Server system requirements

The following rules of thumb are offered as a starting point for determining server sizing for FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix. Other factors will affect the required size of a server. A higher number of tags being logged, a faster log rate, a larger number of users and a larger number of reports being run will require a more powerful server than the guidelines specify.

• A low-end server has up to 8 meters and logs up to 40 meter tags at a minimum 15 minute log rate
• A mid-range server has up to 64 meters and logs up to 320 meter tags at a minimum 15 minute log rate
• A high-end server has more than 64 meters and logs more than 500 meter tags at a minimum 15 minute log rate

Database size guidelines

FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix writes 16 bytes of data to the database for each meter tag logged. Over time, the database can grow to become quite large. Some examples:

• A low-end server, logging 40 meter tags at 15 minute intervals, will grow the database at a rate of 2.56 KB per hour or 22 MB per year
• A mid-level server, logging 320 meter tags at 15 minute intervals, will grow the database at a rate of 20.5 KB per hour, or 180 MB per year.
• A high-end server, logging 1000 meter tags at 15 minute intervals, will grow the database at a rate of 240 KB per hour, or 2.1 GB per year.

Consider these guidelines when determining hard disk requirements for a server as well as database maintenance schedules.

Recommendations

These are general guidelines. FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix is capable of running on a variety of hardware platforms. The main scalability issue is related to processing of logged data (e.g. report generation, trending). CPU speed, number of CPUs, RAM, and RAID 5 for the database files are the main scalability factors (in that order). All hardware platforms require the following:

• Processor, RAM and hard drive as noted below
• DVD drive
• One or more Ethernet network ports
• Internet access
• Monitor, keyboard, pointing device (mouse)

Low-end server

• single 2 GHz Pentium 4
• 1 - 2 GB RAM
• 80 GB hard disk

Mid-range server

• 2 or 4 CPU 2 GHz Pentium 4 or faster
• 2 - 4 GB RAM
• 160 GB hard disk (with separate disks for operating system and log files and RAID 5 for main database files preferred)

High-end server

High-end server requirements are very dependent upon the user's application requirements. Please contact Rockwell Automation, Inc. for assistance in specifying hardware for a high-end server.

We recommend that you install FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix software on a dedicated server with a local installation of Microsoft SQL Server.

Operating systems

Server computer

Note: You must have machine administrator privileges to install FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix.

• Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2
• Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2

Both operating systems should be installed with the Application Server role.

See "Installing FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix" (page 10) to learn which versions of SQL Server you can choose for your server computer.

Client computer

• Microsoft Windows 10
• Microsoft Windows 7

Software requirements

Note: You must have machine administrator privileges to install FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix.

Server computer

• Microsoft SQL Server 2012 SP2 Standard
• Microsoft SQL Server Standard 2008 R2

Notes:

• Make sure to install Microsoft SQL Server with the Application Server role.
• You will use the Microsoft SQL Server login and password during the installation of FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix.

Client computer

• Internet Explorer 11, 10
• Adobe Acrobat Reader 11 or newer versions

This component is required for viewing reports.

• Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5

This component is required for using the RealTime (RT) and Charts Plus options, as well as the Waveform Viewer application.

Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5 is included on the installation DVD or may be downloaded at no charge from Microsoft.

Note: The Microsoft .NET Framework must be installed when IIS is already installed and running. Otherwise, you will need to reinstall the Microsoft .NET Framework components.

Your client workstation must also be permitted Intranet or Internet to the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix server. Contact your IT support personnel for assistance.

Tip: Your browser should be set to check for newer versions of stored pages automatically, not every visit to the page.

Support for Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1408 PowerMonitor 1000 models BC3 and TS3

See the title.

Support for Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1408 PowerMonitor 1000 firmware 4.x

See the title.

Support for Microsoft SQL Server 2012 SP2 Standard and Microsoft SQL Server 2012 SP2 Express

See the title.

Support for Microsoft Windows 10 and Internet Explorer 11 on client computers

See the title.

The FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix installer now adds a Windows Firewall rule to allow the RealTime (RT) and ChartsPlus components to communicate with the server

See the title.

Rate schedules and multi-purpose reports didn't work after upgrading to version 2.20.00

After upgrading FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix to version 2.20.00, rate schedules and multi-purpose reports would not work unless the script was edited and saved.

