Proficy* HMI/SCADA - iFIX

OPC A+E SERVER

Version 5.0
August 2008
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical
means, including photocopying and recording, without permission in writing from GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms, Inc.

Disclaimer of Warranties and Liability

The information contained in this manual is believed to be accurate and reliable. However, GE Fanuc Intelligent
Platforms, Inc. assumes no responsibilities for any errors, omissions or inaccuracies whatsoever. Without limiting the
foregoing, GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms, Inc. disclaims any and all warranties, expressed or implied, including the
warranty of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, with respect to the information contained in this
manual and the equipment or software described herein. The entire risk as to the quality and performance of such
information, equipment and software, is upon the buyer or user. GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms, Inc. shall not be liable
for any damages, including special or consequential damages, arising out of the user of such information, equipment
and software, even if GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms, Inc. has been advised in advance of the possibility of such
damages. The user of the information contained in the manual and the software described herein is subject to the GE
Fanuc Intelligent Platforms, Inc. standard license agreement, which must be executed by the buyer or user before the
use of such information, equipment or software.

Notice
©2008 GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms, Inc. All rights reserved. *Trademark of GE Fanuc Intelligent Platforms, Inc.
Microsoft® is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation, in the United States and/or other countries.
All other brands or names are property of their respective holders.

We want to hear from you. If you have comments, questions, or suggestions about our documentation, send them to the
following email address:
[email protected]
 Table of Contents
About This Guide ..............................................................................................................................1 
Getting Started: OPC A&E Server ....................................................................................................3 
Features of the OPC A&E Server .................................................................................................3 
Unsupported Features ..............................................................................................................4 
Setting up the OPC A&E Server ...................................................................................................4 
Notes ........................................................................................................................................4 
Running the OPC A&E Server with Other Proficy Products .........................................................5 
Local Node Setup .....................................................................................................................5 
Concentrator Node Setup .........................................................................................................6 
OPC Overview ..............................................................................................................................7 
How OPC Works.......................................................................................................................8 
iFIX Message Mappings ...............................................................................................................9 
Standard OPC Alarm Event Parameters for iFIX Alarm States .............................................10 
Attributes Passed to the OPC A&E Client ..............................................................................11 
Alarm Differences .......................................................................................................................15 
Between FIX32 and iFIX .........................................................................................................15 
Between the Server and the iFIX Alarm History or ALMODBC Utility ....................................16 
Between Alarm Acknowledgements in iFIX and the OPC A&E Server ..................................16 
Between Alarm States in iFIX and the OPC A&E Server .......................................................16 
Proficy Alarm Viewer ..................................................................................................................17 
Acknowledging Alarms with Electronic Signatures in the Client ............................................17 
OPC Server Configuration ..............................................................................................................21 
Understanding the Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server Dialog Box ...............................................21 
Description of Configuration Fields.........................................................................................22 
Running the OPC A&E Server When You Start iFIX..................................................................26 
Synchronizing Network Clocks ...................................................................................................27 
Connecting and Disconnecting from the Server .........................................................................27 
Running Multiple Clients .............................................................................................................28 
Browsing Sources and Areas .....................................................................................................28 
Sources ...................................................................................................................................28 
Areas ......................................................................................................................................29 
Viewing Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server Statistics .......................................................................29 
Descriptions of iFIX OPC A&E Server Statistics ....................................................................29 
Sample Period vs. the Refresh Rate ......................................................................................30 

iii
OPC A+E Server

How Do I... ......................................................................................................................................33 

Configure the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server ..............................................................................33 
Configure DCOM settings ...........................................................................................................35 
Configure DCOM Settings in Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista ......35 
Filter Alarms and Events By Node Name ...................................................................................37 
Disconnect All Clients .................................................................................................................38 
Advanced Features ........................................................................................................................39 
Trace Logging OPC A&E Server Communications ....................................................................39 
Specifying Logged Data .........................................................................................................39 
Example Trace Log File ..........................................................................................................41 
Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Data Source Syntax ...............................................................................41 
Alarm Data Source Syntax .....................................................................................................41 
Failover Configuration Notes ......................................................................................................42 
Troubleshooting ..............................................................................................................................43 
Alarm Queue Overflow ...............................................................................................................43 
Issue .......................................................................................................................................43 
Possible Solution ....................................................................................................................43 
Alarm Processing Rate Set Too Moderately ..............................................................................44 
Issue .......................................................................................................................................44 
Possible Solution ....................................................................................................................44 
Server Starts in Configuration Mode ..........................................................................................45 
Issue .......................................................................................................................................45 
Possible Solution ....................................................................................................................45 
If More Than One Running Server Instance Appears... .........................................................45 
If Only One Running Server Instance Appears... ...................................................................45 

iv
About This Guide
This help system describe the OPC Alarms and Events (A&E) Server for the Proficy™ HMI/SCADA -
iFIX® product. The help includes the following sections:
• Getting Started: OPC A&E Server
• OPC Server Configuration
• How Do I...
• Advanced Features
• Troubleshooting

1
Getting Started: OPC A&E Server
The Proficy iFIX OPC Alarms and Events (A&E) Server reads alarm events and messages from a set
of iFIX SCADA servers and sends them to interested clients. External OPC A&E clients, such as the
Proficy Historian OPC A&E Collector, can connect to this server to acquire and analyze alarm data for
any of those SCADA nodes.
The Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server converts all iFIX alarms and events (including 21 CFR 11
messages) to meet the OPC A&E standard. In addition to all iFIX alarms and events, the OPC A&E
Server generates messages in the following scenarios:
• Alarm Acknowledgements – In addition to the operator Tracking message, the iFIX OPC
A&E Server generates a Condition event about the Acknowledgement for this operator
message.
• Change of State (COS) Alarm – For every COS alarm, the iFIX OPC A&E Server
immediately generates an "OK" message.
• Bad Quality Notifications – When an open alarm is no longer found, the iFIX OPC A&E
Server generates a message indicating that an unknown event occurred.
The reason the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server does this is so that the alarm life cycle can properly
represented in the Historian Archiver, for instance. If you compare the events logged in the Alarm
ODBC (ALMODBC.exe) with the ones from the iFIX OPC A&E Server, you will obtain more
messages from the iFIX OPC A&E Server than found in the Alarm ODBC.
Refer to the following sections for additional information:
• For a list of supported and unsupported features for the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server, refer
to the Features of the OPC A&E Server section.
• For more information on how to setup the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server, refer to the Setting
up the OPC A&E Server section.
• For more information on how the Server works, refer to the Running the OPC A&E Server
with Other Proficy Products section.
• For more information on OPC in general, refer to the OPC Overview section.
• For details on the information retrieved for each alarm event, refer to the iFIX Message
Mappings section.
• For details on FIX32 and iFIX alarms or the Alarm History and ALMODBC utilities, refer to
the Alarm Differences section.

Features of the OPC A&E Server

The main features provided by the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server include:
• Support for the OPC A&E Server specification (1.10) for iFIX alarms and events.
• Ability to send standard properties of iFIX alarms and events to the Proficy Historian archive.
• Configuration of the iFIX OPC A&E Server from a user interface (iFixOPCAESrv.exe).
• Ability to report the complete lifetime for almost all iFIX alarms in the OPC A&E client. For
more information on doing so with Proficy Historian OPC A&E Collector, refer to the

3
OPC A+E Server

Historian online help.

NOTE: Exceptions include acknowledge all, acknowledgements not done through the iFIX
WorkSpace or an OPC A&E Client, some FIX32 alarms, any connection loss to a block in
alarm, and manual deletions.

• Support for area and source browsing.

• Filtering of OPC A&E event types, event categories, severities, areas, and sources. In addition
to these OPC defined filtering techniques, you can also filter alarms and events by the node
name.
• Alarm acknowledgement from an OPC A&E client.

Unsupported Features
The following features are not supported by the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server:
• Refresh capability for OPC A&E.
• DCOM support.
NOTE: The Proficy Historian OPC A&E Collector does not currently support DCOM either.

• Ability to display alarms from the OPC A&E Server in the Proficy iFIX WorkSpace.
• Migration of ALMODBC configuration.
• Running the OPC A&E Server as a service when iFIX is not running as a service.

Setting up the OPC A&E Server

In general, setting up and using the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server involves the following steps:
1. Install the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server.
2. Configure the OPC A&E Server. For more details, refer to the Configure the Proficy iFIX
OPC A&E Server section.
3. Configure any external OPC A&E Clients to connect to the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server.
The Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server name is:
Proficy.OPCiFIXAE.1

4. Use the A&E OPC Client to view and analyze alarm data as desired.

Notes
The Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server must be running as long as OPC A&E clients are accessing alarm
data. If you manually exit and close the server window, communications between the OPC A&E
Server and any connected clients will be lost.
OPC clients that connect to the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server must support the OPC A&E extension
of the OPC protocol.
A client receives event data starting only when it connects to the server, regardless of how long the
server has been generating alarms and events.

