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COM
COM - Microsoft Interface stands for Component Object Model, a specification for developing modular software components which can be used by each COM compatible application. COM components can be easily integrated in such applications and can even be removed from an application at run time. COM components can be programmed in various different programming languages although C++ is used mostly. The specifications OLE, ActiveX and DirectX are based on the COM technology.

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- APIs
  An overview of the APIs (Application Programming Interface) available in WinCC OA.
- COM
  COM - Microsoft Interface stands for Component Object Model, a specification for developing modular software components which can be used by each COM compatible application. COM components can be easily integrated in such applications and can even be removed from an application at run time. COM components can be programmed in various different programming languages although C++ is used mostly. The specifications OLE, ActiveX and DirectX are based on the COM technology.
- Prometheus Interface
  The Prometheus interface (also referred to as Prometheus client) serves as a bridge between WinCC OA and Prometheus. It facilitates the retrieval, processing, and exposure of data from the WinCC OA system to a Prometheus-compatible format. This allows Prometheus to monitor and alert based on the data fetched from the WinCC OA system.
- SIMATIC PLC Discovery
  In increasingly dynamic automation environments and the merging of IT with OT, the SIMATIC PLC Discovery can help with the connection of newly added S7/S7+ devices by showing you all the devices in the network
- WinCC OA JavaScript Manager for Node.js
  The WinCC OA JavaScript Manager for Node.js is a manager that allows for the integration of the TypeScript/JavaScript runtime environment Node.js® into WinCC OA.
- SIMATIC Unified AR (Augmented Reality)
  SIMATIC Unified AR is an industrial Augmented Reality app that allows to display and operate HMI screens (WinCC Unified) and web applications (WinCC OA Dashboard) in real production environments.
- HTTP Server
  The HTTP Server integrates Internet technologies directly into WinCC OA . Implemented as an add-on for the Control Manager, possible applications are many and diverse. The HTTP Server can be used as a web server for static HTML pages including download facility or to generate dynamic HTML pages.
- XML-RPC
  XML-RPC (Extensible Markup Language Remote Procedure Call) allows software on different operating systems to make procedure calls over the internet. XML-RPC uses HTTP for the transport and XML for the encoding. It sends the procedure call to a remote server through HTTP. The call is an XML document and it receives the response as XML.
- REST Reporting API
  The REST Reporting API is integrated into the Standard web server and can be activated via the config entry enabled in the [restReporting] section.
- Distributed systems
  Distributed systems in WinCC OA allow to connect two or more autonomous WinCC OA systems via a network.
- Dist-Management
  Configuring and maintaining a distributed system in WinCC OA requires a high amount of engineering effort due to a high number of settings and configuration steps that must be applied on several systems. The Dist-Management reduces the engineering effort and simplifies the necessary settings.
- XMPP
  XMPP (formerly Jabber) is mostly used in chat (instant messaging) applications and allows near real time communication between two or more parties. It can, e.g., be used to push information from a WinCC_OA project server to one or more persons, even allowing the recipient to send a confirmation back to the server.
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COM

COM - Microsoft Interface stands for Component Object Model, a specification for developing modular software components which can be used by each COM compatible application. COM components can be easily integrated in such applications and can even be removed from an application at run time. COM components can be programmed in various different programming languages although C++ is used mostly. The specifications OLE, ActiveX and DirectX are based on the COM technology.

Via COM, the objects of applications are open for development programs, macro languages, and other applications that support automation. Via a spreadsheet program, for example, a table, a chart, a cell, or a cell space may be open, whereas all objects have a different object type. A word processor may open its objects such as an application, a document, a paragraph, a bookmark, or a choice.

If an application supports COM, you can access the open objects and change them by calling methods for this object or by calling the properties of the object and defining them.

See also https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Component_Object_Model for more information.

COM in WinCC OA

In WinCC OA, COM can be used in CTRL and as a COM Manager.

COM in Control (createComObject, releaseComObject)

Control uses the COM interface and the COM functions createComObject() and releaseComObject() can be used in Control.

COM Manager

The COM manager (wincc_oa_path/bin/WCCOAcom.dll) is used as a means of communication between COM clients, e.g. Excel and WinCC OA . The COM Manager is used for Excel and VBA in ExcelReport.

The COM Manager contains four COM objects, which are responsible for different tasks.

The ComManager object encapsulates a complete WinCC OA manager and enables access to the data points of WinCC OA whereas the functions are similar to the CTRL functions.
The ReportExt object is an extension of the ComManager object that was implemented specifically for the Excel report. The Excel report and the ReportExt object are not described in detail here.
The ProjAdmin and ProjAdminAuto objects can be used to access information about installed WinCC OA projects. The ProjAdminAuto object can also be used in script languages like vbScript.

For the description of the COM objects, see the chapters ComManager Object, ProjAdmin-Object and ProjAdminAuto Object.