InTouch ® HMI Application

Management and Extension

Guide

Invensys Systems, Inc.

Revision A

Last Revision: 7/25/07

Copyright
© 2007 Invensys Systems, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
All rights reserved. No part of this documentation shall be reproduced, stored in a
retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of
Invensys Systems, Inc. No copyright or patent liability is assumed with respect to
the use of the information contained herein. Although every precaution has been
taken in the preparation of this documentation, the publisher and the author
assume no responsibility for errors or omissions. Neither is any liability assumed
for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.
The information in this documentation is subject to change without notice and does
not represent a commitment on the part of Invensys Systems, Inc. The software
described in this documentation is furnished under a license or nondisclosure
agreement. This software may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms
of these agreements.

Invensys Systems, Inc.

26561 Rancho Parkway South
Lake Forest, CA 92630 U.S.A.
(949) 727-3200
http://www.wonderware.com
For comments or suggestions about the product documentation, send an e-mail
message to productdocs@wonderware.com.

Trademarks
All terms mentioned in this documentation that are known to be trademarks or
service marks have been appropriately capitalized. Invensys Systems, Inc. cannot
attest to the accuracy of this information. Use of a term in this documentation
should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark.
Alarm Logger, ActiveFactory, ArchestrA, Avantis, DBDump, DBLoad, DT Analyst,
FactoryFocus, FactoryOffice, FactorySuite, FactorySuite A2, InBatch, InControl,
IndustrialRAD, IndustrialSQL Server, InTouch, MaintenanceSuite, MuniSuite, QI
Analyst, SCADAlarm, SCADASuite, SuiteLink, SuiteVoyager, WindowMaker,
WindowViewer, Wonderware, and Wonderware Logger are trademarks of Invensys
plc, its subsidiaries and affiliates. All other brands may be trademarks of their
respective owners.
 3

Contents

Welcome.......................................... 11
Documentation Conventions.............................................11
Technical Support .............................................................12

Chapter 1 Managing InTouch Applications ............... 13

About the InTouch Application Manager.........................14
Managed InTouch Applications .....................................15
Starting the Application Manager....................................16
Starting the ArchestrA IDE from the Application
Manager......................................................................18
Creating an InTouch Application .....................................19
Opening an Application in WindowMaker and
WindowViewer................................................................21
Modifying an InTouch Application ...................................22
Deleting an InTouch Application from the Application
Manager..........................................................................23
Customizing the Application Manager Window ..............23
Finding InTouch Applications ..........................................24
Publishing Applications to Remote Nodes .......................25
Contents of a Published File ..........................................26
Publishing a Stand-alone InTouch Application ............27
Migrating Earlier InTouch Applications to the Current
Version ............................................................................30
Converting Legacy Alarm Displays...............................31

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Chapter 2 Distributing Applications .......................33

Supported InTouch Architectures ....................................34
Single Computer Architecture.......................................34
Client-Based Architecture .............................................35
Server-Based Architecture.............................................36
Network Application Development (NAD)....................37
Planning Considerations for Networked Applications....38
I/O Data Access for Networked Applications................38
Using Global I/O Addresses ....................................... 39
Using Local I/O Addresses ......................................... 40
Wonderware SuiteLink .............................................. 41
Access to Shared Files....................................................42
Using Global Addresses to File Data ........................ 42
Using Local Addresses to File Data .......................... 43
Access to Shared Files through UNC ........................ 44
Logging Data in a Distributed Environment................45
Configuring Remote History Providers..................... 47
Dynamically Configuring Remote History
Providers................................................................... 49
Configuring Distributed Historical Logging ............. 49
Considerations for Special Networks ............................50
Configuring an InTouch Application for NAD.................51
Performing an Automatic NAD Update ........................53
Performing a Manual NAD Update ..............................54
$ApplicationChanged System Tag ............................ 54
$ApplicationVersion System Tag .............................. 55
RestartWindowViewer() Function............................. 56
ReloadWindowViewer() Function .............................. 57
Application Editing Locks..............................................57
Changes to an Application During a NAD Update ......58
Scaling the Application Resolution at Run Time .........59
Using Terminal Services...................................................61
Planning Considerations for Terminal Server
Applications................................................................62
Alarms in a Terminal Services Environment ........... 62
Security in a Terminal Services Environment ......... 63
I/O in a Terminal Services Environment .................. 63
Script Execution in a Terminal Services
Environment............................................................. 64
Miscellaneous Limitations in a Terminal
Services Environment.............................................. 65

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Retrieving Information About the InTouch Client

Session Using Scripts ................................................66
TseGetClientId() Function .........................................66
TseGetClientNodeName() Function ..........................66
TseQueryRunningOnConsole() Function ..................67
TseQueryRunningOnClient() Function.....................67

Chapter 3 Managing InTouch Services .................... 69

Running WindowViewer as a Service ..............................70
Configuring WindowViewer to Start as a Service ...........71
Manually Starting a Service .............................................72
Stopping a Service .............................................................72
Configuring the User Account for InTouch Services .......73
Troubleshooting InTouch Services ...................................74
Viewing Error Messages for Services ............................75
Troubleshooting Problems with the Services User
Account .......................................................................75
Deactivating Advised I/O Items.....................................76
Registry Keys for the InTouch Services ........................76

Chapter 4 Exporting and Importing Tag Definitions,

Windows, and Scripts ......................... 77
Exporting Tag Definitions.................................................77
Viewing Exported Tag Definitions ................................79
Importing Tag Definitions ................................................80
Tagname Dictionary Import File Format .....................80
Creating an Import File Template ................................82
Setting the Operating Mode for Dictionary
Import Files ................................................................83
:MODE=REPLACE ....................................................83
:MODE=UPDATE ......................................................83
:MODE=ASK...............................................................84
:MODE=IGNORE .......................................................85
:MODE=TERMINATE ...............................................85
:MODE=TEST.............................................................85
Setting Access Names and Alarm Groups ....................86
:IOAccess Keyword Attributes...................................86
:AlarmGroup Keyword Attributes .............................88

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Defining Tag Type Keywords and Attributes ...............91

Tag Keyword Attributes............................................. 92
:MemoryDisc Keyword Attributes ............................. 98
:IODisc Keyword Attributes ......................................99
:MemoryInt Keyword Attributes ............................. 100
:IOInt Keyword Attributes....................................... 102
:MemoryReal Keyword Attributes........................... 104
:IOReal Keyword Attributes ....................................107
:MemoryMsg Keyword Attributes ........................... 109
:IOMsg Keyword Attributes..................................... 110
:GroupVar Keyword Attributes ............................... 111
:HistoryTrend Keyword Attributes ......................... 111
:TagID Keyword Attributes ..................................... 112
:IndirectDisc Keyword Attributes ........................... 112
:IndirectAnalog Keyword Attributes ....................... 113
:IndirectMsg Keyword Attributes............................ 113
Using Blank Strings in an Import File ....................... 114
Using Default Values for Fields .................................. 115
Creating SuperTag Instances ...................................... 116
Importing Tag Definitions with DBLoad .................... 117
Importing Windows.........................................................118
Converting Placeholder Tags for an Imported
Window ..................................................................... 120
Exporting Windows .........................................................122
Importing Scripts ............................................................ 123
Converting Placeholder Tags in an Imported Script.. 125
Tag Placeholders for Imported Windows and Scripts ... 127

Chapter 5 Securing InTouch ............................... 129

InTouch Security Features ............................................. 131
Configuring an Inactivity Time-Out ........................... 131
$InactivityTimeout System Tag .............................. 133
$InactivityWarning System Tag ............................. 134
Locking System Keys ................................................... 135
EnableDisableKeys() Function ................................ 137
Hiding Menu Items at Run Time ................................ 138
Authentication and Authorization Based Security ....... 141
Comparing Authentication and Authorization........... 141
Different Authentication Security Modes ................... 141
Using InTouch-Based Security ................................ 141
Using Operating System-Based Security................ 142
Using ArchestrA-based Security ............................. 143

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Managing Users and Setting Their

Authorization Level......................................................144
Configuring InTouch Security Authentication
and Authorization ....................................................144
Changing an InTouch Operator Password
at Run Time..............................................................146
Setting Up Operating System-Based
Authentication and Authorization ..........................147
Setting Up ArchestrA-Based Security.........................148
AddPermission() Function ...........................................149
ChangePassword() Function ........................................150
$AccessLevel System Tag ............................................150
$ChangePassword System Tag....................................151
$ConfigureUsers System Tag ......................................152
Logging On and Off .........................................................153
Logging on to an InTouch-Secured Application..........153
Logging On to an Operating System-Secured
Application ...............................................................154
Logging On to an ArchestrA-Secured Application......155
Logging Off from an InTouch Application ..................155
Creating a Custom Logon Window..............................156
PostLogonDialog() Function ........................................157
LogonCurrentUser() Function .....................................157
Logoff() Function ..........................................................158
AttemptInvisibleLogon() Function ..............................158
$OperatorEntered System Tag ....................................160
$PasswordEntered System Tag ...................................160
$OperatorDomainEntered System Tag.......................161
Enabling and Disabling Functionality Based Upon
Operator or Access Levels............................................162
InvisibleVerifyCredentials() Function.........................163
Retrieving Information About the Currently
Logged-on Operator......................................................164
GetAccountStatus() Function ......................................164
IsAssignedRole() Function ...........................................165
QueryGroupMembership() Function ...........................166
$OperatorName System Tag .......................................167
$OperatorDomain System Tag ....................................167
$Operator System Tag .................................................168
$VerifiedUserName System Tag .................................168
Summary of Security System Tags and Functions........169

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Chapter 6 Switching a Language at Run Time ......... 171

Configuring Languages for Run-time Language
Switching ...................................................................... 172
Changing the Font Settings for a Configured
Language ...................................................................... 174
Adding Run-Time Language Switching
Functionality ................................................................ 175
SwitchDisplayLanguage() Function ............................ 177
$Language System Tag................................................ 178
Exporting Application Text for Offline Translation ...... 178
Exporting Text to an Existing Dictionary File .............. 180
Translating an Exported Dictionary File....................... 180
Importing Translated Dictionary Files .......................... 183
Exporting Alarm Comments for Translation................. 184
Understanding Two-Character Application IDs......... 184
Exporting Alarm Comments........................................ 185
Exporting to an Existing Alarm Comment File............. 187
Editing the Dictionary File .......................................... 188
Importing Translated Alarm Comments ....................... 190
Testing the Language Switching Functionality at
Run Time ...................................................................... 191
Distributing Localized Files to Network Application
Development Clients.................................................... 192

Chapter 7 Viewing Applications at Run Time .......... 193

About WindowViewer...................................................... 193
Customizing Your Run time Environment ................. 194
Configuring General WindowViewer Properties ....194
Configuring Visual Characteristics of
WindowViewer ....................................................... 198
Working with WindowViewer Windows...................... 199
Common Dialog Box Features ................................. 199
Opening Windows from WindowViewer.................. 201
Closing Windows from WindowViewer ................... 201
Transferring from WindowViewer to
WindowMaker ........................................................ 202

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InTouchView....................................................................203
Creating a New InTouchView Application .................204
Converting an Application Between InTouch and
InTouchView ............................................................204
Converting an InTouchView Application
to an InTouch Application .....................................205
Converting an InTouch Application to an
InTouchView Application ......................................206
InTouchView Licensing................................................206

Chapter 8 Setting Up a Multi-Monitor System.......... 207

Multi-Monitor Configurations ........................................208
Single Video Card Configuration.................................208
Characteristics of a Single Card Configuration......208
Characteristics of Single Card Drivers ...................209
Multiple Video Card Configuration .............................209
Characteristics of a Multiple Card Configuration ..210
Characteristics of Multiple Card Drivers................210
Planning a Multi-Monitor Application...........................211
Choosing a Multi-Monitor Video Card ........................211
Determining the Application Screen Resolution ........211
Determining the Number of Monitors to
Display the Application ...........................................212
Determining the Placement of Application
Windows ...................................................................213
Windows Show in a Forced Location.......................213
Windows Are Manually Moved................................213
Windows Are Placed Automatically Based
on Environment......................................................214
Developing a Multi-Monitor InTouch Application.........215
Configuring Multi-Monitor Parameters......................215
Configuring Screen Resolution Conversion ................216
Deploying the Application and Verifying
Multi-Monitor Settings ................................................217
Verifying Multi-Monitor Support During Run Time ..218

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Chapter 9 Using InTouch on a Tablet PC ................ 219

Annotating and Sending Visualization Screens
as E-mail Messages...................................................... 220
Making Window Annotations ...................................... 221
Selecting, Copying, and Deleting Window
Annotations .............................................................. 221
Saving, Printing, and E-Mailing an Annotated
Window ..................................................................... 222
AnnotateLayout() Function ......................................... 223
Changing Screen Orientation ......................................... 224

Appendix A Customizing Applications Settings from

the INTOUCH.ini File ........................ 225
Custom INTOUCH.ini Parameters ................................ 226
Setting Custom Logging Properties ............................ 227
Setting Logging Frequency ...................................... 227
Logging Remote Referenced Tags ........................... 228
Disabling WindowMaker Shortcut Menus.................. 228
Setting Custom WindowViewer Properties ................ 228
Adding a Script Loop Timer..................................... 229
Scaling InTouch Windows to Different
Screen Resolutions ................................................. 229
Setting the Length of the Print Waiting Period ..... 229
Logging Alarm Comments ....................................... 230
Setting the Drawing Mode of a 16-Pen Trend ........ 230
Resizing a Numeric Keypad..................................... 231
Resizing the Input Fields of Analog and
String User Input Links ........................................ 231

Index ............................................. 233

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 11

Welcome

This documentation describes how to manage and extend

your InTouch applications. This documentation covers how to
create applications, open them in WindowMaker and
WindowViewer, move them from one computer to another,
and distribute them across a network. You can also extend
applications to run in certain environments, such as across
multiple monitors and on Tablet PCs.
This documentation assumes you know how to use Microsoft
Windows, including navigating menus, moving from
application to application, and drawing objects on the screen.
If you need help with these tasks, see the Microsoft
documentation.

Documentation Conventions
This documentation uses the following conventions:

Convention Used for

Initial Capitals Paths and file names.

Bold Menus, commands, dialog box names,
and dialog box options.
Monospace Code samples and display text.

InTouch HMI Application Management and Extension Guide

12 Welcome

Technical Support
Wonderware Technical Support offers a variety of support
options to answer any questions on Wonderware products
and their implementation.
Before you contact Technical Support, refer to the relevant
section(s) in this documentation for a possible solution to the
problem. If you need to contact technical support for help,
have the following information ready:
• The type and version of the operating system you are
using.

• Details of how to recreate the problem.

• The exact wording of the error messages you saw.

• Any relevant output listing from the Log Viewer or any

other diagnostic applications.

• Details of what you did to try to solve the problem(s) and

your results.

• If known, the Wonderware Technical Support case

number assigned to your problem, if this is an ongoing
problem.

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 13

Chapter 1

Managing InTouch Applications

When managing InTouch applications, you:

• Create or delete InTouch applications. See Creating an
InTouch Application on page 19 and Deleting an InTouch
Application from the Application Manager on page 23.

• Open applications in either WindowMaker or

WindowViewer. See Opening an Application in
WindowMaker and WindowViewer on page 21.

• Search for applications. See Finding InTouch

Applications on page 24.

• Move an application to a different computer. See

Publishing Applications to Remote Nodes on page 25.

• Distribute applications among multiple computers. See

Chapter 2, Distributing Applications.

• Manage InTouch services. See Chapter 3, Managing

InTouch Services.

• Import or export tag definitions, windows, and scripts.

See Chapter 4, Exporting and Importing Tag Definitions,
Windows, and Scripts.
• Configure security. See Chapter 5, Securing InTouch.

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14 Chapter 1 Managing InTouch Applications

You can extend your application by:

• Translating text strings and alarm comments into
different languages. See Chapter 6, Switching a
Language at Run Time.

• Integrating an application with ArchestrA. See Managed

InTouch Applications on page 15 and Chapter 7, Viewing
Applications at Run Time.

• Displaying applications on multiple monitors. See

Chapter 8, Setting Up a Multi-Monitor System.

• Using applications on a Tablet PC. See Chapter 9, Using

InTouch on a Tablet PC.

About the InTouch Application Manager

You use the InTouch Application Manager to manage most
global tasks such as creating, deleting, and modifying your
InTouch applications.
Application Manager shows a list of your current InTouch
applications. You select an application from the list to open
in WindowMaker or WindowViewer.

Application
Start Start
Manager

Manage Start

Stand-alone Managed Create

WindowMaker Create InTouch InTouch ArchestrA IDE
Applications Applications Manage

Run Run

WindowViewer

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 About the InTouch Application Manager 15

Managed InTouch Applications

You can manage InTouch applications using the ArchestrA
Integrated Development Environment (IDE) if it is installed
on the same computer as the InTouch HMI. These
applications are called managed InTouch applications.
Unlike stand-alone InTouch applications that are managed
entirely by InTouch Application Manager, managed
applications are more integrated into the ArchestrA
environment and support advanced graphics.
You can start the ArchestrA IDE from the Application
Manager. Managed InTouch applications appear in the
InTouch Application Manager as “Managed” and can be
edited only by starting WindowMaker from within the IDE.

Application Manager ArchestrA IDE

create, view create,

delete, delete,
manage manage

Stand-alone IDE-Managed
Stand-alone IDE-Managed
InTouch
Stand-alone InTouch
Managed
InTouch InTouch
Applications
InTouch Applications
InTouch
Applications Applications
Applications Applications

For more information, see Chapter 1, About InTouch and

ArchestrA Integration, in the InTouch® HMI and ArchestrA
Integration Guide.

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16 Chapter 1 Managing InTouch Applications

Starting the Application Manager

You can start the Application Manager from the Start menu
or from a shortcut placed on your computer’s desktop.

To start the Application Manager for the first time

1 On the taskbar, click Start, point to Programs, point to
Wonderware, and then click InTouch. The Welcome to
InTouch Application Manager wizard appears.

2 Click Next. The next page appears.

The default application folder is shown. For example,

C:\Documents and Settings\UserName\My
Documents\My InTouch Applications. For computers
running Microsoft Windows Vista, the default application
folder is C:\Users\UserName\Documents\My InTouch
Applications.

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 Starting the Application Manager 17

3 To select a different folder or create a new folder, click

Browse, select or create the folder, and then click OK.
The InTouch program changes the default folder to the
one you specify. This default folder applies for all
InTouch users on the computer.
4 Click Finish. The Application Manager appears.

The window shows InTouch applications on your computer

that you created or found using the Application Manager.
The Version column shows the InTouch version that was last
used to save the application.

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18 Chapter 1 Managing InTouch Applications

Starting the ArchestrA IDE from the Application

Manager
You can switch to the ArchestrA Integrated Development
Environment (IDE) to create or edit your managed InTouch
application.

Note Application Server Bootstrap and IDE must be installed on

the same computer as the InTouch HMI to start the ArchestrA IDE
from the Application Manager.

To start the ArchestrA IDE from the Application Manager

1 Start the Application Manager.
2 On the File menu, click ArchestrA IDE. The Application
Server Connect to Galaxy dialog box appears.
3 Connect to an existing Galaxy or create a new Galaxy.
The ArchestrA IDE dialog box appears after you connect to
a Galaxy.

4 Create or edit the objects designated as a managed

InTouch application.

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 Creating an InTouch Application 19

Creating an InTouch Application

You can create a new InTouch application using the
Application Manager. The application path cannot exceed
114 characters, including the network drive letter, colon, and
all backslashes. If the limit is exceeded, you cannot open the
application in WindowMaker.
The INTOUCH.ini file is created when you create an
application. The INTOUCH.ini file contains the default
configuration settings for your application. As you configure
your application, the new settings are written to the
INTOUCH.ini file.
After you create an application, you can copy an existing
INTOUCH.ini file to the application folder. This way, you do
not need to configure customized InTouch parameters each
time you create a new application.

To create a new application

1 On the File menu, click New. The Create New Application
wizard appears.

2 Configure the application folder. If the folder you specify

does not exist, you are prompted to create it.
• Click Browse to specify a folder other than the default.
• Select the Set As Default Directory check box to make
the specified folder the default.

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20 Chapter 1 Managing InTouch Applications

3 Click Next. The next wizard page appears.

4 Type the application folder name.

5 Click Next. The next wizard page appears.

6 Configure the application details.

• In the Name box, type a unique name for the
application.
• In the Description box, type an optional description up
to a maximum of 255 characters.
• Select the InTouchView Application check box to create
an InTouchView application. For more information
about InTouchView, see Viewing Applications at Run
Time on page 193.
7 Click Finish.

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 Opening an Application in WindowMaker and WindowViewer 21

Opening an Application in WindowMaker and

WindowViewer
You must open a new application in WindowMaker before
you can open it in WindowViewer.

To open an application in WindowMaker

1 Select the application in the Application Manager
window.
2 On the File menu, click WindowMaker.

Tip You can also double-click an application to open it in

WindowMaker.

To open an application in WindowViewer

1 Select the application in the Application Manager
window.
2 On the File menu, click WindowViewer.

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22 Chapter 1 Managing InTouch Applications

Modifying an InTouch Application

You can rename an application and change the application
properties.

To rename an application
1 Select the application in the list.
2 On the File menu, click Rename.

To modify application properties

1 Select the application in the list.
2 On the File menu, click Properties. The Properties dialog
box appears.

3 Configure the application properties.

• In the Name box, type a new name for the application.
• In the window, type another description for the
application.
4 Click OK.

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 Deleting an InTouch Application from the Application Manager 23

Deleting an InTouch Application from the

Application Manager
When you delete an application from the Application
Manager, the application files remain on your computer.

To delete an application
1 Select an application in the list.
2 On the File menu, click Delete.
3 In the message that appears, click Yes.

Customizing the Application Manager Window

You can hide the toolbar and status bar. You can also change
how the applications are listed in the Application Manager
window. Applications can be shown as large icons, small
icons, in a brief list, or in a detailed list.

To hide the toolbar

• On the View menu, click Toolbar so that no check mark is
shown.

To hide the status bar

• On the View menu, click Status Bar so that no check mark
is shown.

To change the view for the application list

• On the View menu, click the appropriate command.

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24 Chapter 1 Managing InTouch Applications

Finding InTouch Applications

You can search for existing InTouch applications. Application
Manager shows any applications that are found.
An application cannot be opened in WindowMaker if the full
path exceeds 114 characters (including the network drive
letter, colon, and all backslashes). If an application exceeds
the character limit, rename the folders in the path or move
the application to a different location.

To find applications
1 On the Tools menu, click Find Applications. The Browse For
Folder dialog box appears.

2 Select the folder in which you want to search for

applications.
3 Click OK.

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 Publishing Applications to Remote Nodes 25

Publishing Applications to Remote Nodes

Using Application Publisher, you can create a compressed,
self-extracting package file that contains all relevant files
and setup procedures to install an InTouch application on
another computer.
You use Application Publisher to publish stand-alone
InTouch applications. You publish managed InTouch
applications using the ArchestrA IDE.
You have two options to publish applications:
• Run-time only. A run-time only package includes the files
needed to run the application, but not to edit the
application.

• Design-time and run-time. A design-time and run-time

package includes all files needed to edit and run the
application. Some run-time files, such as compiled *.wvw
files, are excluded because they can be re-created from
the design-time files.

You can post published applications to a web server where

they can be downloaded and installed. The following package
information is shown for posted applications:
• Package description

• Publisher name

• Published file name (executable)

• Application resolution

For example:

Description Dairy Processing Application

Publisher Navin Johnson
File Name Dairy.exe / Video
Resolution…(1024x768)

Description Dairy Processing Application

Publisher Navin Johnson
File Name Dairy_2.exe / Video
Resolution…(800x600)

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26 Chapter 1 Managing InTouch Applications

Contents of a Published File

The following table lists the included folders, files, and
excluded files for all published stand-alone InTouch
applications.

Included Folders Included Files Excluded Files

Main application folder All Backup files. These
files have the .?bk file
name extension.
Files with these extensions: Subfolders not in the
.win, .dat, .lgh, .idx, .log, Special Directories
.fsm, .stg, .$$$ list

retentiv.x The appedit.lok file,

retentiv.d which indicates that
the application is open
retentiv.a in WindowMaker.
retentiv..s (two dots)
retentiv.h
wm.ini
db.ini
linkdefs.ini
tbox.ini
group.def
itocx.cfg
Any files with names of the Compiled window files
form SSD_*.xml. with the file name
extension .wvw.
Dictionary subfolders for All files with the .xml
run-time language extension.
switching
Symbol subfolders All files and subfolders.
wiz.ini file, if there are
wizards installed.
Copy of the wizard
executable.
.dll files,
.wdo files
.wdf files
For a run-time only application, all files with a file names of
SSD_*.xml are excluded.

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 Publishing Applications to Remote Nodes 27

Publishing a Stand-alone InTouch Application

Use the Application Publisher to publish a stand-alone
InTouch application.
If you want the published application to run at a specific
screen resolution, set the original application to that
resolution before you publish it.
To publish a managed InTouch application, use the
ArchestrA IDE.

To publish an InTouch application

1 Start the Application Publisher.
a Open WindowMaker.
b Show the Classic View and expand the Tools pane.
c Expand Applications.
d Double-click Application Publisher.
The InTouch Application Publisher – Step 1 of 4 dialog
box appears.

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28 Chapter 1 Managing InTouch Applications

2 Click Next. The InTouch Application Publisher – Step 2 of 4

dialog box appears.

3 Configure the package details.

• In the Enter author name box, type the name of the
person to contact regarding the application. The
name limit is 256 characters.
• In the Description box, type a description of the
application. The limit is 256 characters.
• In the Package Name box, type a unique name for the
published application package. The limit is 32
characters. If you use the name of an existing
package, the existing package is overwritten.
4 Click Next. The InTouch Application Publisher – Step 3 of 4
dialog box appears.

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 Publishing Applications to Remote Nodes 29

5 Configure the publishing details.

• In the box, type the path to the InTouch application
folder. The default path is the WindowMaker
application folder.
• Select the Runtime only check box to exclude the
development WindowMaker files in the published file.
6 Click Next. The InTouch Application Publisher – Step 4 of 4
dialog box appears.

7 Configure the details for the executable application

package.
• In the first box, verify the executable name in the
first box is correct. By default, the executable name is
the same as the package name.
• In the second box, type the path to the folder in which
to save the executable file, or click Browse to select a
different folder. By default, the executable is saved in
your current temporary folder.
8 Click Finish.

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30 Chapter 1 Managing InTouch Applications

Migrating Earlier InTouch Applications to the

Current Version
You can migrate applications developed with older versions
of the InTouch HMI to the current version. When you
attempt to open an older application with either
WindowMaker or WindowViewer, you are shown two dialog
boxes:
• The first dialog box confirms that you want to migrate
the older application to the current version of the
InTouch HMI.

• The second dialog box requests information from you to

create a backup copy before migrating the old application
to the current version of the InTouch HMI.

You see the Backup Configuration dialog box after you confirm
that you want to migrate an older application to the current
version of the InTouch HMI. You must specify the folder to
create the backup copy and if you want to exclude any files
from the backup.

To change the default backup path (<Application

Directory>\Bak), clear Use Default Backup Path box. Then,
type the path to the folder in the Backup Path box where you
want to save the backup. If the folder does not exist, you
must create it, and then create the backup.
In the Ignore Files box, you can specify any files that you
want to exclude from the backup. By default, all files in the
application directory are backed up. Type each file name
separated by a semicolon (;). Or, use standard wild card
characters ('*' and '?') to exclude a set of files by the common
characters in their names.

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 Migrating Earlier InTouch Applications to the Current Version 31

Converting Legacy Alarm Displays

When you open an application built with a version before
InTouch 7.11 in WindowViewer, a dialog box appears
prompting you to run WindowMaker to convert the
application. If you continue with the conversion, all of the
Standard Alarm Objects are converted to Distributed Alarm
Objects with default values. Colors, fonts, expressions, and
alarm query settings are not preserved.