4
 OPC A+E Server

Running the OPC A&E Server with Other Proficy Products

The iFIX OPC A&E Server (iFixOPCAESrv.exe) runs concurrently with an iFIX system. One or more
clients can connect to the Proficy iFIX A&E Server. When an OPC A&E client (such as the Historian
OPC A&E Collector) wants to receive alarm and event data, it connects to the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E
Server and acquires (or "subscribes to") the server's alarms and events. Once a connection is
established, any alarm event information is sent from iFIX OPC A&E Server to the Historian OPC
A&E Collector and other connected clients.
The OPC clients do not directly connect to Proficy iFIX. Instead, they connect to the iFIX OPC A&E
Server. It is this server that connects to each SCADA node.
• For more information on the OPC protocol in general, refer to the OPC Overview section.
• For an overview of the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server, refer to the Getting Started: OPC
A&E Server section.
For examples of computer configurations with the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server, refer to these
sections:
• Local Node Setup
• Concentrator Node Setup
TIP: In both the local node and concentrator node cases, if the SCADA servers communicate with
each other, the OPC A&E Server and the Historian OPC A&E Collector obtain alarms and events
from many nodes. If you want to filter the alarms by node name, you can configure this in the iFIX
OPC A&E Server or in the Proficy Historian. For steps on how to configure this in the iFIX OPC A&E
Server, refer to the Filter Alarms and Events By Node Name section. For steps on how to configure
this in the Proficy Historian, refer to the Proficy Historian electronic books.

Local Node Setup

It is strongly recommended that the iFIX OPC A&E Server run on the SCADA node whenever
possible. When using Proficy Historian with the OPC A&E Server, the Historian OPC A&E Collector
should also run on the SCADA node. An example of a typical local node configuration is illustrated
below.

5
OPC A+E Server

This setup ensures that all alarms and messages generated by the SCADA server are sent to Proficy
Historian in the event of a network failure between a SCADA node and View node. The Historian
OPC A&E Collector provides a store and forward feature, which means that even in the event of a
network failure between the SCADA node running the collector and the Historian Archive, all alarms
and messages will be sent to the Historian Archive.

Concentrator Node Setup

Use of a concentrator node means that the network includes a single iFIX concentrator node that
acquires alarms from multiple nodes. The Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server gets the data that it sends to
its clients from this one concentrator node. This configuration is not recommended with Proficy
Historian, because it is probable that some alarms may not be delivered to the Historian A&E Archive
when network failures occur.
Another drawback is that if iFIX shuts down on the concentrator node, then the Historian Archive
marks this shutdown time as the end time for all open alarms, regardless of whether or not alarms from
the other nodes are still open. For instance, there still may be open alarms on the FIX32 nodes. The
archived alarm life cycle may therefore be incorrect for those alarms.
An example of a typical concentrator node configuration is illustrated below.

6
 OPC A+E Server

OPC Overview
OPC (OLE for Process Control) is a standard client/server protocol for the transfer of data and I/O
information between applications within a Windows® environment. OPC was developed by the not-
for-profit OPC Foundation, which makes specifications for OPC freely available.
OPC specifications are built upon Microsoft's OLE (Object Linking and Embedding) and DCOM
(Distributed Component Object Model) technologies. OPC is fully endorsed by Microsoft.
OPC was created to allow different automation applications to communicate with each other,
regardless of the manufacturer. This allows for greater flexibility and reliability when setting up
automation systems. The OPC A&E (Alarms and Events) protocol is an extension of the overall OPC
specifications, designed specifically for sharing alarm event information.
For manufacturers of OPC-compliant applications, it simplifies the development process, since they
only have to create one I/O interface. For consumers of OPC-compliant applications, it increases the
flexibility of their automation process—they're no longer limited to communicating with devices
specified by the applications' developers.

7
OPC A+E Server

How OPC Works

Applications that use the OPC protocol implement a client/server relationship. You can think of OPC
Servers as being producers of information, and OPC Clients as being consumers:
• The OPC A&E Server has alarm and event data that it makes available to other computers as
OPC A&E data sources.
• The OPC A&E Client connects to the OPC A&E Server to gain access to its data.
The communication interfaces of an OPC server are made available to other programs by use of COM
(Component Object Model) and DCOM (Distributed Component Object Model) technology.
Essentially, this makes the existence of the OPC A&E Server known to other programs (that is, OPC
A&E Clients) that may want to connect to it on the network.
Since the OPC A&E Server and OPC A&E Client are simply programs or applications, they can run on
the same computer.
An OPC A&E Server running on the same computer as the OPC A&E Client is called a local server. A
server running on a different computer than the client is called a remote server. Since administrators
often set up security restrictions for communications between computers on a network, this distinction
can be important.
NOTE: Any clients that connect to the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server must specifically support the
OPC A&E protocol, not just the OPC protocol. With an ordinary OPC Client, you may be able to
connect to the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server, but any data you receive will be nearly useless.

While manufacturers of OPC-compliant applications use the same protocol to communicate data, how
OPC is configured within those applications can vary widely. Typically, in the client, you'll do the
following:
• Specify the address of the computer running the OPC A&E Server that you want to connect
to. Often, you can browse a network to find out what OPC A&E Servers are currently running
on each computer, much like browsing the Windows Network Neighborhood to find a
particular computer.
• If more than one OPC A&E Server is running on the same computer, you may have to select
the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server from a list or manually specify its name
(Proficy.OPCiFIXAE.1).
• Specify the alarm event data that you want the client to acquire. Typically, the configuration
utility for the OPC client will present you with a browse list or tree of OPC data sources. If
this is not available, you will have to manually specify the syntax for desired OPC data

8
 OPC A+E Server

sources (refer to the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Data Source Syntax section for details).

iFIX Message Mappings

The following table describes the iFIX alarm messages and the corresponding OPC event types,
categories, conditions, and sub-conditions for each message.

iFIX Alarm Message Type Event Type Event Category

ALM_MSG_UNKNOWN Simple N/A

ALM_MSG_ALM Condition Tag

ALM_MSG_HARDWARE Simple Device Failure

ALM_MSG_NETWORK Simple System Message

ALM_MSG_SYSTEM_ALERT Simple System Message

ALM_MSG_USER Simple System Message

ALM_MSG_FLAG_ACK Tracking Operator Process Change

ALM_MSG_FLAG_DEL Tracking Operator Process Change

ALM_MSG_OPERATOR Tracking Operator Process Change

ALM_MSG_RECIPE Simple Batch Status

ALM_MSG_EVENT Simple System Message

ALM_MSG_TEXT Simple System Message

ALM_MSG_TEXT_6X Simple System Message

ALM_MSG_AAM Simple System Message

ALM_MSG_SQL Simple System Message

ALM_MSG_SIGNED Tracking Operator Process Change

9
OPC A+E Server

Standard OPC Alarm Event Parameters for iFIX Alarm States

All conditional events for the iFIX alarm message, ALM_MSG_ALM, fall under a single OPC
condition: Tag. There are several OPC sub-conditions that the events could be placed in. The iFIX
block alarm state determines the assigned sub-condition. The following table shows the relationship
between the sub-condition and the iFIX block alarm state.

iFIX Block Alarm Event Event Condition Sub-

State Type Category Condition

IA_OK Condition Tag Tag OK

IA_LOLO Condition Tag Tag LOLO

IA_LO Condition Tag Tag LO

IA_HIHI Condition Tag Tag HIHI

IA_HI Condition Tag Tag HI

IA_RATE Condition Tag Tag RATE

IA_DEV Condition Tag Tag DEV

IA_CFN Condition Tag Tag CFN

IA_COS Condition Tag Tag COS

IA_URNG Condition Tag Tag UNDER

IA_ORNG Condition Tag Tag OVER

IA_RANG Condition Tag Tag RANGE

IA_FLT Condition Tag Tag FLT

IA_NODATA Condition Tag Tag NO DATA

IA_NOXDATA Condition Tag Tag NO XDATA

IA_OCD Condition Tag Tag OCD

10
 OPC A+E Server

iFIX Block Alarm Event Event Condition Sub-

State Type Category Condition

IA_TIME Condition Tag Tag TIME

IA_MANL Condition Tag Tag MANL

IA_DSAB Condition Tag Tag DSAB

IA_ACCESS Condition Tag Tag ACCESS

IA_IOF Condition Tag Tag IOF

IA_DEVICE Condition Tag Tag DEVICE

IA_STATION Condition Tag Tag STATION

IA_SQL_CMD Condition Tag Tag SQL CMD

IA_DATA_MATCH Condition Tag Tag DATA

MATCH

IA_COMM Condition Tag Tag COMM

IA_SQL_LOG Condition Tag Tag SQL LOGIN

IA_FIELD_READ Condition Tag Tag FLD READ

IA_FIELD_WRITE Condition Tag Tag FLD WRITE

IA_ANY Condition Tag Tag ANY

IA_NEW Condition Tag Tag NEW

IA_ERROR Condition Tag Tag ERROR

Attributes Passed to the OPC A&E Client

With every event notification, the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server passes a set of attributes to the
clients. Different attributes are passed back to the client depending on the event type. The following

11
OPC A+E Server

tables outline these attributes.

