Recovering MP270B ProTool Source from SD Card for KTP1200

Overview

The Siemens Multi Panel MP270B (Multi Panel 270B family, MLFB group 6AV6 643-0CB01 / 0CD01, 10.4-inch color TFT) is a Windows CE 5.0 HMI historically programmed with Siemens ProTool V6.0 + SP3 (or ProTool/Pro V6.2). When the panel electronics fail and no offline backup exists, the last recovery vector is the SD card that was inserted in the panel's card slot. If the OEM (the integrator who originally downloaded the project) enabled the UPLOAD option during the original download, ProTool placed a compressed image of the runtime project on the card. That file is named *.pdz on the SD card and is NOT directly editable — the editable *.pdb project database is held by ProTool and is not on the card.

This article documents the field-proven procedure to:

1. Get the .pdz file back onto an SD card that the new panel will accept.
2. Restore the .pdz on a same-type MP270B (you cannot restore onto a different model) using the panel's Control Panel → Backup/Restore.
3. Extract the editable .pdb source using ProSave + ProTool Upload from device.
4. Migrate the recovered ProTool project to KTP1200 Basic (2nd generation, 6AV2 123-2MB03-0AX0 or 6AV2 123-1DB03-0AX0 for 4") through WinCC flexible 2008 SP2/SP3 and TIA Portal V13+.

Affected Part Numbers and Firmware

Prerequisites

• A second, functional MP270B of the identical variant (same MLFB suffix) and same firmware revision. Used as the recovery host.
• The original SD card from the failed panel, or a complete image of it. Siemens tested the slot with SD cards up to 2 GB using FAT16. SDHC cards > 2 GB are not recognized by the MP270B boot loader.
• ProTool V6.0 SP3 or later installed on a Windows XP / Windows 7 32-bit engineering station.
• ProSave V6.2 (shipped with ProTool) installed on the engineering PC. ProSave is the only utility that can perform an Upload from device on a Multi Panel.
• Cross-over Ethernet cable (1:1 will also work on most MP270B NICs) for the ProSave back-channel. MPI/USB transfer is also supported but Ethernet is faster.
• If migrating to KTP1200: WinCC flexible 2008 SP3 + a valid license key, plus TIA Portal V13 SP1 or later (V15.1 is the most stable for old migrations).

Understanding .pdz, .pdb, and the UPLOAD Option

When the original integrator downloaded the project with ProTool, two optional behaviors exist in the Transfer Settings dialog:

• UPLOAD checkbox — if enabled, ProTool writes a compressed project image (*.pdz) onto the active storage medium (internal flash or SD card) so that the runtime project can later be uploaded back to the engineering tool.
• Recipe / log persistence — controls where runtime data files are kept, unrelated to .pdz.

The .pdz is a PKZIP-style archive with a Siemens-specific header. ProTool V6 itself cannot open a .pdz directly with File → Open on a stock install. The correct path is to push the .pdz back onto a same-type panel and then run an Upload from device — that is what regenerates a real .pdb.

Step-by-Step: Restore the .pdz on a Same-Type MP270B

1. Prepare a fresh SD card

1. Use a real SD card ≤ 2 GB. SDHC (4 GB and up) is not supported.
2. Format it as FAT16 (default cluster). Windows will not offer FAT16 directly for cards > 2 GB, so use HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool or SD Card Formatter with the "force FAT16" / "SD/SDHC" option and the correct size override.
3. Create the directory structure exactly as the panel expects:

   \PROTOOL\<projectname>.pdz

   The project name is the case-sensitive identifier shown in the .pdz filename. Do not rename the .pdz.
4. Insert the card into the working MP270B before power-up so the boot loader can index it.

2. Boot into the Control Panel

1. Power the panel. While the loader is on the Transfer / Start / Control Panel screen, press the Control Panel button.
2. Open the Backup/Restore applet (icon labeled "Backup/Restore" — blue folder with arrow on MP270B 6AV6 643-0CB01/0CD01).
3. Source: SD Card. Direction: Restore. Tick Include recipes only if recipes were backed up on the card.
4. Press Start. The panel reads the .pdz, verifies the signature, and writes the runtime project to internal flash. Progress is shown as a percentage; on a 10" MP270B with a 4 MB project expect 60–90 s.
5. When complete, the panel reboots automatically and the project comes up.

3. Verify the runtime project is intact

• Press every screen and confirm that the tags, alarms, and trend archive match expectations.
• Open Control Panel → OP Information → Project Information and confirm the project name, last change date, and version string are populated. Empty fields = corrupted project.

