CSV File for S7 Device Import

To create instances of the S7 devices and data points, you must create the engineering data in the form of a comma-separated value (CSV) file.

A CSV file template example named S7_template_4.0_SystemDefPointInstances is provided under the following folder GmsMainProject\profiles\S7DataTemplate. This CSV file can be used to start your data input.

Format of the CSV Data

A CSV file contains data in which values are represented as text and separated using a separator such as comma (,). The file in the CSV format can be edited in text editors such as Wordpad or Notepad. More elaborate editing can be done using advanced word processing tools, like Excel. A CSV file is divided into the following sections.

Information

NOTE:
If the semicolon is a column separator in CSV, then the decimal separator must be a period, not a semicolon.
When specifying minus values in Excel cells, the apostrophe character(’) must be used, for example:
-'
For Resolution value, numbers must be applied using decimal separator mentioned in the #DecimalSeparator section.

Header

The Header section contains two separators, a List Separator and a Decimal Separator. Both these separators are placed in the same sequence on two subsequent lines. These separators are placed inside quotes for easy identification.

The List Separator is used as a delimiter for parsing of row data in the CSV file.

The Decimal Separator is used for parsing of fields having values as floating point numbers.

Driver

Specifies the name of the subsystem (For example, S7) to which the CSV file is associated with.

FileVersion

Displays the current version of the CSV file.

Texts

Allows you to add a new text group to the system.

Hierarchy

Allows you to specify the classification attributes (Discipline, Subdiscipline, Type, Subtype, and Function) to the objects in the Logical and User hierarchy levels.

Smoothing

Allows you to specify the smoothing configurations.

Item	Description
SmoothingConfigName	Name of a specific smoothing configuration
SmoothingType	Specifies when the value of a point is to be recorded on the management station. The smoothing types vary according to the datatypes. It is applicable only for points of type INPUT. The possible values for Smoothing Type are: value - Value of a point is recorded on the management station only after it crosses the percentage or absolute limit set for the point in deadband. For example, an integer point has a present value of 100 and a deadband of 5%. As per the concept of value smoothing, the value of the point is recorded on the management station only after the point value exceeds 105 or falls below 95. time - Value of a point is recorded on the management station only after exceeding the tolerance time specified in the [Seconds] and [Milliseconds] fields in the CSV. For example, if the time limt is set to 10 seconds, then the change in the value of the point will be recorded on the management station only on completion of 10 seconds. oldnew - Value of a point is updated on the management station only when there is a change in the value of the point on the device. valueandtime - Value of a point is recorded on the management station only after it crosses the percentage or absolute limit set for the point in deadband and after it exceeds the tolerance time specified in the [Seconds] and [Milliseconds] fields in the CSV. For example, an integer point with 100 as present value, 5% as deadband, and 10 seconds as the tolerance time, will pass smoothing only when its value exceeds 105 or drops below 95 and after completion of the tolerance time of 10 seconds. valueortime - Value of a point is recorded on the management station after it crosses the percentage or absolute limit set for the point in deadband or after it exceeds the tolerance time specified in the [Seconds] and [Milliseconds] fields in the CSV. For example, an integer point with 100 as present value, 5% as deadband, and 10 seconds as the tolerance time, will pass smoothing either when its value exceeds 105 or drops below 95 or completes the tolerance time of 10 seconds. oldnewandtime - Value of a point is recorded on the management station only when there is a change in the value of the point on the device and it exceeds the tolerance time specified in the [Seconds] and [Milliseconds] fields in the CSV. For example, an integer point with 100 as present value and 10 seconds as the tolerance time, will pass smoothing only when there is a change in the value of the point on the device and after completion of the tolerance time of 10 seconds. oldnewortime - Value of a point is recorded on the management station only when there is a change in the value of the point on the device or it exceeds the tolerance time specified in the [Seconds] and [Milliseconds] fields in the CSV. For example, an integer point with 100 as present value and 10 seconds as the tolerance time, will pass smoothing only when there is a change in the value of the point on the device or after completion of the tolerance time of 10 seconds.
Deadband	The tolerance range specified in Absolute or Relative terms.
IsRelative	Allows you to specify if an absolute or relative value is to be specified for the deadband. TRUE or 1: The value of deadband will be in percentage (%) with respect to the present value of the point. FALSE or 0: The value of deadband will be absolute. In such cases the unit of the respective point will be assigned.
Seconds	Tolerance time in seconds
Milliseconds	Tolerance time in milliseconds

Item	Description
Table Name	Name of the text group.
Index	An integer value representing the different states of the text group.
Text	Text associated with each integer value of the text group.

