Remote RAS Feature
Installation Guide
This feature is used together with the Pro-Server (separately sold) software ona Server PC. It allows remote monitoring/control of Pro-face’s panel-typeindustrial computers (hereafter referred to as the “PL”.) via the System Monitor/RAS feature.
This software has versions for each series PL unit. Be sure tocheck that the version you have selected is correct before installing this software.
For how to install the software

3. Installation

Corresponding PL units : PL-5900 Series, PL-X920 Series(All product names that appear in this guide are the trademarks of their respective companies)
Pro-face: Digital Electronics Corporation(in Japan and other counties)
MS-DOS®, Visual Basic®, Visual C++® : Microsoft Corporation (USA)The Remote RAS feature requires both the System Monitor/RAS feature and
the Pro-Server with Pro-Studio for Windows. Please be sure you understandboth applications prior to using the Remote RAS feature.
For System Monitor/RAS Feature details,
PL Series User
Manual.
For Pro-Server details,
Operation Manual.

Pro-Server with Pro-Studio for Windows

-1-

1

Operating Environment
The Server PC and Client PL operating environments are as follows:
Server PC
Operator
Interface®

Windows compatible PC, or
PL Series unit

Client PL
PL-5900/PL-6920/
PL-7920/PL-B920 Series units
Windows 95 OSR2

Windows 98 Second Edition

Windows 98 Second Edition®

®

OS Requirements

Windows NT 4.0(Service Pack3 or higher)®

Other Software
Compatible
Languages
Network
Configuration

2

®

®

Windows 95 OSR2

Windows 2000
Complies with Pro-Server
specifications
Pro-Server with Pro-Studio for
Windows Ver.3.12 or higher(Sold separately)®

®

Windows NT 4.0(Service Pack3 or higher)®

Windows 2000
Complies with PL Series unit
*1

specifications
System Monitor/RAS feature(included in the PL unit's CDROM)

Japanese, English
TCP/IP Protocol

System Configuration
The Remote RAS feature system configuration is as shown below.

*1 Remote RAS cannot be used in an MS-DOS® environment.

-2-

3

Installation
Installing the Remote RAS Feature• Prior to installation, check that Pro-Server with Pro-StudioVer.3.12 or higher is installed on the Server PC.
• Be sure to install the correct PL series version software ineach Client PL unit. (See below)
Client PL Units

Applicable Software

PL-5900 Series
PL-X920 Series

RAS_5900.exe
RAS_X920.exe• Prior to installing this software, be sure to close all applications.
1) Create a folder named [RAS] on the Server PC.
When installing both software for PL-5900 Series and PL-X920 Series,
create two folders named [RAS1] and [RAS2].
2) Download the applicable software from the Pro-face home page.
3) Copy the file that appears after Procedure 2 to the folder created after Procedure1, and double-click on the file to open it. (file is self-extracting)
The following two folders will be extracted.
•[server] folder (required when installing on the Server PC)•[client] folder (required when installing on the Client PL)
When installing both software for PL-5900 Series and PL-X920 Series,
copy the file that appears after Procedure 2 to each folder separately,
named [RAS1] and [RAS2] created after Procedure 1, and double-click on
the files to open them. (files are self-extracting)-3-

When installing
one software only

When installingboth two software[RAS1][RAS][RAS2]
RAS_5900.exe(or RAS_X920.exe)

RAS_5900.exe(or RAS_X920.exe)

RAS_X920.exe(or RAS_5900.exe)[server][server][server]

setup.exe

setup.exe

setup.exe

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

[client][client][client]

setup.exe

setup.exe

setup.exe

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

:

4) Double-click on the [server] folder’s [setup.exe] file to start the Server
installation.
Please do this Procedure 4 once for 1 (one) Server PC, no matter how many
Client PLs you have or no matter what software you install.
5) Copy the [client] folder to the Client PL’s hard disk, and double-click on
the [setup.exe] file in there to start the Client installation.
All of the Client PL need to be done Procedure 5.
[setup.exe] files to start the Client installation have different versions, one
for PL-5900 Series and the other for PL-X920 Series. In Procedure 5, whenstarting up the [setup.exe] file to start the Client installation, be sure to confirm that the [setup.exe] file is downloaded from the correct software compatible with your PL and start to install it.
When starting up the wrong [setup.exe] file to your PL, uninstall the file, atfirst. Then, start up the correct [setup.exe] file again which is compatible
with your PL Series.
To uninstall the file, select [Start] menu, [Settings], [Control Panel], and[Add/Remove Programs] command. In the list in the [Install/Uninstall] tab,select the wrongly installed software, [PL-5900 Remote RAS], or [PL-X920
Remote RAS], then delete it.

