Procedure for the application-specific configuration of a field device (FG) which is installed in a defined application (A) in an automation engineering process and which determines or monitors at least one process variable of a medium, wherein said procedure comprises the following procedural steps: - Recording of at least one diagnostic message, error message or item of information about an error message (D) which occurs or has occurred at least temporarily at the field device (FG) at least during a defined time interval, - Analysis to determine which of the at least one diagnostic message, error message and/or item of information about the error message (D) are tolerable in the defined application (A), - Assignment of application-specific information (TP) regarding tolerability to each diagnostic message, error message and/or item of information about an error message (D) occurring in the defined application (A), - Suppression of the at least one diagnostic message, error message and/or item of information about an error message (D) if this is classed as tolerable in the defined application (A), - Saving of the application-specific settings (ASE) that suppress the at least one diagnostic message, error message and/or item of information about the error message (D) classed as tolerable, by several field devices (FG) in the same application or a similarly defined application (A, A'), wherein the similarly defined application (A') matches the defined application (A) within predefined tolerance limits concerning application-specific information (ASI), - Determination of an optimum setting (OE) for a field device (FG) in the same or a similar application (A, A') using the saved application-specific settings (ASE) of the field devices (FG) or using statistical evaluation methods. - Recording of at least one diagnostic message, error message or item of information about an error message (D) which occurs or has occurred at least temporarily at the field device (FG) at least during a defined time interval, - Analysis to determine which of the at least one diagnostic message, error message and/or item of information about the error message (D) are tolerable in the defined application (A), - Assignment of application-specific information (TP) regarding tolerability to each diagnostic message, error message and/or item of information about an error message (D) occurring in the defined application (A), - Suppression of the at least one diagnostic message, error message and/or item of information about an error message (D) if this is classed as tolerable in the defined application (A), - Saving of the application-specific settings (ASE) that suppress the at least one diagnostic message, error message and/or item of information about the error message (D) classed as tolerable, by several field devices (FG) in the same application or a similarly defined application (A, A'), wherein the similarly defined application (A') matches the defined application (A) within predefined tolerance limits concerning application-specific information (ASI), - Determination of an optimum setting (OE) for a field device (FG) in the same or a similar application (A, A') using the saved application-specific settings (ASE) of the field devices (FG) or using statistical evaluation methods. <EOS>