Client provides a complete run-time environment for network
applications. For example, the client allows you to:
load, view, and interact with graphic displays from any HMI server in the application.
monitor and control alarms (HMI tag alarms and FactoryTalk Alarms and Events)
17-16
• • • • •
adjust set points.
17 • Placeholder
view and interact with trends
start and stop server components.
secure the run-time operator environment.
For a network application, the FactoryTalk View SE Clients and HMI servers in the
application can run on multiple computers on the network.
Creating a new client configuration file

FactoryTalk View SE Client configuration files specify the name of the application the
client can connect to, the components that start when the connection is made, and how the
client will behave at run time.
To create a new client file, use the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard.
You can also use the wizard to run or modify an existing client file, or to remove a client
from the list of available files.
You do not have to start the HMI server (or servers) the client will connect to, in order to use the
FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard.
To create a new FactoryTalk View SE Client file

2. In the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard, click New, and then follow the on-screen
instructions. For details about options in the wizard, click Help.
The client file is created with a .cli extension, in the location you specified.
Copying client setup files

When setting up the FactoryTalk View SE Clients for an application, you can copy an
existing client file from one computer to other client computers.
To copy a FactoryTalk View SE Client file

Copy the .cli file from the following folder on the source computer to the same folder
on the target computer:
SE\Client*
17-17
• • • • •

These instructions assume that the client file is saved in and then copied to the default location.
When creating the file, you can specify a different location.
Running the FactoryTalk View SE Clients

Once the application is fully deployed, test it by running the FactoryTalk View SE Clients.
To connect a FactoryTalk View SE Client to a network application, all the server and
client computers must point to the same FactoryTalk Network Directory computer.
For tips to help you get communications working between clients and servers, see the
To run an SE Client using the .cli file

Double-click the client setup file (.cli), in the following default folder:
SE\Client*
To run an SE Client from FactoryTalk View Studio

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Tools menu, click Launch SE Client.
2. In the Launch FactoryTalk View SE Client dialog box, type the name of the .cli file,
and then click OK. To find and select a file, click the Browse button.
To run an SE Client when Windows starts

1. Create a shortcut to the.cli file.
2. Move the shortcut to the Windows Startup folder. For information about adding
shortcuts to the Startup folder, see the Windows Help.
Running multiple FactoryTalk View SE Clients

You can run more than one FactoryTalk View SE Client on a single computer. This means
you can connect to more than one application from the same client computer.
Before running multiple clients, ensure that all HMI servers are loaded in the applications
you want to connect to.
To run multiple clients, use the DisplayClientOpen command as the press action for
button objects in a graphic display. Create a button for each client to run. For details about
the DisplayClientOpen command, see the FactoryTalk View Site Edition Help.
17-18
• • • • •
Logging users on to the FactoryTalk View SE Client
17 • Placeholder
To start the FactoryTalk View SE Client, or to change users while the client is running, the
user logging on must have the necessary security permissions.
If the user doesn’t have the necessary permissions, the FactoryTalk View SE Client Login
dialog box opens, to let another user to log on. For more information, see page 5-6.

To run a FactoryTalk View SE Client, and write to tags at run time, users must be allowed the
following Common and Tag actions, at the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area
where the task is to be authorized.

Run a FactoryTalk View SE Client and Common Read
connect to an application. Common List Children
Write to tags at run time. Tag Write Value
Locking operators into the run-time environment

17-19
• • • • •
Administering deployed applications

To make minor changes to an application after it is deployed, use either FactoryTalk View
Studio or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console.
In the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console you can:
change the properties of an HMI server.
change the properties of a data server.
add FactoryTalk users to an application, using the Runtime Security editor.
set up security for commands and macros, using the Runtime Secured Commands
editor.
run FactoryTalk View commands from the Command Line.
change how HMI tag alarms are logged and annunciated, using the Alarm Setup
editor.
change the path of data log models.
change which system activities are logged and how frequently, using the Diagnostics
Setup editor (on the Tools menu).
change the location alarms are logged to, and manage log files, using the Alarm Log
import and export HMI tags using the Tag Import and Export Wizard (on the Tools
menu).
17-20
• • • • •
For information about using the editors available in the SE Administration Console, see
other chapters in this manual.
17 • Placeholder
To open a network application in the SE Administration Console
Tools, and then click FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console.
2. In the Application Type Selection dialog box, select Site Edition (Network), and then
click Continue.
3. In the Open Existing Applications dialog box, select the application to open, and then
click Open.
Monitoring disk space on HMI servers

After deploying a FactoryTalk View SE network application, monitor disk space on
computers running HMI servers, to make sure that it does not fall below 500 MB.
To monitor disk space

1. In the HMI server’s Events editor, create an event that uses the free_bytes function, to
return the number of free bytes available on the HMI server’s hard disk.
2. Create an HMI analog or digital alarm tag.
To indicate when disk space drops below preset levels above 500 MB, set up alarm
conditions for an HMI analog tag. To indicate only when disk space drops below 500
MB, set up alarm conditions for an HMI digital tag.
For information about setting up events, see Chapter 29 in Volume 2 of the FactoryTalk
17-21
18 Deploying local applications
18 • Placeholder
what it means to deploy a FactoryTalk® View Site Edition application.
moving a FactoryTalk View SE local application.
changing HMI server properties.
how HMI server components start and stop.
moving data server files.
changing data server properties.
setting up the FactoryTalk View SE Client.
running the FactoryTalk View SE Client.
locking operators into the run-time environment.
administering deployed applications.
About deploying local applications

Once you finish developing and testing a FactoryTalk View Site Edition local application,
you are ready to run the application in a live setting such as the plant floor. If necessary,
you can move the application to a new location.
The process of moving a FactoryTalk View SE application to its run-time environment is
called deploying the application.
This manual describes how to move a FactoryTalk View SE local application to its run-time
environment. For information about installing the FactoryTalk View SE software, see the
Summary of steps to deploy a local application

There are several tasks involved in deploying a FactoryTalk View SE local application.
Each task in the following summary is described in detail, in subsequent sections of this
chapter.
18-1
• • • • •
Use the summary to create a checklist, to help deploy your application. Make sure to add
tasks that aren’t in the summary, but are part of the process you are automating. Other
tasks might include setting up data servers or database software, and so on.
If you are deploying an application that contains Tag Alarm and Event Servers, for information
about moving these servers, see the FactoryTalk Alarms and Events Help.
1. Move the application. In the Application Manager tool:

on the development computer, back up application information.
on the run-time computer, restore the application.
For details, see “Moving a local application” on page 18-3.
2. Specify the HMI server’s startup settings. In FactoryTalk View Studio, use the
HMI Server Properties dialog box to set up the HMI server’s startup settings. The
startup settings allow you to specify which parts of the application start automatically
when the HMI server starts.
For details, see “Changing HMI server properties” on page 18-5.
3. Set up data server properties. In FactoryTalk View Studio, use the RSLinx®
Enterprise or OPC Server Properties dialog box to change server properties as
necessary. For example, change the name of the server’s host computer, to ensure
correct run-time behavior of the data server.
For details, see “Changing data server properties” on page 18-6
4. Set up the FactoryTalk View SE Client. At run time, operators connect to a local
application and interact with graphic displays using a FactoryTalk View SE Client.
If you have already set up a FactoryTalk View SE Client file for the application, you
can copy the file to the production computer. You do not have to modify the file after
copying it.
To create a new FactoryTalk View SE Client configuration file, run the FactoryTalk
View SE Client Wizard.
For details about:
creating client files, see Help for the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard.
deploying clients, see “Setting up the FactoryTalk View SE Client” on page 18-7.
5. Start the FactoryTalk View SE Client and test the application. To test the
application after deploying it, run the FactoryTalk View SE Client.
For more information, see “Running the FactoryTalk View SE Client” on page 18-8.
18-2
• • • • •
18 • DEPLOYING LOCAL APPLICATIONS
Moving a local application
18 • Placeholder
To move a local application, use the Application Manager tool to back up the application
on the development computer, and then to restore the application archive on the
production computer.
Before you back up an application, make sure that you record the user names and passwords of
administrative users set up for the application.
To back up a local application

1. On the development computer, close the FactoryTalk View SE Client, FactoryTalk
View Studio, and the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console.
You cannot back up a local application that is in use.
2. On the Windows® Start menu, select Programs, Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk
View, Tools, and then click Application Manager.
3. Select Site Edition (Local), and then click Next.
You are prompted to log on. The user logging on must be set up with the security
permissions described in “About FactoryTalk Security permissions,” next.
4. Select the back up operation, and then follow the instructions in the Application
Manager.
To restore the application

1. On the production computer, on the Windows the Start menu, select Programs,
Rockwell Software, FactoryTalk View, Tools, and then click Application Manager.
2. Select Site Edition (Local), and then click Next.
You are prompted to log on. The user logging on must be set up with the security
permissions described in “About FactoryTalk Security permissions,” next.
3. Select the restore operation, and then follow the instructions in the Application
Manager.

18-3
• • • • •
To back up and restore a local application, users must be allowed the following Common
actions, at the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where the task is to be
authorized.

Back up and restore a local application. Common Read
Common Write
To switch the Active and Standby servers manually, users must also have permission to
backup and restore directory contents, under User Rights Assignments for the system.

Backing up and restoring FactoryTalk System information

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, the top-level System folder contains
FactoryTalk Security information, including the user and user group accounts set up for
all applications using the FactoryTalk Local Directory (also called Local Directory).
When you back up a local application, this system information is saved to the archive
automatically.
When you restore the application, ensure that the option, FactoryTalk View SE local
application, and the FactoryTalk Local Directory is selected, to restore system information
with the application.
To restore the Local Directory with the application, the user logged on to the Application Manager
must have full access rights at the Local Directory to be restored.
Restoring archived FactoryTalk System information replaces any user accounts set up for
existing applications using the current Local Directory.
a different Windows domain, then the archived users will not be recognized in the new domain.
18-4
• • • • •
Changing HMI server properties
18 • Placeholder
After you restore the local application in its run-time environment, you can change the
components that run when the HMI server starts or stops. You can also start or stop the
HMI server’s components manually.
The HMI Server Properties dialog box also shows the HMI server’s name, project file
path, number of existing graphic displays and the maximum number of graphic displays
allowed. For information about setting up HMI server properties, see page 7-9.