Issues with reading the time-of-use log of Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1408 PowerMonitor 1000

The issues have been corrected.

Issues with the navigation tree in the on-demand mode

The issues have been corrected. They concerned the navigation tree that would become unresponsive in the on-demand mode if the user’s web session had timed out.

Displaying energy log records of Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1408 PowerMonitor 1000 may take time

When the Energy Log of Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1408 PowerMonitor 1000 has many records or is full it may take a long time for the RealTime (RT) viewer to display them all.

Chart and gallery type incompatibility may result in error messages in ChartsPlus

In ChartsPlus, if you select a gallery type from the toolbar or the context-menu, and the selected gallery type is not compatible with your chart type, you may get an error message.

Differences in the help content

The help files that are installed on the server differ slightly from the help files included on the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix DVD. If you want to update the server's version of the help files, copy the Docs\Help folder on the DVD to the Program Files (x86)\Rockwell Software\FTEnergyMetrix\Help folder on the server.

Enabling all the features in the device configuration window for power monitors

In order to make sure that all the features in the RealTime device configuration window for power monitors are available, you may need to close and open the window again after you have uploaded the configuration settings for the first time.

Detecting communications loss to Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1415 Wireless PowerMonitor W250

FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix does not detect communications loss to Wireless PowerMonitor 250 devices.

In case of communications loss, energy and demand data will not be logged, and voltage and current data will remain fixed.

Adding IP addresses to Ethernet devices

 You must manually add the IP address of each Ethernet device to the RSLinx Classic Ethernet Device driver on the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix server.

Enabling FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix to connect to EtherNet/IP devices in RSLinx

After configuring EtherNet/IP devices in RSLinx, you may need to open RSWho and then select each device, including Logix processor modules, in order to enable FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix to connect to the devices.

RealTime (RT) and ChartsPlus features running as ClickOnce applications

The RT and ChartsPlus features will only run as ClickOnce applications on a 64-bit operating system. ClickOnce is the default setting.

Invalid data displayed in the RealTime (RT) device viewer

If a PowerMonitor on a Remote I/O device is created with a rack or group address that does not exist, the RT device viewer may display invalid data.

The support of DeviceNet communications to Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1403 PowerMonitor II

The RealTime feature of FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix does not support DeviceNet communications to Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1403 PowerMonitor II.

Establishing connection between FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix and a remote SQL server computer

If FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix is to connect to a SQL server on another machine, make sure that Microsoft SQL Server 2005 or 2008 Express Edition is installed on the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix server computer.

Scheduling multiple auto-run reports to run at the same time

Scheduling multiple auto-run reports to run at the same time may result in overloading the server and causing the reports to time out.

Viewing Microsoft Excel reports in a web browser

You will not be able to view reports generated in the Microsoft Excel file format in your web browser, if Microsoft Office 2010 or newer is installed on the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix client computer.

Using the roll-up server functionality

If you want to use the roll-up server functionality, make sure that you install Microsoft Internet Explorer WebControls 1.0 on the server computer.

Validating Multi-Purpose Report (MPR) scripts fails when FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix runs with Internet Information Services (IIS) 7

When you create an MPR script and click the Validate button, and error appears, the script is not validated and you can save the script with syntax errors.

To solve the issue, follow these steps:

1. Open the Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager.
2. Open Application Pools.
3. Right-click DefaultAppPool, and then click Set Application Pool Defaults.
4. In the Application Pool Defaults, change the Managed Pipeline Mode setting from Classic to Integrated.

Connecting with FactoryTalk Live Data through RSLinx Enterprise

When you establish FactoryTalk Live Data connection through RSLinx Enterprise, you can use both the local and network scope, as long as you configure the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix Logger service to run under an administrative account.

Tag limit for meters

You may add meters that contain up to 35 tags. Adding meters with more than 35 tags will result in data loss.

The content of the Tag format list in the meter tag configuration is not device-specific

When you create a meter tag for a specific device (for example, a PowerMonitor 5000) on the Meter Setup tab, and then you select a tag format from the Tag format list, the list contains tag formats supported not only by the particular device with which the meter tag is associated, but also all other devices.

Intermittent tag logging

Tag logging from ControlLogix controllers in chassis larger than seven slots may be intermittent when using RSLinx Classic 3.5x or 3.6x.

