A ClearSCADA Secret Redundancy

Control Microsystems White Paper August 2006

This presentation explores the need for assurance when using SCADA software that the system will stay up and running even when some hardware fails, and outlines software solutions provided by Control Microsystems.

Author: Eric Schwantler Date: August 2006

Copyright 2006, Control Microsystems Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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Introduction

A normal concern for customers considering SCADA software is assurance that their system will stay up even when some hardware, such as a PC, fails. Today, most SCADA software provides some level of redundancy but some key questions to ask include: is changeover bumpless, are communications redundant, what data is duplicated and what is involved in configuration? Redundancy is one of ClearSCADAs hidden secrets, and we are happy to share with you the options that are available and more importantly, how easy it is to configure this SCADA Management Software.

ClearSCADA Software Solutions

What do you expect when you ask a supplier Does your software product support redundancy? Think about a situation where the primary SCADA server has just failed, you need to make sure that this single point failure does not bring the whole system down; in fact you need to ensure that the remaining part of the system continues to fully function. In order to meet this objective you need to have alternative communications links to the field. This can be the same media type that the primary server uses, such as radio, but you may want the backup channel to use something different, a dial-up connection for example. The next step is to ensure that the operator stations will automatically switch to standby server without any user intervention. This requires that each operation station has a virtual connection to both servers at all times. In ClearSCADA this involves specifying the Node name or TCP/IP address for each server in the ClearSCADA Client program found in the Windows control panel. The configuration forms below show that Node A is 192.168.0.120 which is normally the primary server and Node B is 192.168.0.121 which is the standby server. Thats all there is to it, but some of you may have noticed that we have a tab for Node C and Node D, what does this mean? Yes, ClearSCADA supports up to quad level redundancy or 4 servers.

But before we finish off with the clientto-server communications, we should also mention that ClearSCADA supports dual LAN/WAN links, meaning that you can implement dual LAN networks, so if a network switch fails, the attached devices would use an alternative LAN connection.

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We have described redundancy to the field devices, redundant connections from operator client PCs to servers, the fact that you have up to 4 servers in a redundant configuration and the support for dual networks. Do we now have a bullet proof system where any single point failure is covered? No, there is a further scenario that we havent considered. What if the central control room that houses the server catches fire and is burnt to the ground? Tragic as this may be, how could we design a system that is tolerant to this fault and where remote operator stations will continue to function? It is simple, the backup server needs to be at another location, but generally this is not an option for most SCADA products since they require high bandwidth connections between servers to synchronize the data. This is not the case for ClearSCADA; its synchronization technology is built into the application and not a 3rd party add-on software. ClearSCADA redundant servers are designed to work across WANs as it uses report by exception and data compression technology. Finally, we should describe what data is redundant in the ClearSCADA server. In order to ensure that operator stations continue to function fully even though the primary server may have failed, or that the operator station cant see the server due to a network break, all the server data needs to be redundant. This is another area where many competitor products fall short. ClearSCADA replicates to redundant servers all configuration, alarm/event journals, trend and history archives and reports. This might sound simple but it is very impressive. Configuration means all graphic displays, templates, logic programs, alarm redirection rules, report templates, user security; or more to the point, anything you can configure in a ClearSCADA project is redundant! Remember, the operator station (i.e. ViewX application) does not store any configuration or run-time database; this is all fed from the server so system maintenance for clients is obsolete - but thats another story well cover in the future. Of course, not every application is a Nuclear Power Plant so we probably dont need to implement all the redundancy options, but when its only a matter of buying a 2nd PC and an additional server license, and spending 2 minutes to specify an IP address for each server to point to the other its so easy, anyone can do it!

Eric Schwantler has over 20 years of experience in the SCADA industry including 15 years dedicated to the development, promotion and sale of SCADA management software. Eric is the Product Director for ClearSCADA, SCADA Management Software for Control Microsystems.

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Contact Us Name: Address: Sales Support Control Microsystems Corporate Headquarters 48 Steacie Drive Ottawa, Ontario, Canada K2K 2A9 salessupport@controlmicrosystems.com 1-888-CMSCADA (1-888-267-2232) 1-613-591-1943 ext. 254 (613) 591-1022

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