Common Write
How HMI server components start and stop

Server components start after the HMI server loads. In a local application, opening the
FactoryTalk View SE Client will run the startup components.
Server components stop when the HMI server is unloaded. In a local application, this
happens automatically when you close the FactoryTalk View SE Client.
Starting and stopping HMI server components manually

You can start or stop components manually, for the HMI server in a local application.
18-5
• • • • •
To start HMI server components manually

3. In the Components tab, click Run Startup Components.
To stop HMI server components manually

3. In the Components tab, click Stop All Running Components.
All components stop running, including alarms, data log models, derived tag
components, and event components.
If a shutdown macro is specified in the Components tab, clicking Stop All Running
Components runs the Shutdown macro.
Moving data server files

After installing the RSLinx Enterprise or RSLinx Classic software, or the software for the
OPC server, move the data server’s setup files to the runtime computer.
If you used the Application Manager to copy the application files, the RSLinx Enterprise
server configuration will have been copied as well, and this will not have to be done
separately.
For details about copying third-party OPC data servers, see the documentation supplied
with the OPC server.
For information about copying data server files for RSLinx Enterprise or RSLinx Classic,
see page 17-15.
Changing data server properties

If you copy a data server from one computer to another, you might have to change the
name of the computer on which the data server is running.
To change the name of the data server computer

the Explorer window, right-click the data server and then click Properties.
18-6
• • • • •
2. In the text box, Computer that will run the OPC server, type the name of the computer
where the data server is installed.
18 • Placeholder
To find and select the computer, click the Browse button.
Setting up the FactoryTalk View SE Client

The FactoryTalk View SE Client provides a complete run-time environment for local
applications. For example, the client allows you to:
load, view, and interact with multiple graphic displays from the HMI server.
manage alarm information
view trends.
adjust set points.
start and stop server components.
provide a secured operator environment.
For a local application, the FactoryTalk View SE Client and HMI server in the application
must run on the same computer.
Creating a new client configuration

FactoryTalk View SE Client configuration files specify the name of the application the
client can connect to, the components that start when the connection is made, and how the
client will behave at run time.
To create a new client file, use the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard.
You can also use the wizard to run or modify an existing client file, or to remove a client
from the list of available files.
You do not have to start the HMI server the client will connect to, in order to use the FactoryTalk
View SE Client Wizard.
To create a new FactoryTalk View SE Client file

2. In the FactoryTalk View SE Client Wizard, click New, and then follow the on-screen
instructions. For details about options in the wizard, click Help.
The client file is created with a .cli extension, in the location you specified.
18-7
• • • • •
Running the FactoryTalk View SE Client

Once the application is fully deployed, test it by running the FactoryTalk View SE Client.
To run an SE Client using the .cli file

Double-click the client setup file (.cli), in the following default folder:
SE\Client*
To run an SE Client from FactoryTalk View Studio

1. In FactoryTalk View Studio, on the Tools menu, click Launch SE Client.
2. In the Launch FactoryTalk View SE Client dialog box, type the name of the .cli file,
and then click OK.
To find and select the file, click the Browse button.
To run an SE Client when Windows starts

1. Create a shortcut to the.cli file.
2. Move the shortcut to the Windows Startup folder. For details about adding shortcuts to
the Startup folder, see the Windows Help.
Logging users on to the FactoryTalk View SE Client

To start the FactoryTalk View SE Client, or to change users while the client is running, the
user logging on must have the necessary security permissions.
If the user doesn’t have the necessary permissions, the FactoryTalk View SE Client Login
dialog box opens, to let another user to log on. For more information, see page 5-6.

18-8
• • • • •
18 • Placeholder
To run a FactoryTalk View SE Client, and to write to tags at run time, users must be allowed
the following Common actions, at the FactoryTalk Directory, application, or area where
the task is to be authorized.

Run a FactoryTalk View SE Client and Common Read
connect to an application. Common List Children
Write to tags at run time. Tag Write Value
Locking operators into the run-time environment

Administering deployed applications

To make minor changes to an application after it is deployed, use either FactoryTalk View
Studio or the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console.
18-9
• • • • •
In the FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console, you can:

change the properties of an HMI server.
change the properties of a data server.
add FactoryTalk users to an application, using the Runtime Security editor.
set up security for commands and macros, using the Runtime Secured Commands
editor.
run FactoryTalk View commands from the Command Line.
change how HMI tag alarms are logged and annunciated, using the Alarm Setup
editor.
change the path of data log models.
change which system activities are logged and how frequently, using the Diagnostics
change the location alarms are logged to, and manage log files, using the Alarm Log
import and export HMI tags using the Tag Import and Export Wizard (on the Tools
menu).
For information about using the editors available in the SE Administration Console, see
other chapters in this manual.
To open a local application in the SE Administration Console

Tools, and then click FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console.
2. In the Product Type Selection dialog box, select Site Edition (Local), and then click
Continue.
3. In the Open Existing Applications dialog, select the application to open, and then click
Open.
18-10
APPENDIX A
FactoryTalk View commands

This appendix describes:
where and how to use FactoryTalk® View commands.
using absolute and relative references.
creating symbols.
using the Command Wizard.
For details about specific FactoryTalk View commands, see Help.
Using commands in a FactoryTalk View SE application

In a FactoryTalk View SE application, you can use commands in:
boxes that require you to enter an action.
For example, use a command as the press, release, or repeat action when you attach
touch animation to an object in a graphic display, or as the action for a button.
macros or symbols.
the command line.
Commands take precedence over macros. For example, if you have a macro called
Display, the Display command will run whenever you try to run the Display macro.
How to use commands

When typing commands, or building them using the Command Wizard, keep the
following guidelines in mind:
In the descriptions of commands in the Help, parameters enclosed in angle brackets
<> are required and parameters enclosed in square brackets [ ] are optional.
Parameters do not have to be entered in the order they are listed in Help.
Commands and parameters are not case sensitive.
To use several commands in sequence, start each new command on a new line, or
separate commands on the same line with a semicolon (;).
Separate multiple parameters with a space.
A-1
• • • • •
Enclose long file names containing spaces with double quotes when the file names are
used as parameters. For example:
Display PID /P“Temperature Loop 1”
Enclose area and component names that contain spaces, or are ambiguous, in double
quotes.
An ambiguous area name is one that is the same as another parameter for a command.
For example, AlarmOn “/H” would turn alarm monitoring on in area H; whereas
AlarmOn /H would turn alarm monitoring on with handshaking, in the current area.
An exclamation mark (!) at the beginning of a new line or immediately after a
semicolon (;) indicates the start of a comment.
Everything between the exclamation mark and the end of the line, or the next
semicolon, is treated as a comment.
Many commands accept wildcard characters. If a command accepts wildcard
characters, this is noted in the description of the command in the Help. The wildcard
characters are:
* matches any number of characters, including the backslash (\) and period (.)
? matches any single character
Using placeholders in commands

To replace a tag name with its current value when the command is evaluated, enclose the
tag name in dollar signs ($). This creates a placeholder in the command.
If the placeholder is enclosed with double quotes, or nested in the string value of another
placeholder in the command, FactoryTalk View does not substitute the tag value.
When using placeholders in commands, keep these points in mind:
Floating point tags can be a maximum of 17 digits long. If the value is longer than
17 digits, it is represented in scientific format.
The maximum command length is 1000 characters. The command is truncated if the
substituted tag values cause the command to exceed this length.
Tag names being used as placeholders in commands, do not need to be enclosed in
brackets because the dollar signs that enclose them act to disambiguate them, as well.
A-2
• • • • •
A • FACTORYTALK VIEW COMMANDS
Example 1: A macro using placeholders in commands

Display Screen$Tag1$
Display $Tag3$$Tag2$
Valve23=Open
When the macro runs, Tag1=1, Tag2=2, and Tag3=Screen. These are all string tags.
FactoryTalk View replaces the placeholders in the commands with the tags’ current string
values. The graphic display Screen1 opens, then the graphic display Screen2 opens, and
then the tag Valve23 is set to its open state.
Example 2: Changing the value of a tag and tag placeholders

In this example, the initial value of Tag1 is 0. The value 4 is assigned to Tag1, and the tag
is then used in a macro.
Type the following text in a button’s press action:
!Set the value of Tag1 to 4; Tag1=4
!Run the Display_Detail macro, using Tag1 as a parameter
Display_Detail Tag1
In the Display_Detail macro, type the following:

!Displays a graphic display whose name is Screen
!plus the value of Tag1 (for example, Screen4)
Display Screen$%1$
FactoryTalk View replaces the placeholder in the command with the tag’s current string
value. The graphic display Screen4 opens.
Tag placeholders are evaluated before commands run. You can ensure Tag1 evaluates to 4
by embedding the tag placeholder in a macro, not in the button. If you include the tag
placeholder in the button, the tag placeholder evaluates before the value of the tag is set to
4. $Tag1$ will therefore evaluate to 0 (the tag’s initial value), not 4.
Where commands run

Some commands run at the FactoryTalk View SE Server, some run at the FactoryTalk
View SE Client, and some run wherever they were issued.
A-3
• • • • •
Commands that run at the FactoryTalk View SE Server
Acknowledge AlarmPrintOn DerivedOn

AcknowledgeAll DataLogChangeRate EventOff
AlarmAcceptEdits DataLogMergeToPrimary EventOn
AlarmEvent DataLogNewFile HandShakeOff
AlarmLogNewFile DataLogOff HandShakeOn
AlarmLogOff DataLogOn Silence
AlarmLogOn DataLogRenameFile SilenceAll
AlarmLogSendToODBC DataLogSnapShot SuppressOff
AlarmOff DataLogSwitchBack SuppressOffAll
AlarmOn DerivedOff SuppressOn
AlarmPrintOff
Commands that run at the FactoryTalk View SE Client
Abort Key PrintDisplay

Define Language PullForward
Display Login PushBack
DisplayClientClose Logout RecipeRestore
DisplayClientOpen NextPosition RecipeSave
Download NextWindow ScreenPrint
DownloadAll OpenRSLogix5000 SendKeys
FlushCache Password SetFocus
Help Position Undefine
Identify PrevPosition Upload
Invoke PrevWindow UploadAll
Commands that do not run in test display mode

Most commands that run at the FactoryTalk View SE Client will also run in FactoryTalk
View Studio, in test display mode. The following exceptions are ignored in test display
mode:
Abort Key PrintDisplay

Display Login PullForward
DisplayClientClose Logout PushBack
DisplayClientOpen NextWindow SetFocus
FlushCache PrevWindow
A-4
• • • • •
Commands that run wherever they are issued

These commands run wherever they are issued. For example, if one of these commands is
issued at the FactoryTalk View SE Client, it runs at the client.
= (Equal) Beep Ramp

AlarmLogRemark DDEExecute Remark
AppAbort If Set
AppActivate Pause Toggle
AppStart PlayWave
Using absolute and relative references

