AES Installation Guide

July 5, 2012
Release: 2012 Q2

16055 Space Center Blvd.

Suite 450
Houston, TX 77062
T: 281-286-6017
F: 281-286-6902
www.autosoln.com
 AES Installation Guide

Table of Contents
GLOSSARY OF TERMS................................................................................................ iv
1 OVERVIEW .................................................................................................................. 1
1.1 KEY CAPABILITIES ................................................................................................ 1
2 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS ......................................................................................... 2
1.1 SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS TABLE .................................................................... 2
1.2 HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS.............................................................................. 3
3 PLANNING .................................................................................................................. 4
1.3 AUTOSOL ENTERPRISE SERVER DEPLOYMENT ................................................... 4
1.3.1 Number of Devices and Items............................................................ 4
1.3.2 Types of Data to be Collected............................................................ 4
1.3.3 Amount of Historical Data and Output Type....................................... 4
1.4 AES DEVICE NAMING CONVENTIONS ................................................................. 5
2 INSTALLATION ....................................................................................................... 6
3 INITIAL STARTUP ................................................................................................... 7
3.1 SERVICE MANAGER .......................................................................................... 7
3.2 AES CONFIGURATION ...................................................................................... 8
3.3 LICENSING ....................................................................................................... 9
3.4 CHECKING LICENSE STATUS ............................................................................. 9
4 UNINSTALL ........................................................................................................... 10

iii Release: 2012 Q2 July 5, 2012

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 AES Installation Guide

GLOSSARY OF TERMS
Acronym/
Term Definition
Abbreviation
AES is a multiprotocol, multimedia communication hub
AutoSol Enterprise that integrates HMI, data management, gas meter
AES
Server validation systems, alarm notification systems, and
security management into a cohesive system.

Client-Server is a distributed application structure that

partitions tasks or workloads between the providers of
Client-Server
a resource or service, called servers, and service
requesters, called clients.

A Connection is a virtual circuit established between

two nodes or application processes, so that a bit
Connection
stream or byte stream may be delivered between the
nodes.

A Device is hardware that contains data values to be

Device
polled from a host application.

Ethernet is a connection method using a family of

Ethernet frame-based computer networking technologies for
Local Area Networks (LANs).

An HMI is the interface method between the human

Human Machine and the equipment/machine.
HMI
Interface
This term supersedes Man Machine Interface (MMI).

Man Machine
MMI See Human Machine Interface.
Interface

Object Linking and OLE is a technology developed by Microsoft that

OLE allows embedding and linking to documents and other
Embedding
objects
OPC is a standard that specifies the communication of
OLE for Process
OPC real-time plant data between control devices from
Control
different manufacturers.

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 AES Installation Guide

Acronym/
Term Definition
Abbreviation
An Operating System is software that consists of
programs and data that runs on computers and
Operating System OS manages the computer hardware and provides
common services for efficient execution of various
applications (for example: Microsoft Windows 7).

A Protocol is a formal description of message formats

and the rules for exchanging those messages.
Protocol
Protocols are the rules governing the syntax,
semantics, and synchronization of communication.

An RTU is a microprocessor-controlled electronic

Remote Terminal device that connects sensors in a process, converts
RTU
Unit sensor signals to digital data and sends the digital
data to the SCADA system.

A Serial Communication is the process of sending

Serial
data one bit at a time, sequentially, over a
Communication
communication channel.
A Server is a computer or series of computers that
links other computers or electronic devices together.
Server
They often provide essential services across a
network.
Supervisory
A SCADA system is a computer system for monitoring
Control and Data SCADA
and controlling a process.
Acquisition

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 AES Installation Guide

1 OVERVIEW
AutoSol Enterprise Server® (AES) is communications software for Microsoft® Windows® that
interfaces industrial automation equipment to other Windows software. AES is a comprehensive
communication server that performs many of the functions that in past systems were performed
by custom interface hardware. The AES Installation Guide will provide the necessary
information to install/uninstall and complete an initial AES Configuration startup. Further details
on other features are provided in the AES Host Manual.