To solve this issue, use RSLinx Classic 2.xx, 3.7x or newer versions instead.

Displaying multiple waveforms in the waveform viewer in the overlay mode

You can display multiple waveforms in the waveform viewer in the overlay mode only if they have the exact same trigger time.

Displaying the firmware revision number of a Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1426 PowerMonitor 5000 in the RealTime (RT) device configuration window

When the firmware or catalog number of a PowerMonitor 5000 changes, you may see the wrong firmware revision in the RT device configuration window.

To solve this issue, upload the configuration settings from the power monitor, and then click OK.

Logging ongoing power quality events from a Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1426 PowerMonitor 5000

If a power quality event from a Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1426 PowerMonitor 5000 is logged while the event is still ongoing, the duration displayed on the Power Quality Event Details page will be the duration at the time the user views the data, rather than the final duration.

Availability of the RSLinx Classic client on Microsoft Windows Server 2008 or newer

When RSLinx Classic runs as a Windows service on Microsoft Windows Server 2008 or newer, its user interface is not available. It is available only when RSLinx Classic runs as an application.

Installing Internet Information Services (IIS) and Microsoft .NET Framework

Make sure that you install Microsoft .NET Framework after IIS are installed and running. Otherwise, you will need to reinstall Microsoft .NET Framework.

Multi-purpose report (MPR) scripts with a dash ("-") in the file names are not imported to FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix

If you export an MPR script with a dash in its file name, and then you try to import it, the import attempt will result in an error.

To solve this issue, avoid using dashes in the names of MPR scripts.

Opening excel reports saved as .XLSX files in Microsoft Excel 2010 fails

When you save your Excel reports as .xlsx files, and then you try to open them in Microsoft Excel 2010, the operation may fail and you may get a corrupt file error message.

To solve this issue, save your Excel reports as .xls files if you use Microsoft Excel 2010.

The IEEE1159 Summary Report appears with no content in Microsoft Office 2010 Professional

When you open the IEEE1159 Summary Report in Microsoft Office 2010 Professional, the report is displayed in the protected view, with no content. The protected view is indicated with the following message:

To view the content of the report, click Enable Editing in the message.

Editing the logic gates of Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1426 PowerMonitor 5000 that are not selected for use fails

On the Setpoint Outputs tab in the configuration window of Allen-Bradley Bulletin 1426 PowerMonitor 5000, you can edit only those logic gates that are selected as an input source.

To check which logic gates are used in your power monitor:

1. Open the device viewer.
2. Click the Setpoints tab, and then click the Logic Gate Status tab.

The logic gates in use will be of a type other than Disabled.

Contents of the installation DVD

The installation DVD contains the following components:

Required:

• FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix 2.30.00
• FactoryTalk Activation Manager 3.62.11 (CPR 9 SR 6.1)
• RSLinx Classic Lite 3.74.00 (CPR 9 SR 7.4)
• Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5

Optional:

• FactoryTalk Services Platform 2.74.00 (CPR 9 SR 7.4)
• Adobe Acrobat Reader 11
• FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix User Guide
• FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix Online Help
• FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix Release Notes

The installation DVD also includes the following applications that are available in the Redist folder:

• Internet Explorer WebControls 1.0

            Install it if you use the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix Roll-Up Server functionality.

•  OPC Core Components 3.00

            Install it if you use the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix OPC client functionality.

• ADR Wizard application

            For details on this application, refer to the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix user documentation.

• WaveformViewer application

            For details on this application, refer to the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix user documentation.

Installing FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix

You may choose any of the following combinations of the supported operating systems and Microsoft SQL Server versions:

Depending on the version of the operating system that you are using, choose either of the following:

• "Installation steps on Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2"
• "Installation steps on Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2"

Note: You must be logged in as a computer administrator to perform these actions.

Installation steps on Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2

To install FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix on Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2:

Note: When adding roles, always click the Add Features button in the Server Manager, if it is available.

1. Install Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard.
2. Configure the Windows server:

            In the Server Manager, add the following items:

        3. Install Microsoft SQL Server 2012.

        4. Configure the SQL server:

            a. Select the following features:

                1. Database Engine Services

                2. Management Tools - Basic

                3. Management Tools - Complete

                    Tip: This is a minimum set, you can install more, if needed.

            b. Select the Mixed Mode authentication.

            c. Type a password to be used for the SQL sa account.

            d. Add the current user as a SQL Server administrator.