You can specify several command parameters using either absolute or relative references.
Relative references work like file names. Absolute references work like file paths.
A relative reference is a reference to an application component, excluding its path. The
component’s path is determined from the context in which the component’s name is
specified.
An absolute reference is a reference to an application component, including its path.
For example:
/MixingArea::IngredientDisplay is an absolute reference to a graphic display
called IngredientDisplay in the area called MixingArea.
IngredientDisplay is a relative reference to a graphic display called
IngredientDisplay in the current area.
In local applications you only need to use relative references.
How relative references are resolved

You only need to understand how relative references are resolved if you are creating
network applications. If you are creating local applications, you can skip this section.
Before FactoryTalk View can perform an action on a component that is specified using a
relative reference, the relative reference must be resolved. To do this FactoryTalk View
converts the relative reference to an absolute reference.
For example, if the current area is called RecipesArea, the graphic display specified using
the relative reference IngredientDisplay is resolved to the absolute reference
/RecipesArea::IngredientDisplay before it can be used.
For commands, relative references are resolved in different ways, depending on the type
of parameters the command takes.
A-5
• • • • •
Commands that take tags as parameters

Commands that take tags as parameters are resolved as follows:
When the command runs from a graphic display, the area that contains the graphic
display is used to resolve the relative reference.
For example, if the command Display OverviewStats runs from the graphic display
called IngredientDisplay in the area RecipesArea, the area name RecipesArea is used
to resolve the relative reference in the command.
If the command runs from the graphic display called IngredientDisplay in the Mixing
area, the Mixing area name is used to resolve the relative reference in the command.
When the command is run by an Events component, the Alarm Identification feature,
or the Startup or Shutdown macros, the area that contains the HMI server is used to
resolve the relative reference.
Commands that take HMI project components as parameters

When the command runs from a graphic display, the area that contains the graphic display
is used to resolve the relative reference.
Some commands are run by a part of the system that runs in the background. This
background activity is managed by the HMI server.
For example, an Events component runs commands when events occur. These parts of the
system resolve relative references using the area in which the HMI server is located,
because the HMI server manages the background activity.
Creating symbols
If you have long commands or commands with parameters that are hard to remember or
easy to mix up, you can rename those commands with a single word called a symbol.
Symbols can be used anywhere a command can be used: in a box that requires an action,
in a macro, or at the command line.
You can define symbols in a macro or at the command line. However, symbols are mainly
an operational convenience when using the system from the command line.
To define a symbol
At the command line or in a macro or box, type:
Define <symbol> <string>
<symbol> is the abbreviated command, without spaces.
A-6
• • • • •
<string> is an existing command with or without parameters. It can contain spaces

and other symbols.
Example: The Define command

Define Show Display Overview
The Define command
The symbol
The string
In this example, the command Display Overview is replaced with the word Show.
To clear a symbol
At the command line or in a macro or box, type one of the following:
This command Does this

Undefine <symbol> Clears the symbol.
<symbol> is the name of the symbol you want
to delete.
Undefine * Clears all defined symbols.
Example: Undefining symbols

Undefine Show
Clears the symbol Show.
Important guidelines
When creating symbols, keep the following in mind:
FactoryTalk View does not check for security access on symbol names.
Therefore, be sure to put security on the underlying FactoryTalk View command. For
information about setting up security, see Chapter 5 in Volume 1 of the FactoryTalk
A-7
• • • • •
If a symbol and a macro have the same name, the symbol runs instead of the macro.
The order of precedence is: symbol, command, macro.
Running and building commands

Use the command line to run commands during application development, testing, and
maintenance.
Use the Command Wizard to build command strings.
The Command Wizard lists all FactoryTalk View commands and their syntax. The wizard
also lists any macros that you have created.
When you click

a category here
…
… the
commands for
that category are
listed here.
To resize the list

boxes, drag this
bar to the left or
right.
When you click a

command in the
list, the
command syntax
is displayed here.
For details about using the Command Wizard, and about individual FactoryTalk View
commands, see Help.
To open the command line

In FactoryTalk View Studio, in the Explorer window, double-click the Command Line
icon.
A-8
• • • • •
Opening the Command Wizard

To open the Command Wizard, use one of these methods:
Double-click in an action box or anywhere in the Macro editor.
Click the Browse button beside an action box or any box requiring a FactoryTalk
View command.
In the Command Line, Runtime Secured Commands editor, Events editor, and Macro
editor, click Commands on the Edit menu
A-9
APPENDIX B
Setting up DDE communications for

HMI tags
This appendix describes:
what DDE communications are.
how to set up DDE communications with HMI tags.
scanning for new tag values.
Overview of DDE communications

To support legacy applications FactoryTalk® View supports DDE communications. The
following illustration shows how FactoryTalk View SE might use DDE.
B-1
• • • • •
DDE (Dynamic Data Exchange), used with external DDE servers such as the Rockwell
Software RSServer™ products, or with other third-party servers, allows applications to
communicate with a wide range of local and remote devices.
DDE servers provide a way to connect to an HMI server’s HMI tags (the DDE client), to
communication devices such as Siemens or Modicon®, or to third-party DDE servers
such as Microsoft® Excel or Visual Basic®.
Setting up an HMI server as a DDE client

These are the tasks involved in setting up an HMI server as a DDE client:
1. Start the DDE server.
2. Start FactoryTalk View Studio, and then create or open an application (the DDE
client).
3. In the Tags editor, create tags. Select Device as the data source. In the Address box,
type the required DDE address. For information about DDE addressing syntax, see
page B-3.
If the DDE server is running as an application instead of as a service, for more information, see
Answer ID 26798 in the Rockwell Automation KnowledgeBase. For help gaining access to the
KnowledgeBase, see “Finding information on the Internet” on page P-3.
Creating an HMI tag that uses DDE

This section describes how to complete the Data Source options in the Tags editor for tags
that use DDE communications.
For details about creating HMI tags, see Help. For information about working with tags,
Specifying Device as the data source

An HMI tag with Device as its data source receives its data from a source external to
FactoryTalk View. This section describes how to create tags for data that comes from:
programmable controllers through a DDE server.
another Windows® program through a DDE server.
To create a tag with Device as the data source

1. For the data source Type, click Device.
B-2
• • • • •
B • SETTING UP DDE COMMUNICATIONS FOR HMI TAGS
2. In the Address box, specify the DDE item.

Type the DDE address for the tag. The DDE item name and format depend on the
DDE server, and are not validated by FactoryTalk View.
Syntax for DDE addresses

The syntax for DDE tag addresses is:
DDE : Application|Topic!Item
There are no spaces:
between the application name, the vertical bar, and the topic name.
between the topic name, the exclamation mark, and the item name.
For more information about addressing syntax, see the documentation supplied with the
DDE server.
Scanning for new tag values

When an HMI server containing tags is running, it must periodically update its tag values
in the value table.
For applications using DDE, values are updated by the server at the rate specified in the
server product. When the server detects a change, it provides the changed value to
FactoryTalk View.
For details about setting the poll rate, see the server documentation.
B-3
APPENDIX C
ODBC database schemas

FactoryTalk® View generates diagnostics, HMI tag alarm, and data log information that
can be stored in ODBC-compliant databases.
This appendix specifies the format, or schemas, for ODBC databases. For information
about how the log files are named, see “ODBC database storage format” on page 25-3.
About the FactoryTalk Diagnostics log table

FactoryTalk Diagnostics data logged to an ODBC database uses one table. To create a
target table automatically, in the correct format, click the Create Table button on the
ODBC Database Destination Setup window.
For FactoryTalk Diagnostics schema, see the FactoryTalk Diagnostics Help.
HMI tag alarm log table

HMI tag alarm data logged to an ODBC database uses one table, as shown below.
This column Contains SQL data type Length

TimeStmp The time and date data was logged, in UTC format. SQL_TIMESTAMP Driver
dependent
TIP: If the ODBC database does not support
SQL_TIMESTAMP, the data might be truncated.
If you are using the Oracle® ODBC driver, for
example, to avoid truncating date and time data, use
SQL_DATE instead of SQL_TIMESTAMP.
MilliTime Millisecond time when data was logged. SQL_INTEGER 3
TransType The type of alarm that was generated. The SQL_VARCHAR, or 6
transaction type is one of: SQL_CHAR
SysAk (System Acknowledged)
InAlm (In Alarm)
OutAlm (Out of Alarm)
InFlt (In Fault)
OutFt (Out of Fault)
Ack (Acknowledged)
RmAck (Remote Acknowledged)
SupOn (Suppress On)
SupOf (Suppress Off)
Remar (Remark)
C-1
• • • • •

AlarmType The number FactoryTalk View assigns to the SQL_SMALLINT, or 1
transaction type: SQL_INTEGER
0 for SysAk (System Acknowledged)

1 for InAlm (In Alarm)
2 for OutAlm (Out of Alarm)
3 for InFlt (In Fault)
4 for OutFt (Out of Fault)
5 for Ack (Acknowledged)
6 for RmAck (Remote Acknowledged)
7 for SupOn (Suppress On)
8 for SupOf (Suppress Off)
9 for Remar (Remark)
SrcArea The area in which the alarm occurred. SQL_VARCHAR, or 80
SQL_CHAR
TagName The name of the tag or alarm event that caused the SQL_VARCHAR, or 255
alarm. SQL_CHAR
TagValue The value of the tag at the time the alarm occurred. SQL_DOUBLE, or 20
SQL_INTEGER, or (10 decimal
SQL_SMALLINT places)
TagType The type of the tag in alarm: 2 for Analog, 1 for SQL_VARCHAR, or 1
Digital. SQL_CHAR
ThreshVal The threshold value. SQL_DOUBLE, or 20
SQL_FLOAT (10 decimal
places)
ThreshNum The threshold number. SQL_SMALLINT, or 1
SQL_INTEGER
ThreshLabl The threshold label. SQL_VARCHAR, or 21
SQL_CHAR
Severity The alarm severity. SQL_SMALLINT, or 1
SQL_INTEGER
UserID The name of the user (including domain name, if SQL_VARCHAR, or 38
there is one) that initiated the alarm transaction. If SQL_CHAR
the transaction was initiated by an HMI server, the
user is NT Authority\System.
Dscrptn The message that is associated with the transaction SQL_VARCHAR, or 132
(alarm) type, the log message for the alarm event, or SQL_CHAR
the alarm log remark.
C-2
• • • • •
C • ODBC DATABASE SCHEMAS

SrcComputr The name of the computer that initiated the SQL_VARCHAR, or 15
command or action that caused the alarm. SQL_CHAR
UserName The name of the user (including domain name, if SQL_VARCHAR, or 255
there is one) that initiated the alarm transaction. If SQL_CHAR
the transaction was initiated by an HMI server, the
user is NT Authority\System.
Data log tables

FactoryTalk View data log information stored in ODBC format uses up to three tables.
For more information, see “ODBC database storage format” on page 25-3.
Floating-point and string tables

Log tables for floating-point and string data are the same except one contains analog and
digital tag data and the other contains string tag data.