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InTouch HMI Application Management and Extension Guide

 33

Chapter 2

Distributing Applications

Distributed applications typically have a central

development station, central data storage, and client
stations. You use InTouch Network Application Development
(NAD) to build and maintain distributed applications. NAD
allows many client stations to maintain a copy of a single
application without restricting the development of that
application. Client stations are automatically notified when
the application changes.
You can create single computer, client-based, and
server-based InTouch applications.
You can also manage and deploy InTouch applications using
the ArchestrA IDE. For more information about using the
ArchestrA IDE with the InTouch HMI, see Chapter 1, About
InTouch ArchestrA Integration, in the InTouch® HMI and
ArchestrA Integration Guide.

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34 Chapter 2 Distributing Applications

Supported InTouch Architectures

Supported InTouch network architectures are:
• Single computer
• Client-based

• Server-based

• NAD

Single Computer Architecture

A single computer application typically consists of one
non-networked computer that functions as the primary
operator interface. This computer is connected to the
industrial process with a direct connection, such as a serial
cable.
In this architecture, you develop the InTouch application on
the single computer. You can copy the application to another
computer to modify it and then copy it back to the original
computer.

Development and View Node

InTouch Process
App. serial connection

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 Supported InTouch Architectures 35

Client-Based Architecture
In a client-based architecture, there is a unique copy of one
InTouch application for each computer running
WindowViewer (View node) or in a unique location on a
network server. In the following example, an application is
developed and tested on the development node and then
copied to each View node.

Development Node View Node 1 View Node 2

InTouch InTouch InTouch

App. App. App. Process

Network

There is inherent redundancy because each node can be

self-sufficient, and there is no limit to the number of View
nodes you can use.
Each View node must have an identical copy of the
application and identical access to any network data sources,
such as I/O Servers or the Wonderware Historian. However,
each View node maintains a separate conversation with the
shared server, which can result in increased network loading.
You can modify and test the application on the development
node without affecting the running process. However, you
must distribute the modified application to the View nodes.
You must shut down each View node locally, copy the new
application to it, and then restart.

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Server-Based Architecture
A server-based architecture distributes a common InTouch
application to several View nodes. In the following figure,
two View nodes access the same application from the
development node.

Development Node
View Node 1 View Node 2

InTouch
App. Process

Network

For each View node:

• A logical drive must be mapped to the shared network
drive of the development node.

• The shared application must be registered with the

InTouch program.

• The computer must have identical access to any data

sources referred to by the application. There are also
ways to define the data source locations by using a
combination of scripts to identify the node name and
change each data location based on that name.

In this architecture, there is a single application to maintain.

View nodes are automatically updated when the application
changes and WindowViewer restarts.
Disadvantages of this architecture are:
• Development of application is restricted

• No redundancy if the development node goes down

• All nodes must have the same screen resolution

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 Supported InTouch Architectures 37

Network Application Development (NAD)

In the Network Application Development (NAD)
architecture, you maintain a master copy of an application on
a central network location, which is usually the development
node. Each View node copies the application to a user-defined
location and runs it.
When you notify clients of application changes (using the
Notify Clients command on the WindowMaker Special menu),
a flag is set in the application directory, which is then read by
the View nodes.
You can configure how you want application changes handled
for the View nodes. These range from ignoring the changes to
automatically shutting down and restarting the View node,
which reloads the master application.
In the following figure, the two View nodes have the master
application registered from the development node, but
actually run it locally on their computers.

Development Node View Node 1 View Node 2

InTouch InTouch InTouch

App. App. App. Process

Network

Note If you configure your application to write historical data to

the master application node's application directory, all NAD nodes
attempt to write their historical data to the master application.
To avoid this, on each NAD node, configure historical data to write
to a local directory, not the master application node.

If you are distributing a large, complex application to

numerous nodes, slow system response time may be apparent
on the initial download. Updates, however, are optimized.
Application transfer may be a problem for slow networks or
over serial connections.
Also, be aware of other network constraints, such as the user
of routers that filter out certain types of network traffic and
addresses.

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Planning Considerations for Networked

Applications
Regardless of the architecture you choose when building your
InTouch application, it is important to consider:
• Access to I/O data sources.

• Access to shared files.

• Where data is logged.

• Any special network requirements.

I/O Data Access for Networked Applications

The InTouch HMI uses Access Names to reference real-time
I/O data. Each Access Name equates to an I/O address, which
consists of a node name, an application, and a topic. In a
distributed application, I/O references can be set as global
addresses to a network I/O Server or local addresses to a
local I/O Server.

Note InTouchView is restricted to the single Galaxy Access Name.

You cannot create other Access Names for InTouchView. For more
information about the restrictions of InTouchView, see Viewing
Applications at Run Time on page 193.

The View node must have the same access to data sources as
the development node.

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 Planning Considerations for Networked Applications 39

Using Global I/O Addresses

Global addresses to I/O data allow all View nodes to share a
common network-based I/O Server. This eliminates the need
for multiple I/O Servers, but is less fault-tolerant and can
result in lower overall performance.
In the following figure, two View nodes are running a copy of
the same application. Both View nodes refer to the same I/O
data source. Because each application uses a fully qualified
I/O address for the data source, all references point to the
same I/O Server.

View Node 1 View Node 2 DAServer “DAS1”

Process

Network

Network

You can set up an InTouch application to identify an element

of data stored on another node by using a three-part
addressing convention in an Access Name. The Access Name
addressing convention includes the node name, application
name, and topic name where the remote data is located. An
InTouch application obtains remote data using the Access
Name in combination with an item name. For more
information about defining an Access Name for a remote I/O
Server, see Chapter 5, Data Access with I/O, in the InTouch®
HMI Data Management Guide.

Note When you create Access Names in WindowMaker, if the

Access Name uses the SuiteLink protocol, the software prevents
Access Names from accessing the same node, application and
topic. Do not use the IOSetAccessName() function to redirect
Access Names to duplicate ones during run time or else the
redirected Access Name will not work.

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Using Local I/O Addresses

Local addresses to I/O data are used when each View node
has its own I/O Server. This architecture provides
fault-tolerant operation, as each View node can continue to
run independently if the network goes down.
In the following figure, two View nodes run copies of the
same application that refer to their own I/O data source.
Because each application uses a local I/O address for the data
source, each reference points to the local I/O Server.

View Node 1 View Node 2 View Node 3

Process
Network

Network

Using a local I/O Server significantly increases the load on

the process connection network. For example, three nodes
triples the traffic created by one node, as each node's
requests must be separately processed.
For more information about defining an Access Name for a
local I/O Server, see Chapter 5, Data Access with I/O, in the
InTouch® HMI Data Management Guide.

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 Planning Considerations for Networked Applications 41

Wonderware SuiteLink
The Wonderware SuiteLink communications protocol is
based on the TCP/IP protocol. Use SuiteLink for your
high-speed industrial applications, as it provides these
features:
• Value Time Quality (VTQ), in which a timestamp and
quality indicator are associated with all data values
delivered to VTQ-aware clients. The InTouch HMI is a
VTQ-aware client whose tag data is delivered with a VTQ
indicator.

• Extensive diagnostics of the data throughput, the server

loading, computer resource consumption, and network
transport are made accessible through the Microsoft
Windows operating system performance monitor.

• Consistent high data volumes can be maintained between

applications regardless if the applications are on a single
node or distributed over a large number of nodes.

SuiteLink is not a replacement for DDE, FastDDE, or

NetDDE. Each connection between a client and a server
depends on your network requirements.

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Access to Shared Files

In a distributed application, file references can be set up as:
• Global addresses to a network file server.
• Local addresses to local files.

The View node must have the same access to data sources as
the development node.

Using Global Addresses to File Data

You can set up global addresses to file data so that all View
nodes share a common network-based set of files. This
provides single-source maintenance of the files, but it is less
fault-tolerant than local copies.
In the following figure, two View nodes are each running a
copy of the same application, but reference the same recipe
file. Because each application uses a drive letter mapped to a
fully-qualified network path for the file, all references point
to the same file.

View Node 1 View Node 2 FileServer “Moo”

Network

To set up a shared file

1 Map a network drive to the shared path containing the
referenced files. For example, G:\Directory\Recipe.csv,
where “G:\” is the mapped drive letter that refers to
\\Moo\Share. You must map this same drive on every View
node.
2 In scripts, reference the shared path. For example:
RecipeSelectRecipe(“G:\Directory\Recipe.csv”,
“review”, “RecipeName”);

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 Planning Considerations for Networked Applications 43

Using Local Addresses to File Data

You can use local addresses to file data when each View node
has its own copy of the file. In the following figure, three
View nodes are each running a copy of the same application
and reference the local copy of a recipe file.

View Node 1 View Node 2 View Node 3

Network

In this example, the local address is:

C:\Directory\Recipe.csv

where “C:\” is the local drive.

In scripts, reference the local path. For example:
RecipeSelectRecipe(“C:\Directory\Recipe.csv”, “review”,
“RecipeName”);

This architecture is fault-tolerant. However, you must copy

any file changes to all the View nodes.
Any file access should be “Read Only” and modification to the
local file should not be permitted.

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Access to Shared Files through UNC

You can use a Universal Naming Convention (UNC) address
anywhere that you would normally enter a file path, such as
for application directory entries, configuration items, and
distributed alarms. If you use UNC names, you do not need
to create mapped drives.
A UNC address is in the form of \\Node\Share\Path,
where:
• Node is the name of the computer that contains the file
share.

• Share is the logical name assigned to the shared folder on

that computer.
• Path is the normal path to that file with respect to the
share.

Note If you are using Wonderware SuiteLink, the node name is

limited to 15 characters.

Before you can access a file through UNC, you must create a
file share on the computer you want to access. For more
information, see your Windows documentation.
For example, assume that you have a computer with the
network name of “EngineRm” that you have shared the root
drive “C:\” with the share name of “Root”. To set up a UNC
path to the “C:\IT\Apps\Boiler” application you must use
the following UNC:
\\EngineRm\Root\IT\Apps\Boiler
If the “Boiler” directory itself was shared as “Boiler,” the
UNC could be shortened to:
\\EnginerRm\Boiler
No path is required if the share is a path specified in the
PATH environment variable.

Note If you need to write to a file referred to by a UNC address,

the share must be a read/write share, even on a local node. If you
create a share that is password-protected, you will not be able to
access the share with a UNC unless you first set up a network
drive mapping. You can set up a drive mapping from the remote
node by using Windows Explorer.

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 Planning Considerations for Networked Applications 45

Logging Data in a Distributed Environment

You can use the InTouch distributed history system to
retrieve historical data from any InTouch application on the
network. This system also allows for remote retrieval of data
from multiple history databases simultaneously. These
databases are called history providers.
Only one InTouch node can log to a distributed history file.
However, an unlimited number of InTouch nodes can view
the contents of the file.

View Node View Node View Node View Node

Retrieve Retrieve Retrieve Retrieve

Log/Retrieve

History File History File

Log/Retrieve

View Node (Logger)

A remote node retrieving data from a history file may not see
data for the last hour of data (based on the logger node's
time). Remote trends can only view data that has been
written to the logging node's disk.
Data for each tag checked for 'Log Data' is automatically
written to disk after 22 samples for that tag have been
collected. If the HTUpdateToCurrentTime() function is
called, data is written to disk regardless of the number of
samples collected. By default, data is written to disk once an
hour. You can change this interval by adding the following
line to the INTOUCH.ini file:
ForceLogging=X;

Where X is minutes and can be set to any interval between 5

and 120.

Note The Wonderware NetDDE Helper service must be running

when you use the distributed history system.

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46 Chapter 2 Distributing Applications

The following figure shows the configuration of a typical

distributed history system using Network Application
Development (NAD) to distribute the application.

Node 1 Node 2

Node3

Log/Retrieve Retrieve
Retrieve Retrieve
Log/Retrieve

Remote
Local
History File
History File
(HistPrv1)

Nodes 1 and 2 contain copies of the same InTouch

application; however, the application is configured to allow
only Node 1 to log to a local history file, whereas either node
can retrieve from the local history file or the remote history
file. Node 3 is also logging to and retrieving from the remote
history file location. Node 3, the history provider, is assigned
the name HistPrv1. Node 1 is both a development and
run-time station, while Node 2 is just a run-time station.
Do the following major steps to create this type of
application:

1 Create a history provider list. See Configuring Remote

History Providers on page 47.
2 Create and configure a historical trend object. For more
information, see Chapter 10, Trending Tag Data, in the
InTouch® HMI Data Management Guide.
3 Configure the application for distributed logging. See
Configuring Distributed Historical Logging on page 49.
4 Distribute the application. See Configuring an InTouch
Application for NAD on page 51.
You can distribute your application manually or by using
NAD. When you distribute your application, the historical
provider list file is distributed as part of the application.
After you have distributed your application, you can run the
View nodes and retrieve both local tags and tags from a
remote history provider. While the application runs on all the
View nodes, only the logging node logs to the historical log
file; other nodes can only read from it.

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 Planning Considerations for Networked Applications 47

Configuring Remote History Providers

You must specify a name and network location for each
remote history provider that you want to use with the
InTouch HMI. You can use either a remote InTouch history
provider or a remote Wonderware Historian history provider.

Note A remote history provider cannot be configured for an

InTouchView application. For more information about the
limitations of InTouchView applications, see InTouchView on
page 203.

While the local InTouch application is considered a history

provider, you do not need to define it for your application.
If you reference an undefined history provider in an
application, WindowViewer ignores the reference and an
error message is written to the Logger.
The HistData utility cannot retrieve historical information
from a Wonderware Historian provider.

To configure a history provider

1 On the Special menu, point to Configure, and then click
Distributed Name Manager. The Distributed Name Manager
dialog box appears.
2 Click the Distributed History tab.

3 In the Provider Name box, type the name you want to use
for the new historical provider.
A provider name can be 16 alphanumeric characters or
fewer.

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4 To configure an InTouch history provider, do the

following:
a Click InTouch Provider.
b In the UNC box, type the UNC path to the InTouch
application directory and then click Add.
The UNC path format is:
\\node_name\volume_name\directory\
If the UNC location is password-protected, you must
first establish a node connection using Windows
Explorer.
5 To configure a Wonderware Historian history provider,
do the following:
a Click InSQL Provider.
b Click Configure InSQL Provider. The InSql History
Provider Properties dialog box appears.

c In the Data Source box, type the name, up to 35

characters, of the node where the Wonderware
Historian database resides.
d In the User box, type the user name for the logon
account. The user account must have database
permissions to retrieve data.
e In the Password and Re-enter password boxes, type the
password for the logon account.
f Click Test to validate the connection to the
Wonderware Historian. When a message appears,
click OK.
g Click OK to close the InSql History Providers Properties
dialog box.
6 Click OK.

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 Planning Considerations for Networked Applications 49

Dynamically Configuring Remote History Providers

At run time, you can also dynamically configure a historical
trend's remote history provider by creating a script that
specifies the remote history provider tag references in the
HTSetPenName() function. For example:
HTSetPenName("HistTrendTag", 1, "HistPrv1.Boiler1");

Where a 1 specifies the trend pen that plots the specified

remote history provider tag.
The run-time Historical Trend Setup dialog box and .Pen
dotfield are not supported for remote history providers.

Configuring Distributed Historical Logging

Only one InTouch node can log to the history file. However,
multiple InTouch nodes can view the file.

Note Historical logging cannot be configured for an InTouchView

application. For more information about the limitations of
InTouchView applications, see InTouchView on page 203.

To configure distributed historical logging

1 On the Special menu, point to Configure, and then click
Historical Logging. The Historical Logging Properties dialog
box appears.

2 Select the Enable Historical Logging check box to turn on

global tag logging.
3 Select Store Log Files in Specific Directory, and then in the
input box, type the path of the location where the log files
are stored.
You must type a valid Universal Naming Convention
(UNC) path. For example, \\Node\Share\Path
If you are using NAD, make sure the path points to a
folder other than the application folder.

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4 In the Name of Logging Node box, type the name of the

node that will be logging to the history log file.
This setting only allows the node named here to log to the
file.
5 Click OK.

Note When an application with the Enable Historical Logging

option selected is distributed to a WindowViewer node, that node
checks this option to determine if it should log or not. If Enable
Historical Logging is selected, the possible settings are:
Field equals name of Node - Logging enabled
Field does not equal name of Node - Logging disabled

Considerations for Special Networks

If you are working on a slow network and the InTouch HMI
takes a long time to start or save information, modify the
win.ini settings on the NAD client:
ViewNadClearNADCopyDirectory=0
ViewNADCopyApplicationOnStartup=1
ViewNADOnApplicationChanged=3 ( or 4)
ViewNADThreadPriority=2

For the ViewNADOnApplicationChanged parameter, a

setting of 3 corresponds to the Load changes into
WindowViewer option on the Node Properties dialog box in
the InTouch Application Manager. A setting of 4 corresponds
to the Prompt user to load changes into WindowViewer option.
These settings allow the application to continue to run while
NAD downloads take place in parallel, on a separate
execution thread.
When NAD performs an update to an application, it copies
only the changed files from the master. NAD does not copy
the SmartSymbol design-time dictionary files for run-time
language switching.

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 Configuring an InTouch Application for NAD 51

Configuring an InTouch Application for NAD

Network Application Development or NAD is an architecture
that combines the best of the client-based and server-based
architectures. NAD provides automatic notification of
application changes and can automatically distribute
updated applications to View nodes
When configuring an application for NAD, you must specify
the folder that you want WindowViewer to copy the master
application to.
• If this is the development node, you can type a local folder
path, such as c:\InTouch\NAD. You can also type a
networked remote UNC path, such as
\\node\share\path. This is convenient for file
server-based networks where most file storage is kept in
a central location.

• If this is a client node (run-time only), you typically use a

local folder path.

We recommend that you use a local folder whenever possible

to prevent network delays and failures from affecting the
operation of WindowViewer.

Caution Do not use a root folder or a UNC pathname that points

to a root folder. The View node recursively deletes all files and
subfolders in the specified destination application folder before
copying the master application directory. Therefore, never use
the path of the master application folder or a UNC to the master
application folder.

If you do not specify a folder, WindowViewer automatically

creates a local subfolder named NAD in the folder from which
WindowViewer is launched. The NAD folder should be
considered a temporary folder and no other files should be
saved to it except those copied by NAD itself.

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You cannot use NAD update features if you are running

WindowViewer as a service. For more information, see
Running WindowViewer as a Service on page 70.

To configure an application for NAD

1 Start Application Manager.
2 On the Tools menu, click Node Properties. The Node
Properties dialog box appears.

3 Select the Enable Network Application Development check

box.
4 In the Local working directory box, type the path to the
folder that you want WindowViewer to copy the master
application.
5 In the Polling period (sec) box, type the interval, in
seconds, at which the View node checks the development
node for updates.
Be careful that you do not set this value too small. If
WindowViewer checks for master application changes too
often, it can interfere with servicing the running
application.

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 Configuring an InTouch Application for NAD 53

6 In the Change Mode area, select the option that

determines the action WindowViewer takes when the
master application changes.
• Click Ignore changes to have the WindowViewer node
ignore any changes made on the development node.
• Click Restart Window Viewer to have the
WindowViewer node copy over the updated master
application (if configured to do so) and then restart
itself.
• Click Prompt user to Restart WindowViewer to show
the operator a message that the application has
changed. The operator can either restart
WindowViewer with the application updates or
continue using the current application.
• Click Load Changes into WindowViewer to
dynamically load in WindowViewer the changes made
in the development node. This may affect
performance for large updates.
• Click Prompt user to load changes into WindowViewer
to show the operator a message that the application
has changed. The message prompts the operator to
load the changes.
7 Click OK.

Performing an Automatic NAD Update

You can start an automatic NAD update during application
development.
When you run the Notify Clients command, a flag is set to
notify all remote View nodes that the master application has
changed. Clients can automatically start an update process
based on the Change Mode option defined for each node.

To perform an automatic update

1 Open the application in WindowMaker.
2 On the Special menu, click Notify Clients.

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Performing a Manual NAD Update

You can write scripts that allow operators to manually start
a NAD update on the View nodes in which they work.
To manually update an application with NAD, you must set
the Change Mode option to Ignore Changes in the Node
Properties dialog box. For more information, see Configuring
an InTouch Application for NAD on page 51.
Use the following system tags and functions in your script to
perform a manual NAD update:
• $ApplicationChanged System Tag

• $ApplicationVersion System Tag

• RestartWindowViewer() Function

• ReloadWindowViewer() Function

$ApplicationChanged System Tag

Signals that the master application has changed in a
Network Application Development (NAD) architecture.
Category
application
Usage
$ApplicationChanged
Remarks
This system tag changes to 1 every time the update signal is
generated by selecting Notify Clients on the WindowMaker
Special menu. $ApplicationChanged is reset to 0 when the
application is updated. This tag can be used to generate a
message that informs the operator that the master
application has changed.
You can also use the $ApplicationChanged system tag in a
data change script to build a node update notification script.
This script can launch your own dialog boxes or stop running
processes. Then, you could use the ReloadWindowViewer()
function to start the update process.
Data Type
Discrete (read only)

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 Configuring an InTouch Application for NAD 55

Example
Using the following statement in the tagname box of a data
change script causes the body of the script to run. The script
body could show a window informing the user to restart
WindowViewer for the change to take effect.
$ApplicationChanged
See Also
$ApplicationVersion

$ApplicationVersion System Tag

Contains the current version number of the application. This
number changes with every change that can be saved or
undone.
Category
application
Usage
$ApplicationVersion
Remarks
The value associated with the $ApplicationVersion system
tag is set to the current version of the InTouch application.
The version changes with every change to the application
that can be saved or undone. This tag can be used to generate
a message that informs the operator that the master
application has changed.
Data Type
Real (read only)
Example
If used in an analog display link, this system tag shows the
current version of the application that is running within
WindowViewer.
$ApplicationVersion
See Also
$ApplicationChanged

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RestartWindowViewer() Function
Shuts down WindowViewer, copies the updated master
application (if configured to do so), and then restarts
WindowViewer.
Category
system
Syntax
RestartWindowViewer();

Remarks
This function is used to update an application when the
automatic update Network Application Development (NAD)
functions are not used.
Use the $ApplicationChanged system tag to determine when
a NAD update has occurred.
You use the Notify Clients command to initiate a NAD update.
However, the operator may want to delay the update until a
later time. You can use this function with a button action
script so that the operator can restart WindowViewer when it
is convenient.
You could instead use the ReloadWindowViewer() function,
which updates the View node without shutting down
WindowViewer.
See Also
$ApplicationChanged, ReloadWindowViewer()

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 Configuring an InTouch Application for NAD 57

ReloadWindowViewer() Function
Dynamically updates WindowViewer with the updated
master NAD application without any interruption in service.
Category
system
Syntax
ReloadWindowViewer();
Allows the user control over reloading WindowViewer.
Remarks
Use this function to update an application when the
automatic update Network Application Development (NAD)
functions are not used.
Use the $ApplicationChanged system tag to determine when
a NAD update has occurred.
You use the Notify Clients command to initiate a NAD update.
However, the operator may want to delay the update until a
later time. You can use this function with a button action
script so that the operator can reload the application in
WindowViewer when it is convenient.
See Also
$ApplicationChanged

Application Editing Locks

To prevent multiple developers from trying to edit an
application, WindowMaker locks an application during the
edit session. If you try to open a locked application, an error
message is shown. The name of the node editing the
application is included in the message.
If WindowMaker is abnormally shut down with an
application loaded, the appedit.lok file may not be deleted.
You can manually remove the lock by deleting the
appedit.lok file from the application directory.

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Changes to an Application During a NAD Update

When the WindowViewer node updates an application, it
makes every attempt to retain the attributes (read-only,
system, hidden, and so on) of the master application during
the copy process.
WindowViewer also copies all files and subfolders of the
master application, except for these files: *.WVW, *.DAT,
*.LGH, *.IDX, *.LOG, *.LOK, *.FSM, *.STG, *.DBK, *.CBK,
*.HBK, *.KBK, *.LBK, *.NBK, *.OBK, *.TBK, *.WBK,
*.XBK, *.$$$, RETENTIV.X, RETENTIV.D, RETENTIV.A,
RETENTIV.S, RETENTIV.H, RETENTIV.T, SSD_, WM.INI,
DB.INI, LINKDEFS.INI, TBOX.INI, GROUP.DEF, and
ITOCX.CFG.

Note WindowViewer recursively deletes all files and subfolders in

the destination application folder except those required for
run-time language switching. This folder should be considered a
temporary folder. No other files should be placed in it.

The NAD client starts an update by creating a local list of

files and sub-directories that appear in the client application
directory. As it looks for updates in the list of master files,
the NAD client removes the corresponding client file for each
master file from the local list. The remaining entries in the
local list are obsolete files and sub-directories that should be
deleted from the application.
All downloaded files are copied to a temporary sub-directory
called NAD_Temp. Files are only copied from NAD_Temp to
the application directory if all of the new and updated files
are copied successfully within the re-try limits. If the NAD
client has to abandon an update, the running application is
not corrupted by the partial introduction of new or updated
files.
If contact with the NAD master fails after all new and
updated files have been downloaded, the update can still be
completed by copying the updates from NAD_Temp and
deleting the obsolete files. This ensures that files are not
erased simply because a lost connection makes it impossible
to confirm their existence on the master application.
NAD can detect whether additional changes have been made
to the master application during application download. If
such a situation arises, NAD abandons the download of the
application. If you run the Notify Clients command after the
latest update, NAD automatically begins downloading the
latest application files at the next polling period. Otherwise,
it waits until the next Notify Clients command issued before
an application download takes place.

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 Configuring an InTouch Application for NAD 59

Scaling the Application Resolution at Run Time

You can use Dynamic Resolution Conversion (DRC) so that
the distributed applications you create can run on different
screen resolutions.
Each View node can scale the application appropriately,
including scaling to a custom resolution. This scaling takes
place while WindowViewer compiles the application and does
not require WindowMaker. Because each View node can use
a different DRC setting, each View node must have its own
settings configured.

Caution If you do not use DRC to scale the application,

WindowViewer only runs the application if the node's screen
resolution is identical to the screen resolution of the application
development node. If the resolutions are different,
WindowViewer prompts the operator to run WindowMaker to
convert the application to the node's resolution. Use caution when
doing this if you have set up a UNC path to the master application
directory, as this will only modify the original application.

To configure an application for DRC

1 Start Application Manager.
2 On the Tools menu, click Node Properties. The Node
Properties dialog box appears.
3 Click the Resolution tab.

4 Select the Allow WindowViewer to dynamically change

resolution check box if you want WindowViewer to locally
scale the master application.

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60 Chapter 2 Distributing Applications

5 In the Dynamic Resolution area, select one of the

following:
• Select Use Application resolution if you want
WindowViewer to run the application at the
resolution it was developed for and ignore the node's
resolution. For example, if the application was
developed at 800x600 and the node's resolution is
1024x768, WindowViewer does not dynamically scale
the application. Instead, the application resolution
remains at 800x600.
• Select Convert to screen video resolution if you want
WindowViewer to run the application at the node's
resolution and ignore the resolution the application
was developed at. For example, if the node is running
at 800x600 and the application was developed at
1280x1024, WindowViewer dynamically scales the
application to fit the node's 800x600 resolution.
• Select Custom Resolution if you want WindowViewer
to run the application at a specific resolution you
specify in the Pixel width (X) and Pixel height (Y)
(must be integer values) boxes. The application's
resolution and the node's resolution are both ignored.
For example, if Pixel width (X) and Pixel height (Y) are
set to 512 and 384, respectively, the application is
dynamically scaled to fit in a 512x384-pixel area on
the node's screen.
6 Click OK.

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 Using Terminal Services 61

Using Terminal Services

Terminal Services is a configurable service included in the
Microsoft Windows Server operating systems that runs
Windows-based applications centrally from a server. In
Terminal Services, client computers access the server node,
where multiple instances of InTouch software applications
run simultaneously.
WindowViewer WindowViewer WindowViewer
Thin Client Thin Client Thin Client

Corporate Network

InTouch
Terminal Server

Supervisory Network

The Terminal Services environment has three main parts:

• Terminal Services Server. The server manages the
computing resources for each client session and provides
client users with their own unique environment. The
server receives and processes all keystrokes and mouse
actions performed at the remote client and directs all
display output for both the operating system and
applications to the appropriate client. All Terminal
Services application processing occurs on the server.

• Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP). A Remote Desktop

Protocol (RDP) client application passes the input data,
such as keystrokes and mouse movements, to the server.
• Client. The Terminal Services client performs no local
application processing; it just shows the application
output. You access Terminal Services from a client by
running the Terminal Services Client command on the
Windows Program menu. When you connect to the
Terminal server, the client environment looks the same
as the Windows server. The fact that the application is
not running locally is completely transparent.