In the Attribute Type column of these tables, "Standard" refers to the attribute types defined in the
OPC specification. "Vendor" refers to additional iFIX-specific attributes passed in addition to the
standard attributes.
For descriptions of most of the iFIX fields, refer to the table in the "OPC Attributes" section of the
Description of Configuration Fields topic.

Simple Event Types

The Simple attributes in the following table are included with all event types.

Attribute Name Attribute Data Type iFIX Field(s)

Type

Source Standard LPWSTR LogicalNodeName.TagName or

"iFIX"

SourceTag Vendor BSTR Tag Name

Time Standard FILETIME Date/Time In

Message Type Vendor BSTR Message Type

Type Standard DWORD Derived from Message Type

Event Category Standard DWORD Derived from Message Type,

Alarm Status

Alarm Priority Vendor BSTR Alarm Priority

Severity Standard DWORD Derived from Alarm Priority (1-

1000)

Message Standard LPWSTR Message Description

Areas Vendor SAFEARRAY of Alarm Area

BSTRs

Node Vendor BSTR Logical Node Name

Application Vendor BSTR iFIX application name (for

example: iFIX)

12
 OPC A+E Server

Attribute Name Attribute Data Type iFIX Field(s)

Type

ApplicationVersion Vendor BSTR iFIX version number (for

example: 3.5.5717.0)

Physical Node Vendor BSTR Physical Node Name

Name

Message ID Vendor BSTR Message ID

Condition Events Types

Condition event types include the ones listed in the table below, in addition to the Simple event types.

Attribute Name Attribute Data iFIX Field(s)

Type Type

ChangeMask Standard WORD Derived from the attributes

changed

Alarm Status Vendor BSTR Alarm Status

Condition name Standard LPWSTR Derived from Alarm Status

Sub-condition name Standard LPWSTR Derived from Alarm Status

New State Standard WORD Derived on Alarm Status,

Acknowledgements received,
and Disabling

Quality Standard WORD Derived from loss/gain of

block communication

AckRequired Standard BOOL Always false

Active Time Standard FILETIME Time that this condition

entered the most recent sub-
condition

Cookie Standard DWORD Server defined cookie

associated with this client

13
OPC A+E Server

Attribute Name Attribute Data iFIX Field(s)

Type Type

CV Vendor VARIANT Value

EngUnitLabel Vendor BSTR Unit

Alarm Ext Field1 - Alarm Vendor BSTR Alarm Ext Field1 - Alarm Ext
Ext Field2 (name can be Field2
changed by user)

User Field1 - User Field4 Vendor BSTR User Field1 - User Field4
(name can be changed by
user)

Tag Description Vendor BSTR Tag Description

ActorID Standard LPWSTR Operator Login User Name if

unsigned, Perform_Name if
signed

Ack_By_FullName Vendor BSTR Operator Login Full Name if

unsigned, Performed By Full
Name if signed

Perform_Name Vendor BSTR Performed By User Name

Perform_FullName Vendor BSTR Performed By Full Name

Perform_Comment Vendor BSTR Performed By Comment

Verify_Name Vendor BSTR Verified By User Name

Verify_FullName Vendor BSTR Verified By Full Name

Verify_Comment Vendor BSTR Verified By Comment

Tracking Events Types

Tracking event types include the ones listed in the table below, in addition to the Simple event types.

14
 OPC A+E Server

Attribute Name Attribute Data iFIX Field (s)

Type Type

ActorID Standard LPWSTR Operator Node Name::Operator if Login

Full Name if unsigned. Operator Node
Name::Perform_Name if signed.Operator
Node Name and if security is disabled

UserFullName Vendor BSTR Operator Login Full Name if unsigned,

Perform_FullName if signed

Operator Node Vendor BSTR Operator Node Name

Name

Operator Name Vendor BSTR Operator Login User Name

Operator Full Vendor BSTR Operator Login Full Name

Name

Perform_Name Vendor BSTR Performed By User Name

Perform_FullName Vendor BSTR Performed By Full Name

Perform_Comment Vendor BSTR Performed By Comment

Verify_Name Vendor BSTR Verified By User Name

Verify_FullName Vendor BSTR Verified By Full Name

Verify_Comment Vendor BSTR Verified By Comment

Alarm Differences

Between FIX32 and iFIX

When using a configuration that also uses FIX32 alarms and events, there will be some differences in
the alarm data sent by the iFIX OPC A&E Server:
• FIX32 Alarms and Events have no Message ID
• The Time In and Time Last values will always be the same for FIX32
• For alarms generated by FIX prior to FIX v7.0, alarm messages indicating that an alarm

15
OPC A+E Server

returned to an "OK" state may not have always been sent by FIX. Therefore, the Proficy
Historian may not be able to properly represent the alarm life cycle (specifically, the time the
alarm was "closed") for these alarms.

Between the Server and the iFIX Alarm History or ALMODBC Utility
When using the re-alarming feature of AA or DA database blocks in iFIX, the OPC A&E Server may
not send all re-alarm notifications for those blocks to the client. When the block first enters the alarm
state, this initial alarm will always be sent. However, subsequent re-alarm notifications will only be
sent to the connected OPC A&E clients if the alarm has been acknowledged since the previous re-
alarm.
For example, if an AA or DA block generates the following sequence of events (as seen in the Alarm
History application):
(1) Hi, (2) Hi, (3) Hi, (4) Ack, (5) Hi, (6) Hi

The iFIX OPC A&E Server will only send these 3 messages:
(1) Hi, (4) Ack, (5) Hi

This differs both from what is seen in the Alarm History application and ALMODBC utility.

Between Alarm Acknowledgements in iFIX and the OPC A&E Server

Be aware that the OPC A&E Server does not report alarm acknowledgements in the following
scenarios:
• When using the Acknowledge All feature in the iFIX Alarm Summary.
NOTE: The Electronic Signature feature does not support Acknowledge All alarms
capability.

• When acknowledging the alarm through the iFIX Database Manager.

• When acknowledging the alarm programmatically through any third party program.
• When using a Digital Alarm (DA) or Analog Alarm (AA) block in iFIX to acknowledge the
alarm.
• When directly writing to a datalink sourced with a FIX32.node.tag.A_NALM tag.
• With a failover configuration in which all nodes do not have the same active SCADA. For
information on how to properly configure failover settings in the iFIX environment, refer to
the Enhanced Failover and Redundancy electronic book.
NOTE: In some cases, the OPC A&E Server reports the Tracking messages for the event, but does not
update the alarm life cycle with the acknowledgement.

Between Alarm States in iFIX and the OPC A&E Server

When you acknowledge an iFIX alarm immediately after a change in the alarm's state, it is possible for
the iFIX OPC A&E Server to improperly represent the alarm state of the iFIX database block when the
acknowledgement occurred. In most cases, the alarm states appear the same in iFIX and in the OPC
A&E Server. Network latency, CPU usage, and clock settings, however, can affect when iFIX reports
the alarms to the iFIX OPC A&E Server, which also affects the order of alarms sent to its OPC A&E
clients.
In these rare instances, the alarm states may appear out of order. This may result in an incorrect alarm

16
 OPC A+E Server

life cycle appearing in the client applications that store information about the alarm's life cycle, such as
the Historian Archive.

Proficy Alarm Viewer

The Proficy Alarm Viewer is an ActiveX control that displays and manages OPC A&E (Alarm and
Events) data received from the configured OPC A&E data sources, which are available on the network,
in real time. The Alarm Viewer acts as an OPC A&E client in an OPC AE client/server system.
IMPORTANT: The Proficy Alarm Viewer is only supported for English (United States) Regional
Settings.

You can use the Proficy Alarm Viewer client to display and manage data from the Proficy OPC A&E
Server. To insert Proficy Alarm Viewer into a WorkSpace picture, from the Insert menu, choose OLE
Object. The Insert Object dialog box appears. In the Object Type list, select ProficyAlarmViewer
Control and click OK to add the control to your picture. The following graphic shows an example of
the ActiveX control as it first appears in the iFIX WorkSpace.

You must configure a list of connections before the Alarm Viewer will display data. A connection
consists of an OPC Server address (including the address of the computer it runs on), the update rate of
its data, and a filter that determines the specific data that is acquired from the server. The Alarm
Viewer can be configured either online (connecting to OPC A&E Servers to determine the available
data) or off-line. For more information on configuring, refer to the Proficy Alarm Viewer online help.
To access the help, in the Alarm Viewer Properties dialog box, click the Help button.
IMPORTANT: When using the Alarm Viewer control in a picture, that picture should have picture
caching disabled. If you do not disable picture caching, when the picture comes out of cache, the
Alarm Viewer control does not reconnect to the A&E server even though it may appear to be
connected. To disable picture caching, in the WorkSpace configure mode, open the picture, right-click
the picture area, and select Picture... The Edit Picture dialog box appears. In the Cache area, select
the Disable Caching for this Picture check box, and click OK.