1.1 KEY CAPABILITIES

• Supports a client-server interface with other Microsoft Windows XP/Vista (32 Bit & 64
Bit)/7 (32 Bit & 64 Bit)/ Server 2003 (32 Bit)/ Server 2008 (32 Bit & 64 Bit)/ Server 2008
(64 Bit) software

• Requires no database programming

• Interfaces different manufacture equipment in one software installation

• Supports multiple telemetry systems

• Built in redundancy

• Near 100% uptime capability

AES connects to other software in one or many networked computers, through the industry
standard OPC Client-Server interface. This standard interface allows AES to be a flexible and
high-performance communication front-end for spreadsheets, databases or industrial Human
Machine Interface (HMI) programs. AES uses OPC for servicing the data acquisition
requirements of OPC client software.

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 AES Installation Guide

2 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
1.1 SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS TABLE

Description Minimum Recommended

Microsoft Windows Server

2008 R2 (64 Bit),
Operating System Microsoft Windows XP SP3 Microsoft Windows 7 (32 &
64 Bit)

Operating System
x86 (32 Bit)
Instruction Set x86 (32 Bit)
x64 (64 Bit)
Architecture

Microsoft Access
Microsoft SQL Server 2008
SP2,
Microsoft SQL Server 2008
Express Edition Advanced
Configuration &
Microsoft Access Services SP1,
Historical Database
Microsoft SQL Server 2008
R2,
Microsoft SQL Server 2008
R2 Express
Oracle 9g & 10g

Microsoft Visual C++ Secure Runtime

Miscellaneous 8.0 (includes ATL and MCF) Service
prerequisites included Pack 1,
in installation package Microsoft SQL Server Native Client
(9.0)

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 AES Installation Guide

1.2 HARDWARE REQUIREMENTS

Description Minimum Recommended

Intel Xeon 3040 @ 1.86

Intel Pentium 4, 3.0GHz,
GHz,
Central Processor Unit AMD Athlon 3100+
AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual
Core 4400+

RAM1 2 GB 8 GB

Program Disk Space 80 MB 80 MB

Logging Disk Space2 200 MB 8 GB

SQL Server Historical

Database Disk Space3 250 MB 500 GB
(Optional)

1
RAM requirements vary depending on the number of devices and ports in the configuration. As
the number of devices, ports, and advised OPC items increase the RAM requirements rise.
2
Logging disk space requirements vary, depending on the logging options enabled and the
length of time log files are maintained.
3
Historical Disk Space is only needed when collecting historical data. Space requirements will
vary depending on the size of system, amount of data being collected, logging, and recovery
options.

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 AES Installation Guide

3 PLANNING
It is recommended that you take the time to plan your installation, as it will help you determine
the system architecture and system requirements.

1.3 AUTOSOL ENTERPRISE SERVER DEPLOYMENT

Consider the following:

1.3.1 Number of Devices and Items

The size of your system must be calculated to determine hardware system requirements. AES
may be installed on a computer with the minimum recommended hardware specifications, but
as more devices are added system requirements will go up. Devices themselves do not play as
critical of a role in system requirements as does the actual number of items to be advised.

1.3.2 Types of Data to be Collected

AES can collect real-time data and historical data, which act differently on system requirements.

1.3.3 Amount of Historical Data and Output Type

The system must be able to accommodate the amount of historical data collected. AES uses
Microsoft Access, SQL Server, or Oracle for its configuration database, which is typically
installed on the same machine as AES. However, large historical databases may need to be
installed on a separate machine.

Note: Never place a large and growing Microsoft Access, SQL Server,
or Oracle database on the system drive. It is common for databases to
outgrow the drives they are on, and if the system drive (the drive the
operating system is installed on) runs entirely out of space, irreparable
damage to the operating system may occur.

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 AES Installation Guide

1.4 AES DEVICE NAMING CONVENTIONS

All device and port names must be unique in the system. Here are some naming tips:

• Name your devices descriptively.

• Refrain from using spaces and any special character, aside from the underscore (_).
AES supports spaces in device names. However, some client applications cannot
handle them.

• On large systems, consider using a Device number or RTU number for the device name.
Names and meter numbers are subject to change in large companies, and it is
inconvenient to rename devices continually, so a system device number that will never
change is an excellent idea.

