Post by danp1406 on Question about Demo License limitations for Modbus TCP communication and Fieldbus Instances
CODESYS Forge
talk
(Post)
Hello everyone, I am currently working with CODESYS Virtual Control for Linux running in Docker on a Debian virtual machine. I am deploying my application using Deploy Control SL, and in my project I am using the ModbusFB library to implement Modbus TCP communication. My setup is the following: I am trying to establish a Modbus TCP connection between a virtual PLC (CODESYS acting as Modbus TCP Client/Master) and a Siemens S7-1200 PLC acting as a Modbus TCP Server. From the Debian VM, I can successfully ping the S7-1200 and verify that port 502 is open using tools like nc. Network-wise, everything appears to be correct. However, when running the application in CODESYS, I receive messages such as “Demo mode for Modbus/TCP Master started. Will expire and stop!” and socket errors like “ClientSocket.UpdateStatus socket error 111 disconnecting.” The ClientTCP block from the ModbusFB library attempts to connect, but the connection does not remain stable. My main question is whether the CODESYS demo license explicitly limits or interrupts Modbus TCP Master communication. Is it expected that in demo mode the runtime will automatically close sockets after some time or prevent stable Modbus TCP connections? I would like to confirm whether this behavior is normal when using ModbusFB in demo mode, or if I should continue troubleshooting the configuration. Additionally, I would like clarification regarding the “fieldbus instances” mentioned in CODESYS licensing options (for example, 2, 4, or 16 instances). What exactly is considered one fieldbus instance? Does one Modbus TCP Client block count as one instance? Does each active connection to a different device count separately? Do Modbus TCP Master and Server count independently toward the total number of instances? Finally, I would appreciate clarification on any other practical limitations of demo mode when using industrial communication libraries such as ModbusFB. Are there limits on the number of connections, number of requests, or communication duration? I am trying to determine whether demo mode is sufficient for testing a virtual PLC communicating with a Siemens S7-1200 over Modbus TCP, or whether a full license is required even for this kind of validation scenario. Thank you in advance for any guidance.
Last updated: 2026-02-25
Post by alexschooneveld on OPC UA PubSub SL 1.3 — UADP WriterGroup with assigned PSS.SecurityGroup still publishes plaintext
CODESYS Forge
talk
(Post)
I am currently investigating an OPC UA PubSub connection over UDP. When I don't use encryption, the publish and subscribe are working correctly. But with encryption it does not. Environment OPC UA PubSub SL 1.3.0.0 (namespace UADP) OPC UA PubSub Security 1.3.0.0 (namespace PSS) OPC UA PubSub Base 1.3.0.0 (namespace PSB, incl. PSS.SecurityGroup / PSS.CONFIG) Programmatic PubSub in a CFC: UADP.Configuration → UADP.Connection → UADP.writerGroup → UADP.writer → writerDataSet, plus a CyclicCall gated by xEnable. Goal: publish secured UADP, SignAndEncrypt, policy PubSub-Aes256-CTR. What I do (one-shot, before xEnable := TRUE): fbSecurityGroup.SetInitialValue( 'http://opcfoundation.org/UA/SecurityPolicy#PubSub-Aes256-CTR', PSB.SECURITY.SIGNING_AND_ENCRYPTION); stSecurityCfg := fbSecurityGroup.GetConfig(eErrorID => eError); // eError=NO_ERROR, udiEncryptionKeySize=32 eError := fbSecurityGroup.SetSecurityKeys(udiTokenId, ADR(abyKey), SIZEOF(abyKey), 2436001000); // eError=NO_ERROR, SIZEOF=68 // writerGroup.itfSecurityGroup := fbSecurityGroup -- set in the WriterGroup block's Parameters (a per-scan code write got overwritten) What I verified eError = NO_ERROR after both GetConfig and SetSecurityKeys; udiEncryptionKeySize = 32. Key length = 68 bytes (signing 32 ‖ encrypt 32 ‖ nonce 4). itfSecurityGroup is set via the WriterGroup's Parameters (so it isn't clobbered each scan). Init runs before xEnable (the writer doesn't run with xEnable=FALSE). The UADP.writerGroup FB exposes only itfSecurityGroup for security — no SecurityMode/MessageSecurityMode property. Result: the published datagrams are still plaintext — ExtendedFlags1 = 0x01 (security bit 0x10 clear), no security header: b1 01 29 00 0f 16 00 … (PublisherId 41, WriterGroupId 22, RawData, no security) Questions With UADP.writerGroup, is assigning a configured + keyed PSS.SecurityGroup to itfSecurityGroup sufficient to enable message security, or is there an additional step/property/method to switch the WriterGroup to SignAndEncrypt? At what point in the WriterGroup lifecycle is itfSecurityGroup read? Must it be assigned/keyed before xActive, and does the group need a stop→start to pick it up? Is there a required call order, and does SetSecurityKeys need to be called once or repeatedly? Should security be configured on the Connection/Configuration level rather than (or in addition to) the WriterGroup? Is there a working example of secured (SignAndEncrypt) programmatic UADP publishing with this library, or a known limitation in 1.3? How can I read back at runtime whether security is actually active (via itfDiagnostics or similar)? Additional information I can confirm that the consumer side works — i.e. a standard subscriber decrypts the same keys fine — so the keys/profile aren't the issue. The Wireshark capture of the published message is: 0000 b1 01 29 00 0f 16 00 df 0d bb 25 01 00 0e 00 1b ..).......%..... 0010 0e 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 ........