Acknowledging Alarms with Electronic Signatures in the Client

Be aware that if you want to acknowledge alarms that include electronic signatures in an OPC A&E
client, such as the Proficy Alarm Viewer, you must configure the database blocks (with electronic
signatures enabled) to accept unsigned writes. Otherwise, a message appears in the alarm history that
the server rejected the unsigned write.
To change the configuration of iFIX database blocks, use the Proficy iFIX Database Manager. Double-

17
OPC A+E Server

click a block in the spreadsheet and select the Advanced tab to view the Unsigned Writes properties of
the tag. This field is only enabled if electronic signatures are configured for the block. By default,
unsigned writes are rejected in iFIX.

To insert Proficy Alarm Viewer ActiveX control into a picture:

1. In the iFIX WorkSpace, open the picture to which you want to add the ActiveX control.
2. In Classic view, from the Insert menu, click OLE Object.
-Or-
In Ribbon view, on the Insert tab, in the Objects/Links group, click Objects/Links, and then
click OLE Object.
3. In the Object Type list, select ProficyAlarmViewer Control.
4. Click OK.

To configure the Proficy Alarm Viewer client:

1. Double-click the Proficy Alarm Viewer control that you added to your picture.
2. Click the Help button to use the Proficy Alarm View Help to help you with the configuration.
TIP: If you filter alarms for a specific area, this by default excludes any alarms generated to
"ALL" areas. To also get the alarms generated to "ALL" areas, you need to add the specified
area and the ALL area to your area filter in the Proficy Alarm Viewer. To display the Filter
Properties dialog box, on the Connections tab, click Add, select the Enable Filter check box,
and then click Configure Filter. Select the Enable Area Filter check box and click Add. Add
your area, for example B, and then add the ALL area.

3. When complete, click OK.

To acknowledge alarms with electronic signatures from a client, such as the Proficy
Alarm Viewer:

1. In Classic view, from the Proficy iFIX WorkSpace, click the Proficy iFIX Database Manager
button to launch the application.
-Or-
In Ribbon view, on the Applications tab, in the Process Database group, click Database
Manager.
2. Select Open Local Node, or the desired node, and click OK.
3. Double-click the block you want to change. The block properties dialog box appears.
TIP: If you do not know which tags have electronic signatures enabled, add the eSig Type
column to your spreadsheet and then sort by column to determine the blocks with electronic
signatures enabled. To add the Esig Type column to your spreadsheet, on the View menu, click
Properties. The Properties dialog box appears. Select Esig Type from the Available Columns
list and click Add to move it to the Display Columns list, and click OK.

4. On the block properties dialog box, click the Advanced tab.

5. In the Unsigned Writes area, select Accept.
6. Click OK.
7. Save the database.

18
 OPC A+E Server

8. Restart iFIX.

19
OPC Server Configuration
When configuring the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server you should review these sections:
• Understanding the Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server Dialog Box
• Running the OPC A&E Server When You Start iFIX
• Synchronizing Network Clocks
• Connecting and Disconnecting from the Server
• Running Multiple Clients
• Browsing Sources and Areas
• Viewing Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server Statistics

Understanding the Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server Dialog Box

Most of the configuration can be performed in the Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog box. To
access this dialog box, on the Configure menu, choose Configure Fields. The Configure iFIX OPC
A&E Server dialog box is illustrated below:

In the above illustration, User Field 1and Alarm Extension Fields 1 and 2 are selected. The default
attribute names of these iFIX fields are used: User Field1, Alm Ext Field1, and Alm Ext Field2,
respectively. The data source for User Field 1 is the A_CV field – the current value of the block

21
OPC A+E Server

displayed as text. The iFIX OPC A&E Server filters alarms for NODE1. The rest of the fields display
the default settings.

Description of Configuration Fields

The Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog box contains the following information:
• OPC Attributes
• User Field Data Source
• Advanced

OPC Attributes

This table lists the attributes that the server can send to OPC A&E clients for the alarms and events it
handles. Select the check marks ( ) next to the attributes that you want to make available to the OPC
A&E client.
You can edit attribute names of User Fields and Alarm Extension Fields. Names of attributes that
appear in grey cannot be changed.
The table that follows describes the attributes passed to the collector.

iFIX Field Name Attribute Description

Source Tag The tag name. For example: AI-1.

Message Type The iFIX message type. For example: ALARM, OPERATOR,
ESIGNATURE, DELETE, and so on. Message types less than 11
characters in length use hard-coded trailing spaces to make up the
difference. For instance, the "ESIGNATURE " message type includes a
space at the end, and the "DELETE " message type includes five trailing
spaces. For more information on message types, refer to the Selecting
Specific Alarm and Message Fields section.

Alarm Priority Priority value before it is translated to a severity number. For example:
INFO, LOLO, LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH, HIHI, or CRITICAL.

Areas The iFIX alarm area to which the source belongs. iFIX provides 16 default
alarm areas, named A through P; however, you can rename the default
areas or add new ones. Each alarm area name is unique and can be up to 30
alphanumeric characters.

Node The node where this event occurred. This value is the logical node name.

Physical Node The physical node where this event occurred. This value is the local node
Name name.

22
 OPC A+E Server

iFIX Field Name Attribute Description

Application The application responsible for this event (iFIX).

ApplicationVersion The version of the application responsible for this event. For example:
3.5.5717.0.

Message ID Globally Unique Identifier (GUID) that uniquely identifies the message.
This field does not contain a value for messages manufactured by the
server such as acknowledgements or bad data quality notifications.

Alarm Status The iFIX status, such as OK, LO, LOLO, and so on, before it is translated
to the sub-condition name.

CV The current value of the source when the condition occurred.

EngUnitLabel The engineering unit label for the current value (CV).

Tag Description The tag's description field as entered in the process database.

User Field1–4 User-configurable field names. Spaces are allowed in this name.
NOTE: Only text data (the A_ fields) are supported as user-configurable
fields. Numeric data (the F_ fields) are not currently supported.

Alm Ext Field1–2 The text entered in the block's alarm extension field. Typically, the first
extension field contains the name of the picture that shows alarms from the
current block. Spaces are allowed in this name.

Operator Name When security is enabled, this field represents the name of the currently
logged in user.
NOTE: This value may be different than the Perform_Name value.

Operator Full When security is enabled, this field represents the full name of the
Name currently logged in user.
NOTE: This value may be different than the Perform_FullName value.

User Full Name The full name of the user associated with the event.

Operator Node The name of the SCADA node where the operator acknowledged the event.
Name

23
OPC A+E Server

iFIX Field Name Attribute Description

Ack_By_FullName The full name of the user who acknowledged the alarm.

Perform_Name The first signature for this event.

Perform_FullName The full name of the user who signed the first signature.

Perform_Comment The comment associated with the first signature.

Verify_Name The second signature for this event.

Verify_FullName The full name of the user who signed the second signature.

Verify_Comment The comment associated with the second signature.

Clear All and Restore Defaults

The Clear All button removes the check mark next to all items in the OPC Attributes list. The Restore
Defaults button clears all user entries and restores the check marks for the default attributes:
• SourceTag
• Message Type
• Node
• Alarm Status
• CV
• EngUnitLabel

User Field Data Source

If you select User Field 1, 2, 3, or 4 from the Attribute list, the fields become available in this group
box. Enter the iFIX data source tag name.
NOTE: Only text data (the A_ fields) are supported as user-configurable fields. Numeric data (the F_
fields) are not supported.

User Fields are implemented in the same manner as they are in the Alarm ODBC. If you configured
user fields in the Alarm ODBC, you need to configure them here as well. The values listed for the User
Fields are available in the iFIX ODBC Alarm Service Configuration dialog box. Access this dialog box
if you need to obtain User Field values for the iFIX OPC A&E Server configuration. Refer to the
"Configuring the Alarm ODBC Service" section in the iFIX Implementing Alarms and Messages
electronic book for more on how to access this dialog box.

24
 OPC A+E Server

Advanced

The following table describes the fields in the Advanced group box.

Field Description

Priority Rank – By default, the INFO (Informational) priority alarms for iFIX tags map to an
INFO OPC severity number of 40.
This number is configurable. OPC Severity ranges from 1-1000, where 1000
is the most severe alarm or event.
The iFIX alarm priority tag that this field maps to is the
ALM_PRIORITY_INFO tag.

Priority Rank – By default, the LOLO (Low Low) priority alarms for iFIX tags map to an
LOLO OPC severity number of 80.
This number is configurable. OPC Severity ranges from 1-1000, where 1000
is the most severe alarm or event.
The iFIX alarm priority tag that this field maps to is the
ALM_PRIORITY_LOLO tag.

Priority Rank – By default, the LOW priority alarms for iFIX tags map to an OPC severity
LOW number of 150.
This number is configurable. OPC Severity ranges from 1-1000, where 1000
is the most severe alarm or event.
The iFIX alarm priority tag that this field maps to is the
ALM_PRIORITY_LOW tag.

Priority Rank – By default, the MEDIUM priority alarm for iFIX tags map to an OPC
MEDIUM severity number of 500.
This number is configurable. OPC Severity ranges from 1-1000, where 1000
is the most severe alarm or event.
The iFIX alarm priority tag that this field maps to is the
ALM_PRIORITY_MEDIUM tag.

