WinCC 7.5 SP2 Menus and Toolbars Editor Bug in Integrated Mode

Problem Overview

In WinCC 7.5 SP2, when a WinCC project is integrated into a STEP 7 (SIMATIC Manager) station as part of an integrated automation project, double-clicking the Menus and Toolbars editor entry in the WinCC Explorer navigation tree does not launch the expected editor. Instead, WinCC Configuration Studio opens and immediately displays the Tag Management plug-in. The same behavior can occur on WinCC 7.5 SP2 Update 3 and Update 4 installations, regardless of the host operating system or whether the installation is performed on a fresh virtual machine.

The behavior is specific to integrated projects. When a standalone WinCC 7.5 SP2 project of the same architecture is opened directly in WinCC Explorer (no STEP 7 integration), the Menus and Toolbars editor opens normally and can be configured as documented in the WinCC V8.1 Working with WinCC, Part 1 manual (ID 109986766). The issue is therefore not present in the editor binary itself but in the way the project metadata of an integrated project is written to disk.

Affected Versions and Environments

Root Cause Analysis

The Menus and Toolbars editor entry in the WinCC Explorer is registered as a node in the project's Master Configuration Project file (HMI-Server.mcp for server/multi-user projects, HMI-Client.mcp for client projects). When a WinCC project is created as a standalone project, the .mcp file is generated with the full set of editor registrations, including the editor that owns the Menus and Toolbars node.

When the same WinCC project is created from inside SIMATIC Manager (STEP 7) using Insert New Object → WinCC Application, the .mcp file is generated by a different code path that omits one or more editor registrations required to bind the Menus and Toolbars node. When the user double-clicks the node, WinCC Explorer cannot resolve the registered editor, and Configuration Studio falls back to its default plug-in (Tag Management). The fallback is the observable symptom; the underlying defect is a missing or malformed registry entry in the integrated project's .mcp file.

A secondary, related cause is corruption of CCConfigStudio.ini, the per-project, per-user file that stores the layout of Configuration Studio (which plug-ins are pinned, which is active, whether the user switched away from Tag Management last session). If the active plug-in stored in this file is Tag Management, Configuration Studio always opens with Tag Management regardless of which node is clicked, which masks the underlying registration defect.

Symptoms and Diagnostic Checklist

1. Open the integrated project in SIMATIC Manager and double-click the WinCC station to launch WinCC Explorer.
2. In the navigation tree, locate Graphics Designer → Menus and Toolbars (or the top-level Menus and Toolbars editor entry on older project templates).
3. Double-click the entry. Observe one of the following:
   • Configuration Studio opens with Tag Management displayed.
   • Configuration Studio opens briefly and is closed by an internal exception without prompting.
   • The navigation tree shows the node as available but the right-hand preview pane is blank.
4. Close the project. Navigate to the project path on disk (for example \Programs\HMI-Server\) and confirm the presence of:
   • HMI-Server.mcp (server/multi-user) or HMI-Client.mcp (client)
   • CCConfigStudio.ini in the same folder
   • GraCS\ directory and at least one .bmp icon file referenced by Menus and Toolbars
5. Right-click the .mcp file, choose Properties and compare its size and last-modified timestamp with a freshly created standalone project of the same name. An integrated project's .mcp is typically a few KB smaller than a standalone project's .mcp.

Workaround: Replace the Master Configuration Project File

This is the procedure confirmed by Siemens Technical Support through an official service request for WinCC 7.5 SP2 integrated multi-user/server projects.

1. Close WinCC Explorer and SIMATIC Manager.
2. Confirm that no WinCC service is locking the project path. Open Computer Management → Services and stop SIMATIC WinCC Explorer if it is running.
3. Open WinCC Explorer directly (do not open through SIMATIC Manager) using the start menu entry SIMATIC → WinCC → WinCC Explorer.
4. From the File menu, choose New and create a new multi-user (or single-user, matching the original topology) project. Use the same project name as the integrated project, but browse to a different path such as C:\Temp\HMI-Server.
5. Close the newly created project. WinCC Explorer will offer to save changes; allow it.
6. Using Windows Explorer, navigate to the new project folder and locate HMI-Server.mcp (or HMI-Client.mcp for a single-user project).
7. Copy the .mcp file.
8. Navigate to the original integrated project path, for example the STEP 7 project folder:
   C:\Program Files (x86)\Siemens\Automation\S7-ProjectName\WinCC\HMI-Server\
9. Paste and overwrite the original .mcp file. Confirm the file replacement dialog.
10. Re-open the original integrated project through SIMATIC Manager. The WinCC Explorer navigation tree will now resolve the Menus and Toolbars editor to the correct plug-in.
11. Double-click Menus and Toolbars to verify the editor opens normally.

