Resolving STEP 7 V13 SP2 Extraction Error on Windows 10

1. Problem Summary

Engineers installing SIMATIC STEP 7 Professional V13.0 SP2 Update 4 (combo package with WinCC Professional and PLCSIM) on a Windows 10 Home workstation frequently encounter a fault where the setup bootstrapper appears to extract successfully, prompts for a reboot, and then—after the reboot—returns the error:

The installation medium is not available, please insert the DVD or check the network connection.

The condition is reproducible across both the trial download and the licensed DVD installer. The visible symptoms are:

• The extraction wizard completes without a hard error.
• The wizard writes its working files to a Windows temporary folder such as C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\Temp\SIMATIC STEP 7 Professional V13.0 SP2 UPD4.
• A reboot prompt is shown and accepted.
• On the next boot, the installer cannot locate the extracted payload and reports the medium as missing.
• If the engineer forces Skip, the install fails partway through, or a secondary dialog appears reporting a missing Automation License Manager (ALM) key medium.

The error is not a corruption of the source media and is not strictly a network share issue. It is a side effect of the Windows %TEMP% cleanup policy combined with the TIA Portal V13 SP2 extractor's behavior.

2. Environment and Prerequisites

Before attempting the resolution, confirm that the target machine satisfies the published TIA Portal V13 SP2 prerequisites. The official trial/upgrade article is SIMATIC STEP 7 including PLCSIM V13 SP2 TRIAL Download (SIOS ID 109745155).

3. Root Cause Analysis

The V13 SP2 setup is delivered as a self-extracting archive (the .exe double-click that opens the Extraction Wizard). When the user accepts the default destination, the wizard writes roughly 4–6 GB of compressed and uncompressed payload under the per-user %LOCALAPPDATA%\Temp tree, then signals the user to reboot before the second-stage Start.exe can be executed.

The defects in the default flow are:

1. Windows cleans %TEMP% on reboot. Starting with Windows 10 1903, the Disk Cleanup and Storage Sense routines may purge files older than 7 days (configurable to 1 day) from %LOCALAPPDATA%\Temp. Even on older builds, the per-user temp folder is volatile by contract—anything the user is expected to return to after a reboot is misplaced there.
2. The setup cannot self-heal. After reboot, Start.exe reads a manifest from the extraction root. If that root no longer exists, it cannot rebuild the install metadata from the original .exe, so it falls back to the message: "The installation medium is not available…"
3. The dialog masks the real problem. The error text refers to medium (DVD/network share), not to the temporary extraction root, which leads engineers to chase a phantom network path or missing disc image.
4. License medium follow-on. If the engineer presses Skip, the install continues against a half-extracted tree and ultimately the Automation License Manager (ALM) post-install reports that the license medium (the USB dongle or license key) is missing. This is a secondary symptom, not a separate fault.

Conclusion: the extraction root must live on a persistent, non-temp, non-network-redirected NTFS volume. A local folder such as D:\TiaV13SP2_Setup\ satisfies every constraint.

4. Pre-Installation Checklist

Before re-running the extraction, walk through the following checks. Each is a documented prerequisite from the Siemens entry ID 109745155 product notification:

1. Log in as a local Administrator or use a UAC-elevated PowerShell. Domain accounts without local admin cannot register the SIMATIC services (S7oiehsx64, ALM service).
2. Disable UAC strict mode only for the duration of the install, then re-enable.
3. Verify the .exe checksum. The published SHA-256 for the trial is on the SIOS page; the licensed DVD ships with a checksum.txt in DVD_1.
4. Right-click the installer → Properties → Unblock (if the checkbox is present). TIA setup binaries downloaded from the web are sometimes blocked by the Mark-of-the-Web (MotW) and the extraction wizard silently aborts.
5. Create the persistent extraction folder, e.g.:

   mkdir "D:\TiaV13SP2_Setup"
   icacls "D:\TiaV13SP2_Setup" /grant "%USERNAME%":(OI)(CI)F /T

6. Make sure Storage Sense is disabled: Settings → System → Storage → Storage Sense → Off. This stops Windows from sweeping %LOCALAPPDATA%\Temp while the install is staged.
7. If using a corporate laptop with a virtualization-based security (VBS) policy, exclude the extraction directory from controlled-folder access.

5. Step-by-Step Resolution

The following procedure resolves the Installation Medium Not Available error deterministically and prevents the ALM follow-on. It is compatible with Windows 10 Home, Pro, and Enterprise 1507–22H2.

