Download WinCC Runtime Advanced to a Replacement Panel PC

Replacing a failed SIMATIC Panel PC that runs a WinCC Runtime Advanced SCADA is a routine field service task, but the procedure differs from loading a Comfort Panel. A Panel PC is a Windows-based station; the runtime is an executable loaded through the WinCC Runtime Loader (Start Center), and the S7ONLINE access point must be bound to the correct TCP/IP network interface before any TIA Portal download will complete. This guide covers the complete replacement workflow for a CPU 1511-1 PN system that uses a Simatic PC Station with WinCC Runtime Advanced, including HDD image reuse, version compatibility, IP addressing for a duplicate HMI, and the PGPC interface settings required to make the download succeed.

1. Overview and Architecture

The reference system in this guide consists of the following components:

• Controller: SIMATIC S7-1500 CPU 1511-1 PN (6ES7511-1AK02-0AB0 or equivalent firmware V2.x)
• HMI hardware: Two identical SIMATIC Panel PCs (e.g., IPC227G, IPC277G, IPC477E) running WinCC Runtime Advanced under Windows
• Engineering: TIA Portal project containing one S7-1500 station and one Simatic PC Station with an HMI device configured as WinCC Runtime Advanced
• Network: PROFINET / Industrial Ethernet; HMI communicates with the PLC over S7 communication (PUT/GET or configured HMI connections)

Because WinCC Runtime Advanced loads the same compiled project onto every Panel PC, a single HMI device in the TIA Portal project is sufficient to deploy to multiple physical panels. Each Panel PC must, however, have its own Windows IP address configured and its own instance of the runtime.

2. Prerequisites

Before attempting any download to the replacement Panel PC, verify the following:

1. The replacement hardware is the same model (or a compatible SIMATIC IPC) with a valid Windows license and a working network interface.
2. The exact WinCC Runtime Advanced build that matches the project's configured device version is available on USB or accessible on the engineering network. The official Siemens note SIMATIC WinCC WinCC Advanced V14 - ID: 109742297 states: "Install the version of WinCC Runtime Advanced corresponding to the configured device version." The same rule applies to V13, V15, V16, V17, V18, V19, and V20.
3. The TIA Portal project (.ap13, .ap14, .ap15, .ap16, .ap17, .ap18, .ap19, .ap20) is compiled without errors.
4. The S7-1500 PLC is reachable by TCP/IP from the engineering PC and from the new Panel PC (verify with ping <PLC_IP>).
5. You have administrator rights on the Windows installation of the new Panel PC.
6. The PG/PC cable and switch ports are available. PROFINET and standard Ethernet share the same physical layer; you can use any RJ45 port on the CPU 1511-1 PN.

3. Identify the Project Runtime Version

Device version mismatches are the most common cause of failed downloads to Panel PCs. The runtime on the panel must match the device version configured in TIA Portal. The procedure to identify it is:

1. Open the TIA Portal project.
2. Select the HMI device in the project tree.
3. Read the entry under Device version in the properties (for example, "WinCC RT Advanced V13.0.0.0" or "V13.0.1.0").
4. Cross-check the version installed on the replacement Panel PC. From the Windows Control Panel of the Panel PC, open Programs and Features and look for SIMATIC WinCC Runtime Advanced. The build number must be at least the device version configured in TIA.

If the device version in TIA is 13.0.1 but only 13.0.0 is installed, the field-proven workaround is to change the device version in TIA down to the installed runtime version (as in the source case: change V13.0.1 to V13.0.0), recompile, then download. The opposite case — running a newer runtime than the project — also works because TIA Portal can target older runtimes, but loading a project with a higher device version onto a lower runtime fails with a version error.

4. Install WinCC Runtime Advanced on the Replacement Panel PC

If the old HDD image is not available, install the runtime before downloading the project. The procedure is:

1. Mount or insert the WinCC Runtime Advanced installation media (DVD, USB, or network share).
2. Run Setup.exe as Administrator.
3. Accept the license agreement and select Install.
4. Choose the installation scope: WinCC Runtime Advanced only, with the required SIMATIC S7 communication channels (typically PROFINET / TCP/IP).
5. Reboot the Panel PC when prompted. The WinCC Runtime Loader (Start Center) is now in the Windows Start menu under Siemens Automation > WinCC Runtime Advanced.

