Editing FixTag.dat File

Overview

The most common block and field types are included in the default FixTags.dat file. You can edit this file to add or remove block and field types. The FixTags.dat file is an XML (eXtensible Markup Language) file. You can edit it with either a text editor like Notepad or with a third-party XML editing tool.

For Historian Non-Web Administrators, the FixTag.dat file is typically located in the Program Files\Proficy\Historian\NonWebAdmin directory of each individual Historian Non-Web Administrator client. Changes you make to the file apply only to that specific client and are not global to all Historian Non-Web Administrator clients

Because changes made to one FixTag.dat file are not automatically duplicated in other FixTags.dat files, it is recommended that you set up a standard procedure to ensure that all such files track changes made in any single file. One suggested method is to keep a master copy. To make a change, edit the master copy, deploy the changed file, and test it. If the change provides the desired effect, copy the new file to the non-web Historian Administrator directories, and save the new file as the master backup copy. All Administrators will then be using the same set of block and field types.

The FixTags.dat file has two main sections. The first section lists the configured FIX database block types and their descriptions. The second section lists field extensions for each of the block types defined in the first section. In addition, the second section also has an entry called Selected, which can be either True or False. This is used by the Historian Administrator to indicate whether or not that block and field extension combination are included in a browse.

Example of First Section 

<XML ID="dsoTags"><MYLIST>..<ONEITEM> <VALUE>DI</VALUE> <DATA>DI Digital Input</DATA></ONEITEM>.
.</MYLIST></XML>

Example of Second Section

<XML ID="DI"><MYLIST> <ONEITEM> <VALUE>F_CV</VALUE> <DATA>F_CV</DATA> <SELECTED>False</SELECTED> </ONEITEM>
 <ONEITEM> <VALUE>B_CUALM</VALUE> <DATA>B_CUALM</DATA> <SELECTED>False</SELECTED> </ONEITEM></MYLIST></XML>

To Add a Field Extension to an Existing Block Type Using Notepad

  • In the FixTag.dat file, locate the entry that starts with <XML ID = "**">, where ** is the block name (such as AA, AI, DI, etc).
  • Copy one of the existing <ONEITEM>...</ONEITEM> blocks of text and edit it for your new field. Each field extension is contained in a block of text contained within the text: <ONEITEM>...</ONEITEM>.

There are two entries <VALUE> and <DATA> which comprise the new field extension to be added, and a <SELECTED> section, which is either True or False, depending on whether or not you want the item to be included in the browse.

Note: The True and False states change, depending on your selection in the Historian Administrator.

An example for the Digital Input (DI) tag is shown below, where we have added the A_ALMLASTTIME field, which identifies the last time the block went into alarm.

<XML ID="DI"><MYLIST> <ONEITEM> <VALUE>F_CV</VALUE> <DATA>F_CV</DATA> <SELECTED>False</SELECTED> </ONEITEM> 
<ONEITEM> <VALUE>A_ALMLASTTIME </VALUE> <DATA>A_ALMLASTTIME </DATA> <SELECTED>False</SELECTED> </ONEITEM> 
<ONEITEM> <VALUE>B_CUALM</VALUE> <DATA>B_CUALM</DATA> <SELECTED>False</SELECTED> </ONEITEM></MYLIST>

Add a New Database Block Using Notepad

Note: You must add at least one field.
  1. Within the <XML ID="dsoTags"> and <MYLIST> sections, add a new <ONEITEM> entry with the tag name and description. There are two entries, <VALUE> and <DATA>, which will be the new tag name (AA, AI, DI, etc.) to be added and the tag description (e.g., AA Analog Alarm) that will be displayed in the Historian Administrator.
  2. Create the fields that will be available for the tag. This is similar to modifying the field extensions discussed above, but in this case you must create the <XML ID = "**"> structure (where ** is your tag name.) Again, this is most easily performed by copying and pasting an existing XML ID structure and modifying it for the new tag.
    Note: The XML ID section MUST be placed before the last three lines of the file: 
    </MYLIST>
</XML>
</BlockList>