For more information about Terminal Services, including

features and benefits, see your Microsoft documentation.

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Planning Considerations for Terminal Server

Applications
Important We recommend that you install applications on a test
server before you deploy them in your production environment.

Before you install Terminal Services:

• Identify the client applications (for example, Wonderware
InTouch) that you need to install on the server.

• Identify the hardware requirements for your clients.

• Determine the server configuration required to support

clients.

• Identify the licenses required for Terminal Services as

well as other applications that you will be running.

• Understand how some aspects of InTouch applications

run under Terminal Services, such as alarms, security,
I/O, and scripts.

Alarms in a Terminal Services Environment

By using the Distributed Alarm System with Terminal
Services for InTouch, alarm clients running on different
terminal sessions can select what alarm to show and how to
present it.
Alarm Providers identify themselves by a name that
uniquely identifies their application, and the instance of
their application. This information is made available to the
Distributed Alarm System when the Alarm Provider or the
Alarm Consumer registers with the Distributed Alarm
System.
The node on which an Alarm Provider is running is identified
by a name that uniquely identifies the computer node in the
system. This information is made available to the
Distributed Alarm System when an instance of it starts up
on the computer node.
When an alarm event is logged, the node and complete Alarm
Provider name identify the source of the alarm.
When an alarm is acknowledged in a Terminal Services
environment, the Operator Node that gets recorded is the
name of the client computer running the Terminal Services
session used by the operator. If the node name of the
computer cannot be retrieved, its IP address is used instead.

Note Alarm Providers are not supported on Terminal sessions.

They are only supported on the Terminal Console.

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 Using Terminal Services 63

Security in a Terminal Services Environment

Use application security to secure your InTouch application,
Wonderware Historian, and other sensitive information
systems.
• Use the $Operator system tag to secure your application.
You can then control operator access to specific functions
by linking those functions to internal tags.

For more information about using the $Operator system

tag, see Securing InTouch on page 129.
• Replace the GetNodeName() function with the newer
TseGetClientId() function to identify the client computer.
When using Terminal Services, the GetNodeName()
function returns the name of the terminal server, not the
name of the client computer.
Use security auditing to monitor intrusion attempts. If you
suspect that your system is under any sort of attack, then
you can enable logging for an array of auditable events. By
default, security logging/auditing is disabled because it
usually requires excessive processing resources.

Caution Security auditing requires significant resources. Enable

auditing when you evaluate your pilot server to accurately
estimate your InTouch application hardware requirements.

I/O in a Terminal Services Environment

The InTouch HMI cannot start I/O Servers in a Terminal
Services environment. Depending on the sequence that view
sessions start, you may need to use the IOReinitialize()
function. All servers (I/O devices or view applications) must
be running before starting an application that reads values
from these servers.
To avoid receiving an “initializing I/O” error message when
WindowViewer starts, clear the Start Local Servers check box
on the General tab on the WindowViewer Properties dialog
box.

Note Running WindowViewer as a Windows Service is not a

supported configuration because of the Terminal Services
architecture.

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Script Execution in a Terminal Services Environment

Because all applications running in Terminal Services use a
single timing reference (server clock), scripts may not run
during periods of excessive CPU loading. Abnormal CPU
loading can be caused by excessive video processing or when
several applications have the same script triggers defined
(such as an End-of-Shift event). It is possible, therefore, that
if the server is busy processing scripts from many clients, it
may not start a script on another client during the interval
when the timer would normally start the script. This can
prevent the script from running on the client.
To ensure scripts run correctly, combine scripts with common
triggers and move them to a single application, such as a tag
server. This is one of the primary reasons for pilot
deployment. Pilot deployment gives you an opportunity to
conduct stress testing to determine if your hardware
selection is adequate.

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 Using Terminal Services 65

Miscellaneous Limitations in a Terminal Services

Environment
The following table describes the limitations and suggested
solutions to run applications on a terminal server.

Feature Supported? Comment

WindowViewer Yes WindowViewer is not supported

running as a service under Terminal
Services.
AlarmSuite Logger No Use a tag server (separate computer
only).
DDE to an I/O Device or MS No Use a tag server (console or separate
Office (for example, Excel) computer). This includes DDE
QuickScripts: WWExecute(), WWpoke()
and WWRequest()
DDE from MS Office (for Yes Excel and the InTouch HMI must be
example, Hot-link running in the same session.
configured in Excel)
Historical Trending Yes Use a tag server or NAD to log values.
Multiple sessions may read the same
historical files, but only a console can
write to historical files.
InTouch Alarm Logger Yes --
MEM OLE Automation No --
Printing Alarms No --
Retentive tags Yes Must use NAD.
SPC Pro No Not supported.
SQL Access (ODBC) Yes Database should be on a separate
computer.
SuiteLink to an I/O Device Yes When communicating to another view
or another InTouch session, include the Terminal Server
application. node name and append the IP address
of the desired session to the application
name. For example, view10.103.25.6.
I/O Servers are not supported in client
sessions.

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Retrieving Information About the InTouch Client

Session Using Scripts
You can use the following InTouch QuickScript functions for
Terminal Services.
• TseGetClientId() Function

• TseGetClientNodeName() Function

• TseQueryRunningOnConsole() Function

• TseQueryRunningOnClient() Function

TseGetClientId() Function
Returns a string version of the client ID (the TCP/IP address
of the client) if the View application is running on a Terminal
Server client. This client ID is used internally to generate
SuiteLink server names and logger file names. Otherwise,
the TseGetClientId() function returns an empty string.
Syntax
MessageResult=TseGetClientId();
Example
The client IP address 10.103.202.1 is saved to the MsgTag
tag.
MsgTag=TseGetClientID();

TseGetClientNodeName() Function
Returns the client node name if the View application is
running on a Terminal Server client assigned a name that
can be identified by Windows. Otherwise, the
TseGetClientNodeName() function returns an empty string.
Syntax
MessageResult=TseGetClientNodeName();
Example
The client node name is returned as the value assigned to the
MsgTag tag.
MsgTag=TseGetClientNodeName();

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 Using Terminal Services 67

TseQueryRunningOnConsole() Function
The TseQueryRunningOnConsole() function can be run from
a script to indicate whether the View application is running
on a Terminal Services console.
Syntax
Result=TseQueryRunningOnConsole();
Return Value
Returns a non-zero integer value if the View application is
running on a Terminal Services console. Otherwise, the
TseQueryRunningOnConsole() function returns a zero.
Example
IntTag is set to 1 if WindowViewer is running on a Terminal
Services console.
IntTag=TseQueryRunningOnConsole();

TseQueryRunningOnClient() Function
Returns a non-zero integer value if the View application is
running on a Terminal Services client. Otherwise, it returns
a zero.
Syntax
Result=TseQueryRunningOnClient();
Return Value
Returns 0 if View is not running on a Terminal Services
client.
Example
IntTag is set to 1 if WindowViewer is running on a Terminal
Services client.
IntTag=TseQueryRunningOnClient;

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 69

Chapter 3

Managing InTouch Services

A service is a Windows process that performs a specific

unattended background system function without a user
interface or a required user logon.
The following startup options are available for Windows
services:
• Automatic. When Windows restarts, the service
automatically starts without any user intervention.

• Manual. A user or an application process must explicitly

start the service.

• Disable. The service is prevented from starting. This is

useful for troubleshooting.

Services are started without compromising the Windows

security system.
The InTouch HMI includes the following Windows services:
• Alarm DB Logger

• Alarm DB Purge/Archive

• Wonderware NetDDE Helper

• Wonderware SuiteLink

• Wonderware WindowViewer

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Running WindowViewer as a Service

If you configure WindowViewer to run as a service,
WindowViewer automatically starts when the computer on
which the application is installed starts. The WindowViewer
service runs in the background until a user logs on, at which
point WindowViewer opens. This has the following benefits:
• Most disaster recovery plans require that essential
computer systems start immediately after electrical
power is restored. Microsoft Windows Servers can restart
automatically after power is restored. When
WindowViewer runs as a service, your plant automation
system can begin running immediately. The last InTouch
application that was opened in WindowViewer
automatically starts when the computer restarts.

• WindowViewer continues to log historical data, gather

alarm information, process scripts, act as an I/O Server,
and write values as an I/O client, even as different
operators log on and off.

When WindowViewer is running as a service, if you attempt

to start WindowViewer from a shortcut icon or by clicking
WindowViewer on the Windows Start menu, a message
appears. The message describes the restrictions to starting
WindowViewer when it has been configured to run as a
service.

Important Running WindowViewer as a service is not supported

on the Windows Vista operating system.

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 Configuring WindowViewer to Start as a Service 71

Configuring WindowViewer to Start as a

Service
Running WindowViewer as a Windows Service provides
continuous operation after the operator logs off and
automatic start up at system boot time without operator
intervention. This allows unmanned station start up of
WindowViewer without compromising operating system
security.

Important Running WindowViewer as a service is not supported

on the Windows Vista operating system.

To configure WindowViewer to start as a service

1 Start InTouch. The InTouch Application Manager
appears.
2 On the Tools menu, click Node Properties. The Node
Properties dialog box appears.

3 Select the Start WindowViewer as a service check box to

configure WindowViewer to automatically run as a
service.
4 Click OK.

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Manually Starting a Service

You can manually start the Wonderware WindowViewer
service using the Windows Control Panel.
WindowViewer does not appear in the Services Control Panel
unless you configured it to start as a service. For more
information, see Configuring WindowViewer to Start as a
Service on page 71.

To start the WindowViewer service using Control Panel

1 Start the Control Panel.
2 Double-click Administrative Tools and then double-click
Services. The Services dialog box appears.
3 In the details pane, right-click Wonderware
WindowViewer service and then click Start.

To start the WindowViewer service using a command prompt

1 Start a command prompt.
2 Type Net Start view.
View is the name of the Wonderware WindowViewer
executable program file.

Stopping a Service
You can manually stop the WindowViewer service using the
Control Panel.

To stop the WindowViewer service using the Control Panel

1 Start the Control Panel.
2 Double-click Administrative Tools and then double-click
Services. The Services dialog box appears.
3 In the details pane, right-click Wonderware
WindowViewer and then click Stop.

To stop the service using a command prompt

4 Start a command prompt.
5 Type Net Stop View.
View is the name of the WindowViewer executable
program file.

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 Configuring the User Account for InTouch Services 73

Configuring the User Account for InTouch

Services
By default, Windows services run using the local system
account. InTouch services require a user account with
administrative privileges, which may not be provided by the
local system account.
When you install the InTouch HMI, you specify an
administrative account that all ArchestrA services run
under, if the account was not created already. This account is
considered the master ArchestrA account. The InTouch
services use the master ArchestrA account to automatically
start up.

Note The master account is also called the impersonation

account. An impersonation account is the user or group account
that provides access to the restricted resource "area" of your site
or server.

If you want to change the master account, use the ArchestrA

Change Network Account Utility.

Caution Changing the master account affects all ArchestrA

services, not just InTouch services.

To change the ArchestrA master account

1 On the Start menu, point to Programs, point to
Wonderware, point to Common and then click Change
Network Account. The Change Network Account dialog box
appears.
2 Change the user account. For more information, see the
Change Network Account documentation.
3 Click OK.

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Troubleshooting InTouch Services

Important Running WindowViewer as a service is not supported
on the Windows Vista operating system.

If a service depends on other services starting before it can

start, Windows verifies if the prerequisite services are
running before starting the service.
Depending on your requirements for running WindowViewer,
be aware of the following dependencies:
• The Wonderware NetDDE Helper service must be
running if you plan to use Distributed Alarming or
Distributed History or if you intend to access network
DDE data.

The Wonderware NetDDE Helper service also depends on

both the Network DDE and Network DDE DSDM
services being installed and configured for either Manual
or Automatic startup. During installation, the
Wonderware NetDDE Helper service is configured for
Manual startup. WindowViewer automatically starts this
service when the computer starts.
• If you need WindowViewer to act as a SuiteLink server or
client, then the Wonderware SuiteLink service must be
running.

The Wonderware SuiteLink service also requires that

Microsoft TCP/IP be installed.
• If you want to store any messages or errors while
WindowViewer is running, you must make sure that the
ArchestrA Logger service is installed.

Both the Wonderware SuiteLink and ArchestrA Logger

services should be installed and configured to run in
automatic startup.

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Viewing Error Messages for Services

Use the Windows Event Viewer to troubleshoot error
messages related to services. For example, you may see the
error "One or more services failed to start …" The Windows
Event Viewer lists informational messages, warnings, or
errors that occurred while starting Windows services. For
more information about the Event Viewer, see your Microsoft
documentation.
You can see any warning or error messages that resulted
from an InTouch service failing to start. If the Event Viewer
indicates that the Wonderware WindowViewer service failed
to start, the most likely cause is a dependency on a
prerequisite service that is not running.

Troubleshooting Problems with the Services

User Account
If InTouch services fail to install or start after you install the
InTouch HMI, you could have a problem with the user
account that they run under.

To troubleshoot services user account problems

1 Open the Windows User Manager window and create a
new master user account.
This user account must have administrative privileges on
the local computer to start an InTouch component as a
service. If you do not see your computer's node name in
the domain list, then manually type in the node name.
For more information, see Configuring the User Account
for InTouch Services on page 73.
2 Verify that your computer's node name is no longer than
14 characters. If the node name contains underscore
characters (_) or dashes (-), remove them.
3 During installation when you are prompted to enter the
domain name, type in the node name of your computer,
not the domain name. Then, type the user name that was
created in step 1 and your password.
4 If you already installed the InTouch HMI, you can still
specify the domain name, user name, and password by
running the ArchestrA Change Network Account Utility.
5 Reboot your computer.
6 Log onto your network domain with any valid user
account. Even if your domain goes down, it does not affect
your InTouch application that is running on the local
computer.

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Deactivating Advised I/O Items

When you start up the Windows operating system, the
services that are configured to automatically start will start
in the "background" with no visible user interface appearing
on the desktop. The services in this situation are running in
the system context. When an operator logs on the system,
any services that are running in the system context that have
an associated user interface automatically appear on the
desktop. In this situation, the services are now running in
the desktop context.
If you configure the WindowViewer service to automatically
start, the service runs in the system context when the
operating system starts. Then, when a user logs on, the
WindowViewer service continues to run but in the desktop
context, and the WindowViewer user interface automatically
appears.
If you have InTouch Access Names defined with the Advise
only active items option turned on, and have I/O tags that are
active only in certain InTouch application windows (the tags
are not used anywhere else in the application), it is possible
to “deactivate” those tags. For example, if WindowViewer is
running as a service, and you close an application window
using a script, the window automatically is unloaded from
memory, thus terminating the link to those tags.

Registry Keys for the InTouch Services

The InTouch services are listed as keys in the Windows
registry:
Wonderware SuiteLink:
• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\
Services\SLS

• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\
Services\slssvc

• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\
Services\SuiteLink

Wonderware NetDDE Helper:

• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\
Services\WWNetDDE

Wonderware WindowViewer:
• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\
Services\VIEW

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Chapter 4

Exporting and Importing Tag

Definitions, Windows, and Scripts

You can create InTouch applications more quickly by

importing or exporting some or all of the components of an
existing application. You can import tag definitions,
windows, and scripts from your existing application to a new
application.

Exporting Tag Definitions

The figure below shows the steps to export and import tag
definitions between an interim export file and an
application’s Tagname Dictionary.
InTouch Application Manager

InTouch Application
DBDump

Tagname
Dictionary

CSV File
PumpInP PumpRPM
Inlet
RPM
Pressure
PumpOutP PumpState
Outlet On/Off
Pressure State DBLoad

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You use the DBDump utility within the Application Manager

to export the contents of the Tagname Dictionary to a
Comma Separated Value (CSV) file. You can view and edit
the exported file with Microsoft Notepad or Microsoft Excel.
After making edits, you then import the tag definitions to an
InTouch application with the DBLoad utility, which is also
an Application Manager utility.
You must convert an application to the current version of the
InTouch HMI software before you can export the tag
definitions.

To export tag definitions

1 Close WindowMaker and WindowViewer.
2 Start Application Manager. The Application Manager
dialog box shows a list of InTouch applications.
3 Select the application from the list.
4 Click the DBDump icon. The CSV File to Dump To: dialog
box appears.

5 In the Name of CSV Dump file box, type a name for the file
with a .csv file name extension.
6 Select the type of data grouping in the export file.
• Select the Group output by types check box to group
the data by the types of tags in the export file. This is
the default.
• Clear Group output by types to save the output to the
export file alphabetically by tag name.
7 Click OK to save the contents of the Tagname Dictionary
to the selected file. A message appears indicating the
contents were saved successfully to the file.

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Viewing Exported Tag Definitions

If you use Microsoft Excel to view an export file created with
the DBDump utility, each data record appears in a separate
spreadsheet cell.

The file consists of keywords, their attributes, and data from

the Tagname Dictionary arranged in column order beneath
keyword attributes.
Notice the :MemoryDisc keyword in the example of the Excel
spreadsheet. This keyword identifies memory discrete tags
that were exported from a Tagname Dictionary. On the same
spreadsheet row, the attributes of a memory discrete tag
appear in separate spreadsheet columns. For example, the
Logged attribute column shows whether a memory discrete
tag’s data is logged or not.
Immediately beneath the keyword and attributes row are the
exported tags and their associated properties. In the example
of the Excel spreadsheet, OutputValve is a memory discrete
tag whose data is not logged.
You can view or edit the export file created by DBDump with
any program that supports the .csv file format. Typically,
Excel is used because its columnar spreadsheet format
makes it easy to organize tag data. But, you can also use
Microsoft Notepad if you prefer to view or edit the file’s
contents in its native comma-delimited string format.

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Importing Tag Definitions

You can use the DBLoad utility within the Application
Manager to import a .csv file of tag definitions into an
application’s Tagname Dictionary. You can import a
definition file that you originally created with the DBDump
utility. Or, you can create your own import file.
You can also use the DBLoad utility instead of the InTouch
TemplateMaker to create SuperTag instances. For more
information, see Creating SuperTag Instances on page 116.

Tagname Dictionary Import File Format

You can manually create DBLoad import files with any
program that supports a .csv file format. If you use Excel to
create an import file, each entry is placed in a separate
spreadsheet cell. This makes it much easier to read, and
there is less chance of error.

For more information on creating import files, see Creating

an Import File Template on page 82.
The DBLoad import file contains a set of keywords that
organize Access Names, alarm groups, and tag data within
the file.
• A colon (:) precedes all keywords.

• To continue a line, enter a backslash (\) at the end of the

line.

• To enter comments, precede them with a semi-colon (;).

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The following table lists the keywords within a DBLoad

import file. The table lists the keywords in the order they are
specified when you create the file with DBDump. But you can
specify keywords in any order within the file.

Keyword Description

:mode Specifies how duplicate tag records are

handled when importing the contents of
the DBLoad file to an application’s
Tagname Dictionary.
:IOAccess Access names defined for the InTouch
application.
:AlarmGroup Alarm groups defined for the InTouch
application.
:MemoryDisc Memory discrete tags.
:IODisc I/O discrete tags.
:MemoryInt Memory integer tags.
:IOInt I/O integer tags.
:MemoryReal Memory real tags.
:IOReal I/O real tags.
:MemoryMsg Memory message tags.
:IOMsg I/O message tags.
:GroupVar Group Var tags.
:HistoryTrend Hist Trend tags.
:TagID Tag ID tags.
:IndirectDisc Indirect discrete tags.
:IndirectAnalog Indirect analog tags.
:IndirectMsg Indirect message tags.

Each keyword includes a set of associated attributes that

specify the properties of Access Names, alarm groups, and
tags. For example, the :IOAccess keyword includes attributes
to specify the application, topic, and communication protocol,
which are properties of every InTouch Access Name.

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Creating an Import File Template

You can manually create Tagname Dictionary import files
with any application that supports the .csv file format. But,
creating an entire import file can be time consuming and
prone to errors. Using an existing .csv file as a template is
faster and more reliable.
The following figure shows a template import file created by
DBDump. The figure shows a file created from an InTouch
application that has no windows nor tags. The resulting file
only includes the required keywords and attributes without
tag data.

After creating a template, you then manually add tag data

beneath the keyword that identifies the type of tag. You
insert the properties of your tags in the corresponding
attribute columns associated with the tag type keywords.

To create a template import file

1 Open the Application Manager.
2 Create a new InTouch application.
For more information about the steps to create an
application, see Creating an InTouch Application on
page 19.
3 Select the new application from the list shown in
Application Manager.
4 Export the contents of the application’s Tagname
Dictionary with the DBDump utility.
For more information about exporting tags, see Exporting
Tag Definitions on page 77.
5 Edit the file to insert tag data that you want to import.

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Setting the Operating Mode for Dictionary

Import Files
You must specify how DBLoad handles duplicate tag records
while loading data from the import file into an application’s
Tagname Dictionary.
If you use a import file template created with DBDump, the
first line of the file contains the :mode keyword. For example,
you can assign the value ask to the :mode keyword in cell A1
of the Excel application.

You can assign the following values to a :mode keyword:

:MODE=REPLACE
:MODE=UPDATE
:MODE=ASK
:MODE=IGNORE
:MODE=TERMINATE
:MODE=TEST

:MODE=REPLACE
If a duplicate tag is encountered, the DBLoad utility deletes
the existing tag in the Tagname Dictionary and replaces it
with the tag from the import file with the same name.

:MODE=UPDATE
If a duplicate tag is encountered, the DBLoad utility
overwrites the existing tag definition in the Tagname
Dictionary only with data explicitly specified from the import
file. All other data associated with the tag remains
unchanged in the Tagname Dictionary.
Fields are considered explicitly defined if the field is in the
record and entered by you or is set by the
“:KEYWORD=value” mechanism. If a field is not specified in
the record, and the keyword has been reset using the
“:KEYWORD=” command, the current field value is not
updated.

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The following is an example of what occurs when an import

file in the update mode is loaded/merged into the Tagname
Dictionary:
:Mode=update
:Group=Group1
:IODisc,Group,DConversion
Tagname1,Group2,
; Tagname1's Group updated to Group2 only
Tagname2,,
; Tagname2's Group updated to Group1 and the
DConversion left as is
Tagname3,,Reverse
; Tagname3's Group updated to Group1 and the
DConversion to "Reverse"
; the following line "resets" the Group field to its
default value
:Group=
; Data field "Group" is reset to its default value
Tagname4,,
; Tagname4 will be left alone

The tag types must be compatible if the type is being changed

and the tag is in use. For example, an existing historical
trend tag cannot be changed to an I/O Integer if the tag is in
use by the application. Also, a tag cannot be changed to
ReadOnly=yes if the tag is being used on an input link in the
application. Because of these restrictions, update the use
counts for the target application before running the DBLoad
utility.

:MODE=ASK
DBLoad stops when a duplicate tag is encountered while
loading the Tagname Dictionary. The Duplicate Name dialog
box appears and shows a list of options to handle duplicate
tags. This is the default import mode.

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Options for handing duplicates are:

• Click Replace existing with new information to replace the
existing tag record with the record from the import file.

• Click Update existing with new information to overwrite

the existing tag record with only the fields that are
explicitly defined in the import file.

• Click Change Name to replace the name of the imported

tag with the name you type in the box of the Duplicate
Name dialog box.

• Click Ignore this entry to ignore the tag and continue

importing the contents of the file.

• Click Abort the Load to cancel the import process.

:MODE=IGNORE
The DBLoad import utility ignores the duplicate tag and
continues processing the remaining records of the import file.

:MODE=TERMINATE
The DBLoad import operation stops when a duplicate tag is
encountered.

:MODE=TEST
DBLoad scans the import file for errors and does not attempt
to load tag definitions into the Tagname Dictionary. DBLoad
generates a report that identifies any format errors by line
number and location in the import file.
Run DBLoad with :mode=test first to identify any errors in
the import file. After correcting any errors, change the mode
keyword value to :mode=replace or :mode=update before
running DBLoad.

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Setting Access Names and Alarm Groups

The DBLoad import file includes keywords that specify an
InTouch application’s defined Access Names and alarm
groups.

:IOAccess Keyword Attributes

The :IOAccess keyword identifies the Access Names defined
for an InTouch application. The :IOAccess keyword includes
a set of attributes that describe the characteristics of a
defined InTouch Access Name.
The following figure shows how Access Names are defined in
an Excel spreadsheet with the :IOAccess keyword. Attributes
are specified left to right in separate spreadsheet columns.
:IOAccess Topic DDEProtocol SecTopic
Keyword Attribute Attribute Attribute

Application AdviseActive SecApplication

Attribute Attribute Attribute

The following table shows the list of attributes associated

with the :IOAccess keyword. The table lists the attributes in
the order they are specified when using a template import
file created with the DBDump utility.

String Default
Position Attributes Acceptable Values Values

1 Application Application name defined for the None

Access Name
2 Topic Topic name defined for the Access None
Name
3 AdviseActive What information to poll from the Yes
server
No = Advise all items
Yes = Advise only active items
4 DDEProtocol Communication protocol defined No
for the Access Name
No = Suitelink
Yes = DDE
MX = Message Exchange

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String Default
Position Attributes Acceptable Values Values

5 SecApplication Application name defined for the None

secondary source of the Access
Name
6 SecTopic Topic name defined for the None
secondary source of the Access
Name.
7 SecAdviseActive When to poll information stored on None
the secondary server
NO = Advise all items
YES = Advise only active items
8 SecDDEProtocol Communication protocol defined None
for the secondary source of the
Access Name
NO = Suitelink
YES = DDE
MX = Message Exchange
9 FailoverExpression Failover expression that switches None
the Access Name to the secondary
source when TRUE
10 FailoverDeadband Integer number of seconds before None
starting failover to the secondary
source defined by the Access Name
11 DFOFlag Disable Failover flag None
Yes = Disable Failover flag set
No = Disable Failover flag not set
12 FBDFlag Switch back to Primary flag None
YES = Switch back to the Primary
source after the failover condition
clears
NO = Do not switch back to the
Primary source after the failover
condition clears
13 FailbackDeadband Integer number of seconds before No value
switching back to the primary
Access Name source after the
failover condition clears

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:AlarmGroup Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file contains a keyword that identifies
the alarm groups defined for an InTouch application. The
:AlarmGroup keyword includes a set of attributes that
describe the characteristics of the InTouch application’s
alarm groups.
The following table shows the list of attributes associated
with the :AccessGroup keyword. The table lists the attributes
in the order they are specified when using a template import
file created with the DBDump utility.