Why the Workaround Works

The standalone .mcp file written by WinCC Explorer contains the full editor registration table. Because the names of internal sections, GUIDs and WinCC project settings are identical for projects with the same name in the same WinCC version, replacing the integrated project's .mcp with a standalone project's .mcp re-attaches the missing editor binding without invalidating the existing database connections, picture files, archives, or user administration.

Alternative Recovery: Reset the Configuration Studio Layout

If the menu issue appears only after a user has switched Configuration Studio to Tag Management and saved that layout, resetting the per-user CCConfigStudio.ini resolves the symptom without touching the .mcp file.

1. Close WinCC Explorer and any open WinCC clients.
2. Open the integrated project folder: <project>\HMI-Server\ (or client equivalent).
3. Locate CCConfigStudio.ini. This file is user-dependent; if multiple Windows users open the project, each has an entry under the [USERS] section.
4. Compare the file against a freshly created project. If the [ACTIVE] section or PlugIn= value points to Tag Management when you clicked Menus and Toolbars, the file is stale.
5. Either delete CCConfigStudio.ini (WinCC will regenerate defaults at next launch) or copy the file from a known-good standalone project to the integrated project folder.
6. Re-launch WinCC Explorer through SIMATIC Manager and click Menus and Toolbars to verify.

Verification Steps

1. Open the integrated project from SIMATIC Manager.
2. Expand the navigation tree to Menus and Toolbars.
3. Double-click the entry. Confirm that the Menus and Toolbars editor opens (it shows toolbar icons on the left and a customizable list of menu/toolbar entries on the right).
4. Create a temporary dummy menu entry, save, and verify it persists after closing and reopening the project.
5. Launch Configuration Studio manually and confirm that Tag Management is no longer pinned as the default plug-in when the project starts.
6. Repeat the test under each Windows user account that has rights to open the project.

Permanent Resolution Path

Siemens has not published a dedicated WinCC 7.5 SP2 hotfix addressing the integrated-project .mcp defect as of the latest service releases. Three options are available to obtain a permanent fix:

1. Open a service request with Siemens Industry Online Support and reference your WinCC serial number, the integrated project's name, and the symptoms. Attach the project's .mcp file and a screenshot of the navigation tree. Siemens Support can deliver a hotfix or escalate to engineering.
2. Upgrade to WinCC V8.1 or later. The official WinCC V8.1 documentation for the Menus and Toolbars editor is published in Working with WinCC, Part 1 (Entry ID 109986766). Customers who have moved to V8.x as part of their TIA Portal migration plan report that the integrated editor launches correctly. Confirm upgrade compatibility with your existing STEP 7 / PCS 7 / WinCC project before committing.
3. Maintain a project-metadata baseline. After successfully replacing the .mcp file, store a copy in version control. If a future WinCC update or STEP 7 hotfix regenerates the integrated .mcp and reintroduces the defect, the baseline can be reapplied.

Related Configuration Notes

• Project paths. Integrated WinCC projects live under the STEP 7 project root, typically <S7-Project>\WinCC\<HMI-Station>\. Avoid moving project files with Windows Explorer; use the Save As functionality inside WinCC Explorer or the Project Migrator to relocate projects.
• Multi-user vs single-user. The .mcp file name differs by topology: HMI-Server.mcp for the server/multi-user project and HMI-Client.mcp for each client. Replace the file that matches the project you are trying to fix.
• User permissions. The project folder must grant the WinCC runtime user (typically SIMATIC HMI) full read/write access. If the runtime user cannot write to the folder, Configuration Studio may fail to regenerate CCConfigStudio.ini and silently fall back to Tag Management.
• Graphics Designer dependencies. Menus and Toolbars editor stores icon references under GraCS\. If GraCS\ is missing or contains broken bitmap references, the editor may launch but show empty rows. Replace the .mcp file first, then verify GraCS\.

Troubleshooting Matrix

Best Practices for Integrated WinCC Projects

• Always store .mcp files in version control alongside CCConfigStudio.ini and the GraCS\ folder. After any WinCC update or STEP 7 service pack, diff these files against the repository to detect silent regeneration.
• Document the WinCC service pack, hotfix level and STEP 7 SP/HF level in the project README. The combination of WinCC 7.5 SP2 + STEP 7 5.6 SP5 HF5 is the most affected combination reported.
• When commissioning a new integrated project, immediately verify that all editor nodes in WinCC Explorer open the expected plug-in. Run a one-time "click every node" smoke test.
• Restrict the number of Windows users that open the project. Each user can introduce a separate CCConfigStudio.ini state, which makes debugging confusing.
• Before applying any WinCC update in a production environment, replicate the exact integrated topology on a test VM and verify all editor nodes.

FAQ