LabVIEW 8.2.1 Datalogging and Supervisory Control Module Readme
February 2007
This file contains important information about the LabVIEW 8.2.1 Datalogging and Supervisory Control (DSC) Module, including installation and upgrade issues, compatibility issues, and changes from the DSC Module 8.0. Refer to the LabVIEW Upgrade Notes and to the LabVIEW Datalogging and Supervisory Control Module Release and Upgrade Notes for more information about upgrade and compatibility issues, a complete list of new features in LabVIEW 8.0, and installation instructions. You can access the LabVIEW Upgrade Notes by selecting Help»Search the LabVIEW Help in LabVIEW and navigating to the LabVIEW Documentation Resources book on the Contents tab. You can access the LabVIEW Datalogging and Supervisory Control Module Release and Upgrade Notes by selecting Help»Search the LabVIEW Help in LabVIEW and navigating to the DSC Module»DSC Module Related Documentation topic on the Contents tab.
Refer to the labview\readme directory for readme files about LabVIEW add-ons, including the DSC Module.
Supported Platforms
Installation Instructions
Installing the LabVIEW Datalogging and Supervisory Control Module Silently
Licensing
DSC Module 8.2 Features and Changes
Known Issues
Bug Fixes
Documentation Additions
The DSC Module supports Windows Vista/XP/2000. The DSC Module does not support Windows NT/Me/98/95/Server 2003. Refer to the LabVIEW Datalogging and Supervisory Control Module Release and Upgrade Notes for a complete list of system requirements.
Refer to the LabVIEW Datalogging and Supervisory Control Module Release and Upgrade Notes for installation instructions. The following list describes additional installation considerations.
- (Windows 2000) The computer must have the following components installed:
- Windows 2000 Service Pack 4
- Internet Explorer 6 Service Pack 1 or later
- The DSC Module requires Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) 2.8 SP1 or later.
- The DSC Module requires the Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express Edition (SQL Express). This component is installed by default when you install the DSC Module. During the installation process, the DSC Module installer creates an instance of SQL Express named CITADEL. To prevent unauthorized access to SQL Express, the installer also generates a password for the SQL Express administrator sa. The default password is the computer ID. Complete the following steps to find the computer ID using NI License Manager.
- Launch NI License Manager by selecting Start»Programs»National Instruments»NI License Manager.
- Click the Display Computer Information button in the toolbar.
The DSC Module installer enables a mixed security mode on existing SQL Servers. If the target computer does not have an SQL Server installed, the DSC Module installer installs SQL Express in the mixed security mode.
Use the following command line prompt to change the default password for the sa user:
Sqlcmd -S"localhost\CITADEL" -U"sa" -P"COMPUTER_ID" -Q"sp_password 'COMPUTER_ID', 'NEW_PASSWORD', 'sa'"
If the mixed security mode is not acceptable, change both the SQL Express and Citadel login modes. You must set the registry DWORD values HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MSSQLServer\MSSQLServer\LoginMode and HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\National Instruments\Citadel\5.0\IntegratedSecurity to 1.
National Instruments recommends that you change the login mode immediately after you install the DSC Module. Otherwise, you must relink all existing Citadel databases. Restart the SQL Express and Citadel services in order for changes to take effect. If you use integrated NT security, you might need to configure the server machine and all clients explicitly.
Note: The DSC Module 8.2 uses Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Desktop Engine (MSDE 2000), not SQL Express. If you upgrade the DSC Module 8.2 to the DSC Module 8.2.1, any existing databases continue to use MSDE 2000 for alarm logging, but new databases you create use SQL Express. If you detach an existing database from the DSC Module and then reattach the database, the DSC Module migrates the database to SQL Express.
You might want to uninstall MSDE 2000 after installing the DSC Module 8.2.1. Complete the following steps to uninstall MSDE 2000.
- Stop all running processes in the Variable Manager dialog box.
- Open NI Measurement & Automation Explorer (MAX) and select My System»Historical Data»Citadel 5 Universe from the Configuration tree.
- On the Databases page, detach all databases from the local computer.
- Open the Windows Control Panel and uninstall MSDE 2000.
- Restart the computer.
- Open MAX and reattach all databases.
