This driver is an advanced driver. It provides additional functionality to enable ClearSCADA to interface with specific supported devices using a particular protocol. To interact successfully with such devices, you need to:
- Install and run the driver
- Ensure that the driver is licensed
- Configure the required database items and settings on the driver
- Ensure that the database items (and any database items on which they depend) have valid, saved, configuration and are 'In Service'.
The Advanced OPC driver is an OPC Data Access (DA) client. OPC DA is a standard defined by the OPC Foundation and is based OLE/COM interfaces, which allows interoperability between automation/control applications, field systems/devices, and business/office applications in the process control industry. ClearSCADA supports the OPC DA versions 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 standard to allow transfer of data between the ClearSCADA server and third-party OPC DA servers.
The Advanced OPC driver is used to read and write to data on other servers, including ClearSCADA or third-party servers, using the OPC protocol. The driver supports private security that may be required to access particular items in an OPC DA server.
This guide explains how to configure OPC-specific features and items within the ClearSCADA database (see Configuring Advanced OPC Items in ClearSCADA).
It also explains driver-specific aspects that are of interest to system administrators and engineers when investigating unexpected system behavior relating to the Advanced OPC driver (see OPC Server Registration and Server Browsing, and see Advanced OPC Specific Status Display Attributes.)
NOTE: There are driver-specific pick actions for items on the Advanced OPC driver (Using Advanced OPC Specific Actions). In addition, users with the required privileges can add custom pick actions to a database item by using the User Methods tab on the relevant configuration Form (see Using the User Methods Tab to Define Custom Actions in the ClearSCADA Guide to Core Configuration). See a system administrator for the documentation associated with such custom actions (also known as ‘methods’).
ClearSCADA includes three drivers: Simple OPC, Advanced OPC and OPC XML-DA — for information on which driver is appropriate for your system requirements, see Which OPC Driver?.
Further Information
OPC Foundation Standards: see www.opcfoundation.org
OPC Time Formats used in ClearSCADA: see Using OPC Time Formats in the ClearSCADA Guide to Core Configuration.