Overview
This page provides a comprehensive guide on how to use diagnostic tools for project applications. These tools include the Property Watch, Trace Window, and Module Information, which offer insights into the status and operation of different modules within your application.
Property Watch is a tool designed to access and modify the system's tags and internal properties. With an Intellisense feature, it also provides a list of available objects related to a specific object type.
The Trace Window is a system message display tool that provides status information about various system operations. It allows you to enable or disable the display of error, info, and warning messages and displays invalid addresses in configurations for devices.
Module Information provides detailed information about the operation of the modules in your application. It offers insights into the functionality of the communication channel, status of the virtual reading groups, quantities of readings, error reports, and more.
On this page:
Using the Diagnostic Tools
There are three ways to open the diagnostics tool. The first and most common is from Startup window, on server side. After starting the project, the Startup window displays the status (running or not running) of each module in your application. In addition, it allows you to open any or all of the following diagnostic tools: PropertyWatch (Watch), TraceWindow (Trace), and ModuleInformation (Info).
The tools you select will begin running in separate windows as long as your application is running. If you do not see these windows, you may find them minimized at the bottom of your screen.
Another way is from the runtime environment, on the project editor through the Runtime → Diagnostics.
Finally, it is possible to run them on the client side.
Property Watch
Property Watch is a diagnostic tool used to access the system's tags and internal properties for reading or writing. Also, this tool is separated in two sides, on the left side is possible to select the object to visualize its properties on the right side.
| Index | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | Check to overlay other windows. |
| 2 | The Browser tab is used to select any object to show info on the right side. |
| 3 | It is possible to build a personalized list of objects that you are interested in monitoring. |
| 4 | Show logged username. |
| 5 | Select to show all properties from selected object. |
| 6 | Name of selected object that you want to show details. |
| 7 | Show a control panel to turn modules ON/OFF. |
On the left side, when select any list tab, it's possible to type the name of the property in the Object column, and its value will be displayed in the Value column on the Object properties tab. When you type the name of an object type (e.g. "tag") followed by a dot, IntelliSense will provide a list of all the available objects. You may select any object from this list, (e.g. "tag.index"), or you may select the type itself (e.g. "tag"). In each case, the value will be provided and all applicable properties and their values will appear in the right hand panel on the "Object Properties" tab.
If you select the "Modules Status" tab, you will see the original status panel. While the project is running, you can start or stop individual modules at any time.
You can also change the object and property values from the Property Watch screen as long as the changes are permitted.
Trace Window
The Trace Window is a tool that displays system messages in a data grid interface.
| Index | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | Data Header, to apply filters and identify the information. |
| 2 | Specific information about the notification. |
| 3 | Automatically scroll the sidebar to show the latest information. |
| 4 | Check to overlay other screens. |
| 5 | Open the settings window. |
| 6 | Clear all the info notifications (if not stop, the notifications still coming). |
| 7 | Stop showing the most recent notifications. |
| 8 | To export/save the view data (XML or CSV). |
| 9 | Close this window. |
The type of notification may vary according to its origin, according to the following table.| Origin | Notification definitions |
|---|---|
| Device | The messages contain status information (based on Devices → Channels → Settings column) about reads, writes, unsolicited, TX frames (sent), and RX (received). |
| Alarms | |
| Datasets | |
| Scripts | |
| Display | |
| Reports |
When selecting the Devices check box in the Settings, we suggest you to enable only the error, info, and warning information. Do not enable the debug information or you will create too much data. For ControlLogix devices, it is important to use this tool, as the system will display the invalid addresses in the configuration. |
In the Trace Window, click the Settings to select the options for the message types, modules, data formats, or to save to file. You can also configure a tag in the Object Name field and click Add to select that object to include in the monitoring.
I
| Index | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | it is possible to select any configuration property, be it tag, device or any system property to monitor its changes at runtime. To do it, fill the field 1 with the specific name, select the property from the list that will be shown and click "Add" then when the property changes, the trace will show a message. To remove a property from the monitoring list, select any and click "Remove" or click "Clear" to remove all. |
| 2 | |
| 3 | |
| 4 | |
| 5 | |
| 6 | |
| 7 | |
| 8 | |
| 9 |
Module Information
Module Information contains information about the operation of the modules. Next to the name of the modules we have the IP address where the module is running. When click on module name, the specific information will be loaded into the whiteboard on the right.
| Index | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | Alarm Module is running on server side. |
| 2 | TCPServer show all modules, clients and devices connected on server. |
| 3 | ScriptTaskClient |
| 4 | Device Module |
| 5 | Dataset |
| 6 | Script Task Server |
| 7 | Settings |
| 8 | Pause |
| 9 | Close |
An important use to this tool is to check any device operation by index 4.
Select the Devices Module and a specific channel to get information about the functioning of the communication channel.
The Read Groups Information provides information about the virtual reading groups, runtime of each item, quantities of readings, readings that have failed, reports on the code, and date/time of the last error.
To use the Module Information:
- Go to Read Groups Information to look at the number of Successful and Failed communications and to quickly identify the communication blocks.
- If you have systematic errors in every block or status code that has a negative value, it means you cannot access the remote device. Check if the node address is correct.
- If you have a block with systematic errors, verify the tags and addresses connected with the block. Use the Trace Window with Device information to collect information about the communication errors.
- For some protocols, such as OPC, the discarded items will show the wrong addresses in the configuration.
When running the Enterprise version in test mode, the system only reads from the field devices, even if there is a configuration to write to a field.
The online configuration can be enabled when the application is running. This means you do not need to start and stop the application when modifying the configuration. You can modify PLC addresses, access types, and most of the application. You can see the real-time results on your running application. You can use the Startup window or the PropertyWatch "Module Status" tab to start and stop one module, like Devices, instead of restarting the whole runtime system.