Prepare your System for Upgrade
- Last UpdatedJul 21, 2025
- 5 minute read
Before you upgrade Plant SCADA to a new version, you need to prepare your existing installation. This involves the following steps:
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Backup your existing projects.
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Save a copy of any required configuration files.
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Uninstall Plant SCADA.
You should also confirm if you have a license to support the upgrade. You will require a valid support agreement, or you will need to purchase a license upgrade. You can check your support status and upgrade your key or soft license on the License Activation page of the AVEVA™ Knowledge & Support Center website (https://softwaresupport.aveva.com).
To prepare your system, it is recommended to update the production machine keys before any projects are updated, as the updated key will still license the previous version. You can update the hardware/software key in the Licensing activity in Plant SCADA Studio.
Note: With the release of Plant SCADA 2023, Schneider Electric's Floating License Manager is no longer supported. Existing users of the Floating License Manager will need to migrate their systems to AVEVA™ Enterprise Licensing.
1. Backup your existing projects
Perform a backup of any projects you have created. This will create a zip file (*.ctz) for each project. You will use these files to migrate your projects to the later version of Plant SCADA once installation is complete.
When creating a project backup for an upgrade, you need to have the Save sub-directories and Save configuration files options selected in the Backup Project dialog. For more information, refer to the topic Backup a Project in the documentation for the version of Plant SCADA you are currently running.
Note: With the release of Plant SCADA 2023 R2, the CSV_Include project is no longer supported as a system project. If you have any projects based on the CSV_Include templates, you will need to create a separate backup of the CSV_Include project and restore manually it in version 2023 R2 (or later). You can then include it as a user project.
Note: Before you backup a project from version 2016 (or earlier) for upgrade to version 2018 R2 (or later), you should check if the Citect.ini file uses the parameter [CtEdit]ANSIToOEM. If so, confirm that the parameter is set to the required value. Then perform an Update Pages with the Fast Update Pages option disabled. This will back up the correct ANSI character values. Be aware that the Fast Update Pages option is not available from version 2018. If you are using a later version and have noticed inconsistencies due to the misconfiguration of [CtEdit]ANSIToOEM prior to an upgrade, contact technical support.
2. Save a copy of any required configuration files
Alongside your project files, there are some system configuration files that you need to backup. Save a copy of the following files (if they are relevant to your current system configuration).
To determine the location of a directory mentioned in the table below, see View a Project’s Folders.
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File |
Description |
|---|---|
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Citect.ini |
The Citect.ini file hosts a set of parameters that define operational settings for a computer running Plant SCADA. It is recommended that you back up the Citect.ini file for a computer as it will be required as a point of reference if you want to merge any existing configuration settings to an updated version of Plant SCADA. This file is located in Plant SCADA’s Config directory. |
|
Deployment configuration files |
If you have deployment configured, back up the following files: • SE.Asb.Deployment.Server.WindowsService.exe.config • SE.Asb.Deployment.Node.WindowsService.exe.config. These files are located in Plant SCADA’s Config directory. |
|
Deployment database |
This is located in the Deployment directory. For example: %PROGRAMDATA%\AVEVA Plant SCADA <VersionNumber>\Deployment |
|
Data directory |
Plant SCADA’s Data directory contains runtime data files. Make sure you include the following subdirectories in your backup. Alarm Database (for v2015 or later) For each alarm server in your system, a corresponding alarm database will exist in the following location: [Data]\<Project Name>\<ClusterName.AlarmServerName> Trend files (*.HST and *.00X) The path and names of these files are defined on the trend tag itself and created in the Data directory. The files will be named after the trend name and number of files. For example, if the trend name is CPU, file names will be CPU.HST, CPU.001, CPU.002 and so on. |
|
Report files |
These files contain the code that is executed on your reports. They are located in the Project folder. |
|
Custom ActiveX Controls (.OCX) |
You need to make a backup of any custom ActiveX controls. Check your ActiveX.dbf file in Plant SCADA’s Project folder. This file contains a list of the ActiveX controls in your project and their GUIDs. Using the GUID, you can find the path of an ActiveX control using the Windows Registry key: KEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE The default value for this key is a path to the .DLL or .OCX file you need to back up. |
|
Process Analyst files |
Backup the files for each project in the following subdirectories in the Project folder: <Project Name>\Analyst Views <Project Folder>\Dictionary |
|
Communication drivers |
The project may be using specialty drivers. If so, it is recommended that you back up the driver files located in the product ‘bin’ directory as the existing specialty drivers may be required for the new version. Check the AVEVA™ Knowledge & Support Center for driver availability and compatibility. |
|
Device logs |
These files contain any logging (alarm logs, report logs) you have configured in your project. You will find their location in the Devices settings. |
|
Additional files |
You should check for any runtime files that are used by custom code in your project. Check your Citect.ini file. The [Path] section may specify the location of runtime files used by custom code. |
|
Format file |
If you are using customized configuration forms with Plant SCADA, the configuration changes will be saved in the format file (Citect.frm). You will need to backup this file if it is required in the new installation. For further information, search the Knowledge Base page on the AVEVA™ Knowledge & Support Center for article 000025972 Upgrading with a modified CITECT.FRM file. |
3. Uninstall your existing version
You need to uninstall the existing version of Plant SCADA (or Citect SCADA) before you upgrade.
To do this, use the Programs and Features page in Windows® Control Panel (see Uninstall or Change Components). The entry for AVEVA Plant SCADA allows you to remove all core components including the configuration environment, runtime components, communications drivers, OPC UA components, Industrial Graphics components and extensions.
After uninstalling Plant SCADA, you should verify that the main installation folder has been successfully removed. This will typically happen automatically, but in some circumstances it may not. For example, if you have copied additional files to the folder, it will remain after uninstallation has occurred.
The main folder location for a default installation is:
C:\Program Files (x86)\AVEVA Plant SCADA
For a non-default installation, it will be the folder chosen during installation.
If this folder still exists after uninstallation, remove it manually. This will avoid a situation where the folder inherits incorrect permissions which could cause some functionality to not work as expected.