FAQ
FAQ: How to prevent corrupted files after power outage?
Read the attached PDF files (English/German) for more information on how to set up your system to avoid corrupted files in case of an power outage.
FAQ: I am planning to use an older zenon version in the most recent Operating System. Is this possible?
We recommend to use the newest version of zenon in the most recent Operating Systems as COPA-DATA can neither release or support old product versions in newer Operating Systems.
FAQ: From a certain amount of connected Smart Clients the Smart Server closes unexpectedly, what can I do?
It is possible that the Smart Server closes as it runs out of possible memory address space for a 32-bit application. In this case use the Smart Server 64-bit version.
FAQ: Is it possible to load a zenon project of a previous zenon version in a newer Service Engine version?
The zenon Service Engine like the engineering system offers a compatibility feature. This means a Service Engine of a newer product version is able to load projects of an older version. This is especially used in zenon network projects, where ...
FAQ: I forgot my zenon Engineering Studio password, what is now? How do I am able to open my project?
If a user forgets his Engineering Studio password, the administrator can remove the password and assign a new initial password. The administrator does not require knowing the password for these interventions. Recommendations: Create an administrator ...
FAQ: How can I avoid unnecessarily network traffic on the CodeMeter dongle server?
To avoid unnecessarily network traffic, it is recommended to add the CodeMeter server to the own server search list as a search object at the CodeMeter Dongle server.
FAQ: How can I set an alarm on a single bit of a e.g. DINT zenon variable?
There are some possibilities. One would be to use our integrated solution zenon Logic Service to divide a WORD or INT variable. Create a BOOL for every Bit in that WORD or INT and set the alarms. Another option would be defining a dedicated BOOL ...
FAQ: Is it possible to use a different report configurator as Microsoft Report Builder?
Yes it is possible, but it must be able to create reports in *.rdl file format.
FAQ: Is zenon in combination with the CodeMeter Runtime affected by the Vulnerabilites mentioned in the "Security Advisory WIBU-201218-07" from Wibu Systems?
No, the vulnerabilities affect a CodeMeter component called AxProtector which is not used by zenon or COPA-DATA.
FAQ: Should I set the checkbox to act as server on a CodeMeter client PC?
The checkbox to act as a server should not be set on a CodeMeter client PC. This can cause connection loss and the licensed product closes or changes into demo mode.
FAQ: Why do I get a white screen when starting the runtime with DirectX Hardware mode enabled?
The DirectX Hardware mode may not be supported with some Intel GPUs. We recommend to update GPU drivers via Windows Update (maybe activate Microsoft Update first or search online instead of administered updates). If there is no driver available, go ...
FAQ: The error message "Build Update doesn't find any updateable application. This application will be closed now!" is displayed when attempting to downgrade a zenon editor or runtime installation.
Older build setups for versions <=8.20 may not allow a direct downgrade when the installed build number is 65535 or higher. To resolve this, uninstall zenon and apply the older build where necessary. Contact your local support in case of any further ...
FAQ: Is it possible to change DynProperties of the project in Service Engine?
It is not possible to change these properties, as the DynProperties of the thisProject object (also for other many other objects) are not accessible during Service Engine operation. The information is compiled into the project during the "Create ...
FAQ: I would like to create XML Import files manually outside from zenon. Is there a schema definition to validate such XML files?
For the zenon XML Formats there are actually no style definitions available or documented. We recommend to use an exported file (e.g. from the Engineering Studio) as a basis for the manipulation. That's the best way to ensure a proper format of the ...
FAQ: Several issues were observed where the Smart Client was reloading Service Engine files constantly and also buttons stopped working at some point. What could be the reason for this behaviour?
The Smart Client usually loads the Service Engine Files from the Service Engine Server once, and then only checks if the files have changed. Especially on Windows 10 Systems, it may happen that the Smart Client always tries to download all files ...
FAQ: Engineering Studio and Service Engine start slowly after Windows Fall Creators Update
Since the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update (Windows 10 Build 1709), zenon is extremely slow when switching between modules or opening dialogs containing toolbars. This mainly affects the zenon Engineering Studio in all versions, but also the Service ...
FAQ: The standard setting for "Graphics quality" in the projects "Graphical design" properties with zenon is set to "DirectX Hardware"! What does this mean especially for older hardware? When I am assumed to use "DirectX Hardware", "DirectX Software" or "Windows Basis"?
For a detailed description of DirectX and its implementation in zenon please check out the documents attached (available in English and German).
FAQ: What are Installation and Security considerations of the zenon Smart Server and Smart Client?
The attached document (English only) describes in some detail the specifics of the zenon Smart Server Application and the zenon Smart Client Application. Also a short explanation of security features and components is given. More information about ...
FAQ: What can I do if the Service Engine does not start or is closed with an unhandled exception and the error message "(InitInstance (); an unnamed file has a bad format)" or "Init Instance (): an attempt was made to access an unnamed file past its end" is shown?
This issue may occur due to missing digital certificates on the system where the error appears. Microsoft Windows implements a mechanism that automatically downloads, over the internet, trusted root certificate authorities, which are not installed ...
FAQ: What can I do when I get the message that the password.cmp of my project has the wrong project version. ''Password.cmp has version number 0.00 SP0 - but the project has version number 7.xx SP0)!''
Password.cmp having version 0 indicates that this file is corrupt. Mostly this happens if the zenon computer is switched off by interrupting the power supply but not shutting down the system proper. As zenon runs on Windows systems it is needed to ...
FAQ: What can I do when I run into a timeout while creating a project backup?