DateAndTime The date and time the tag values were logged. SQL_TIMESTAMP Driver
dependent
Millitm The millisecond time the tag values were logged. SQL_SMALLINT, or 4
SQL_INTEGER
TagIndex, or The index number for the tag. The tag name that SQL_SMALLINT, or 2 or
corresponds to this number is listed in the tag SQL_INTEGER 4
name table.
TagName If the tag name table isn’t used, the tag name SQL_VARCHAR, or 255
appears in this column SQL_CHAR
Val The analog or digital value of the tag. SQL_DOUBLE, or 8, or
SQL_INTEGER, or 4, or
SQL_SMALLINT 2
The string value of the tag. SQL_VARCHAR, or 82
SQL_CHAR
Status Blank if communications are working properly. SQL_VARCHAR, or 1
E if a communication error occurred while SQL_CHAR
FactoryTalk View was trying to acquire the tag
value.
S if the tag value is stale; that is, if the value has
been acquired before, but has not been updated.
U if the tag is uninitialized.
Marker Internal tag marker. SQL_VARCHAR, or
SQL_CHAR
C-3
• • • • •
Tag table

TagName The tag name. SQL_VARCHAR, or 255
SQL_CHAR
TagIndex The index number assigned to the tag name. SQL_SMALLINT, or 2 or
SQL_INTEGER 4
TagType The tag type: SQL_SMALLINT 1
2 for Analog tag
3 for Digital tag
4 for String tag
TagDataType The tag data type: SQL_SMALLINT 2
-1 for Integer
0 for Long
1 for Float
2 for String
C-4
• • • • •
INDEX
Index
Index
Symbols and Invoke command 21-25
modifying properties 21-23
.bmp files 19-27, 19-28
selecting using keyboard 20-10
.cab files 20-55
using names 21-24
.cli files 17-17, 18-7, 18-8
using with VBA code 21-25
.dat files 25-1, 25-2
ActiveX toolbox 20-54
.dxf files 19-27
activity logging
.ggfx files 19-24
See FactoryTalk Diagnostics
.gif files 19-27
adding components into an application 2-11
.jpg files 19-27
advanced objects 20-1, 20-31
.pcx files 19-27
ActiveX objects
.tif files 19-27
See ActiveX objects
.wmf files 19-27
arrow 20-31
.xml files 19-2, D-1
control list selector 20-31
[tag] parameter 21-20
creating 20-39, 20-40
Enter key handshaking 20-40
A scrolling key list 20-39
absolute references 6-6 states for 20-39
in commands A-5 value tag 20-40
syntax 6-6 display list selector 20-31
to tags 9-6 creating 20-33
acknowledge bit 11-12 states for 20-33
Acknowledge command 11-10 HMI tag alarm summary 20-31
AcknowledgeAll command 11-10 local message display 20-31
acknowledging alarms creating 20-34
FactoryTalk alarms 12-41 OLE objects 20-51
HMI tag alarms 11-10 converting 20-52
activation creating 20-52
demo mode 1-10 piloted control list selector 20-31
grace period 1-10 controlling remotely 20-42
in a redundant system 14-11 creating 20-41
running without 1-10 Enter key handshaking 20-43
Active (Can’t reach partner) 14-6 indicator tag for 20-45
Active macro remote access tag for 20-45
See On Active macro resetting Enter tag 20-44
Active state 14-4 scrolling key list 20-42
ActiveX objects 19-2, 20-2, 20-53 states for 20-41, 20-44
applying animation to 21-22 top position tag 20-45
deploying automatically 20-55 value tag 20-43, 20-45
events 21-25 visible states tag 20-45
highlighting in a display 20-10 recipe object 20-31
methods 21-25 selecting using keyboard 20-10
I–1
• • • • •
tag label 20-31 testing 21-6, 26-4

creating 20-32 using VBA code 21-22
time and date display 20-31 viewing animation 21-6
creating 20-33 Animation dialog box 21-2
trends opening 21-3
See trends animation types 21-7
Alarm and Event Historian 12-32 color 21-8
alarm and event history logging 12-31 in grouped objects 21-5
alarm and event objects 20-2 fill 21-11
alarm banner 12-11 in grouped objects 21-5
alarm status explorer 12-11 horizontal position 21-11
alarm summary 12-10 horizontal slider 21-13
log viewer 12-11 OLE verbs 21-14
selecting using keyboard 20-10 rotation 21-11
See also FactoryTalk Alarms and Events touch 21-13
Alarm and Event Setup editor 12-24 vertical position 21-11
alarm class 12-12 vertical slider 21-14
Alarm Import Export Wizard D-1 visibility 21-8
alarm logging width 21-13
FactoryTalk alarms 12-32 Application Manager 6-21, 7-10
HMI tag alarms 11-23 backing up applications in 18-3
alarm monitoring restoring applications in 18-3
planning 3-5 application server states 14-4
See FactoryTalk Alarms and Events for redundant servers 14-5
See HMI tag alarms applications 2-1, 6-1, 7-1
Alarm Setup editor 11-14 adding process faceplates to 19-26
Alarm Status Explorer 12-45 deploying 17-1, 18-1
alarm tags 12-13, 12-52 navigating displays in 22-1
AlarmLogRemark command 11-38 opening 2-2
aligning graphic objects 19-11 planning 3-1
animation 21-1 a redundant system 14-9
and global objects 21-7 alarm monitoring 3-5
applying to object groups 19-16, 21-5 communications 3-4
precedence 21-5 customizing the system 3-14
copying 21-7 for multiple users 3-13
defining range of motion 21-4 network layout 3-2
display keys 21-19 security 3-8
duplicating objects with 21-7 trends 3-12
for ActiveX objects 21-1, 21-22 redundant servers in 14-2, 14-8
linking to actions 21-4 referencing components in 6-6
linking to expressions 21-1, 21-3 restoring 17-9
linking to keys 21-1 Sample Water 1-10
linking to tags 21-1, 21-3 setting up run time 3-10
object keys 21-17 switching languages in
Object Smart Path 21-5 See language switching
tag placeholders in 21-3 arc graphic object 20-6
I–2
• • • • •
INDEX
areas 6-5 See FactoryTalk View Studio

adding to an application 6-10 client keys 22-4
application root 7-1 creating 22-10
deleting 6-10 precedence 22-7
Index
home area 6-5, 9-6 running a key file 22-11
in Execute command parameters 11-37 color 19-17
in network applications 6-2 in graphic objects 21-8
maximum number of HMI servers 6-13 in HMI tag alarm summaries 11-32
showing in HMI tag alarm summaries in trends 26-13
11-34 color animation 21-8
arithmetic operators 23-6 Command Wizard 2-15
arranging graphic objects 19-10 building commands in 2-14
arrow graphic objects 20-31 commands A-1
audit messages 15-3 See also individual command entries
auto-repeat for keys 20-31 absolute references to A-5
availability building in Command Wizard 2-14
See system availability connecting to ActiveX events 21-25
display caching 26-22
B execution of A-3
for moving among displays 22-2
Background Color palette 19-18
in macros 2-15
bar graph objects 20-29
placeholders in A-2
base objects 19-2
relative references in A-5
tag placeholders in 19-33
setting up security for 5-17
See also global objects
startup and shutdown 19-41
bitwise operators 23-8
using placeholders in 27-2
Browse button 2-14
using touch animation to run 21-13
buffer zone
Common actions
See HMI tag alarms, deadband
buffering messages 15-6
See security permissions, Common actions
communications 8-1, 8-2
built-in alarm detection 12-2
DDE
Business Objects Crystal Reports 25-1
and FactoryTalk Diagnostics 15-1
See DDE communications
error function 23-16
button objects 20-11, 20-12
planning 3-4
opening displays with 22-5
computer accounts 5-26
condition-related events 12-6
C Connections tab 19-20
CABARC.exe 20-55 constants 23-6
caching graphic displays 19-38 contacting
calling methods 21-25 Rockwell Automation P-4
captions 20-7 technical support P-4
changing passwords 5-7 control
Check Syntax button 23-4 See animation
circle graphic object 20-5 control list selectors 20-31, 20-39, 20-44
client copying HMI servers 17-7
See FactoryTalk View SE Client creating display templates 3-11
I–3
• • • • •
Crystal Reports server cache file 8-12

See Business Objects Crystal Reports setting up properties 8-10
current application language 13-7 redundancy
See system availability
D RSLinx Classic
Backup Restore Utility 17-15
data display objects 20-19
RSLinx Enterprise 8-1
data log files 25-6
adding 6-12, 7-6, 8-5
and third-party software 25-1
deleting 8-8
deleting 25-6
moving files 17-15
managing files 25-6
setting up Alarms and Events 8-8
naming 25-2
setting up properties 8-6
run-time limits 25-2
tags in 9-1
storage format 25-2
using multiple servers 6-12, 8-3
ODBC 25-1, 25-3
data sources for HMI tags 10-2
data log models 25-1
device 10-8
modifying 25-13
memory 10-9
Data Log Models editor 25-5, 25-8
date and time displays 20-33
data logging 9-5, 25-1
DDE communications
and events 25-12
HMI server as client B-2, B-3
choosing data to log 25-7
poll rate B-3
commands
syntax B-3
DataLogMergeToPrimary 25-11
default application language 13-6
DataLogNewFile 25-9
setting up 13-8
DataLogOff 25-15
Define command A-6
DataLogOn 25-14
deploying local applications 18-1
DataLogSnapshot 25-12
backing up 18-3
DataLogSwitchBack 25-10
the Local Directory 18-4
log triggers 25-6
changing HMI server properties 18-5
ODBC data source 25-7
creating the run-time client 18-7
creating new 25-7, 25-8
restoring 18-3
ODBC database tables 25-7, C-3
the Local Directory 18-4
on demand 25-12
starting and stopping components 18-5
paths 25-5
steps involved in 18-1
moving data between 25-11
updating data server names 18-6
switching at run time 25-10, 25-13
deploying network applications 17-1
starting 25-14
backing up 17-3
stopping 25-15
the Network Directory 17-5
when to log data 25-6
changing data server properties
data servers 6-2, 8-1
updating computer name 17-16
adding to a local application 7-6
changing HMI server properties 17-10
adding to a network application 6-12
starting and stopping the server 17-12
deleting 8-8
starting services 17-14
OPC data servers 8-1
stopping services 17-13
adding 6-12, 7-7, 8-9
updating computer name 17-11
deleting 8-13
copying client files 17-17
I–4
• • • • •
INDEX
copying HMI servers 17-7 display list selectors 20-31, 20-33

