How does synchronization work?

Studio 5000 automatically synchronizes data between a
Logix Designer
 project file (.acd) and a
View Designer
 project file (.vpd).
It also synchronizes data between the runtime application on the HMI device and the controller connected to that HMI device. The synchronized data includes tags, data types, program tags, and alarms. The synchronization service automatically runs in the background every 15 seconds, enabling you to continue working while the data is synchronized.
Synchronization between
Logix Designer
 and
View Designer
When you create an HMI project in
View Designer
, use the synchronized data to bind to graphic elements, screens, or expressions.
In
View Designer
:
  • Synchronization state indicator icons appear next to the controller on the
    References
    tab, and on the
    Tag Browser
     window to indicate the state of the controller. The state indicators do not appear if there is no new data to synchronize. The following table describes the state indicator icons.
    State indicator icons
    These are the controller state indicator icons:
    Icon
    Description
    Icon: View Designer Sync Icon
    A controller is synchronizing.
    Icon: View Designer Out of Sync Icon
    The data in a controller is not synchronized. Controller data synchronizes automatically. Hover the mouse on the icon to display additional information.
    Icon: View Designer Sync Lost Icon
    A synchronization error occurred. The
    Logix Designer
     project file (.acd) does not exist, or it is a version that is not supported. Hover your mouse on the icon to display additional information.
    Icon: View Designer Synced Icon
    The controller is synchronized.
  • When you add a new controller reference, content is synchronized between the
    Logix Designer
     project file (.acd) for that controller and the
    View Designer
     project file (.vpd).
  • When synchronization is in progress, you cannot download an HMI project to the HMI device. As a best practice, Rockwell Automation recommends you save your HMI project after synchronization is complete.
  • When you change the controller reference, click
    OK
    on the
    References
     tab to synchronize content between the newly referenced
    Logix Designer
     project file (.acd) for that controller and the
    View Designer
     project file (.vpd). If the
    Logix Designer
     project file (.acd) is not valid, the synchronization service displays an error, synchronization does not take place, and the HMI project references the previously synchronized data from the last referenced
    Logix Designer
     project file (.acd).
  • When you delete the controller reference, the previously synchronized data from the
    Logix Designer
     project file (.acd) is removed from the
    View Designer
     project file.
    TIP:
    If you save the
    View Designer
     project before synchronization finshes, or if you abort the synchronization (for example by closing the project before it finishes), content synchronization will start again the next time you open the project.
In
Logix Designer
:
When you make a change in a
Logix Designer
 project file (.acd), the synchronization service detects the changes to the
Logix Designer
 project file (.acd). The synchronization service automatically synchronizes data between the
Logix Designer
 and
View Designer
 project files.
Synchronization between the runtime application on the HMI device and the controller connected to the HMI device
When you download the HMI project to the HMI device, the synchronization service connects the runtime application to the controller referenced in the HMI project. After the synchronization service connects to the controller, it reads data from the controller to determine if it matches the data in the HMI project. If the data does not match, the data in the HMI project automatically synchronizes with the data in the controller.
When the runtime application is running on the HMI device, the synchronization service checks if the
Logix Designer
 file in the controller was updated. The
Logix Designer
 project file in the controller can be updated using the online editing features in
Logix Designer
. If the project file was updated, the synchronization service will automatically synchronize data between the
Logix Designer
 project file referenced in the runtime application and the newly updated
Logix Designer
 project file in the controller.
You can configure system tags to display information about the synchronization status of the runtime application and the Logix5000 controller or use the ControllersGeneral screen in the
Predefined Screens
 folder.
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