PollGroups

Allows you to import poll groups to the system. If you have created a pollgroup for Pooling, then it can be assigned to points in the [POINTS] section.

Item	Description
Poll Group Name	Name of the poll group to be imported in the system. The name of the poll group must start with PollGr_.
Interval	Time interval for the poll group.

Important Points to consider for Poll Group Import

Poll groups are applicable only to the points where the Direction field is set to Input and INOUT.
If the [POLLGROUPS] section is available in the CSV file but there are no poll groups assigned to the points, all poll groups listed in the [POLLGROUPS] section will be imported into the system. After import, they will be added to the following location, Project > Management System > Servers > Main Server > Poll Groups.
If the poll groups assigned to the points are listed in the [POLLGROUPS] section, the poll groups will be added to Project > Management System > Servers > Main Server > Poll Groups and assigned to the respective points after the import of the CSV file.
A pollgroup listed in Project > Management System > Servers > Main Server > Poll Groups, but not listed in the [POLLGROUPS] section in the CSV file is associated with a point in the CSV file, then the pollgroup is assigned to the point after import. If the poll group is neither available in the Poll Groups folder nor listed in the [POLLGROUPS] section, an error message will be issued on parsing the CSV file.
If a data point with input direction does not have a poll group assigned or the assigned poll group is not available in the CSV file or in the Project > Management System > Servers > Main Server > Poll Groups node, the poll group specification is taken from the network node during the import of the CSV file.
Imported poll groups are present at the following location in the System Browser, Management System > Servers > Main Server > Poll Groups.

Library

Name of the S7 library.

Devices

Device Fields
Item	Description
DeviceName¹⁾	Name of the S7 device. NOTE: The Importer will reject this device entry if this field is empty.
DeviceDescription¹⁾	Description of the S7 device. NOTE: The Importer will specify the name of the device to the description field, if this field is empty.
S7 Type¹⁾	Type of the S7 CPU family type. The values can be either of the following: S7-300 for 312 with ET200, 314, 315-2DP,315-2PN/DP, 317-2DP, 317-2PN/DP,319-3PN/DP S7-400 for 412-1, 412-2, 414-3, 414-3, 416-2, 416-3, 417-4 S7-400H for 412-5H, 414-5H, 416-5H, 417-5H S7-1200 for 1211C, 1212C, 1214C, 1215C, 1215C, 1217C S7-1500 for 1511-1 PN, 1513-1 PN, 1515-2 PN, 1515-2 PN, 1516-3 PN/DP, 1517-3 PN, 1518-4 PN NOTE: If unknown, a warning appears in the import log.
DeviceID¹⁾	Unique numeric identifier of the device to which the point belongs. NOTE: Device import is rejected if no ID is given or if the ID is not unique.
ConnectionType¹⁾	ConnectionType is either ISOonTCP Connection (=IP) or named connection (=NC). ConnectionType IP requires valid content in the following columns IP_address AccessPoint Rack Slot ConnectionType NC requires valid content in the following columns: ConnectionName VfdName
IP_address¹⁾	IP address of the S7 device.
Rack	Number of the rack on which the CPU of interest resides. On changing this device property, the connection with the CPU is re-established. The configured parameter can be picked up from Simatic Manager HW-Config.
Slot	Number of the slot on which the CPU of interest resides. On changing this device property, the connection with the CPU is re-established. The configured parameter can be picked up from Simatic Manager HW-Config
AccessPoint S7¹⁾	Name of the access point. This value is S7ONLINE.
ConnectionName	The connection name for REDCONNECT. This name is engineered for the PC station in the SIMATIC Manager. The name must be unique, for example, S7CC. An entry with a maximum length of 80 characters is permitted.
VfdName	VFD (Virtual Field Device) name of the application, to which the S7device connects. This name is engineered for the PC station in the SIMATIC Manager.
EstablishmentMode	Connects or disconnects the device with the network. The values can be either of the following: True or 1 – Establish Connection False or 0 – Disconnect device from network NOTE: If the value of Establishment Mode is any other than True or False, then the current state of the point will be retained on re-importing the CSV file.
Alias	Alias associated with the device. The alias is unique across the management station.
Function	User-defined function.
Discipline	Discipline to which the S7 device should be associated with.
Subdiscipline	Subdiscipline to which the S7 device should be associated with.
Type	Type of S7 device.
Subtype	Subtype of the S7 device.