using the HMIBackup utility to 17-8 Display Settings dialog box 19-35
creating new client files 17-17 Set as Default 19-44
moving files displays
Index
HMI projects 17-6 See graphic displays
RSLinx Classic 17-15 Displays editor
RSLinx Enterprise 17-15 See Graphics editor
restoring 17-9 distributed applications
the Network Directory 17-10 See network applications
setting up the Network Directory 17-5 docking graphic displays 12-39, 19-45
specifying the location of 17-6 Download command 20-23
steps involved in 17-2 DownloadAll command 20-23
synchronizing HMI servers with projects drawing objects 20-1
17-14 arc 20-6
derived tags 28-1 circle 20-5
commands ellipse 20-5
DerivedOff 28-6 images 20-8
DerivedOn 28-5, 28-6 adding into displays 20-8, 20-9
creating 28-4 adding to an application 20-8
limits 28-5 modifying properties 20-6
maximum update rate for 28-4 panel 20-8
modifying 28-5 polygon 20-5
starting and stopping processing 28-5 polyline 20-5
deviation alarms 12-9 rectangle 20-4
device-based alarms 11-2, 12-2, 12-3 rounded rectangle 20-4
Diagnostics List 2-5, 15-7 square 20-4
clearing messages 2-5, 15-8 text 20-7
hiding and showing 2-6 choosing fonts 20-7
Diagnostics Viewer 15-9 wedge 20-6
opening at run time 15-9 duplicating graphic objects 19-9
disabling alarms 12-48
display cache 19-38, 22-6 E
adding displays 19-43
Edit Display mode 19-23, 26-4
removing displays 19-44
electronic signatures 20-55
Display command
ellipse graphic object 20-5
and key lists 21-20
embedded variables 24-1
caching parameters for 19-43
displaying at run time 24-8
docking parameters for 19-45
inserting 24-1
position parameters for 19-40
in captions 24-2
display grid 19-7
in local messages 24-2
display hierarchy 3-10
in title bar text 24-3
display keys 21-17
in tooltips 24-3
creating 21-19
modifying 24-3
key list 21-19
numeric variables 24-3
precedence 22-7
syntax with numbers 24-4
running commands with 21-20
I–5
• • • • •
syntax with tags 24-4 built-in functions 23-11

string variables 24-5 file functions 23-12
syntax with strings 24-6 for FactoryTalk alarms 12-54
syntax with tags 24-6 alarm source 12-56, 12-58
time and date variables 24-7 for HMI tag alarms 23-15
syntax 24-8 acknowledged 11-11
types of values in 24-1 in alarm 11-11
updating at run time 24-10 wildcards in 11-12
enabling alarms 12-44, 12-48 language function 23-18
Enter key 20-40 math functions 23-11
handshaking 20-40, 20-43, 20-45 security functions 23-17
resetting the Enter tag 20-44 tag functions 23-15
turning off 20-57 time functions 23-13
error messages 15-3 checking syntax 23-4
event-based alarms 11-21 constants in 23-6
events 29-1 copying 23-4
commands evaluating operators 23-9
EventOff 29-5 for reporting communication errors 23-15
EventOn 29-5 formatting 23-4
creating 29-3 HMI tag alarm events in 11-23
evaluation interval for 29-4 if–then–else logic 23-19
for ActiveX objects 21-25 logical operators in 23-7
for on-demand logging 25-12 placeholders in 23-5
limits 29-4 relational operators in 23-7
maximum update rate for 29-4 tags in 23-5
modifying 29-4
starting and stopping processing 29-4 F
using multiple components 29-4
Execute button 11-37 F1 key and precedence 22-7
Execute command 11-37 FactoryTalk Activation 1-5, 1-10
Explorer See also activation
in FactoryTalk View Studio 2-7 FactoryTalk Alarms and Events 1-5, 12-1
opening editors in 2-8 acknowledging alarms 12-41
opening folders in 2-8 all alarms 12-42
exporting security permissions for 12-44
graphic displays D-1 selected alarms 12-42
text strings using alarm tags 12-53
See language switching advantages 12-2
expressions 2-15, 23-1 alarm and event banner 12-11, 12-34
and data logging 25-12 at run time 12-38
and derived tags 23-1 docking to client window 12-39
and events 23-1 alarm and event log viewer 12-11
and object animation 21-3 creating 12-50
arithmetic operators in 23-6 parts 12-50
assigning to graphic objects 19-20 alarm and event policies 12-16
building 23-3 alarm and event summary 12-10, 12-34
I–6
• • • • •
INDEX
alarm monitoring in 12-39 suppressing alarms 12-43

filtering and sorting data 12-41 security permissions for 12-44
parts 12-40 tag-based alarms 12-24
alarm class 12-12 alarm messages for 12-29
Index
alarm displays 12-10, 12-34 alarm tags for 12-53
alarm faults 12-8 deviation alarms 12-27
alarm history logging 12-22 digital alarms 12-24
alarm logs 12-14 in Alarm and Event Setup editor 12-28
alarm messages 12-14 level alarms 12-25
alarm monitoring status tags for 12-28
security for 12-17 update rates for 12-31
setting up 12-15 FactoryTalk Diagnostics 15-1
alarm priority 12-11 See also Diagnostics List
modifying 12-12 audiences 15-4
setting up 12-22 categorizing tag writes 15-4
alarm servers destinations 15-2
RSLinx Enterprise 12-18 getting Help for 15-2
Tag Alarm and Event Servers 12-21 logging to ODBC 15-5
alarm severity 12-11 buffering messages 15-6
alarm states 12-13 messages 15-3
alarm status explorer 12-11, 12-45 audiences 15-4
disabling alarms in 12-48 categories 15-3
parts 12-46 routing 15-2, 15-5
suppressing alarms in 12-48 Setup tool 15-4
viewing details in 12-47 viewing log files 15-9
alarm status tags 12-14 FactoryTalk Diagnostics Viewer
alarm tags 12-13, 12-52 See Diagnostics Viewer
built-in alarm functions 12-54 FactoryTalk Directory 4-1
number of alarms 12-55 local cache 14-6
severity 12-54 Local Directory 1-10, 4-1
specifying alarm source 12-56 setting up 4-7
deadband 12-8 Network Directory 1-10, 4-1
deviation alarms 12-9 backing up 17-5
digital alarms 12-10 managing multiple applications 4-4
disabling alarms 12-43 monitoring server status 14-7
enabling alarms restoring 17-10
security permissions for 12-44 specifying localhost 4-5
history logging 12-31 specifying location of 17-6
defining databases 12-33 restoring 4-7
enabling 12-33 service disruptions 4-8
importing and exporting alarms 12-59 single sign-on to 5-5
formats 12-60 FactoryTalk Security
latched digital alarms 12-10, 12-43 assigning permissions 5-31
resetting 12-43, 12-44 authorizing users 5-1
level alarms 12-7 changing passwords 5-7
limits 12-7 computer accounts 5-25
I–7
• • • • •
finding information about 5-3 See HMI servers

for local applications 7-4 FactoryTalk View Site Edition
single sign-on 5-5 See FactoryTalk View SE
system policies 5-27 FactoryTalk View Studio 1-4
system resources 5-28 Communications tab 2-4
user accounts 5-25 editors 2-9
FactoryTalk system 14-1 Alarm Setup 11-14
FactoryTalk View P-1 Client Keys 22-10
formerly RSView Enterprise P-1 Data Log Models 25-5, 25-8
Secured Commands editor 5-17 Derived Tags 28-2
tools 1-5 Events 29-1
Application Manager 6-21, 18-3 Expressions 23-2
Diagnostics Viewer 15-9 Graphics 19-3
FactoryTalk Diagnostics Setup 15-4 hints for working in 2-13
HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer 11-27 printing from 2-15
HMIBackup utility 17-8 Runtime Security 5-11
Specify FactoryTalk Directory Location Secured Commands 5-17
4-5, 14-7 Suppressed List 11-10, 11-29
Tag Import and Export Wizard 10-10 Tags 10-4, 11-19
FactoryTalk View SE Explorer window in 2-4
activity messages in 15-3 exploring 2-3
documentation set P-2 opening editors 2-8
graphic objects in 20-1 running 2-1
logging on and off 5-4 status bar in 2-6
software components 1-4 toolbars in 2-3
system limits 14-10 workspace in 2-4
FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console Failed state 14-4
17-20, 18-9, 25-13 file formats
FactoryTalk View SE Client 1-4 for alarm log 11-28
changing passwords 5-7 for data logs 25-2
copying client files 17-17 for exported text strings 13-11
creating a new client file 17-17, 18-7 in Microsoft Excel 13-12
docking displays in 12-39, 19-45 Unicode text files 13-12
logging off 5-7, 17-19, 18-8 file functions 23-12
logging on to 17-19, 18-8 file types
object model 16-1, 16-4 graphics
Help for 16-8 importing 19-27
preventing scroll bars in 19-39 using bitmaps 19-28
setting up security for 5-20, 17-19, 18-9 log files 25-2
starting 17-18 ODBC alarm log 11-25
from Tools menu 17-18, 18-8 ODBC data log 25-3
multiple clients 17-18 fill animation 21-11
using .cli file 17-18 filtering alarms
when Windows starts 17-18, 18-8 in HMI tag alarm summaries 11-34
system limits 14-11 filtering tags 9-11
FactoryTalk View SE Server removing a filter 9-12
I–8
• • • • •
INDEX
finding information linking grouped objects 20-51