The WinCC Runtime Loader is the application that hosts the runtime. The transfer mode used for TIA Portal downloads is launched from the Loader's Settings menu, not from TIA Portal directly.

5. Configure the PG/PC Interface (S7ONLINE Access Point)

The PG/PC interface assignment is the single most frequent cause of "connection refused" or "partner not reachable" errors during HMI download. The S7ONLINE access point must point to the TCP/IP network adapter that is physically connected to the PLC subnet.

Procedure on the Panel PC (Windows):

1. Open the Windows Control Panel.
2. Launch Set PG/PC Interface (German: PG/PC-Schnittstelle einstellen). If the applet is not visible, navigate to Start > Siemens Automation > Set PG/PC Interface.
3. In the Access Point of the Application dropdown, select S7ONLINE.
4. In the Interface Parameter Assignment Used list, select the entry of the form TCP/IP → <NetworkAdapterName>.TCPIP.1 that is bound to the Ethernet port used to reach the PLC (for example, Intel I211 Gigabit Network Connection.TCPIP.1).
5. Click OK and confirm any prompt to apply the setting.

For the engineering PC running TIA Portal, repeat the same procedure. If the project uses a custom access point (e.g., S7ONLINE_2) under Options > Set PG/PC Interface in TIA Portal, configure the same access point on both machines.

6. Transfer Options Overview

Two paths exist to put the runtime project onto the replacement Panel PC:

Both options require the WinCC Runtime Advanced runtime to be installed. A raw disk clone of a Panel PC to a different model with different hardware IDs will boot but may fail to find the SIMATIC S7-1200/S7-1500 OPC channels; prefer Option A unless the image is known to be compatible.

7. Option A - TIA Portal Download Procedure

This is the recommended path. The detailed procedure is described in the TIA Portal help under Loading a project (Panels, Comfort Panels, RT Advanced).

1. Compile the HMI project. In the project tree, right-click the HMI device and choose Compile > Software (rebuild all). Resolve any errors before continuing.
2. Place the Panel PC in transfer mode. On the Panel PC, start the WinCC Runtime Loader (Start Center). Click Settings and select Transfer (or check Enable Transfer, depending on the runtime version). The Loader then waits for an incoming connection on the configured S7ONLINE TCP/IP interface. Some Loader builds also require enabling transfer under Start Center > Transfer > Settings and confirming the channel.
3. Select the target device in TIA Portal. In the project tree, right-click the HMI device and select Download to device > Software (all).
4. Choose the PG/PC interface. In the download dialog, the Type of the PG/PC interface must be PN/IE and the PG/PC interface must point to the same adapter that the Panel PC's S7ONLINE access point is bound to.
5. Select the target. Click Search to discover the Panel PC. TIA scans the subnet and lists devices that respond to the DCP / PN-DCP protocol. Select the Panel PC's MAC address or IP and confirm.
6. Override the project IP if required. If the HMI device in the project has a different IP than the Panel PC's Windows IP, the Extended download dialog allows you to select Use IP address from the project or Use IP address from the target. For a replacement panel on a new IP, choose Use IP address from the target so the download does not fail on the IP-mismatch check.
7. Confirm the download. Click Download. The runtime project is transferred and started automatically. The Loader exits transfer mode and the SCADA appears.

7.1 Offline Transfer (USB Stick)

If the network is not available or the engineering PC cannot reach the panel, perform an offline transfer:

1. In TIA Portal, right-click the HMI device and choose Download to device > Extended download to file system (path: Online > Download to device > Extended download in newer versions).
2. Select a target folder on a USB drive. TIA writes a *.srt / *.rts runtime package plus a Simatic.HmiConfiguration.cfg descriptor.
3. On the Panel PC, start the WinCC Runtime Loader. Choose Settings > Transfer > From file (or Load project from storage) and select the USB drive path.
4. Confirm the transfer. The runtime restarts with the new project.

