Create a Configuration Template for Collectors

About this task

This topic describes how to create a configuration template for collectors.

Procedure

  1. Access Configuration Hub.
  2. In the NAVIGATION section, under the Configuration Hub plugin for Historian, selectConfiguration Templates.
    The Collectors tab appears, providing you to option to create template.
  3. Select .
    The Collectors:Configuration Template window appears.
  4. In TEMPLATE NAME, enter a name for the template. You can enter any alphanumeric names and also use special characters.
  5. In DESCRIPTION, enter a description for your template.
  6. Select Add.
    The configuration template is created.
  7. Select the row that contains the created template.
    The configuration details appear in the DETAILS section.
    Table 1. The Template Section
    Field Description
    Template Name The name of the template. This field is read-only.
    Description The description of the template. You can edit the description if needed.
    Table 2. The General Section
    Field Description
    Memory Buffer Size (MB) The size of the memory buffer currently assigned to the store-and-forward function. The memory buffer stores data during short-term or momentary interruptions of the server connection; the disk buffer handles long duration outages. To estimate the size you need for this buffer, you need to know how fast the collector is trying to send data to the server and how long the server connection is likely to be down. With those values and a safety margin, you can compute the required size of the buffer.

    The default value is 20.
    Minimum Free Space (MB) The minimum free disk space that must be available on the computer. If the minimum space required is not available when the collector starts, the collector will shut down.
    Table 3. The Tags section
    Field Description
    Tag Prefix The prefix that will be added to each tag that you configure for the collector instance. This field is disabled and populated with the name of the collector instance.

    This field applies to all collectors except File and Calculation collectors.

    Collection Interval Value The interval at which the collector collects data for all the tags configured in the collector instance.
    • For polled data collection, this value represents the time required to complete a poll of tags in the collector.
    • For unsolicited data collection, it represents the frequency at which data is retrieved from tags in the collector. The collection interval can be individually configured for each tag.
    You can set this value for each tag as well.
    Important: For an OPC collector, to avoid collecting redundant values when using device timestamps, specify a collection interval that is greater than the OPC server update rate.
    Collection Interval The units of measure for the collection interval value.
    Collection Type The type of the data collection:
    • Polled: Data is collected based on a scheduled time interval. This type of data collection is supported only for:
      • The Calculation collector
      • The HAB collector
      • The iFIX collector
      • The OPC Classic DA collector
      • The OPC UA DA collector
      • The Python collector
      • The Simulation collector
      • The Windows Performance collector
    • Unsolicited: Data is collected based on an event. This type of data collection is supported only for:
      • The Calculation collector
      • The HAB collector
      • The MQTT collector
      • The MQTT Sparkplug B collector
      • The ODBC collector
      • The OPC Classic DA collector
      • The OPC Classic HDA collector
      • The OPC UA DA collector
      • The OSI PI collector
      • The OSI PI distributor
      • The Python collector
      • The Server-to-Server collector
      • The Server-to-Server distributor
      • The Wonderware Collector
    Table 4. The Collector Compression Section
    Field Description
    Collector Compression Indicates whether you want to apply collector compression, which is a smoothing filter to data retrieved from the data source. By ignoring small changes in values that fall within a deadband centered around the last reported value, only significant changes are stored in Historian, thus consuming less archive storage space.

    For more information, refer to About Collector and Archive Compression.
    Deadband Indicates whether you want to apply a deadband based on the percentage of values or on absolute values.
    For example, if you set the deadband to 20% for a range of 0 to 500 engineering units, the deadband value is 100 units, which is 50 units on each side. Therefore, only if the difference between two values is greater than 50, they are stored in Historian.
    Note: If the data quality changes from good to bad or vice versa, the values are stored in Historian regardless of the deadband value.
    Deadband Value The deadband value that you want to use for values collected by the collector. Depending on whether you have selected percent or absolute, the deadband value is determined.

    For example, if you want to set a deadband of 5 units on either side of a value (that is, value +/- 5), enter 10 in the Deadband Value field, and select Absolute in the Deadband field. Similarly, if you want to set a deadband of 5% on either side of a value, enter 10 in the Deadband Value field, and select Percent in the Deadband field.

    For more information, refer to About Collector and Archive Compression.
    Compression Timeout The time for one poll cycle for which collector compression is not used, thus sending all the samples to Historian.

    This is used for a Calculation collector or Server-to-Server collector, when calculations fail, you may possibly observe collector compression (even if it is not enabled), thus producing no results or bad quality data. In such cases, you can use compression timeout, thus sending all the samples to Historian.

    For more information, refer to About Collector and Archive Compression.
    Compression Timeout Interval The units of measure for compression timeout.
    Table 5. The Collector Options Section
    Field Description
    Online Tag Configuration Changes Indicates whether you want tag configuration changes to reflect immediately. If you disable this option, any tag configuration changes will reflect only after you restart the collector instance.
    Browse Source Address Space Indicates whether you want to allow browsing for tags in the source. You may sometimes want to disable this option to reduce processing load on the collector.
    Synchronize Timestamps to Server Indicates whether you want to adjust the timestamp of data to align with the time setting in the Historian server. Note that this does not change the time setting in the collector machine; it only calculates the timestamp based on the difference between the time settings in the server machine and the collector machine, independent of time zone or daylight saving differences.
    Note:
    • This option is applicable only if the timestamp of the collector is considered (instead of that of the data source - as specified in the Time Assigned By field).
    • If this option is disabled, and if the time in the collector machine is more than 15 minutes ahead of the time in the server machine, data will not be stored in Historian.
    Delay Collection at Startup (sec) The duration, in seconds, after which you want the data collection to begin post tag configuration.
  8. After you edit the details as needed, in the upper-left corner, select Save.
    The configuration details are saved.

    You can select and duplicate this template, edit, or delete it.

What to do next

You can apply the configuration template to a collector instance.