Priority Rank – By default, the HIGH priority alarms for iFIX tags map to an OPC severity
HIGH number of 850.
This number is configurable. OPC Severity ranges from 1-1000, where 1000
is the most severe alarm or event.
The iFIX alarm priority tag that this field maps to is the
ALM_PRIORITY_HIGH tag.

Priority Rank – By default, the HIHI (High High) priority alarms for iFIX tags map to an
HIHI OPC severity number of 900.

25
OPC A+E Server

Field Description

This number is configurable. OPC Severity ranges from 1-1000, where 1000
is the most severe alarm or event.
The iFIX alarm priority tag that this field maps to is the
ALM_PRIORITY_HIHI tag.

Priority Rank – By default, the CRITICAL priority alarms for iFIX tags map to an OPC
CRITICAL severity number of 950.
This number is configurable. OPC Severity ranges from 1-1000, where 1000
is the most severe alarm or event.
The iFIX alarm priority tag that this field maps to is the
ALM_PRIORITY_CRITICAL tag.

Queue Size The maximum number of records that can be stored in the alarm queue.
You must restart iFIX for Queue Size changes to be applied. The iFIX
Queue design requires restart of iFIX if there is a change in queue size.
For tips on how to deal with issues with the alarm queue, refer to the
Troubleshooting section.

Only get alarms Select this option to filter the alarm by a the specified node name. Enter the
on node logical node name in the field next to this check box.

Running the OPC A&E Server When You Start iFIX

To automatically run the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server when you start iFIX, add it to the startup task
list in the iFIX SCU. To access the SCU, click Start and point to Programs, Proficy HMI SCADA -
iFIX, and then System Configuration.
To display the Task Configuration dialog box, click the Task button on the SCU toolbox (or, on the
Configure menu, choose Tasks). The tasks listed in the Configured Tasks box start when you run the
iFIX Startup program.
After you configure the startup task list, if you want to run the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server as a
service, you must configure iFIX as a service. You cannot run the OPC A&E Server as a service if
iFIX is not configured to run as a service. Refer to the Configure the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server
section for more details about running in these different manners from the SCU.
If you also want to add the OPC A&E client to the task list, make sure that it is listed after the OPC
A&E Server. That way, when the client connects to the running server, it does not spawn another
instance of the server. For instance, in the following figure the Proficy Historian OPC A&E Collector
(ihIFIXAECollector.EXE) client appears after the OPC A&E Server (iFixOPCAESrv.exe). The
ihIFIXAECollector.EXE runs with the runasdos command.

26
 OPC A+E Server

iFIX Task Configuration Dialog Box

NOTE: The path illustrated for the Proficy Historian OPC A&E Collector (ihIFIXAECollector.EXE)
in the above figure – that appears as the last item in the task list – is not the default path that the
collector installs to. Also, be aware that adding the Historian OPC A&E Collector to the SCU task list
is the preferred way to start this collector. The collector then starts automatically whenever you start
iFIX.

A percent sign (%) preceding a task means that Proficy iFIX Startup starts that task in the background.
To change the state of a task, select the task, select an option from the Start Up Mode group box, and
click Change. iFIX executes the tasks in the same order as they appear in the Configured Tasks list. To
remove a task from the list, select the task from the Configured Tasks list and click Delete.
After you add the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server to the task list, you must restart iFIX for your change
to take effect. For information on how to configure the SCU task list, refer to the Configure the Proficy
iFIX OPC A&E Server section.

Synchronizing Network Clocks

The system clocks for each iFIX node on the network should be synchronized. This ensures that the
client (such as the Historian Archiver) does not receive events that appear to happen in the future, and
that when viewing stored data you will see events in the order that they occurred.
Since the iFIX OPC A&E Server receives and sends alarms in GMT format, there is no requirement
for iFIX operator computers and SCADA nodes to be in the same time zone.

Connecting and Disconnecting from the Server

Any OPC A&E client, including the Historian OPC A&E Collector, can connect to the Proficy iFIX
OPC A&E Server. As with any OPC server, if the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server is not running when
a client tries to connect to it, the server starts automatically. If a client tries to connect to a server that is
already running, the client connects to the running instance of the server.

27
OPC A+E Server

When shutting down the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server, the server behaves according to COM rules.
That is, whatever started the server must shut it down. So, if the client startup caused the server to start,
when the client shuts down, the server shuts down (as long as there are no other clients connected).
Under COM rules, a server should continue to run as long as there are connected clients. If the OPC
A&E Server started before the client started, however, the server will continue to run after the clients
disconnect.
The server delivers all the alarms and events generated from iFIX from the time the server starts up.
Therefore, the client receives alarms and events generated from the time it connects to the server. The
client has no knowledge of any events that occurred prior to its connection, including information
about alarms originating from iFIX database blocks during the startup.
To disconnect all connected clients from the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server, on the File menu, choose
Request Clients to Disconnect. For more information about disconnecting clients, refer to the
Disconnect All Clients section.

Running Multiple Clients

In most cases, multiple instances of the OPC A&E clients can connect to the server without any
additional configuration. In some cases however, you may need to perform some extra configuration.
For instance, when clients connect to the server while running in different modes or user accounts, you
may need to change some DCOM configuration settings for the server or the clients.
For example, when running the Proficy Historian OPC A&E Collector as a service and another OPC
client as a normal foreground application, you must perform additional configuration before both
clients will be able to receive events from the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server.
In this scenario, you have two options:
• Option 1: Run the iFIX OPC A&E Server as a service
• Option 2: Run the iFIX OPC A&E Server as a local server (not as a service)
Option 1 is the preferred method. Configuration steps vary depending upon the version of Windows.
Refer to the following sections for more information in the Configure DCOM Settings in Windows XP
and Windows Server 2003 section.

Browsing Sources and Areas

Sources
An OPC A&E client can request a list of sources from the server. The server returns a list of all
sources from which it currently obtains alarms. Each source name is in the "Node.Tag" format. The
node name appears as part of the tag name. Therefore, the user does not need to browse the node to
obtain the tag name. For an Alarm Source that is not associated with a specific tag (such as the SAC
Started or iFIX Shutdown event notification), the data source name is "iFIX."
NOTE: Only sources that went into an alarm state since the OPC A&E Server startup are available
when browsing.

As such, the list of returned sources may not match the actual list of sources. If the Proficy iFIX OPC
A&E Server processes the alarms for all nodes, such as when it acts as a concentrator node, then the
client can browse tags for all nodes.

28
 OPC A+E Server

Areas
OPC A&E areas are represented by iFIX alarm areas. The client can request, from the iFIX OPC A&E
Server, a list of all the alarm areas that exist. The server responds to the browse request by retrieving a
list of alarm areas for each block which appears in the source browse.
For Proficy Historian, the source area(s) will be passed to the collector as a vendor attribute. Sending
an alarm for a source with multiple areas is valid, since the area is not part of the source name.

Viewing Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server Statistics

As you work with the iFIX OPC A&E Server Configuration utility, the main window continuously
updates with information and statistics on the current OPC Server session, as illustrated below.

In the above example, we observe the following data:

• The current sample time for periodic statistics is 1,000 milliseconds (or one second).
• There are currently two event server objects instantiated, indicating two active clients.
• Two subscriptions have been created by the OPC clients.
• No browse sessions are currently underway (since there are zero browse objects).
• 44 events have been generated since the server started.
• 12 event notifications have been sent to the server's clients (an event notification can contain
data for multiple events).
• Only one event was generated within the last 1,000 milliseconds (the sample period time).

Descriptions of iFIX OPC A&E Server Statistics

The following table describes the statistics displayed in the main window for the iFIX OPC A&E
Server. For an example of this window, refer to the Viewing Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server Statistics
section.

29
OPC A+E Server

Statistic Description

Sample Period The length of the sample period for the Num Events Last Sample Period
statistic, in milliseconds.
TIP: To change the Sample Period, on the Configure menu, choose Set
Refresh Rate. Enter the new value in the Alarm Refresh Rate field in seconds.

Num Event The number of OPC clients connected to this server. This is referred to as
Server Objects "Event Server Objects" because the iFIX OPC A&E Server instantiates a
separate event server object for each active client.

Num The number of active subscriptions to alarm and event data for all active
Subscriptions OPC clients.

Num Browser The number of OPC item browse sessions that are currently under way. Once
Objects they have connected to the iFIX OPC A&E Server, OPC clients that include
support browse capabilities can open a browsable list of available OPC items.
Users can then select which items to which they want to subscribe.

Num Events The total number of alarm events generated during this session. This includes
Generated events for all currently-active connections.

Num Client The total number of alarm event notifications that have been sent to OPC
Notifications clients.
NOTE: An alarm notification can contain data for multiple events. OPC
clients are notified of alarm events only if they have subscribed to the
relevant OPC items.

Num Events Last The number of alarm events generated during the last sample period. This
Sample Period includes events for all currently-active connections.

