Export TP1500 Comfort Alarm Archives from Multiple HMI Panels

Engineers running a SIMATIC S7-1517 CPU with two TP1500 Comfort operator panels in a Master/Slave topology routinely need to consolidate alarm archives from both panels onto a single USB stick for offline analysis, shift handover, or regulatory record retention. The natural expectation is that one panel can simply reach across the Ethernet network to read the other panel's SD card; in practice, every Comfort Panel runtime owns an isolated alarm archive and a sandboxed file system that does not expose the other panel's directory tree to VBScript, to the runtime scheduler, or to a remote user. This reference documents the engineering solutions that actually work in TIA Portal V17/V18 with WinCC Comfort/Advanced, including centralized network archive paths (SMB share), FTP publishing, PLC-tag-based acknowledgment synchronization, and an external PC poller service. It includes a complete VBScript library for the TP1500 file system, concrete TIA Portal navigation paths, and a commissioning and verification matrix.

1. Architecture Overview

The reference topology consists of:

The Master and Slave panels each hold a separate HMI connection in the TIA project (logical names "Master" and "Slave") that targets the same S7-1517 CPU on different PROFINET or PROFIBUS slots. Each panel is physically separated (different cabinets, different switch ports, sometimes different buildings). The operator workflow currently triggers a VBScript on the Master panel that copies its own alarm archive from \Storage Card SD\Logs\Alarms to a USB stick attached to the Master panel. The user wants the same operation to also pull the Slave's alarm archive, but the Master has no programmatic visibility of the Slave's SD card file system.

2. Why Direct Cross-Panel Archive Export Fails

Three architectural constraints of the Comfort Panel firmware block direct panel-to-panel archive access:

1. Runtime isolation. Each HMIRuntime process has its own private alarm cache, its own internal SystemLog database, and its own archive writer task. Memory and file handles are not shared across runtime instances, even when the same TIA project is loaded twice on two panels.
2. File system sandboxing. Comfort Panel images run a hardened embedded Windows IoT variant. The file system visible to VBScript (e.g. \Storage Card SD\, \USB\, \flash\) is local to that device. UNC paths (e.g. \\SlavePanel\SD\Logs) are not browsable; the SMB client stack is not exposed to scripts.
3. No built-in SMB server. The Comfort firmware does not implement an SMB/CIFS file server on PROFINET, so another device cannot read its storage via SMB. (This is one difference from Allen-Bradley PanelView Component, where the File Transfer menu in PanelView Explorer exposes the alarm log export to a chosen destination — see the Rockwell Automation knowledge base entry PanelView Component: Export alarm history list. For Siemens, equivalent functionality is achieved by configuring the archive destination, not by post-hoc retrieval.)

These constraints rule out the obvious approach: "read Slave's SD from Master." Every viable solution therefore either (a) relocates the archive to a shared network path, (b) duplicates the archive during write, or (c) introduces a third party (PC, PLC, FTP server) that mediates the transfer.

3. Pre-requisites

• TIA Portal V17 Update 4 or V18 Update 1 (or later) with the WinCC Comfort/Advanced option installed. The same release train is required for both the project and the panel images. See the Siemens Industry Online Support portal for the latest compatibility matrix.
• Comfort Panel image V17 / V18 matching the TIA project. Mismatched images cause runtime errors such as 0x80040154 (class not registered) when calling HMIRuntime.FileSystem methods.
• Network infrastructure — a managed industrial Ethernet switch (SCALANCE XC, XB, or XR family) with PROFINET QoS prioritization enabled for the archive traffic VLAN.
• A file / FTP server reachable on the same subnet as both panels. A SIMATIC IPC227G (6ES7647-8BD31-0CW1) or any Windows Server 2016/2019/2022 host with a static IP is acceptable. The server does not need to be on the plant PROFINET line; a separate VLAN with firewall pinning is recommended.
• A domain service account (e.g. DOMAIN\archive_writer) with read/write rights to the shared folder, used identically by both panels. The account's password should not expire mid-shift; set "Password never expires" and document it in the plant security register.
• USB storage on the Master panel, formatted as FAT32 with a single primary partition. NTFS-formatted USB sticks are not supported by all Comfort images and will fail mount silently.
• VBScript knowledge — familiarity with the WinCC Comfort scripting environment, including HMIRuntime.SmartTags, HMIRuntime.FileSystem, and the embedded Scripting.FileSystemObject.