String Default
Position Attributes Acceptable Values Values

1 Group Name of the alarm group $System

2 Comment Comment assigned to the alarm None
group
Any text string
3 EventLogged Event logging enabled or No
disabled
Yes or On = Event logging
enabled
No or Off = Event logging
disabled
4 EventLoggingPriority Priority assigned to events 0
1 to 999, 0 = not logged
5 LoLoAlarmDisable LoLo alarm disabled or enabled 0
0 = LoLo alarm enabled
1 = LoLo alarm disabled
6 LoAlarmDisable Low alarm disabled or enabled 0
0 = Low alarm enabled
1 = Low alarm disabled
7 HiAlarmDisable High alarm disabled or enabled 0
0 = High alarm enabled
1 = High alarm disabled
8 HiHiAlarmDisable HiHi alarm disabled or enabled 0
0 = HiHi alarm enabled
1 = HiHi alarm disabled

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String Default
Position Attributes Acceptable Values Values

9 MinDevAlarmDisable Minor Deviation alarm disabled 0

or enabled
0 = Minor Deviation alarm
enabled
1 = Minor Deviation alarm
disabled
10 MajDevAlarmDisable Major Deviation alarm disabled 0
or enabled
0 = Major Deviation alarm
enabled
1 = Major Deviation alarm
disabled
11 RocAlarmDisable Rate of Change alarm disabled 0
or enabled
0 = ROC alarm enabled
1 = ROC alarm disabled
12 DSCAlarmDisable Discrete alarms disabled or 0
enabled
0 = Discrete alarm enabled
1 = Discrete alarm disabled
13 LoLoAlarmInhibititor Name of the tag used to inhibit None
LoLo alarms
Tag reference: any discrete or
analog tag
14 LoAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit None
Low alarms
Tag reference: any discrete or
analog tag
15 HiAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit None
High alarms
Tag reference: Any discrete or
analog tag
16 HiHiAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit None
HiHi alarms
Tag reference: Any discrete or
analog tag

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String Default
Position Attributes Acceptable Values Values

17 MinDevAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit None

Minor Deviation alarms
Tag reference: Any discrete or
analog tag
18 MajDevAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit None
Major Deviation alarms
Tag reference: Any discrete or
analog tag
19 RocAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit None
Rate of Change alarms
Tag reference: Any discrete or
analog tag
20 DSCAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit None
discrete alarms
Tag reference: any discrete or
analog tag

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Defining Tag Type Keywords and Attributes

Tag records begin with a keyword line that identifies the type
of tag. Each tag keyword includes a unique set of attributes
to specify the characteristics of the data associated with the
type of tag.
In the following example, the :IODisc keyword identifies the
I/O discrete tag type. The remaining values in the keyword
line identify the attributes of the data associated with an I/O
discrete tag. This example shows the contents of the file with
Notepad in its native comma-delimited string format.
:IODisc,Group,Comment,Logged,EventLogged,
EventLoggingPriority,RetentiveValue,InitialDis,
OffMsg,OnMsg,AlarmState,AlarmPri,DConversion,
AccessName,ItemUseTagname,ItemName,ReadOnly,
AlarmComment,AlarmAckModel,DSCAlarmDisable,
DSCAlarmInhibitor,SymbolicName
Beneath the tag type keyword line, individual rows specify
the tags of that type with a set of attribute values. In the
following example, the HDWStatus tag belongs to the I/O
Discrete tag type in the import file.
"HDWStatus","$System","",No,No,0,No,Off,"","",,1,
Direct,"HistdataViewstr",No,"Status",No,"",0,0,
"",""
The record uses quotation marks to identify a blank string.
The following figure shows the same import file data in an
Excel spreadsheet. The Comment cell is blank because no tag
comment is specified in the import file.

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Tag Keyword Attributes

The following table lists all attributes associated with
InTouch tag keywords. The table include columns that
describe the type of data associated with each tag attribute
and its default value.
These tag attributes can be specified in any order in your
DBLoad import file as long as the accompanying tag data
matches its corresponding attribute. For example, if you
insert a :IODisc keyword in an Excel import file, then all I/O
discrete tags’ engineering units must be placed in the same
Excel column as the EngUnits attribute.

Default
Attribute Acceptable Value Value

AccessName InTouch Access Name assigned to tag None

AlarmAckModel Alarm acknowledgement model 0
Integer
0 = Condition
1 = Event Oriented
2 = Expanded Summary
AlarmComment Alarm comment assigned to the tag None
Text string
AlarmDevDeadband Tag deviation alarm deadband None
Real
AlarmPri Alarm priority assigned to the tag 1
1 to 999
AlarmState Tag alarm state None
On, Off, or None
AlarmValueDeadband Tag alarm deadband 0
Real
Comment Comment assigned to the tag None
Text string
Conversion Tag value conversion Linear
Linear or Square Root
Deadband Value deadband assigned to the tag 0
Real

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Default
Attribute Acceptable Value Value

DevTarget Tag deviation target value 0

Real
DSCAlarmDisable Discrete alarms disabled or enabled 0
0 = Discrete alarm enabled
1 = Discrete alarm disabled
DSCAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit a discrete None
alarm
EngUnits Engineering units assigned to tag None
Text string
EventLogged Event logging enabled or disabled No
Yes or On = Event logging enabled
No or Off = Event logging disabled
EventLogging Tag event logging enabled or disabled No
No or Off = Logging disabled
Yes or On = Logging enabled
EventLoggingPriority Priority assigned to events 0
1 to 999, 0 = not logged
Group Name of the alarm group in which the tag $System
belongs
HiAlarmDisable High alarm disabled or enabled 0
0 = High alarm enabled
1 = High alarm disabled
HiAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit High None
alarm
Any discrete or analog tag
HiAlarmPri Priority assigned to High alarm 1
1 to 999
HiAlarmState High alarm enabled or disabled No
No or Off = Disabled
Yes or On = Enabled
HiAlarmValue High alarm point assigned to tag 0
Real

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Default
Attribute Acceptable Value Value

HiHiAlarmDisable HiHi alarm disabled or enabled 0

0 = HiHi alarm enabled
1 = HiHi alarm disabled
HiHiAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit HiHi None
alarm
Any discrete or analog tag
HiHiAlarmPri Priority assigned to HiHi alarm 1
1 to 999
HiHiAlarmState HiHi alarm enabled or disabled No
No or Off = Disabled
Yes or On = Enabled
HiHiAlarmValue HiHi alarm point assigned to tag 0
Real
InitialDisc Initial value assigned to discrete tag 0
0, Off, False, or No = Off
1, On, True, or Yes = On
InitialMessage Initial tag message None
Text string
InitialValue Initial value assigned to the tag 0
Real
ItemName Name of the item assigned to the tag None
Text string
ItemUseTagname Use Tagname as Item Name option enabled No
or disabled
No or False = Disabled
Yes or True = Enabled
LoAlarmDisable Low alarm disabled or enabled 0
0 = Low alarm enabled
1 = Low alarm disabled
LoAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit Low None
alarm
Any discrete or analog tag

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Default
Attribute Acceptable Value Value

LoAlarmPri Priority assigned to Low alarm 1

1 to 999
LoAlarmState Low alarm enabled or disabled No
No or Off = Disabled
Yes or On = Enabled
LoAlarmValue Low alarm point assigned to tag 0
Real
LogDeadband Logging deadband assigned to the tag 0
Real
Logged Tag value logging enabled or disabled No
No or Off = Logging disabled
Yes or On = Logging enabled
LoLoAlarmDisable LoLo alarm disabled or enabled 0
0 = LoLo alarm enabled
1 = LoLo alarm disabled
LoLoAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit LoLo None
alarm
Any discrete or analog tag
LoLoAlarmPri Priority assigned to LoLo alarm 1
1 to 999
LoLoAlarmState LoLo alarm enabled or disabled No
No or Off = Disabled
Yes or On = Enabled
LoLoAlarmValue LoLo alarm point assigned to tag 0
Real
MajDevAlarmDisable Major Deviation alarm disabled or 0
enabled
0 = Major Deviation alarm enabled
1 = Major Deviation alarm disabled
MajDevAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit Major None
Deviation alarm
Any discrete or analog tag

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Default
Attribute Acceptable Value Value

MajorDevAlarmPri Priority assigned to Major Deviation 1

alarm
1 to 999
MajorDevAlarmState Major deviation alarm enabled or No
disabled
No or Off = Disabled
Yes or On = Enabled
MajorDevAlarmValue Major deviation alarm percentage 0
assigned to tag
Real
MaxEU Maximum engineering units value 32767
assigned to the tag
Real
MaxLength Maximum message length 131
Real
MaxRaw Maximum raw value assigned to tag 32767
Real
MaxValue Maximum value assigned to the tag 32767
Real
MinDevAlarmDisable Minor Deviation alarm disabled or 0
enabled
0 = Minor Deviation alarm enabled
1 = Minor Deviation alarm disabled
MinDevAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit Minor None
Deviation alarm
Any discrete or analog tag
MinEU Minimum engineering units value -32768
assigned to the tag
Real
MinorDevAlarmPri Priority assigned to Minor Deviation 1
alarm
1 to 999

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Default
Attribute Acceptable Value Value

MinorDevAlarmState Minor deviation alarm enabled or No

disabled
No or Off = Disabled
Yes or On = Enabled
MinorDevAlarmValue Minor deviation alarm percentage 0
assigned to tag
Real
MinRaw Minimum raw value assigned to tag -32768
Real
MinValue Minimum value assigned to the tag -32768
Real
OffMsg Discrete tag Off message None
Text string
OnMsg Discrete tag On message None
Text string
ReadOnly Tag value read only or read/write No
Yes = Read Only
No = Read/Write
RetentiveAlarmParameters Tag Retentive Parameters enabled or No
disabled
No or Off = Disabled
Yes or On = Enabled
RetentiveValue Tag Retentive Value enabled or disabled No
0, Off, False, or No = Disabled
1, On, True, or Yes = Enabled
RocAlarmDisable Rate of Change alarm disabled or enabled 0
0 = ROC alarm enabled
1 = ROC alarm disabled
RocAlarmInhibitor Name of the tag used to inhibit Rate of None
Change alarm
Any discrete or analog tag
ROCAlarmPri Priority assigned to Rate of Change alarm 1
1 to 999

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Default
Attribute Acceptable Value Value

ROCAlarmState Rate of Change alarm enabled or disabled No

No or Off = Disabled
Yes or On = Enabled
ROCAlarmValue Change in tag value by percent 0
Real
ROCTimeBase Measurement period to calculate rate of Min
change
Sec, Min or Hr

:MemoryDisc Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :MemoryDisc keyword
to define memory discrete tags that can be imported to the
Tagname Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes
of the :MemoryDisc keyword associated with the properties of
a memory discrete tag.
The table shows the order that :MemoryDisc keyword
attributes are specified when DBDump is used to create the
import file. See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the
data associated with attributes and their default values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 Logged
4 EventLogged
5 EventLoggingPriority
6 RetentiveValue
7 InitialDisc
8 OffMsg
9 OnMsg
10 AlarmState
11 AlarmPri
12 AlarmComment
13 AlarmAckModel

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String
Position Attribute

14 DSCAlarmDisable
15 DSCAlarmInhibitor

:IODisc Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :IODisc keyword to
define I/O discrete tags that can be imported to the Tagname
Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes of the
:IODisc keyword associated with the properties of an I/O
discrete tag.
The table shows the order that :IODisc keyword attributes
are specified when DBDump is used to create the import file.
See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the data
associated with these attributes and their default values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 Logged
4 EventLogged
5 EventLoggingPriority
6 RetentiveValue
7 InitialDisc
8 OffMsg
9 OnMsg
10 AlarmState
11 AlarmPri
12 Conversion
13 AccessName
14 ItemUseTagname
15 ItemName
16 ReadOnly
17 AlarmComment
18 AlarmAckModel

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String
Position Attribute

19 DSCAlarmDisable
20 DSCAlarmInhibitor

:MemoryInt Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :MemoryInt keyword to
define memory integer tags that can be imported to the
Tagname Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes
of the :MemoryInt keyword associated with the properties of
a memory integer tag.
The table shows the order that :MemoryInt keyword
attributes are specified when the DBDump utility is used to
create the import file. See Tag Keyword Attributes on
page 92 for the data associated with these attributes and
their default values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 Logged
4 EventLogged
5 EventLoggingPriority
6 RetentiveValue
7 RetentiveAlarmParameters
8 AlarmValueDeadband
9 AlarmDevDeadband
10 EngUnits
11 InitialValue
12 MinValue
13 MaxValue
14 Deadband
15 LogDeadband
16 LoLoAlarmState
17 LoLoAlarmValue

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String
Position Attribute

18 LoLoAlarmPri
19 LoAlarmState
20 LoAlarmValue
21 LoAlarmPri
22 HiAlarmState
23 HiAlarmValue
24 HiAlarmPri
25 HiHiAlarmState
26 HiHiAlarmValue
27 HiHIAlarmPri
28 MinorDevAlarmState
29 MinorDevAlarmValue
30 MinorDevAlarmPri
31 MajorDevAlarmState
32 MajorDevAlarmValue
33 MajorDevAlarmPri
34 DevTarget
35 ROCAlarmState
36 ROCAlarmValue
37 ROCAlarmPri
38 ROCTimeBase
39 AlarmComment
40 AlarmAckModel
41 LoLoAlarmDisable
42 LoAlarmDisable
43 HiAlarmDisable
44 HiHiAlarmDisable
45 MinDevAlarmDisable
46 MajDevAlarmDisable

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String
Position Attribute

47 RocAlarmDisable
48 LoLoAlarmInhibitor
49 LoAlarmInhibitor
50 HiAlarmInhibitor
51 HiHiAlarmInhibitor
52 MinDevAlarmInhibitor
53 MajDevAlarmInhibitor
54 RocAlarmInhibitor

:IOInt Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :IOInt keyword to
define I/O integer tags that can be imported to the Tagname
Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes of the
:IOInt keyword associated with the properties of an I/O
integer tag.
The table shows the order that :IOInt keyword attributes are
specified when DBDump is used to create the import file. See
Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the data associated
with these attributes and their default values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 Logged
4 EventLogged
5 EventLoggingPriority
6 RetentiveValue
7 RetentiveAlarmParameters
8 AlarmValueDeadband
9 AlarmDevDeadband
10 EngUnits
11 InitialValue
12 MinEU

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String
Position Attribute

13 MaxEU
14 Deadband
15 LogDeadband
16 LoLoAlarmState
17 LoLoAlarmValue
18 LoLoAlarmPri
19 LoAlarmState
20 LoAlarmValue
21 LoAlarmPri
22 HiAlarmState
23 HiAlarmValue
24 HiAlarmPri
25 HiHiAlarmState
26 HiHiAlarmValue
27 HiHIAlarmPri
28 MinorDevAlarmState
29 MinorDevAlarmValue
30 MinorDevAlarmPri
31 MajorDevAlarmState
32 MajorDevAlarmValue
33 MajorDevAlarmPri
34 DevTarget
35 ROCAlarmState
36 ROCAlarmValue
37 ROCAlarmPri
38 ROCTimeBase
39 AlarmComment
39 MinRaw
40 MaxRaw

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String
Position Attribute

41 Conversion
42 AccessName
43 ItemUseTagname
44 ItemName
45 ReadOnly
46 AlarmComment
47 AlarmAckModel
48 LoLoAlarmDisable
49 LoAlarmDisable
50 HiAlarmDisable
51 HiHiAlarmDisable
52 MinDevAlarmDisable
53 MajDevAlarmDisable
54 RocAlarmDisable
55 LoLoAlarmInhibitor
56 LoAlarmInhibitor
57 HiAlarmInhibitor
58 HiHiAlarmInhibitor
59 MinDevAlarmInhibitor
60 MajDevAlarmInhibitor
61 RocAlarmInhibitor

:MemoryReal Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :MemoryReal keyword
to define memory real tags that will be imported to the
Tagname Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes
of the :MemoryReal keyword associated with the properties
of a memory real tag.

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The table shows the order that :MemoryReal keyword

attributes are specified when DBDump is used to create the
import file. See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the
data associated with these attributes and their default
values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 Logged
4 EventLogged
5 EventLoggingPriority
6 RetentiveValue
7 RetentiveAlarmParameters
8 AlarmValueDeadband
9 AlarmDevDeadband
10 EngUnits
11 InitialValue
12 MinValue
13 MaxValue
14 Deadband
15 LogDeadband
16 LoLoAlarmState
17 LoLoAlarmValue
18 LoLoAlarmPri
19 LoAlarmState
20 LoAlarmValue
21 LoAlarmPri
22 HiAlarmState
23 HiAlarmValue
24 HiAlarmPri
25 HiHiAlarmState
26 HiHiAlarmValue

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String
Position Attribute

27 HiHiAlarmPri
28 MinorDevAlarmState
29 MinorDevAlarmValue
30 MinorDevAlarmPri
31 MajorDevAlarmState
32 MajorDevAlarmValue
33 MajorDevAlarmPri
34 DevTarget
35 ROCAlarmState
36 ROCAlarmValue
37 ROCAlarmPri
38 ROCTimeBase
39 AlarmComment
40 AlarmAckModel
41 LoLoAlarmDisable
42 LoAlarmDisable
43 HiAlarmDisable
44 HiHiAlarmDisable
45 MinDevAlarmDisable
46 MajDevAlarmDisable
47 RocAlarmDisable
48 LoLoAlarmInhibitor
49 LoAlarmInhibitor
50 HiAlarmInhibitor
51 HiHiAlarmInhibitor
52 MinDevAlarmInhibitor
53 MajDevAlarmInhibitor
54 RocAlarmInhibitor

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:IOReal Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :IOReal keyword to
define I/O real tags that can be imported to the Tagname
Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes of the
:IOReal keyword associated with the properties of an I/O real
tag.
The table shows the order that :IOReal keyword attributes
are specified when DBDump is used to create the import file.
See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the data
associated with these attributes and their default values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 Logged
4 EventLogged
5 EventLoggingPriority
6 RetentiveValue
7 RetentiveAlarmParameters
8 AlarmValueDeadband
9 AlarmDevDeadband
10 EngUnits
11 InitialValue
12 MinEU
13 MaxEU
14 Deadband
15 LogDeadband
16 LoLoAlarmState
17 LoLoAlarmValue
18 LoLoAlarmPri
19 LoAlarmState
20 LoAlarmValue
21 LoAlarmPri
22 HiAlarmState

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String
Position Attribute

23 HiAlarmValue
24 HiAlarmPri
25 HiHiAlarmState
26 HiHiAlarmValue
27 HiHiAlarmPri
28 MinorDevAlarmState
29 MinorDevAlarmValue
30 MinorDevAlarmPri
31 MajorDevAlarmState
32 MajorDevAlarmValue
33 MajorDevAlarmPri
34 DevTarget
35 ROCAlarmState
36 ROCAlarmValue
37 ROCAlarmPri
38 ROCTimeBase
39 MinRaw
40 MaxRaw
41 Conversion
42 AccessName
43 ItemUseTagname
44 ItemName
45 ReadOnly
46 AlarmComment
47 AlarmAckModel
48 LoLoAlarmDisable
49 LoAlarmDisable
50 HiAlarmDisable
51 HiHiAlarmDisable

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String
Position Attribute

52 MinDevAlarmDisable
53 MajDevAlarmDisable
54 RocAlarmDisable
55 LoLoAlarmInhibitor
56 LoAlarmInhibitor
57 HiAlarmInhibitor
58 HiHiAlarmInhibitor
59 MinDevAlarmInhibitor
60 MajDevAlarmInhibitor
61 RocAlarmInhibitor

:MemoryMsg Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :MemoryMsg keyword
to define memory message tags that will be imported to the
Tagname Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes
of the :MemoryMsg keyword associated with the properties of
a memory message tag.
The table shows the order that :MemoryMsg keyword
attributes are specified when DBDump is used to create the
import file. See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the
data associated with these attributes and their default
values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 Logged
4 EventLogged
5 EventLoggingPriority
6 RetentiveValue
7 MaxLength
8 InitialMessage
9 AlarmComment

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:IOMsg Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :IOMsg keyword to
define I/O message tags that will be imported to the
Tagname Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes
of the :IOMsg keyword associated with the properties of an
I/O message tag.
The table shows the order that :IOMsg keyword attributes
are specified when DBDump is used to create the import file.
See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the data
associated with these attributes and their default values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 Logged
4 EventLogged
5 EventLoggingPriority
6 RetentiveValue
7 MaxLength
8 InitialMessage
9 AccessName
10 ItemUseTagname
11 ItemName
12 ReadOnly
13 AlarmComment

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:GroupVar Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :GroupVar keyword to
define Group Variable tags that will be imported to the
Tagname Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes
of the :GroupVar keyword associated with the properties of a
Group Variable tag.

Note InTouch Group Var tags are obsolete. The :GroupVar

keyword is included to support legacy applications only.

The table shows the order that :GroupVar keyword

attributes are specified when DBDump is used to create the
import file. See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the
data associated with these attributes and their default
values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment

:HistoryTrend Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :HistoryTrend keyword
to define HistTrend tags that will be imported to the
Tagname Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes
of the :HistoryTrend keyword associated with the properties
of a HistTrend tag.
The table shows the order that :HistoryTrend keyword
attributes are specified when DBDump is used to create the
import file. See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the
data associated with these attributes and their default
values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment

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:TagID Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :TagID keyword to
define Tag ID tags that will be imported to the Tagname
Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes of the
:TagID keyword associated with the properties of a Tag ID
tag.
The table shows the order that :TagID keyword attributes
are specified when DBDump is used to create the import file.
See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the data
associated with these attributes and their default values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment

:IndirectDisc Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :IndirectDisc keyword
to define indirect discrete tags that will be imported to the
Tagname Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes
of the :IndirectDisc keyword associated with the properties of
an indirect discrete tag.
The table shows the order that :IndirectDisc keyword
attributes are specified when DBDump is used to create the
import file. See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the
data associated with these attributes and their default
values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 EventLogging
4 EventLoggingPriority
5 RetentiveValue

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:IndirectAnalog Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :IndirectAnalog
keyword to define indirect analog tags that will be imported
to the Tagname Dictionary. The following table lists the
attributes of the :IndirectAnalog keyword associated with the
properties of an indirect analog tag.
The table shows the order that :IndirectAnalog keyword
attributes are specified when DBDump is used to create the
import file. See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the
data associated with these attributes and their default
values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 EventLogging
4 EventLoggingPriority
5 RetentiveValue

:IndirectMsg Keyword Attributes

The DBLoad import file includes the :IndirectMsg keyword to
define indirect message tags that will be imported to the
Tagname Dictionary. The following table lists the attributes
of the :IndirectMsg keyword associated with the properties of
an indirect message tag.
The table shows the order that :IndirectMsg keyword
attributes are specified when DBDump is used to create the
import file. See Tag Keyword Attributes on page 92 for the
data associated with these attributes and their default
values.

String
Position Attribute

1 Group
2 Comment
3 EventLogging
4 EventLoggingPriority
5 RetentiveValue

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Using Blank Strings in an Import File

For a dictionary import file, there is a difference between a
field containing a blank string and a field without data.
Keyword attributes that can be assigned a blank string are:
Comment Eng Units OffMsg
InitialMessage OnMsg Application
ItemName Topic

In the following example, a blank string is indicated by

quotation marks (“ “):
:Comment="HI"
:MemoryDisc,Comment,Group
Tagname1,,$System
Tagname2,"",$System

where:
The value of the Comment field for Tagname1 is Hi, and the
value of the Comment field for Tagname2 is a blank
comment.
Microsoft Excel ignores quotation marks that denote a blank
string when it saves the file, resulting in the following:
:Comment="HI"
:MemoryDisc,Comment,Group
Tagname1,,$System
Tagname2,,$System

To ensure that a blank string is used with Excel, type a space

in the cell as the attribute value.

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Using Default Values for Fields

You can use keywords to set the default values for specific
fields of a record. The default values are the original InTouch
values for the tag type. For example, a memory discrete tag
uses the Group=$System, EventLogging=Off,
InitialValue=Off, as default values.
For example:
:KEYWORD=value

This sets the default value of the referenced field for all
subsequent data records. Use this feature to set the default
value for fields that should remain unchanged for a number
of records. If a field has a default value defined, the default
value is used if there is no data in the record for the value.
For example, if you set :GROUP=Reactor_Site, then all tags
that have a blank entry for the GROUP column are assigned
to the Reactor_Site Alarm Group. If the tag has, for example,
$System entered for the GROUP, the tag remains assigned to
the Alarm Group $System.
You can reset an individual keyword to its original default
value by omitting the value in the equation. For example,
:GROUP=.
To reset all keywords, use the :RESET command. This
command does not have arguments and affects all entries in
the file that occur after the command.

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Creating SuperTag Instances

You can create SuperTags using the DBLoad utility within
the Application Manager. However, the SuperTag instances
you create are not reflected in the SuperTag template
definition in the TemplateMaker.
You must use the valid SuperTag format, and the SuperTag
instance data records must begin with the valid keyword for
the tag type. For example:

The following syntax examples are valid:

ParentInstance\ChildMember
ParentInstance\ChildMember\Submember

The following syntax examples are invalid:

ParentInstance\
ParentInstance\ChildMember\

If you use an invalid format, an error message appears.

When you import the CSV file containing SuperTag
instances, the instances are automatically added to the
Tagname Dictionary and are immediately available for use in
animation links and InTouch QuickScripts.

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Importing Tag Definitions with DBLoad

When you import the contents of a file with DBLoad, all tag
definitions are imported into the Tagname Dictionary of the
selected InTouch application.
If the import fails, a message appears describing the reason
for the failure. The error messages are written to the Logger.

To import tag definitions into an InTouch application

1 Close WindowMaker and WindowViewer.
2 Back up the application whose Tagname Dictionary will
be loaded with tag definitions from an import file.
3 Start Application Manager.
4 Select the application from the list whose Tagname
Dictionary will receive the imported tag definitions.
5 Click the DBLoad icon. A message appears requesting
confirmation that you backed up the InTouch application.
6 Click Yes to confirm the application is backed up. The CSV
File to Load From dialog box appears.

7 In the Name of CSV Load file box, locate and select the file
you want to import.
8 Click OK.
The next step varies based upon whether DBLoad
imports new or existing tag definitions to the Tagname
Dictionary.
• If you are importing new tag definitions, the new tag
data is loaded into the application’s Tagname
Dictionary. A message appears confirming the data
was successfully loaded and merged.
• If you are importing existing tag definitions, the
import stops if the :mode keyword is set to :mode=ask
and the import file contains duplicate tags. You are
shown options to handle the duplicate tags or you can
cancel the import. For more information about
keyword options, see Setting the Operating Mode for
Dictionary Import Files on page 83.

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Importing Windows
Importing windows from an existing InTouch application
into your current application allows you to reduce
development time because you can reuse your previously
created windows, objects, and window scripts.
You must convert an application to the current version of the
InTouch HMI software before you can import windows.
By default, placeholders are created for the tags associated
with an imported window. After importing, you can convert
the placeholders to local tags or remote tag references. For
more information, see Tag Placeholders for Imported
Windows and Scripts on page 127. If the associated tags
already exist in the target application, during the import you
can select to use these instead.
When you import windows containing SmartSymbols and
select to use existing tags, the InTouch HMI still keeps
placeholders for the recovered symbols, even though the tags
are available in the target application.
When you import a window from an application that contains
SuperTags, only the SuperTag instances actually used in the
window are imported into the new application. The entire
SuperTag template structure is not imported. For example, if
the application has hundreds of SuperTag member tags
defined in it, and only 50 of those are used in the imported
window, only those 50 are imported.

Important If you move InTouch window files using any method

other than importing or exporting them, the contents of the
application Tagname Dictionary can become corrupt.

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To import a window
1 Close all windows in your current application.
2 On the File menu, click Import. The Import from directory
dialog box appears.

3 Select the folder for the application containing the

windows to import.
4 Click OK. The Application Data Import Options dialog box
appears.

5 Select the Windows check box and then click Select to

select the individual windows to import.

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6 Select the Use Existing Tags (Conserve Placeholders) check

box if the tags associated with the imported windows
already exist in your application and you want to use
them instead of placeholders.
7 Click Import.
8 Convert the placeholder tags to either local tags or
remote tag references. For more information, see
Converting Placeholder Tags for an Imported Window on
page 120.
9 If an imported window contains one or more wizards,
double-click on each wizard to open its properties panel.
If an imported window contains one or more
SmartSymbols, edit each SmartSymbol and create new
instances.

Converting Placeholder Tags for an Imported

Window
When you import or export a window or QuickScript to or
from your current application, all the tags associated with
that window or QuickScript are transferred with the window.
But, the tags are not added to your new application's
Tagname Dictionary. Instead, the tags are automatically
marked as placeholder tags unless the Conserve Placeholders
options is selected on import. You must convert these
placeholder tags and, if required, define them in your new
application Tagname Dictionary.

To convert tags for a window

1 Open the window in WindowMaker.
2 Press F2 to select all objects in the window.
3 On the Special menu, click Substitute Tags. The Substitute
Tagnames dialog box appears.

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4 Click Convert. The Convert dialog box appears.

5 Convert the tags.

• Click Local to convert the placeholder tags to local
tags. You are prompted to define each tag in the
Tagname Dictionary.
• Click Remote to convert the placeholder tags to
remote tag references. The Access Names dialog box
appears. Select the Access Name and click Close.
After the conversion, the Substitute Tagnames dialog box
shows the new tags.

6 Click OK.

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Exporting Windows
You can export application windows to:
• Create or maintain a library application of all windows.
• Create remote tag references in another application.

You must convert an application to the current version of the

InTouch HMI software before you can export windows.
When you export a window, all objects and animation links
associated with that window are exported. The tags
associated with the objects in the window are converted to
placeholder tags to prevent existing tags in the destination
application from being overwritten. For more information on
converting placeholder tags, see Converting Placeholder Tags
for an Imported Window on page 120.

Important If you move InTouch window files using any method

other than importing or exporting them, the application’s
Tagname Dictionary can be corrupted.

To export a window
1 Close all windows in your current application.
2 On the File menu, click Export Window. The Export to
directory dialog box appears.