Sample Period vs. the Refresh Rate

The Sample Period field appears in the main window of the iFIX OPC A&E Server utility. This value
represents the length of the sample period for the Num Events Last Sample Period statistic, in
milliseconds. If you want to change the Sample Period, you need to enter a new value for the Alarm
Refresh Rate. This field is configured in the Set Refresh Rate dialog box.
NOTE: The Set Refresh Rate dialog box displays the Sample Period value in seconds, while the iFIX
OPC A&E Server utility displays the refresh rates in milliseconds.

To access the Set Refresh Rate dialog box, on the Configure menu, choose Set Refresh Rate. The
Alarm Refresh Rate value sets how often the iFIX OPC A&E Server checks for new alarms. For
instance, say that you have your refresh rate set to 10 seconds. After the first 10 seconds, the Proficy

30
 OPC A+E Server

iFIX OPC A&E Server finds 100 new alarms. It processes all of these alarms, and after processing
them the OPC A&E Server waits another 10 seconds to check again for new alarms.
The Data Refresh Rate sets how often the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server checks for an unexpected
deletion of an open alarm (such as HIHI, LO). In most cases, these events will not occur. Examples of
when unexpected deletions occur in open alarms include the following scenarios:
• A deleted tag
• Database reload
• An iFIX shutdown on a remote node
• Disabled alarming
• Remote node loses communication to iFIX (such as during a network failure)
• Tag placed off-scan
For example, if you delete a HIHI alarm from iFIX or reload the entire database, a bad data quality
notification occurs for each of the open alarms. The Data Refresh Rate determines how often the OPC
A&E Server checks for that notification.

31
How Do I...
This section outlines the steps perform the following tasks:
• Configure the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server
• Configure DCOM Settings in Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista
• Filter Alarms and Events By Node Name
• Disconnect All Clients

Configure the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server

• Entering information in the Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog box
• Running the server as a service when iFIX starts
• Verifying that the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server is running after starting iFIX
• Verifying that the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server is running as a service

Configuration Overview

After installing the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server, you need to configure it. To do so, run the
iFixOPCAESrv.exe file in your iFIX folder (C:\Program Files\GE Fanuc\Proficy iFIX, by default) and
enter the configuration information in the Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog box.
If iFIX is already running as a service, do not run the iFIX OPC A&E Server by double-clicking the
iFixOPCAESrv.exe file. Instead, use the iFixOPCAESrv.exe -config command line to open the iFIX
OPC A&E Server and enter configuration information. Be aware that while iFIX is running as a
service, you must restart the iFIX OPC A&E Server for any configuration changes you make to take
effect.
To run the iFIX OPC A&E Server as a service, you need to run iFIX as a service. If iFIX is not already
configured as a service, enable the "Continue Running After Logoff" option in the Local Startup
Definition dialog box of the SCU. Before you can enable this option, you must exit iFIX. You can then
update the SCU task list by adding the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server. The next time you start iFIX, it
starts as a service along with the iFIX OPC A&E Server.
When running as a service, iFIX and the iFIX OPC A&E Server continue to run after you log off from
your Windows user account. For more information, refer to the Running iFIX as a Service section of
the Setting Up the Environment electronic book.
NOTE: When configured to run as a Windows' service, the OPC A&E Server appears as "Proficy iFIX
OPC Alarms and Events Server" in the list of services. iFIX appears as "Proficy HMI/SCADA iFIX
server" in the list of services. To view the Services window, from the Control Panel, point to
Administrative Tools, and then click Services.

To enter information in the Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog box:

1. Start iFIX.
2. Open the Windows Explorer.

33
OPC A+E Server

3. Browse to the folder that contains the installed iFIX product. If you installed to the default
location, browse to the C:\Program Files\GE Fanuc\Proficy iFIX folder.
4. Double-click the iFixOPCAESrv.exe file. The Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server appears.
NOTE: If iFIX is running as a service, the iFixOPCAESrv.exe file does not appear
automatically when you double-click it. Instead, on the Start menu, point to Run, and in the
Open field enter:

iFixOPCAESrv.exe -config

Click Run. The Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server appears. Be aware that when iFIX is running as
a service, you must restart iFIX after entering your configuration changes.

5. On the Configure menu, click Configure Fields. The Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog
box appears.
6. Enter the required information. For more information on these fields, refer to the Description
of Configuration Fields section.
7. Click OK to save the configuration.
IMPORTANT: You must restart iFIX for your changes, such as Queue Size, to be applied.

To run the server as a service when iFIX starts:

NOTE: In this configuration, no user interface displays. The iFIX OPC A&E Server
continues to run after you log off from your Windows user account.

1. Shut down iFIX.

2. Make sure that you are logged in as a user in the Administrators group. If not, log in as an
Administrator now. You must be logged in as an Administrator to configure iFIX to run as a
service.
3. Click the Start button and point to Programs, and then Proficy HMI SCADA - iFIX, and click
System Configuration. The SCU appears.
4. On the Configure menu, click Tasks. The Task Configuration dialog box appears.
5. In the Filename field, click the browse (...) button. The "Select file name to use..." dialog box
appears.
6. Browse to the Proficy iFIX installation folder. By default, this is C:\Program Files\GE
Fanuc\Proficy iFIX folder.
7. Select the iFixOPCAESrv.exe file in the iFIX folder and click Open.
8. Click Add. The new entry should appear in the Configured Tasks list.
9. Click OK.
10. Configure iFIX to run as a service.
TIP: To configure iFIX to run as a service, on the Configure menu, click Local Startup. The
Local Startup Definition dialog box appears. Select the Continue Running After Logoff
option. This option runs iFIX as a service and all its configured tasks whenever you start
iFIX.

10. On the File menu, click Save to save the SCU.

11. On the File menu, click Exit.

34
 OPC A+E Server

12. Restart iFIX to apply the configuration changes you made in the SCU task list. As iFIX
restarts it should start the Proficy iFIX OPC Alarms and Events Server as a service.

To verify that the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server is running after starting iFIX:

1. Start iFIX.
2. Press CTRL+ALT+DELETE and click the Task Manager button. The Windows Task Manager
appears.
3. Click the Processes tab.
4. Confirm that iFixOPCAESrv.exe appears in the list.

To verify that the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server is running as a service:

1. Start iFIX, if it is not already running.

2. From the Control Panel, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Services. The Services
dialog box appears.
3. Scroll to the Proficy iFIX OPC Alarms and Events Server entry.
4. Confirm that the Status field displays "Started."

Configure DCOM settings

Configure DCOM Settings in Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and

Windows Vista
NOTE: In most cases, multiple instances of the OPC A&E clients can connect to the server without
any additional DCOM configuration. In some cases however, you may need to change DCOM settings
for the server or the client. For more information on these scenarios and the options available for each
one, refer to the Running Multiple Clients section.

• Configuring the DCOM settings when the iFIX OPC A&E Server runs as a service
• Configuring the DCOM settings when the iFIX OPC A&E Server runs as a local server

To configure the DCOM settings when the iFIX OPC A&E Server runs as a service:

1. Ensure that you are logged in to Windows as an administrator.

2. Ensure that the iFIX OPC AE Server is configured as a service, as described in the Configure
the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server section.
3. Create a new Windows user account under which the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server will run.
Set its permission level to Administrator. For more details on how to add user accounts, refer
to the Microsoft® Windows® help.
4. Shut down iFIX, if it is running.
5. Click the Start button on the Windows taskbar and select Run (or type Run) and press Enter.
The Run dialog box appears.
6. Enter dcomcnfg.exe and click OK. The Component Services Microsoft® Management
Console (MMC) snap-in appears.

35
OPC A+E Server

7. Double-click the Component Services folder.

8. Double-click the Computers folder within the Component Services folder.
9. Double-click the My Computer (or computer name) icon.
10. Double-click the DCOM Config folder to display the list of DCOM applications.
11. Locate the iFIX OPC Alarms and Events Server in the list of applications, right-click it, and
select Properties. The My Computer Properties dialog box appears.
12. Select the Security tab.
13. In the Access Permissions group box, select the Customize option and then click Edit. The
Access Permission dialog box appears.
14. Click Add to add the new user created in step 3 or the group that this user belongs to. In
Permissions area of the dialog box, select Allow Access for this user.
15. Click OK.
16. With the Security tab still selected, in the Launch Permissions group box, select the
Customize option (if it is not already selected) and then click Edit. The Access Permission
dialog box appears.
17. Click Add to add the new user created in step 3 or the group that this user belongs to. In
Permissions area of the dialog box, select Allow Launch for this user.
18. Click OK.
19. Select the Identity tab.
20. Change the account which will run this application from The launching user to This user.
21. Type in the User name and password created in step 3.
22. Click OK. Your settings should take effect the next time you start the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E
Server.
23. Configure iFIX to start under the account created in step 3.
24. Depending on the OPC A&E clients you use, you may also need to configure the OpcEnum
application in the same way that you configured the iFIX OPC Alarms and Events Server
application in the Distributed COM Configuration Properties dialog box.
25. Restart iFIX.
The iFIX OPC A&E Server starts with iFIX since you listed it in the SCU task lists. Any
client that tries to connect to the server connect to this instance. To ensure that you
successfully performed these steps, ensure that there is only one instance of
iFIXOPCAESrv.exe listed in the Windows Task Manager, while multiple clients are
connected.

