DirectSOFT5 Override Button Greyed Out: Switching to K-Sequence

Overview: DirectSOFT5 Override Functionality

The Override Editor in DirectSOFT5 (DSL5) is the standard mechanism used by AutomationDirect DirectLOGIC programmers to force discrete bits, set analog values, and bias timers/counters without modifying ladder logic. When the Override button on the DSL5 Online toolbar is greyed out, the program does not have the feature disabled by configuration — the active link protocol between the PC and the CPU simply does not support the override service. This is one of the most common field questions reported against DSL5 build 5.x and the DirectLOGIC DL05/DL06/DL105/DL205/DL350/DL405 families.

The override service is part of the Koyo K-Sequence slave command set. DirectNet, AutomationDirect's peer-to-peer protocol, was designed for register polling and I/O updates, not for bit-level override services. If your project was created using a serial Direct connection on a CPU DIP-switched (or port-configured) for DirectNet, the Override button on the toolbar will appear but the underlying COM service will not be available. The fix is to repoint the DSL5 link at K-Sequence against the same COM port.

Root Cause: Why the Override Button is Greyed Out

DSL5 drives the Override button state from the active link descriptor in the project workspace. If the selected link is:

• A DirectNET link — the Override, Force, and Override Editor services are intentionally disabled because the DirectNet slave in the CPU firmware rejects override command frames (K-Sequence commands 0x30–0x33 family). The button stays greyed out regardless of RUN/TERM switch position or Pause/Status enable flags.
• A K-Sequence link — the Override service is offered over the same COM port, baud rate, and station address that the project already uses. The button becomes active the moment the link transitions to Online.
• An ECOM/Ethernet link — overrides are supported natively via the ECOM module and are not affected by the symptom described here. If your other programs use ECOM cards (H0-ECOM, H2-ECOM, H4-ECOM, etc.) and overrides work there, the missing service is unique to the serial/USB link you configured for the new program.

Therefore the fix is not in the ladder or in DSL5 options; it is in Setup → Link → Link Options → Protocol.

DirectNet vs K-Sequence: Feature Comparison

The selection is per-link, not project-wide. Each program file in DSL5 can store its own link descriptor, which is why the symptom can appear on a single project even when others on the same workstation work fine.

Prerequisites

1. DirectSOFT5 installed (build 5.0 or later; this article applies to 5.0, 5.1, 5.2, and 5.3 releases).
2. CPU belonging to a family that exposes a serial slave port — DL05, DL06, DL105, D2-230, D2-240, D2-250-1, D2-260, D2-262, DL350, D4-430, D4-440, or D4-450.
3. RS-232C programming cable compatible with the CPU port pinout (D2-DSCBL on most DL05/DL06/DL105/D2-xxx, or D4-DSCBL for DL405).
4. CPU RUN/TERM/STOP switch physically set to TERM if you intend to use the Override Editor with RUN-mode privileges. With the switch in STOP the override is implicitly granted.
5. No other K-Sequence master polling the CPU on the same COM port (only one PC can hold a K-Sequence session).
6. Station address (K-Sequence) confirmed. Default is 1 on all DirectLOGIC CPUs. Verify with Setup → CPU → Port Setup if you have previously changed it.

Step-by-Step: Reconfigure the DSL5 Link to K-Sequence

1. Close the project in DSL5 if it is currently online. Disconnect: PLC → Disconnect or click the Online/Offline toggle on the toolbar so it shows Offline.
2. Open Setup → Link → Link Options. The dialog shows the active link descriptor for this program.
3. On the Link Options dialog, set:
   • Link Type = Serial Direct
   • COM Port = the COM number assigned to your USB-to-serial adapter or native COM port (e.g., COM1, COM3, COM7).
   • Protocol = K-Sequence — this is the field that changes the override state.
   • Baud Rate = match the CPU port DIP switch / setup register (9600 is the safe default).
   • Station Address = 1 unless the CPU has been re-addressed.
4. Click OK to commit the descriptor.
5. Click PLC → Connect. The status bar should show Online with the link name (e.g., "COM1 KSeq").
6. Confirm the Override button on the Online toolbar (top-left, adjacent to Pause) is now enabled and no longer greyed out.