¹⁾	Mandatory field

Points

Points Fields
Item	Description
ParentDeviceName¹⁾	Name of the S7 device below which the point is to be created.
Name¹⁾	Name of the S7 point. NOTE: The Importer will reject this entry if this field is empty.
Description¹⁾	Description of the S7 point. NOTE: The Importer will specify the name of the device to the description field, if this field is empty.
Area¹⁾	The memory area the variable is located in. Valid values are: - I, E, PI, PE: (periphery) Inputs - O, A, Q, PO, PA, PQ: (periphery) Outputs - F, M: Flags - DB: Data Blocks - T: Timer - C, Z: Counter NOTE: The object is rejected if no Area is configured.
DBNo¹⁾	Only used with [Area] = DB. Specifies the data block to use. NOTE: The object is rejected if no DBNo is configured and [Area] = DB
Address¹⁾	Address of the object [Address] = <ByteOffset>.<BitOffset> <ByteOffset>: The (first) byte to access in the specified area. <BitOffset>: The (first) bit to access in the specified area. The Importer will reject the entry if this field is empty.
DataType¹⁾	Valid S7 primitive Data Types: [Area] is Data Blocks BOOL BYTE WORD DWORD INT DINT REAL CHAR STRING[10] : STRING.<LENGTH> DATE DATE_AND_TIME TIME TIME_OF_DAY S5TIME [Area] is Inputs, Outputs or Flags BOOL BYTE WORD DWORD [Area] is Timer S7TIMER [Area] is Counter S7COUNTER NOTE: The object is rejected if an invalid data type is configured.
Direction¹⁾	The address/response mode used for accessing the value on the PLC: I: Input [read only] IO: Input- & Output [read and write] NOTE: If left empty or invalid, then the default value [Area]: I/E/T/C/Z/PI/PE -> I [Area]: O/A/PO/PA /DB/M/F/other -> IO is used.
LowLevelComparison¹⁾	Low Level Comparison is applicable for only those properties with Direction as Input or InputOutput. The following are the possible values for LowLevelComparison: False or 0 : The driver sets the value according to the assigned PollType. True or 1: The driver sets the value only in case of changes. NOTE: You must explicitly specify the value for LowLevelComparison. Any empty or invalid entry will be considered as an invalid configuration and the point will be ignored during import.
PollGroup	Name of the poll group to be associated with the point.
ObjectModel	Object Model of the point. You do not need to specify a value in this field, if you are importing S7 points using Native Object Models. However, if you are importing S7 points using N to 1 mapping, you must specify the value of the object model and property. Before specifying a name you must ensure that an object model is defined in the system. For information on creating object models, see Create Object Models.
Property	Property of the object model.
Alias	Alias associated with the connection. The alias is unique across the management station.
Function	User-defined function.
Discipline	Discipline to which the S7 data point should be associated with.
Subdiscipline	Subdiscipline to which the S7 data point should be associated with.
Type	Type of S7 data point.
Subtype	Subtype of the S7 data point.
Min	Minimum value set for a field point. The syntax depends on the mentioned data type. If it is not present, then it is taken from the object model.
Max	Maximum value set for the field point. The syntax depends on the mentioned data type. If it is not present, then it is taken from the object model.
MinRaw	Lower end of the raw value scale.
MaxRaw	Upper end of the raw value scale.
MinEng	Lower end of your engineering value scale.
MaxEng	Upper end of your engineering value scale.
Resolution	The number of digits that display after the decimal point (resolution value). For example, if the resolution value is 1, then the value displays as 20.0. If this field is empty, then it is taken from the object model. This field applies only to values of type REAL.
