Resolving WinCC TIA Portal V11 Database Link Error After Project

1. Problem Overview

When a WinCC Professional V11 project (part of the SIMATIC TIA Portal V11 engineering suite) is engineered on a Windows 7 PC and then copied to a second PC for runtime deployment, the WinCC RT Professional runtime frequently fails to start. The runtime window either closes immediately on launch or stops during initialization with a logged error similar to:

Cannot link the configuration database to the Runtime project.
Error code: 1, 0
Timestamp: 8:36:13 PM

The error is reported in the WinCC RT Professional startup log and is independent of any user tag, screen, or alarm configuration. The HMI compile step appears to complete in the TIA Portal without warnings, but the runtime still cannot attach the SQL-based configuration database to the running project. The same archive transferred back to the original engineering PC starts and runs without fault, confirming the issue is environment-specific, not project-logic related.

2. Error Symptoms and Code Mapping

The visible symptoms typically appear in the following sequence:

1. WinCC RT Professional launcher starts, shows the splash screen, then closes within 1-3 seconds.
2. The Windows event log (Application log, source WinCC) records a failure of category Database.
3. Re-opening the project in TIA Portal and performing Compile > Software (rebuild all) succeeds with zero errors and zero warnings.
4. The error code 1, 0 appears in the Start.txt log inside the project's IM folder.

The 1, 0 code is the dominant signature for the copy-between-PCs fault and is the focus of this article.

3. Root Cause Analysis

WinCC Professional V11 stores its runtime configuration in a Microsoft SQL Server Embedded (SSE) instance that is registered locally during project compile. Inside every TIA Portal V11 project archive, the IM folder contains:

• A reference to the local SQL instance (typically WINCCPLUS_MIG or a project-named instance).
• The current PC name embedded in the registry keys written at compile time.
• Cached MDF/LDF file handles and file-locking metadata.

When the archive is copied to a second PC and re-opened, TIA Portal sees the project files but the SQL database is still bound to the original PC's SQL instance and original machine name. The runtime attempt fails because the path localhost\WINCCPLUS_MIG cannot be resolved to a valid SQL instance on the destination machine, and the secondary file lock from the original compile is still present in the IM folder.

Unlike WinCC V7, where renaming the computer and recompiling fully re-homed the project, WinCC TIA Portal V11 does not automatically migrate the IM folder contents to the new host. The fix is to force TIA Portal to regenerate the IM folder from scratch on the destination PC.

4. Pre-flight Checklist: Compatibility Constraints

Before applying the recovery procedure, verify that the destination PC is actually supported by WinCC TIA Portal V11. Many reported "database link" errors turn out to be downstream symptoms of running V11 on an unsupported operating system.

Reference: SIMATIC WinCC V11.0 SP2 - System requirements (Siemens Support entry ID 57192095). If the target PC is Windows XP, this is almost certainly the cause and the platform must be upgraded to Windows 7 SP1 32-bit before the runtime will start, regardless of IM folder cleanup.

5. Prerequisites for the Recovery Procedure

• Administrator account on both engineering and runtime PCs.
• Full read/write permission on the project folder (typically D:\<ProjectName>).
• TIA Portal V11 with the same Service Pack level installed on both PCs (mixing SP levels corrupts the IM folder further).
• All WinCC RT Professional instances closed (check Task Manager for CCExp.exe and WinCCExplorer.exe).
• The original .ap11 archive (or an unaltered copy of the engineering project) on the destination PC, so you can re-copy a clean source if needed.

