Configure interface failover using shared-file synchronization

Before you start:

• Stop your interfaces.

• Choose a location for the shared file.

• Select a unique failover ID number for each interface.

Configure the shared file.

1. Choose a location for the shared file.

2. Create a shared file folder and assign permissions that allow both the primary and redundant interfaces to read and write files in the folder.

3. Exclude the folder from virus scanning.

On each interface computer, open PI Interface Configuration Utility and the interface.

1. Click Start > All Programs > PI System > PI Interface Configuration Utility.

2. Select the interface.

If you have a Data Archive collective, point each interface to a different collective member:

1. In the page tree, select General.

2. Under PI Host Information, set SDK Member to a collective member for the interface.

   This property sets which Data Archive server in the collective sends configuration data and output points to the interface. If you set each interface to a different collective member, you enable failover when one of the Data Archive servers in the collective becomes unavailable.

3. Set API Hostname to the host of the selected SDK Member.

   The interface uses this information to connect to the Data Archive server that provides configuration data. The drop-down list shows the host specified in various formats. You can specify the host as an IP address, a path, or a host name. However, if you enable buffering, you must specify the buffered server names in the same format, otherwise buffering will not work.

Configure the failover parameters at each interface.

1. In the page tree under UniInt, select Failover.

2. Select the Enable UniInt Failover check box to enable the properties on this page.

3. Select Phase 2 to indicate shared-file synchronization.

4. In Synchronization File Path, specify the directory and file name of the synchronization file (click Browse to select the directory and use the default file name).

5. In UFO Type, select the failover type.

6. In Failover ID# for this interface, enter the unique failover ID you have selected for this interface.

7. In Failover ID# for the other interface, enter the unique failover ID you have selected for the alternate interface and specify the path to that interface (click Browse to select the interface).

From the interface connected to the primary server, create the digital state tags to support failover.

1. On the UniInt Failover page, right-click a tag and choose Create UFO_State Digital Set on Server XXX where XXX is the name of the Data Archive collective or server.

2. Click OK.

3. Right-click a tag and choose Create all points (UFO Phase 2).

PI ICU creates the tags on Data Archive.

Check that the user from each interface has permission to write to the shared file.

1. In the page tree, select Service.

2. Verify that the user name assigned in Log on as can read and write to the folder that will store the shared file.

Click Apply.

Restart each interface.

The first interface that starts will create the shared file for synchronization.

Check the pipc.log file for any errors or problems.

The digital state tags that you created should be generating data.