OPC Programmers' Connection - OLE for Process Control

2013-Mar-20

2013 North American OPC Interoperability Workshop
The 2013 North American OPC Interoperability Workshop is THE event for testing OPC products for interoperability and will be hosted by Honeywell in Phoenix, AZ April 22-26, 2013. In addition to testing, this event provides an ideal opportunity to network with your peers, learn about OPC technology, and to interact with industry-leading experts. Click here for more information and registration.

2012-Nov-05

UA Compliance Test Tool (Windows 32-bit) BETA
The OPC Foundation Released a BETA version of the UA Compliance Test Tool. Download the UA CTT from here.

2012-Oct-25

OPC Technology Summit 2012 Presentations
The presentations from the OPC Technology Summit held last week in Orlando, Florida are available for download here.

2012-Oct-09

Countdown to OPC Technology Summit 2012 - Commence now!
The OPC Foundation's OPC Technology Summit 2012 is scheduled for October 16-18, in Orlando, Florida, USA, at the Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld. If you develop OPC products, use OPC solutions, or want to know more about OPC technology and its benefits, then you cannot miss this important opportunity. Hear from end users, OPC product developers and keynote presenters, including a cyber security expert and a noted industry author. Open to OPC Foundation members and non-members. Register now to lock in the early-bird pricing. For more information please visit www.opctechnologysummit.com.

2012-Sep-12

OPConnect Newsletter September 2012
The OPC Foundation and Automation World released OPConnect. The newsletter can be found here

2012-May-31

Save-the-Date for OPC Technology Summit 2012, October 16-18, Orlando, FL
Mark your calendar for the OPC Foundation's OPC Technology Summit 2012, scheduled for October 16-18, in Orlando, Florida, USA, at the Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld. If you develop OPC products, use OPC solutions, or want to know more about OPC technology and its benefits, then you cannot miss this important opportunity to learn and network with the OPC experts. Open to OPC Foundation members and non-members, the multi-day event features presentations on OPC UA technology, solutions and value proposition. Hear from end users, OPC product developers and keynote presenters, including a cyber security expert and a noted industry author. Register now to lock in the early-bird pricing. For more information please visit www.opctechnologysummit.com.

2012-Mar-22

OPC UA Specification Part 13 is Released
The OPC Foundation released the new version of the OPC UA Specifications Part 13 - Aggregates RC 1.02.10 Specification. It's available on the OPC Foundation website and can be downloaded from here.

2012-Mar-12

OPConnect Newsletter March 2012
The OPC Foundation and Automation World released OPConnect. The newsletter can be found here

2012-Feb-23

Automation.com Newsletter - OPC Update is Released
OPC Update is a newsletter published by Automation.com in collaboration with ISA and InTech. View the latest issue here.

2012-Feb-16

New version of the OPC UA Specification is Released
The OPC Foundation released today a new version of the OPC UA Specifications 1.02. It's available on the OPC Foundation website and can be downloaded from here.

2012-Jan-19

2 New OPC UA Server Development Whitepapers
Transylvania University of Brasov (Romania) releases 2 OPC UA whitepapers Design and implementation of UA Aggregating Server and Efficient Address Space Generation for a UA Server. See all available Books and Whitepapers.

2012-Jan-12

OPC Foundation General Assembly Meeting Notes
In the event you have missed the OPC Foundation General Assembly Meeting on December 14, 2011 from 10AM-11:30AM EST. You can download the PowerPoint Slideshow here

2012-Jan-05

OPC Foundation, North American Interoperability Workshop 2012
Join the OPC Foundation at the North American Interoperability Workshop hosted at Invensys in Lake Forest, CA March 19-23, 2012. Register online here

2011-Dec-09

OPC Foundation Announces Certification Test Results for 2011
Products from Leading Companies Pass Intense Certification Testing for Full Compliance with OPC Specifications and Interoperability Requirements. Read the full press release here

2011-Dec-09

A New Version of the OPC UA .NET SDK is Available
A new version of the UA .NET SDK (Build 333) has been posted which contains changes to the licensing of the source code, along with some bug-fixes. You can download the new SDK from here

2011-Nov-14

OPConnect Newsletter November 2011
The OPC Foundation and Automation World released OPConnect Issue 30. View the newsletter here

2011-Nov-08

UA Compliance Test Tools for Linux
The OPC Foundation published the new version of test tools for OPC UA and OPC Classic for Linux users. Download the Linux UA CTT from here

