Learn about output points

Output points control the flow of data from the Data Archive to any destination that is external to the Data Archive, such as a PLC or a third-party database. For example, to write a value to a register in a PLC, use an output point. Each interface has its own rules for determining whether a given point is an input point or an output point. There is no particular PI point attribute that distinguishes a point as an input point or an output point.

For PI Interface for RDBMS output points, use SourceTag or Location4. The SourceTag is not mandatory, but if used the point attribute for SourceTag should be set to a tag firing the query execution. The Location4 attribute should match the preferred ScanClass for cyclic outputs. For outputs the query must contain the INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE keyword, or call STORED PROCEDURE.

Note: If outputs to the data source device are not needed, specify a database user with read-only privileges and reference it through the /User_ODBC startup parameter. Alternatively, implement an explicit output point whitelist, which provides a defense against accidental or malicious changes to a database.