about FactoryTalk Alarms and Events updating at run time 19-2
12-4 tag placeholders in 19-32, 19-33
about FactoryTalk Security 5-2 modifying 19-35
Index
about FactoryTalk View SE P-2 graphic displays 19-1
in this manual P-2 aligning objects in 19-11
on the Internet P-3 appearance of 19-35
flipping graphic objects 19-14 arranging objects in 19-10
FlushCache command 19-41, 19-44 assigning parameter files to 19-31
running on shutdown 19-41 behavior of 19-35
fonts 20-7 caching 19-38, 22-6
for Windows languages 13-5 using the Display command 19-43
in HMI tag alarm summaries 11-32 color for input objects in 19-42
substituting at run time 20-7 commands
Foreground Color palette 19-18 display caching parameters 19-43
functions Download 20-23
See expressions, built-in functions DownloadAll 20-23
FlushCache 19-41, 19-44
G PrintDisplay 19-48
PullForward 19-37
gauge and graph objects 20-1
PushBack 19-37
bar graph 20-29
RecipeRestore 20-37
using to compare values 20-28
RecipeSave 20-38, 20-39
gauge 20-29
ScreenPrint 19-48
using to show limits 20-27
SetFocus 19-37
scale 20-29
shutdown 19-41
global object displays 19-24
startup 19-41
at run time 19-25
Upload 20-23, 20-38
base objects in 19-2
UploadAll 20-23, 20-38
creating 19-24, 19-25
creating Help for 21-21
from standard display 19-25
creating templates for 3-11, 19-44
creating global objects in 19-2, 20-46
default settings for 19-44
file type 19-24
defining display keys 21-19
location of 19-24
designing 3-10
global objects 19-24, 20-2, 20-46
docking 12-39, 19-45
animating 21-7
closing docked displays 19-47
base objects 19-2
duplicating objects in 19-9
breaking links 20-51
exporting to XML D-1
in global object displays 19-24
flipping objects in 19-14
parameter values for 19-33
global object displays 19-24
reference objects 19-2
grouping objects in 19-15
and the graphic libraries 20-48
HMI tag alarm information in 11-9
breaking links 20-51
importing XML D-3
creating 20-47
improving performance 19-43
link to base object 20-47
interactive objects in 19-42
linked properties 20-48
line properties for objects in 19-19
I–9
• • • • •
modifying object groups in 19-17 See drawing objects

naming objects in 19-19 gauges and graphs
navigating 22-1 See gauge and graph objects
using a hierarchy 3-10, 22-1 indicators
using buttons 22-5 See indicator objects
using keys 22-4 keys
On Top type 19-37 See key objects
Overlay type 19-36 numeric and string
patterns for objects in 19-18 See numeric and string objects
positioning displays 19-40 OLE
positioning objects 19-7 See OLE objects
printing 2-15, 19-48 push buttons
at run time 2-16 See push button objects
Replace type 19-36 trend
replacing text strings in 19-21 See trends
resizing displays 19-39 graphic objects 20-1
resizing objects in 19-9 aligning 19-11
rotating objects in 19-15 applying animation to 21-2
running multiple copies 19-37 See also animation
securing 5-18, 19-40 arranging 19-10
selecting objects in 19-8 assigning expressions to 19-20
spacing objects in 19-13 assigning tags to 19-20
stacking objects in 19-10 captions 20-7
startup and shutdown commands 19-41 embedded variables in 24-2
tag limits 9-5, 20-21 checking index numbers 21-15
testing 19-23 choosing text fonts 20-7
animation in 21-6 common properties of 20-3
object states in 19-23 converting 19-28
trends in 26-4 defining object keys 21-17
title bar 19-38 duplicating 19-9
embedded variables in 24-3 exporting to XML D-1
tooltips for objects in 19-21 flipping 19-14
ungrouping objects in 19-16 for displaying data 20-19
wallpaper 19-22 for inputting data 20-19
xml import and export 19-2 importing 19-27
zooming in and out 19-6 importing XML D-3
graphic libraries line properties 19-19
See libraries modifying groups 19-17
graphic object types 20-1 modifying properties 20-6
ActiveX names for 19-19
See ActiveX objects patterns for 19-18
advanced positioning in display grid 19-7
See advanced objects replacing text in 19-21
alarm and event resizing 19-9
See alarm and event objects rotating 19-15
drawing selecting 19-8
I–10
• • • • •
INDEX
using keyboard 20-10 adding to an application 2-11

spacing 19-13 as command parameters A-6
stacking 19-10 creating 2-10
supplying tags for 20-9 file names 2-12
Index
testing states 19-23 maximum length 2-12
tooltips 19-21 spaces in 2-12
embedded variables in 24-3 in Explorer window 2-10
using data in 20-9 in HMI servers 6-5
using index numbers to navigate 21-14 opening 2-11
viewing states 19-23 relative references to 6-6
in Property Panel 19-24 viewing 2-10
in States toolbar 19-23 HMI projects 6-5, 7-4
Graphics editor 19-3 deleting project files 6-20
display area 19-4 gaining access to folder 2-2
shortcut menus 19-8 moving project files 17-6
status bar 19-4 HMI servers 6-4
toolbars 19-3, 19-7 about redundancy for 6-8
ActiveX toolbox 20-54 See also system availability
group edit mode 19-17 adding to an application 6-11
grouped objects 19-15 as DDE client B-2
animating 21-5 copying 17-7
ungrouping 19-16 deleting 6-19
HMI services
H starting manually 17-14
stopping manually 17-13
HandshakeOn command 11-13
in local applications 7-2, 7-4
handshaking
in network applications 6-2
for Enter key 20-43, 20-45
installing the HMIBackup utility 17-8
handshake bit 11-13
limits in redundant system 14-11
Health Monitoring Policy 14-31
monitoring disk space 17-21
highlight
monitoring status 7-9
enabling or disabling 19-42
On active macro 6-18
for ActiveX objects 20-10
On standby macro 6-18
for trend objects 20-10, 26-13
properties 6-14, 7-7, 17-10, 18-5
historical alarms and events 12-14
running multiple servers 6-13
HMI analog tags 10-1
showing in Tag Browser 9-9
setting up alarms for 11-20
starting and stopping 17-12, 18-5
HMI clients 6-5, 7-4
startup components 6-17
HMI device tags
synchronizing with projects 17-14
data sources for 10-8
using multiple servers 6-12
DDE communications B-2
HMI string tags 10-1
HMI digital tags 10-1
HMI system tags 10-1
setting up alarms for 11-20
HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer 11-27
HMI memory tags 10-9
HMI tag alarms 9-3, 11-1, 12-4
HMI project components
acknowledging 11-10, 11-12
absolute references to 6-6
acknowledge bit 11-12
I–11
• • • • •
alarm banner 11-6 charting in trends 26-15

alarm displays 11-7 commands
alarm events 11-21 Acknowledge 11-10
logging 11-23 AcknowledgeAll 11-10
alarm faults 11-4 AlarmLogRemark 11-26, 11-38
alarm log files 11-7 AlarmOff 11-8, 11-40
adding remarks to 11-26 AlarmOn 11-13, 11-40, 25-14
creating 11-24, 11-25 HandshakeOn 11-13
limits 11-28 Identify 11-39
location 11-24 SuppressOn 11-10
names 11-28 deadband 11-5
viewing 11-27 defining alarm conditions 11-19
alarm logging 11-23 for analog tags 11-20
exporting to ODBC 11-25 for digital tags 11-20
on redundant servers 11-16 in Tags editor 11-14, 11-19
to ODBC 11-25 Execute command 11-37
alarm messages 11-17 for analog tags 11-20
Acknowledged 11-17 for digital tags 11-20
custom messages 11-19 handshake bit 11-13
In Alarm 11-17 handshaking
Out of alarm 11-17 switching on 11-13
placeholders in 11-18 Identify button 11-39
system defaults 11-18 ODBC alarm log tables C-1
types 11-7 Suppressed List 11-29
user default 11-19 suppressing 11-10
alarm monitoring system tags 11-9
on redundant servers 11-16 tag placeholders in 11-35
setting up 11-15 HMI tags 9-1, 9-4
starting and stopping 11-39 analog tags 10-1
alarm severity 11-6 browsing 9-9
setting up 11-16 creating 10-6, 10-9, 28-3, 29-2
alarm summary 11-8, 20-31, 21-22 in Tag Browser 9-12
buttons 11-33 data sources for 10-2
colors 11-32 DDE B-2
creating 11-30 deleting 10-7
filtering data 11-34 designing a database 3-7
fonts 11-32 device tags 10-2
inserting headings 11-31 digital tags 10-1
showing areas 11-34 duplicating 10-7
sorting data 11-34 importing 10-10
alarm thresholds 11-3 in Tag Browser 9-12
variable thresholds 11-4 memory data source 10-9
and FactoryTalk alarms 12-2 memory tags 9-3
built-in functions 11-11, 23-15 minimum and maximum values 9-2
acknowledged 11-11 modifying 10-7
in alarm 11-11 naming 10-3
I–12
• • • • •
INDEX
offsetting values 9-2 breaking inheritance 5-33

organizing in folders 10-3 overriding inheritance 5-34
scaling values 9-2 input focus
setting up alarms for 11-20 giving to graphic objects 20-10
Index
setting up security for 5-19, 9-2 specifying behavior 19-42
string tags 10-1 input objects 20-19
syntax for OPC addresses 10-8 commands
system tags 10-1 Download 20-23
Tags editor 10-4 DownloadAll 20-23
using in expressions 10-3 NextPosition 21-16
HMIBackup utility 17-8 Position 21-16
home area 6-5, 9-6 PrevPosition 21-16
finding tags in 9-9 Upload 20-23, 20-38
horizontal position animation 21-11 UploadAll 20-23, 20-38
horizontal slider animation 21-13 highlight for
Host unreachable 14-4 enabling or disabling 19-42
question marks in 20-37
I retrieving data using 20-20
sending data using 20-20
Identify command 11-39
shortcut keys for 20-22
if-then-else expressions 23-19
specifying behavior for 19-42
images 20-8
specifying color for 19-42
importing 20-9
updating values continuously 20-21
pasting into displays 20-9
validating operator input 20-22
placing in displays 20-8
interactive objects
importing
specifying behavior of 19-42
graphic displays D-1
translated text files
See also advanced objects
interlocked push buttons 20-12, 20-17
See language switching
Invoke command 21-25
index numbers 21-14
checking 21-15
modifying 21-17 K
removing 20-11 key list 21-19
indicator objects 20-1 disabling 21-20
connecting to tags 20-26 key navigation 20-10
indicator tag 20-26, 20-45 turning off 20-11
list indicator 20-25 key objects 20-1, 20-30
creating 20-27 auto-repeat for 20-31
multistate indicator 20-25 backspace 20-30
creating 20-26 End 20-30
states for 20-25 Enter 20-30
least significant bit 20-26 Home 20-30
symbol indicator 20-25 Move down 20-30
creating 20-26 Move left 20-30
information messages 15-3 Move right 20-30
inheriting security permissions 5-33 Move up 20-30
I–13
• • • • •
Page down 20-30 support in graphic libraries 13-26