Last updated: 2026-06-22
Post by alexschooneveld on OPC UA PubSub SL 1.3 — UADP WriterGroup with assigned PSS.SecurityGroup still publishes plaintext
CODESYS Forge
talk
(Post)
I am currently investigating an OPC UA PubSub connection over UDP. When I don't use encryption, the publish and subscribe are working correctly. But with encryption it does not. Environment OPC UA PubSub SL 1.3.0.0 (namespace UADP) OPC UA PubSub Security 1.3.0.0 (namespace PSS) OPC UA PubSub Base 1.3.0.0 (namespace PSB, incl. PSS.SecurityGroup / PSS.CONFIG) Programmatic PubSub in a CFC: UADP.Configuration → UADP.Connection → UADP.writerGroup → UADP.writer → writerDataSet, plus a CyclicCall gated by xEnable. Goal: publish secured UADP, SignAndEncrypt, policy PubSub-Aes256-CTR. What I do (one-shot, before xEnable := TRUE): fbSecurityGroup.SetInitialValue( 'http://opcfoundation.org/UA/SecurityPolicy#PubSub-Aes256-CTR', PSB.SECURITY.SIGNING_AND_ENCRYPTION); stSecurityCfg := fbSecurityGroup.GetConfig(eErrorID => eError); // eError=NO_ERROR, udiEncryptionKeySize=32 eError := fbSecurityGroup.SetSecurityKeys(udiTokenId, ADR(abyKey), SIZEOF(abyKey), 2436001000); // eError=NO_ERROR, SIZEOF=68 // writerGroup.itfSecurityGroup := fbSecurityGroup -- set in the WriterGroup block's Parameters (a per-scan code write got overwritten) What I verified eError = NO_ERROR after both GetConfig and SetSecurityKeys; udiEncryptionKeySize = 32. Key length = 68 bytes (signing 32 ‖ encrypt 32 ‖ nonce 4). itfSecurityGroup is set via the WriterGroup's Parameters (so it isn't clobbered each scan). Init runs before xEnable (the writer doesn't run with xEnable=FALSE). The UADP.writerGroup FB exposes only itfSecurityGroup for security — no SecurityMode/MessageSecurityMode property. Result: the published datagrams are still plaintext — ExtendedFlags1 = 0x01 (security bit 0x10 clear), no security header: b1 01 29 00 0f 16 00 … (PublisherId 41, WriterGroupId 22, RawData, no security) Questions With UADP.writerGroup, is assigning a configured + keyed PSS.SecurityGroup to itfSecurityGroup sufficient to enable message security, or is there an additional step/property/method to switch the WriterGroup to SignAndEncrypt? At what point in the WriterGroup lifecycle is itfSecurityGroup read? Must it be assigned/keyed before xActive, and does the group need a stop→start to pick it up? Is there a required call order, and does SetSecurityKeys need to be called once or repeatedly? Should security be configured on the Connection/Configuration level rather than (or in addition to) the WriterGroup? Is there a working example of secured (SignAndEncrypt) programmatic UADP publishing with this library, or a known limitation in 1.3? How can I read back at runtime whether security is actually active (via itfDiagnostics or similar)? Additional information I can confirm that the consumer side works — i.e. a standard subscriber decrypts the same keys fine — so the keys/profile aren't the issue. The Wireshark capture of the published message is: 0000 b1 01 29 00 0f 16 00 df 0d bb 25 01 00 0e 00 1b ..).......%..... 0010 0e 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 ........