Unit	Selection list for a unit from the selected text group. (For example, %, min, °C, and so on). If it is blank, then no unit is set for this point.
UnitTextGroup	Name of the text group where unit text from the Unit field is defined. If the unit text group is blank, then by default TxG_EngineeringUnits is used.
StateText	Name of the text group. This text group could be either from the list of text groups defined in the Texts section or from the text groups present in the system. This field applies only for BOOL, BYTE, WORD and DWORD data types for native point import.
ActivityLog	Status of the AL flag for the point. The possible values are: TRUE or 1 – Turns ON the AL flag for the point on importing the CSV. FALSE or 0 – Turns OFF the AL flag for the point on importing the CSV. NOTE: If no value is specified in this field, then the current state of the point will be retained on re-importing the CSV file.
ValueLog	Status of the VL flag for the point. The possible values are: TRUE or 1 – Turns ON the VL flag for the point on importing the CSV. FALSE or 0 – Turns OFF the VL flag for the point on importing the CSV. NOTE: If no value is specified in this field, then the current state of the point will be retained on re-importing the CSV file.
Smoothing	Name of the smoothing configuration to be associated with the point. This value is specified from the [SMOOTHING] section.
AlarmClass	Generic Alarm class. Defines the Alarm Class to be enabled for an event (for example, Alarm, Anomaly, Blocked$Fault,) For multiple alarms or alarm classes, separate the alarm class by the $ characters. Syntax: [AlarmClass]=<AlarmClass1>$<AlarmClass2>$ <AlarmClass3>… Example Alarm$Fault$Anomaly
AlarmType	Workstation Alarm Type Valid Alarm Types: -EQ: equality (=) -NE: not equal to (!=) -LT: less then (<) -LE: less than or equal to (<=) -GT: greater then (>) -GE: greater than or equal to (>=) -BET: between -NBET: not between Syntax: [AlarmTypes]=<AlarmTypes1>$<AlarmTypes2>$ <AlarmTypes3>… NOTE: The point will be imported without alarming if this field is not present.
AlarmValue	Defines the value for which an alarm is reported. The range is indicated by the $ character. For example, if the Alarm Value is 40$50, it means that alarm values are between 40 and 50. Syntax: [AlarmValues]=<AlarmValue1>$<AlarmValue2>$ <AlarmValue3>… The syntax of Between (-BET) and Not Between (-NBET) operators are as follows: [Value1$Value2] For multiple alarms containing both Equals and Range alarms, the syntax should be like this: “10$[40$50]” NOTE: If the StateText field is defined, then the AlarmValue field will use it. The point will be imported without alarming if this field is not present.
EventText	Alarm text for incoming event. For multiple alarms, multiple event texts can be defined. Syntax: [EventText]=<EventTexts1>$<EventText2>$ <EventText3>… Examples: "Error", "Error$Warning", "Error$Warning$DangerLevel” …
NormalText	Alarm text for outgoing event. For multiple alarms, multiple normal texts can be defined. Syntax: [NormalText]=<NormalText1>$<NormalText2>$ <NormalText3>… Examples: “Normal”, “OK$Normal”, “Normal$OK$Normal” …
UpperHysteresis	Defines the upper range for the alarm value; beyond which alarms will be generated. For example, if the alarm set for the value is greater than 50 and the UpperHysteresis is set to 2, then the alarm is only generated when the alarm value reaches 52.
LowerHysteresis	Defines the lower range for the alarm value below which alarms will be generated. This value is always specified as a negative. For example, if the alarm set for the value is less than 50 and the LowerHysterisis is set to -2, then the alarm is only generated when the alarm value falls to less than 48.
