Resolving ComProfibus V5.1 Setup.ins Return Value -4 Install

Problem Overview

Engineers maintaining legacy SIMATIC S5 PROFIBUS networks frequently encounter a fatal installer failure when deploying COM PROFIBUS V5.1 on modern Windows platforms. The installer aborts immediately after the target directory prompt and returns the diagnostic string:

DoInstall setup.ins failed Return value = -4

The fault is non-recoverable from the GUI; the Next button commits the transaction and the setup rolls back without writing a registry trace. The error originates in the InstallShield 5.x runtime that COM PROFIBUS V5.1 ships, and it is reproducible across Windows 2000, Windows XP SP2/SP3, and embedded PE environments when the target path, the host OS, or the prerequisite patch level violates the conditions the installer was compiled against.

This article documents the root cause, the prerequisite hotfix chain (HF1, HF2, HF3, SP2), the official Siemens support entry IDs, the install-time path constraints that trigger Return -4, and the field-proven workarounds for running the tool on Windows XP and later host operating systems that Siemens does not formally certify.

Affected Software, Part Numbers, and Catalog References

The product finder on the PROFIBUS & PROFINET International (PI) site lists COM PROFIBUS as the canonical configuring tool for PROFIBUS DP and FMS, used for addressing, configuring, and documenting DP segments. See the Configuring Tool for PROFIBUS DP/FMS product finder entry for the formal product description.

Root Cause Analysis of Return -4

The -4 return value is mapped by the InstallShield setup.ins script to a path-resolution failure during the DoInstall phase. Three independent root conditions can produce it:

1. Target path length > 8 characters in the leaf directory. The installer preserves the 8.3 FAT convention in its path-validation macros. Targets such as C:\ComProf succeed, but C:\ComProfibus trips the validator and forces a rollback with -4. The same condition appears when the default directory prompt shows \ (root) because the validator failed to write a default.
2. Path contains spaces, parentheses, or non-ASCII characters. Install paths containing Program Files, (x86), or accented characters fail the legacy 8.3 path check that COM PROFIBUS V5.1 performs on the temporary SETUP.ISS response file.
3. Missing prerequisite patch level on Windows 2000. The InstallShield runtime that V5.1 ships expects Windows 2000 SP3 or SP4 (HF3 prerequisite). Installing on a non-patched Windows 2000 host produces the same -4 after the directory prompt because the helper DLL cannot resolve the system language module.

Siemens support entry 8460601 explicitly states that no PROFIBUS configuration software is offered for Windows XP, which is why installations on XP fail through the public release channel but succeed with documented workarounds (see Workaround section).

Prerequisites

Verify the host patch state before launching the installer:

1. Open winver from Start → Run.
2. Confirm Service Pack 3 or Service Pack 4 appears in the version string. If absent, apply SP4 from the Microsoft Windows 2000 Installation CD before continuing.

Standard Installation Procedure (Windows 2000 SP3/SP4)

1. Insert the COM PROFIBUS V5.1 CD (6ES5 895-6SE03). The autorun starts Setup.exe from the CD root.
2. When prompted for the target directory, replace the default \ with a path that respects the 8.3 rule, for example:

   C:\ComProf

   Do not use C:\ComProfibus, C:\Program Files\ComProf, or any path containing a space.
3. Click Next. The setup.ins script now resolves the path successfully and copies the InstallShield runtime plus the compbv51.cab payload to the target.
4. When prompted for the serial number, enter the 12-character key from the certificate of license. The original media was shipped with a hardware-locked key; floating licenses are not supported.
5. Allow the installer to register the CPX_DRV.DLL PROFIBUS driver and the CPBPROJ.MDB project template. The DoInstall phase must complete without a -4 return.
6. Reboot if prompted and verify the program group Siemens Automation → COM PROFIBUS V5.1 appears in Start → Programs.

Hotfix and Service Pack Chain

After a clean V5.1 install, the patch baseline must be applied in ascending order. Each release contains the previous hotfix only as a prerequisite; HF1 does not ship HF2 or HF3.

Download the Service Pack 2 for COM PROFIBUS V5.1 (diagnostics repeater support) from the official Siemens Industry Online Support portal. Hotfix 1, Hotfix 2, and Hotfix 3 are linked from the same product tree under entry ID 6ES5895-6SE03.

