Learn about initialization file
- Last UpdatedJul 29, 2025
- 1 minute read
- PI System
- Interfaces
The initialization (.ini) file stores configuration information for an interface instance. The PI Event Frames Interface Manager configuration tool generates and updates this file each time you edit the instance configuration. You can access initialization files from %ProgramData%\OSIsoft\Interfaces\.
Note: Before release 4.x, initialization files were stored in the interface installation directory (C:\Program Files\OSIsoft\Interfaces).
Tip: To ensure a valid .ini file, use the PI Event Frames Interface Manager configuration tool. Do not edit the .ini file manually.
Use this appendix to learn about the contents of the .ini file for troubleshooting purposes.
The .ini file contains the following sections:
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Command line parameters: Defines basic interface settings.
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Simple switches: Defines connection settings.
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Source templates: Defines the settings required to connect to the data source and events to be skipped (filtered).
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Recipe templates: Defines how data is recorded at each level of the batch hierarchy.
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Tag templates: Defines how tags are created and updated based on incoming data from the data source.
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Property templates: Define how PI properties or event frame attributes are created based on incoming data from the data source.
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Translation templates: Maps text from the data source language to the target language for the PI System.
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DCS LINK TEMPLATE: Define rules for linking event frames created by different interfaces.
When defining settings for templates, use the following wildcards to compose expressions:
Wildcard
Description
#
single digit numerical value (0-9)
@
single alphabetic character (a-z, A-Z)
?
any single character
!
repeat previous mask symbol
*
any number of characters