5.1 Extract to a Persistent Volume

1. Copy the install .exe (or DVD contents) to a fast local drive. SSDs are recommended because the extraction touches ~5 GB of files.
2. Right-click the .exe → Run as administrator.
3. When the Extraction Wizard appears, click Browse… and set the destination to a folder outside the Windows temp tree. Use, for example:

   D:\TiaV13SP2_Setup\

4. Click Extract. The wizard writes Start.exe, Setup.exe, the Support, DVD_1, DVD_2 directories, and the Siemens.Automation.ObjectStore registry stubs.
5. When the wizard reports "Extraction complete," do not allow a reboot until you have completed the next step.

5.2 Launch the Install Without Rebooting First

1. Open File Explorer and navigate to:

   D:\TiaV13SP2_Setup\Start.exe

2. Right-click Start.exe → Run as administrator.
3. Choose language: English.
4. The Setup launch screen should now appear. If you are still prompted to insert a medium, the issue is environmental—see the troubleshooting matrix in Section 8.

5.3 Complete the Installation

1. On the Setup welcome screen, accept the license agreement (SIEMENS End-User License Agreement and the OpenSSL/PCRE/7-Zip notices).
2. Select products. For a typical S7-1200/1500 development machine, choose:
   • SIMATIC STEP 7 Professional V13.0 SP2
   • WinCC Professional V13.0 SP2 (optional)
   • PLCSIM V13.0 SP2
   • Automation License Manager V6.0 (mandatory)
3. Confirm the install paths. Defaults are C:\Program Files\Siemens\Automation and C:\ProgramData\Siemens\Automation. Change only if you have an I/O conflict.
4. Set the Transfer License Keys option. If a USB license stick is plugged, the install copies the entries to the ALM repository.
5. Click Install. Expected duration: 25–45 minutes on a quad-core, 8 GB laptop.
6. At the end, the wizard shows Installation successfully completed. Reboot now—the extracted payload under D:\TiaV13SP2_Setup can be deleted afterward.

5.4 Cleanup

1. After the post-install reboot, confirm that Start.exe and the install tree are no longer needed:
2. Re-enable Storage Sense if you disabled it.
3. Re-apply UAC strict mode.

6. License Key Handling

The "missing license key medium" prompt in the original incident is a downstream effect of the extraction problem. After the install is fixed, license handling is straightforward:

7. Installation Media Preparation (DVD / ISO / Network)

Many of the symptoms in the wild stem from improper preparation of the install medium, not from TIA itself. The rules below are derived from the SIOS article on the trial download and the V13 SP2 readme:

• DVD: The licensed package ships as a double-layer DVD image. Always copy the complete DVD_1 and DVD_2 directories, including the hidden Autorun.inf. A partial copy looks like a corrupted medium to the bootstrapper.
• ISO mount: Use Windows 10's built-in Mount (right-click → Mount) or 7-Zip. Avoid Daemon Tools Lite, which has historically intercepted Setup.exe on Windows 10 1903+ and triggered MotW blocks.
• Network share: Map the share as a drive letter and run Setup.exe from the mapped drive, not the UNC path. UNC paths are blocked for ALM registration under a strict Group Policy.
• SCCM / Intune deployment: Pre-extract with the /extract:"D:\TiaV13SP2_Setup" /quiet switch, then call Start.exe from a deployment script. Never deploy the raw .exe and let %TEMP% host the payload.

8. Verification Procedure

After the install completes, validate the environment with these checks:

1. Open TIA Portal V13 SP2 from the Start menu. The splash screen should report build V13.0 SP2 Update 4 (or whatever UPD level you installed).
2. Create a new S7-1500 project. Compile hardware. If compilation succeeds without ALM warnings, the license handshake is correct.
3. Start PLCSIM V13 SP2 and download the compiled project. A successful simulated download confirms the SIMATIC services are registered.
4. Open Automation License Manager and verify that the local Search Order includes the working repository. All expected license keys should be visible.
5. Reboot and repeat step 2. A clean post-reboot start is the definitive proof that the extraction root is no longer on a volatile path.

9. Troubleshooting Matrix

10. Project Upgrade Note (STEP 7 Safety V13 SP1/SP2)

If the install is part of a project migration, note the upgrade rules published in Upgrading projects from STEP 7 Safety V13 SP1/SP2 to the latest version. TIA Portal V13 SP2 can open a V13 SP1 Safety project, but it performs an in-place upgrade on first save. The upgrade is one-way; downgrade requires a backup made before the first save. Coordinate the upgrade with the safety sign-off cycle to avoid uncontrolled version churn.

11. FAQ