Earlier in the week we described what the DataStore Plus ActiveX was.

Today we walk you through the steps you need to take to add it to a FactoryTalk ViewStudio Machine Edition project.

Basic steps to setup the DataStore Plus ActiveX in ViewStudio:

1. Create and configure a new “on top” display to host the DataStore Plus ActiveX
2. Add and configure the DataStore Plus ActiveX to the new display
3. Set the DataStore Plus display as the project’s new initial graphic
4. Configure the DataStore Plus display to load your original initial graphic display by:
   • Creating an HMI Tag
   • Assigning the HMI Tag to the Global Connection’s “remote display number”
5. Create and assign two macros
   • Create first macro to trigger original initial graphic by setting the HMI Tag to the original initial display’s number
   • Create second macro to reset the HMI Tag to “0”
   • Assign the first macro to the DataStore Plus “on top” display’s startup macro setting
   • Assign the second macro to the original initial display’s startup macro setting

Now on to the detailed steps:

DataStore Plus Step 1:

The first step to using DataStore Plus is to create a new graphic display in your project to “host” this ActiveX. To do so, create a new graphic display with these display settings:

On the General Tab

• On Top
• Cannot be replaced
• Display Number 999
• Maximum Tag Update Rate of .25
• Specify Size of 400 width and 400 height
• X and Y position of -401 and -401 (off the visible screen)

Note: Below is a picture of my display settings:

Explanation of above settings:

Since we want the DataStore Plus ActiveX to run while the PVPlus project is running, we need to keep the display it’s on open at all times. One way to accomplish this is to set the display as “always on top,” and “cannot be replaced.” However, we don’t actually need to see this display, so we also position it out of the visible pixel range with a negative X Y position.

DataStore Plus Step 2:

Now that our graphic display is created, we need to add the DataStore Plus ActiveX to it. To do this, choose ActiveX from the Objects Menu:

Click and drag a box on your display. When you release the mouse, you’ll be prompted to choose an ActiveX – choose the ME DataStore Plus ActiveX and press OK:

This is now what your graphic display screen should look like:

Next, double click on the DataStore Plus object and set the general settings to meet your preferences (mine are shown below:)

Do the same on the Advanced tab (my advanced settings are shown below:)

Finally, on the Connections Tab you’ll need to fill in the “File Location” (includes file name and CSV extension,) “Trigger” (this acts as an enable,) and add at least one real or string tag (my settings are shown below:)

NOTE: “FileLocation” can either be a String Tag which contains the full path and file name for your CSV file, OR it can be the actual full path and filename included within quotes as shown below:

Next press Apply and OK, then save your screen with a memorable name (I saved mine as DataStore Plus)

DataStore Plus Step 3:

In this step you need to set your DataStore Plus display as the new initial display, after recording what the initial display is currently set to. This is done in “Startup”

DataStore Plus Step 4:

Now that our DataStore Plus display is setup as the initial display, it will launch when the project runs. However, if we do nothing else we’ll be left with a blank gray screen.

So our next step is to setup our DataStore Plus display to launch our original initial display. To do this, we first need to create a new HMI tag as shown below:

Now let’s set our new “RemoteDisplayTag” to be the Global Connection’s “remote display number” tag as shown below:

DataStore Plus Step 5:

Now we need to create two macro’s. One to change our “RemoteDisplayTag” to the number of our original initial graphic display (in my case “1”.) And another to reset it back to “0” so the operator can navigate to other displays.

Below is the first of the two macros we must create. This is the one our DataStore Plus screen will trigger after opening, to then trigger the opening of our original initial display.

Note: Changing the tag associated with the Global Connection for “remote display number” to “1” will cause the system to display the graphic display with that corresponding display number. However, the operator will not be able to navigate away from that screen until the “remote display number” is changed back to “0”

Note: Always be sure when implementing “remote display number” that all your displays have a unique “display number” in display settings.

Below is the second macro we must create. It will be launched by our original initial display to reset the “remote display number” tag to “0” so the operator can navigate to other displays:

Our final step is to set our two displays to run the appropriate macros.

First, on our DataStore Plus display we need to open the display settings. Then on the Behavior Tab we add our “Macro_GotoMainScreen” to the Macro Startup field as shown below. When done press OK, then save and close the display:

Next, we need to open our original initial display and on the Behavior Tab in the display settings we need to add “Macro_ResetRemoteDisplay” to the Macro Startup field as shown below. When done press OK, then save and close the display:

At this point we’ve successfully added the DataStore Plus ActiveX to our project. Once we run our project we can open Windows explorer to look for our next CSV datalog file. Just navigate Windows Explorer to the location specified in the DataStore Plus ActiveX’s “FileLocation” property, and you should see the first CSV log file.

If you open the file in Microsoft Excel, you should find data similar to what you see in my file below:

That’s it for DataStore Plus ActiveX step-by-step.

If you have any questions or comments please don’t hesitate to let us know by either using the “post a comment or question” link below.

Until next time, Peace ✌️ 

If you enjoy this episode please give it a Like, and consider Sharing as this is the best way for us to find new guests to come on the show.