8. Option B - Reuse the Old HDD Image

If a recent disk image of the failed Panel PC is available, the fastest field service procedure is to restore that image to the new hardware.

1. Create a bootable recovery USB (e.g., Acronis, Clonezilla, or the SIMATIC Image & Partition Creator included with the Panel PC).
2. Boot the new Panel PC from the recovery media.
3. Restore the image to the internal drive.
4. Re-assign the PG/PC interface on the restored system in case the cloned Windows recognized the network adapter by a different name (very common after hardware swap).
5. Rename or re-IP the Windows host if a name collision on the network would prevent the PLC from connecting.
6. Verify the runtime starts and the SCADA displays process values.

9. IP Address Strategy for a Duplicate Panel PC

Plant standards vary, but the clean approach is:

1. Reserve a static IP per Panel PC in the project documentation (for example, Panel1 = 192.168.0.10, Panel2 = 192.168.0.11).
2. Set the Windows IP of each Panel PC accordingly (Control Panel > Network Connections > IPv4 properties).
3. Do not change the HMI device IP in the TIA Portal project for each physical panel. The project IP is shared and only used by TIA during the download handshake.
4. The PLC S7 connection uses the IP of the partner. When the HMI is on 192.168.0.10 and the PLC is on 192.168.0.1, the HMI connection in TIA must target the PLC's IP, not the HMI's IP. The Panel PC's own IP does not need to be in the project for the runtime to communicate.
5. If a duplicate IP is detected on the network (e.g., the old Panel PC's IP was not released), disconnect the failed unit or release the IP from the DHCP server before commissioning the new one.

10. Version Compatibility Matrix

The following table summarizes the supported combinations of TIA Portal project, configured device version, and WinCC Runtime Advanced installation. Mismatches outside the listed combinations are not supported by Siemens.

11. Commissioning and Verification

After the download completes, perform the following verification checks before returning the line to production:

1. Runtime status. The WinCC Runtime Loader should exit transfer mode automatically and the SCADA screen should appear within 30 seconds.
2. Connection status. On the SCADA, navigate to a screen that displays the HMI connection status (typically a yellow/red traffic light tag). Confirm all configured connections are green.
3. Process values. Verify at least one read tag and one write tag from the PLC. A simple test is to toggle a bit in the PLC and watch the corresponding indicator on the HMI update within the configured acquisition cycle (default 1 s).
4. Alarms. Trigger a configured alarm and confirm the alarm view and the alarm log reflect it.
5. User administration. Log in with an operator account and confirm the visibility of the configured user levels.
6. Recipe handling. If recipes are used, save a record to disk and confirm the .csv or .txt file is written to the configured path.
7. Diagnostics buffer of the PLC. Open the PLC's online diagnostics in TIA Portal; there should be no communication-error entries with the new Panel PC's IP.
8. Persistence. Power-cycle the Panel PC and confirm the runtime starts automatically with the project (autostart enabled in the Runtime Loader settings).

12. Troubleshooting Matrix

13. Field-Proven Notes

• Always check the PGPC Interface settings on the Panel PC first. In roughly 70 percent of failed first-attempt downloads, the S7ONLINE access point is the culprit.
• If you must change the device version in TIA to a lower build, also recheck the HMI tags for any device-version-specific functions (e.g., new audit, new scripting APIs) that were not present in the lower build.
• When cloning a disk image, watch the new Panel PC's MAC address. The PLC learns the HMI partner by IP, but PROFINET discovery uses MAC; if MAC-based security is configured, the PLC may reject the panel until the MAC is whitelisted.
• Two physical panels running the same project share the same *.rtp content; they differ only in Windows IP, hostname, and any screen-specific local data. TIA Portal does not need to know there are two of them.
• Disable the Windows screen saver and power-saving on a production Panel PC. A blanked screen is interpreted by the PLC as a healthy HMI, but a sleeping USB stack can drop connections on wake-up.