Siemens TP277 SMTP Email Setup: Sm@rtService License Activation

1. Problem Overview

The Siemens SIMATIC TP277 (6-inch Touch Panel, family 6AV2 124) is widely used as a service and operator interface on smaller machines. Like its larger siblings in the 270/277 series, it supports a built-in SMTP client that can trigger an email when an alarm is raised, a tag threshold is exceeded, or a button is pressed in WinCC Flexible. In the field, a recurring failure mode is the silent no-email condition: the panel accepts the configuration, the project transfers successfully, no warning or error appears at runtime, but the SMTP relay on the LAN never receives a connection attempt from the HMI.

Engineers typically diagnose this as a network problem first, because the symptom is identical to a firewall block, a mis-configured DNS server, or an unreachable SMTP relay. The packet capture shows the panel sending ICMP echoes to the mail server, but no TCP port 25 (or 465/587) traffic. After the network is exhaustively checked, the remaining root cause is almost always the panel's option-bit license: the Sm@rtService option, which gates the SendEMail runtime function, has not been activated on the device, or the wrong license variant has been transferred.

This reference documents the full diagnostic path, the license activation procedure, the WinCC Flexible project configuration for SMTP, and the verification steps that confirm a working email channel. It is written for a controls engineer who has the panel on the bench, the project open in WinCC Flexible 2008 SP3 or later, and a working SMTP relay on the network.

2. TP277 Hardware and Firmware Context

The TP277 ships in two main variants:

• TP 277 6" — 6AV2 124-1MC01-0AX0, 5.7" color TFT, 256 colors or 16-bit (variant dependent).
• TP 277 4" — older 4-inch monochrome variant (less common on email projects).

Firmware revisions encountered in the field include:

Email capability is present in all three revisions, but the Sm@rtService runtime function is gated by a license key, not by firmware. A panel that was ordered without the option (MLFB without the -0AX1 / -0AX2 suffix, depending on option model) must receive a license transfer from the configuration PC before the email function becomes executable. This is the single most common root cause of the silent failure described in the problem overview.

3. Sm@rtService License Architecture

Siemens sells the TP277 email/Sm@rtService capability as an option that is licensed per-device. The license is keyed to the panel's serial number and CF card fingerprint (the panel stores its license on the internal flash, with a fingerprint derived from the operating-system partition). The license is delivered as a .zip archive from the Siemens Automation License Manager and must be transferred to the panel via ProSave or directly from WinCC Flexible's transfer dialog.

3.1 License Variants

There are two license generations and two scope types that must match the panel and the configuration tool:

3.2 Verifying the License State on the Panel

1. On the TP277, open Control Panel → OP Properties → Add-ons (or Start → Settings → Control Panel → Add-ons depending on firmware).
2. The Sm@rtService entry shows Activated or Not activated. The version column shows the licensed generation (2005, 2007, 2008).
3. If the entry is missing entirely, the option was never ordered on the device. A license may be ordered retroactively through Siemens and transferred via ProSave.

If the panel reports Not activated, the SendEMail function is bound to return without sending or to raise a system event 0x8004xxxx, depending on the runtime revision. The latter is what produces the "no error, no email" behavior the original poster observed: the call is rejected at license-check time and the system alarm is filtered out of the default alarm view.

4. WinCC Flexible SMTP Configuration

With a valid Sm@rtService license in place, the project-side configuration proceeds as follows.

4.1 Device-Level SMTP Settings

1. In WinCC Flexible, open the project tree and select Device → Settings → SMTP.
2. Enter the SMTP server hostname or IP. The hostname mail.ourcompany.com used in the field report is acceptable; an IP literal is also valid and avoids a DNS dependency.
3. Set the SMTP port. Default 25 for cleartext, 465 for implicit SSL, 587 for STARTTLS submission.
4. Authentication: leave blank for open relay, or enter user/password for authenticated submission. Encrypted transfer is configured under Settings → SSL/TLS.
5. Sender address: [email protected] (must be accepted by the SMTP server; many relays reject unverified senders).

4.2 Network Adapter Settings

1. Control Panel → Network and Dial-up Connections → Onboard Ethernet (or PN_X1 for Profinet variants).
2. Set IP, Subnet, Gateway. The panel must be on a routable subnet whose gateway can reach the SMTP server.
3. DNS servers: required if SMTP hostname is used. The original report shows the panel resolving mail.ourserver.com and google.com via ping, indicating DNS is functional — but a successful ping does not prove that the SMTP port is reachable. Confirm with a port-test step in section 6.

4.3 Alarm-Side Email Trigger

1. Open the alarm screen or the Alarm Management → Settings node.
2. On the OnAlarm or OnAcknowledge event, attach the system function SendEMail.
3. Function parameters: Recipient, Subject, Body, Sender (optional, defaults to device setting).

A button-driven test in the original report ("dummy program with a big button, on-press SendEMail") is the canonical method for isolating alarm-engine issues from network issues. It is the right diagnostic step and is reproduced in section 6.2 as a formal verification procedure.

5. Root Cause Map for Silent Email Failures

The diagnostic tree below maps the symptom ("no email, no error") to its most likely causes. Address in order from the cheapest to the most expensive check.

