How to Configure the (Modbus/Siemens/Allen-Bradley) Device Collector (version 24)

The Device Collector is used to collect data directly from a Modbus, Siemens, or Allen-Bradley device. Prior to version 24, the Central Admin was responsible for managing these collectors, but has since been discontinued.

The Collector is configured by creating a JSON file that will contain general PLC information as well as the tags from that device the user wishes to log. An example of these JSON files are attached at the top of the article for each device. The process for configuring the file is a manual one as there is no U/I.

Configuration

1. Install the Store and Forward (SaF) service on a server that has line of sight with the device(s) you will be collecting from. The Admin service, Admin client, and Identity service (local or remote) will also need installed. Most likely, a remote Identity service will be used.

   

   If a remote Identity service is selected, the user can designate where the Identity service is located on the next screen.

   

2. Request the IIoTCollector files from support@canarylabs.com. These files are not in the current installer and must be placed manually. Please let them know which version of the software has been installed. Support will provide a link to download the IIoTCollector folder which should be placed in C:\Program Files\Canary if using the default installation location.
3. Once the IIoTCollector folder is in place the user can customize one of the attached plugin files, depending on the device(s) being used. The majority of the work is in modifying this file based upon the number of tags the user wishes to log.
   
   Rename the file to store_and_forward.plugins.json and replace the existing one found in C:\ProgramData\Canary\StoreAndForward.

   

4. Open the corresponding store_and_forward.service.json found in the same directory. From here, the user can add one or more Destinations where the data will be logged. These could be Canary Historian or Proxy server names.

   

   "RouteDestinations": [
       {
           "Destinations": [
               {
                   "Endpoint": "localhost"
               },
               {
                   "Endpoint": "remoteCanaryHistorian"
               }
           ]
           "RegexMatchPattern": null,
           "RegexMatchKind": "SessionCollectorType"
       }
   ],

5. Restart the SaF service to pick up the changes. Check the Messages tiles for any errors in case there is need to troubleshoot.