Step-by-Step: Enable Override Editor in Dataview

Even with K-Sequence active, a freshly added Dataview does not show override columns by default. To make the override icon visible next to each bit:

1. Click inside the Dataview window to focus it.
2. Open View → Options.
3. On the Dataview tab, locate Bit Display Settings.
4. Check the Override Bits checkbox. (Pause Bits and Status Bits should already be checked if the toolbar Pause/Status worked for you.)
5. To choose the symbol used for ON/OFF click the two buttons to the right of Override Bits. The icon set shown in the toolbar (Override icon adjacent to Pause bits) is the same one used in the Dataview when Override Bits is enabled.
6. Click OK. The Dataview refreshes and now exposes an Override column for every discrete point.

CPU Port Configuration for K-Sequence

If the CPU port has been previously configured for DirectNet (a common mistake when an integrator copied a multi-drop network topology onto a single-CPU bench setup), the override service will still be refused regardless of what DSL5 says. Verify on the CPU itself:

• DL05 / DL06:

  Setup → Port 2 Setup → Protocol = K-Sequence (Slave). Baud rate and station address must match the DSL5 link.

• D2-250-1 / D2-260: DIP switches on the CPU select COM2 protocol. Switch block position selects K-Sequence vs DirectNet. Refer to the D2-USER-M user manual for the exact DIP setting.
• DL350: Setup → Port Setup → Protocol = K-Sequence Slave.
• DL405 (D4-440 / D4-450): Top port is K-Sequence only; bottom port can be switched. Use the top port if you only need K-Sequence.

Override Operations: Force, Force-On, Force-Off

Once the link is K-Sequence and the CPU is in TERM or STOP, the Override Editor (PLC → Override Editor, or click the Override toolbar button) lists every forced point. Three actions are supported per point:

Forced bits are retained across power cycles on most DL-series CPUs when the Override battery-backup option (D2-BAT or equivalent) is installed. Without battery backup, forces clear on power loss.

Verification

1. Go online. Confirm the status bar reads Online — KSeq COMx.
2. Open the Override Editor. It should populate with the bit list (initially empty if no forces are set).
3. Force a non-critical output, e.g., Y0, ON. Confirm the indicator lamp on the Output Status view illuminates.
4. Force the same point OFF. Confirm the lamp extinguishes.
5. Release the force. Confirm the bit now follows ladder logic.
6. Cycle the link (disconnect / reconnect) and confirm the forces persist if battery backup is installed, or vanish if not. This validates both the link service and the CPU retention policy.

Troubleshooting Matrix

CPU Compatibility Reference

Best Practices and Caveats

• Always release forces before returning a machine to production. A force on a safety input (e.g., E-stop) will mask the real signal and create a hazardous condition.
• Document forces in the Override Editor before powering down for any reason. Forces on a non-battery-backed CPU will silently clear and may cause an unexpected startup state.
• Do not mix K-Sequence and DirectNet masters on the same multi-drop RS-422 network. They use different framing and station-address semantics.
• USB-to-serial adapters from different chipset families (FTDI vs Prolific vs CH340) report different COM numbers on hot-plug. Pin the COM number through Device Manager if your bench PC swaps ports on reboot.
• Override Editor is a K-Sequence service only. No ECOM firmware version enables it via a different command set, but the Ethernet path uses its own equivalent — it is simply already enabled there, which is why ECOM-based projects always show the button available.

Field Note: The ECOM vs Serial Distinction

The original symptom — "override works on every other program but not this one" — almost always traces back to which physical link each program was authored against. Projects authored against an ECOM module ship with an Ethernet link descriptor. A program authored from scratch on a serial port defaults to DirectNet on older DSL5 builds (5.0) and to K-Sequence on newer builds (5.2+), but the user can override the default at creation time, which is why a single program can diverge from the rest of the plant. The fix is therefore per-project, not global.