Release Notes PCo 15.5

New Functions for SP03

The following new functions are available for SP03:

The use of string literals for defining fixed strings in PCo expressions has been enhanced. In your expressions, you can now use the verbatim string (@) and, alternatively, escape sequences. This enables you to simplify how you enter complex strings in the expression editor.

For more information about SP03, see Release Notes for SP03.

New Functions for SP02

The following new functions are available for SP02:

For more information about SP02, see Release Notes for SP02.

New Functions for SP01

The following new functions are available for SP01:

For more information about SP01, see Release Notes for SP01

Get Support from SAP (New)

As of PCo 15.5, a new dialog is available to support you when creating incidents. You can call up the dialog in the menu under Help  Get Support from SAP.

If you need support from SAP for Plant Connectivity, you can create an incident. Depending on the nature of the issue, it might be helpful to gather together some of the artifacts and logs named in this dialog. The new dialog supports you in creating the files that you need.

Keep Messages in Memory (New)

For PCo 15.5, the Keep Messages in Memory checkbox has been added to the Notification Processing tab of the agent instance. You can only select this option in conjunction with the storage method file system. If you choose this option, all notification messages from the main queue, the queue for failed messages, and the queue for messages for bundling are kept in memory by PCo.

If there is an average volume of more than two notification messages per second, this option can increase the throughput of the queues. However, we do not recommend using this option for large notification messages of 100 kB and more.

The Keep Messages in Memory checkbox is selected by default if you migrate from an earlier PCo release to PCo 15.5 because the new system behavior corresponds to the standard behavior in the releases before PCo 15.5.

Changed Settings for SAP MII Query Server

On the user interface for setting up an SAP MII query server, on the Server tab of an agent instance, the field labels have been changed so that the function of the server certificate is easier to understand. For more information, see the application help under Agent Instance  Server Tab  SAP MII Query Server.

OPC UA Source System: Retry Settings for Node Access After Server Restart (New)

Previously, problems could occur when reading the node class of subscription items during a server restart of the OPC UA server. To enable a new read attempt after a restart, the settings Maximum No. of Retries and Retry Interval have been added to the Subscription tab of the OPC UA source system for PCo 15.5. These settings enable the PCo system to go into a queue and to try to connect to the OPC UA server again for node access.

OPC UA Source System: Displaying Suppressed Validation Errors (Changed)

As of PCo 15.5, validation errors of certificates are displayed in a dialog box, even if you have set Suppress Validation Errors . A summary of all suppressed errors is now displayed.

PCo displays the error messages for the affected certificates when you choose the Test Connection pushbutton of an OPC UA source system. The message contains a list of the errors that were suppressed, followed by the certificate name.

OPC UA Stack and SDK

The OPC UA stack and the SDK used in PCo have been updated based on the latest version (1.4.365.48) available in the OPC Foundation.

Main Service (New)

For PCo 15.5, the services ManagementHost and CloudServicesHost have been removed. They are replaced by the new main service. You can find the configuration of the main service in the Management Console under Tools  Options  Global Settings  Main Service.

The main service is the central Windows service in PCo that provides various functions for remote applications and systems as well as for PCo itself:

• Management services for integration with the Manufacturing Suite

• Cloud services for integration with the Digital Manufacturing Cloud

• Access to the configuration of PCo

When restoring a backup, you can now also specify whether you also want to restore system settings (for example, for the main service) from the backup file. If you do not select this option, parameters of the main service can change when you restore the backup. In this case, the main service is restarted automatically. If necessary, correct the settings of the main service after restoring the backup.

When the main service is started, it automatically generates TLS certificates that secure the user's logon to the configuration services. You can display these certificates in the certificate overview. The TLS certificates for the main service and the management services have therefore been added to the certificate overview.

Settings for Cloud Integration (Changed)

The cloud settings have been changed for PCo 15.5. The cloud services are now hosted by the main service, and the Windows service CloudServicesHost no longer exists. The Host Service tab from the cloud integration settings (in the Management Console under Tools  Cloud Integration) has therefore been removed and not replaced. In future, you define the settings for the port in the settings of the main service in the Cloud Services screen area. You can find the configuration of the main service in the Management Console under Tools  Options  Global Settings  Main Service.

The Internal Host Service Communication tab has been renamed Internal Communication with Main Service.

Improved Creation of Output Expressions (New)

If you have defined a large number of subscription items for an agent instance, as of release 15.5 you can use filter functions to control which of these subscription items you want to automatically convert into output expressions for a notification. You can use both a simple text filter and regular expressions. For more information, see the application help for the notification under Generating Expressions.

Export Function for Aliases (New)

The dialog for generating aliases has been revised for release 15.5 and enhanced with an export function. You can choose the Export Alias Configuration button to save the configuration in an XML file with the extension .alias. You can then choose the Import Alias Configuration button to load the saved configuration into the alias dialog of another source system, provided that it has a comparable tag structure.

Universal Web Service Destination System: Importing Data Types into the Data Type Repository and Using Them (New)

As of PCo 15.5, the universal Web service destination system allows structured data types, array data types, and enumeration data types to be imported into the PCo data type repository for SOAP and OData Web services. The new pushbutton Import Data Types into Data Type Repository has therefore been added to the Operation Configuration tab (request and response configuration). You can use this function to simply import the data types provided by the selected Web service into the data type repository.

For RESTful Web services, you can use the new pushbutton to import a defined message structure into the PCo data type repository as a structured PCo data type.

In the universal Web service destination system, you then only have to enter one input variable (request configuration) or output variable (response configuration). The Select Data Type pushbutton takes you to the PCo data type repository, where you can select the relevant previously imported structured data type.

In this case, you only have to enter a single input and/or output variable in order to transfer complex and deeply nested data objects. This reduces the configuration effort significantly.

Removal of Data Streaming Destination System (Changed)

The data streaming destination system has been removed from Plant Connectivity for release PCo 15.5 for technical reasons. If you want to write data to an SAP HANA database, use a universal Web service destination system or an ODBC destination system instead of this destination system type.

If you are planning an upgrade from an earlier PCo release to release 15.5, you have to remove all data streaming destination systems contained in your configuration before the upgrade is possible. However, after the upgrade, you can still restore data backups or exported configurations from earlier PCo releases, even if they contain data streaming destination systems. These destination systems are replaced by simulation destination systems when the data is restored, resulting in a consistent configuration.

Removal of the OData Destination System and the RESTful Web Service Destination System (Changed)

The two destination system types OData destination system and RESTful Web service destination system have been removed from Plant Connectivity for release PCo 15.5 for technical reasons. In future, use a universal Web service destination system instead of these destination system types.

When PCo 15.5 is installed, your existing ODATA and RESTful Web service destination systems are automatically migrated to universal Web service destination systems if you upgrade from an earlier release to 15.5.