3 Select the folder of the application to which to export the

windows.

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 Importing Scripts 123

4 Click OK. The Windows to Export dialog box appears.

5 Select the windows to export.

6 Click OK.
If a problem occurs, the Problem with Export Operation
dialog box appears. Click the option for the action you
want to take and then click OK.

Importing Scripts
You can import existing QuickScripts from an InTouch
application into your current application to save development
time.
You must convert an application to the current version of the
InTouch HMI software before you can import scripts.
By default, placeholders are created for the tags associated
with an imported QuickScript. After importing, you can
convert the placeholders to local tags or remote tag
references. For more information, see Tag Placeholders for
Imported Windows and Scripts on page 127. If the associated
tags already exist in the target application, during the
import you can choose to use these instead.
To import a window script, you must import the entire
window.
For an imported ActiveX Event script to function properly in
the target application, the same ActiveX control and the
same event for which the script was originally created must
also be used in the target application and it must be loaded
into memory. If the window containing an ActiveX control is
closed, any scripts associated with it (either ActiveX Event
scripts or QuickScripts) do not run properly.

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To import a QuickScript
1 Close all windows in your current application.
2 On the File menu, click Import. The Import from directory
dialog box appears.

3 Select the folder for the application that contains the

scripts to import.
4 Click OK. The Application Data Import Options dialog box
appears.

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 Importing Scripts 125

5 Select the check box for the QuickScript type(s) that you
want to import and then click Select to select the
individual script(s) to import.

Note To import a window script, you must import the entire

window. For more information, see Importing Windows on
page 118.

6 Select the Use Existing Tags (Conserve Placeholders) check

box if the tags associated with the imported script(s)
already exist in your application and you want to use
them instead of placeholders.
7 Click Import. If your application has scripts with identical
names, you are prompted to overwrite, skip, or rename.
8 Convert the placeholder tags to either local tags or
remote tag references. For more information, see
Converting Placeholder Tags in an Imported Script on
page 125.

Converting Placeholder Tags in an Imported

Script
When you import or export a QuickScript to or from your
current application, all the tags associated with that
QuickScript are transferred. But, the tags are not added to
your new application's Tagname Dictionary. Instead, they
are automatically marked as placeholder tags. You must
convert these placeholder tags and, if required, define them
in your new application Tagname Dictionary.

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To convert placeholder tags in an imported script

1 On the Special menu, point to Scripts, and then click the
type of QuickScript you imported. The QuickScript editor
appears, showing the first QuickScript on file for the
selected type of script.

2 Click Convert. The Convert dialog box appears.

3 Convert the tags.

• Click Local to convert the placeholder tags to local
tags. You are prompted to define each tag in the
Tagname Dictionary.
• Click Remote to convert the placeholder tags to
remote tag references. The Access Names dialog box
appears. Select the Access Name and click Close.
4 After the tags are converted, click OK in the QuickScript
editor.

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Tag Placeholders for Imported Windows and

Scripts
When you import a window or QuickScript, you can configure
how you want the associated tags to be handled.
• Use placeholder tags.

By default, imported tags are converted to “placeholder”

(or “index”) tags. A maximum of 4096 placeholders is
allowed.
Placeholder tags include a three-character prefix. For
example, if the original tag is WaterHeater, then the
placeholder tag is ?d:WaterHeater.
If you import a tag that contains 30, 31, or 32 characters,
the placeholder prefix is still added to the beginning of
the tag, and the length of the existing tag is not
truncated. For example, for placeholder tags only, a 32
character tag is increased to 35 characters. This increase
in tag length is not supported for standard tags.
To use a placeholder tag in the application, you must
either:
• Convert it to a regular (local) tag and define it in the
Tagname Dictionary.
• Convert it to a remote tag reference. An example of a
remote tag is PLC2:WaterHeater. Remote tag
references allow your application to instantly receive
data from a remote tag server and eliminates the
need to define a single tag in the local Tagname
Dictionary.
• Using existing tags.

During an import, if you select to use existing tags, the

InTouch HMI verifies that the imported tags already
exist in the Tagname Dictionary. If a tag already exists,
then the tag is imported as a fully qualified tag. Using
this option reduces the total number of placeholders,
allowing you to import applications with larger tag
databases.

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The following flowchart describes how tags are handled for

imported windows and QuickScripts.

BEGIN

Import a window
or QuickScript

Yes Is the tag Yes The tag in the

Use existing currently in the
application is used.
tags? target app?

No No

A placeholder (index) is END

created for each tag.
(?d:WaterHeater)

Use the Substitute Tags

Convert to Yes command to convert tags to
local tag? local tags and add them to the
Tagname Dictionary

No

Use the Substitute

Local tags are
Tags command to
created.
convert to remote tag
(WaterHeater)
references.

References to remote END

tags are created.
(PLC2:WaterHeater)

END

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Chapter 5

Securing InTouch

You can protect your InTouch applications using:

• Traditional InTouch-based security

• Operating system-based security

• ArchestrA-based security

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The following figure shows the relationship between the

three types of security.

WindowMaker
(Design-Time) No Security

InTouch Users List

User Password Access Level

IT_user1 pwd3723 5000

IT_user2 pwd84502 6000

... ... ...

InTouch Security

Operating System Security Management

OS Groups List OS Users List

Group Members User Password

WindowViewer
OS_group1 OS_user1, OS_user2,... OS_user1 pwd12374 OS Security Authenticated Running InTouch
Application
OS_group2 OS_user5, OS_user6,.. OS_user2 pwd8734

…. …. ... ...

ArchestrA Security incorporates security information from OS Users and Groups

ArchestrA Security

ArchestrA Users List

User Password
OS Group OS User
Security Security A_user1 pwd80922

A_User2 pwd8734
... ...

ArchestrA Security Management

Application Server

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InTouch Security Features

To protect your InTouch application while it is running, you
can:
• Set an inactivity time-out period

• Lock keys

• Hide menus

Configuring an Inactivity Time-Out

You can configure WindowViewer to automatically log off an
inactive operator from an InTouch application. An operator
must log on again after being logged off for inactivity. Setting
an automatic inactivity log off period prevents unauthorized
access to your InTouch application when operators leave
their workstations unattended.
A timer measures the period the operator has not interacted
with the running InTouch application. The timer resets each
time the operator uses a mouse or any other input device to
enter data.

Note The inactivity timer does not reset for Active-X controls,
OLE Automation controls, and SPC wizards.

Automatically logging off an operator is a three-step process:

1 WindowViewer sets the $InactivityWarning system tag
to 1 when the operator’s inactivity period exceeds a
specified warning period. You can use the
$InactivityWarning tag in a condition QuickScript to
show a window that warns the operator about the
pending log off for inactivity. The operator stays logged
on by responding before the specified time-out period
occurs. When the operator takes some action, the
$InactivityWarning tag and inactivity timer are reset to
zero.
2 If the operator fails to respond after the inactivity
warning, the $InactivityTimeout system tag is set to 1
when the time-out period has been reached. When
$InactivityTimeout is 1, WindowViewer equates the
logged on operator name to the reserved name None and
sets the $AccessLevel security tag to 0.
3 You can write a script to automatically log off the
operator if the $InactivityTimeout tag is set to 1.
You can use the time-out feature independently of the
warning feature.

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To configure an inactivity time-out

1 On the Special menu, point to Configure, and then click
WindowViewer. The WindowViewer Properties dialog box
appears.

2 In the Inactivity area, configure the warning and time-out

values. Do the following:
• In the Warning box, type the number of seconds that
can elapse before the $InactivityWarning tag is set to
1.
• In the Timeout box, type the number of seconds that
can elapse before before the $InactivityTimeout tag is
set to 1.
3 Click OK.
4 To show the window named "Warning - Logoff Pending"
after the inactivity warning time elapses, create a
condition script with "$InactivityWarning" as the
condition and the following script body:
Show "Logoff Pending";
5 To log off the user and show the window named "Logged
Off" after the inactivity timeout elapses, create a
condition script with "$InactivityTimeout" as the
condition and the following script body:
LogOff();
Show "Logged Off";

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$InactivityTimeout System Tag

Indicates that the time configured for inactivity elapsed.
Category
security
Usage
$InactivityTimeout
Remarks
Set to 1 when the inactivity timer elapses. For more
information on setting the log off time, see Configuring an
Inactivity Time-Out on page 131.

Note The inactivity timer does not reset for ActiveX controls, OLE
automation controls, and SPC wizards.

Data Type
Discrete (read only)
See Also
$InactivityWarning
Example(s)
The following example is an “on true” condition script:
If $InactivityTimeout == 1 THEN
Show "Logged Off";
ENDIF

See Also
$InactivityWarning

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$InactivityWarning System Tag

Indicates that the time configured for warning the user that
log off is about to occur elapsed.
Category
security
Usage
$InactivityWarning
Remarks
Set to 1 when the inactivity warning time elapses. The
inactivity timer is reset by mouse clicks or keyboard activity
only. For more information on setting the log off warning, see
Configuring an Inactivity Time-Out on page 131.

Note The inactivity timer does not reset for ActiveX controls, OLE
automation controls, and SPC wizards.

Data Type
Discrete (read only)
Example(s)
The following example is an “on true” condition script.
If $InactivityWarning == 1 THEN
Show "Logoff Pending";
ENDIF;

See Also
$InactivityTimeOut

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Locking System Keys

You can restrict operator access to standard Windows
functions by disabling system keys on the computer running
an InTouch application. For example, you can prevent an
operator from using the Windows CTRL+ALT+DEL key
combination to show the Task Manager dialog box. Disabling
system keys prevents operators from switching from the
InTouch HMI to another Windows application.
WindowViewer has key filter options that set the default
state of system keys when an InTouch application starts. A
key filter disables a system key when it is active.
Disable system keys based on what tasks you expect your
various InTouch users to complete. Most function keys
should be disabled for operators. Administrators still need
function keys for their InTouch tasks.
You can write a script that enables or disables system keys
based on the access level of the person logging on to
WindowViewer. Use the EnableDisableKeys() function in a
script to selectively enable or disable Windows function keys.

To enable key filters

1 On the Special menu, point to Configure, and then click
WindowViewer. The WindowViewer Properties dialog box
appears.
2 Click the Window Configuration tab.

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3 In the Miscellaneous area, disable WindowViewer system

keys. Do the following:
• Clear the Enable Fast Switch check box to remove the
Development button from WindowViewer that
switches the user to WindowMaker.
• Select the Disable ALT key check box to disable the
ALT key on the computer running the InTouch
application.
• Select the Disable WIN key check box to disable the
WIN key on the computer running the InTouch
application.
• Select the Disable ESC key check box to disable the
ESC key on the computer running the InTouch
application.
4 Click OK.
5 Write a script that runs when WindowViewer starts
running the InTouch application.
The script should include statements to dynamically lock
or unlock key based on the access level of the person who
logged on to WindowViewer.
Include the EnableDisableKeys() function within the
script to enable/disable the ALT, ESC, and WIN keys.
The EnableDisableKeys() function enables or disables
system keys based on the discrete values of its
arguments:
EnableDisableKeys(AltKey,EscKey,WinKey);
An argument value of 1 enables the key filter to disable
the key.

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EnableDisableKeys() Function
Enables/disables key filters for the Alt, Escape, and Windows
keys.
Category
View
Syntax
EnableDisableKeys(AltKey, EscKey, WinKey);
Parameters
AltKey
Integer to enable or disable key filters for the Alt key:
1 = enable filter (disable Alt key)
0 = disable filter (enable Alt key)
EscKey
Integer to enable or disable key filters for the Escape key:
1 = enable filter (disable Esc key)
0 = disable filter (enable Esc key)
WinKey
Integer to enable or disable key filters for the Windows key:
1 = enable filter (disable Win key)
0 = disable filter (enable Win key)
Remarks
Disabling the Alt key also disables the Win+L key
combination (for locking the Windows desktop). Win+L is the
shortcut for another combination of keys that involves the
Alt key. Thus, disabling the Alt key also disables this
particular shortcut.
Example(s)
EnableDisableKeys(0,0,0); // enable all three keys
EnableDisableKeys(1,1,1); // disable all three keys
EnableDisableKeys(0,0,1); // enable Alt and Escape
keys, disable Windows key.

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Hiding Menu Items at Run Time

You restrict operator access to WindowViewer menus and
commands by hiding them while an InTouch application is
running.

To hide menu items at run time

1 On the Special menu, point to Configure, and then click
WindowViewer. The WindowViewer Properties dialog box
appears.
2 Click the Window Configuration tab.

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3 In the Menus area, select the WindowViewer menus and

commands that you want to be visible to an operator. Do
the following:
• Clear the WindowMaker check box to make the
WindowMaker command unavailable from the
WindowViewer File menu. Clearing this option does
not affect the fast switch to WindowMaker.
• Clear the Logic check box to hide the WindowViewer
Logic menu that contains commands to start and stop
QuickScripts.

Note You can use the $LogicRunning system tag to enable the
operator to start and stop all QuickScripts.

If you select the Allow CTRL-Break to stop scripts option, the

operator can to stop all QuickScripts from running regardless of
whether the Logic menu appears or not.

Currently executing asynchronous QuickFunctions cannot be

stopped. However, you can prevent operators from starting new
asynchronous QuickFunctions.

• Select the Debug check box if you are testing your

application. Otherwise, clear the Debug check box to
hide the Debug menu during run time.
• Clear the Special menu items to prevent operators
from stopping ongoing InTouch functions like logging
and I/O connections.
• Clear the Security check box to prevent operators
from changing security related options.
4 In the Window area, select the window controls that you
want to make available to an operator from
WindowViewer. These options affect the window that is
running the InTouch application. Do the following:
• Clear the Control Menu check box to hide the controls
that close, minimize, maximize, and resize the
window.
• Clear the Minimize Box check box to prevent an
operator from minimizing the window.
• Clear the Maximize Box check box to prevent an
operator from maximizing the window.
• Clear the Size Controls check box to prevent an
operator from resizing the window.

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5 In the Title bar area, configure the title bar of the window
running the InTouch application. Do the following:
• In the Title Bar Text box, type a title to be shown in
the WindowViewer title bar.
• Select the Show Application Directory check box to
include the path to the InTouch application's folder in
the title bar.
• Select the Hide Title Bar check box to hide the
window’s title bar.
6 In the Miscellaneous area, do the following:
• Select the Impossible to Close check box to prevent an
operator from closing the WindowViewer window
running the InTouch application. Selecting this
option disables the window’s Close button.
If you want to hide the Close button, clear the Control
Menu check box in the Window area.
• Clear the Allow CTRL-Break to stop scripts check box to
disable the CTRL + BREAK key combination that
enables operators to stop QuickScripts.

Note Currently executing asynchronous QuickFunctions cannot be

stopped. However, you can prevent new asynchronous
QuickFunctions from executing.

• Select the Hide Cursor check box to hide the mouse

pointer during run time. This is useful if you are
designing the application for a touch-screen.
• Select the Always Maximize check box to keep the
window running the InTouch application fully
maximized on the operator’s screen.
7 Click OK.
8 Restart WindowViewer to apply your changes.

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Authentication and Authorization Based

Security
InTouch security is a two-step process of first determining if
the person attempting to use an application is recognized as
a valid user. The second step determines what InTouch
privileges are granted to an authenticated user.

Comparing Authentication and Authorization

Authentication is the process of verifying the identity of the
user. Typically, operators enter a user name and password to
authenticate themselves before using an InTouch
application. All three types of security verify the user’s
credentials during the logon process as part of the
authentication process.
Authorization is the process of determining if an
authenticated user has access to the requested resources.
Typically, access to InTouch functions is granted based upon
the user’s membership in a group or assigned access level.

Different Authentication Security Modes

All types of InTouch security authenticate users during the
logon process with a user name and password combination.
Each type of security provides a different mechanism to
verify the user name and password during the authentication
process.

Using InTouch-Based Security

Applying security to your application is optional. By default,
an InTouch application is not secured. However, you can
restrict which functions an operator is allowed to perform by
linking those functions to internal tags. In addition, when
you establish security on your application, audit trails can be
created that associate alarms and events to the operator
logged on to the InTouch HMI.
Security is based on operators authenticating themselves by
entering a user name and password to log on to an InTouch
application. You must assign user name, password, and
access level for each operator.
When you create a new application, by default, the user
name is set to Administrator with an access level of 9999,
which allows access to all security commands. The default
administrator password is wonderware. The maximum
number of characters for a password is 29.

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After you add a new user name to the security list and
restart WindowMaker or WindowViewer, the default user
name is automatically reset to None with an access level of 0,
which prevents access to the Configure Users command in
both WindowMaker and WindowViewer. However, the
Administrator account and password remain and can still be
used.
After an operator logs on to the application, access to any
protected function is granted upon verification of the
operator's password and access level against the value
specified for the internal security tag linked to the function.

Using Operating System-Based Security

An operating system-based authentication method inherits
enforcement of some account policies from the Windows
operating system, while other policies are enforced from the
InTouch HMI. Password policies such as maximum and
minimum password age and minimum password length are
enforced by the operating system.
User names used during installation act as a part of the
operating system. The Windows domain must be set up with
the desired account policies to enforce these standards. The
InTouch HMI enforces the inactivity time-out period.
In the operating system-based authentication method, user
names can be chosen from the list of users associated with a
Windows Network Domain or Workgroup. Each user name
has an assigned access level that determines the user's
authorization for a given activity. Because the operating
system manages passwords internally, the InTouch HMI
does not store passwords on the node hosting the application.
Operating system-based security uses the InTouch
AddPermission() script function to define and maintain a list
of users and their corresponding access levels. This list,
created after the execution of the AddPermission() call, is
written to disk. The file containing the authentication details
of users is not copied to NAD client nodes.
The operator can log on to the application by executing the
Log on menu command under Security in the WindowViewer
Special menu (if the Special menu is shown), or you can create
a custom log on window with touch-sensitive input objects
that are linked to internal security tags.

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The commands used to establish security on an application

are located under Security on the Special menu in both
WindowMaker and WindowViewer. The security commands
are used to log on and off the application, change passwords,
and to configure the list of valid user names, passwords, and
access levels.
For example, you can control access to a window, the
visibility of an object, and so on, by specifying the logged on
operator's access level must be greater than 2000.

Using ArchestrA-based Security

When you configure a node to use ArchestrA security, the
InTouch HMI uses methods and dialog boxes from
Application Server for logon and logoff operations. Users are
configured on the Application Server Galaxy Repository
node. For more information, see the Application Server
documentation.
ArchestrA security allows you to easily define users and
assign the operations they are allowed to perform. Define
security permissions in terms of the operations the users can
perform using automation objects. The basic approach
consists of the following steps:
1 Define the security model.
2 Organize the automation objects according to the security
model for protection.
3 Define the users according to the security model.
The system administrator defines the system users by
creating corresponding user profiles. The system
administrator then assigns one or more roles to each user by
selecting from a list of user roles predefined in the security
model.
If you are using InTouch with ArchestrA-based security, the
maximum number of characters for a password is 31.
InTouchView users are normally authenticated by means of
a password-based log-on.

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Managing Users and Setting Their

Authorization Level
To implement security for the group of users who need to use
the InTouch HMI, you must:
• Assign user name and password authentication
credentials to each user.

• Assign an InTouch authorization level (access level) to

each user.

Configuring InTouch Security Authentication and

Authorization
For each of your operators, you need to assign a user name,
password, and access level.
The None and Administrator names are reserved and only the
password of the Administrator can be changed (the default is
wonderware). After you configure user names for your
application, change the Administrator password. The
Administrator default access level (9999) is the highest and
allows access to all InTouch functions including the Configure
Users command.
You can also link a User Input - Discrete button to the
$ConfigureUsers tag to allow an authorized operator with an
access level of equal to or greater than 9000 to access the
Configure Users dialog box to edit the security user name list.
When the operator clicks the button, the value of the
$ConfigureUsers tag is set to 1 and the Configure Users dialog
box appears. When the operator closes the dialog box, the
system resets the value to 0. This is a system discrete tag
intended for write operation only.

Note The $ConfigureUsers tag only works if the security type is

set to InTouch. It does not work for ArchestrA-based and operating
system based security.

To configure security for operators of your application

1 On the WindowMaker Special menu, point to Security,
and then click Log On.
2 Log on with your InTouch administrator account.

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3 On the Special menu, point to Security, then click

Configure Users. The Configure Users dialog box appears.

4 To add a security account, do the following:

a In the User Name box, type the name that you want to
assign to the operator.
b In the Password box, type an operator password up to
a maximum of 29 characters.
c In the Access Level box, type the operator’s access
level (lowest = 0 to highest = 9999).
d Click Add to add the user name to the InTouch
security list.
5 To change a user name, select the name, make any
changes, and then click Update.
6 To delete a user name, select the name and then click
Delete.
7 Click OK.

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Changing an InTouch Operator Password at Run

Time
Operators can change their passwords at run time using the
Special menu in WindowViewer.
If you do not plan on showing the Special menu in
WindowViewer, you can create a discrete button and link it
to the $ChangePassword internal tag. When the value of
$ChangePassword tag is set to 1, the Change Password dialog
box appears. Operators can then change their passwords.
When the operator closes the dialog box, the system resets
the $ChangePassword value to 0. This is a system discrete
tag intended for write operation only.

To change an operator password

1 On the Special menu, point to Security and then click
Change Password. The Change Password dialog box
appears.

2 Configure the password. Do the following:

• In the Old Password box, type the old password.
• In the New Password box, type the new password.
• In the Verify Password box, type the new password
again.
3 Click OK.

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Setting Up Operating System-Based

Authentication and Authorization
Operating system-based security authenticates InTouch
users from a list of authorized Windows user groups. You
create Windows user groups either on the local computer or
an Active Directory server. You must associate Windows
users to groups by adding them to specific groups. For more
information on creating user groups, see your Windows
operating system documentation.
You then assign InTouch access levels to the Windows groups
using the AddPermission() function in a script. The
AddPermission() function is typically called on application
start-up so WindowViewer recognizes all the authorized user
groups when a user is ready to log on.
You typically specify operating system-based security
immediately after you create an InTouch application.
After you configure the InTouch application to use the
operating system authentication and internal InTouch
authorization, the Change Password, LogOn, Configure Users
and LogOff commands on the Special...Security menu are
unavailable.

To set operating system-based security and configure access

levels
1 On the WindowMaker Special menu, point to Security,
point to Select Security Type, and then click OS.
2 On the Special menu, point to Scripts, and then click
Application Scripts. The Application Script dialog box
appears.

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3 In the Condition Type list, click On Startup.

4 Use the AddPermission() function to specify the group
names and corresponding access levels. The arguments
for AddPermission() are operating system (or domain),
group name, and access level.
5 Click OK.

Setting Up ArchestrA-Based Security

The ArchestrA security system is a global function that
applies to every object in the Galaxy database. It is a
relationship-based system between users and the objects and
functions of the Galaxy. This system is based on security
roles (configuration, system administration, and run-time
permissions) and security groups, which determine a
particular security role’s run-time permissions on an
object-level basis. Configuration of the security system is
done in the Integrated Development Environment (IDE) and
applied to every object through its own editor.
After you configure the InTouch application to use ArchestrA
authentication, the Change Password, LogOn, Configure Users
and LogOff commands on the Special...Security menu are
unavailable in WindowMaker.

To set ArchestrA-based security

1 Open a window in WindowMaker.
2 On the Special menu, point to Security, point to Select
Security Type, and then click ArchestrA.

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AddPermission() Function
Assigns a certain InTouch access level to a given user group
on the local system or on the domain. When a user belonging
to that group logs on to the InTouch HMI after the
AddPermission() function is called, he or she receives the
specified access level.
Category
security
Syntax
DiscreteTag=AddPermission( "Domain", "Group",
AccessLevel);
Arguments
Domain
Name of the domain or local computer in which the group is
located.
Group
Windows user group.
AccessLevel
InTouch access level that you want to associate with the
given group.
Remarks
Valid for operating system security only. When this function
is called, it checks for the presence of the specified group in
the specified domain or workgroup. If successful, TRUE is
returned, and the specified Access Level is associated with
the group for subsequent user logons. In all other cases, (that
is, if an invalid value is specified for any of the arguments)
FALSE is returned.
This function is typically configured to run on application
startup. It does not affect users that are currently logged on.
Only users that log on after AddPermission() is successfully
called receive the access level associated with their group.
Examples
DiscreteTag=AddPermission( "corporate_hq",
"InTouchAdmins", 9000);
DiscreteTag=AddPermission( "johns01", "InTouchUsers",
5000);
See Also
PostLogonDialog(), InvisibleVerifyCredentials(),
IsAssignedRole(), AttemptInvisibleLogon(),
QueryGroupMembership()

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ChangePassword() Function
Shows the Change Password dialog box, allowing the logged on
operator to change his/her password.
Category
security
Syntax
[Result=]ChangePassword();
Return Value
Returns one of the following integer values:
0 = Cancel was pressed.
1 = OK was pressed.
Remarks
If the operator uses a touch screen, the operator can use the
alphanumeric keyboard to enter the new password.
Example
The following script can be placed on a button or called from
a condition script or data change script.
Errmsg=ChangePassword();

$AccessLevel System Tag

Defines the access level of the currently logged-in user.
Category
security
Usage
$AccessLevel
Remarks
The value for this tag is determined by the access level
assigned to the currently logged-in user's security profile
within the InTouch HMI. This profile can be accessed using
the Configure Users menu in WindowViewer.
The actual numeric value of $AccessLevel has no meaning to
WindowViewer, except that a value of 9000 or greater
indicates administrative privileges and enables the Security
menu within WindowViewer. Use the $AccessLevel system
tag to further customize security within the system.
Data Type
Integer (read only)
Valid Values
0 through 9999

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Example(s)
The following statement is used for the visibility link to make
an object, such as a button, visible based on the logged on
user's access level:
$AccessLevel >= 2000;
{Objects can have a "disable" link associated with
them, with the expression based on $AccessLevel.}
$AccessLevel < 5411;
IF $AccessLevel <=500 THEN
Show "Access Denied"; {popup window denying access}
ELSE
Show "Access Granted"; {popup window granting access}
ENDIF;
See Also
$Operator, $OperatorEntered, $PasswordEntered;
$ConfigureUsers

$ChangePassword System Tag

Shows the Change Password dialog box.
Category
security
Usage
$ChangePassword
Remarks
Set this value to 1 to show the Change Password dialog box.
The value of the $ChangePassword system tag resets to 0
when the dialog box closes. If you set this system tag to a
value other than 1, the results are undefined.
Data Type
Discrete (write only)
Valid Values
1
Example(s)
You can create a discrete pushbutton that opens the Change
Password dialog box. Assign a single discrete pushbutton link,
with the Set option selected, to the pushbutton. When the
button is pressed, the $ChangePassword system tag is set to
1, and the Change Password dialog box opens.
See Also
$AccessLevel, $OperatorEntered, $PasswordEntered,
$Operator, $ConfigureUsers

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$ConfigureUsers System Tag

Shows the Configure Users dialog box.
Category
security
Usage
$ConfigureUsers
Remarks
This function only works with InTouch security.
Set the value to 1 to open Configure Users dialog box.
The value of this system tag resets to 0 when the dialog box
closes. If you set this system tag to a value other than 1, the
results are undefined.
The user must have an $AccessLevel of >9000 to show this
dialog box.
Data Type
Discrete (write only)
Valid Values
1
Example(s)
You can create a discrete pushbutton that opens the
Configure Users dialog box. Assign a single discrete
pushbutton link, with the Set option selected, to the
pushbutton. When the button is pressed, the
$ConfigureUsers system tag is set to 1, and the Configure
Users dialog box opens.
See Also
$Operator, $OperatorEntered, $ChangePassword,
$PasswordEntered, $AccessLevel

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Logging On and Off

Logging on to and logging off from an InTouch application
varies by the type of security used to protect an application.

Logging on to an InTouch-Secured Application

If the logon information is entered incorrectly or is invalid, a
message indicates the log on attempt failed.
If the log on is successful, the $AccessLevel system tag is set
to the predefined value associated with the user in the
InTouch security user list.

Note You can also show the Log On dialog box using the
PostLogonDialog() function. For more information, see
PostLogonDialog() Function on page 157.

To log on to an application
1 On the Special menu, point to Security, and then click Log
On. The Log On dialog box appears.
2 In the Name box, type your user name.
3 In the Password box, type your password.
4 Click OK.

