Dynamic Collector Updates

The dynamic collector update feature ensures that any modifications done to the tag configuration do not affect all the tags in a collector. Only the tags that stop data collection will record zero data and bad quality without restarting the collector. In other words, the tags that do not stop data collection do not record bad data samples to the collection.

Whenever you add tags, delete tags, or modify certain tag properties, the following collectors reload only the modified tag(s) without restarting the collectors.
  • OPC Collector
  • iFIX Collector
  • Calculation Collector
  • Simulation Collector
  • Server to Server Collector
  • PI Collector
  • PI Distributor

If you disable On-line Tag Configuration Changes option, any changes you make to the tags do not affect collection until after you restart the collector. To restart the collector, stop and start the collector service or executable. Restarting the collector stops and restarts the tag(s) collection and records bad data samples to the collection. If the modified tags get zero bad markers and available runtime values at the same time, then precedence is given to available runtime values instead of zero bad markers.

All the collector configuration changes done within a 30 second time frame are batched together. When possible, update/modify a small set of tags at a time to collect the modified data faster. However, when updating large sets of tags at the same time, best practice is to disable On-line Tag Configuration Changes and restart the collector after you are finished.