Last updated: 2026-06-22
Post by rossanoparis on CAN TX regression in Control for Raspberry Pi 4.21.0.0 with CAN API library (RX works, TX silently fails)
CODESYS Forge
talk
(Post)
Environment: Target: Revolution Pi (Kunbus RevPi), armv7l 32-bit OS: Raspbian GNU/Linux 9 (Stretch), kernel 4.19.95-rt38-v7 (SMP PREEMPT RT, built 2022-03-22) CAN: via SocketCAN (can0) Runtime: CODESYS Control for Raspberry Pi SL IDE: CODESYS V3.5 SP22 + patch 3 (previously V3.5 SP22 + patch 2, where everything worked with runtime 4.18.0.0) Library: CANBusAPI from the "CAN API" package, version 1.0.0.3 Summary: The setup worked correctly with V3.5 SP22 + patch 2 and runtime 4.18.0.0. After updating the IDE to SP22 + patch 3 and the runtime to 4.21.0.0, CAN transmission via the CANBusAPI library stopped working. Reception is unaffected. There are no error indications anywhere: the application runs normally and the CAN diagnosis reports a healthy bus. Systematic testing (below) shows the problem follows the runtime version, not the IDE update. Regression isolation: The same application (compiled under SP22 + patch 3, unchanged between tests) was downloaded to the same target with different runtime versions, changing only the runtime each time: 4.18.0.0: TX and RX both work 4.19.0.0: TX and RX both work 4.20.0.0: TX and RX both work 4.21.0.0: RX works, TX does not The behavior is fully reproducible in both directions (downgrading to 4.20 restores TX, upgrading to 4.21 breaks it again). Hardware, wiring, OS, project, and application code are identical across all tests. Diagnostic data (CANBusDiagnosis FB, while the application is transmitting on 4.21): ctSendCounter: incrementing normally ctTxErrorCounter: 0 ctRxErrorCounter: 0 eState: ERROR_FREE xBusAlarm: FALSE So the library accepts and counts the outgoing messages, no TX errors are reported, and the CAN controller state stays error-free, but the messages never reach the other nodes on the bus. Expected behavior: Messages sent via CANBusAPI (CANDriver / SendMessage) are transmitted on the bus, as with runtime versions up to and including 4.20.0.0. Notes: I am aware that the CAN API package (1.0.0.3, from 2016) is old; however, the regression is tied to the runtime version, since the identical binary works on 4.18-4.20. Questions: Is there a known change in CmpSocketCanDrv / CmpCAACanL2 between 4.20.0.0 and 4.21.0.0 that could affect TX via the CAN API library? Is runtime 4.21.0.0 still supported on Debian 9 Stretch (kernel 4.19, RT-patched), or is a newer OS required? If a minimum OS/kernel requirement was introduced with 4.21, is it documented?
Last updated: 2026-08-17
Post by darko7417 on When running as a service, CodesysControl doesn't write log files to the disk (and other CmpLog related issuess)
CODESYS Forge
talk
(Post)
I run CODESYS runtime as a service and use CmpLog (the LogAdd2 function) to log different events to a file. I have done this many times before on various projects and hardware, and it works fine. On this particular system, I have CODESYS 3.5.20.40 running on a Windows 11 PC. The CODESYSControlService autostarts (with Local System credentials, the default), and the application runs fine. However, the configuration file is not read (or at least not the one that should be, or not the CmpLog section), and log files are not written to the disk. I would be thankful if anyone knew why this is happening and how to fix it. A note to CODESYS people: you must provide more information on the codesys configuration file, CODESYSControlService.exe and other major components and system behaviour. You created the service and various features (i.e. logging), but haven't explained how they work, which, in my opinion, is below standard for industrial automation software. These are my observations: - When running as a service, the config file is not read (none of them), or at least the CmpLog section is not read. I checked the log using Codesys IDE, and the CmpLog parameters are not the ones I have set in any of the config files. Which CmpLog config values does the service use, and where does it read them from? I have no idea, but it's not the config files. Here are the codesys config files I located on the PC's disk: o C:\Program Files (x86)\CODESYS 3.5.20.40\GatewayPLC\CODESYSControl.cfg (only 2 lines in this config) o C:\Program Files (x86)\CODESYS 