4. Solution 1 — Centralized Network Archive via SMB Share (Recommended)

The cleanest engineering solution is to configure both panels to write their alarm archives directly to an SMB share on a server, instead of to the local SD card. The Master panel's existing VBScript can then copy both archives from that shared folder to a USB stick, since UNC paths are visible to the panel's file system when entered as a literal source.

4.1 Server-side preparation

1. Create a folder D:\Alarms\Master and D:\Alarms\Slave on the archive server.
2. Share D:\Alarms as Alarms$ (hidden administrative share) or as a normal share Alarms with permissions: DOMAIN\archive_writer = Read/Write, Modify.
3. Disable Windows Defender real-time scanning on the share path to avoid file-lock contention. Antivirus quarantine on active archive files will cause ERROR_SHARING_VIOLATION (0x20) errors on the panel side.
4. Set NTFS quota to 5 GB per subfolder with an email alert at 80 % to prevent runaway archives from filling the drive.

4.2 TIA Portal — Master panel archive configuration

1. Open the Master TP1500 in Devices & Networks.
2. Navigate to Runtime settings > Alarms > Archive.
3. Enable Archive alarms and set Storage location to Network path.
4. Enter the path as \\<ServerIP>\Alarms$\Master\ (use the IP, not the hostname, to avoid DNS dependency on the panel).
5. Enter the user DOMAIN\archive_writer and the service account password. TIA Portal stores the credentials encrypted in the panel image; they are not exported in plain text by the transfer card workflow.
6. Configure the Segment type to Daily and Single segment for predictable filenames. Segment filenames will follow the pattern ALARM_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.csv and ALARM_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.rtf for the CSV/RTF pair generated by the Comfort runtime.
7. Set Segment size limit to 50 MB and Behavior when limit reached to Overwrite oldest to bound disk consumption.

4.3 TIA Portal — Slave panel archive configuration

Repeat the steps above for the Slave TP1500, changing the storage path to \\<ServerIP>\Alarms$\Slave\. The two panels can therefore co-write to the same server without colliding because each writes to its own subfolder.

4.4 Master VBScript — consolidated USB export

The Master panel's VBScript now no longer needs to read its own SD card; it copies from the network share to USB. This works because \Storage Card SD\ and a UNC source can both be passed to CopyFile on the Comfort runtime.

' TP1500 Comfort VBScript — Consolidated alarm export to USB
' Trigger: scheduled event "ExportArchive_ShiftEnd" or a button click
' Target:   \USB\Alarms_<PlantName>_<ShiftID>.zip

Const SRC_MASTER = "\\10.20.30.45\Alarms$\Master\"
Const SRC_SLAVE  = "\\10.20.30.45\Alarms$\Slave\"
Const DST_USB    = "\USB\"

Dim fso, shell, ts, today
Set fso = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")
Set shell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
today = Year(Now) & Right("0" & Month(Now), 2) & Right("0" & Day(Now), 2)

' --- Diagnostics tag updates (HMI tags for traceability) ---
SmartTags("Export_State")        = 1   ' 0=Idle, 1=Running, 2=Done, 3=Error
SmartTags("Export_StartTime")   = Now
SmartTags("Export_BytesWritten") = 0

' --- Verify USB mount ---
If Not fso.FolderExists(DST_USB) Then
    SmartTags("Export_State") = 3
    SmartTags("Export_LastError") = "USB not mounted or wrong filesystem"
    HMIRuntime.Trace "Export aborted: USB missing on " & DST_USB & vbCrLf
    Exit Sub
End If

' --- Verify source reachability ---
If Not fso.FolderExists(SRC_MASTER) Then
    SmartTags("Export_State") = 3
    SmartTags("Export_LastError") = "Master share unreachable: " & SRC_MASTER
    HMIRuntime.Trace "Export aborted: " & SRC_MASTER & vbCrLf
    Exit Sub
End If
If Not fso.FolderExists(SRC_SLAVE) Then
    SmartTags("Export_State") = 3
    SmartTags("Export_LastError") = "Slave share unreachable: " & SRC_SLAVE
    HMIRuntime.Trace "Export aborted: " & SRC_SLAVE & vbCrLf
    Exit Sub
End If

' --- Iterate source folders and copy CSV/RTF pairs ---
Dim srcFolder, dstFolder, file, bytesTotal
bytesTotal = 0

