Hardware Requirements

Webspace Server - Fewer than 5 Clients

The following minimum hardware recommendations apply when using the Webspace Server on a low-end machine supporting fewer than five Webspace sessions, and Webspace projects with pictures that have a small number of animation, shapes, and graphics:

• For iFIX: A 3.0 GHz Intel® Core™ i5 Processor or equivalent.  For better performance, please consider using higher.
• For CIMPLICITY: In general, a Webspace Server with CIMPLICITY can support a 500 MHz CPU.
• Webspace supports a maximum round-trip latency of 500 milliseconds.
• SpeedStep® technology is not supported and must not be enabled.
• For time synchronization, the Windows Net Time and W32tm commands are both supported. However, if using the W32tm command, be sure to use the /nowait instruction when resynchronizing the clock. For example: W32tm /resync /nowait. The /nowait parameter instructs the operating system to make a stepping adjustment against the time server.
  Note: With VMware ESXi Server, the host and guest operating system need to synchronize against an external physical Network Time Protocol (NTP) Server.
• The power save settings on your computer must be disabled. Do not use any power setting features that affect CPU clock speed.
• A minimum of 8 GB RAM. For better performance, please consider using more.
• A minimum of 10 GB of free hard drive space. It is strongly recommended that many GBs of additional free space exist on the hard drive to avoid performance issues. Be aware that SCADA alarm and historical data files can grow dynamically. If you plan to perform extensive alarm or data collection on a node, you may need more disk space on that particular node.
• Other GE products, such as CIMPLICITY and iFIX, impose additional requirements. Refer to the Important Product Information (IPI) topic in the product's electronic books for specific system requirements.
• A DVD drive.
• 100 MBit or faster Full Duplex TCP/IP-compatible network interface adapter for network communication between SCADA and Client nodes. Since the server bandwidth scales linearly with the number of clients connected, the speed of the network card on the server should be able to accommodate these connections.
  Note: Webspace does not support IPv6. If you disable IPv6 to use Webspace, make sure that your local HOSTS file does not contain any IPv6 references. For example, remove the "::1 localhost" lines from the HOSTS file, and replace them with a line that references the IP address and the local host name (if necessary).
• One free direct-connect USB port. Some touch screens, pointing devices, and I/O drivers require a serial port. Additional ports for I/O hardware should be ordered with the computer.
• SVGA or better color monitor with a 24-bit (16,777,216 colors) graphics card capable of at least 1024x768 resolution.
• Two-button mouse or compatible pointing device (such as a touch screen) that is capable of opening a context menu.

Webspace Server - Up to 60 Clients

The following minimum hardware recommendations apply when using the Webspace Server on a high-end machine that can support up to 60 clients:

• For iFIX: Intel® Xeon® Quad-Core Processor, running at 3.2 GHz or better. For better performance, please consider using higher. Be aware that the computer must be at least Quad-Core; a single core is not supported (with or without hyper-threading).
• For CIMPLICITY: In general, a Webspace Server with CIMPLICITY can support a 500 MHz CPU.
• Webspace supports a maximum round-trip latency of 500 milliseconds.
• SpeedStep® technology is not supported and must not be enabled.
• For time synchronization, the Windows Net Time and W32tm commands are both supported. However, if using the W32tm command, be sure to use the /nowait instruction when resynchronizing the clock. For example: W32tm /resync /nowait. The /nowait parameter instructs the operating system to make a stepping adjustment against the time server.
  Note: With VMware ESXi Server, the host and guest operating system need to synchronize against an external physical Network Time Protocol (NTP) Server.
• The power save settings on your computer must be disabled. Do not use any power setting features that affect CPU clock speed.
• A minimum of 32 GB RAM. For better performance, please consider using more.
• A minimum of 10 GB of free hard drive space. It is strongly recommended that many GBs of additional free space exist on the hard drive to avoid performance issues. Be aware that SCADA alarm and historical data files can grow dynamically. If you plan to perform extensive alarm or data collection on a node, you may need more disk space on that particular node.
• Other GE products, such as CIMPLICITY or iFIX, impose additional requirements. Refer to the Software Requirements and Hardware Requirements sections for specific system requirements.
• A DVD drive.
• 100 MBit or faster Full Duplex TCP/IP-compatible network interface adapter for network communication between SCADA and Client nodes. Since the server bandwidth scales linearly with the number of clients connected, the speed of the network card on the server should be able to accommodate these connections.
  Note: Webspace does not support IPv6. If you disable IPv6 to use Webspace, make sure that your local HOSTS file does not contain any IPv6 references. For example, remove the "::1 localhost" lines from the HOSTS file, and replace them with a line that references the IP address and the local host name (if necessary).
• One free direct-connect USB port. Some touch screens, pointing devices, and I/O drivers require a serial port. Additional ports for I/O hardware should be ordered with the computer.
• SVGA or better color monitor with a 24-bit (16,777,216 colors) graphics card capable of at least 1024x768 resolution.
  Note: For better performance, considering using an external graphics card with a PCI-E interface adapter with 512MB RAM or better.

• Two-button mouse or compatible pointing device (such as a touch screen) that is capable of opening a context menu.

Webspace Clients

The speed of the client computer viewing the Webspace client session through a browser can also impact performance. Faster client machines typically load Webspace pictures much quicker, and have improved performance while those pictures are open. For instance, in testing, a slow client with 512 MB RAM and 1.5 GHz processor had picture load times approximately 1.5 times longer than a faster client with 1 GB RAM and 3.0 GHz processor.

Network speeds and connection types also impact performance for a Webspace session. A 100 MBit or faster network adapter, which is recommended, allows the Webspace session to utilize optimum speed for its performance. Companies using VPN connections for Webspace sessions may experience a decrease in performance.