- The OPC I/O server requires OPCEnum to browse for remote OPC servers. Depending on the configuration of the operating system, the DSC Module installer might not install OPCEnum properly. If OPCEnum does not install properly, navigate to the Bin\OPC Update directory on the LabVIEW Datalogging and Supervisory Control Module CD and install the OPC Core Components 2.00 Redistributable 2.20.msi file.
- The DSC Module uses the latest version of the NI Publish-Subscribe Protocol (NI-PSP) data transfer protocol. Although the NI-PSP data transfer protocol is backwards-compatible with earlier versions, installing the latest version of the NI-PSP data transfer protocol on earlier versions of the DSC Module provides enhanced performance.
You can control programmatically which features in the DSC Module distribution to enable or disable for installation. You therefore can install a subset of the DSC Module distribution silently. Refer to the silent_install.txt file in the Bin directory on the LabVIEW Datalogging and Supervisory Control Module CD for more information about installing the DSC Module silently and about feature selection automation.
Refer to the LabVIEW Release Notes for more information about licensing in LabVIEW.
Refer to the LabVIEW Help for programming concepts, step-by-step instructions, and reference information about the DSC Module 8.2 features. Access the LabVIEW Help by selecting Help»Search the LabVIEW Help.
Printing Alarms and Events
Use the Alarm Printer I/O server to print alarms and events that LabVIEW processes generate. You can print all available information about an alarm or event, or you can select the information you want to print.
Right-click My Computer or a project library name in the Project Explorer window and select New»I/O Server from the shortcut menu to display the Create New I/O Server dialog box. Select Alarm Printer from the I/O Server Type list and click the Continue button to display the Configure Alarm Printer Instance dialog box. After you configure and deploy this I/O server, LabVIEW prints any alarms or events that LabVIEW processes generate to the printer you specify.
Refer to the LabVIEW Help for more information about printing alarm and event data.
Programmatically Creating and Configuring I/O Servers
Use the Create and Configure IO Server Express VI to create or configure an I/O server programmatically. You can use this VI to create or configure a Modbus, ModbusSlave, or OPC I/O server. The configuration dialog boxes you use to configure the I/O servers are the same as those that appear when you create an I/O server from the Project Explorer window. However, you also can use the Create and Configure IO Server Express VI to modify the configuration of an I/O server at run-time.
Use the Create and Configure IO Server Express VI with the Create Process and the Create Shared Variable VIs to create or configure a process without using a LabVIEW library.
Use the Delete IO Server VI to delete an I/O server programmatically.
Refer to the LabVIEW Help for more information about creating and deleting Modbus, ModbusSlave, and OPC I/O servers.
Committing Multiple Shared Variables Simultaneously
Use the Commit Shared Variables VI to commit multiple shared variables to the Shared Variable Engine simultaneously. Use the set mode input of the Create Shared Variable VI to buffer shared variables that you create. Use the Property Set Mode property of the SharedVariableIO class to buffer shared variables that you modify. Then use the Commit Shared Variables VI to commit an array of buffered shared variables simultaneously.
Other New Features
The DSC Module also adds the following new features:
- Use the Save to Library VI to save the configuration of processes or shared variables to a library.
- Use the Historical Data Viewer ActiveX control to manage and view Citadel data and to convert earlier Citadel databases to later formats.
DSC Module 8.2 Changes
The DSC Module 8.2 includes the following miscellaneous changes:
- You no longer can select Tools»DSC Module»Multiple Variable Editor to display the Multiple Variable Editor. Select Tools»Shared Variable»Multiple Variable Editor instead.
- The Published Variable Monitor now is called the Shared Variable Monitor.
- If you save a Real-Time Trend Express VI in the DSC Module 8.0 and then open that VI in the DSC Module 8.2, you no longer can configure the Express VI. You must delete the Express VI and replace it with a new Real-Time Trend Express VI on the block diagram.
- In the DSC Module 8.0, if you make changes to a shared variable in the Multiple Variable Editor window and click the Spreadsheet without first clicking the Apply button, LabVIEW discards the changes as though you clicked the Revert button. If you make changes to a shared variable and then add a new shared variable, duplicate the shared variable, or click the Previous or Next buttons without first clicking the Apply button, LabVIEW applies the changes you made. In the DSC Module 8.2, LabVIEW prompts you to apply changes when you click the Spreadsheet, add a new shared variable, duplicate a shared variable before applying changes to the original shared variable, or click on the Previous or Next buttons. If you do not click the Apply button before you save the current project library or close the Multiple Variable Editor window, LabVIEW does not apply the changes you made.
