FactoryTalk AssetCentre Custom Device Plug-in frequently asked questions

For a video introduction, see Introduction to FactoryTalk AssetCentre Custom Devices.

What is a Custom Device asset?

The Custom Device asset allows users to create assets that are not intrinsically part of FactoryTalk AssetCentre. Using Custom Device assets, users can customize scheduled operations to be performed by FactoryTalk AssetCentre agents. A Custom Device asset allows for the execution of a user-defined operation, collection of the resulting files, and then execution of an optional post-backup operation.

For example, a user can use the Custom Device capability and the AutoIt scripting language to configure and perform disaster recovery operations with third-party devices, such as

Siemens®

, etc. For more information, see Knowledgebase Document ID: QA43409 - Building Custom Devices for FactoryTalk AssetCentre Disaster Recovery using AutoIt Scripting Language.

How are custom device assets licensed?

Custom Device Disaster Recovery is a capability activation, and each custom device asset added to the FactoryTalk AssetCentre asset tree will consume one asset within an asset capacity activation. See Knowledgebase Document ID: QA9523 - FactoryTalk AssetCentre Activation for information on the difference between capacity and capability activations.

How are custom device assets configured?

A section within the

Tools > Options

menu of the FactoryTalk AssetCentre desktop client allows for the creation of new custom asset types. These are global definitions that can be applied to multiple assets within the FactoryTalk AssetCentre asset tree. When a new Custom Device asset is added to the asset tree, a user will select the global Custom Device definition. Asset-level customization can be applied to any global definition. See Knowledgebase Document ID: QA21921 - Building Custom Devices for use with FactoryTalk AssetCentre Disaster Recovery for a configuration example.

What is the difference between "Global" and "Device" level property definitions?

A Custom Device's global level property definition is inherited by all assets configured to make use of the Custom Device. Within each individual asset, these properties can be augmented or overwritten by the device level properties. Typically, the global definitions will be sufficient for the majority of the asset's properties. For example, however, each asset may have a different Backup Location path or operational argument that differentiate it from similar Custom Devices, which can be defined in the device level properties.

What is the difference between a backup operation and a post-backup operation?

A Custom Device's backup operation is performed at the beginning of the task execution, and is intended to produce a file or group of files for the FactoryTalk AssetCentre agent to collect. The post-backup operation is executed after the file or group of files is collected, and is typically used to delete the output of the backup operation to ensure no copies remain outside of the FactoryTalk AssetCentre archive.

What type of programs can be associated with an operation?

FactoryTalk AssetCentre supports the following types of application files: *.exe (Microsoft Windows Executable), *.bat (Microsoft Batch Script), *.vbs (Microsoft Visual Basic Script), *.ps1 (Microsoft Power Shell Commandlet).

How long will FactoryTalk AssetCentre wait for an operation to complete?

Each operation associated with a Custom Device includes a unique delay timer, measured in seconds. This property allows the user to define how long the FactoryTalk AssetCentre agent should wait for the operation to complete. As soon as the operation completes, or the timer expires, the agent will proceed.

How does FactoryTalk AssetCentre retrieve the files associated with a custom device?

Each Custom Device asset has a Backup Location specified as part of its properties. This can be defined at the global level or asset level. Following the Backup operation, the FactoryTalk AssetCentre agent will collect the contents of the Backup Location folder.

How will FactoryTalk AssetCentre store the associated files in the archive?

The contents of the Custom Device's Backup Location will be packaged into a binder, even if there is only one file.

Can Custom Device assets be used as part of a Disaster Recovery schedule?

Yes. A Custom Device asset can be defined in a Backup or Backup and Compare schedule.

How will differences be determined as part of a Disaster Recovery schedule?

The files associated with a Custom Device asset will be compared using the FactoryTalk AssetCentre binder comparison engine. The results of this comparison will be used to determine if there are differences found.

Can a custom compare utility be configured for Disaster Recovery schedules?

As of version 6.10, it is possible to configure a custom comparison command. The results of a custom comparison will be entered into the FactoryTalk AssetCentre event log, as well as included in any configured email reports. FactoryTalk AssetCentre will continue to use the binder compare engine to determine if differences were found for the purposes of Disaster Recovery functionality (for example, event log message type, promote to master, or email on differences found) because it is not possible to receive such instructions based on third party comparison. The custom comparison command will be executed regardless of the result of the binder comparison, meaning that even if the binder comparison does not detect differences, a custom compare report will be generated.