Apply the patches in this exact sequence:

1. Stop the COM PROFIBUS service Cpbsvc51 from services.msc.
2. Run HF1\Setup.exe, accept the V5.1 detection, allow the patch to overwrite CPBUSR.DLL.
3. Run HF2\Setup.exe, reboot if requested.
4. Run HF3\Setup.exe. If the host is not Windows 2000 SP3/SP4, the installer rolls back with the same DoInstall setup.ins failed Return value = -4 message and the patch is not applied.
5. Run SP2\Setup.exe for diagnostics repeater support.

Workarounds for Windows XP and Later Windows

Siemens does not certify COM PROFIBUS V5.1 on Windows XP or later, but field installations frequently run the tool on XP SP2/SP3, Windows 7 32-bit, and even Windows 10 32-bit compatibility layers. The Return -4 error appears first on these hosts and is resolved with the following procedure, which combines the two most reliable field-proven techniques.

Method 1 - Copy the media to the local hard disk

1. Copy the entire CD contents to a local folder, for example:

   D:\Install\ComProfibus5_1\

   The folder name is 18 characters; the 8.3 rule applies to the install target, not the staging folder.
2. Browse to ComProfibus5_1\compbv51\Disk1\ and double-click Setup.exe directly. Do not run the root Setup.exe from the CD root because its autorun stub is not 32-bit aware on XP.
3. When prompted for the target, type:

   C:\ComProf

   Eight characters or less, no spaces.
4. Complete the install and reboot.

Method 2 - 8.3 short-name and compatibility shim

1. Enable the Windows 8.3 short-name generation. From an elevated command prompt:

   fsutil 8dot3name set D: 0

   This forces short names on the volume that hosts the install target.
2. Pre-create the install directory with a short name:

   mkdir "C:\ComProfibus Application"
   dir /x C:\

   Note the COMPRO~1 short name returned by dir /x. Use that short name as the install path.
3. Set the Setup.exe compatibility to Windows 2000 via the file Properties → Compatibility tab, with the Run as administrator checkbox enabled.
4. Run the installer and supply the short-name path. The setup.ins validation passes, and the DoInstall phase writes the registry keys successfully.

Method 3 - Dual-boot Windows XP

If Methods 1 and 2 do not stabilize the install, prepare a dual-boot configuration with Windows 2000 SP4 as the secondary partition. Microsoft documents the procedure in the knowledge base article on creating a multiple-boot system in Windows XP. This is the only Siemens-recommended fallback path because it satisfies the official Windows 2000 SP3/SP4 prerequisite exactly.

Alternative: Migrate to STEP 7 / TIA Portal

For new deployments on a S5 DP master (IM 308C, CP 5431 FMS), the modern substitute is STEP 7 V5.7 plus a Hardware Support Package (HSP) for the legacy S5 DP master, or STEP 7 Professional (TIA Portal) with the S5 migration tool. The migration tool imports .CPB project files generated by COM PROFIBUS V5.1 and re-targets the DP configuration onto PROFINET via the IE/PB Link. Where a system cannot be migrated - for example, a brownfield retrofit on a SIMATIC S5-155H with a custom DP slave library - COM PROFIBUS V5.1 + HF3 + SP2 remains the only supported option, and the install workarounds above apply.

Verification

1. Launch COM PROFIBUS V5.1 from the desktop shortcut. The splash screen must report build 5.1.3.0 (or higher if HF3 is installed) and the licensed user name.
2. Open File → New Project, choose a master type (for example IM 308-C), and confirm the project tree shows Master → DP → Slot 0.
3. Insert a known slave GSD, for example the Siemens ET 200S SIEM808F.GSD, into slot 4. The slot configurator must populate the module list without a parse error.
4. Click Save As and store the project in a path that respects the 8.3 rule, for example C:\ComProf\Test.cpb. If the file saves without a Path too long dialog, the install is healthy.
5. Optionally, attach a CP 5431 or IM 308-C over the parallel port and run Online → Scan Bus. The scan must enumerate the slaves on the segment without timing out at 30 s.

Troubleshooting Matrix

FAQ