WinCC DataMonitor Report Path: Configuring the Output Directory

Siemens WinCC DataMonitor stores generated Excel reports in a fixed server-side directory rooted inside the WinCC installation folder. Although the application exposes a Folder Administration panel for creating WebCenter folders, it does not provide a free-form text field to relocate the physical report output path to an arbitrary drive such as D:\Reports. This reference explains the default storage architecture, the exact reason direct redirection is not supported, and three field-proven workarounds: scheduled BAT file relocation, NTFS directory junctions, and IIS virtual directory remapping. The guide covers WinCC 6.2 SP2 / DataMonitor V6.2 and the successor WinCC DataMonitor (RT Professional) in TIA Portal V21.

1. Overview of DataMonitor Report Generation

WinCC DataMonitor is the web-based reporting and analysis add-on for WinCC Runtime and WinCC RT Professional. Reports are produced as Excel workbooks using either:

• Time-based schedules: hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, or annual jobs defined in the DataMonitor Excel Workbook template.
• Event-driven triggers: archive value changes, bit-set conditions, or user-initiated manual exports.

Each generated report is a physical .xlsx file written by the DataMonitor Server service to a fixed path on the WebCenter host. Once written, the file becomes available to authorized users through the WebCenter WebPart in the browser. The MDM - WinCC/DataMonitor manual (entry ID 37436590) documents the report creation workflow, template options, and storage behavior.

2. Default Report Storage Architecture

DataMonitor report files are written into a hierarchical directory that mirrors the WebCenter folder structure and the user that owns the report. The default root path for a standard WinCC 6.2 SP2 installation is:

C:\Program Files\Siemens\WinCC\Webnavigator\DataMonitorServer\
  WebCenter\App_Data\Webcenter\WebCenterPages\
    <FolderName>\
      _private\
        @<UserName>\
          <ReportFile_YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS.xlsx>

Key elements of the path:

Inside the WinCC project tree, reports also appear under:

<ProjectPath>\WebNavigator\Reports\_private\@Administrator\<ReportName>.xlsx

When the WinCC project path is on D:\ but the WebCenter pages live on C:\, the report instance is still written to the C:\ tree because the DataMonitor service uses the absolute WinCC installation path, not the project path.

3. Why Direct Path Redirection Fails

Three architectural reasons prevent a direct configuration change:

1. Hard-coded WebCenter root. The path segment WebCenter\App_Data\Webcenter\WebCenterPages is registered in the DataMonitor IIS application and in the WebCenter configuration database (WebCenter.config). Editing either file out-of-band corrupts the portal index and breaks the Reports WebPart.
2. Per-user ACL mapping. WebCenter resolves the @<UserName> directory by enumerating the underlying NTFS ACL on the _private folder. Moving the tree to a different drive volume changes the ACL SID owner and breaks the report listing in the browser.
3. Configuration export only writes the template. The Export Configuration Data menu (Webcenter → Administration → Export configuration data) outputs a *.DataConfig XML file describing the report templates; it does not relocate the runtime output. A relocated project will still re-create the C:\ tree on the next service start.

These constraints are documented in the MDM - WinCC/DataMonitor PDF (entry 37436590), which describes the WebCenter folder hierarchy but does not expose a writable output path parameter.

4. Configuring Report Folders via WebCenter Administration

Although the physical root path is fixed, the logical folder organization is fully configurable. Use the WebCenter Administration WebPart to create the desired reporting structure:

1. Open a browser and navigate to http://<DataMonitorServer>/Webcenter on the WinCC/WebNavigator host.
2. Log in with an administrative DataMonitor user (for example @Administrator).
3. Click Webcenter → Administration → Folder administration.
4. Create the folder hierarchy required by the customer (e.g. Plant01 → ShiftReports → Daily).
5. Assign Read/Write/Delete rights per WinCC user group.
6. Confirm the folder structure in Folder administration → Show folder structure.

This procedure controls the logical storage location (folder name) but writes files to the fixed physical root described in Section 2. The exported DataConfig file is stored alongside the templates and can be re-imported on a replacement server using Webcenter → Administration → Import configuration data.

5. Workaround A: Scheduled BAT File Relocation

Siemens Customer Support's recommended workaround is a host-level script that moves generated files to a free-form destination such as D:\Reports. The script is invoked by Windows Task Scheduler on a tight interval so the user-visible delay is negligible.

5.1 Sample move.bat

@echo off
REM ============================================================
REM WinCC DataMonitor report relocation script
REM Source: WebCenter per-user report folder
REM Target: D:\Reports  (free-form path)
REM ============================================================
setlocal EnableExtensions EnableDelayedExpansion

set "SRC=C:\Program Files\Siemens\WinCC\Webnavigator\DataMonitorServer\WebCenter\App_Data\Webcenter\WebCenterPages\Reports\_private\@Administrator"
set "DST=D:\Reports"

REM Ensure target exists
if not exist "%DST%" mkdir "%DST%"

REM Move every .xlsx (and any other report file) older than 60 seconds
forfiles /p "%SRC%" /m *.xlsx /d -0 /c "cmd /c move /y @path \"%DST%\"" > nul 2>&1
forfiles /p "%SRC%" /m *.pdf  /d -0 /c "cmd /c move /y @path \"%DST%\"" > nul 2>&1

REM Optional: log the move count
set "COUNT=0"
for %%F in ("%DST%\*.*") do set /a COUNT+=1
echo %date% %time% - %COUNT% files present in %DST% >> D:\Reports\_relocation.log

endlocal

5.2 Short-form variant (single line)

move "C:\A1\B 1\C1\"*.* "D:\A2\B 2\C2"

5.3 Task Scheduler Configuration

1. Open Task Scheduler (taskschd.msc) on the DataMonitor host.
2. Click Create Task, name it DataMonitor Report Relocation.
3. Tab General: select Run whether user is logged on or not and Run with highest privileges.
4. Tab Triggers: New → Daily, repeat every 5 minutes for a duration of 1 day. Check Enabled.
5. Tab Actions: New → Start a program → cmd.exe with arguments /c "C:\Scripts\move.bat".
6. Tab Conditions: uncheck Start only if on AC power on servers.
7. Tab Settings: check Allow task to be run on demand, If the task fails, restart every 1 minute (up to 3 times).
8. Click OK, supply the service account credentials (typically the WinCC service user), and run once manually to verify.