Page up 20-30 text files
Send press to 20-31 importing 13-20
keyboard shortcuts 22-8 troubleshooting imports 13-21
keypad for numeric input 19-43 text strings
keys 20-29, 22-6 exporting 13-9
See also key list optimizing duplicate strings 13-15
See also special keys that do not allow switching 13-2
animation 20-29 troubleshooting exports 13-11
arrow keys in trends 26-28 undefined 13-9
client keys 21-17 latched push buttons 20-12, 20-15
display keys 21-19 level alarms 12-7
Enter key handshaking 20-40 libraries 19-27
object keys 21-17 global objects in 20-48
on-screen keyboard 19-43, 20-23, 20-29 location of files 19-27
opening displays with 22-4 support for languages in 13-26
precedence among key types 22-7 using for trends 26-21
running commands with 21-20 line properties 19-19
shortcut keys 22-8 list indicators 20-25, 20-27
using to scroll lists 20-39 Loading state 14-4
viewing at run time 21-19 local applications 2-1, 7-1
administering at run time 18-10
L creating 7-5
importing projects 7-5
Language command 13-26
data servers in 7-2
Language Configuration dialog box 13-9,
deleting 7-10
13-20
deploying
language function 23-18
language switching 13-1
See deploying local applications
HMI server in 7-2
application languages 13-6
properties 7-7
adding 13-8
parts of 7-1
current language 13-7
renaming 7-10
default language 13-6
run-time client for 18-7
maximum number 13-1
security for 7-4
selecting 13-6
setting up the Local Directory 4-7
exported text files
structure of 7-1
Microsoft Excel files 13-13, 13-17
local message displays 20-31, 20-34
duplicate strings 13-15
local messages 20-34
format 13-12
embedded variables in 24-2
translating strings 13-15
logging off
Unicode files 13-12 at run time 5-7, 17-19, 18-8
format 13-16 from FactoryTalk View SE 5-4
schema 13-18 logging on
in local messages 13-2 at run time 17-19, 18-8
installing Windows languages 13-6 single sign-on 5-5
regional settings and 13-2 to FactoryTalk View SE 5-4
I–14
• • • • •
INDEX
logging paths for HMI projects 17-6

See data logging, paths moving graphic objects 21-11
logging system activity multistate indicators 20-25, 20-26
See FactoryTalk Diagnostics multistate push buttons 20-12, 20-16
Index
logical operators 23-7
login and logout macros 27-5 N
Logix5000 devices 9-5
network
alarm instructions in 12-2
planning layout of 3-2
network applications 2-1, 6-1
M adding Tag Alarm and Event Servers
macros 27-1 6-12, 7-7
assigning to FactoryTalk View users 5-16 administering at run time 17-21

creating 27-1 areas in 6-2
identifying HMI tag alarms with 11-39 adding 6-10
login and logout 5-15, 27-5 deleting 6-10
nesting 27-4 home area 6-5
On active macro 6-18 computer accounts for 5-25, 5-26
On standby macro 6-18 creating 6-9
setting up security for 5-17 data servers in 6-2
startup and shutdown 19-41, 27-5 adding data servers 6-12
using parameters in 27-3 deleting 6-21
using with trends 26-22 deploying
maintained push buttons 20-11, 20-14 See deploying network applications
math functions 23-11 HMI servers in 6-2
methods 21-25 adding HMI servers 6-10
and Invoke command 21-25 properties 6-14
Microsoft Access 25-3 managing multiple 4-4
Microsoft Excel parts of 6-2
and data logging 25-1 referring to components in 6-6
and FactoryTalk Diagnostics 15-1 renaming 6-21
creating HMI tags in 10-9 run-time clients for 17-16
saving exported text files in 13-17 setting up security for 5-38
viewing HMI tag alarm logs in 11-7 specifying the Network Directory location
working with text strings in 13-13 4-4, 4-5
Microsoft SQL Server 25-3 structure of 6-1

Microsoft Visual Basic network glitch 14-32
and DDE communications B-2 NextPosition command 21-16
viewing HMI tag alarm logs in 11-7 Non-Allen-Bradley devices 1-9, 8-1, B-2
Modicon devices 1-9, 8-1, B-2 Not configured state 14-6
modifying grouped objects 19-17 Not loaded state 14-5
module called ThisDisplay 16-4 numeric and string objects 20-1
momentary push buttons 20-11, 20-13 and electronic signatures 20-57
monitoring HMI server status 7-9 display objects 20-19
moving files numeric displays 20-24
for data servers 17-15, 18-6 string displays 20-24
I–15
• • • • •
input objects 20-19 OPC-DA data items

and on-screen keyboard 20-23 See tags, data server tags
numeric inputs 20-25 optimizing duplicate text strings 13-15
string inputs 20-25 Overlay type graphic displays 19-36
selecting using keyboard 20-10
numeric embedded variables 24-3 P
at run time 24-9
panel graphic object 20-8
parameter files
O assigning to graphic displays 19-31
Object Browser in VBA 16-7 pattern colors 19-19
object keys 21-17 pattern styles 19-18
creating 21-17 piloted control list selectors 20-31, 20-41
key list 21-19 placeholders
precedence 22-7 See also tag placeholders
running commands with 21-20 in commands 27-2
object model using in animation 21-3
See FactoryTalk View SE Client using in expressions 23-5
Object Smart Path 21-5 polygon graphic object 20-5
objects polyline graphic object 20-5
See graphic objects Position command 21-16
ODBC data logging precedence
See data logging among key types 22-7
ODBC databases and embedded ActiveX objects 22-7
for FactoryTalk Diagnostics 15-5 and embedded OLE objects 22-8
ODBC log tables and the F1 key 22-7
data logging C-3 general rules 22-7
HMI tag alarms C-1 shortcut keys 22-10
ODBC schemas PrevPosition command 21-16
See ODBC storage format PrintDisplay command 19-48
ODBC storage format printing 2-15
data log files 25-1, 25-3 at run time 2-16
offline tags 9-12, 9-13 selecting a printer 2-16
offsetting tag values 9-2 Procedure window in VBA 16-4
OLE for Process Control procedures in VBA code 16-2
See data servers, OPC process faceplates
OLE objects 20-2, 20-51 adding to an application 19-26
animating verbs 21-14 Programmatic ID 8-10
setting up security for 5-18 Project Explorer in VBA 16-4
On active macro 14-30 Properties window in VBA 16-4
On standby macro 6-18, 14-30 Property Panel 19-17
On Top type graphic displays 19-37 assigning expressions in 19-20
online changes 14-2 assigning tags in 19-20
for HMI tag alarms 14-26 using with ActiveX objects 21-23
for HMI tags 14-23 protecting against system failure
on-screen keyboard 19-43, 20-23 See system availability
I–16
• • • • •
INDEX
push button objects 20-1, 20-11 replicating changes 17-14

button 20-11, 20-12 reserved keys
interlocked 20-12, 20-17 See shortcut keys
latched 20-12, 20-15 resizing graphic objects 19-9
Index
maintained 20-11, 20-14 restoring network applications 17-9
momentary 20-11, 20-13 Rockwell Automation
multistate 20-12, 20-16 contacting P-4
ramp 20-12, 20-18 technical support P-4
run-time error state for 20-17 web sites P-3
selecting using keyboard 20-10 Rockwell Automation Device Servers 12-6,
12-18
Q See also data servers, RSLinx Enterprise
rotating graphic objects 19-15, 21-11
Quick Start
rotation animation 21-11
VBA code 16-2
rounded rectangle graphic object 20-4
RSAssetSecurity
R See FactoryTalk Security
ramp push buttons 20-12, 20-18 RSLinx Enterprise
Ready to provide service 14-4 See data servers
recipe objects 20-31 RSLogix 5000 9-5
recipes 20-36 run time
and on-screen keyboard 19-43, 20-23 authorizing operations 20-55
commands docking displays to client window 12-39,
Download 20-23 19-45
DownloadAll 20-23 font substitution 20-7
RecipeRestore 20-37 global object displays 19-25
RecipeSave 20-39 preventing scroll bars 19-39
Upload 20-23, 20-38 restoring recipes 20-36
UploadAll 20-23, 20-38 setting up FactoryTalk View SE Clients
index numbers in 21-16 for local applications 18-7
rectangle graphic object 20-4 for network applications 17-16
reference objects 19-2, 19-24, 20-47 troubleshooting trends 26-29
See also global objects updating reference objects 19-2
creating 20-47 running
linking to base object 19-24 FactoryTalk View Studio 2-1
linked properties 20-48, 21-7 Samples Water client 1-12
parameter values for 19-33 Runtime Secured Commands editor 5-17
updating at run time 19-2 Runtime Security
referencing tags 9-6 See security codes
relational operators 23-7 Runtime Security editor 5-11
relative references 6-6
in commands A-5 S
syntax 6-6
Samples Water 1-10
to tags 9-6
in FactoryTalk View Studio 1-11, 2-2
remote access tag 20-45
running 1-12
Replace type graphic displays 19-36
I–17
• • • • •
testing 1-12 for backing up applications 17-4, 18-3

scale graphic object 20-29 for creating applications 6-9, 7-6
scaling tag values 9-2 for deleting applications 6-22, 7-10,
ScreenPrint command 19-48 8-5
scroll bars for deleting areas 6-14
preventing in client window 19-39 for deleting HMI servers 6-20
SE HMI Tag Alarm Log Viewer 11-7 for enabling FactoryTalk alarms 12-44
security 5-1 for exporting FactoryTalk alarms
See also FactoryTalk Security 12-60
built-in functions 23-17 for exporting text strings 13-10

electronic signatures 20-55 for modifying applications 6-9, 7-6
for commands 20-56 for modifying servers 6-19, 7-9, 17-11,
for downloads 20-56 17-16
for HMI project components 5-9 for renaming applications 6-22, 7-10
for system resources 5-28, 5-31 for resetting latched alarms 12-44
for tag writes 20-56 for restoring applications 17-9, 18-3
locking users into FactoryTalk View for running FactoryTalk View SE Client
5-20, 17-19, 18-9 17-19, 18-8
logging on at run time 17-19, 18-8 for suppressing FactoryTalk alarms

planning 3-8 12-44
security codes for writing to tags 17-19

for commands and macros 5-17 denying an action 5-31
for FactoryTalk View commands 5-17 explicit permissions 5-34
for FactoryTalk View users 5-12 for backup and restore operations 17-5,
for graphic displays 5-18, 19-40 17-10, 18-4
for HMI tags 5-20 for switching servers 14-20
for macros 5-17 inherited permissions 5-33
for OLE object verbs 5-18 overriding 5-34
Unspecified_Command 5-17 precedence 5-35
security permissions selecting objects 19-8
Alarming actions Server Status dialog box 6-19, 7-9, 14-3
for acknowledging FactoryTalk alarms SetFocus command 19-37
12-44 short file names
for enabling FactoryTalk alarms 12-44 for alarm logs 11-28
for resetting latched alarms 12-44 shortcut menus 2-13, 19-8
for suppressing FactoryTalk alarms showing and hiding objects 21-8
12-44 Siemens devices 1-9, 8-1, B-2
assigning by action 5-30 signature button 20-55
assigning by user 5-30 creating 20-57
Common actions 5-38 single sign-on 5-5
for acknowledging FactoryTalk alarms spacing graphic objects 19-13
12-44 special keys
for adding areas 6-14 Ctrl 20-4, 20-5
for adding device servers 12-21 drawing objects with 20-6
for adding servers 6-14, 7-7, 8-5, PgDn 20-37
12-23 PgUp 20-38
I–18
• • • • •
INDEX
precedence 22-10 string variables with tags 24-6

