ALLENBRADLEYCONTROLLOGIXAND COMPACTLOGIXPLCAPPNOTEFORVIPER SYSTEM

PN0095008325 Revision0 ReleasedNovember2011

TECHNICAL SERVICE SUPPORT BULLETIN

 CONTENTS
1. 2. 2.1. 2.2. 2.3. 2.4. 3. 3.1. 3.2. 3.3. Overview.........................................................................................................................................................................3 AllenBradleyCompactLogix/ControlLogixPLCs............................................................................................................. 3 PLCladderlogiconrestartopensallconnectionsatonceinsteadofsequentially...................................................3 ABCompactLogix/ControllogixseriesPLCsEtherNet/IPconnectiontimeout...........................................................4 ABCompactLogix/ControllogixseriesPLCssendstomanyCIPForwardOpenandCIPForwardClose..............6 ABCompactLogix/ControlLogixseriesPLCssendsmanyTCP/IPkeepalivemessages...............................................9 Viper.............................................................................................................................................................................10 SetupViperinroutermode(insteadofBridgemode)............................................................................................. 10 FilteringTCPkeepalivewithViperTCPproxymode................................................................................................ 10 ReplacingorresettingaViperusingproxymodewithoutrestartingpolling ...........................................................10

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1. OVERVIEW
AguidetoassistwithAllenBradleyCompactLogix/ControlLogixcommunicationsetupbetweenmasterPLCandremotePLC usingABEtherNet/IPTCPprotocolbetweenPLCs. PLCcommunicationviaseriallinesorserialterminalserverisnotcoveredhere,neverthelesssomeoftheinformation couldapply. NOTE:PleaseconsulttheCalAmpsViperGeneralPLCsetupsupportbulletinforimportantinformationonsettingup systemswithPLCs.

2. ALLEN BRADLEY COMPACTLOGIX/CONTROLLOGIX PLCS

BelowisalistofimportantsettingstoimprovecommunicationwhenusedwithalimitedbandwidthVipernetwork.More informationoncommunicationcanbefoundintheCalAmpsViperGeneralPLCsetupsupportbulletinonCalAmps supportWebpage. NOTE:Whenrequired,contactyourPLCproviderorAllenBradley/RockwellAutomationsupport.

2.1.

PLC LADDER LOGIC ON RESTART OPENS ALL CONNECTIONS AT ONCE INSTEAD OF SEQUENTIALLY

WhenPLCladderprogramissetuptohaveatstartupallwritemessagerungssettotrue,allTCPconnectionsaretriggered "simultaneously".ThiscreatesanoverloadofTCPSYNsandsomewhatcouldcongesttheonairtrafficdependingonthe system. Itisrecommendedtosetuptheladderwritemessagerungsnottostartupsimultaneously.Writemessagesshouldbesetup toopentheTCPconnectionsequentially.FormoreinformationcontactyourPLCproviderorAllenBradley/Rockwell Automationsupport.

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2.2.

AB COMPACTLOGIX/CONTROLLOGIX SERIES PLCS ETHERNET/IP CONNECTION TIMEOUT (SETTING TIMEOUT TO SHORT CAN CAUSE PROBLEMS!)

WhenusingtheEthernet/IPwithAllenBradleyCompactLogix/ControlLogix(Logixseries),theTCPConnectiontimeoutisset onapermessageinstructionbasisusingMessageConfigurationratherthanChannelconfigurationChannel1ofthe MicroLogixseries. WhenmessagesaredefinedusingMessageConfigurationandusingpathex:LocalENB,2,192.168.1.9:1,0. Briefdescription: TCPconnectionisopenedwhenthefirstmessageissent. TheTCPconnectiontimeoutissetbydefaultto120secsincetheinactivitydefaultsettingis120sec. WhileconnectionisestablishedwithsameremoteIPandsameport,ex:192.168.1.9,othermessageswilluse thesameTCPconnection,andthereforeresettingthetimeoutcountforeachmessagesent. Whenallmessagesareusingthesamedefaultinactivitytime(120sec)theTCPconnectionsstaysopenaslong thenextmessageissentwithintheinactivitytimeoutperiod. TheTCPconnectionisclosedafterthelastmessageplustheinactivityperiod(default120sec). TheTCPconnectioncanalsobeterminatedbasedonnetworkconnectionproblems.

Exampleusingdefaultinactivitytimeout(120sec).

