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Setting up TCP/IP Print to Application (Windows 10)

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Any PLC, SCADA or DCS can be configured to print alarms directly to a TCP/IP Port

All PLC or DCS will have a feature to print process alarms/events as they arise. In the 80s/90s this is how engineers used to analyze sequence of events. They have to read manually printed pages and pages of Alarms/Events, typically printed from dot matrix printers. Today, Alarm/Events are recorded in databases. However, the facility to print alarms still exist in all Control Systems. Typically this feature can be configured from the Operator's console machine or HMI.

This is how Open-Plant Connector's TCP Channel collects alarms/events from any process control system


This TCP/IP print allows printing directly into an application (such as the Open-Plant Connector) listening to a port. This is how Open-Plant Connector's TCP Channel collects alarms/events from any process control system.

On the operator's console, open Windows 10 Start Menu => Settings => Printers & Scanners

Go to the device that will print alarms. Typically this would be the operator's console / HMI or even a control system's configuration pc. You will need to ask permission from the plant's control systems engineer to do this.

On the operator's console, click on the Windows 10 Start Menu on the bottom left of the screen. Then click on Settings and then click on 'Printers & Scanners'. Here, click on 'Add a Printer or Scanner'. Windows 10 will first search for any printers or scanner connected. After a few seconds, a link 'The printer that I want isn't listed' will appear. Click on this link.

Click on 'The printer that I want isn't listed' => 'Add a printer using a TCP/IP address or hostname'

After clicking on 'The printer that I want isn't listed' on the previous step, select the 'Add a printer using a TCP/IP address or hostname'. This is the obvious choice since we are printing to a TCP/IP address. Click Next.

Type the IP address of the Open-Plant Connector Application, and give the port a Name.

The hostname or IP address is the IP address of the Open-Plant Connector application which will receive the printed alarms. The Port name can be any name. Click Next.

Windows will attempt to connect to this port and ask 'additonal port information required'

Windows will attempt to connect to this port and since this port is not a propert printer, it will ask for 'Additional port information required'. Select Device Type as 'Standard' and 'Generic Network Card'. Click Next.

Windows will then ask to install the printer driver. Select Generic Printer.

The Generic / Text Only Printer should be used as the printer driver. Click Next. When asked 'Which version of the driver do you want to use?, select the recommended driver (Use the driver that is currently installed).

Finally give the printer a Name, it doesn't matter what name, but you will need to select this name from 

Give the printer a name, which will be recognized by the Control System

Finally give the printer a Name. it doesn't matter what name, but you will need to input this name in the control system / operator's HMI console.

If prompted to share the printer (Printer Sharing), select 'Do not share this printer'.

Once this is done, the operation's console / control system is now ready to send (print) alarms to the Open-Plant Connector's TCP Datasource Channel which is listening to a TCP/IP Port.

Ask the site control system's engineer to configure alarm printing.

Finally, ask the site control system's engineer to configure the Control system's Operator's console to print alarms to this newly created printer, which is actually Open-Plant Connector listening to a port.

The example on the right is a Schneider HMI configuration screen which allows real time printing of alarms. Similar configuration should be available on any type of DCS / SCADA such as Emerson DeltaV, Yokogawa CENTUM, Citect SCADA and etc.
Open-Plant is a revolutionary Industrial IOT Platform software, used to create and deploy Industrial IT apps/solutions. It is an all-encompassing solution offering both back-end and front-end components i.e. the full stack. From our user's experience, creating and deploying Industrial IT apps became 10x faster and 10x less cost. We serve the mining, energy, oil & gas, construction and manufacturing industry. 

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