Resolving Drive ES Missing Objects in Archived STEP 7 V5.7 Projects

When a STEP 7 V5.x project containing Drive ES-configured variable-frequency drives (for example, MICROMASTER 4xx) is migrated to a new PC running STEP 7 V5.7 on Windows 10, the drives frequently vanish from the project tree. The hardware configuration still lists the PROFIBUS nodes, but the “Drive ES” software package reports as missing and blocks any further editing. This reference documents the exact resolution path, the underlying root cause, and the version-migration matrix that prevents the issue from recurring.

Problem Overview

Drive ES Basic is the Siemens commissioning and parameterization tool that integrates directly into the SIMATIC Manager. It is used to edit drive objects (e.g., MICROMASTER 4, SINAMICS G110 / G120 with PROFIBUS option) inside a STEP 7 project without leaving the SIMATIC Manager environment. Each project object generated by Drive ES is flagged with a “software package” marker that names the Drive ES version that originally wrote the object.

When a project is opened on a PC whose installed Drive ES version does not satisfy the version marker on the objects, SIMATIC Manager raises the error described below and refuses to edit the drive entries. The drive is still visible in HW Config (because HW Config reads the GSD / DP-Slave description, not Drive ES) but the Drive ES wrappers around the drive objects are locked.

The failure is independent of physical hardware: the drives are not actually missing from PROFIBUS, they are merely uneditable inside the STEP 7 tree.

Symptoms and Error Message

The exact error displayed by SIMATIC Manager / HW Config is:

"The project contains objects of the sw package 'Drive ES' which cannot be edited because the SW package is not installed or exists in an earlier version."

Observable side-effects:

• Drive objects do not appear under the S7 program node in the project tree.
• HW Config opens and lists the DP-Slaves (drives), but the standard menus for drive commissioning are greyed out.
• “Search for missing software packages” from the project object properties does not find Drive ES even though the package is correctly installed under Start → SIMATIC → Drive ES and the relevant add-ins (MICROMASTER, MICROMASTER 4xx) are ticked.
• Uninstalling, reinstalling, and downgrading Drive ES (e.g., to V5.5 SP1) do not clear the condition.
• The same archived project opens correctly on a Windows 7 reference environment running STEP 7 V5.5 + Drive ES V5.5 / 5.6, confirming that the project itself is not corrupted.

Environment and Version Requirements

Confirmed-working versus failing combinations from the case history:

Reference: SIMATIC STEP 7 V5.7 — Release information and download; Drive ES Basic V5.x — Function manual.

Root Cause: STEP 7 Integrity Monitoring

STEP 7 V5.x stores an integrity-check bit on every project object. The bit is recalculated on each save and validated whenever an S7 program is opened or compiled. If a project was originally created and saved on a PC that had a different combination of STEP 7 and Drive ES service packs, the embedded “package required” descriptor may reference a Drive ES build that no longer exists on the new PC, even when a newer Drive ES is installed.

SIMATIC Manager performs two cross-checks against the integrity bit:

1. Whether the listed software package is installed at all.
2. Whether the stored integrity checksum matches the running STEP 7 / Drive ES combination.

When the second check fails, the “cannot be edited” error is raised and the objects become read-only in the project tree. Reinstalling Drive ES only addresses check 1; the embedded checksum on the project objects is what blocks check 2.

The reorganization that SIMATIC Manager performs during Save As > Reorganize (slow) walks every project object, regenerates the integrity checksums against the currently installed package set, and rewrites the project database. The catch: if integrity monitoring is enabled while reorganizing, SIMATIC Manager refuses to overwrite the existing checksums and the project is saved in an inconsistent state. The PROFIBUS network names and connections are dropped, and the resulting HW Config cannot accept a new PROFIBUS address on any module.

Step-by-Step Solution

Execute the following procedure in the order shown. Do not skip step 1; performing the reorganization with integrity monitoring still enabled leaves the project in a worse state than the original.

1. Close the project in SIMATIC Manager.
2. Open Options → Customize in SIMATIC Manager.
3. Select the “Archive / Retrieve” tab (in some localized builds it is labelled “Project handling” or “General”).
4. Clear the checkbox “Activate integrity monitoring” (German UI: Integritätsüberwachung aktivieren).
5. Click OK to apply.
6. Reopen the project in SIMATIC Manager.
7. Choose File → Save As and set the option “Reorganize (slow)”. Provide a new folder or a new project name so that the original is preserved until the result is verified.
8. Wait for the reorganization to complete. SIMATIC Manager rebuilds the project tree, regenerates object checksums, and re-registers all software-package markers against the currently installed Drive ES build.
9. After the reorganization finishes, return to Options → Customize and re-enable “Activate integrity monitoring”. The option should remain on for day-to-day use so that subsequent saves continue to verify consistency.
10. Open HW Config and confirm that the drives are now editable and the PROFIBUS network nodes are intact.