OverwritingthedefaultinactivitytimeoutfortheTCPconnectioninMessageConfiguration: (Notrecommendedunlessrequired) ItispossibletooverwritetheMessageConfigurationdefaultinactivitytimeoutvaluebyusingpathex:LocalENB,2, 192.168.1.9:inactivity100,1,0.Usinginactivity100wouldsettheinactivitytimeoutto100secondsinsteadofthedefault 120seconds.(Note:Settingofinactivityx:wherexcanbebetween1and120seconds,usingx>120secondswilldisable themessagecompletely). Overwritingthedefaultinactivitytimeoutisnormallynotrequiredandcancauseadditionalsideeffects.Oneoftheseside effectswouldbewhentheinactivitytimeoutislessthanthelongestdelaybetweentwomessages;additionalIPmessages

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aresentforeachcloseandreopenoftheTCPconnection.Thisaddsalotofonairtrafficandimpactsthesystem performance. NotewhenusingdifferentinactivitytimeoutvaluesformessageswiththesameTCPconnection: WhendifferentmessagesforthesameremotesharethesameTCPconnection,eachdifferentmessagesinactivitytimeout wouldrestartthetimeouttimer.Messageexample:msg1inactivity60,msg2inactivity100,msg3inactivity30.These messagesarethensentasfollows:msg1issent,msg2issent,msg3andthenawaitisdone.Sincethelastmessagewas msg3withinactivitytimeoutof30seconds,theTCPconnectionwouldcloseafter30secondsofmsg3. Settingexampleusingcustominactivitytimeout(100sec).

SummaryonTCPconnectiontimeout(inactivitysetting) SincethelongestinactivitytimeoutperTCPconnectionwitharemoteunit(PLC/RTU)is120seconds(basedonmessage inactivitymaxof120seconds),itisimportantthateachremote(PLC/RTU)ispolledwiththe120secondperiodtoavoid extratrafficresultingfromadditionalTCP/IPopenandcloseconnectionmessages.Forsystemswherepollingisdone infrequently(>120sec)theadditionalTCPtrafficneedstobeconsideredforthesystemtrafficplan. FornormaloperationtheinactivitytimeoutdoesnotneedtobespecifiedinthePathsetting.Masterandremotesshould besetthisway,especiallyifremotePLCssendunsolicitedmessagesorinitiatecommunicationwithotherremotes.Ifa systemhasamixofPLCs(CompactLogix/ControlLogixwithMicroLogix/SLC),thenalsorefertoCalAmpsAllenBradleyPLC forViperSystemsupportbulletinavailableonCalAmpsWEBsiteundersupport.

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2.3.

AB COMPACTLOGIX/CONTROLLOGIX SERIES PLCS SENDS TO MANY CIP FORWARD OPEN AND CIP FORWARD CLOSE

WhenusingtheEtherNet/IPwithCIPcommunicationprotocolwithAllenBradleyCompactLogix/ControlLogixPLCs(and withotherLogixseriesPLCs),theoptiontouseConnectedorUnconnectedisavailableintheMessageConfiguration. BydefaulttheConnectedcheckboxisselectedandthereforeitwilladdadditionalmessages(CIPforwardopenandCIP forwardclosemessages)foreachread/writeoperationwhennextmessageissentoutsidethemessagetimeoutperiod (default=30sec). Tolowertheonairtrafficthe"Connected"checkboxshouldbeunchecked(Unconnected). ConnectedorUnconnectedoperationdescriptionforCIP: Whenthe"Connected"checkboxischecked(Connected),ifthere'snotaCIPconnectionalreadyestablished,then thecontrollersendsanopenforwardCIPconnectioncommandandwaitsforthegoodresponsepriorto transmittingthereadorwritecommand.TheCIPconnectionremainsopenaslongasthereisactivitypriortothe timeout(default=30sec).AnymessageinstructionsendingcommandstothesamedevicecanusethesameCIP andTCPconnection.Ifthistimeoutisreached,acloseCIPconnectioncommandissent. Whenthe"Connected"checkboxisunchecked(Unconnected),thecontrollerusestheUnconnectedCIPserviceto transmitthereadorwritecommand,sothereislessoverhead. TheConnectiontimeoutisonapermessageinstructionbasisasshownbelowthisiswithregardstotheCIP ConnectiononlynottheTCPconnection,whichisonlycontrolledbytheInactivityTimeout:

For the Logix controllers, the UnconnectedTimeout has to be individually adjusted in each message instruction tag. The default is 30,000,000 microseconds (30 seconds):

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 WhenusingMessagetypeEtherNet/IPCIPprotocol. TolowertheonairtrafficuncheckConnectedintheMessageConfigurationmethod. BelowisanexamplewhentheMessageTypeis"CIPDataTableRead"or"CIPDataTableWrite".Notethatthe "Connected"checkboxshouldbeunchecked,thisisbecauseifyouleaveitchecked,theneverytimetheMSGinstructionis executedaCIPconnection(withCIPopenmessage)willbeestablishedandbroken(withCIPclosemessage)whichadds unnecessarilytothenetworktraffic.

WhencommunicationbetweenControlLogix/CompactLogixandotherLogixseriesPLCs. ThesePLCs/ControllerusuallyuseEtherNet/IPCIPunconnectedprotocoltocommunicatebetweeneachother. Note(seebelow)thatwhentheMessageTypeis"SLCTypedRead"or"SLCTypedWrite",theLogixMSGinstructionalways usesanUnconnectedCIP(noticethatthe"Connected"checkboxisuncheckedandgrayedout).Forexamplethisisused whenusingPCCCencapsulatedinEtherNet/IPcommand.OthersthanreadorwriteforSLCtypesarenotdescribedinthis document.