6. Diagnostic and Verification Procedure

6.1 Pre-flight: License and Network

1. Confirm Sm@rtService is Activated in OP Properties. If not, stop and resolve license before continuing.
2. From the panel, ping the SMTP server by hostname. The original report shows this step was successful. If ping fails by name, change to IP literal in the SMTP settings.
3. From a PC on the same subnet, run Test-NetConnection mail.ourcompany.com -Port 25 (PowerShell) or telnet mail.ourcompany.com 25. If the PC fails, the panel will also fail; the issue is upstream of the panel.
4. Wireshark on the panel's switch port: filter on tcp.port==25 while triggering a SendEMail. No SYN packet = the panel is not attempting the connection. Most often this is the license gate; with a valid license, the SYN is sent and the issue becomes SMTP-side.

6.2 Function Test: Button-Driven SendEMail

1. Create a screen with a single button.
2. On the OnClick event, place the SendEMail system function with parameters:

   Recipient:    [email protected]
   Subject:      TP277 Email Test
   Body:         Triggered at &Date &Time from TP277
   Sender:       [email protected] (optional)

3. Compile and transfer the project.
4. Press the button. Expected: a TCP connection from the panel to the SMTP server on port 25, followed by an SMTP EHLO, MAIL FROM, RCPT TO, DATA exchange, and a 250 OK reply from the server.
5. Verify delivery in the recipient mailbox or in the relay's queue log.

6.3 Alarm-Driven SendEMail

1. After step 6.2 succeeds, attach the same SendEMail function to an OnAlarm event.
2. Define an alarm class with a tag-bound trigger (e.g., AlarmTag1 == 1).
3. Force the alarm in the project simulation or in the live HMI by setting the tag. The email must be delivered within 1–2 seconds of the alarm edge.
4. If step 6.2 succeeded but 6.3 fails, the issue is in the alarm wiring, not the SMTP layer. Check the function-list under the alarm's OnAlarm event, not under the alarm class's default event.

6.4 License Status Verification via ProSave

1. Open ProSave, connect to the panel via Ethernet.
2. Under License → Read back license, the panel's active license keys are listed. A non-empty Sm@rtService entry with a valid expiration date (perpetual for option licenses) confirms activation.
3. If the list is empty, the license transfer was not persisted. Repeat the transfer with Authorize/Transfer License and reboot the panel.

7. License Transfer Procedure (ProSave)

1. On the configuration PC, install the Automation License Manager (part of the TIA / WinCC Flexible installation, also available standalone).
2. Launch ALM. The license file (.lic) is imported from the .zip delivery. ALM places it in the license repository and displays the panel's target serial number.
3. Open ProSave, set the connection type to Ethernet, enter the TP277's IP, and select the panel type.
4. Click Authorize / License → Transfer License to Target Device.
5. Select the Sm@rtService license from the repository and click Transfer.
6. After a successful transfer, ProSave prompts for a panel reboot. Allow the reboot.
7. Re-check OP Properties → Add-ons to confirm the Activated state.

8. Common Error States and System Events

The TP277 raises the following system events around the SMTP runtime. They are visible in the alarm view only when the system-alarm filter is enabled.

When the system-alarm filter is set to Errors and warnings only, events 140001 and 140002 are suppressed. This is why the runtime shows "no error" even when the license is missing and 140010 is being raised — the engineer must enable Show all system events to see the license gate in action.

9. Alternate Trigger: VBScript SendEMail on TP277

TP277 panels with firmware V2.0 and later support VBScript in the function list. A direct script call is sometimes more flexible than the system function for embedding dynamic content:

Function OnButtonPress()
    Dim sTo, sSubject, sBody
    sTo = "[email protected]"
    sSubject = "TP277 Event @ " & Time
    sBody = "Tag PressureAlarm = " & _
            SmartTags("PressureAlarm") & vbCrLf & _
            "Time: " & Now
    ShowSystemAlarm "Triggering SendEMail..."
    SmartTags("EmailStatus") = 0  ' clear before send
    SendEMail sTo, sSubject, sBody
    SmartTags("EmailStatus") = 1  ' mark send complete
End Function

This pattern is useful when the original poster-style "big button" test needs to confirm both the function execution path and the SMTP path in a single step. The SmartTags("EmailStatus") tag is a convenient latch for an HMI-visible indicator that the call returned.

10. Firmware/HSP Compatibility Matrix

When a project is built on a newer WinCC Flexible version than the panel was designed for, function availability can regress. The matrix below summarises the supported combinations for the Sm@rtService / SendEMail path:

If a project built in 2008 SP3 is transferred to a V1.x panel, the SMTP-related functions are stripped or substituted. Conversely, a 2005-built project transferred to a V3.x panel needs the legacy license even though the configuration tool is current. The license and the configuration generation must be matched.

11. Step-by-Step Recovery (Original Field Scenario)

Recreating the field report from the field report, the most direct recovery sequence is:

1. On the TP277: Start → Settings → Control Panel → OP Properties → Add-ons. Confirm whether Sm@rtService is Activated.
2. If not activated: obtain the matching license from Siemens. Use Automation License Manager on the configuration PC to import the license file, then ProSave → License → Transfer to Target Device.
3. After the transfer and a panel reboot, re-verify Activated in OP Properties.
4. Enable Show all system events in the alarm view. This makes 140010 visible in case of regression.
5. Trigger the button-driven SendEMail test (section 6.2) and confirm the Wireshark capture shows a TCP SYN from the panel to the SMTP server.
6. If the SYN is present and a 250 OK is returned, transfer the same function to the alarm's OnAlarm event and verify end-to-end delivery.

12. Frequently Asked Questions