The same procedure was originally published by Siemens for a SIMOTION-related symptom; the underlying mechanism is identical for Drive ES, which is why the workaround transfers cleanly between the two ecosystems.

Verification Checklist

After the reorganization, run through the following checks. Each item must be true before committing the project to the running production environment.

If check 1, 2, or 4 still fails, the reorganization did not complete (e.g., a referenced GSD file is missing on the new PC). See the troubleshooting matrix below.

Troubleshooting Matrix

Alternative Workarounds

If disabling integrity monitoring is not acceptable on a production engineering workstation, the following alternatives have been used successfully in the field.

Workaround A — Archive and re-retrieve on a known-good PC

On the working Windows 7 / STEP 7 V5.5 reference PC, archive the project, then retrieve it on the target PC. The retriever re-validates package markers against the target PC's installed set. In most cases this is sufficient to clear the error without disabling integrity monitoring.

Workaround B — Manual GSD re-insert

Open HW Config, delete the affected drive DP-Slave, install its GSD file from the original Drive ES media (e.g., mm4.gsd, mm420.gsd, sinamics-s.gsd), and re-insert the slave at the same PROFIBUS address. The drive parameter set must then be re-imported from the project backup.

Workaround C — Touch up the package marker

Not officially supported. Editing the project database directly can corrupt the archive. Use only as a last resort, and only on a copy of the project.

For all three workarounds, integrity monitoring should be re-enabled at the end. The choice between Workaround A and the primary procedure is essentially whether integrity monitoring may be temporarily disabled; Workaround A is preferred if company policy forbids touching that setting.

STEP 7 / Drive ES Compatibility Matrix

Use the table below to confirm that the installed Drive ES package supports the STEP 7 service pack that owns the project. Compatibility is driven by the package marker stored in the project; mismatches cause the error described in this article.

Reference: Drive ES Basic V5.6 — Readme / Installation notes; SIMATIC STEP 7 V5.7 — Function manual and compatibility.

Avoiding Reorganization Pitfalls

The reorganization step is sensitive. The following failure modes were observed when integrity monitoring was left enabled during Save As > Reorganize (slow):

• PROFIBUS network names and connection tables are dropped. HW Config then refuses to assign a PROFIBUS address to any module, because the DP master system no longer has a valid “name” attribute.
• Station-consistency check fails; Save and Compile returns errors that point at empty network nodes rather than at the real problem (the package marker).
• The project tree appears reorganized but the drives remain hidden, with the same “Drive ES missing” dialog reappearing on the next open.

Mitigations:

• Always keep a backup of the original archive in a separate folder before reorganizing.
• Disable integrity monitoring before opening the project that will be reorganized. The setting is read on project open, not on save, so editing it while the project is loaded is not enough.
• After reorganization, run Station → Consistency Check on every S7 station before any online action. This surfaces dropped PROFIBUS names before they are written to the PLC.
• Re-enable integrity monitoring immediately after the reorganization is verified.

Best Practices for Project Migration

1. Match the STEP 7 and Drive ES service-pack generation on the new PC before archiving. V5.5 + V5.5 is a safer target than V5.7 + V5.6 when a production project has not been touched in years, because the version-marker delta is smaller.
2. Install Drive ES add-ins for every drive family that the project references. Even if a particular add-in is not currently used, the package marker on historical objects may still reference it.
3. Keep the original PC virtualized. A Windows 7 / 10 VM with the original STEP 7 + Drive ES combination is the fastest fallback when a migration hits a versioning wall.
4. Run the project on the new PC offline first. Open, reorganize, and verify the tree before plugging in a PROFIBUS cable. Online operations on an inconsistent project can lock PLC resources.
5. Document the installed package set. From Start → SIMATIC → Drive ES → Drive ES Readme, capture the SP / HF level and the add-ins enabled. Save this with the archive for the next migration.
6. Avoid mixed Drive ES versions on the same PC. Installing V5.5 SP1 alongside V5.6 on a single machine to “satisfy both” does not work; SIMATIC Manager binds to one Drive ES registry path at start-up.
7. Plan the TIA Portal / Startdrive exit ramp. For new machines, prefer TIA Portal + SINAMICS Startdrive. Drive ES Basic is a 32-bit product tied to Windows 10 / 11 and is no longer being actively developed.

Frequently Asked Questions