In the zenon6.ini file it is possible to define timeouts for database access and for backup creation. Maybe the default configuration is too low. This could happen when backing up more complex projects or if the project includes many graphics and ...
FAQ: Where can I find the XML device profile for COPA-DATA DNP3 drivers?
What is a DNP3 XML device profile? Where can I find the XML device profile for one of the following drivers? DNP3_TG - Subset Level 1,2,3 and 4 for both requests and responses, DNP3 Master driver for zenon Service Engine AccessDNP3_SG - Subset Level ...
FAQ: What is the difference between the Report Viewer and the zenon Reporting Studio?
A detailed description of the differences can be found in the attached PDF documents (English and German). The description is based on zenon Supervisor 7.50 and zenon Analyzer 3.00.
FAQ: What is the difference between the zenon Report Generator and the zenon Report Viewer?
The zenon Report Generator and Report Viewer combine to make up the module "zenon Reporting". The Report Generator, Report Viewer, or both styles can be used in your zenon HMI/SCADA projects. Each style has its own advantages and compliments ...
FAQ: What is the time zone and time format used in zenon Software Platform products and what needs to be considered?
When you ask someone what the time is, they'll usually be able to tell you. But when you ask them what date and time sunrise was yesterday in a different country on a different continent, in a different hemisphere it gets less easy. Terms like GMT ...
FAQ: Are products in the zenon product family affected by the Log4j security vulnerability registered with CVE-2021-44228?
No, core products in the zenon product family are not based on Java and do not make use of the Log4j library. Additional information can be found in the information report.
FAQ: What to do when antivirus software identifies one or more zenon application files as a threat?
Antivirus software has the challenging task of identifying malware infected files from a large total number of files on computer systems. No antivirus software will identify all current and past computer malware with a 100% detection rate. Sometimes ...
FAQ: What SQL server interfaces are offered by zenon?
The most common ones are: The zenon Historian The Extended Trend The zenon Report Generator The zenon Report Engine The zenon SQL export functions The zenon SQL Driver and The zenon Process Gateway SQL module All these modules depend on an ODBC / ...
FAQ: When I activate the option "write synchronously" for the Recipegroup manager recipe, and I write the recipe, the recipe does not seem to be written properly and also the Service Engine does not close properly. Why is that?
When the option "write synchronously" is active at a recipe, when writing a recipe (sending values to the PLC) for each recipe variable a writing confirmation is requested to the driver. On a successfull write, the driver sends a writing confirmation ...
FAQ: When I change something in the Recipegroup Manager via the programming interface in Service Engine, these changes are not updated in the screen. Why is that?
To understand this, you have to know that each time you access the RGM (Recipegroup Manager), you are working with a copy of the RGM data. So every screen that is opened in the Service Engine, has it's own copy of the RGM data. Also each instance ...
FAQ: When I print the report or export it to a pdf-document I have page-breaks. It should fit to one A4 paper.
Depending on the output fileformat 2 different rendering engines are used. There exists one for "soft pagebreaks" which is used for html-pages on the monitor. The second rendering engine is for output formats with "hard pagebreaks", that means, that ...
FAQ: When I start my zenon project on a Service Engine client, my AUTOSTART script is not executed. What is the problem?
A "script" in zenon is not a snippet of code as you may think in the traditional sense, but rather a configured collection of zenon functions, executed in order. A common use of a zenon script is to load several screens at project startup, for ...
FAQ: Which browsers can be used for the zenon Smart Client and is NPAPI support required?
The zenon Smart Client is an mainly an ActiveX control and therefore requires NPAPI support. Due to the age of the API and its security issues, major web browser vendors began phasing out the support in 2013. As a result, the use of HTML5 ...
FAQ: Which CSPRNG is used by OpenSSL in zenon, for e.g. TLS communication?
The OpenSSL version used in zenon is the LTS version 1.1.1. On Windows systems OpenSSL in zenon makes use of the Windows Cryptography API: Next Generation (CNG). For generation of random numbers and seeding of the random number generator, ...
FAQ: Which IE version is used by the HTML screen? Which Plugins can be executed?
The HTML-screen created in zenon does not use the default-browser installed on the operating system. It uses the pre-installed rendering-engine of Microsoft, called "Microsoft Web Browser Control". This program emulates the Internet Explorer. ...
FAQ: Why are items and settings of the network topology disappearing when toggling between the project tree and the network topology?
This happens when a virus scanner blocks the *.wsp6 file that is being worked on. To solve this issue, add the project folders to the exceptions of the virus scanner.
FAQ: Why are some elements hidden or displayed incorrectly in the Smart Client?
Display errors in the Service Engine may occur due to the graphic settings of the project. In zenon Version 7.20, many changes considering the DirectX support were made. The following issues may occur: The page appears as blank, no elements are shown ...
FAQ: Why are there small BLUE squares on the dynamic elements in the zenon Service Engine?
Small blue squares on the dynamic elements in zenon Service Engine indicates that there is a network communication problem. For example, if a Service Engine client starts a zenon project, but cannot connect to a zenon Service Engine server, the ...
FAQ: Why are there small RED squares on the dynamic elements in the zenon Service Engine?
Small red squares on the dynamic elements in zenon Service Engine indicate that the INVALID Bit (aka I-Bit) is active for the linked variable. The INVALID Bit is set true automatically by the zenon drivers for variables when there is an underlying ...
FAQ: Why do backups of Service Engine data sometimes fail when the Service Engine is running? Is it actually possible to create a consistent backup when the Service Engine is not closed?
During normal operation, the zenon Service Engine continuously accesses different runtime files for reading and writing. A backup software that attempts to create a backup of a file that is currently accessed by the Service Engine may receive an ...
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