Shawn M Tierney
Technology Enthusiast & Content Creator

Eliminate commercials and gain access to my weekly full length hands-on, news, and Q&A sessions by becoming a member at The Automation Blog or on YouTube. You'll also find all of my affordable PLC, HMI, and SCADA courses at TheAutomationSchool.com.

• Author
• Recent Posts

Shawn Tierney

I'm a lifelong Technology Enthusiast who began programing in the early 80's on the Apple II and VIC-20 personal computers. After earning a degree in Electronics, I worked as a Certified Controls and Information Automation Specialist for 25 years before leaving to become a full time Industrial Automation instructor and mentor at TheAutomationSchool, as well as publishing industry interviews, news, and product how-to’s at TheAutomationBlog.com. If you're interested in my training, mentoring, or becoming a sponsor, please schedule a teams meeting with me via https://calendly.com/shawntierney/business-meeting

Latest posts by Shawn Tierney (see all)

• Trends in Robotics with Winston Leung of QNX (P239) - June 18, 2025
• First Look: MOXA Smart Switches (TIA Portal & Studio 5000 Integration) (S2E14) - June 17, 2025
• The Automation Museum - June 16, 2025

Last week I was contacted by an OEM for my advice on the best way to create reports that customers could view in Microsoft Excel.

Since his equipment was outfitted with the PanelView Plus 6, I suggested the first option we should discuss would be the one already built-in to his existing HMI: Rockwell’s DataStore Plus ActiveX extension.

FactoryTalk View Machine Edition and the PanelView Plus always had the ability to log data using a built-in datalog feature. However, I’ve found this implementation of datalogging so limited that I describe it to new clients as, “just a historical log for trends.”

What’s limited about it? For starters, each ViewME project can only run a single datalog model which logs to a single file. And this log file is limited to 300,000 data points (expanded to 1,000,000 in version 7.0.) The log file is also in a proprietary file format. And while there is a free utility to extract the contents of the log file, providing access to the file can often result in the need to restart the Machine Edition project.

So in my opinion using the ViewME Datalog feature for anything beside historical trends is cumbersome. On the other hand, Rockwell’s free DataStore Plus ActiveX extension is a very practical data logging solution.

NOTE: The DataStore ActiveX was available for use with the older VersaView CE / PanelView Plus CE models. However, to use previous versions on those devices you had to download and install it yourself. Today with the PanelView Plus 6 and ViewStudio 6.0, the DataStore Plus ActiveX is just one of many extensions which come preinstalled.

The DataStore Plus ActiveX is designed to give the PanelView Plus 6 and ViewME runtimes the ability to datalog up to 100 Real tags and 50 String tags. It’s also not limited to a single file, or a certain number of records like the built-in datalog. In fact, it has several options which determine the format and content of the log files, and it’s only log limit is the amount of storage space on your target storage device.

DataStore Plus also allows for time based creation of new CSV files, and can automatically purge old files base on number or age. In fact, there are so many options its just easier to include screen shots versus trying to list them all (see the pictures on right.)

How the DataStore Plus ActiveX works:

In most cases, you’ll want to put the DataStore Plus ActiveX on a display that remains open at all times. This allows it to continuously run and log data.

If you don’t have a display which always remains open, you can easily create a new “on top” display to host this ActiveX. Often, the always open display will be launched as the initial display. Then, it in turn will launch the original initial display. This is accomplished through the use of the Global Connection’s “remote display number” setting.

Well that’s it for DataStore Plus ActiveX basics. Later in the week I’ll post a step-by-step procedure for setting it up.

Until then, If you have any questions or comments please don’t hesitate to let us know by using the “post a comment” link below.

Until next time, Peace ✌️ 

If you enjoy this episode please give it a Like, and consider Sharing as this is the best way for us to find new guests to come on the show.

Shawn M Tierney
Technology Enthusiast & Content Creator

Eliminate commercials and gain access to my weekly full length hands-on, news, and Q&A sessions by becoming a member at The Automation Blog or on YouTube. You'll also find all of my affordable PLC, HMI, and SCADA courses at TheAutomationSchool.com.

• Author
• Recent Posts

Shawn Tierney

I'm a lifelong Technology Enthusiast who began programing in the early 80's on the Apple II and VIC-20 personal computers. After earning a degree in Electronics, I worked as a Certified Controls and Information Automation Specialist for 25 years before leaving to become a full time Industrial Automation instructor and mentor at TheAutomationSchool, as well as publishing industry interviews, news, and product how-to’s at TheAutomationBlog.com. If you're interested in my training, mentoring, or becoming a sponsor, please schedule a teams meeting with me via https://calendly.com/shawntierney/business-meeting

Latest posts by Shawn Tierney (see all)

• Trends in Robotics with Winston Leung of QNX (P239) - June 18, 2025
• First Look: MOXA Smart Switches (TIA Portal & Studio 5000 Integration) (S2E14) - June 17, 2025
• The Automation Museum - June 16, 2025