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Logging On to an Operating System-Secured

Application
When a user logs on to an InTouch application, a dialog box
appears requiring the following:
• User name

• Password

• Domain or local computer name

The domain/user name combination is passed to the

operating system to authenticate the user’s credentials. An
attempt is made to log on with or without enabling the
operating system cache. If the user cannot be logged on
without the cache (due to a network outage, for example), but
the user was previously authenticated with the cache
enabled, then the user’s full name and access level is
obtained from the local InTouch cache.
If all of the security checks are cleared successfully, the user
is considered to be logged on to the InTouch HMI and the
relevant data structures (for example, $Operator) are
updated. Otherwise, an error message is shown.
If the operator has never logged on successfully before and
the domain is unavailable, the logon attempt fails. The
InTouch HMI logs a system event to the error log.
If the password is expired, an error message is shown. After
the operator clicks OK, the Change Expired Password dialog
box appears, so that the operator can change the password
and attempt to log on again with the new password.

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Logging On to an ArchestrA-Secured Application

Users typically log on and log off from an ArchestrA-secured
InTouch application by entering a valid user name and
password.
If your InTouch application has been configured for the
ArchestrA security “None”, the log on credentials of the
default user are used and the operator is not prompted to log
on. The following procedure assumes your system has been
configured for ArchestrA authentication modes, such as
“Galaxy”, “OS User based”, or “OS Group based”.

To log on
1 Start the ArchestrA-secured InTouch application. A log
in dialog box appears.
2 Type a valid user name and password. If the system
cannot authenticate you, you are prompted again to log
on.
After the system authenticates your logon credentials, access
to all future operations is granted based on your associated
roles/permissions in the security model.

Logging Off from an InTouch Application

Operators log off from an InTouch application after
completing their work. You can also configure an application
to automatically log off an operator after a specified amount
of time has elapsed without any activity by the operator. For
more information, see Configuring an Inactivity Time-Out on
page 131.

To log off from an application

‹ On the Special menu, point to Security and then click Log
Off.

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Creating a Custom Logon Window

If the Special menu is not shown in WindowViewer, you can
create a custom logon window for operator to log on to the
application.

To create a custom log on window

‹ Link the $OperatorEntered, $PasswordEntered and
$OperatorDomainEntered system tags to user input
objects or use them in a script to set the user name,
password, and domain name. These tags are internal
message type tags that are intended for write operation
only.
The $OperatorDomainEntered tag is required only if the
security mode is operating system-based. Otherwise, this tag
is ignored. If the security mode is operating system-based
and the $OperatorDomainEntered is null, it is treated as
pointing to the local computer.
When a value is written to the $PasswordEntered system
tag, a logon attempt occurs using the $OperatorEntered,
$PasswordEntered, and $OperatorDomainEntered system
tag values. No logon occurs if values are written to only the
$OperatorEntered or $OperatorDomainEntered system tags.
If the entries are valid, the $AccessLevel and $Operator
internal tags are set to their predefined values (configured in
the security user list).
You can also link a User Input - Discrete button to the
$ConfigureUsers tag to allow an authorized operator with an
access level of equal to or greater than 9000 to access the
Configure Users dialog box to edit the security user name list.
When the operator clicks the button, the value of the
$ConfigureUsers tag is set to 1 and the Configure Users dialog
box appears. When the operator closes the dialog box, the
system resets the value to 0. (This is a system discrete tag
intended for write operation only.)

Note The $ConfigureUsers tag only works if the security type is

set to InTouch. It does not work for ArchestrA-based security.

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PostLogonDialog() Function
Shows the InTouch Logon dialog box and returns TRUE.
Category
security
Syntax
DiscreteTag=PostLogonDialog();
Examples
DiscreteTag=PostLogonDialog();
See Also
InvisibleVerifyCredentials(), AttemptInvisibleLogon(),
IsAssignedRole(), QueryGroupMembership(),
AddPermission()

LogonCurrentUser() Function
Logs on to InTouch with the user account that is currently
logged on to the Windows operating system.
Category
security
Syntax
DiscreteTag = LogonCurrentUser();
Return Value
Returns -1 and no change to the values assigned to
$Operator, $OperatorName, $OperatorDomain, and
$AccessLevel if the logon fails.
Remarks
Use this function only for operating system-based security.
Example
DiscreteTag = LogonCurrentUser();
See Also
PostLogonDialog(), InvisibleVerifyCredentials(),
IsAssignedRole(), AttemptInvisibleLogon(),
QueryGroupMembership(), AddPermission()

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Logoff() Function
Logs the user off from an InTouch application.
Category
security (write only)
Syntax
DiscreteTag = LogOff();
Remarks
Logs off the currently logged on user and sets the current
user status to the default none operator.
Example
DiscreteTag = LogOff();
See Also
PostLogonDialog(), InvisibleVerifyCredentials(),
IsAssignedRole(), AttemptInvisibleLogon(),
QueryGroupMembership(), AddPermission()

AttemptInvisibleLogon() Function
The AttemptInvisibleLogon() function can be used in a script
to log on a user to InTouch using the supplied credentials.
The user is not required to enter a password or user ID.
Category
security
Syntax
DiscreteTag=AttemptInvisibleLogon( "UserId",
"Password", "Domain" );
Arguments
UserId
A valid user account name.
Password
Password of the user.
Domain
Name of the local computer, workgroup, or domain to which
the user belongs. This argument applies only if the current
security type is operating system-based.
Return Value
Returns TRUE if authentication is successful. Otherwise, it
returns FALSE.

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Remarks
An attempt is made to log on to the InTouch HMI using the
supplied credentials.
• If the logon attempt succeeds, then TRUE is returned
and the $OperatorDomain, $OperatorName,
$AccessLevel, and $Operator system tags are updated
accordingly.

• If the log on attempt fails, then FALSE is returned, and

the currently logged on user (if any) continues to be the
current user.

The Domain argument is only valid for operating

system-based security. If ArchestrA security mode is in use
and if ArchestrA security is in turn using operating
system-based security, the UserId argument should contain
the fully qualified user name with domain name or computer
name.
Examples
When security is operating system-based:
DiscreteTag=AttemptInvisibleLogon("UserId", "Password",
"Domain" );
When security is either InTouch-based or ArchestrA-based:
DiscreteTag=AttemptInvisibleLogon("UserId", "Password",
"" );
See Also
PostLogonDialog(), InvisibleVerifyCredentials(),
IsAssignedRole(), QueryGroupMembership(),
AddPermission()

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$OperatorEntered System Tag

Used to enter a valid user name.
Category
security
Usage
$OperatorEntered
Remarks
You can use this tagname to create a custom log-on window.
You can link touch-sensitive input objects and/or
QuickScripts to this tag to set the user name for the logon.

Note When the $OperatorEntered system tag is valid,

$AccessLevel and $Operator system tags are set to their
pre-defined values.

Data Type
Message (write only)
See Also
$AccessLevel, $Operator, $PasswordEntered,
$ChangePassword, $ConfigureUsers

$PasswordEntered System Tag

Used to enter a valid password.
Category
security
Usage
$PasswordEntered
Remarks
The $PasswordEntered system tag always reads as an empty
string. Display links tied to this system tag are always blank.
Because the tag always returns an empty string, data change
scripts never trigger off of this tag. You can use this tagname
to create a custom log-on window. You can link
touch-sensitive input objects and/or scripts to this tag to set
the password for the user.

Note When the $PasswordEntered is valid, the $AccessLevel and

$Operator system tags are set to their pre-defined values.

Data Type
Message (write only)
See Also
$AccessLevel, $Operator, $OperatorEntered,
$ChangePassword, $ConfigureUsers

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$OperatorDomainEntered System Tag

The domain name as entered by the operator.
Category
Security
Remarks
Whenever the $PasswordEntered tag changes, a log on is
attempted without showing a dialog box. The log on attempt
uses the $*Entered tags as input user name and the string
value of $OperatorDomainEntered as the domain name (used
only if the current mode is operating system-based security).
If the mode is not operating system-based, this tag is ignored.
Data Type
String
Examples
$OperatorEntered == "john";
$OperatorDomainEntered == "Corporate_HQ";
$PasswordEntered == "password";
See Also
$Operator

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Enabling and Disabling Functionality Based

Upon Operator or Access Levels
After you implement security for your application, you can
use the $AccessLevel and $Operator security tags on buttons,
in animation link expressions, or in QuickScripts to control
whether or not the logged on operator is allowed to perform
specific application functions.
For example, to make an object become visible based on the
access level of the logged on user, use the following statement
in a visibility animation link expression:
$AccessLevel >= 2000;

Or, a script can be bounded by an IF statement:

IF $Operator == "DayShift" THEN
Show "Control Panel Window";
{and other lines that only execute for the DayShift
Operator}
ENDIF;
You can also control an object's touch functionality based
upon the value of an internal security tag by using the
Disable animation link. For example:

By using this expression, the object or button is secured from

tampering if no one is logged on.

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InvisibleVerifyCredentials() Function
The InvisibleVerifyCredentials() function can be used in a
synchronous QuickScript to verify the credentials of the
given user without logging the user on to the InTouch HMI.
Category
security
Syntax
AnalogTag=InvisibleVerifyCredentials( "UserId",
"Password", "Domain" );
Arguments
UserId
Windows operating system user account name that is part
of local computer, workgroup, or domain.
Password
Password for the account.
Domain
The Windows domain for the account.
Remarks
If the supplied combination of user, password, and domain
are valid then the corresponding access level associated with
the user is returned as an integer. Otherwise, -1 is returned.

Note The InvisibleVerifyCredentials() function must be run from a

synchronous QuickScript. The function always returns -1 if run
from an asynchronous QuickScript.

This function does not change the currently logged on user.

The Domain argument is only valid for operating
system-based security. If ArchestrA security is in use and if
ArchestrA security is in turn using operating system-based
security, the UserId argument should contain the fully
qualified user name with domain name or computer name.
Example
AnalogTag=InvisibleVerifyCredentials( "john",
"Password", "corporate_hq" );
See Also
PostLogonDialog(), AttemptInvisibleLogon(),
IsAssignedRole(), QueryGroupMembership(),
AddPermission()

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Retrieving Information About the Currently

Logged-on Operator
Auditing is a primary function of any security system. You
can use a set of security system tags to identify the users who
logged on to an InTouch application, the domain from which
the user logged on, and when the attempt was made.

GetAccountStatus() Function
Returns the number of days until the user’s password
expires.
Category
security
Syntax
Result=GetAccountStatus(Domain, UserID);

Arguments
Domain
Name of the domain or local computer in which the user
account is located.
UserID
Windows user account name that is part of the local
computer, workgroup, or domain.
Return Value
This function also returns the following values:

Result Description

-1 Account password expired

-2 Account password never expires
-3 Account locked out
-4 Account disabled
-5 Account info failed

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Remarks
Use this script function with operating system-based
security. Do not use this function with the ArchestrA security
mode.
If the GetAccountStatus() function is used with ArchestrA
security, the script attempts to retrieve the account
information directly from the domain controller. This works
as long as the ArchestrA Galaxy Repository is using
operating system security with the same domain.
Example(s)
Status = GetAccountStatus("Corporate_HQ","Operator");

IsAssignedRole() Function
Determines whether the currently logged on user is a
member of the specified user role. Only applies to ArchestrA
security.
Category
security
Syntax
DiscreteTag=IsAssignedRole( "RoleName" );
Arguments
RoleName
The role associated with an Application Server user.
Remarks
Valid for ArchestrA security mode only and applies to the
currently logged on user. If a user is currently logged on and
has the RoleName role assigned in the Galaxy IDE, then
TRUE is returned. Otherwise, FALSE is returned.
Example
DiscreteTag=IsAssignedRole( "Administrators" );
See Also
AttemptInvisibleLogon(), PostLogonDialog(),
InvisibleVerifyCredentials(), QueryGroupMembership(),
AddPermission()

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QueryGroupMembership() Function
Determines whether the currently logged on user is a
member of the specified user group. Only applies to operating
system security.
Category
security
Syntax
DiscreteTag=QueryGroupMembership( "Domain", "Group" );
Arguments
Domain
Name of the domain or local computer in which the group is
located
Group
Name of the group.
Remarks
Valid for operating system security mode only and applies to
the currently logged on user. If a user is currently logged on
and if he or she is part of the group located on the domain,
then TRUE is returned. Otherwise, FALSE is returned.
The QueryGroupMembership() function works with
operating system-based security and with ArchestrA security
only when the ArchestrA security is set to operating
system-based security.
Examples
DiscreteTag=QueryGroupMembership( "corporate_hq",
"InTouchAdmins" );
DiscreteTag=QueryGroupMembership( "JohnS01",
"InTouchUsers" );
See Also
PostLogonDialog(), InvisibleVerifyCredentials(),
IsAssignedRole(), AttemptInvisibleLogon(), AddPermission()

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$OperatorName System Tag

Contains the full name of the operator if operating
system-based or ArchestrA authentication is used and
someone has logged on and has not logged off. Otherwise, the
tag contains the name of the user logged on (same contents
as the $Operator tag).
Category
Security
Data Type
String (read-only)
Examples
IF $OperatorName <> "" THEN
{Configure some defaults}
ENDIF;

See Also
$Operator

$OperatorDomain System Tag

Contains a different value depending on the type of security
used:
• If operating system-based security is selected and an
operator has successfully logged on, the
$OperatorDomain tag contains the domain or node name
that was specified at log on.

• If ArchestrA security is selected a user is logged on, the

$OperatorDomain contains "ArchestrA."

• If InTouch security is selected, the $OperatorDomain tag

contains the string "InTouch".

• If "None" is selected, it is a empty string ("").

Category
Security
Data Type
String
Examples
IF $OperatorDomain == "PRODUCTION" THEN
{Allow change to setpoint}
ELSE
{Change denied}
ENDIF;

See Also
$Operator

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$Operator System Tag

Contains the logon name of the user logged on.
Category
Security
Data Type
String

$VerifiedUserName System Tag

Contains the verified user's full name if the call to the
InvisibleVerifyCredentials() function is successful and if the
security mode is set to operating system-based or ArchestrA
Application Server-based security. If the call fails, then the
system tag is set to null.
Category
security
Usage
$VerifiedUserName
Remarks
When the $VerifiedUserName system tag changes (when the
InvisibleVerifyCredentials() function is called), an event is
generated.
Data Type
Message (read only)
Valid Values
A user's full name.
Example(s)
Tag = InvisibleVerifyCredentials( "john","password",
"Plant_Floor");{ If the call is successful, the
$VerifiedUserName is set to "John Smith" and an
Operator Event is generated. If the above call is not
successful, $VerifiedUserName is set to "".}
See Also
InvisibleVerifyCredentials(); $OperatorName, $Operator

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Summary of Security System Tags and

Functions
The following table shows which security system tags and
functions you can use with the different security modes.

Operating
InTouch System ArchestrA
Security Security Security

$AccessLevel Yes Yes Yes

$ChangePassword Yes Yes Yes
$ConfigureUsers Yes No No
$InactivityTimeout Yes Yes Yes
$InactivityWarning Yes Yes Yes
$Operator Yes Yes Yes
$OperatorDomain No Yes Yes*
$OperatorDomainEntered No Yes Yes*
$OperatorEntered Yes Yes Yes
$OperatorName Yes Yes Yes
$PasswordEntered Yes Yes Yes
$VerifiedUserName No Yes Yes
AddPermission() No Yes No
AttemptInvisibleLogon() Yes Yes Yes
ChangePassword() Yes No No
EnableDisableKeys() Yes Yes Yes
GetAccountStatus() No Yes Yes*
InvisibleVerifyCredentials() No Yes Yes*
IsAssignedRole() No No Yes
Logoff() Yes Yes Yes
LogonCurrentUser() No Yes No
PostLogonDialog() Yes Yes Yes
QueryGroupMembership() No Yes Yes*
* When ArchestrA security is OS user or group based

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 171

Chapter 6

Switching a Language at Run

Time

You can develop applications that can be switched to another

language at run time.
To enable run-time language switching, you must complete
the following tasks:
• Configure multiple languages for the application.

• Export your application text for offline translation.

• Translate one or more exported dictionary files.

• Import one or more translated dictionary files.

As part of the setup for run-time language switching, you can

also localize alarm comments and alarm fields. In addition to
switching the run-time language of text strings, you can also
configure run-time language switching of alarm comments,
alarm states, alarm types, and alarm classes in the Alarm
Viewer and Alarm DB View controls.

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Configuring Languages for Run-time Language

Switching
Every InTouch application is associated with a base language
used to develop the application. You must configure any
additional languages that you want to support.

Note If you are using language switching in combination with

Network Application Development (NAD), we recommended that
you set the change mode to “Restart WindowViewer” or “Prompt
user to restart WindowViewer” instead of “Load changes into
WindowViewer” or “Prompt user to load changes into
WindowViewer” for the NAD client node.

To configure languages for run-time language switching

1 In WindowMaker, open the application for which you
want to configure languages.
2 On the Special menu, point to Language, and then click
Configure Languages. The Configure Languages dialog box
appears.

The Configure Languages dialog box shows the base

language of the application.
3 Click Add. The Add Language dialog box appears.

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4 Specify the language and font settings. Configuring the

font settings defines the default font properties of your
translated text.
• In the By Name or the Locale ID list, click the language
to add. If you select the language by name, the
corresponding locale ID appears in the Locale ID list,
and vice versa.
• Click Font. The Font dialog box opens. Configure the
font and then click OK.
5 Click OK to close the Add Language dialog box. The
language you configured is listed in the Configure
Languages dialog box.

6 To add more languages, repeat steps 3 through 5.

7 When you are done, click Close.

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Changing the Font Settings for a Configured

Language
The default font for all languages is Tahoma. The font style
and size depends on the corresponding settings for the
individual phrases in the base language. You can change the
font setting for a language that you have already configured.
Because of the differences between the textual display of
different languages, you can specify an appropriate font to
ensure that your translated text fits correctly on buttons and
other objects.

To change the font settings for a configured language

1 In WindowMaker, open the application for which you
want to change font settings for a configured language.
2 On the Special menu, point to Language, and then click
Configure Languages. The Configure Languages dialog box
appears.

3 In the list of languages, select the target language, and

then click Modify Font. A standard Windows Font dialog
box appears.
4 Make your changes and then click OK.
5 Click OK to close the Configure Languages dialog box.

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Adding Run-Time Language Switching

Functionality
Run-time users can switch the language of an application
interface by using the WindowViewer Language command on
the Special menu.
You can also add a button to your application to allow
run-time users to switch the language. Before you start,
make sure that you have configured the additional language
for the application and that you know the locale ID for the
language. For more information on configuring languages for
an application, see Configuring Languages for Run-time
Language Switching on page 172.

To add a button for switching languages at run time

1 In WindowMaker, open the application window that you
want to add the language switching button.
2 In the window, draw a button.
3 Assign a text label to the button that indicates the
language to be switched to when selected.
4 Double-click the button. The animation selection dialog
box appears.

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5 In the Touch Pushbuttons area, click Action. The Touch ->

Action Script dialog box appears.

6 Double-click anywhere in the script area of the Touch ->

Action Script dialog box. The Select Tag dialog box
appears.

7 Click the $Language system tag and then click OK.

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 Adding Run-Time Language Switching Functionality 177

8 Set the $Language system tag equal to the locale ID of the

language you are assigning to the button and click OK.

Note You can also use the script function

SwitchDisplayLanguage(LocaleID) instead of the $Language tag.

9 Click OK to close the dialog box.

SwitchDisplayLanguage() Function
Switches the display of visible, static texts and alarm fields
in a desired language for which translated strings are
provided.
Category
misc
Syntax
SwitchDisplayLanguage(LocaleID);
Parameter
LocaleID
The language in which static text strings and alarm fields
are to be shown at run time.
Example(s)
In this example, German is the language to be shown at run
time.
SwitchDisplayLanguage(1031);
See Also
$Language system tag

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$Language System Tag

If multiple languages are defined for an InTouch application,
the $Language system tag reflects the value of the Language
ID for the currently shown language. By default this is the
language ID (locale ID) of the base InTouch system
(E/F/G/J/SC). Setting this to another ID switches strings and
alarm fields with defined values in the new language.
Category
system
Data Type
Integer (read / write)

Exporting Application Text for Offline

Translation
If your InTouch application has many strings, you typically
send the text strings out for bulk translation. You can export
your application’s strings for translation and keep them
organized using a text editor, an XML editor, or a
spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel.
You can export static text from the following:
• Text objects.

• Button text.

• Text inside SmartSymbols.

• Tooltip static text.

• User messages.
• On/off messages inside input links.
• On/off messages in output links.

• Text on wizards.

You cannot export the dictionary until you close all windows
in WindowMaker. If you make changes to your application
after you export your dictionary files, you must export the
dictionary file again. For more information, see Exporting
Text to an Existing Dictionary File on page 180.

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You can only export the text strings for one language at a
time. By default, the InTouch HMI opens the My InTouch
Applications folder. If you choose any other folder, the
InTouch HMI then defaults to that path. Creating a new
folder to export phrases for each language makes it easy to
manage dictionary files. For example, ...\My InTouch
Applications\My German Files\.
The InTouch HMI creates a dictionary file for your
application and a separate dictionary file for each
SmartSymbol within the application. The application
dictionary name has a format of application name_localeID
whereas SmartSymbol dictionary files have a format of
SSD_Name of the Symbol_localeID_GUID.
When you export the dictionary for an application, the file is
an .xml file that you can edit using Microsoft Excel 2003 or
later.

To export application text for offline translation

1 Start WindowMaker and open the application for which
you want export text strings for offline translation.
2 On the Special menu, point to Language, and then click
Export Dictionary. The Export Dictionary dialog box
appears.

3 Configure the export settings.

• In the Defined Languages list, click the language
dictionary to export.
• In the Path box, type the folder to which you want to
export the dictionary. Click Browse to select an
existing folder or create a new folder.
4 Click Export. The export progress is shown. If the export
is successful, the Export Successful dialog box appears.
5 Click Close to return to the WindowMaker window or
click Close and Launch Explorer to open the folder
containing the dictionary files.

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Exporting Text to an Existing Dictionary File

After you export your application text for offline translation,
you might need to make changes to your application. If you
change the application, you need to export the text again. For
more information, see Exporting Application Text for Offline
Translation on page 178.
If you export more than one time to the same directory, the
Confirm File Replace dialog box appears.

If you click Yes, the existing .xml files are updated with any
new strings and language information added since you
exported last. If the existing dictionary file contains
translations for any phrases and you imported it to the
InTouch HMI previously, those translations are preserved. If
you deleted any phrases from the application since the last
export, they are removed from the dictionary file.

Translating an Exported Dictionary File

After you export the dictionary file containing your
application text, use Microsoft Excel 2003 or later to edit the
text.
The InTouch HMI creates a separate dictionary file for each
language that you export. The InTouch HMI also creates
separate dictionary files for each SmartSymbol in your
application. Be sure to translate all dictionary files for all
languages and SmartSymbols.

To translate an exported dictionary file

1 Open the XML file in Excel. The Open XML dialog box
appears.

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 Translating an Exported Dictionary File 181

2 Click As an XML list, then click OK. A message may

appear.

3 Click OK.
The XML file opens in Excel with columns for the:
• Phrases in your application.
• Translated phrases from the translator.
• Translated font name.
• Translated font properties.
• Translated font size.
• Base font properties.
• Base font size.
• Context, phrase ID, language ID and foreign
language ID.

Important Only modify data in the Translation,

TranslatedFontSize, TranslatedFontName, and
TranslatedFontProperty columns. Do not change any column
header. Do not insert or delete rows.

4 Type the language-specific text in the Translation column

in the row that corresponds with the base language string
in the Phrase column.

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5 If necessary, change the font parameters for the

translated strings to fit the text in the space allowed in
WindowViewer.
• In TranslatedFontName column, type the font name.
• In the TranslatedFontProperty column, type the
notation for the font properties:
B = bold
I = italic
U = underline
For example, if you want to the text to be bold, type B
in the TranslatedFontProperty column. If you want the
text to be bold and underlined, type BU in the
TranslatedFontProperty column.
6 Save the file using XML Data as the file type.

Important If you save as another file type, such as XML

Spreadsheet, Excel changes the schema and the InTouch HMI
cannot load the file. If you change the name of the XML file,
run-time language switching does not work.

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Importing Translated Dictionary Files

The InTouch HMI creates a dictionary file for each language
that you export. The InTouch HMI also creates separate
dictionary files for each SmartSymbol in your application.
After translation, you must import the dictionary files for
each language to enable run-time language switching for
those languages. All dictionary files for a given language
should be placed in the same folder.

To import a translated dictionary file

1 Start WindowMaker and open the application to import
translated dictionary files into.
2 On the Special menu, point to Language, and then click
Import Dictionary. The Import Dictionary dialog box opens.

3 Configure the import settings.

• In the Defined Languages list, click the language
dictionary to import.
• In the Path box, type the path to the dictionary file to
import. Click Browse to browse and select the file.
4 Click Import.
5 If you are re-importing a SmartSymbol dictionary file,
you are prompted to replace the existing file.
If the import is successful, the Import Successful dialog
box appears.

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Exporting Alarm Comments for Translation

You can export alarm comments for translation.
You export the Alarm State, Alarm Type, and Alarm Class
fields for:
• All tags with an alarm comment.

• All tags with a tag comment.

• System tags so you can localize comments shown in

clients when events are raised by system tags.

Understanding Two-Character Application IDs

When you export alarm and tag comments for localization,
you must specify a two-character application ID. The ID is
used internally by the system to distinguish between alarms
generated by applications having the same name.
Because a tag can contain both a tag comment and an alarm
comment, 1 and 2 are added after the two-character
application ID to differentiate between these two fields. Tag
comments have a 1 between the ID and the tag name. Alarm
comments have a 2 between the ID and the tag name. For
example, AA1TankLevel is a tag comment, and
AA2TankLevel is an alarm comment.
If you export an application, the application ID information
is removed.
If the alarm database contains old data without a
two-character application ID and new records are prefixed
with an ID, then alarm comment queries in the Alarm DB
View control do not work with the following operators: <, <=,
>, and >=.

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Exporting Alarm Comments

You can export alarm comments for translation.

Caution Before exporting alarm and tag comments, back up any

files in your target directory in case of possible data corruption or
errors.

To export alarm comments for offline translation

1 Start WindowMaker and open the application for which
you want export alarm comments for offline translation.
2 On the Special menu, point to Language, and then click
Export Alarm Fields. The Export Alarm Fields dialog box
appears.

3 In the Path box, type the folder to which you want to

export the dictionary. Click Browse to select an existing
folder or create a new folder.
4 In the Two characters representing Unique application box,
type the two characters. The ID can only contain
alphanumeric characters and it is case-sensitive.

Caution If you previously exported alarm or tag comments from

this application, you must use the same two-character application
ID when you export them the next time. If you enter a new
two-character application ID, the InTouch HMI regenerates the IDs
for all the alarms and tags, which causes all existing translations
to be lost.

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5 Click Export to export the information to an XML

dictionary file.
The InTouch HMI creates an individual export file for
each configured language. All the dictionary files for
different languages are exported to the single directory
you specify.
If a duplicate file exists for any language being exported,
you are prompted with the name of the file. You can
cancel the export or continue the export operation.
If the export is successful, the Export Successful dialog
box appears.

Note If the size of the alarm comment configured in the tag

dictionary is greater than 127 characters or the tag comment is
greater than 46 characters, the alarm or tag comment is not
exported. You are notified that the comment was not exported to
the dictionary file at the end of the export process and an
AlarmComment.log or TagComment.log file is created in the
export directory.

6 Click Close to return to the WindowMaker window or

click Close and Launch Explorer to open the folder
containing the dictionary file.

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Exporting to an Existing Alarm Comment File

After you export your alarm and tag comments for offline
translation, you may need to make changes to your
application that require you to export alarm and tag
comments again. For more information, see Exporting Alarm
Comments for Translation on page 184.
If you export more than one time to the same directory, the
Confirm File Replace dialog box appears.

Click Yes to update the existing dictionary files with any new
strings and language information added since you exported
last. If the existing dictionary file contains translations for
any phrases and you imported it to InTouch previously, those
translations are preserved. If you deleted any phrases from
the application since the last export, they are removed from
the dictionary file.
Click Yes to All to update existing dictionary files for all
languages configured in the InTouch HMI.
Click No or No to All to prevent overwriting the existing file or
the existing files for all languages, respectively.
The existing translations for any alarm comments, alarm
fields and tag comments are preserved if they are exported
again.