6. Step-by-Step Recovery Procedure

1. Stop all TIA Portal and WinCC processes. Open Task Manager, end any S7-PCTIA.exe, CCExp.exe, WinCCExplorer.exe, and sqlservr.exe tree. The SQL service must be released before file locks can be removed.
2. Locate the IM folder. Navigate to <ProjectFolder>\IM. The path is created automatically when the project is first compiled. Inside you will find files such as Start.txt, Project.mdf, Project_log.ldf, and the HMI subdirectory.
3. Delete the entire contents of the IM folder. Do not delete the folder itself, only its contents. Hold Shift+Delete to bypass the Recycle Bin. If Windows reports files in use, repeat step 1 — a stuck sqlservr.exe is the usual cause.
4. Stop and restart the SQL service. Open services.msc, locate SQL Server (WINCCPLUS_MIG), stop it, wait 10 seconds, then start it again. This clears any orphaned database handles.
5. Re-open the TIA Portal project on the destination PC. Wait for the project tree to fully load — you may see a prompt to recover the project; choose Recover.
6. Compile the full PC station. Right-click the PC station in the project tree and select Compile > Software (rebuild all). Confirm that WinCC RT Professional appears in the compile output with zero errors and zero warnings.
7. Verify IM folder regeneration. Navigate back to <ProjectFolder>\IM. New Project.mdf and Project_log.ldf files should now exist, with timestamps matching the rebuild.
8. Start the runtime. From the TIA Portal, click Start Runtime on the WinCC RT Professional node, or launch CCExp.exe manually from the project folder. The runtime window should remain open.

7. Alternative: Full Project Re-link from the Source PC

If the IM folder cleanup alone does not resolve the error (for example, when the destination PC has a different Windows user name or a domain membership change), perform a complete re-link:

1. On the engineering PC, open the project and choose Project > Archive to produce a fresh .ap11 archive. Archiving strips transient cache files that a raw file copy leaves behind.
2. Transfer the .ap11 archive to the destination PC using a file share, not a USB stick, to avoid NTFS permission drift.
3. On the destination PC, choose Project > Retrieve from the TIA Portal start page and point to the archive.
4. Verify the retrieved folder structure. The IM folder should be empty or absent.
5. Compile and start runtime as in Section 6, steps 6-8.

This approach is more robust than raw folder copy and matches the official Siemens migration flow documented in the TIA Portal V11 Help: "Migrating a project" (ID 57182440).

8. Database Re-attachment via WinCC Explorer

For advanced cases where the IM folder rebuild still produces a runtime that starts but throws database warnings, re-attach the database manually:

1. Open WinCC Explorer on the runtime PC (Start > SIMATIC > WinCC > WinCC Explorer).
2. Right-click Computer node and select Properties.
3. On the Graphics Runtime tab, verify the startup project path points to the new project location.
4. Open Tools > Database Connection and confirm the SQL instance name reads localhost\WINCCPLUS_MIG.
5. Use Test Connection. A successful test means the database is now properly re-bound; close the dialog and start the runtime.

9. Verification and Commissioning Tests

After the runtime starts successfully, run a structured acceptance test before declaring the issue resolved.

Reference: WinCC V11 Commissioning Manual (ID 51999435).

10. Troubleshooting Matrix

11. Preventive Measures for Future Project Transfers

• Always use Project > Archive / Retrieve instead of folder copy. The archive format strips paths, environment variables, and machine-specific cache that the IM folder stores.
• Keep TIA Portal and WinCC Service Packs identical on both PCs. Mixing V11 SP0 and V11 SP2 creates IM folder version mismatches that present as the same 1, 0 error.
• Maintain a documented baseline of which SQL instance name your project uses, and never change the PC's machine name after the first compile.
• For multi-PC deployments, create a thin image (with WinCC RT Professional pre-installed and pre-licensed) and only push the project archive to each instance. This keeps the IM folder generation deterministic.
• Snapshot the project folder before any copy operation so the recovery procedure has a known-good source.

12. Escalation Path

If the IM folder cleanup, full re-archive, and SQL re-attach steps all fail to clear the 1, 0 error, open a Siemens Support Request with the following artifacts attached:

• Start.txt from the IM folder (timestamped log of the failed launch).
• Windows event log export (Application + System, last 30 minutes).
• Output of sc query "SQL Server (WINCCPLUS_MIG)" from the destination PC.
• Full screenshot of the TIA Portal compile output.
• Project archive size and SHA-256 hash.

Reference: Siemens Industry Online Support — use the "WinCC" product filter and "TIA Portal V11" version filter to reach the correct queue.