Step-by-Step: Extract the Editable .pdb with ProSave and ProTool

Restoring the .pdz only gives you a runtime clone. To edit screens, change tag addresses, and migrate to a different panel, you must produce a .pdb. This requires the original UPLOAD bit to be present in the .pdz header. If the original integrator disabled UPLOAD, no .pdb can ever be recovered, period.

1. Connect the engineering PC to the MP270B's Ethernet port (X1). Configure the PC NIC on 192.168.1.100 / 255.255.255.0 if the panel default is 192.168.1.1. Adjust if the project changed it.
2. Launch ProSave on the PC. Select Device type = MP270B 6" Key or MP270B 10" Touch to match.
3. Set Connection = Ethernet, enter the panel's IP. Tick Use router only if a router is in line.
4. Click Upload from device. The panel shows a password prompt if the project is password-protected (default 0000 = no password). ProSave retrieves the .pdb and stores it in \Programs\Siemens\ProTool\Upload.
5. Open ProTool V6 → File → Open → Reconstructed (not Compressed) and browse to the .pdb. ProTool rebuilds the project tree from the upload.

Step-by-Step: Migrate the Recovered ProTool .pdb to KTP1200 Basic

There is no direct path from a ProTool project to a TIA Portal KTP1200 project. You must walk the migration chain:

1. ProTool → WinCC flexible 2008: Inside ProTool V6, with the recovered .pdb open, choose File → Save as → WinCC flexible project. ProTool emits an *.fwx. The conversion handles most tag types, alarm classes, and screen objects, but it will flag OPC-tagged items and unsupported smart objects in a migration log.
2. Resolve migration warnings: Open the .fwx in WinCC flexible 2008 SP3. Manually address:
   • Tags with DB offsets > 255 (S7-300/400) — split into multiple tags.
   • Recipes that use pre-MultiPanel format — re-import to the WinCC flexible recipe view.
   • Area pointers and job mailboxes — the names changed between ProTool and WinCC flexible; the migration tool maps most of them automatically but cross-check Connections → Area Pointer.
3. WinCC flexible 2008 → TIA Portal: In TIA Portal V13 SP1 / V15.1, choose Project → Migrate project and pick the .fwx. The tool converts it to a .ap13 (or .ap15 on V15) TIA Portal project. TIA Portal will warn about any unsupported objects (ProTool had some 3rd-party ActiveX controls; these are dropped and must be re-added from the TIA catalog).
4. Target the KTP1200 Basic PN: In TIA Portal, right-click the HMI device and Change device / Type to KTP1200 Basic PN (6AV2 123-2MB03-0AX0). TIA Portal re-maps the screen resolution from 640×480 to 800×480 and rescales graphics. Touch-area coordinates may shift; the Compile → Software step will surface any references that are out of bounds.
5. Compile and download: Compile the HMI. Fix any IO error: 0x801F0000 (ProSave service not running) and tag errors. Download to the KTP1200 over PROFINET.

Functional Comparison: MP270B vs KTP1200 Basic

Verification

1. Card-level check: After Restore on the MP270B, the project boots and all screens render. OP Information → Project Information lists a non-empty last-change date and version.
2. Source-level check: ProTool File → Project info shows the same number of tags, screens, and alarms as the original commissioning documentation.
3. Migration-level check: TIA Portal Compile → Software (rebuild all) returns zero errors and zero warnings of category "Object not migrated".
4. On-line check on KTP1200: Use Online → HMI diagnostics on the TIA Portal to confirm tag connection state to the S7 PLC, alarm-view refresh, and recipe view persistence. Trend curves should populate within one acquisition cycle (default 1 s on Basic panels).

Field-Proven Tips and Common Pitfalls

• If the same-type MP270B is unavailable, you cannot fall back to an MP277 or MP377. The .pdz container is family-locked to the original model.
• The .pdz must be placed in \PROTOOL\ on the SD root, not in a subfolder. Placing it elsewhere silently fails Restore.
• UPLOAD is a per-project flag, not a panel-wide one. The integrator has to deliberately set it. Most late-2000s integrators did; many early-2010s ones did not.
• ProTool V6 on Windows 10/11 64-bit requires ProTool V6.0 SP3 Update 4 and a virtualized COM/Ethernet stack. Siemens officially supports Windows XP and Windows 7 32-bit only. A Windows 7 32-bit VM is the most reliable engineering environment for the recovery step.
• On the KTP1200, avoid PROFINET names longer than 240 characters. WinCC flexible migration occasionally generates long symbolic IO names that fail the device-name check at compile time.
• If the recovered .pdb has the original integrator's password and you do not have it, recovery still works for upload via ProSave if the project is in transfer mode and the password is the default 0000 — but editing will still be blocked.

FAQ