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 AES Installation Guide

2 INSTALLATION
To install Communication Manager:

1. Run the AES_INSTALL_61.exe installer.

• If installing in Microsoft Windows 7/Server 2008 R2, you may see the blue and
yellow checkered shield that indicates that you must have administrative
privileges to run.

• If any prerequisites are missing from your computer, the installer will notify you
and install any components it can.

• If all prerequisites have been met, the Enterprise Server - InstallAware Wizard
window appears.

2. You must read the End User Software License Agreement and agree to its terms to
install AES. If you agree, select I accept the terms of the license agreement.

3. Click Next to continue.

The Installation process will start.

4. Click Finish to close the Enterprise Server - InstallAware Wizard and run Enterprise
Server if checked.

The AutoSol Enterprise Server installation is complete.

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 AES Installation Guide

3 INITIAL STARTUP
3.1 SERVICE MANAGER
The ASI service manager will not operate properly in Windows 7/Server 2008 R2 unless it is
granted the proper access privileges. This can be achieved by using the compatibility settings
tab of the service manager.

To test operation, open the service manager by navigating to the Windows Start button/All
Programs/AutoSol/asiServiceManager. Right click on the Service Manager icon in the tray
Figure 1-1, select Options, and stop or start the service.

Figure 1-1

Figure 1-2

If the manager doesn’t respond or you see a message that says “Access is denied” the service
manager does not have the proper access privileges.

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 AES Installation Guide

Do one of the following.

• Configure the ASI Service manager to run in compatibility mode:

The ASI service manager (asiServiceMgr ) can be found in C:\Program Files\Common

Files\AutoSol\. Right click asiServiceMgr and select Properties, once the properties
dialog shows up select the Compatibility tab and select the “Run this program in
compatibility mode for:” check box and in the drop down box select “Windows XP
service pack 3”.

• Configure Service manager to run as administrator:

If running the service manager in compatibility mode for Windows XP Service Pack 3
doesn’t fix the issue set the ASI service manager to run as administrator. The ASI
service manager (asiServiceMgr ) can be found in C:\Program Files\Common
Files\AutoSol\. Right click asiServiceMgr and select Properties, once the properties
dialog shows up select the Compatibility tab and select the “Run this program as an
administrator” check box.

3.2 AES CONFIGURATION

The AES Configuration is the client tool for editing and viewing the AES device configuration.
The install in 2012 Q1 and on comes with both the Active X Web and non-browser configuration
interface.
To open AES Configuration, navigate to: Start MenuProgramsAutoSolEnterprise
ServerAES Configuration (Standalone).

Note: To prevent the Active X prompt from appearing, select Allow

active content to run in files on My Computer*, which is in the Security
section under the Advanced tab in Internet Options within Internet
Explorer.

Note: AES releases from 2011Q3 and on resolves any known

compatibility issues with Internet Explorer 9.

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 AES Installation Guide

3.3 LICENSING
To license AES, a license file must be acquired from AutoSol. Use the Register AES button to
gather the information needed by AutoSol to create the license file.
1. Once AES is installed, start the AES Configuration Program. Click once on the Certificate
icon.

The AES registration screen will open.

2. The information needed by AutoSol for licensing is displayed in the bottom System
Information window. Click on the Copy button and then paste (Ctrl+V) this information into
an e-mail and send it to autosol.register@autosoln.com.

3. After AutoSol receives the request, you will be sent a license file for the computer. Put the
license file in the …\AutoSol\AES\License folder where AES was installed. The default
location for AES is in C:\Program Files.

3.4 CHECKING LICENSE STATUS

The AES Registration screen shows whether a license has been found or not. It may not show
the actual health of the license or if the license has expired.
If you have an existing license, you can view the details in the Current License window of this
display.
To check if your license is current: From the Start Menu, open ASLogView, which is the AES
log viewer. Stop and start the AES Service using the service manager, which can be found in
the start menu. The log should display the server’s license status.

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 AES Installation Guide

4 UNINSTALL
To uninstall AES, go to Windows Start button and select SettingsControl Panel. In the
control panel you will find Add/Remove Programs. Double-click this icon to start the process.
Select the AES program and click on Add/Remove. This will begin the uninstall procedure.

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Any unauthorized disclosure or use is prohibited.