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Editing the Dictionary File

After creating the dictionary file, you need to edit the strings.
The name of the dictionary file is created from the
two-character application ID and the language being
exported. For example, if the configured language is
Chinese(PRC)-2052 and two-character application ID is AA,
the resulting file name is AA_2052_ AlarmComment.xml. The
file is written using the same XML schema used by the
run-time language switching files.
The general structure of the dictionary file is as follows:

Enter the translation for the translation strings. Do not

change any of the other information.
You can override some of the Alarm State, Alarm Type, and
Alarm Class values. The maximum allowed length for these
values is 50 characters.
The following Alarm State values can be overridden for
InTouch generated alarms:

Value to override Default string to be shown

UNACK_RTN UNACK_RTN
ACK_RTN ACK_RTN
UNACK_ALM UNACK_ALM
ACK_ALM ACK_ALM

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 Exporting to an Existing Alarm Comment File 189

The following Alarm Type values can be overridden for

InTouch generated alarms:

Value to override Default string to be shown

SPC SPC
HIHI HIHI
HI HI
LO LO
LOLO LOLO
MINDEV MINDEV
MAJDEV MAJDEV
ROC ROC
DSC DSC
OPR OPR
LGC LGC
DDE DDE
SYST SYST
USER USER
PRO PRO
LOGON_FAILED LOGON_FAILED

The following Alarm Class values can be overridden for

InTouch generated alarms:

Value to override Default string to be shown

DEV DEV
ROC ROC
DSC DSC
EVENT EVENT
VALUE VALUE

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Importing Translated Alarm Comments

After translating the strings, you must import the dictionary
files for each language to enable run-time language switching
for those languages.
After you import the translated alarm comment dictionary
files, they are copied into the respective language folders
inside the application directory.
Any translated alarm comments for an existing application
are overwritten with the contents of the imported files and
the application version ($AppVersion) increments by 1.
To import multiple dictionary files from other nodes to
support localization of alarm fields from multiple nodes, copy
the translated dictionary files from the other nodes into a
single directory. Select this directory as the import path.
Multiple dictionary files are imported on a single import
operation. The InTouch HMI automatically creates the file
path based on the language being imported.

To import a translated alarm comment file

1 Start WindowMaker and open the application to import
translated dictionary files into.
2 On the Special menu, point to Language, and then click
Import Alarm Fields. The Import Alarm Fields dialog box
appears.

3 In the Path box, type the path to the dictionary file to

import or click Browse to browse and select the file.

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4 Click Import. If there is no translation done in the

dictionary file, a dialog box appears saying that there are
no translated dictionary files to import.
5 Click OK. If the import is successful, the Import Successful
dialog box appears.

Testing the Language Switching Functionality

at Run Time
After you enable run-time language switching in your
application, test the language switching functionality.
Language switching of alarm and tag comments and alarm
fields can be viewed only in the Alarm Viewer and Alarm DB
View controls.
As you work with localized alarm and tag comments, be
aware of the following:
• If the alarm or tag comment hasn't been translated to the
language specified by $Language, the default comment
appears in the alarm client.

• If an Alarm Viewer control is querying from multiple

providers, the alarm comment, tag comment, and alarm
fields from remote nodes also appear translated if the
application has the translated dictionary files of the
remote node applications.

• If you acknowledge an alarm and provide a comment, this

comment appears in the alarm client instead of the
localized alarm comment.

• When an Alarm Viewer control is in freeze mode, then

the language does not appear switched even though you
switched the language. The moment you unfreeze the
control, the control is updated with the translated
strings.

• The localization of the Alarm Viewer control is only for

the display of the control. All script functions still return
the default strings even though the language is switched.

• The Alarm DB Logger only stores the data default

language strings in the database. The localized strings
are not stored in the database.

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• The unique IDs for the alarm fields such as EVENT and
ACK, are predefined and have the same ID across
multiple dictionary files in different nodes. Alarm clients
pick the translation from the first loaded dictionary file
and the translations from other dictionary files are
ignored. Ideally, the alarm fields in all dictionary files
should have the same translation in a language. Multiple
alarm clients (Alarm DB View and Alarm Viewer
controls) use the same translation for the same alarm
state for a given language

• Translated text is truncated to 131 characters for alarm

comments and to 50 characters for tag comments.

To test the language switching functionality

1 Open the application in WindowViewer.
2 On the Special menu, point to Language, and then click
the name of the language to switch to.
The information from the corresponding translated
dictionary file (if one exists) loads and appears.
3 If you added a button to switch the language, click the
button to test the script.

Distributing Localized Files to Network

Application Development Clients
The files containing the localized alarm comments, tag
comments, and alarm fields are distributed to Network
Application Development (NAD) clients as part of the
InTouch application. When you receive updated files
containing alarm comments, you must restart
WindowViewer before the translated alarm comments can be
seen in the supported alarm clients.
If you are using language switching in combination with
Network Application Development (NAD), set the change
mode to “Restart WindowViewer” or “Prompt user to restart
WindowViewer” for the NAD client node.

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Chapter 7

Viewing Applications at Run Time

You use WindowViewer to run your InTouch applications.

Applications that are designed specifically for use in an
ArchestrA Application Server environment are called
InTouchView applications. These applications run in
WindowViewer, but the Application Server provides most of
the HMI functionality.

About WindowViewer
WindowViewer provides the run-time environment for
InTouch applications. Based upon your application’s
operational requirements, you can configure how
WindowViewer supports an application. For example,
depending on your application’s security requirements, you
can configure the menus and commands available to
operators from WindowViewer.

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Customizing Your Run time Environment

You can set properties to customize your run time
WindowViewer environment.
• General properties determine the environmental
conditions to run an InTouch application.

• Window configuration properties determine the menus,

commands, and window components accessible to users
as they interact with an InTouch application running in
WindowViewer.

Configuring General WindowViewer Properties

You can configure a set of general properties that determine
the characteristics of WindowViewer as it runs an InTouch
application. After you modify these general properties, you
must restart WindowViewer for your changes to become
effective.
1 Open WindowMaker.
2 On the Special menu, point to Configure, and then click
WindowViewer. The WindowViewer Properties dialog box
appears.
3 Click the General tab.

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4 In the WindowViewer Startup area, select the Start up as

icon check box if you want WindowViewer to start up
minimized.
Select the Start up as icon option only if you are using
WindowViewer to gather data for other
I/O-interconnected applications.
5 In the Transfer to WindowMaker area, do the following:
• Select the Close WindowViewer check box if you want
WindowViewer to automatically close when you start
WindowMaker.
When you select this option, the Close on Transfer to
WindowViewer option located on the WindowMaker
Properties/General tab is automatically selected too. If
memory is not an issue, and you are using the fast
switch to move between WindowViewer and
WindowMaker, this option should be cleared.
• Select the Close all open windows check box if you
want all open windows to close automatically when
you transfer from WindowViewer to WindowMaker.
6 If your application is running on older hardware, you
may need to configure options in the WindowViewer
Memory area. Consult Wonderware Technical Support
before changing these options:
• Select the Always Load Windows from Disk check box if
you want your application windows to be loaded from
disk and not saved in RAM when you close them.
Select this option if the computer running InTouch
applications is experiencing memory shortages.
• In the Minimum Memory to keep free box, type the
amount of memory in KB kept free for other Windows
applications running on the computer with InTouch
applications.
• Select the Optimize performance for memory check
box to increase the update rate for window text fields.
If the computer running WindowViewer is
experiencing memory shortages, clear this option.
7 In the Inactivity area, set warning and time-out periods
for operator inactivity.
For more information about setting warning and time-out
periods, see Configuring an Inactivity Time-Out on
page 131.

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8 In the Time/Timer Control area, do the following:

• In the Tick Interval box, type the interval that the
InTouch HMI uses to check its internal timers.
This interval determines when Application While
Running, Window While Showing, Condition While
On True/On False, Key and Touch Pushbutton Action
While Down QuickScripts can be started.
This option sets the value for TimerTickInterval
parameter in the INTOUCH.ini file. You should set
the Tick Interval no longer than 50 msec for a script
scheduled to run every 100 msec. On computers
running Windows XP or Windows 2003, the lower tick
interval is 10 msec.
• In the Update for Time Variables box, type the interval
in milliseconds that time is updated for system tags
like $Msec, $Second, or $Minute.
We recommend that you use the default setting of
1000 milliseconds. Setting this option to zero
prevents time variables from being updated.
9 In the Miscellaneous area, do the following:
• Select Beep when objects touched if you want the
InTouch application to emit a beep sound when
operators select touch-sensitive objects on a window.
• Select Update all trends “Fast” if you want your trend
objects to be updated more quickly.
Select this option only if no objects overlap run-time
trends on the application window. If you select this
option and any object overlaps a trend, the object can
be drawn incorrectly.
• Select Debug Scripts if you want a message to be
written to the Logger each time a QuickScript runs.
If you select Debug from the Window Configuration
property sheet, you can switch QuickScript logging on
and off from WindowViewer's Special menu.
• Select the Use old SendKeys check box if you are using
an international application developed with InTouch
version 3.26 or earlier.
10 In the Blink Frequency area, type the interval length in
milliseconds for your Slow, Medium, and Fast blink
animation links.

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11 In the I/O area, do the following:

• In the Retry Initiates box, type the number of seconds
to wait before the InTouch application retries
connecting to an I/O Server after a failed connection
attempt. The I/O Retry Initiates box has no effect when
InTouch can successfully connect to the I/O server the
first time.
• Select the Start local servers check box if you want a
dialog box to appear when you start WindowViewer
and the I/O Server you are trying to communicate
with is not running.
• Select the Reinitialize Default check box if you want to
reinitialize Access Names with their default settings.
Current values assigned to Access Names are ignored
and they are reinitialized with their original settings.
12 In the Hotlinks area, do the following:
• Select the Show Halo around Hotlink check box if you
want an object on the run time screen to be
highlighted when the user moves the cursor over it.
• Select the Halo follows object shape check box if you
want a highlight halo around the contours of an object
when the user moves the cursor over it.
• If you want a halo around Active X controls, select the
Show halo around Active X control check box.
13 In the Keyboard area, select the type of keyboard you
want to use, if any.
For more information about setting keyboard options in
WindowViewer, see Chapter 4, Animating Objects, in the
InTouch® HMI Visualization Guide.
14 Click OK.

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Configuring Visual Characteristics of WindowViewer

You can configure properties that determine the visual
characteristics of WindowViewer as it runs an InTouch
application. These properties determine the menus,
commands, and standard controls that appear on a
WindowViewer window.

To configure WindowViewer visual characteristics

1 Open WindowMaker.
2 On the Special menu, point to Configure, and then click
WindowViewer. The WindowViewer Properties dialog box
appears.
3 Click the Window Configuration tab.

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4 Select the check boxes for the visual characteristics.

Window
Configuration
Properties For More Information, see

Menus Hiding Menu Items at Run Time on

page 138
Window Hiding Menu Items at Run Time on
page 138
Title Bar Hiding Menu Items at Run Time on
page 138
Miscellaneous Locking System Keys on page 135

5 Restart WindowViewer.

Working with WindowViewer Windows

A typical InTouch application includes at least several
windows that operators interact with to manage their
industrial processes. Based on the properties you set from
the Window Configuration tab on the WindowViewer Properties
dialog box, operators can run standard commands from the
WindowViewer File menu to open and close windows.

Common Dialog Box Features

If you configured WindowViewer to show the File menu,
operators can open or close InTouch application windows.
When operators click either the Open Window or Close
Window command from the File menu, the respective dialog
box for the selected command appears.
The names of all the windows that are applicable for the
selected command appear in the list. For example, the
Windows to Show dialog box appears after clicking on the
Open Window command.

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Click Details to change from the list view to the details view.
The details show the window's type and the date and time
when a window was last modified.

In the details view, you can select and deselect any unopened
window by clicking on any portion of its row, not just the
check box. The entire row is highlighted when selected.
• To open selected windows click OK.

• To cancel your selections and close the dialog box, click

Cancel.

• To return the dialog box to list view, click List.

• To select all listed windows, click Select All.

• To clear all selected windows, click Clear All.

• To sort the list in ascending or descending order, click the

column header.

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Opening Windows from WindowViewer

Operators can open InTouch application windows if
WindowViewer is configured to show the File menu.

To open windows from WindowViewer

1 On the File menu, click Open Window. The Windows to
Show dialog box appears.
2 Click the check box next to the name of each window that
you want to open.
3 Click OK to close the dialog box and open windows you
selected.

Note If a “Replace” type window is selected, it closes any

windows that it intersects.

Closing Windows from WindowViewer

Operators can close InTouch application windows if
WindowViewer is configured to show the File menu.

To close open windows

1 On the File menu, click Close Window. The Windows to
Hide dialog box appears.

2 Click the check box next to the name of one or more

windows that you want to close.
3 Click OK to close the windows you selected.

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Transferring from WindowViewer to WindowMaker

When you develop an InTouch application, you can easily
transfer between WindowMaker and WindowViewer by
clicking the WindowMaker command in the File menu, or the
Development command in the toolbar. This is called
fast-switching.
Fast-switching is for rapid development testing only. Do not
use it in a production environment. You can hide the
command for switching to WindowMaker.

To transfer from WindowViewer to WindowMaker

1 On the File menu, click WindowMaker. The Windows to
Edit dialog box appears.

2 Click the check box next to the name of each window that
you want to open when you transfer to WindowMaker.
3 Click OK to close the dialog box and transfer to
WindowMaker.

Note If the application developer selected the Close

WindowViewer option when WindowViewer's properties were
configured during development, WindowViewer automatically
closes when you transfer to WindowMaker.

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InTouchView
InTouchView applications show visual interfaces designed
specifically for use in an ArchestrA Application Server
environment. InTouchView applications run in
WindowViewer, with Application Server providing most of
the HMI functionality.
InTouchView applications offer only some of the standard
functions available from full-featured InTouch applications.
InTouchView applications:
• Cannot connect to I/O sources other than the ArchestrA
Application Server Galaxy.

• Cannot generate alarms. However, you can display and

acknowledge alarms from remote alarm providers, such
as ArchestrA objects.

• Do not log application data or events. An InTouchView

application generates only SYS and USER-related
events.

• Can be secured only with ArchestrA security.

• Cannot act as a server to other InTouch applications,

InTouchView applications, or clients such as WWClient.

You develop an InTouchView application with

WindowMaker. The following lists show which
WindowMaker commands and Tagname Dictionary options
are unavailable when creating InTouchView applications.
• Unavailable Special menu commands:

• Access Names
• Alarm Groups
• Configure...Alarms
• Configure...Historical Logging
• Configure...Distributed Name Manager
• Unavailable Tagname Dictionary options:

• Alarms
• Details & Alarms
• Log Data
• Log Events
• Priority
You run an InTouchView application as you would an
InTouch application. Simply start the application in
WindowViewer.

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Creating a New InTouchView Application

You identify an InTouchView application by setting an option
from Application Manager when you create the application.

To create a new InTouchView application

1 Start Application Manager.
2 On the File menu, click New. The Create New Application
wizard appears.
3 Follow the steps of the Create New Application wizard.
The wizard includes a dialog box with options to enter the
application name, provide a description, and specify it as
an InTouchView application.

4 Type the name and a description of the InTouchView

application.
5 Select the InTouchView Application check box.
6 Click Finish. The system creates a new InTouchView
application and sets the security to ArchestrA mode.

Converting an Application Between InTouch and

InTouchView
You can convert an InTouch application to an InTouchView
application and vice versa. A full InTouch license is required
to run applications converted from InTouchView to InTouch.
You can convert an InTouch application to InTouchView and
still run the application with the InTouch license.
You cannot convert an application that is currently running
in WindowViewer.

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Converting an InTouchView Application to an InTouch

Application
You can convert an InTouchView application to an InTouch
application. For example, you would do this if you need the
application to begin accessing tags from data sources other
than the Application Server Galaxy.
After you convert the application, you can access all of the
WindowMaker functions that are unavailable for an
InTouchView application.
The converted application still uses ArchestrA security, but
you can change the security type.

To convert an InTouchView application to an InTouch

application
1 Open the InTouchView application in WindowMaker.
2 On the Special menu, click Application Type. The
Application Type dialog box appears with the
InTouchView Application box selected.

3 Clear the InTouchView Application check box and click OK.

To change the security type

1 Open the InTouch application in WindowMaker.
2 On the Special menu, point to Security, and then point to
Select Security Type to show a list of supported InTouch
security types.
3 Select the type of security for your InTouch application.
For more information about security, see Chapter 5,
Securing InTouch,.

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Converting an InTouch Application to an InTouchView

Application
You can convert an InTouch application to InTouchView if
the application only needs to connect to an Application
Server.
After you convert the application to InTouchView, some
WindowMaker functions are unavailable.

Important You must remove all Access Names other than Galaxy
before converting an InTouch application to InTouchView. If they
are not removed, a message is shown during the conversion
attempt.

To convert an InTouch application to an InTouchView

application
1 Open the InTouch application in WindowMaker.
2 On the Special menu, click Application Type. The
Application Type dialog box appears.

3 Select the InTouchView Application check box.

4 Click OK. When a message appears, click OK.

InTouchView Licensing
When an InTouchView application starts, WindowViewer
requests a specific InTouchView license from the License
Manager. If an InTouchView license is not available, License
Manager requests a full-featured InTouch license. If the
InTouch line is successfully read, WindowViewer starts the
application. Otherwise, WindowViewer indicates the
InTouchView license is unavailable and gives a brief
description of the problem. WindowViewer offers options to
quit, retry, or run the InTouchView application in
demonstration mode.

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Chapter 8

Setting Up a Multi-Monitor
System

A multi-monitor system shows an InTouch application on

several monitors simultaneously. Together, a multi-monitor
configuration creates a composite screen composed of all
monitors connected to the computer running an InTouch
application. Each monitor can show a portion of the screen or
only a single window component like a keypad.
While running an InTouch application, you can move the
mouse between monitors and drag windows from one monitor
to another. Also, in some multi-monitor configurations you
can show an entire InTouch application window across all
monitors, as shown in the following figure.
Node running
InTouch
application
Video
Card

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Multi-Monitor Configurations
You can use two basic multi-monitor configurations.
• Single video card
• Multiple video card

Each configuration has unique hardware, software, and

configuration requirements. Also, each configuration
supports a different set of multi-monitor features.

Single Video Card Configuration

In the single video card configuration, the computer has a
single video card installed with multiple output ports
connected to monitors.
Node running
InTouch
application
800 X 600 800 X 600

Multi-monitor
screen at
1600 x 1200

800 X 600 800 X 600

The composite screen resolution is the sum of the individual

horizontal and vertical resolution of each monitor. For
example, a popular video card connects four 17 inch monitors
stacked as a cube: two on the bottom and two on the top. In
the previous figure, each monitor runs at a screen resolution
of 800 x 600 pixels. The composite virtual screen resolution is
1600 x 1200 pixels.

Characteristics of a Single Card Configuration

Single video card drivers have the following characteristics:
• The single video card drives all monitors simultaneously
to create a single, large screen.

• The properties of all attached monitors can be configured

using a single set of screen values.
• The composite screen shows the Windows taskbar across
all of the monitors in the bottom row of the configuration.

• Windows applications can be maximized to fit all

monitors.

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Characteristics of Single Card Drivers

The following figure shows the Windows Display Properties
dialog box to configure the driver for all monitors connected
to a single video card with multiple output ports.

In this figure, the resolution setting is for four monitors

arranged side by side in a single row. The resolution for each
monitor is 1024 x 768. Added together, the composite screen
resolution is 4096 x 768. You only need to configure a single
monitor’s resolution, color depth, and refresh rate. The
resolution setting applies to all monitors connected to the
single video card.

Multiple Video Card Configuration

In the multiple video card configuration, the computer has
multiple video cards installed. Each video card connects a
single monitor to the computer running an InTouch
application.
Node running
InTouch Video
application Cards

800 X 600 800 X 600 800 X 600

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Characteristics of a Multiple Card Configuration

Dynamic Resolution Conversion (DRC) works with other
distributed features to provide independence from screen
resolution restrictions. In a NAD architecture, you create and
maintain an InTouch application on a development node and
then copy it to several View nodes. DRC allows all view nodes
to show the application, even if the nodes are running at
different screen resolutions.
DRC enables each View node to scale the application to a
number of user-defined options, including a custom
resolution. This scaling takes place while WindowViewer
compiles the application and does not require WindowMaker.
Because each View node can use a different DRC setting, you
must configure each individual View node.
DRC makes it easy to support multi-monitor systems. Simply
select from the DRC resolution conversion options to show an
InTouch application over the entire composite screen or just
a portion of it.

Characteristics of Multiple Card Drivers

The following figure shows the Windows Display Properties
dialog box to configure the drivers for all monitors connected
to individual video cards installed on the computer running
an InTouch application.

You click a numbered rectangle in the Display Properties

dialog box to select the monitor you want to configure. You
arrange the numbered rectangles to match the physical
placement of the monitors. Screen resolution, color depth and
refresh rate apply only to the monitor you select.

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Planning a Multi-Monitor Application

To set up multiple monitors for your application, you must:
• Choose a multi-monitor video card
• Determine the application screen resolution

• Determine the number of monitors to display the

application

• Determine the placement of application windows

Choosing a Multi-Monitor Video Card

Wonderware Technical Support can provide you with a list of
recommended video cards that support multi-monitor
InTouch applications.
Before you select a video card, get more information from
Technical Support to answer the following questions:
• What versions of InTouch does the video card support?

• Does the card support a single or a multiple card

configuration?

• What are the recommended drivers for the video card?

• What are the recommended configuration settings for the

video card?

Determining the Application Screen Resolution

Determining your overall screen resolution and knowing the
exact size of your viewing area simplifies the process of
creating an application for a multi-monitor environment.
Create a drawing that shows the overall monitor
configuration. The drawing should show the resolution of
each monitor and the combined resolution of all the monitors
together. This drawing helps you visualize the horizontal and
vertical pixel range for each monitor.
For example, if you have a composite screen composed of two
horizontal monitors with a screen resolution of 800 x 600,
then the top left pixel location of the second monitor would be
at pixel 800 x 0. The screen pixel count goes from 0 to 799 for
the first monitor and 800 to 1599 for the second. Using the
drawing as a guide, you can determine the placement of
application windows on the composite multi-monitor screen.

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Determining the Number of Monitors to Display

the Application
You can simplify the effort to create a multi-monitor InTouch
application by using a development environment similar to
the production environment. Using a multi-monitor
development environment may not be possible in all cases.
When you only have a single monitor attached to the
computer used to develop your InTouch application, you can
still build a multi-monitor application by developing the
windows and configuring the windows dimensions and
locations to your estimated display needs.
Use the WindowMaker Window Properties dialog box to
modify the characteristics of a window. You right-click on the
name of the window listed in WindowMaker’s Windows
&Scripts pane, and then click Properties in the shortcut menu
to show the Window Properties dialog box.

The X Location and Y Location values determine the

horizontal and vertical pixel placement of a window’s top left
corner on a screen. The origin of horizontal and vertical pixel
scales is at the top left corner of a screen.
The Window Width and Window Height settings determine the
overall size of the window. For example, you can configure a
window with the following settings:
• X location = 1024

• Y location = 0

• Window Width = 1024

• Window Height = 768

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The multi-monitor configuration consists of four monitors

arranged in a single horizontal row. Each monitor has a
resolution of 1024 X 768. The overall composite screen
resolution is 4096 X 768.
By setting the window’s horizontal origin to 1024 and vertical
origin to 0, you force this window to appear on the second
monitor during run time. The window covers the entire
screen surface of the second monitor.

Determining the Placement of Application

Windows
You can use several different configurations when developing
InTouch windows for a multi-monitor environment.

Windows Show in a Forced Location

One method is to simply develop and force windows to show
where specified. Make sure that WindowViewer is
maximized across the total viewing area of all monitors. This
allows the InTouch application windows to show on specified
monitors.
You can use InTouch security features to deny access to the
Windows desktop.

Windows Are Manually Moved

Another option is to develop an application where windows
are manually moved to the monitors of choice, allowing a
single application to run on different monitor configurations.
This involves the following:
• All windows in the application must be of type Popup.
• The main WindowViewer parent window can be small
and not covering all monitors. However, you cannot use
InTouch security for denying access to the Windows
desktop in this configuration because InTouch is not
maximized.

In this configuration popup windows are used which can be

easily moved to any monitors, regardless of the main
WindowViewer parent window location. Popup windows do
not have to remain within the parent WindowViewer
window. You can shrink the size of the main window and
move it to a corner of a monitor, allowing all the popup
windows to be moved freely to the monitors of choice.

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Windows Are Placed Automatically Based on

Environment
The final method includes an additional step added to the
above method. The step allows an application to
automatically place windows based on the environment used.
This is the most complicated of configurations and requires
extensive scripting and planning.
In this configuration, the ShowAt() and ShowTopLeftAt()
script functions dynamically place windows based on a
default set of coordinates and calculations. This can be
configured many different ways depending on your
application requirements.

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Developing a Multi-Monitor InTouch

Application
You must assign values to selected parameters in the
InTouch.ini and Win.ini files to support multi-monitors.
These parameters enable you to place InTouch system
dialogs and keypads in the proper locations on the composite
screen.

Configuring Multi-Monitor Parameters

To enable multi-monitor support, you add a set of InTouch
parameters to the Windows Win.ini file. These parameters
enable multi-monitor support for the node running the
InTouch application and the resolution of each monitor.

To configure the multi-monitor settings on a node

1 Edit the Win.ini file located in the Windows folder of the
computer running the InTouch HMI software.
2 Locate the [InTouch] section within the Win.ini file and
add the following parameters:

Parameter Description

MultiScreen=1 A value of 1 enables

multi-monitor mode. A
value of 0 disables
multi-monitor mode.
MultiScreenWidth=nnnn Width of a single screen
in pixels.
MultiScreenHeight=nnnn Height of a single screen
in pixels.

For example, if you want to show your InTouch

application with a screen resolution of 2560 x 1024 on two
horizontal monitors, enter the following:
[InTouch]
MultiScreen=1
MultiScreenWidth=1280
MultiScreenHeight=1024

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Configuring Screen Resolution Conversion

You can specify a parameter value to maintain the current
resolution of InTouch application windows when migrating
between nodes running different screen resolutions.
The ScaleForResolution parameter value determines
whether application windows (*.win) are automatically
scaled by WindowMaker after the display resolution changes
on the computer running WindowViewer. The
ScaleForResolution parameter does not affect the resolution
of WindowViewer dialog boxes.

To configure screen resolution conversion on a node

1 Edit the InTouch.ini file of the computer running
InTouch.
2 Add the ScaleForResolution parameter to the file.
ScaleForResolution=1
When set to 0, resolution conversion is disabled.
When set to 1, resolution conversion is enabled.

Note If the ScaleForResolution parameter is not added to the

InTouch.ini file, the default value is enabled
(ScaleForResolution=1). When you disable the parameter
(ScaleForResolution=0), you are still prompted to convert the
resolution. But, the resolution conversion does not occur.

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Deploying the Application and Verifying

Multi-Monitor Settings
The ScaleForResolution parameter becomes particularly
important when you develop an application on a single
monitor system that is intended to run on a multi-monitor
system. The value assigned to the ScaleForResolution
parameter determines whether the application can be scaled
when moved from one environment to the other.

Important It is recommended that you make a backup copy of the

application before moving it to an different environment.

For example, if an application is developed on a computer

with a single monitor with a resolution of 1024 x 768 and is
intended to run on a system with four monitors in a
side-by-side configuration with a total resolution of 4096 x
768, this requires an application conversion.
When you deploy the application on the multi-monitor
system, a message appears prompting you to convert the
application.
If the ScaleForResolution .ini setting is configured, you still
see this message but the application is not converted and can
then be run as designed. Simply click Yes to continue startup.
If the .ini setting is not configured, the InTouch HMI
converts and scale all of the graphics and windows in the
application to the new resolution. Doing so stretches and
enlarge all windows and graphic displays, thus creating some
unwanted results.

Important Make sure that the multi-monitor Win.ini parameter

settings are also configured on the destination computer before
running your application. Win.ini settings do not automatically
transfer with an InTouch application.