For Each srcFolder In Array(SRC_MASTER, SRC_SLAVE)
    Dim role : role = Mid(srcFolder, InStrRev(srcFolder, "\", Len(srcFolder) - 1) + 1, Len(srcFolder))
    role = Replace(role, "$", "")            ' strip trailing $ from admin share
    role = Replace(role, "\\", "")           ' for non-admin share
    Set dstFolder = fso.GetFolder(DST_USB)
    For Each file In fso.GetFolder(srcFolder).Files
        If LCase(fso.GetExtensionName(file.Name)) = "csv" _
           Or LCase(fso.GetExtensionName(file.Name)) = "rtf" Then
            ' Only copy today's segments, controlled by tag EnableDailyOnly
            If SmartTags("EnableDailyOnly") = 0 _
               Or InStr(1, file.Name, today, vbTextCompare) > 0 Then
                fso.CopyFile file.Path, _
                             DST_USB & role & "_" & file.Name, True
                bytesTotal = bytesTotal + file.Size
            End If
        End If
    Next
Next

SmartTags("Export_State")        = 2
SmartTags("Export_BytesWritten") = bytesTotal
SmartTags("Export_EndTime")     = Now
HMIRuntime.Trace "Export complete: " & bytesTotal & " bytes written" & vbCrLf

Create the following HMI tags on the Master panel so the operator screen can display export status and last error:

4.5 Why this solution is preferred

• Each panel's runtime writes its own archive without depending on the other panel's availability. If the Master is down, the Slave still records alarms.
• USB export becomes a single scheduled task; no network folder polling on the panel.
• Archiving to SD cards is eliminated, removing the well-known SD-card write-cycle degradation on long-running plants.
• The server can be backed up by the plant historian (WinCC Historian, PCS 7, or third-party) without touching the panels.

5. Solution 2 — FTP Centralized Archive

If SMB is blocked by plant firewall policy (common in regulated environments), Comfort Panels support FTP as an archive target. Configure an FTP server (IIS FTP on Windows, or vsftpd on a Linux server) on a fixed IP reachable from both panels. In TIA Portal, the archive path is set to ftp://10.20.30.46/Alarms/Master/ with FTP credentials.

Use FTP only when SMB is forbidden; FTP transfers run a single TCP connection per file and are 2-3× slower than SMB for large CSV archives. The Master VBScript can still call fso.CopyFile with the FTP path as the source — VBScript on the Comfort runtime resolves the FTP URI via the embedded FTP client. However, expect a 5-15 s pause per file as the connection is established.

6. Solution 3 — PLC-Tag-Based Acknowledgment Synchronization

A common discussion in engineering forums proposes synchronizing the alarm acknowledgment state between the two panels via the S7-1517, even though it does not solve the archive-export problem directly. It is included here because it is often the first idea proposed and is necessary for a coherent operator workflow once the centralized archive from §4 is in place.

1. For every discrete alarm class, create a Boolean PLC tag in the S7-1500, e.g. "HMI_Ack_Master_Acked", "HMI_Ack_Slave_Acked".
2. On the Master TP1500, configure the alarm's Acknowledgment tag to "HMI_Ack_Master_Acked" (write direction: HMI → PLC).
3. On the Slave TP1500, configure the same alarm's PLC acknowledgment tag to "HMI_Ack_Master_Acked" (read direction: PLC → HMI). When the operator acknowledges the alarm on the Master, the PLC tag flips, and the Slave's runtime mirrors the state, removing the alarm from the Slave's active list.
4. For PLC-level alarms that originate in the S7-1500 (e.g. drive faults), do the inverse: the alarm is configured with a PLC tag that both panels subscribe to as a read-only acknowledgment source.

This mechanism only synchronizes the live acknowledgment state; the historical archive still resides on the server from §4. Always deploy tag sync and archive pathing together — neither alone satisfies an FDA 21 CFR Part 11-style audit trail.

7. Solution 4 — External PC Synchronization Service

When a network share or FTP server is not available (e.g. the panels are on an isolated PROFINET line with no upstream connection), a small Windows service on a local engineering PC can poll both panels' SD cards and consolidate them. The PC must be allowed to mount the SD cards directly (i.e. physically, by removing the SD card and inserting it into the PC). This is acceptable on commissioning shifts but not as a permanent solution because it requires physical access to both enclosures.

1. Insert the Master SD into the PC; copy \Logs\Alarms\*.csv and *.rtf to D:\Consolidated\Master\.
2. Insert the Slave SD; copy its logs to D:\Consolidated\Slave\.
3. Run a PowerShell scheduled task on the PC that monitors D:\Consolidated and writes a rolling 7-day archive to a USB drive attached to the PC.

For automation, write a small PowerShell script with a FileSystemWatcher and a SHA-256 checksum verification step before each copy. The script's status can be exposed to the operator via an HMI tag written back through the S7-1500 — round-trip latency is acceptable for end-of-shift exports.