        5. From the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix DVD, install the following applications:

            a. FactoryTalk Services Platform

            b. FactoryTalk Activation Manager

            c. RSLinx Classic

6. From the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix DVD, install FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix.

Installation steps on Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2

To install FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix on Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2:

Note: When adding roles, always click the Add Required Features button in the Server Manager, if it is available.

1. Install Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard.
2. From the Redist\DotNetFX45 folder on the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix DVD, install Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5.
3. Configure the Windows server:

            In the Server Manager, add the following items:

        4. Install Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2.

        5. Configure the SQL server:

           a. Select the following features:

                1. Database Engine Services

                2. Management Tools - Basic

                3. Management Tools - Complete

                    Tip: This is a minimum set, you can install more, if needed.

            b. Use the NETWORK SERVICE user for services.

            c. Select the Mixed Mode authentication.

            d. Type a password to be used for the SQL sa account.

            e. Add the current user as a SQL Server administrator.

6. From the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix DVD, install the following applications:

If you get the HTTP Error 404.2 while opening the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix website (localhost/ftenergymetrix), do the following:

1. Open the IIS Manager.
2. Under Connections, click the server node.
3. Double-click .
4. Click ASP.NET v4.0.30319, and then click Allow in the Actions pane.
5. Repeat this step for all the ASP.NET v4.0.30319 items.

Upgrading to a new version

You can upgrade to FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix 2.30 from the following versions:

• 2.20.00
• 2.12.00
• 2.11.00
• 2.10.00

For information on the upgrade steps, please refer to the FactoryTalk EnergyMetrix articles available on Rockwell Automation, Inc. Knowledgebase.

RealTime (RT), ChartsPlus, and Waveform Viewer security

ClickOnce operation of RealTime (RT), ChartsPlus, and Waveform Viewer

These applications run as ClickOnce applications by default. The first time they run on a client, a security message is displayed:

Click Run to enable the application to run. After the first time, the warning will no longer appear.

ClickOnce applications run on Windows 32- and 64-bit operating systems with Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5 installed.

Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0 is required for the Waveform Viewer.

Tips for RSLinx Classic running on a 64-bit server

When you set up devices such as power monitors, PLCs, etc., you will need to access RSLinx Classic software running on the server to configure drivers and network addresses of devices.

RSLinx Classic is required to run as a Windows service. On Windows 2008 Server, when RSLinx Classic runs as a service the user interface is not available to the user. The user interface is only available when RSLinx Classic runs as an application.

To access the user interface of RSLinx Classic on Windows 2008 Server:

1. On the Start menu, click All Programs > Administrative Tools > Services.

            The Services window appears.

2. Navigate to, and then stop the RSEnergyMetrix Logger service.
3. On the Start menu, click All Programs > Rockwell Software > RSLinx > RSLinx Classic Launch Control Panel.

            The RSLinx Classic Launch Control Panel dialog box appears.

4. Click Stop.
5. Clear the Always Run As Service check box.

            The status message in the dialog box changes to:

            RSLinx Classic Application is not running.

6. Click Start.

            RSLinx Classic is started as an application.

7. In the notification area, click .

            The RSLinx Classic window appears.

8. Make the desired changes.
9. On the Start menu, click All Programs > Rockwell Software > RSLinx > RSLinx Classic Launch Control Panel.

            The RSLinx Classic Launch Control Panel dialog box appears.

10. Click Stop.
11. Select the Always Run As Service check box.

            The status message in the dialog box changes to:

            RSLinx Classic Service is not running.

12. Click Start.

            RSLinx Classic is started as a service.

13. On the Start menu, click All Programs > Administrative Tools > Services.

            The Services window appears.

14. Navigate to, and then start the RSEnergyMetrix Logger service.

To add a shortcut to the server desktop:

1. Copy a shortcut to the RSLinx Classic Launch Control Panel to the server desktop.
2. Right-click the server desktop, select New > Shortcut.
3. In the item location box, type c:\Windows\SysWOW64\services.msc /s.
4. Click Next.
5. Click Finish.