April 2020

With the release of System Platform 2020, Application Server received the following new features and enhancements:

Performance Improvements

A number of enhancements to improve performance have been implemented for this release of System Platform.

• Propagation times for changes to templates and creating instances have been shortened, especially in large systems.

• Deployment times for InTouchViewApp instances have been reduced.

• The startup time for the aaGR process has been improved.

Credential Management for OMI ViewApps

OMI ViewApps can use security credentials created in Application Server to gain access to third-party data where Windows OS credentials are not recognized, and/or to provide a method to automatically load a particular data set for specified users.

Support for Additional .NET Controls OMI ViewApps

OMI now lets you import, configure, and use .NET WinForm controls in a ViewApp (.NET WPF controls were already supported).

Responsive Layouts for OMI ViewApps

The Layout Editor has a new option for creating responsive layouts. This allows the ViewApp to dynamically move and resize content in response to the screen size on which it is being viewed.

Script Support for OMI Layouts

Using the same foundation as scripting for Industrial Graphics, layout scripting lets you customize run time behaviors for layout content as well as the layout container by adding scripts. As part of layout support, graphic custom properties can be overridden within the layout. A new namespace, "MyContent," is available for addressing content within a single ViewApp, in addition to the MyViewApp global namespace.

Event Scripting for OMI Layouts

You can add event-based scripts to OMI layouts when the layout include apps that expose public properties, for example "MouseDown."

HideContent() Scripting Function and API Call

The HideContent() scripting function and API call can be used in conjunction with ShowContent() lets you place symbols or layouts into specific panes within an OMI layout, either through scripting or programmatically, and now HideContent() provides the additional functionality for more complete control of the content you wish to make available to users at run time.

OMI App Enhancements

The MapApp and Content Presenter App have been enhanced with new features and improved functionality.

• MapApp: Credential management has been improved, with a built-in menu for selecting a named credential.

• ContentPresenterApp: The ContentPresenter app shows graphics from one or more selected nodes of a ViewApp navigation model. The pane in which the ContentPresenter app has been placed shows a set of graphic thumbnails that match the ContentPresenter app filter criteria. Graphics shown by the ContentPresenter app can be filtered by content type, name, and location within the ViewApp navigation model.

Browse Application Server Run-Time Data with OPC UA Clients

AVEVA Application Server now includes OPC UA server functionality. This lets you browse the namespace in a deployed galaxy, and connect to, subscribe to, and retrieve galaxy data, without the need for a gateway or other protocol translation mechanism. See "Configuring and Using the OPC UA Server" in the Application Server User Guide for more information.

AVEVA Connect for Sharing Graphics

AVEVA Connect is a cloud-based resource that lets you easily create and share graphics between locations, galaxies, and applications. See "AVEVA Connect" in the Application Server User Guide for more information.

AVEVA Telemetry Server Enhancements

The Telemetry Server now supports handling data that arrives out-of-sequence via multiple channels. See "Telemetry Server Data References" in the Application Server User Guide for more information.

Visualize Externally-Detected Alarms

Alarm conditions that have been detected within a PLC can now be visualized in, for example, the Historical Trend App or the Alarm App. To accomplish this, the ability to configure a Boolean attribute within the Object Editor as an alarm input for a State Alarm has been added. This allows the trend tools to properly visualize alarms that have been detected externally. See "Using the State Alarm Feature" in the Application Server User Guide for more information.