Patch Release Notes

Common Cryptography Library

The config entry [general] useCommonCryptography> enables the use of the new cryptography library. For compatibility reasons, the previous functionality remains preset.

Customers can now use the modernized crypt library to encrypt and decrypt CTRL functions, which further increases security.

OPC UA client

When establishing a connection to the server, the OPC UA client can now be configured to ignore an expired server certificate. This security-critical implementation is only meant to ensure productive usage, e.g. if a customer is unable to update/renew their certificate on time, and it is not recommended to set it permanently.

CTRL Script editor

• Opening the script editor for a panel now also shows the list of functions available within the panel scope, which makes it faster & easier to jump to the desired location.
• The main editor window received the additional File menu action Save All. This will save all open scripts at once. Additionally, each script window tab shows a Save Icon to indicate unsaved changes

Alarm Row (AESRow)

For faster handling, the Alarm row received the functionality to multi-select several lines and acknowledge the selected alarms with a single user-interaction, therefore saving operation time. For compatibility reasons, this functionality is not set by default and needs to be activated with the config entry [ui] aesRowMultipleSelection = 1

Proxmox

With this patch we now also support Proxmox as an additional and cost-effective virtualization platform alongside the already supported VMWare software modules. Please check the specific documentation page for details.

This platform will also be supported for WinCC OA V3.19 with the next patch.

Estimation of disk space panel

This panel, which allows the user to calculate estimates of the required disk space for different WinCC OA archiving options, received a usability update.

Video Add-On

The WinCC OA Video Add-On now supports the new Axis devices Joystick TU9002 and Keypad TU9003. This does however not apply to the emergency client (Video Workstation).

Revised Technical Services available

We are particularly pleased to inform our customers and partners about a revised and simplified service philosophy, which is now aligned with many other products of the SIMATIC Software Product Portfolio. Please refer to our support page for more details on our refreshed technical services.

Documentation

The WinCC OA Online Documentation has received a complete makeover that greatly improves its usability. It has been outfitted with a modern, responsive design which makes the use, especially on mobile devices, much easier. Furthermore, the documentation’s internal structure has been adapted to create quick and logical pathways leading the user to the information they’re looking for faster and more intuitively.

Please note that currently the new Online Documentation does not work with the Samsung Internet 26 Browser (27 Beta is already available for download!).

WinCC OA JavaScript Manager for Node.js

The JavaScript/TypeScript API of the WinCC OA JavaScript Manager for Node.js has been enhanced.

• New supported methods:
  • Plantmodel / CNS methods
  • dpGetPeriod, dpGetPeriodSplit and alertGetPeriod methods
  • dpQuerySplit and dpCancelSplitRequest methods
  • sysConnect method
  • Various other methods
• It is now possible to forward callbacks from Control code to JavaScript/TypeScript when the code is running in the JavaScript manager.

Further details can be found within the API documentation.

Video

Several improvements have been made to the Video OA Object Explorer:

• SVG Overlay and Privacy Zone configuration can now be copied from one stream to another.

• An option for live as well as archived streams to be viewed in vimaccOA Workstation for each camera has been added.

• The handling of user defined parameters/keys for camera configuration has been improved.

Security

WinCC OA OS authentication on Windows now works without any NTLM function calls, since NTLM is deprecated by Microsoft. The former WinCC OA behavior can be restored by using the config entry [general] useWindowsNTLM = 1 (default value 0).

WebView EWO

The WebView EWO now allows access to resources at a webpage’s request. Possible features as available in QT libraries can be viewed here: Qt - WebEngine Feature Permissions

An issue affecting the ULC UX reconnect in case of connection errors as well as a server shutdown has been fixed. This new behavior can be set by using the config entry [ulcUX] autoReconnectOnShutdown = 1.

Calendar

The calender object now provides an Today button that allows to select the current date within the calender. For more information, see chapter Calendar - Today.

Drivers

• IEC61850: A new config entry has been created to fix an issue that may infrequently cause the driver to run into timeout.
• SNMP: The max-repetitions number of an individual SNMP GetBulk request can now be independently configured.

Node.js

• Several CNS methods have been added to the WinCC OA JavaScript Manager for Node.js.

CTRL

• A new CTRL class "ReduMonitor" has been introduced that will make sure code is executed without data loss in the redundant CTRL manager on a Redu system’s active server. This functionality is helpful if the CTRL script is communicating to a single external database or service.

Screen Recorder

• All Modules and Child Panels will now show a red frame to indicate the inputRecorder is currently recording. This can be especially helpful when it comes to the login panel, to make sure not to inadvertently record the password entry.

Security

• Security for our HTTP server has been further increased with the full Server Hardening option, which completely disables code transfer capability. This feature is especially useful for customers who only use ULC-UX or Remote UI, as it allows for the use of the SSA feature without fear of potentially exposing unwanted data.

Archiving

• The NGA Importer for HDB now considers the value of the config entry [valarch] useHeaderSize = ["windows"|"linux"], which can be overridden by the new NGA Importer-specific parameter useHeaderSize = ["windows"|"linux"].

  This is necessary if you have switched operating systems while using the Value Archive archiving option (HDB) and now want to migrate your project to NGA.

• Datapoint Element name substitution mapping: When importing HDB data to NGA, you can now load in a mapping file of DPE names. This allows for direct DPE replacement, if your data model needs to be adapted while conserving historical data.
• PostgreSQL® DB: The documentation has been updated with extensive information on how to upgrade from a previous PostgreSQL® version to V16.

Drivers

• MQTT: ECDSA type certificates can now be used.
• BACnet: The WinCC OA BACnet driver is fully compliant to the Swiss KBOB guideline. This information has now also been clarified in the documentation.
• SBus: The SBus driver now supports the function dpGetMaxAge().

OPC UA Client

• In the OPC UA subscription panel, you can now optionally configure the Event Notifier Node ID for event and alarm subscriptions.
• Additionally, event attributes for event subscriptions can also be selected.

Mobile UI

• The selected language settings for the application are now stored on the device.

Project creation

• The user interface for default user creation during WinCC OA project setup has been streamlined.

Video Add-on

• The vimacc version 2.2.14.1 is included in the patch. This includes the SVG editor and layout sensitive bandwidth management features.