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4

Remote RAS Settings/Preparation
To use the Server PC to monitoring the System Monitor/RAS feature, youmust first set up the Remote RAS feature and start up the System Monitor(PL_Smon.exe).

Client PL Settings
Remote RAS Settings

Double-click on PL_Wps.exe to open the Client PL’s [System Monitor Property] dialog box. Then, click on the [Net Ras] tab’s [Enable] check box.

When communicating only witha Server PC at
the designated
IP address

Input the IP
address of theServer PC used
when communicating with the
Client PL.

Starting up the System Monitor (PL_Smon.exe)

For System Monitor (PL_Smon.exe) details,
Manual.

-5-each PL Series User

Server PC Settings
First, register the Client PL as a node using the Server PC’s Pro-Studio software. This can be done using any of the following three (3) ways.
• Edit a sample’s network project file• Manually register the Client PL as a node
• Search for and register the Client PL as a nodeBe sure to save the network project file after creating or editing it.
How to Edit a Sample’s Network Project File

Edit a sample’s network project file that is installed on the Server PC andeasily register a node and a symbol.
1) Start the Server PC’s Pro-Studio software.
2) Select the [File (F)] menu’s [Open (O)] command.
3) Select the [PL_Ras.npj] file, and click on.

4) In the “Network Entry Node” list, select the node named [PL_1].
5) Select the [Edit(E)] menu’s [Edit Node] command.

-6-6) In [Edit Node], enter any desired name in “Node Name”, and theninput the Client PL’s “IP Address”, “Subnet Mask”, and “Gateway”.
7) Click on.
8) Edit a second node [PL_2] , by repeating steps 4 to 7. When using
only one (1) node, delete node [PL_2].
When using three (3) or more nodes, add the third and all following
nodes using the procedure described in “ Manually Registering a Client PL as a Node” .
Manually Registering a Client PL as a Node

When manually registering a node, the device address must be registeredmanually as a symbol. When registering three (3) or more nodes, using theprocedure explained previously in “ How to Edit a Sample’s Network
Project File”, please use the following steps.
1) Start the Server PC’s Pro-Studio software.
2) Select the [Edit (E)] menu’s [Register Node] command.
3) In [Register Node], enter any desired node name in “Node Name”,
and select “PL Series Computer” for “PLC Type”. Also, enter the
Client PL’s “IP Address”, “Subnet Mask”, and “Gateway”. “Project
File (PRO/PB3)” is not used in this example. “String data mode”
always uses the default value of “2”.

-7-4) Click on.
5) Select the node registered in steps 2 to 4. Then, select the [Edit (E)]menu’s [Register Symbols] command.
6) In the [Register Symbol] dialog box, select/enter the desired device
address in “Device Address”.
In “Data Type”, select the desired data type for the device address.
When entering device address and data type information, see
5.Reading/Writing via System Monitor/RAS Feature <Device Address
List>
When checking “Global Symbol” data, the same device address will
be registered as a common symbol in all network entry nodes.
Click on, and the “Symbol Name” will be set automatically.
(Manual selection/entry of “Symbol Name” is possible.)7) Register all remaining device addresses as symbols, repeating steps 5
and 6.
8) When adding more nodes, repeat steps 2 to 7.

-8-

Client PL Search and Node Registration

Pro-Studio (Server PC) can be used to search for the Client PL on a network.
Once the Client PL is found, you can register it as a network entry node.
Prior to searching for and registering the Client PL, please do the following.
• Enter the Remote RAS settings• Start up the System Monitor (PL_Smon.exe) application• Enter the network settings, such as the IP address, etc.