2011-Nov-07

OPC Unified Architecture And The Cloud
The OPC Foundation made a video about why OPC UA is the foundation for Cloud enabled Industrial Automation applications. Watch the Video on the OPC Foundation website

2011-Oct-31

OPC Foundation officially joins the FDI Cooperation
FDT Group, Fieldbus Foundation, HART Communication Foundation, PROFIBUS & PROFINET International and OPC Foundation founded a company to establish an organization to manage a common single solution for device integration (FDI). Read the press release here

2011-Oct-19

OPC Foundation President, Tom Burke, shares his vision on the future of OPC Technology
Thomas J. Burke, OPC Foundation President & Executive Director, talked about the future OPC Technology and the OPC Foundation's evolving role among the growing number of international standards. Watch Tom's presentation here

2011-Oct-12

A White Paper on Modelling Multiple Inheritance in OPC UA
Many information models introduce the concept of multiple inheritance and/or object interfaces to allow the re-use of software components. This whitepaper describes how to model these concepts in OPC UA. Download it from here

2011-Oct-03

New Versions of UA Compliance Test Tools
The OPC Foundation released new versions of test tools for OPC UA and OPC Classic, for both Server and Client testing. Download the New UA CTT from here

2011-Sep-19

UA Compliance Test Tool
The OPC Foundation released the UA Compliance Test Tool. This CTT should help validating OPC UA Servers and Clients conform to the OPC UA Specifications. Here is the link to download the UA CTT

2011-Sep-07

New Beta Release of the OPC UA SDK
It includes a sample implementation of the new 'Global Directory Service' information model (Part 12) which allows system wide management of certificates. This is final Beta before the RC. Here is the link to download the SDK

2011-Aug-08

OPConnect Newsletter August 2011
The OPC Foundation and Automation World released OPConnect. The newsletter can be found here

2011-Aug-08

OPC Foundation OPC UA Working Group F2F - Vancouver
The OPC Foundation UA WG has a F2F scheduled for Sept 14-15 in Vancouver, BC. Any OPC Foundation member is welcome to attend. Registration is here.

2011-Jun-23

A New Version of the OPC UA SDK is Available
A new version of the UA .NET SDK has been posted. Changes include support for Silverlight and the new HTTPS based protocol. SDK Downloads can be found here

2011-May-24

OPC Security page updated
With the growth of cyber threats and realizing their negative impact on their critical control systems, we continue to enhance our coverage. Take a deep dive and learn about OPC Security. Try out the tools and check out the new whitepapers here

2011-May-09

OPConnect Newsletter May 2011
The OPC Foundation and Automation World released OPConnect. The newsletter can be found here

2011-May-02

New Updates to OPC UA SDK from the OPC Foundation
The OPC Foundation Announces the updated release of the OPC UA SDK deliverables. Download the new OPC UA SDK from here. OPC UA SDK from here

2011-Apr-25

UA Compliance Test Tool
OPC Foundation - recently released an OPC UA compliance test tool. Download the OPC UA CTT from here!

2011-Apr-18

OPC Foundation - OPC UA WG F2F
OPC UA Working Group F2F in Walldorf, Germany: The OPC UA Working Group will meet in Walldorf, Germany (SAP headquarters) from May 23th to 25th. More information on the OPC Group can be found here

2011-Apr-04

OPC Foundation Releases Issue 27 of OPConnect newsletter
The OPC Foundation and Automation World released OPConnect Issue 27. The newsletter can be found here.

2011-Mar-21

OPC UA Part 11 - Historical Access 1.01 Specification
A Release Candidate of the OPC UA HA 1.01 is available for download today on the OPC Foundation website. Click here to download the HA 1.01 Specification

2011-Mar-01

OPC Europe Announces OPC Day in May
OPC Foundation Europe has announced an OPC Day on May 25, 2011 at SAP Headquarters in Walldorf, Germany. This event is for both members or the OPC Foundation and non-members. Click here for more Information/Registration

2011-Feb-23

OPC Foundation - OPC UA Working Group F2F
The OPC Foundation is convening a meeting of the UA Working Group to discuss these changes and to plan future updates to the specification. Click here to get more details

2011-Feb-02

OPC UA Interoperability Events
The OPC Foundation released videos about why OPC UA is the foundation for Cloud enabled Industrial Automation applications and A Demonstration of OPC UA products interoperating across the the Internet. Click here to view

