Ping Interface to the pi system

Reference Manuals

OSIsoft

• 
  PI Server manuals
  
• 
  PI API Installation manual
  
• 
  UniInt End User Document
  

Supported Features

Feature	Support
Part Number	PI-IN-OS-PING-NTI
* Platforms	Windows NT 4.0 / 2000 / XP / 2003
APS Connector	No
Point Builder Utility	Yes
ICU Control	Yes
PI Point Types	Int16 / Int32 / Float16 / Float32 / Float64
Sub-second Timestamps	No
Sub-second Scan Classes	No
Automatically Incorporates PI Point Attribute Changes	Yes
Exception Reporting	Yes
Outputs from PI	No
Inputs to PI: Scan-based / Unsolicited / Event Tags	Scan-based / Event Tags
Supports Questionable Bit	No
Supports Multi-character PointSource	No
Maximum Point Count	Point Count of PI Server (full version) 32 (Basic version)
* Uses PI SDK	No
PINet String Support	Not applicable
* Source of Timestamps	PI Server machine
History Recovery	No
* Failover	No
* UniInt-based	Yes
Vendor Software Required on PI Interface / PINet Node	No
Vendor Software Required on Foreign Device	No
Vendor Hardware Required	No
Additional PI Software Included with Interface	No
Device Point Types	Not applicable

* See paragraphs below for further explanation.

Platforms

The Interface runs on the above mentioned Microsoft Windows operating systems and greater. Windows NT 4.0 requires Service Pack 6.

Please contact OSIsoft Technical Support for more information.

Uses PI SDK

The PI SDK and the PI API are bundled together and must be installed on each PI Interface node. This Interface does not specifically make PI SDK calls.

Source of Timestamps

The clock on the computer running the PI Server provides the source of timestamps for the values sent by PI-Ping. The Interface writes a timestamp that reflects the time at which it begins to measure ping responses. That is, all points that belong to the same scan class will have the same timestamp.

UniInt-based

UniInt stands for Universal Interface. UniInt is not a separate product or file; it is an OSIsoft-developed template used by developers, and is integrated into many interfaces, such as the PI-Ping Interface. The purpose of UniInt is to keep a consistent feature set and behavior across as many OSIsoft-developed interfaces as possible. UniInt also allows for the very rapid development of new interfaces. In any UniInt-based interface, the Interface uses some of the UniInt supplied configuration parameters and some interface-specific parameters. UniInt is constantly being upgraded with new options and features.

The UniInt End User Document is a supplement to this manual.

Diagram of Hardware Connection

Principles of Operation

PI-Ping was developed primarily as a system manager's tool for the monitoring and analysis of a PI client-server network. It is specifically tailored for use on a machine running Windows. PI-Ping uses functions in Microsoft's IPHLPAPI.DLL or ICMP.DLL to send Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) echo ("ping") request messages to a remote machine. These same functions provide PI-Ping with the corresponding ICMP echo reply times. No additional hardware is required beyond the machine running PI-Ping and a network connection to the remote machine of interest.

Bandwidth and Network Traffic Issues

Continuous generation of ICMP echo packets at very high frequencies to multiple machines can create bandwidth and network traffic problems. For this reason, PI-Ping will not measure data at a frequency that is higher than 1 minute. This limitation ensures that the network is not overloaded with PI-Ping traffic.