1) Once the above is completed, start Pro-Studio.
2) Select the [Tool (T)] menu’s [Search Active Nodes] command.
3) The Client PL (nonregistered node) will appear as “Windows Personal
Computer” in the “PLC type” column. To allow the Client PL (nonregistered node) to participate in a network project, select that nodeand click on.
4) In the “Network Entry Node” list, select the network entry node registered in the previous steps 2 and 3. Then, select the [Edit(E)] menu’s[Edit Node] command.
5) In [Edit Node], select “PL Series Computer” for the “PLC Type” andclick on.
In the “Network Entry Node” list, the entry “Windows Personal Computer” in the “PLC Type” column will change to “PL Series Computer”.
6) Set each network entry node’s “PLC Type” data in the same way as
Step 5.
For details about Device Address symbol registration, refer to steps 5 to 7 in
“ Manually Registering a Client PL as a Node”.

• PL units on other networks connected via a router cannot be searched.
Please register each of those nodes manually.
• Network project files created in Pro-Studio (Server PC) do not need to betransferred to the Client PL.

-9-

5

Reading/Writing via System Monitor/RAS Feature
Pro-Server provides the Server PC with read and write data that indicates boththe status of each Client PL, and the status of the System Monitor/RAS features. Also, the Server PC can access Client PL user application data locatedwithin the Client PL’s Common Memory area. Moreover, the Server PC canread/write that data via Pro-Server.

*a Device memory is used to store System Monitor/RAS feature data, andto also assign each device address.
<Device Address List>,<Bit Assign List for DIN, Error
Event, and Error Mask>*b The Server PC’s user application accesses *a (Device) using
ProEasy.dll.
For further information about ProEasy.dll
Pro-Studio for Windows Operation Manual.

Pro-Server with*c The Client PL’s user application accesses the Common Memory area
inside *a (Device) using PL_Ras.dll.
For further information about Common Memory
7. Data
Sharing Between User Applications.
For details of Pro-Server error messages that can occur when reading andwriting device data,
Error Messages-10-<Device Address List>
Corresponding
Units
DevicePL-5900 PL-X920
Series Series*1OO
CPU Voltage*1OO+3.3V Voltage*1OO+5V Voltage*1O
O+12V Voltage*1OO-5V Voltage*1O
O-12V Voltage*1
XO
VIT Voltage*2
OO
CPU Fan Rotation Speed*2
O
O
Power Fan Rotation Speed*3
OO
CPU Temperature*3
O
O
System Temperature
DIN
O
O
DOUT
O
O
Alarm
O
O
Lamp
O
O
Error EventO
OInternal Memory Area

*4

O

O

Device Device Read/
Type Symbol Write
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD
WORD

WORD

VLT
Read

O

*5

Software Reset Port
Error Mask

*6

O

WORD

X

FAN
TMP
DIN
DOUT
ALM
LAMP
ERR

Read/
Write
Read

LS
Read/
Write

Common Memory

Bit AccessPL

DIN00-DIN01
DOUT00
ALM00
LAMP00
ERR00-ERR0E
LS00000LS0000F
toLS02550LS0255F
PL00000PL0000F
toPL02550PL0255F

16 BIt Access

32 BitAccess

VLT0
VLT1
VLT2
VLT3
VLT4
VLT5
VLT6
FAN0
FAN1
TMP0
TMP1
DIN0
DOUT0
ALM0
LAMP0
ERR0

X

LS0000LS0000totoLS0255LS0254PL0000PL0000totoPL0255

PL0254

O

O

WORD

RST

Read/
Write

X

RST0

X

O

O

WORD

ERRM

Read

ERRM00ERRM0E

ERRM0

X

*1 When monitoring using Device Monitor, Voltage displays as ‘mV’.
*2 When monitoring using Device Monitor, Fan Rotation Speed displays as ‘rpm’.
*3 When monitoring using Device Monitor, Temperature displays as ‘oC’.
*4 Only system uses this area for reading/writing and monitoring.
*5 Will shut down or reboot the Client PL’s OS. When writing the value in the device address, [Request.log] file will be created at C:\Proface\Sysmon, where “Shut-Down” or”Reboot” request information is logged.

When “Forced Shut down” or “Forced Reboot” values are written
to the device address, the OS will be forced to be shut down or
rebooted without any warning message, and without saving current application data. To stop to disappear the data due to easy
writing, please be careful when using this function.