8. VBScript Reference for TP1500 Comfort Archive Operations

The Comfort runtime exposes two parallel file APIs: the high-level HMIRuntime.FileSystem object and the standard Windows Scripting.FileSystemObject (FSO). The FSO is preferred for cross-version portability; the HMIRuntime object exposes some panel-specific helpers (e.g. clipboard and trace) but its file methods overlap with FSO.

Common runtime errors raised by the Comfort VBScript host:

Wrap every I/O call in On Error Resume Next with explicit Err.Number checks for production reliability:

On Error Resume Next
fso.CopyFile SRC_MASTER & fileName, DST_USB & fileName, True
If Err.Number <> 0 Then
    SmartTags("Export_LastError") = "CopyFile failed: 0x" & Hex(Err.Number) & " - " & Err.Description
    SmartTags("Export_State") = 3
    HMIRuntime.Trace "CopyFile " & fileName & " failed: " & Err.Description & vbCrLf
    Err.Clear
End If
On Error Goto 0

9. TIA Portal Configuration Walkthrough

9.1 Project setup

1. Open the TIA Portal project and confirm both TP1500 Comfort devices and the S7-1517 are present in Devices & Networks.
2. Verify that the Connection in each panel points to the S7-1517 with the correct rack/slot or PROFINET device number. Mismatched connection targets are the most common cause of intermittent archive drops.
3. Compile the project (Project > Compile > All) and resolve any warnings about duplicate tag names — Comfort's namespace is global to the panel, and a tag named Export_State in two different screens causes undefined behavior.

9.2 Archive path on each panel

1. On the Master panel: Runtime settings > Alarms > Archive > Storage location = Network path; enter \\10.20.30.45\Alarms$\Master\ with credentials.
2. Repeat on the Slave with \\10.20.30.45\Alarms$\Slave\.
3. Set the segment mode to Procedure-controlled if you want to close segments from a button press; Daily if shift boundaries are fixed at 06:00/14:00/22:00. The Daily boundary should be a few minutes after the start of the maintenance shift so that archives do not straddle a shift change.

9.3 HMI connection between panels (for tag-based sync)

1. Add an HMI-HMI connection on the Master panel: Connections > Add > HMI-HMI connection.
2. Set the partner device to the Slave panel; select the Read direction only — the Master does not need to write to the Slave for acknowledgment sync.
3. This connection is independent of the PLC connection and is used only to mirror acknowledgment tags, not to copy files.

9.4 VBScript hosting

1. Create a new Scheduled task on the Master TP1500 (e.g. ShiftEnd_ArchiveExport), trigger at 06:05, 14:05, 22:05, run on the event "Daily".
2. Attach the VBScript from §4.4 to this scheduled task.
3. Add a button on the operator screen that calls the same function via Click event > Execute VBScript for ad-hoc exports.

10. Commissioning and Verification

After project download to both panels, perform this verification sequence before declaring the system production-ready.

1. Archive write test. On the Master panel, trigger a controlled alarm (e.g. a simulated drive fault) and confirm within 30 s that a new ALARM_*.csv appears in \\Server\Alarms$\Master\. Repeat on the Slave. If the file does not appear, check the panel's Diagnostic buffer for archive writer errors.
2. Credentials check. From the Master TP1500's VBScript editor, run a one-line test: fso.FolderExists("\\10.20.30.45\Alarms$\Master\"). If it returns False, the service account is not authenticating against the domain; check that DNS is reachable from the panel and that the panel's time is within 5 minutes of the DC (Kerberos tolerance).
3. USB export test. Insert a FAT32 USB stick into the Master panel; trigger the consolidated export. Verify that two file sets appear on the USB: one prefixed Master_, one prefixed Slave_. Verify Export_State transitions 0 → 1 → 2 on the operator screen.
4. Performance baseline. A 1 MB CSV typically copies in 200-400 ms over gigabit Ethernet. If the export takes more than 30 s per file, suspect a duplex mismatch on the switch port, or that the panel's network stack is being saturated by other PROFINET traffic — verify with Wireshark filtered to the panel's MAC.
5. Failure mode drill. Disconnect the Slave panel from the network for 5 minutes; verify that the Master export script does not crash but reports Export_LastError = "Slave share unreachable". Reconnect and verify the next scheduled run succeeds.
6. Long-term storage. After 7 days of operation, verify that old archive segments are removed according to the configured overwrite policy and that the server's disk usage is bounded.

Diagnostic tags to expose on the operator screen during commissioning:

11. Troubleshooting Matrix

12. Frequently Asked Questions