- If you have Windows Vista installed, you have restricted access to the system by default even if you log in as an administrator. Windows Vista sets part of the file system to read-only, and the DSC Module might not have sufficient access rights for some files. To ensure that datalogging to the Citadel database is successful, you must specify an appropriate database location to which the DSC Module has full access. By default, the DSC Module configures appropriate access rights for the labview\data folder and stores the database in that folder. If you want to store the database in a different folder, ensure that the folder meets the following requirements:
- The database folder is readable by all members of the USERS group. The Citadel database is a shared resource and must be available to all users of the system. Alarm logging fails if the database folder is not readable to all users.
- The database folder is writable by the user who wants to log data.
- The database folder is readable and writable by the SYSTEM user. The Citadel service runs as a SYSTEM user and must have sufficient access rights to manage the database files.
- The database folder is writable by the NETWORK SERVICE user. By default, the folders under the C:\Users directory and the top-level folders that the NETWORK SERVICE user creates are writable by that user.
If you do not store the database in the labview\data folder, National Instruments recommends that you place the database under the Windows Public user directory, located at C:\Users\Public. This folder always meets the requirements above. Do not use the following folders to store the database:
- C:\Windows—The system has highly restricted access to this folder.
- C:\Users\Username—This folder is visible only to the owning user, so the system has restricted access to this folder.
- Because the default fonts on Windows Vista are different than the default fonts on previous versions of Windows, you might notice cosmetic issues, such as overlapping or truncated text strings, in VIs and LabVIEW dialog boxes. To correct this problem, change the theme of the operating system to Windows Classic in the Theme Settings dialog box and then restart LabVIEW. Select Start»Control Panel»Appearance and Personalization and click Change the theme to display the Theme Settings dialog box.
- If you have Windows XP installed, the DSC Module stores the Citadel database in the labview\data folder by default. If you want to store the database in a different folder, ensure that the folder is writable by the NETWORK SERVICE user.
- If you have Windows XP Service Pack 2 installed, DSC Module networking does not function as expected. You must manually configure the Windows firewall Exceptions list and reboot the computer. Refer to the National Instruments Web site at ni.com/info and enter the info code exprc4 for more information about correcting this problem.
- If you uninstall the DSC Module 8.2.1 and an earlier version of LabVIEW remains on the system, the earlier version of LabVIEW might try to repair itself the next time you open it. The repair process might remove any patches you installed for that version of LabVIEW. Make sure to reinstall any patches you have on the system after the repair finishes. In particular, LabVIEW might prompt you to repair the DSC Common Tools component.
- The following installation and uninstallation procedures might prevent some I/O servers from functioning properly:
- Install LabVIEW 8.0, LabVIEW 8.2.1, and the DSC Module 8.2.1. Then uninstall LabVIEW 8.0.
- Install LabVIEW 8.0, the DSC Module 8.0, and LabVIEW 8.2.1. Then uninstall LabVIEW 8.2.1.
Repair the installation of the DSC Module to correct this behavior.
- Writing to a shared variable in an untimed loop or a loop with minimal wait time does not guarantee that the Shared Variable Engine reflects every value written to the shared variable. Place a checkmark in the Use Buffering checkbox in the Shared Variable Properties dialog box to minimize the potential for data loss. Use the Database Writing VIs if you must log all values.
- The DSC Module does not support building DLLs with the Application Builder.
- If you programmatically create or modify a LabVIEW library, you must modify the library in the context of a project.
- Network-published shared variables might not function properly if multiple network adapters are enabled on the same computer. If you have multiple network adapters enabled, you can force the Shared Variable Engine to use a specific adapter by adding the following lines to the C:\Windows\logos.ini file:
[LOGOS]
ServiceBindTo=xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx
where xx:xx:xx:xx:xx:xx represents the MAC address of the network adapter.
- If you configure a shared variable for data or event logging but the Shared Variable Engine cannot establish a connection to the database, the Shared Variable Engine triggers an alarm and logs the data to the default database.