Setting Value
ActionDecimalHex.
1
0001
Shut-Down
20002
Reboot257
0101
Forced Shut-Down
258
0102
Forced Reboot*6 Shows which “Error Event” is being monitored by the PL Seies unit.

-11-<Bit Assign List for DIN, Error Event and Error Mask>
The bit allocations of DIN, Error Event and Error Mask are shown below.
To start the monitoring of an Error Event, check the System Monitor/RAS
feature [System Monitor Property] dialog box’s [Enable] check box for eachdesired feature. Once this is done, the Error Mask’s corresponding bits willturn ON. Then, if an error occurs, that Error Event’s bit will turn ON.
Device Nam e
DIN

Error Event

Item sDIN 0
DIN 1
CPU Voltage Error+3.3V Voltage Error+5V Voltage Error+12V Voltage Error-5V Voltage Error-12V Voltage Error
VIT Voltage Error
CPU F an Error
Power F an Error
CPU T em perature Error
System T em perature Error
W atch Dog T im er Error
Software M irroring Error
Hardware M irroring Error

Error M ask

Backlight Error
CPU Voltage Error+3.3V Voltage Error+5V Voltage Error+12V Voltage Error-5V Voltage Error-12V Voltage Error
VIT Voltage Error
CPU F an Error
Power F an Error
CPU T em perature Error
System T em perature Error
W atch Dog T im er Error
Software M irroring Error
Hardware M irroring Error
Backlight Error

Corresponding U nits
PL-5900 PL-X920
SeriesSeries
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
X
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
X

*1

O
O
O
O
O
O
O
X
O
O
O
O
O
O
X
O

*1

Bit
DIN 00
DIN 01
ER R00
ER R01
ER R02
ER R03
ER R04
ER R05
ER R06
ER R07
ER R08
ER R09
ER R0AER R0BER R0C

O

*1

O

*2

ER R0D

O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O
O

*3

O

*1

ER R0EER RM 00
ER RM 01
ER RM 02
ER RM 03
ER RM 04
ER RM 05
ER RM 06
ER RM 07
ER RM 08
ER RM 09
ER RM 0A
ER RM 0B
ER RM 0CO

*2

ER RM 0DO

*3

ER RM 0E

*1 PL-SM900 (Separately sold “Soft Mirror Utility”) is required. Please install PL-SM900
software first, then the Remote RAS Feature software. When the PL-SM900 software is
installed, the Remote RAS Feature software must also be installed.
*2 PL-MD*00 (Separately sold “Mirror Disk Unit”) is required.
*3 “Backlight” is available only with PL-6920 Series units.

-12-Error Messages
The Pro-Server with Pro-Studio error messages can occur during reading/writing of data to a device.
Error Codes related to the Remote RAS features are as follows.
Error Code
Decimal
Hex.
9530
253Ah
9531
253Bh
9532
253Ch
9533
253Dh
9534
253Eh
9535
253Fh
65535
(Unsigned)

ffffh

Error Messages
PL RAS initialization error
Unsupported Command
Unsupported Access Type
Unsupported Read/Write Type
Device access is not allowed
Failed to set/get the value from the device
Error occurred during read/write of an invalid
Voltage, Temperature and Fan Rotation Speedvalue, or to a non-supporting device.
Ex.) When PL-5900 Series unit writing the value to"VIT Voltage" device

For other Pro-Server with Pro-Studio for Windows error messages information
Pro-Server with Pro-Studio for Windows Operation Manual-13-

6 DDE Functions
The Pro-Server software is equipped with the DDE Server function and can
exchange data with applications that support the DDE Client function.
The following explanation describes how to use Microsoft® Excel to read out
device data and view real-time changes in that data.
1) Click on the “Symbol [Item]” bar, shown below.

2) Select the [Programming Support (P)] menu’s [DDE:String Copy].

-14-3) Here, the copied string is pasted into an Excel worksheet, which creates a
DDE link.

4) If desired, create surrounding text and graphs for that data. Excel’s graphfeature allows you to view device value changes in real time.

-15-

7

Data Sharing Between User Applications
A “Common Memory” area is allocated for Client PL devices to store data.
This area allows user applications (“A” in the Server PC and “B” in the ClientPL) to share data.