3.5.20.40\GatewayPLC\AppDataFiles\CODESYSControlWinV3\CODESYSControl.cfg o C:\Users\SRV\AppData\Roaming\CODESYS\CODESYSControlWinV3\C4DBB537\CODESYSControl.cfg o C:\Program Files (x86)\CODESYS 3.5.20.40\GatewayPLC\tempCFG\CODESYSControl.cfg - When I run codesys as an app (e.g. by clicking the icon), this config file is read C:\Users\SRV\AppData\Roaming\CODESYS\CODESYSControlWinV3\C4DBB537\CODESYSControl.cfg and log files are written ok. The icon target is "C:\Program Files (x86)\CODESYS 3.5.20.40\GatewayPLC\CODESYSControlService.exe" -d o the -d option, I think, starts a cmd-like window showing service debug output (the output shown in log in the IDE) o the -i option, again I think, means install the service - I tried adding -d to service start parameters in the registry, but it started only once and after that it refused to start. Knowing what -d does and which other options are available would be great (e.g. can I make the service read a different config file). - Syslog UDP logging works fine in any case. - These are my CmpLog parameters ~~~ [CmpLog] Logger.0.Name=PlcLog3 Logger.0.Filter=0xFFFFFFFF Logger.0.Enable=1 Logger.0.MaxEntries=10003 Logger.0.MaxFileSize=50003 Logger.0.MaxFiles=33 Logger.0.Backend.0.ClassId=0x0000010B ;sends logger messages to SysOut Logger.0.Backend.1.ClassId=0x00000104 ;writes logger messages in a file Logger.0.Backend.2.ClassId=0x00000135 ;sends logger messages as UDP syslog Logger.0.Type=0x314 ;Set the timestamp to RTC ~~~
Last updated: 2025-02-27
Post by kevinrn on Github Actions CI/CD tasks - development topic
CODESYS Forge
talk
(Post)
Hello community, I just want to inform you about our plans and the current status of automating the build process for CODESYS libraries. So it might be helpful for some people who are in the same situation. Background story: I am a software engineer at powerIO GmbH, normally I use high level languages for the products we develop and offer. Sometimes I work with my team on CODESYS libraries, which can also be found in the CODESYS store. Most of the time I spend with them on architecture tasks and tasks that are not directly related to our products. Every time I see the manual processes for releasing a library etc., I am very surprised about this time intensive process. Current situation: I know there has been a scripting interface for years. CODESYS Git was released a few years ago, but the scripting interface was only released a few months (weeks?) ago. We developed a pseudo-automated solution a few months ago, but it was all very hacky. So now there is a better Git implementation and also more modularization and installation options. For example, the CODESYS installer has a full CLI, which makes it very convenient to install CODESYS installations headless. Plans: I think it's the right time to develop a better automation solution. Most of our software projects are hosted on Github and we use Github actions very intensively for other software projects. Therefore, we have decided to use Github for our CODESYS library projects as well. Following tasks should be implemented in automation for CI/CD tasks: - Automated setup of CODESYS installation (Already released: https://github.com/marketplace/actions/setup-codesys-installation) - Checkout CODESYS libraries - Execute tests scripts - Sign CODESYS libraries - Extract Library documentation - Create CODESYS package - Sign CODESYS package Side Note: - This is mainly a side project, and we do not provide support for the CI/CD part. - This topic is here to help and also to get help from other software engineers. - This project and idea is not prioritized as I am currently the only one working on it and I hope it will help us and also others and increase productivity. - We are putting this out there as an organization, but priorities can change quickly and the CI/CD tasks I am developing are mostly done in my spare time. So please don't expect this to happen in a short time or even be fully completed. I would be very happy if some ppl will join the development process and might be open to discuss some technical details for this. I hope this topic is not to off-topic, but I think the CI/CD part is very important today and it can increase a lot of quality and push productivity. Thanks :)
Last updated: 2024-03-28
Post by s1ack on Wago PFC200 Ethernet / IoDrvEthernet Issue?