NoAlarmOn	Defines whether or not an alarm is triggered whenever the connection to the device is lost. This field can have either of the following values: None or Blank: If None is specified or if no value is specified in this field, then on importing the CSV file, the No alarm on driver invalid check box in Alarm Configuration section of the Object Configurator is not selected. In this case, if alarm is configured on default value then that alarm will be raised whenever the connection to the device is lost. DriverFail: If the value specified is DriverFail, then on importing the CSV file, the No alarm on driver invalid value will be selected in the Alarm Flags drop-down list in the Alarm Configuration section of the Object Configurator. In this case, if alarm is configured on default value then that alarm will not be raised even if the connection to the device is lost. SourceTimeInvalid: If the value specified is SourceTimeInvalid, then on importing the CSV file, the No alarm on SourceTimeInvalid value in the Alarm Flags drop-down list is selected in the Alarm Configuration section of the Object Configurator. In this case, if alarm is configured then that alarm will not be raised if the timestamp of that value is invalid.
LogicalHierarchy	Logical Hierarchy of the data point in the logical view. The logical hierarchy path in the CSV file must start with a backslash (\). Syntax:[Delimiter]<Level1>[Delimiter]<Level2> [Delimiter]…[Delimiter]<Level-n>[Delimiter]<(Optional) Name of the datapoint> For example, \BuildingA\Floor3\Room403\Sensor1 The last entry after the backslash (\) represents the name of the datapoint in the logical view. This entry is not mandatory. If the name of the datapoint is not specified in the Logical Hierarchy field, then on import, the name of the datapoint as specified in the Name field displays in the logical hierarchy path of the System Browser. For example, a datapoint with name Light403_11 in the Name field has the following value in the Logical Hierachy field, \BuildingA\Floor3\Room403\. On importing the CSV file, the logical hierarchy path as displayed in the System Browser will be, <Logical Hierarchy Root Node>\BuildingA\Floor3\Room403\Light403_11. This is because in the Logical Hierarchy field, the name of the datapoint is not specified. However, if we change the path in the Logical Hierarchy field to, \BuildingA\Floor3\Room403\Light403, then on importing the CSV file, the logical hierarchy path as displayed in the system browser will be, <Logical Hierarchy Root Node>\BuildingA\Floor3\Room403\Light403. This is because in the Logical Hierarchy field, the name of the datapoint is specified as Light403.
UserHierarchy	User Hierarchy of the data point in the user view. The user hierarchy path in the CSV file must start with a backslash (\). Syntax:[Delimiter]<Level1>[Delimiter]<Level2> [Delimiter]…[Delimiter]<Level-n>[Delimiter]<(Optional) Name Of the datapoint> For example, \BuildingA\Floor3\Room403\Sensor1 The last entry after the backslash (\) represents the name of the datapoint in the user view. This entry is not mandatory. If the name of the datapoint is not specified in the UserHierarchy field, then on import, the name of the datapoint as specified in the Name field displays in the user hierarchy path of the System Browser. For example, a datapoint with name Light403_11 in the Name field has the following value in the UserHierarchy field, \BuildingA\Floor3\Room403\. On importing the CSV file, the user hierarchy path as displayed in the System Browser will be, <User Hierarchy Root Node>\BuildingA\Floor3\Room403\Light403_11. This is because in the UserHierarchy field, the name of the datapoint is not specified. However, if we change the path in the UserHierarchy field to, \BuildingA\Floor3\Room403\Light403, then on importing the CSV file, the user hierarchy path as displayed in the system browser will be, <User Hierarchy Root Node>\BuildingA\Floor3\Room403\Light403. This is because in the UserHierarchy field, the name of the datapoint is specified as Light403.