*a User Application A accesses Common Memory using ProEasy.dll.
For further information about ProEasy.dll
Pro-Server with
Pro-Studio for Windows Operation Manual.
*b User Application B accesses Common Memory using PL_Ras.dll.
The following page explains the Visual Basic and Visual C++ Read/Writearguments used when User Application B uses PL_Ras.dll and accesses
the Common Memory area.
Beforehand, be sure to include PL_Ras.h and Link PL_Ras.lib.

-16-Application Development Language Microsoft® Visual Basic® 6.0
Service Pack 3 or higher[Call Format]

Declare Function PLDevWordWrite Lib “PL_Ras.dll”(ByVal Addr As Long, ByVal wData As Long) As Long

[Return Value] 0 : Normal
Except 0 : Error[Arguments]

Addr As Long
Write memory word address from 0 to 255 (Pass by value)
wData As Long Write data

[Processing]Write data to common memory[Call Format]

Declare Function PLDevWordRead Lib “PL_Ras.dll”(ByVal Addr As Long, ByRef wData As Long) As Long

[Return Value] 0 : Normal
Except 0 : Error[Arguments]

Addr As Long
Read memory word address from 0 to 255 (Pass by value)
wData As Long Pointer to read data storage variable (Pass by reference)[Processing]

Read out common memory data.

Application Development Language Microsoft® Visual C++® 6.0
Service Pack 3 or higher[Call Format]

long WINAPI PLDevWordWrite (long Addr, long wData)[Return Value] 0 : Normal
Except 0 : Error[Arguments]

Addr
wData

Write memory word address (from 0 to 255)
Write data

[Processing]Write data to common memory[Call Format]

long WINAPI PLDevWordRead (long Addr, long *wData)[Return Value] 0 : Normal
Except 0 : Error[Arguments]

Addr*wDataRead memory word address (from 0 to 255)
Pointer to read data storage variable[Processing]

Read out common memory data.

Creating and Deleting Common Memory
Starting PL_Smon.exe will automatically create the Common Memory area,and quitting PL_Smon.exe will delete the Common Memory area. Since
Common Memory is located in RAM, the PC/PL is unable to save this data.
Starting PL_Smon.exe will automatically initialize this area’s data.
-17-

8 Restrictions• Pro-Server can use the following features to access device addresses.
For details about each feature
Pro-Server with Pro-Studio for
Windows Operation Manual.
Pro-Server Features
DDE
Simple DLL(ProEasy.dll)
OPC Interface
SRAM Backup Data
Actions
Provider Information
Data View
VBA Support Function
Device Data Backup and Restoration
Capture Data Saving Function
Security Function
Device Monitoring
Status Monitoring
Read Performance Measuring Tool

O:Support
X:Not Support
O
described the details
on next page
*1
O
X
X
X
*2*3
O
O
*4
O
X
O
O
X
O

*1 The compatible OS is Windows NT® 4.0 and Windows® 2000 only.
*2 The “Data View” feature requires Pro-Server with Pro-Studio for Windows Ver.4.0 or
higher.
*3 Remote RAS Feature cannot use GP-Viewer in Data View Function.
*4 Only devices that enable to be written to can be restored.

-18-

The following Remote RAS Simple DLL (ProEasy.dll) features are available.
•
Direct Read *1•
Direct Write *1•

Cache Read *1•

Multi-Thread Handle Acquisition•

Multi-Thread Handle Release•

Loading the Network Project File•

Convert Error Codes to Strings•

Entry Node Status Read•

Simple DLL Initialization•

Simple DLL Termination• In a PL unit, simultaneous use of both the Remote RAS feature and ProServer is not possible.

*1 Depending on the device’s Read/Write characteristics or the types of data that can beaccessed, certain Remote RAS Write/Read features may not be available. For Read/Write
characteristics and available device data types,
5 - Reading/Writing via System
Monitor/RAS Feature.

Note
Please be aware that Digital Electronics Corporation shall not be held
liable by the user for any damages, losses, or third party claims arisingfrom the uses of this product.

Digital Electronics Corporation
8-2-52 Nanko Higashi, Suminoe-ku, Osaka 559-0031, Japan
URL: http://www.pro-face.com/© 2002 Digital Electronics Corporation-19-