Checklist: Distributed Engineering – Engineering Studio cannot connect to the Project Database-Server / Elements cannot be checked-in/out

Checklist: Distributed Engineering – Engineering Studio cannot connect to the Project Database-Server / Elements cannot be checked-in/out

Time estimate: 45 minutes

Please go through all the items in the following checklist. If necessary, confirm any information you cannot verify with the IT department before contacting your local COPA-DATA representative. 
Checklist usage: #. [Quick hints] (point refers specific module/product) Point description.
Terminology:
DB-Server = Central storage of the project
DB-Client = Engineering Studio workstations
SSMS = SQL Server Management Studio
  1. If a message is displayed, take a screenshot and follow the displayed error/warning instructions before taking further action.
  2. [SIC-Reduced] [zenon Startup Tool > Component]: All computers have the same Engineering Studio version and build number registered.
  3. [SIC-Reduced] [Command Prompt: netstat -a -o | findstr :1103]: zenon Database Service (zenDBSrv.exe) runs and listens on all computers on the TCP port (default 1103).
    4. Windows Resource Monitor shows live CPU, Memory, Disk and Network information about running processes in an user friendly interface.
    Processes with network activity are listed and can be filtered for best visualization.
    Some of the most relevant information displayed in Network is the active TCP connections (remote/local port and address) and Firewall status. 
    The configuration of the listening ports of the COPA-DATA services can be done in the zenon Startup Tool:
    Application > Options > Listening ports (DB Service).
  4. Search and follow error instructions in LOGs related with Engineering Studio (zenone32.exe) and zenon Database Service (zenDBSrv.exe) on all computers.
    5. All zenon components write in the background messages to joint log files, which are stored in the folder '%programdata%\COPA-DATA\LOG'.
    These files can be read and configured with the Diagnosis Viewer. 

    You can modify the logging level of a component by clicking 'Client Configuration' in the 'Settings' menu and then selectin the respective process name.
    Attention: Set the logging parameters wisely as the time frame of the LOGs decrease when you increase the detail of the written logs.

    You can also find LOG files in SIC in 'Platform > Versions > Version XXXX > Directories > LogDirectory' folder.
  5. Consider the minimum hardware requirements described in the product documentation for projects with a large number of objects (e.g. more than 100,000 variables).
  6. [SIC-Reduced]: All computers use the same SQL project-database login credentials and have an identical zenon database configuration (zenDB.ini) file.
    7. zenon Database Configuration file (zenDB.ini) can be found in the %CD_SYSTEM% folder.
    This file contains the database instance path and login credentials for zenon to connect to the project-database.
    If the zenDB.ini username and/or the password for connecting to the SQL project-database are not identical in all computers it is necessary to change that manually: 
    1. Make sure that all computers use the same 'zenOnSrv' password to connect to the SQL project-database.
    If necessary, change the 'zenOnSrv' password with SSMS by connecting to the '[COMPUTER_NAME]\[DB_NAME]' database instance and using SQL Server authentication (user: zenOnSrv + current password (*)). In Object Explorer, open the Security > Logins folder and right-click the 'zenOnSrv' account. Under Properties, change the password and click OK.
    (*) The default password of the 'zenOnSrv' user depends on the zenon version. If this has been changed at some point, the current password must be known to the user.

    2. On the DB-Server, use the zenon Startup Tool to set 'zenOnSrv' password accordingly and copy the result zenDB.ini to all other computers (DB-Clients). 
  7. Make sure, it is possible to connect with SSMS from the DB-Client to the DB-Server (and vice-versa) using the same credentials. The respective connection is listed in SSMS in 'Linked Servers'.
    8. 'Linked Servers' can be found in SSMS by connecting to the SQL project-database. In Object explorer navigate to Server Objects > Linked Servers folder.
            - DB-Client(s) are listed as Linked Server in SSMS of DB-Server.
            - DB-Server is listed as Linked Server in SSMS of DB-Client(s).
  8. In Engineering Studio, under Project > General properties, ‘Database server’ is the actual computer name instead of ‘127.0.0.1’ or ‘localhost’.
  9. [SIC-Reduced] [Resources Monitor > Network]: The ‘SQL Server’ service (sqlservr.exe) is running and it is fully exempted firewall traffic restrictions in both DB Server and DB Client.
  10. [SIC-Reduced] [Command Prompt: netstat -a -b -o]: The sqlservr.exe connection is established between a DB Client and DB Server if a project is loaded into DB Client.
  11. [SIC-Reduced] [Resource Monitor > Network] [Command Prompt: netstat -a -o | findstr :1434]: The ‘SQL Server Browser’ service (sqlbrowser.exe) runs and listens on UDP port 1434 (default) in the DB-Server and DB-Client. UDP Port 1434 is exempted in the firewall for incoming connections.
    12. The SQL Server Browser service listens for incoming connections to a named instance.
    By default, this service is not added as an exception in the firewall, so it may be necessary to add it manually.
  12. [SIC-Reduced]: Schema files are identical in all computers.
    13. Schemas are version dependent and can be found in '%programdata%\COPA-DATA\SQL[VERSION]\Schemas' (default).
    Schemas are also included in SIC report under Platform > Versions > Version XXX > SqlConnection > Scheme files.
  13. Make sure that there are no network issues that can cause problems with communication between computers.
    14. High network latency, erroneous packets, and other undesirable conditions can cause unexpected behavior in processes that rely on communication.
  14. [SSMS]: Check DB Server database configuration in terms of:
    1. Security: SQL Server and Windows authentication is enabled.
    2. Database read-only is not active.
    3. Restrict access is set as MULTI_USER.
    4. 'Allow remote connections to this server' is enabled.
  15. In case the Engineering Studio output window displays this message: An error occurred while determining the status of elements'. 
    Then in the Windows Region Settings uncheck the option 'Beta: Use Unicode UTF-8 for worldwide language support' on all computers (DB Server & DB Clients) and restart.

  16. Searched in Knowledge Base if a previous issue has been addressed.

If the problem persists after working through this checklist and taking the recommended actions: Please contact your local COPA-DATA representative. Attach a SIC-Reduced Report of the target computer(s) and the result of this checklist. Please include any additional information or comments you feel are relevant.

The System Information Collector is a stand-alone COPA-DATA application. It collects data relevant for troubleshooting about the operating system and the zenon software platform. SIC is installed with zenon. You start SIC via the zenon Startup Tool or Windows Start.