¹⁾	Mandatory field

N to 1 Mapping

The concept of N to 1 mapping is used in situations in which you want to assign the address to specific properties of an object. The properties to which the address is to be assigned are specified in the [Property] field next to [Object Model] in the [POINTS] section of the CSV.

In this example, we will assign the address to Property 1, Property 2, and Property 3 of the NTo1_ObjectModel.

Value Assignment

Allows you to assign a value to the Semantic_Tag or any propertyof type String to any S7 device or point. The property must be present in the object model of the device or point. You can also assign the Semantic_Tag property to any device or point that is present in the system or in the CSV file.

After importing the CSV file the Semantic_Tag property is assigned to the S7_Device_1 device and the Sample for N to 1 point. The property and it’s value display in the Extended Operation tab if those properties are configured to display in Extended Operation tab.

Parsing Information in the CSV File

The csv file is parsed for errors and inconsistencies by the importer during the import process. The Importer can only parse CSV files which use a comma (,) as a separator. The CSV file contains mandatory, as well as non-mandatory data.

The following table provides more information related to the parsing of data with reference to mandatory and non-mandatory information in the CSV file.

Error Condition	Result
Value of a mandatory field is incorrect in a CSV file row	The data in the entire row is not allowed for import. The information is logged as an error message in the Analysis Log and Trace Viewer.
Value of a mandatory field is blank in a CSV file row	The data in the entire row is not allowed for import. Information is logged as as error message in the Analysis Log and Trace Viewer.
Value of a non mandatory field is incorrect in a CSV file row	The value of that particular field is not allowed for import. However, the other values in the row are imported. Information is logged as a warning message in the Analysis Log and Trace Viewer.
Value of a non mandatory field is blank in a CSV file row	The entire row is imported. This information is logged as a warning message in the Analysis Log and Trace Viewer.

The Importer parses the CSV file row by row and imports the data in that row if it does not have any of the above mentioned error conditions. On successful import, the objects are created below the S7 network node in the System Browser.

Validations for Parsing the CSV File Entries for Devices

If the given device name contains invalid characters, then it is treated as invalid.
If the given device name contains special characters other than underscore( _ ), then it is treated as invalid.
If the given device name ends with (_2), then it is ignored. Device names ending with (_2) are reserved by WinCC OA for project redundancy.
If the given device name already exists in the same CSV file, then the new entry is treated as invalid.
If an ObjectModel that is mentioned in the CSV file does not exist in the system, then it is treated as invalid.
If the CSV file contains only device entries and the other sections are not present, then those entries are ignored.
If a point entry is present above the device entry, then the point entry is ignored. A point is always present below the device entry.
If there are any point entries present without the parent entry of the device, then those point entries are ignored.
There can be multiple point entries under a device entry in the CSV file.

Activity and Online Trend Logging

You can configure the activity and online trend logging for a point by specifying either of the following values in the CSV file:

TRUE or 1
FALSE or 0

If no value is specified in this field, then the current state of the point will be retained on re-importing the CSV file.

After importing the CSV file, the Properties expander will reflect the following values:

Alarm Configuration

You can configure alarms for S7 devices from the State.Connections.OpState_1 property.

Whenever the device goes into the Stop state (0) an alarm is raised on the management station. This indicates that the device is not operational. When the state of the device changes, you can acknowledge the alarm.

Alarming

To configure a workstation alarm for a point, you must configure the following fields:

AlarmClass: The alarm class to be enabled for an event.
AlarmType: The condition for issuing an alarm. Refer to the table below.
AlarmValue: The value, or range of values, for which an alarm is to be issued.
EventText: The text to display when the alarm is issued.
NormalText: The text to display when the alarm ceases.
UpperHysteresis: The upper range for the alarm value; beyond which alarms will be generated.
LowerHysteresis: The lower range for the alarm value; below which alarms will be generated.