Shift-Tab 21-17 time and date variables 24-8
shortcut keys 22-8 system availability 6-8
Ctrl-PgDn 20-22 and non-redundant HMI servers 14-6
Index
Ctrl-PgUp 20-23 and the Network Directory 4-8, 14-8
Enter 20-23 application server redundancy 6-13, 14-2,
PgDn 20-22 14-8, 14-12
PgUp 20-23 client and server connections 14-31
Tab 20-23 features in FactoryTalk View SE 3-8,
Tab 21-16 14-1
square graphic object 20-4 Health Monitoring Policy 14-31
stacking graphic objects 19-10 HMI server redundancy 6-8, 6-16, 14-13,
stand-alone applications 14-14
See local applications copying project files 14-14
Standby macro failover to secondary 14-21
See On standby macro limits 14-11
Standby state 14-6 On standby macro 6-18
Starting state 14-4 replicating changes 6-17, 14-16, 17-14
Startup macro 27-5 server failure conditions 14-21
using with trends 26-22 specifying the Network Directory
States toolbar 19-17, 19-23 14-13
status tags 12-14 specifying the secondary server 6-17

string display objects 20-24 switchback options 14-22
string embedded variables 24-5 notifying clients 14-22
at run time 24-9 synchronizing servers and projects
string input objects 20-25 17-14
and electronic signatures 20-57 managing data 14-29

Suppressed List 11-29 for derived tags 14-31
suppressing alarms for HMI tag alarms 14-29
FactoryTalk alarms 12-43 for logging 14-30
HMI tag alarms 11-10 for running events 14-30
symbol indicators 20-25, 20-26 monitoring server status 6-19, 14-2
symbols A-6 for Network Directory server 14-7
Define command A-6, A-7 network glitches 14-32
Undefine command A-7 On active macro 14-30
Synchronized - ready to be Active 14-5 On standby macro 14-30
Synchronized - ready to be Standby 14-5 online changes 14-2, 14-23
Synchronizing with active 14-5 to HMI tag alarms 14-26
Synchronizing with standby 14-5 to HMI tags 14-23
syntax OPC server redundancy 8-10
checking in expressions 23-4 specifying the secondary server 8-11
for DDE communications B-3 switchback options 8-11
for embedded variables planning 3-8
numeric variables with numbers 24-4 for availability 3-8
numeric variables with tags 24-4 for redundancy 14-9
string variables with strings 24-6 RSLinx Enterprise redundancy 8-7
I–19
• • • • •
specifying the secondary server 8-7 as command parameters A-6

switchback options 8-8 assigning to graphic objects 19-20, 20-9
switching Active and Standby 14-20 browsing for 9-7
system tags 10-1, 10-2 offline browsing 9-13
for HMI tag alarms 11-9 data server tags 9-1
setting up 9-3
T HMI tags
tab index 21-14
See HMI tags
home area 9-9
removing 20-11
in expressions 23-5
tab sequence 21-14
with built-in functions 23-15
checking index numbers 21-15
in graphic objects
creating 21-16
updating values continuously 20-21
modifying index numbers 21-17
limits in graphic displays 9-5, 19-1, 20-21
removing objects from 20-11
logging values 9-5, 25-7
Tag Alarm and Event Servers 12-6, 12-21
write values 15-4
Tag Browser 9-7
properties in tag labels 20-32
browsing offline tags 9-12
relative references 9-6
RSLinx Enterprise 9-13
updating values 20-22
creating HMI tags in 9-12, 10-10
using in editors 2-14
displaying tag properties 9-10
using in trends 26-12
filtering tags 9-11
with placeholders in commands 27-2, A-2
finding home area 9-9
Tags editor 11-14
importing PLC tags in 9-12
Test Display mode 19-23, 21-6, 26-4
modifying HMI tags in 9-12
testing graphic displays 1-12
removing a filter 9-12
text graphic object 20-7
showing server names 9-9
ThisDisplay module 16-4
using wildcards in 9-12
time and date
tag functions 23-15
displays 20-31, 20-33
Tag Import and Export Wizard 10-10
embedded variables 24-7, 24-9
tag labels 20-31, 20-32
time functions 23-13
tag placeholders 19-29
title bar 19-38
assigning to global objects 19-32
toolbars 2-3, 19-3
creating 19-30
hiding and showing 2-6
in FactoryTalk View commands A-2
States toolbar 19-23
in HMI tag alarm summaries 11-35
tooltips 19-21
replacing at run time 11-36
top position tag 20-45
using parameter files 19-30
touch animation 21-13
tag substitution 19-21
tracking-related events 12-6
tag-based alarms 11-2, 12-4
trends 26-1
tags 9-1
and the Display command 26-22
absolute references 9-6
as graphic objects 20-32
addressing syntax
background color 26-13
DDE B-3
chart scale 26-6
OPC 10-8
charts 26-5
and object animation 21-3
plotting an XY chart 26-10
I–20
• • • • •
INDEX
standard plotting 26-10 U

comparing data 26-18
Undefine command A-7
comparing pens 26-15
undefined text strings 13-9
creating 26-2
Index
ungrouping graphic objects 19-16
displaying tag values 26-12
Upload command 20-23, 20-38
highlighting in a display 20-10
UploadAll command 20-23, 20-38
in graphic libraries 26-21
user accounts 5-25
isolated graphing 26-11
legends 26-7
See also FactoryTalk Security
Administrators group 5-23
current value legend 26-7, 26-14
authorizing 5-1
line legend 26-7, 26-15
in FactoryTalk View
x-axis and y-axis 26-6
adding 5-11
modifying properties 26-13
removing 5-16
at run time 26-23
login and logout macros for 5-15, 27-5
overlays 26-18
Windows-linked users 5-24
adding 26-19
at runtime 26-28
panning in 26-27 V
parts of 26-5 value tag 20-45
pens 26-7 VBA
icons 26-7 Help for 16-8
markers 26-8 VBA code
selecting at run time 26-23 planning how to use 3-14
shading in 26-15 using to animate ActiveX objects 21-22
planning 3-12 using with ActiveX objects 21-25
printing 26-28 VBA documentation 16-8
running in the background 26-22 VBA IDE 16-1, 16-3
scrolling 26-24 about procedures 16-2
shading 26-15 Object Browser 16-7
snapshots 26-18 Procedure window 16-4
adding as an overlay 26-19 Project Explorer 16-4
creating 26-19 Properties window 16-4
templates 26-20 ThisDisplay module 16-4
loading 26-21 VBA Integrated Development Environment
testing 26-4 See VBA IDE
troubleshooting 26-29 vertical position animation 21-11
using at run time 26-22 vertical slider animation 21-14
using multiple pens 26-11 viewing objects 16-7
value bar 26-9 visibility animation 21-8
delta value bar 26-26 visible states tag 20-45
x-axis 26-6
y-axis 26-6 W
zooming 26-27
wallpaper 19-22
warning messages 15-3
wedge graphic object 20-6
I–21
• • • • •
width animation 21-13 creating D-1

wildcards exporting D-1
filtering tags using 9-12 importing D-3
in FactoryTalk View commands A-2 modifying D-2
in HMI tag alarm functions 11-12 structure D-4
Windows testing D-3
regional settings 13-2
workgroups 4-4 Z
zoom
X in graphic displays 19-6
XML files D-1 in trends 26-27
I–22

FactoryTalk View SE Users Guide Volume 1

Uploaded by

FactoryTalk View SE Users Guide Volume 1

Uploaded by

VIEWSE-UM004E-EN-E–July 2007 4/24/07 11:32 AM Page 1

View Site Edition

USER’S GUIDE VOLUME 1

1 • Getting started with FactoryTalk View SE

2 • Exploring FactoryTalk View Studio

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Opening the Samples Water application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2

Deciding when to use HMI tags. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-7

4 • Setting up FactoryTalk Directory

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Removing All Users from the Runtime Security list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-14

6 • Working with network applications

System availability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-8

7 • Working with local applications

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Importing a project into a new application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-5

9 • Working with tags

Observing tag-related limits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-5

10 • Creating HMI tags

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Defining alarm conditions for HMI tags. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-11

11 • Setting up HMI tag alarms

Inserting headings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-31

12 • Setting up FactoryTalk alarms

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Working with Tag Alarm and Event Servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-21

What happens if the alarm source becomes unavailable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-58

13 • Setting up language switching

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Language support in new graphic libraries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13-26

14 • Setting up FactoryTalk system availability

Monitoring network client and server connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14-31

15 • Logging system activity

16 • Using the FactoryTalk View SE Client object model

17 • Deploying network applications

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Copying an HMI server that is not running . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-7

18 • Deploying local applications

Creating a new client configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-7

19 • Creating graphic displays

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Adding standard displays that contain reference objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19-25

20 • Creating graphic objects

Adding images into graphic displays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-8

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Creating arrows. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-32

Deploying ActiveX components automatically at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-55

21 • Animating graphic objects

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Viewing the key list at run time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21-19

Math functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23-11

24 • Creating embedded variables

25 • Setting up data logging

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Switching back manually to the primary path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25-10

Using shading to compare pens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26-15

28 • Using derived tags

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

Creating a derived tags component . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28-3

A • FactoryTalk View commands

B • Setting up DDE communications for HMI tags

Specifying Device as the data source . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B-2

C • ODBC database schemas

D • Importing and exporting XML files

About RSView Enterprise

RSView SE Client™ FactoryTalk View SE Client

RSView SE Server™ FactoryTalk View SE Server

RSView SE Administration Console™ FactoryTalk View SE Administration Console

RSView Machine Edition™ (ME) FactoryTalk View Machine Edition (ME)

RSView ME Station™ FactoryTalk View Machine Edition Station

FACTORYTALK VIEW SITE EDITION USER’S GUIDE

About the FactoryTalk View SE documentation

What’s in this manual

 features that support system availability at run time.

To open the User’s Guide

Finding information about FactoryTalk View SE

features that support system availability at run time.

The Rockwell Automation Home Page offers general information about

the type of hardware you are using

FactoryTalk Security centralizes user authentication and authorization at the

use FactoryTalk Security services to centralize the authentication and authorization of

Machine Edition to create or open a FactoryTalk View Machine Edition application.