To configure the DCOM settings when the iFIX OPC A&E Server runs as a local server:

1. Add the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server to the iFIX SCU task list, so that it runs with no
command line options:
a. In the SCU on the Configure menu, choose Tasks. The Task Configuration dialog
box appears.
b. In the Filename field, click the browse (...) button. The "Select file name to use..."
dialog box appears.
c. Browse to the Proficy iFIX installation folder. By default, this is C:\Program
Files\GE Fanuc\Proficy iFIX.

36
 OPC A+E Server

d. Select the iFixOPCAESrv.exe file and click Open.

e. Click Add. The new entry should appear in the Configured Tasks list.
f. Click OK.
g. From the File menu, choose Save to save the SCU.
2. Restart iFIX. As iFIX restarts it should start the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server.
3. Follow step 4-22 from option 1, above. When a name and password is required, enter those
for the currently logged-in user account.
TIP: Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to view information on the current user.

4. Depending on the OPC A&E clients you use, you may also need to configure the OpcEnum
application in the same way that you configured the iFIX OPC Alarms and Events Server
application in the Distributed COM Configuration Properties dialog box.
IMPORTANT: If you want to always run the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server with the user
interface, you cannot run iFIX as a service.

Filter Alarms and Events By Node Name

By default, an iFIX OPC A&E Server obtains alarms and events from all attached nodes. For example,
each OPC A&E Server in the configuration described in the Local Node Setup section obtains alarms
and events for all three iFIX nodes, since they are all in the same network. This means that each OPC
A&E Server obtains three copies of each alarm. Filtering alarms and events by node name lets the OPC
A&E Server obtain data only from one specific node.
When filtering is enabled, an OPC A&E Server delivers only the following data:
• Alarms and events for the specified node.
• All Simple or Tracking event messages. For a list of Simple and Tracking event attributes,
refer to the Attributes Passed to the OPC A&E Client section.
To enable filtering in the Local Node Setup section, in the Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog
box on each node, select the Only get alarms on node check box and enter the logical node name of the
node that you want to filter by. The node name that you enter should be the same on all three
configured nodes.
In addition, leave one Historian OPC A&E Collector configured to receive simple, tracking, and
condition event types. Configure all of the other Historian OPC A&E Collectors (in this case, the other
two Collectors) to filter by condition events. This client configuration is necessary to remove duplicate
simple and tracking messages, since these messages are not associated with a node as are the condition
messages.
These steps should prevent the sending of duplicate messages to the Historian Archiver.

To filter alarms and events by node name:

1. Start the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server: double-click the iFixOPCAESrv.exe file in the iFIX
installation folder (by default, this is C:\Program Files\GE Fanuc\Proficy iFIX).
The Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog box appears.

2. On the Configure menu, click Configure fields. The Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog
box appears.
3. Select the Only get alarms on node check box.

37
OPC A+E Server

4. Enter the logical node name in the field next to this check box.
TIP: For more information on this dialog box, refer to the Understanding the Configure iFIX
OPC A&E Server Dialog Box section.

5. Click OK.
6. Restart the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server.

Disconnect All Clients

If needed, you can disconnect a Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server from all connected clients at once.

To disconnect from all clients:

1. Start the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server: double-click the iFixOPCAESrv.exe file in the iFIX
installation folder (by default, this is C:\Program Files\GE Fanuc\Proficy iFIX).
The Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog box appears.

2. On the File menu, click Request Clients to Disconnect.

NOTE: There may be scenarios when all clients do not disconnect. This can occur due to a
provision in the OPC A&E specification that allows clients to deny this request.

38
Advanced Features
Advanced features of the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server are described in the following topics:
• Trace Logging OPC A&E Server Communications
• Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Data Source Syntax
• Failover Configuration Notes

Trace Logging OPC A&E Server Communications

NOTE: The Trace Logging feature is designed for use only by support personnel to assist in
diagnosing issues with the OPC A&E Server.

The Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server includes a built-in trace log feature to help diagnose issues with
your system. This feature logs communications with the OPC Server into a text file. Advanced users
can use this log file to trace a history of communication events dealt with by the OPC Server. The trace
log options are available from the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server's Trace menu.

Trace Log Menu Options

The Trace Log file is a simple text file. To specify the name and location of the log file, on the Trace
menu, choose Set Trace File. By default, the trace file name is AETrace.txt, and it is saved to the My
Documents folder.
The information logged for each event includes:
• The date and time the event occurred.
• The type of event.
• Any parameters and attributes supplied with the event.
For an example of a trace log file, refer to the Example Trace Log File section.

Specifying Logged Data

To specify the data logged in the trace log file, select the desired item on the Trace menu. The current
information that will be logged is indicated with a check mark ( ). You can choose from the following

39
OPC A+E Server

types of communication information:

Menu Option Description

None Turns off logging for Connect, Server, Subscription, and Event items.

Connect Logs information on attempts by the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server to
connect or disconnect with the iFIX SCADA server target.

Server Logs information on general Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server

communication events.

Subscription Logs attempts by external OPC clients to subscribe to data supplied by the
Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server.

Event Logs information on alarm events read by the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E
Server from the iFIX targets it is connected with.

All Logs all types of events: Connect, Server, Subscription, and Event.

Enable COM Call Logs incoming and outgoing COM messages. This may be useful if an
Tracing administrator needs to diagnose COM or DCOM issues.

NOTE: Only one of Connect, Server, Subscription, and Event can be enabled at a time. If you want to
log information on more than one of those types of events, choose All.

Trace logging can be a CPU-intensive operation. It is recommended that you use trace logging only
when setting up your OPC Clients and Server or to diagnose communication problems, turning it off
when the system is functioning correctly.

40
 OPC A+E Server

Example Trace Log File

The options selected in the Trace menu determine the information that appears in the trace log file. The
following messages illustrate the type of information that trace log file provides. In this sample portion
of text from the log file, the All option was selected for the trace log:
...
2004-07-30 13:28:19.198 : NDIAEServer.dll : OPC A&E Client connected : id='33010800'
2004-07-30 13:28:22.653 : NDIAEServer.dll : Client '33010800' created subscription :
handle=1243108, active=1, buffer time=10000, max size=1000
2004-07-30 13:28:28.792 : NDIAEServer.dll : Client '33010800' removed subscription :
handle=1243108
2004-07-30 13:28:28.792 : NDIAEServer.dll : OPC A&E Client disconnected : id='33010800'
2004-07-30 14:56:43.879 : NDIAEServer.dll : Queued event : source='', type=TRACKING,
category=4, cond='', subcond='', new state=, change mask=, cookie=0
2004-07-30 14:56:47.906 : NDIAEServer.dll : Queued event : source='SLEMOB.AI_ML1',
type=CONDITION, category=1, cond='Tag', subcond='HIHI', new state=EN|ACT, change
mask=ACT_ST|MSG, cookie=13161380
2004-07-30 14:56:48.907 : NDIAEServer.dll : Queued event : source='SLEMOB.AI_NEW',
type=CONDITION, category=1, cond='Tag', subcond='HIHI', new state=EN|ACT, change
mask=ACT_ST, cookie=13170820
2004-07-30 15:18:28.975 : NDIAEServer.dll : TRACE FILE OPENED / CREATED
...

Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Data Source Syntax

When configuring third party OPC clients, a client utility (such as Proficy Historian) typically
generates lists of OPC items or data sources to which the client can subscribe. If the OPC client does
not support browsable item lists, you will have to manually specify the path for each OPC item.
In an alarm event sent by the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server, the category, condition, sub-condition,
and attributes of an event detail the specific alarm that occurred. For more information, refer to the
iFIX Message Mappings section.

Alarm Data Source Syntax

The general syntax for alarm-related Proficy iFIX OPC A&E data sources is as follows:
LogicalNodeName.Tagname
where LogicalNodeName is the name of the iFIX node where the event occurred and Tagname is name
of the tag associated with the alarm.
For example, here is the syntax for tag A1 on iFIX NODE1:
NODE1.AI1
NOTE: For an Alarm Source that is not associated with a specific tag (such as the SAC Started or
iFIX shutdown event notification), then the data source name is "iFIX."

41
OPC A+E Server

Failover Configuration Notes

When using the Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server with iFIX, failover configurations are supported. For
information on how to configure failover setting in the iFIX environment, refer to the Enhanced
Failover and Redundancy electronic book.
Both the primary and secondary SCADA servers should use the same settings for the Proficy iFIX
OPC A&E Server. To ensure that both SCADA servers have the same settings, first configure the OPC
A&E Server on the primary server first. Next, copy the OPCAEConfig.ini file from the Local folder
under the iFIX installation directory on the primary server (by default, this is C:\Program Files\GE
Fanuc\Proficy iFIX\Local) to the same folder on the secondary server. This ensures that both servers
have the same OPC A&E Server configuration.
When using Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server with Historian, it is recommended that both the server and
the collector be installed on both SCADA servers in failover configurations. However, the failover
configuration of the SCADA nodes is dependent on the configuration of both the Proficy Historian
OPC A&E Collector and the Historian Archiver.