- The DSC Module OPC I/O server does not support non-Western character sets.
- The DSC Module OPC I/O server does not support complex data types such as clusters.
- When you use a third-party OPC client to connect to the National Instruments Variable Engine OPC server, the server name might appear as National Instruments Variable Engine and National Instruments Variable Engine.1. To ensure forward compatibility, select the National Instruments Variable Engine instance when configuring an OPC connection.
- If you migrate an application from the DSC Module 7.x to the DSC Module 8.2.1, the application might perform less well than expected in the DSC Module 8.2.1. Refer to the National Instruments Web site at ni.com/info and enter the info code exzd8c for more information about this problem.
- Enabling the Logging property of a deployed library does not log the current values of any shared variables in that library. The Shared Variable Engine logs all subsequent value changes based on logging deadband settings.
- Browsing the National Instruments Variable Engine OPC server with an OPC 2.x client using the OPC_FLAT flag returns only the first seven levels of hierarchy.
- When you save an online process to a library file, the security configuration on the process is lost.
- If you install the DSC Module 8.2.1 on a machine that already has the DSC Module 8.0 installed, LabVIEW 8.0 displays additional I/O servers in the I/O Server Type list of the Create New I/O Server dialog box. However, you cannot configure or use those additional I/O servers.
- Custom VI-based I/O servers that you create in LabVIEW 8.0 after you install the DSC Module 8.2.1 on the same machine do not work.
- You cannot use the Deploy Library VI to deploy a library with a shared variable that is bound to an I/O server from another library. You also cannot deploy a library if you previously imported or exported the configuration data of a shared variable in that library.
- The Security Options page displays the Special keys disabled checkbox even if you do not have the NI Keyboard Filter Driver installed.
- The NI Keyboard Filter Driver does not support Windows x64.
- You cannot browse to a shared variable from a Shared Variable Constant in a VI that you control remotely.
- LabVIEW might not update alarms and events in front panels that you view remotely.
- The Select Controls and Indicators To Publish page of the Custom VI-based Server - Periodic Wizard does not display controls or indicators on a tab control.
- The Binding configuration table of the Front Panel Binding Mass Configuration dialog box does not display controls or indicators on a tab control.
- The NI HyperTrend ActiveX control might plot horizontal lines for unchanging item values. Scroll or zoom the NI HyperTrend display to remove the horizontal lines.
The following table lists the bugs fixed in the DSC Module 8.2.1.
Bug ID | Fixed Issue |
4258E9IQ | Fixed an issue where the DSC Module might crash if you use the Historical Trend Express VI for a long period of time. |
3ZUF8RZU | Fixed an issue where the DSC Module might crash if you programmatically disable alarms on a shared variable. |
44B226V9 | Fixed an issue where the DSC Module OPC I/O server does not support the OPC OLE date format. |
416F6OG0 | Fixed an issue where the DSC Module OPC I/O server does not allow binding to some Boolean-typed OPC items. |
428EK24J | Fixed an issue where the DSC Module OPC I/O server loses synchronization with other OPC servers if the OPC server updates values rapidly. |
41699OJ0 | Fixed an issue where the DSC Module returns an error if you export data to a .csv file and then import the same file into the Multiple Variable Editor. |
43J7I6UF | Fixed an issue where the DSC Module might not report alarm setpoints correctly if you programmatically adjusted the setpoints. |
40H8CBV9 | Fixed an issue where deployment of shared variables that are bound to I/O servers takes a long time. |
435FR3VB | Fixed an issue where the Configuration (.scf) File Migration dialog box does not enable you to specify a folder to store the database files. |
45IE89V9 | Fixed an issue where the Acknowledge Alarms VI does not acknowledge alarms by instance if the alarms are user-defined or contain alarm in the variable names. |
- The Alarm and Event Display Help describes the properties and methods available for the Alarm and Event Display ActiveX control. You can use the Alarm and Event Display ActiveX control to view live alarms and events. Access the Alarm and Event Display Help by navigating to C:\Program Files\National Instruments\Shared\alarmevent.chm.
Copyright
© 2007 National Instruments Corporation. All rights reserved.
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Patents
For patents covering the National Instruments products, refer to the appropriate location: Help»Patents in your software, the patents.txt file on your CD, or ni.com/patents.