Alarm Type Operators and Their Meanings
AlarmType Operators	Operand	Meaning	Applicable Alarm Category
OR	=	Equal to (only for binary points)	Discrete
EQ	\|\|	OR
NE	!\|\|	NOR
BET	..	In the range of two values
NBET	!..	Not in the range of the two values
LT	<	Less than	Continuous
LE	<=	Less than or equal to
GT	>	Greater than
GE	>=	Greater than or equal to

Error Conditions for Workstation Alarms

Supported alarm type values are: EQ (equal), NE (not equal), LT (less than), LE (less than or equal), GT (greater than), GE (greater than or equal), BET (between), NBET (not between).
EQ (equal to) is the only supported alarm type value for binary (Boolean) points.
Only one alarm can be specified for binary (Boolean) points.
Alarm configuration is ignored if discrete and continuous alarms are mixed. Refer to the table for categorization of alarm types.
Alarm configuration is ignored if the number of alarm values and range is inconsistent in the alarm configuration columns.
Alarm types BET and NBET are not supported for items with state texts.

The following examples illustrate single and multiple alarm configurations.

Alarm Configuration for a Single Alarm

The CSV configuration for a single alarm is as follows.

After importing the above CSV, the alarm will be configured as follows.

Alarm Configuration for Multiple Alarms

The CSV configuration for multiple alarm is as follows.

After the import of the above CSV, the alarm configuration looks like this.

Function Mapping

If all the classification attributes (Discipline, Subdiscipline, Type, Subtype, Functions) are defined in the CSV file, then on importing the CSV file, the proper classification attributes are assigned to the S7 Devices and Points.
If the value of function is not specified in the CSV file, then on importing the CSV file, function is not assigned and the Function field remains blank.
If the function is mentioned in the CSV file but Discipline, Subdiscipline, Type, and Subtype are not specified, then on importing the CSV file, the values for Discipline, Subdiscipline, Type, and Subtype are associated according to the assigned function.
If the Manual Override check box is selected, then on re-importing the CSV file, the values of the classification attributes are retained and are not overridden by the CSV values.
When re-importing the CSV file, if the classification attributes are not specified, then the existing attributes are retained.

Min, Max, Unit, Resolution

The Min, Max, Resolution, Unit data in the CSV can be configured as follows:

The Min, Max, and Unit fields can be set for values of type INT, UINT, REAL.

The Resolution field can be set only for values of type REAL.

After importing the CSV file, the Details expander reflects the changes.

Scaling Factor

The Min Raw, Max Raw, Min Eng, and Max Eng data in the CSV can be configured as follows:

These values are allowed only for data of type INT, UINT and FLOAT. You can also assign negative values to these fields. However, the values should not be equal.

After importing the CSV file, the Value Conversion expander reflects the changes.

State Texts for Enumerated and Boolean Types

Enumerated and Boolean data types usually require specific texts to be displayed instead of raw values. For example, the 0 / 1 of Boolean type must be represented as Start/Stop. This is achieved by specifying the textgroup name in the StateText field. The StateText attribute in a CSV for a Boolean point can be configured as follows:

Since a Boolean point can have a maximum of two states, the text group also has two states. These two states correspond to the two value range of Minimum and Maximum. After the CSV import, the Details expander displays as follows:

To represent more than two states, you must configure the StateText attribute of a multi state point. In the CSV file example shown below, the textgroup with name TxG_StateText3 has been assigned to the BYTE_IO point.

After the CSV import, the Details expander displays as follows:

Now, from the drop-down list, you can select the state from the list of states. Selecting a state will write the corresponding value to the point. The range of this value is between the minimum and maximum specified in the CSV file.

After importing the CSV for such a point, its text group is also added to the list of text groups. The following image displays the Text Group Editor showing the three state texts.

The Importer verifies the text group names either from the text groups defined in the Text section in the same CSV file, or from the text groups present in the system.

StateTexts are applicable only for Multistate and Binary points since floating point values do not have integral states. However, the Importer ignores the StateText data for all other datatypes.

During re-import, the Importer replaces an existing text group of the point with the new text group mentioned in the CSV file.

Dependency of StateTexts on the Minimum and Maximum Values of a Point

During the parsing of a CSV file, the StateTexts are verified with the minimum and maximum values given in the CSV file. The Importer can fail in parsing StateTexts due to the following reasons:

The minimum and maximum values are invalid (for example, format error, non-integral values).
The interval between the minimum and the maximum value is not equal to the number of StateTexts provided in the entry.
The minimum is equal to maximum.