42
Troubleshooting
The following are possible issues that can occur when processing alarms with the Proficy iFIX OPC
A&E Server:
• Alarm Queue Overflow
• Alarm Processing Rate Set Too Moderately
A possible indication that the Server is not processing all alarms is a discrepancy between the number
of events appearing in iFIX versus the number collected in the Historian archive.
If you experience problems starting the iFIX OPC A&E Server, it could be because you have more
than one instance of the iFIX OPC A&E Server running. In this case, the Server Starts in
Configuration Mode only.
This section provides tips for troubleshooting these issues and enhancing the performance of the
Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server.

Alarm Queue Overflow

Issue
If the alarm queue for the iFIX OPC A&E Server overflows, the server could be dropping alarms
before it has a chance to process them. An iFIX error message may appear indicating that the queue
overflowed.

To verify that the alarm queue actually overflowed:

1. While iFIX is running, type the following at the command line:

almstat

The Alarm Status Utility appears.

2. Type Q to view the alarm queue status.

3. For the iFIXOPCAEQ queue, review the Lost column:
• If a number other than zero appears in this column, an alarm overflow occurred.
• If the alarm queue reads 0, then refer to the Alarm Processing Rate Set Too
Moderately section. The alarms could be dropping for a different reason.

Possible Solution
Change the queue size. The queue size is the maximum number of records that can be stored in the
alarm queue. By increasing the queue size in the iFIX OPC A&E Server, you can prevent the alarm
loss.

43
OPC A+E Server

To change the queue size:

1. From the iFIX OPC A&E Server window, on the Configure menu, click Configure Fields.
The Configure Fields dialog box appears.
2. In the Queue Size field, enter a new value. This value can be any number from 1 to 32,767.
3. Restart the iFIX OPC A&E Server.
NOTE: Other iFIX applications, such as the Alarm ODBC service (ALMODBC.exe) require
the same queue size configuration. Refer to the "Configuring Alarms" section of the
Implementing Alarms and Messages electronic book for details on configuring the Alarm
ODBC Service and other alarm options.

Alarm Processing Rate Set Too Moderately

Issue
If the iFIX OPC A&E Server does not send all events, the alarm processing rate may be set too
moderately. In this case, alarms appear to have dropped, but the alarm queue did not overflow. The
rate at which the iFIX OPC A&E Server processes alarms may not be fast enough.

Possible Solution
Tweak the server configuration to improve the throughput rate for alarm processing in the iFIX OPC
A&E Server.

To modify the alarm processing rate:

1. From the iFIX OPC A&E Server window, on the Configure menu, click Set Refresh Rate.
The Set Refresh Rate dialog box appears.
2. Modify the values in these fields:
• Alarm Refresh Rate – the frequency (in seconds) that server looks for new alarms.
• Data Refresh Rate – the frequency (in seconds) that the server queries iFIX to send
bad data quality notifications.
Experiment with different values and see how they improve or hinder the alarm processing
rate.

For performance, set the Alarm Refresh Rate to 1 and the Data Refresh Rate to the highest
number that is acceptable for your application. For example, change the Alarm Refresh Rate
to 1 and the Data Refresh Rate to 500. The server will be able to process more new events at
once. This will be at the cost of delaying the time it takes to receive a bad quality notification
if a tag in the alarm is manual deleted.

3. Restart the iFIX OPC A&E Server.

44
 OPC A+E Server

Server Starts in Configuration Mode

Issue
If a message appears when the iFIX OPC A&E Server starts, indicating that you are in configuration
mode, there is more than one instance of the OPC A&E Server running. Be aware that you are allowed
to run multiple server instances at one time, but only the first instance serves events to the clients.
Subsequent instances allow the configuration of the server from the user interface, but these instances
will not serve any events to clients.
If a message such as this appears and you did not intend to run in configuration mode, you may need to
perform one of the following tasks, and then restart the server:
• Reconfigure the SCU task list
• Apply additional settings for the Windows DCOM configuration if using multiple clients
• Shutdown iFIX or other applications

Possible Solution
Before deciding which task applies, you should verify the actual number of instances of the server that
are running. To verify the number of running instances, open the Windows Task Manager, click the
Processes tab, and count the number of iFIXOPCAESrv.exe processes that are running. If the
iFixOPCAESrv.exe appears more than once, the server is running more than one instance. The
solutions vary depending on the number of running instances of the server.

If More Than One Running Server Instance Appears...

If more than one instance of the server appears running in the Windows Task Manager, and you did
not explicitly start the other services, perform the following tasks:
• If the iFIX SCU task list includes both the server and client, ensure that the client appears
after the server in the task list. Reconfigure the SCU task list if necessary.
• For an example of the SCU task list, refer to the Running the OPC A&E Server
When You Start iFIX section.
• For steps on how to configure the SCU task list properly, refer to the Configure the
Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server section.
• If there are multiple clients connecting to the server, ensure they are all properly configured.
In some cases, you may need to perform some extra configuration steps to the additional
clients. Refer to the Running Multiple Clients section for details on these configuration steps.

If Only One Running Server Instance Appears...

If only one instance of the server appears running in Windows Task Manager, it's possible that the
server may not have shutdown correctly on a previous occasion. For example, other applications still
accessing server resources while the server is trying to shutdown would cause this scenario to occur.
To resolve this issue, shutdown these applications, as well as the OPC A&E Server running in
configuration mode, to allow the server to complete its shutdown process. The server can then be
properly restarted.
One way to restart the iFIX OPC A&E Server with its full functionality is to restart iFIX. However, if
you do not want to restart iFIX, it may be possible to shutdown the specific application that is

45
OPC A+E Server

preventing the server shutdown from occurring. One known application that will cause this behavior is
the iFIX ALMSTAT utility.

To verify that you can restart the server with its full functionality:

1. Shutdown the iFIX OPC A&E Server from the Windows Task Manager.
NOTE: If ALMSTAT is running in the Windows Task Manager, you must shut it down and
then restart it, since it is likely to be the offending application.

2. While iFIX is running, type the following at the command line:

almstat

The Alarm Status Utility appears.

3. Type Q to view the alarm queue status.

4. Look for iFIXOPCAEQ in the list.
• If iFIXOPCAEQ is not listed as one of the queues, then you verified that it is okay to
restart the server and that it will run with its full functionality.
If the iFIXOPCAEQ appears in the list, shutdown an iFIX or OPC application in the Windows Task
manager, and then repeat steps 1-3. Repeat this step until the iFIXOPCAEQ queue no longer appears
in ALMSTAT utility. Once the server successfully restarts, you can start up any iFIX or OPC
applications that you shutdown.

46
Index
A G
advanced features ............................................. 39 getting started, Proficy iFIX OPC A&E
Server............................................................. 3
alarm
I
differences (FIX32 and iFIX) ....................... 15
iFIX message mappings..................................... 9
processing rate .............................................. 44
L
queue overflow ............................................. 43
local node setup ................................................. 5
Alarm Viewer ................................................... 17
logged data....................................................... 39
areas, browsing ................................................. 28
M
attributes ........................................................... 11
message mappings, iFIX.................................... 9
B
multiple clients ................................................ 28
browsing sources and areas .............................. 28
N
C
node name filtering .......................................... 37
clients, disconnecting ....................................... 38
O
concentrator node setup ...................................... 6
OPC
configuration fields, described ......................... 22
overview ........................................................ 7
configuration mode, OPC A&E Server ............ 45
server configuration ..................................... 21
Configure iFIX OPC A&E Server dialog
box ................................................................ 21 OPC A&E Server............................................... 1
configuring, Proficy iFIX OPC A&E Server ....33 overflowed queue ............................................ 43
connecting and disconnecting ........................... 27 P
D passed attributes............................................... 11
data source syntax ............................................ 41 processing rate for alarms ................................ 44
DCOM configuration Proficy Alarm Viewer ..................................... 17
Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 .....35 Q
description queue overflow ................................................ 43
configuration fields ....................................... 22 R
server statistics ............................................. 29 running
disconnecting .................................................... 27 as a service ................................................... 26
F multiple clients ............................................ 28
failover ............................................................. 42 running, other Proficy products with the
OPC A&E Server........................................... 5
features ............................................................... 3
S
filtering by node name ...................................... 37
sample period vs. the refresh rate .................... 30
FIX32 ............................................................... 15

47
OPC A+E Server

service, running as ............................................ 26 synchronization of network clocks .................. 27

setting up ............................................................ 4 syntax, data source........................................... 41
setup examples T
concentrator node ........................................... 6 trace log file example ...................................... 41
local node ....................................................... 5 trace logging .................................................... 39
sources, browsing ............................................. 28 troubleshooting ................................................ 43
specifying logged data ...................................... 39 U
standard OPC alarm event parameters .............. 10 using other Proficy products .............................. 5
statistics, OPC A&E Server .............................. 29 V
statistics, server ................................................ 29 viewing server statistics ................................... 29
steps .................................................................. 33

48