CODESYS Forge
talk
(Post)
CODESYS Control for PFC200 4.13.00 CODESYS IIoT Libraries SL 1.11.0.0 Application Based License: CODESYS Control Standard M I have (2) projects with similar code base and both using Wago PFC200. On the second project I am seeing 2 things that I have not been able to resolve: 1) Errors in the log under the Ethernet Item: IoDrvEthernet: [PCI\E1Q51CE62] Could not be found on target! Please check the Ethernet settings. 2) Exception for CPU Load. "Processorload watchdog: plcload=100, maxplcload=95" I have slowed down cyclic tasks on this project, even though on the first project there is actually more code - and it does not exhibit this behavior. In looking at the CPU loading via Linux 'TOP' command there appears to be 20% idle. So plenty of headroom (my opinion). In an effort to troubleshoot I have duplicated the target hardware on my bench. It ran overnight without a CPU load exception. On the test system, I have tried (3) version of the ethernet device. 3.5.16.0 3.5.17.0 and 4.2.0.0 Presently the log does not show the error, but status says the module reports an error. I really do not know if this issue is related to the CPU load exception. The issue does not appear to effect ethernet communications (ModbusTCP or SNMP or Webvisu or PuTTy into Linux Shell). On my test bench I have ModbusTCP slave simulators for all ModbusTCP slaves, but only (1) of the (5) SNMP devices present.
Last updated: 2025-01-21
Post by acc00 on Redundancy Codesys Runtime, Synchronization
CODESYS Forge
talk
(Post)
Hi, I’m currently testing the Codesys Redundancy application with 2 Raspberry Pi, with the idea is of using in my project 2 Wago PFC200 and 1 Ethercat Master with 2 Remote IO. After I configure the redundancy, and one Pi is Active and the other is Passive, if I disconnect the Ethernet cable of the Active, the Passive become Standalone, which is good, but the problem is the following: -When I recover the Ethernet connection, both stay Standalone. They will NOT Sync until I do it manually in the Codesys environment. How to make the synchronization automatically? -If both Pi/PLC stays Standalone, who is managing the IO? (Ethercat and Serial) I have done a test with an Modbus Slave, where I am sending a counter that increase every second. And I see that when both PLC are standalone, they both keep an active connection with the Slave, and both write values. This does not seem good, since according to this in my project both PLC would try to control the IO at the same time. Note: The Codesys have an option (greyed out, not possible to select) which says “Auto Sync”. What is the purpose, and why I’m not able to select it? I'm using Codesys Control for Rapsberry Pi 64SL Runtime in my test environment (2xRaspberry Pi 4), with the idea of using Codesys Control PFC 200 Runtime in my project (2xWago PFC200 and 1 Ethercat Master with 2x Wago 750-354 Ethercat Fieldbus Coupler). Using the last Codesys 3.5 version (SP19 PAtch 5). I'd appreciate a lot any help on this questions!
Last updated: 2024-01-22
Post by tk096 on High Cycle Times for SoftMotion_PlanningTask when using AxisGroup
CODESYS Forge
talk
(Post)
Hi, under this circumstances the performance of a Raspberry Pi 4 should be sufficient to run a Softmotion robotics application. A closer look at the project would be required. Maybe you could contact the codesys support? Usually it is recommended to run the planning task cyclically every 2ms with task priority of 0 on a dedicated core. In the task configuration you can have a look at the average and maximum execution time of the planning task. You could use the function block SMC_TuneCPKernel (https://content.helpme-codesys.com/en/libs/SM3_Robotics/Current/SM3_Robotics/POUs/AdministrativeConfiguration/Computation/SMC_TuneCPKernel.html) to define suitable values for the parameters 'fSyncBufferDuration' and 'fPlanningInterval'. However, as previously mentioned, the performance of a Raspberry Pi 4 with realtime patch should be sufficient. The 'fPlanningInterval' parameter specifies the maximum planning step width in seconds. The cycle time of the planning task should not permanently exceed this value. A higher value reduces the computational effort, but can lead to a violation or no full utilization of the set limit values for velocity, acceleration and jerk. From a starting value of 0.016 seconds, the value should be increased gradually until the performance is acceptable. The parameter 'fSyncBufferDuration' specifies the size (in seconds) of the buffer between the planning and fieldbus task. The cycle time of the planning task must not exceed this value at peak times (this will lead to the error SMC_CP_QUEUE_UNDERRUN). A higher value can compensate for peaks in the cycle time of the planning task. At the same time, however, this also increases the latency for executing interrupts and aborting movements.
Last updated: 2024-03-22
To search for an exact phrase, put it in quotes. Example: "getting started docs"
To exclude a word or phrase, put a dash in front of it. Example: docs -help
To search on specific fields, use these field names instead of a general text search. You can group with AND or OR.