In such cases, a warning message is added to the Preimport log file. However, the parsing continues ignoring the StateText values of such a point.

Convert an Older Version of the CSV File to a Newer Version

You can convert an older version of the CSV file to a newer version using the S7ClassicCsvConverter utility. This conversion is required when you must upload the data from an older version of the CSV file to the management station. Instead of copying the data from the older version of the CSV file and manually pasting it to the new format, you can use the S7ClassicCsvConverter.

Information

NOTE:
You must ensure that you provide the list separator of the old CSV file to the CSV converter utility.

This utility is available in the bin folder of the GMSMainProject folder of your machine. You can execute this utility by performing the following step:

From the Windows Explorer, double-click the Siemens.Gms.S7.S7ClassicCsvConverter.exe file. In the command prompt that displays, drag the CSV file to be converted. This file is converted to the new format and the converted file is placed at the same location of the source CSV file with the text “_converted” appended to its name. If the destination file already exists, then the new CSV file will have a number appended to it. For example, [Name of the CSV file]_converted_1. This number will increase by 1 each time the converter finds an existing file with the same name.

Updates Performed to the Existing Data During Conversion

If the old format of the CSV file contains a value in the Function column, which is also known as Function Key, then this value is not transferred to the new version of the CSV file during conversion, as the new format does not support the Function Key anymore. However, this results in a loss of data, although you might not notice this automatic omission. To resolve this issue, the converter automatically adds the following content in the Function column of the converted CSV file. Thereafter, you must refer to the Function Key from the Instance Attribute Mapper from Import Rules and copy the corresponding values of Function, Discipline, Subdiscipline, Type, and Subtype.
Converting Text Group Strings – The converter will convert the text group string present in the StateText column by performing the following steps:

Convert the text group string from the StateText column into its individual indices and statetexts. For example, for a text group string, State1$State2$State3, the converter will break this string into the following three statetexts: State1, State2, and State3 and instruct you to mention correct indices in #index column in [TEXTS] section.
If the text or textgroup does not exist in the system, then you have to manually enter the correct indices.
If the text and textgroup both exist in the system, then you can remove the entries from the [TEXTS] section or mention correct entries by referring the textgroup in the system.
If one or more texts do not exist in the system but the textgroup exists in the system, then you have to mention correct indices for missing texts and remove entries or correct indices for other texts.
Using the text group name starting with "TxG_S7_PRJ", the converter will create entries into the [TEXTS] section. Using the preceding example, the text group name will be “TxG_S7_PRJ _State1_State2_State3” and the entries will be as follows:
TxG_S7_PRJ _State1_State2_State3, <index>, State1,
TxG_S7_PRJ _State1_State2_State3, <index>, State2,
TxG_S7_PRJ_State1_State2_State3, <index>, State3
Replace the value under StateText column with the text group name, that is TxG_S7_PRJ _State1_State2_State3.
In case of Units, converter will create a textgroup in [TEXTS] section with name starting with TxG_PRJ_S7 instead of TxG_S7_PRJ. Using the preceding example, the text group name will always be TxG_S7_PRJ _Units and the entries will be as follows:
TxG_S7_PRJ _Units, <index>, <unit1>,
TxG_S7_PRJ _Units, <index>, <unit2>,
TxG_S7_PRJ _Units, <index>, <unit3>,
TxG_S7_PRJ _Units, <index>, <unit4>,
Replace the value under UnitTextGroup column with the text group name, that is TxG_S7_PRJ_Units.

The converter adds the delimiter '\' at the beginning of the existing logical and user hierarchy strings. For example, the string "Building1\Floor1\" will be changed to "\Building1\Floor1\".
The special characters (‘ ‘.,’.’, ‘:’, ‘;’, ‘,’, ‘[‘ , ‘]’ ,’*’ ,’?’ ,’{‘ , ‘}’ , ‘@’ ,’$’) in device name, point name and text group name will be replaced by ‘_’(underscore).