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Verifying Multi-Monitor Support During Run Time

You can download an optional script function from the
Wonderware Technical Support script library that verifies if
the local node running the InTouch application provides
multi-monitor support.
The WWMultiMonitorNode() function determines if the node
supports multi-monitors and the number of monitors
attached to the node.
Typically, you run the WWMultiMonitorNode() function from
a QuickScript to determine the number of monitors assigned
to the node running the InTouch application.
The following example shows an example of a QuickScript
statement with the value of the WWMultiMonitorNode()
function assigned to an InTouch integer tag. The QuickScript
can be set to run when the application starts in
WindowViewer.
{MultiMonitors defined as an integer tag}
MultiMonitors = WWMultiMonitorNode();
{After executing this function Result = 4}

WWMultiMonitorNode() reads the MultiScreen parameter

specified in the node’s Win.ini file. The
WWMultiMonitorNode() function returns either a 0 or a
positive integer.
• 0 return value

WWMultiMonitorNode() returns a 0 if MultiScreen=0 or

if the MultiScreenWidth or MultiScreenHeight
parameters are set incorrectly to 0 in the [InTouch]
section of the Win.ini file.
• Positive integer return value

WWMultiMonitorNode() returns the number of monitors

in the multi-monitor configuration if MultiScreen=1 and
the MultiScreenWidth and MultiScreenHeight
parameters have been assigned correct screen resolution
values.

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Chapter 9

Using InTouch on a Tablet PC

Wonderware offers a line of portable Tablet PCs with

Windows XP Tablet PC Edition and InTouch pre-installed.
These rugged Tablet PCs are waterproof and vibration
resistant, making them suitable for most industrial
environments. Tablet PCs are also available from other
computer manufacturers that can run InTouch applications.
Operators carry a Wonderware Tablet PC with them as they
move around their plant. The Tablet PC runs an InTouch
application that represents their actual plant processes.
Using a pen that acts as a screen pointer or an input device,
operators select InTouch objects on the screen or as a
keyboard substitute to write notes directly on the screen.

Operators can write notes and annotate a running InTouch

application with direct observations about their actual plant
processes.

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Annotating and Sending Visualization Screens

as E-mail Messages
Use the AnnotateLayout() script function to capture screens
shown on a Tablet PC. The AnnotateLayout() function is
available only when InTouch runs on a Tablet PC using the
Windows XP Tablet PC operating system.
The AnnotateLayout() function takes a screen capture of the
visible portion of the active InTouch window. The captured
screen appears in the Annotate Layout dialog box.

The Annotate Layout dialog box contains a toolbar and menu

options. The dialog box shows the screen capture in its client
area. You can annotate the image using various drawing
tools, and save, print, or send the screen capture in an e-mail
message.

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 Annotating and Sending Visualization Screens as E-mail Messages 221

Making Window Annotations

To make annotations to the window, use the following tools:
• Pen: To draw and write comments.
• Highlighter: To highlight areas of the window using a
semi-transparent color.

• Eraser: To delete parts of an annotation.

Each of these tools has certain options such as size, color, or

transparency.
• To set these options, click the downward arrow next to
each tool’s icon and then click the command for the
option.

• To restore these options to their default settings, on the

Tools menu, click Restore Defaults.

Selecting, Copying, and Deleting Window

Annotations
You can select, copy, and delete annotations that you make in
the window.

To select annotations
1 Click the Lasso icon in the toolbar.
2 While holding down the stylus button, draw an area
around the annotations that you want to select.
You can now cut, copy or delete the selected annotations.

To cut, copy, and paste annotations

‹ Use the standard Windows Cut, Copy, and Paste
commands.

To delete annotations
‹ Do any of the following:
• To delete all annotations on a window, on the Edit
menu, point to Clear and then click All.
• To delete annotations that you selected using the
lasso, on the Edit menu, point to Clear and then tap
Selection.

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Saving, Printing, and E-Mailing an Annotated

Window
After you make annotations to a window, you can save it as
an image file, print it, or send it as an e-mail attachment.
You only need to configure the e-mail server one time.

To save an annotated window

1 On the File menu, click Save. A standard Windows Save
As dialog box appears.
2 Enter a name and format for the file and click OK.

To print an annotated window

1 On the File menu, click Print. A standard Windows Print
dialog box appears.
2 Specify any printing options and click OK.

To send an annotated window as an e-mail attachment

1 On the Edit menu, click E-Mail Configuration. The E-Mail
Configuration dialog box appears.
2 Enter the host name of the SMTP e-mail server to use for
sending e-mail. If you are unsure, ask your administrator
for assistance. Click OK.
3 On the File menu, click E-Mail. The E-mail dialog box
appears.
4 Enter sender and recipient addresses and write a
message. An image file of the annotated window is
automatically added as an attachment.
5 Click Send to send the e-mail message.

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 Annotating and Sending Visualization Screens as E-mail Messages 223

AnnotateLayout() Function
Shows the Annotate Layout dialog box, where you can
annotate the current view screen from where this script
function is called. This function is only supported on the
Windows XP Tablet PC Edition operating system.
Category
System
Syntax
AnnotateLayout()
Remarks
When Annotate Layout dialog box appears, the screen image
of WindowViewer is captured. Use the dialog box to:
• Annotate the screen capture using the pen in conjunction
with tool bar and menu item settings.

• Save the image and the annotation as a .gif or .jpeg file.

• Print the image and the annotation (if a printer is

configured).

• Send the image and the annotation as an attachment of

an e-mail message (if SMTP is configured).

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Changing Screen Orientation

If the Tablet PC is running in tablet configuration, and
WindowViewer is configured to dynamically change the
application resolution to the screen resolution, an InTouch
application developed in landscape mode is scaled to fit
portrait mode.
If WindowViewer is not configured to dynamically change the
application resolution, the landscape application is not
scaled. In this case, some InTouch windows can be truncated
on the Tablet PC.
When switching from one configuration to another, the
screen resolution is switched by default. For example, if the
tablet PC running in laptop configuration is switched to
tablet configuration, the screen orientation switches from
landscape (1024 x 768) to portrait (768 x 1024) mode.

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Appendix A

Customizing Applications Settings

from the INTOUCH.ini File

The first time you run an InTouch application, the

INTOUCH.ini file is created in the application folder. When
the INTOUCH.ini file is created, values are assigned to a set
of parameters that determine the operating characteristics of
an individual InTouch application.
As you continue configuring your application from
WindowMaker or WindowViewer, new INTOUCH.ini
parameters are created or existing parameters are modified.
For example, when you configure logging from the
WindowMaker Historical Logging Properties dialog box,
logging parameters are added to the INTOUCH.ini file.
Other configuration parameters must be manually added to
the INTOUCH.ini file.
After you customize your application, you can copy the
INTOUCH.ini file to a different application's folder. This
way, you can create consistent operating characteristics for
your applications without having to repeat all customization
steps.

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226 Appendix A Customizing Applications Settings from the INTOUCH.ini File

Custom INTOUCH.ini Parameters

The following table lists a set of parameters that you can
manually enter in the INTOUCH.ini file to provide
additional custom properties to your InTouch applications.

INTOUCH.ini Parameter Purpose

16PenTrendDrawMode Determines whether a 16-Pen Trend shows

data values in average mode or min-max
mode.
CommentRetentive Determines whether run-time changes to
the Alarm Comment field are saved.
ForceLogCurrentValue Determines whether the current value of
logged tags are written to the Historical Log
file at an interval set by the ForceLogging
parameter.
ForceLogging Sets the length of the interval when tag
values are periodically written to the
Historical Log file regardless of their current
values.
LoopTimeOut Sets the time out period of FOR-NEXT loop
processing in an InTouch script.
NoKeyboardResize Determines whether the numeric keyboard
is resized to the resolution of the
WindowViewer screen.
OldRightMouseBehavior Determines whether the right mouse button
is enabled in WindowMaker.
PrintScreenWait Sets the wait period before printing a screen
from WindowViewer.
PrintWindowWait Sets the wait period before printing an
InTouch window from WindowViewer.
RemoteTagsLogEvents Determines whether an InTouch application
logs remote referenced tag alarms and
events.
RemoteTagsNoIOEvents Determines whether an InTouch application
logs remote referenced tag alarms.
ScaleForResolution Determines whether InTouch application
windows are automatically resized when
changing nodes that have different screen
resolutions.

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 Custom INTOUCH.ini Parameters 227

Setting Custom Logging Properties

You can add a set of parameters to the INTOUCH.ini file
that specify how tag values are saved to the InTouch
historical log file. The values assigned to these parameters
determine logging frequency and if the values of remote
referenced tags are logged.

Setting Logging Frequency

The InTouch HMI writes entries to the historical log file
based upon two conditions:
• The InTouch HMI writes an immediate log entry
whenever a tag value changes by an engineering unit
value greater than its log deadband value.

• The InTouch HMI writes the current values of all logged

tags at a fixed interval. The default fixed interval is 60
minutes.

You add two parameters to the INTOUCH.ini file to change

the interval.
• ForceLogging

ForceLogging specifies the length of the fixed logging

interval in minutes. ForceLogging can be set to a value
from 5 to 120. The default is ForceLogging=60.
• ForceLogCurrentValue

ForceLogCurrentValue forces the InTouch HMI to write

log entries for all logged tags even if the current values
are less than or equal to their log deadband ranges. The
default is ForceLogCurrentValue=0.
In the following example, current tag values are written to
the Historical Log file at 15 minute intervals or when the
value of the tag changes:
ForceLogging=15
ForceLogCurrentValue=1

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Logging Remote Referenced Tags

By default, remote referenced tags are not logged to the
historical log file. To log remote referenced tags, you must
enable historical logging and then add the
RemoteTagsLogEvents parameter to the INTOUCH.ini file.
RemoteTagsLogEvents=1

To exclude I/O tags from being logged, add the

RemoteTagsNoIOEvents parameter to the INTOUCH.ini file.
The RemoteTagsNoIOEvents parameter applies only if the
RemoteTagsLogEvents parameter is set to 1.
RemoteTagsNoIOEvents=1

Disabling WindowMaker Shortcut Menus

By default, WindowMaker shows an shortcut menu when you
right-click with your mouse over the selected object. If you
prefer to develop your application using the same mouse
behavior as earlier versions of the InTouch HMI, you can
turn off WindowMaker’s right-click behavior by setting the
oldrightmousebehavior parameter to 1 in the INTOUCH.ini
file.
oldrightmousebehavior=1

Setting Custom WindowViewer Properties

You can add a set of INTOUCH.ini file parameters that set
the behavior of WindowViewer to:
• Handle script looping.

• Scale InTouch windows for different screen resolutions.

• Set a waiting period to print windows or screens.

• Log run time changes to an alarm comment.

• Set the drawing mode of a 16-Pen Trend.

• Resize the numeric keypad.

• Resizing input fields of analog and string user input

links.

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 Custom INTOUCH.ini Parameters 229

Adding a Script Loop Timer

By default, a FOR-NEXT loop within an InTouch script must
complete within five seconds. WindowViewer stops the script
automatically if the FOR-NEXT loop processing has not
finished by the time-out limit. This time-out limit prevents
an infinite loop caused by a scripting error.
Occasionally, you may need to write a script in which the
FOR-NEXT loop code processing exceeds the five second
time-out limit. You can change the length of the time-out
limit by adding the LoopTimeout parameter to your
INTOUCH.ini file.
In this example, loop processing continues for a maximum of
20 seconds:
LoopTimeout=20

Scaling InTouch Windows to Different Screen

Resolutions
You can add a parameter to the INTOUCH.ini file to
maintain the current resolution of InTouch windows when
you migrate the application to other nodes running different
screen resolutions.
The ScaleForResolution parameter value determines
whether application windows are automatically scaled by
WindowMaker after the display resolution changes on the
computer running WindowViewer. The ScaleForResolution
parameter does not affect the resolution of WindowViewer
dialog boxes. Resolution conversion is enabled when the
ScaleForResolution parameter is set to 1.
ScaleForResolution=1

Setting the Length of the Print Waiting Period

When you select a window or screen to print, WindowViewer
loads the selected window or screen into memory.
WindowViewer then waits 10 seconds to allow all DDE
variables shown in the window or screen to be updated. After
the waiting period ends, WindowViewer sends the window or
screen to the printer.
The WindowViewer print waiting period can be changed by
adding the PrintWindowWait or PrintScreenWait
parameters to the INTOUCH.ini file. The wait period for
either parameter is expressed in milliseconds.
PrintWindowWait=15000
PrintScreenWait=20000

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230 Appendix A Customizing Applications Settings from the INTOUCH.ini File

Logging Alarm Comments

Operators can add a comment when acknowledging an
alarm. To write run time changes to the Alarm Comment field
in the tag database, add the following line to the
INTOUCH.ini file for the current application.
CommentRetentive=1

Setting the Drawing Mode of a 16-Pen Trend

You can select the line drawing mode of a 16-Pen Trend
based on the value of the 16PenTrendDrawMode parameter.
• Averaging mode: 16PenTrendDrawMode=0

Because of the time range and the buffer size of the

16-Pen Trend, each pixel on the trend can represent
several seconds' worth of data. Each interval can contain
several samples with different values. As a result, the
trend’s data point can appear as a vertical line between
the maximum and the minimum values observed within
the interval.
After the minimum to maximum vertical line is drawn,
the trend pen moves to the calculated average value for
the interval. The next interval begins by drawing the line
from the average value to the next interval on the trend.
The vertical minimum to maximum line is drawn and the
pen rests at the average value calculated for the interval.
This process repeats for each sampling interval.
Averaging is the default drawing mode of a 16-Pen Trend
if the 16PenTrendDrawMode is not specified in the
INTOUCH.ini file.
• Min-Max mode: 16PenTrendDrawMode=1
In the Min-Max drawing mode the trend line is drawn by
directly connecting the endpoints of each data collection
interval.

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 Custom INTOUCH.ini Parameters 231

Resizing a Numeric Keypad

You can add a parameter to the INTOUCH.ini file that
determines whether an InTouch application’s numeric
keypad can be resized or not. Increasing the size of the
keypad at higher screen resolutions (1280 x 1024) keeps the
text appearing on the keypad legible. But, you may have
applications with limited screen space that set practical
limits on the size of the keypad.
You can add the NoKeyboardResize parameter to the
INTOUCH.ini file. By default the parameter is not included.
Its default value is:
NoKeyboardResize=0

The default value permits the numeric keypad to be resized

according to the screen resolution.
The alternative value you can assign to the parameter is:
NoKeyboardResize=1

In this case, the keypad does not resize based on screen

resolution and the numeric keypad size remains fixed.

Resizing the Input Fields of Analog and String User

Input Links
You can add the Resizable InputLink parameter to the
INTOUCH.ini file to resize the input box of the Analog or
String user input links with your mouse. The Resizable
InputLink parameter must be set to a non-zero value.
After the Input field is resized the first time, WindowViewer
adds the Resizable InputLink Width and Resizable
InputLink Height parameters to the INTOUCH.ini file.
These parameters specify the width and height of Input
boxes in pixels.
Example:
Resizable InputLink = 1
Resizable InputLink Width=300
Resizable InputLink Height=50

Also, you can edit the INTOUCH.ini file to manually modify

the values assigned to these parameters.

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InTouch HMI Application Management and Extension Guide

 233

Index

Symbols A
$AccessLevel system tag 150, 156, 162, Access Name
169 advising only active items 76
$ApplicationChanged system tag 54 restrictions with InTouchView
$ApplicationVersion system tag 55 applications 38
$ChangePassword system tag 146, 151, selecting to convert placeholder
169 tags 121
$ConfigureUsers system tag 144, 152, selecting to convert placeholder tags to
156, 169 remote references 126
$InactivityTimeout system tag 131, 133, Access Names
169 specifying in DBLoad file 86
$InactivityWarning system tag 131, 134, AddPermission() function 142, 149, 169
169 AlarmGroup keyword 88–90
$Language system tag 177, 178 AnnotateLayout() function 220, 223
$LogicRunning system tag 139 Application Manager
$Operator system tag 63, 156, 162, 168, creating an InTouch application 19–20
169
customizing the window 23
$OperatorDomain system tag 167, 169
description 14
$OperatorDomainEntered system
finding applications 24
tag 161, 169
modifying an application 22
$OperatorEntered system tag 156, 160,
169 opening an application with
WindowMaker 21
$OperatorName system tag 167, 169
opening an application with
$PasswordEntered system tag 156, 160,
WindowViewer 21
169
starting 16
$VerifiedUserName system tag 168, 169
starting the ArchestrA IDE 18
Numerics Application Publisher
configuring package details 28
16PenTrendDrawMode parameter 230

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234 Index

contents of published file 26 through the IDE 15

description 25 master user acccount 73
package information 25 setting up security 148
applications starting the IDE from the Application
configuring for run-time language Manager 18
switching 172–173 architectures
creating 19–20 client-based 35
creating a backup copy before Network Application Development 37
migrating an application 30 server-based 36
creating for InTouchView 204 AttemptInvisibleLogon() function 158,
default folder 16 169
deleting from Application Manager 23 authentication
determining screen resolution for a using ArchestrA-based security 143
multi-monitor system 211 using InTouch-based security 141
editing lock 57 using operating system-based
exporting alarm comments for security 142
translation 184–186 authorization
exporting alarm comments to an restricting access to InTouch
exisiting alarm comment file 187 functionality 162
exporting text for offline setting up for InTouch security 144–
translation 178–179 145
exporting text to an existing dictionary setting up for operating system-based
file 180 security 147–148
extending overview 14
finding 24 B
importing translated alarm beep sound for objects 196
comments 190–191 blinking speeds 196
logging on or off 153–155
logging remote referenced tags 228 C
managed 15 ChangePassword() function 150, 169
migrating to the current version of client-based architecture 35
InTouch 30
closing WindowViewer on transfer to
modifying 22 WindowMaker 195
opening in WindowMaker 21 closing/opening windows 201
opening in WindowViewer 21 commands
publishing to remote nodes 25–29 hiding in WindowViewer 139
renaming 22 Net Start view 72
scaling windows to different screen Net Stop view 72
resolutions 229
Notify Clients 37, 56
securing in a Terminal Services
RESET 115
environment 63
Terminal Services Client 61
set mouse behavior 228
unavailable from InTouchView 203
setting logging frequency 227
CommentRetentive parameter 230
setting the length of the print waiting
period 229
task management oveview 13 D
ArchestrA DBDump
logging on to secured applications 155 description 78
managing InTouch applications exporting tags 78
viewing contents of exported file 79

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 Index 235

DBLoad QueryGroupMembership()
AlarmGroup keyword 88–90 function 166
creating input file 82 ReloadWindowViewer() function 57
creating SuperTag instances 116 RestartWindowViewer() function 56
description 78 SwitchDisplayLanguage() function 177
input file 80 TseGetClientId() function 63, 66
IOAccess keyword 86, 86–87 TseGetClientNodeName() function 66
mode keyword 83–85 TseQueryRunningOnClient()
specifying Access Names 86–87 function 67
specifying alarm groups 88–90 TseQueryRunningOnConsole()
function 67
debugging scripts 196
WWMultiMonitorNode() function 218
Distributed History System 45
documentation conventions 11
G
DRC, See Dynamic Resolution
Conversion Galaxy
Dynamic Resolution Conversion 59 defining ArchestrA security 148
configuring an application 59–60 restrictions for InTouchView
applications 38, 203
description 59
GetAccountStatus() function 164, 169
E GetNodeName() function 63
GroupVar keyword 111
EnableDisableKeys() function 135, 137,
169
H
F historical logging
Fast Switch 195 restrictions for InTouchView
applications 203
files, INTOUCH.ini 19
historical logs
ForceLogCurrentValue parameter 227
logging remote referenced tags 228
ForceLogging parameter 227
setting logging frequency 227
functions
history provider, dynamically
AddPermission() function 142, 149
configuring 49
AnnotateLayout() function 220, 223
HistoryTrend keyword 111
AttemptInvisibleLogon() function 158
HTSetPenName() function 49
ChangePassword() 150
HTUpdateToCurrentTime() function 45
EnableDisableKeys() function 135, 137
GetAccountStatus() function 164 I
GetNodeName() function 63
inactivity time-out 131–133
HTSetPenName() function 49
IndirectAnalog keyword 113
HTUpdateToCurrentTime()
IndirectDisc keyword 112
function 45
IndirectMsg keyword 113
InvisibleVerifyCredentials()
function 163 INTOUCH.ini file
IOReinitialize() function 63 copying to an application folder 19
IOSetAccessName() function 39 creating 19
IsAssignedRole() function 165 custom parameters 226–231
Logoff() function 158 InTouchView
LogonCurrentUser() function 157 converting from an InTouch
application 206
PostLogonDialog() function 153, 157
converting to an InTouch
application 205

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236 Index

creating an application 204 file 183

description 193 translating an exported dictionary
licensing 206 file 180–182
WindowMaker restrictions 203 loading Windows from disk 195
InvisibleVerifyCredentials() logging off 155
function 163, 169 logging on 154
IOAccess keyword 86, 86–87 Logoff() function 158, 169
IODisc keyword 99 LogonCurrentUser() function 157, 169
IOInt keyword 102–104 LoopTimeout parameter 229
IOMsg keyword 110
IOReal keyword 107–109 M
IOReinitialize() function 63 MemoryDisc keyword 98
IOSetAccessName() function 39 MemoryInt keyword 100–102
IsAssignedRole() function 165, 169 MemoryMsg keyword 109
MemoryReal keyword 104–106
K Mode keyword 83–85
keywords multi-monitor system
GroupVar keyword 111 choosing a video card 211
HistoryTrend keyword 111 configuring screen resolution
IndirectAnalog keyword 113 conversion 216
IndirectDisc keyword 112 configuring with parameters 215
IndirectMsg keyword 113 deploying an application 217
IODisc keyword 99 description 207
IOInt keyword 102–104 determining screen resolution 211
IOMsg keyword 110 determining the number of monitors to
IOReal keyword 107–109 display the application 212
MemoryDisc keyword 98 determining the placement of
application windows 213
MemoryInt keyword 100–102
multiple video card configuration 209–
MemoryMsg keyword 109
210
MemoryReal keyword 105–106
planning 211
TagID keyword 112
single video card configuration 208–
using default values 115 209
verifying support during run time 218
L MultiScreen parameter 215
language switching MultiScreenHeight parameter 215
adding run-time switching 175–177 MultiScreenWidth parameter 215
changing font settings 174
configuring 172–173 N
exporting alarm comments for NAD, See Network Application
translation 185–186 Development
exporting text for offline Net Start view command 72
translation 178–179
Net Stop view command 72
exporting text to an existing dictionary
Network Application Development
file 180
changes to an application during an
importing translated alarm
update 58
comments 190
configuring automatic updates 53
importing translated dictionary
configuring UNC paths for files 44
description 37

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 Index 237

distributing an application 46 R
I/O data access 38 RDP 61
I/O data sources 39 ReloadWindowViewer() function 57
local addresses to I/O data sources 40 Remote Desktop Protocol 61
manually updating applications 54 remote history provider
planning considerations 38 creating list 47–48
using global I/O addresses 39 description 47
using local I/O addresses 40–41 RESET command 115
using the distributed history system 46 Resizable InputLink parameter 231
network architectures RestartWindowViewer() function 56
server-based 36 run time
single computer 34 customizing 194
supported types 34 Fast Switch 195
NoKeyboardResize parameter 231 run time, customizing for
Notify Clients command 37, 56 InTouchView 194

O S
objects ScaleForResolution parameter 217, 229
blink speed 196 scripts
objects, blink speed 196 adding user permissions 149
oldrightmousebehavior parameter 228 change user password 150
opening/closing windows 201 determine user group membership 165
log on a user to InTouch
P automatically 158
parameters managing user accounts 149–152
16PenTrendDrawMode 230 retrieving information about the
CommentRetentive 230 current logged on user 167
ForceLogCurrentValue 227 setting loop timeout limit 229
ForceLogging 227 show the InTouch Logon dialog box 157
LoopTimeout 229 stopping in run time 139, 140
MultiScreen 215 verifying user credentials 163
MultiScreenHeight 215 security
MultiScreenWidth 215 adding user permissions with a
NoKeyboardResize 231 script 149
oldrightmousebehavior 228 authentication 141
PrintScreenWait 229 authorization 141
PrintWindow 229 change user password with a script 150
Resizable InputLink 231 changing a password at run time 146
ScaleForResolution 217, 229 creating a custom logon window 156
PostLogonDialog() function 153, 157, 169 determine user group membership with
a script 165
PrintScreenWait parameter 229
disable animation link 162
PrintWindow parameter 229
hiding menu items at run time 138–
140
Q inactivity time-out feature 131
QueryGroupMembership() function 166, InTouch-based authentication 141
169
locking system keys 135–136

InTouch HMI Application and Extension Guide

238 Index

log on a user to InTouch automatically $InactivityTimeout system tag 131,

with a script 158 133
logging a user on or off with ArchestrA- $InactivityWarning system tag 131,
based security 155 134
logging user on or off with InTouch- $Language system tag 177, 178
based security 153 $LogicRunning system tag 139
overview 129 $Operator system tag 63, 156, 168
restricting access to InTouch $OperatorDomainEntered system
functionality 162 tag 161
retrieving information about the $OperatorEntered system tag 156, 160
current logged on user with a $OperatorName system tag 167
script 167
$PasswordEntered system tag 156, 160
setting InTouch security authentication
$VerifiedUserName system tag 168
and authorization 144–145
setting up ArchestrA-based 148
setting up operating system-based
T
authorization 147–148 Tablet PC
show InTouch Logon dialog box with a changing screen orientation 224
script 157 cut, copy, and paste annotations 221
using ArchestrA-based deleting annotations 221
authentication 143 description 219
using operating system-based making window annotations 221
authentication 142 printing a window 222
verifying user credentials with a selecting annotations 221
script 163 sending an annotated window as an e-
server-based architecture 36 mail attachement 222
services TagID keyword 112
configuring a user account 73 Tagname Dictionary
configuring WindowViewer to start as a creating DBLoad input file 82
service 71 exporting contents with DBDump 78
description 69 formatting an input file 80
InTouch component registry keys 76 importing tags with DBLoad 117
manually starting 72 tags
starting WindowViewer 70 $InactivityTimeout system tag 131
stopping using a command 72 DBLoad keywords 91
stopping using the Control Panel 72 exporting contents of Tagname
troubleshooting 74 Dictionary 78
troubleshooting user account importing into Tagname Dictionary
problems 75 with DBLoad 117
viewing error messages 75 keyword attributes 92–98
SuiteLink,description 41 logging remote referenced 228
SwitchDisplayLanguage() function 177 SuperTag instances 116
system key locking 135–136 technical support, contacting 12
system tags Terminal Services
$AccessLevel system tag 150, 156 description 61, 61
$ApplicationChanged system tag 54 limitations 65
$ApplicationVersion system tag 55 planning considerations 62
$ChangePassword system tag 146, 151 running scripts 64
$ConfigureUsers system tag 144, 152, securing applications 63
156

InTouch HMI Application and Extension Guide

 Index 239

starting an I/O Server 63 configuring to start as a Windows

working with Distributed Alarm service 71
System 62 copying an application 58
Terminal Services Client command 61 customizing 194
tick interval 196 disabling transfer to
transferring to WindowMaker from WindowMaker 139
WindowViewer 202 hiding menu items at run time 138–
TseGetClientId() function 63, 66 140
TseGetClientNodeName() function 66 Logic menu 139
TseQueryRunningOnClient() function 67 opening an application 21
TseQueryRunningOnConsole() resizing the numeric keypad 231
function 67 running as a service 70
setting drawing mode of 16-Pen
V Trend 230
Value Time Quality (VTQ) 41 setting option to dynamically change
screen resolution 59
W setting print waiting period 229
WindowMaker setting script looping timeout
interval 229
disabling transfer from
WindowViewer 139 starting as a service 71
editing lock 57 starting as an icon 195
opening an application 21 Wonderware Historian
restrictions when developing configuring as a history provider 48
InTouchView applications 203 WWMultiMonitorNode() function 218
setting mouse behavior 228
WindowViewer
closing all open windows on transfer to
WindowMaker 195
closing on transfer to
WindowMaker 195

InTouch HMI Application and Extension Guide

240 Index

InTouch HMI Application and Extension Guide