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SummaryofConnectedorUnconnectedoperation WithConnectedoptionselectedandpollingintervalbetweenMessagesforthesameremoteCIPconnectionislonger thantheUnconnectedTimeout(default30seconds),CIPForwardOpenandCIPForwardClosemessagesadd4extra onairmessages(includesmsgreply)foreachunitpolled.Ifeachpollis2messages(msgandreply)the4extramessages increasethemessageload(onair)by200%. Therefore"Connected"checkboxshouldbeunchecked(Unconnected)toavoidsending)CIPForwardOpenandCIP ForwardClosemessages.IfConnectedisrequiredthenincreasetheUnconnectedTimeoutandConnectionRate timeouttoavaluegreaterthanthepollingintervalperremote(useprecautionwiththis). TimeoutsusedformessageresponsesoverEtherNet/IPConnectedorUnconnectedshouldnotbetooshort,therefore shouldnotbesetlowerthan15sec(normally)intheeventitisrequiredbeinglowerthan30secforapplicationlevel retransmission.TheTCP/IPcommunicationdriverdoesitsownretransmissionsandwillnotrequireapplication retransmissionsofmessagessinceaTCPconnectionwillnotlooseamessageunlesstheconnectionterminatesnormallyor duetoaproblem.ThereforewithTCPlongertimeoutswithinreasonareok.Longertimeouts(ex30sec)areoksincethey

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minimizeduplicatedmessagebeingbufferedbyTCPintheeventofnetworkcongestionorcommunicationproblemswith remoteunit. WithfuturereleasesofPLCsoftware/firmwarethedescribedoperationcouldchange.Itisalwaysrecommendedtobe informedonPLCreleasechangesfromyourPLCproviderorAllenBradley/RockwellAutomationsupport.

2.4. AB COMPACTLOGIX/CONTROLLOGIX SERIES PLCS SENDS MANY TCP/IP KEEPALIVE MESSAGES

TheCompactLogix/ControlLogixseriesPLCssendsTCP/IPkeepalivemessagesevery8secondsinbothdirectionsforeach TCPconnection.WhenseveralPLCsdothesameitispossiblethatagoodpartoftheonairbandwidthisusedupbythe keepalivetraffic. WerecommendthattheViperisconfiguredinroutermodeandthatTCPproxyisenabled.TheViperTCPproxyfeaturewill filterouttheTCP/IPkeepalivemessages. ThePLCsTCPkeepalivecannotbedisablednoradjusted.RecommendedtoAllenBradley/RockwellAutomationtohavean optioninthePLCsettingstodisablekeepaliveandhavingusersettablekeepaliveintervals.Thiscouldpotentiallybecome availableinfuturereleasesofPLCfirmware.

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3. VIPER 3.1. SETUP VIPER IN ROUTER MODE (INSTEAD OF BRIDGE MODE)

Info:ViperBridgemodecannotfilterkeepaliveandcannotoperateinTCPproxymode. IfthesystemhasveryfewunitsandfewmessagesViperBridgemodecouldbeused.ButforlargersystemsandPLCdoing manykeepalives,oronairnetworkbeingcontentious,itmayberequiredtouseroutermode.Routermodeallows retransmissionofmessageslostduetoonaircontention.Bridgemodeonlydoesbroadcastswithoutretries.InBridge modetheapplicationneedstoretrylostmessages.

3.2.

FILTERING TCP KEEPALIVE WITH VIPER TCP PROXY MODE

WhenusingTCPprotocolandhavingPLCswheretheTCPkeepaliveratecannotbecontrolled,itisimportanttoenable ViperTCP(OIPproxy)mode.ThisrequiresthatallVipersareconfiguredinroutermode(ViperBridgemodecannotfilter keepaliveandcannotoperateinTCPproxymode). Note:ForPLCswherethekeepalivecanbecontrolledandarerequired,setkeepaliveto4minutes. OneoftheViper'sTCPproxymodeusagesallowsfilteringofkeepalivemessagesandpreventsthemtobesentovertheair. Withoutthisfiltering,severalPLCssendingkeepalivemessagescouldeasilyloadtheonairnetwork. SeeViperusermanualandWebpagestoenableproxy.BydefaultViperproxymodeisenabled.SeeViperWebpage Advancedsetup>OIPoptimizations.AlsounderNetworkmanagement>NeighborTables(neighbormanagement)make surethatneighborsareconfiguredwiththeproxyattribute.

3.3.

REPLACING OR RESETTING A VIPER USING PROXY MODE WITHOUT RESTARTING POLLING

Whenreplacingorresetting:aremoteViper,aViperusedasarepeater,orevenamasterViperconnectedthrougha switch,theViperproxycontextislostandwilloperatewithouttheproxybenefit. ToreestablishTCPproxycontextfortheTCPconnection,thePLCneedstoclosetheoldTCPconnectionandreopenanew TCPconnection.ThereforenormallyafterdoingVipermaintenancethemasterPLCneedstoberestarted.FutureViper firmwaremayreestablishproxyautomatically.

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