The DNP3 protocol is designed to avoid real time data loss even in the event of communication failure. The DNP3 protocol does this by storing point value changes with a timestamp in the Outstation. When communication is lost, the Outstation continues to record events in its event buffer. When communication is restored, the Outstation sends the stored events to Fernhill SCADA. Fernhill SCADA uses the stored events to fill in the data that was missed while the communication link was down.
The Fernhill SCADA DNP3 driver supports these communication options:
Option | Description |
---|---|
Serial | DNP3 over point to point and point to multi-point serial links |
TCP/IP | DNP3 over TCP/IP |
The DNP3 driver provides these tag types to support communication with DNP3 Outstations:
Icon | Tag Type | Version | Description |
---|---|---|---|
![]() | DNP3 TCP/IP Channel Tag | 3.46 | An IP Address used for DNP3 TCP/IP communication. |
![]() | DNP3 Serial Channel Tag | 3.46 | A serial port used for DNP3 serial communications. |
![]() | DNP3 Outstation Tag | 3.46 | A DNP3 Outstation. |
To configure Fernhill SCADA to communicate with a DNP3 outstation do the following:
You can monitor the status of the tags in the Tag Status Window.
You can use these I/O Data Point Tags to represent individual data points in the Outstation:
Icon | Tag Type | Version | Description |
---|---|---|---|
![]() | I/O Analog Data Point Tag | 3.12 | Maps an Analog Data Point Tag to an external data source. |
![]() | I/O Digital Data Point Tag | 3.12 | Maps a Digital Data Point Tag to an external data source. |
![]() | I/O String Data Point Tag | 3.12 | Maps a String Data Point Tag to an external data source. |
![]() | I/O Word Data Point Tag | 3.12 | Maps a 16-bit Word Data Point Tag to an external data source. |
![]() | I/O Double Word Data Point Tag | 3.12 | Maps a 32-bit Double Word Data Point Tag to an external data source. |
![]() | I/O Long Word Data Point Tag | 3.48 | Maps a 64-bit Long Word Data Point Tag to an external data source. |
DNP3 Outstations send data to the Master Station using DNP3 Objects. A DNP3 Object defines exactly how data should be encoded.
Some DNP3 Objects include Object Flags that provide additional quality indications about the data source. When Fernhill SCADA receives a DNP3 Objects with Object Flags, the following logic is used to set data point tag quality:
When Fernhill SCADA receives a DNP3 Objects without Object Flags, the data point tag quality will be GOOD (192).
To learn how to choose a data location in a DNP3 Outstation.
For background information on serial communications.
For information about other drivers available in Fernhill SCADA.
For the meaning of terms used in Fernhill SCADA.