5.4 Robocopy alternative (for mirrored copy)

If reports must remain available in the original WebCenter path for the browser portal and be copied to D:\Reports, use robocopy with the /MOV switch instead of move:

robocopy "%SRC%" "%DST%" *.xlsx *.pdf /MOV /MINAGE:1 /R:2 /W:5 /LOG:D:\Reports\_relocation.log

6. Workaround B: NTFS Directory Junction

For installations where redirecting the entire WebCenterPages subtree is acceptable, an NTFS junction (reparse point) redirects the directory at the file-system level without requiring scheduled tasks.

1. Stop the DataMonitor IIS application pool and the WinCC WebNavigator service.
2. Move the WebCenterPages folder (including sub-directories and ACLs) to the new location, e.g. D:\Reports\WebCenterPages.
   

   robocopy "C:\Program Files\Siemens\WinCC\Webnavigator\DataMonitorServer\WebCenter\App_Data\Webcenter\WebCenterPages" "D:\Reports\WebCenterPages" /E /COPYALL /MIR

3. Delete the original WebCenterPages folder.
4. Create an NTFS junction in its place:
   

   mklink /J "C:\Program Files\Siemens\WinCC\Webnavigator\DataMonitorServer\WebCenter\App_Data\Webcenter\WebCenterPages" "D:\Reports\WebCenterPages"

5. Restart the IIS application pool and the WinCC WebNavigator service.

7. Workaround C: IIS Virtual Directory Remap

For deployments where the WebCenter portal is fronted by IIS 7.5 / 8 / 10, an additional option is to add or modify the physical path of the DataMonitor IIS application. Use this only when the WebCenterPages path itself is the variable and the WebCenter config database is relocated in lock-step.

1. Open Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager.
2. Navigate to Sites → Default Web Site → Webcenter.
3. Click Basic Settings on the right action pane.
4. Change the Physical path to the new directory (e.g. D:\Reports\Webcenter) and click Test Settings.
5. Recycle the DataMonitorAppPool application pool.
6. Verify the portal loads at http://localhost/Webcenter before bringing production traffic back.

8. User Rights and Permissions Considerations

All three workarounds depend on consistent NTFS permissions. Failure modes related to access control are the most common reason a report move silently does nothing.

Quick verification commands (run as the service account via runas):

icacls "C:\Program Files\Siemens\WinCC\Webnavigator\DataMonitorServer\WebCenter\App_Data\Webcenter\WebCenterPages\Reports\_private\@Administrator" /T
icacls "D:\Reports"
echo test > "D:\Reports\_writetest.txt" && del "D:\Reports\_writetest.txt"

9. Differences in WinCC DataMonitor (RT Professional) — TIA Portal V21

The successor product, WinCC DataMonitor (RT Professional) in TIA Portal V21, retains the same WebCenter storage model but introduces several operational differences relevant to report path configuration:

• The Report Runtime settings under RT Professional → Reports → Output paths expose the Storage path of the report files parameter. The default remains inside the project directory, but a relative or UNC path is accepted at project level.
• Excel workbook templates are stored in <ProjectPath>\Reports\ instead of the legacy WebNavigator tree.
• Print jobs (event-triggered reports) write to the same Output paths location, simplifying path management.
• Per-user ACL is enforced by the IIS app pool identity rather than the per-folder _private\@<User> directory.

For new deployments, configuring the storage path at project level in TIA Portal V21 is preferred over post-hoc BAT relocation. The TIA Portal V21 manual is the authoritative reference for parameter names and behavior.

10. Verification and Acceptance Test

After deploying any of the workarounds, run the following acceptance test:

1. Trigger a manual report from the DataMonitor Excel Workbook in the browser.
2. Wait for the next scheduled task cycle (or run the BAT file manually).
3. Verify the file appears in the destination directory (e.g. D:\Reports\<Report>_<Timestamp>.xlsx).
4. Open the report and confirm the data range and time stamp match the trigger event.
5. Confirm the original WebCenter _private\@<User> directory no longer contains the report (BAT/move) or contains the relocated copy (junction).
6. Verify the WebCenter Reports WebPart still lists the report (junction path) or no longer lists it (move path) depending on customer expectation.
7. Check the relocation log file (D:\Reports\_relocation.log) for skipped files or permission errors.

11. Troubleshooting Matrix

12. Field-Proven Tips

• Deploy the BAT file under C:\Scripts\ rather than D:\ to avoid UNC timeout when the task starts before network shares are mounted.
• Add a pre-step to the BAT file that tests the source path with if exist and aborts with a clear log entry if it does not exist — this prevents the task from silently producing a zero-byte log when the WebCenter pages are re-created by a WinCC re-installation.
• Set the DataMonitor IIS application pool Idle Time-out to 0 on report-heavy servers to avoid first-request latency on a freshly generated report.
• Schedule the relocation task on a 1-minute cadence if shift reports must appear on a network share almost immediately after generation. A 5-minute cadence is sufficient for daily or weekly reports.
• Document the chosen workaround (A, B, or C) in the project "WinCC DataMonitor Commissioning" sheet so the path is reproducible on a replacement server after a hardware swap.