2011-Feb-02

OPC .NET 3.0 (WCF) 1.20 Client Source Code
The OPC Foundation released the source files for the "OPC .NET 3.0 (WCF Edition)" (formally known as OPC Xi). These examples can be used to create WCF applications which can wrap existing OPC Classic products. Click here to download

2011-Jan-25

OPC Foundation: Unified Architecture Security Whitepaper
The OPC Foundation released a whitepaper recently about the OPC UA security. Click here to download

2011-Jan-10

OPC Foundation: 6-steps to Success with OPC UA
The OPC Foundation released a whitepaper recently about the OPC UA adoption around the world. The whitepaper breaks it down to 6 simple steps to help you maximize the investment in OPC UA technology, from inception, to development and through to certification. Click here to download

2010-Dec-02

OPC Foundation to Sponsor 2011 ARC Forum
ARC's 2011 World Industry Forum: Driving Innovation, Sustainability and Performance will take place on February 7th-10th at the Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld. This Forum will focus on challenges that will help you develop winning strategies. It provides the ideal environment for industry executives to collaborate, share ideas and find new ways to attack their most pressing problems. The event includes sessions on the major issues facing our industry, with multiple tracks that enable executives to explore these topics from different perspectives. Click here for Information

2010-Nov-14

Upcoming Events for OPC Foundation
The OPC Foundation will be exhibiting at upcoming events in Europe and North America. The OPC Foundation will be in Hall 7, Booth 190 at the SPS-Drives Fair in Nuremberg, Germany on November 23-25. The theme of this year's exhibit is OPC-UA: From the Controller to the Cloud. Examples of OPC UA products can be found on our OPC UA product page
The OPC Foundation will also be a sponsor for the ARC's 2011 World Industry Forum: Driving Innovation, Sustainability and Performance taking place on February 7th-10th at the Renaissance Orlandao at SeaWorld.

2010-Nov-05

OPC UA SDK Updates
The latest updates to the OPC UA deliverables are available for download to members. Major changes include fixes from IOP, update to HA Information model and updated COM AE Wrapper model. Downloads found here.

2010-Oct-25

OPC .NET 3.0 (WCF) For OPC Classic
The OPC Foundation has announced the release of OPC .NET 3.0 This technology was formerly known as OPC Express Interface (OPC Xi). This new API will enable users of OPC Classic to leverage the Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) technology, facilitating the transfer of data securely through firewalls. Says Tom Burke "...we have chosen to create OPC .NET 3.0 to enable developers to create simple OPC Clients and Servers using the latest .NET development tools. In the past we created the OPC Foundation Automation Wrapper to enable development with Visual Basic 6. Later we created OPC .NET 1.0 & OPC. NET 2.0 to enable use with VB .Net. Now we are responding with the addition of WCF..." OPC .NET 3.0 serves to bridge the gap between Microsoft .NET and the world of OPC Classic and will also provide a common interface between newly developed .Net clients and OPC Classic servers. More details here.

2010-Oct-17

OPCF Training Seminar - Atlanta, Nov 10,2010
The OPC Foundation will host a vendor-neutral training seminar on November 10, 2010 in Atlanta, GA at the Hilton Atlanta Northeast Hotel. This continues the series of one day technical seminars designed to present an overview of OPC technology, including OPC Classic, OPC Xi and OPC UA. Registration information for this event is found here.

2010-Oct-09

OPC UA Specification Updates
The OPC Foundation has released the latest version of OPC UA Part 11 - Historical Access as a Release Candidate. This version contains specification revisions and updates from the initial Part 11 Release. Specification is available to Members here. The latest Draft versions of OPC UA Part 7 - Profiles and OPC UA Part 10 - Programs are also available to Members here.

2010-Oct-03

ARC releases OPC Xi report
The ARC Advisory Group has released an ARCView report entitled 'OPC Xi Provides Welcome and Secure Transparency'. Press release can be found on the ARC site. The article talks on the history, design and security of OPC Xi. Additional information on OPC and security can be found in our OPC Security section.

2010-Sep-20

MTConnectOpcUa - New OPC UA Companion Specifications
The OPC Foundation and MTConnect Institute announced a Memorandum of Understanding to cooperate in developing standards called MTConnectOpcUa. MTConnectOpcUa is a set of companion specifications to ensure interoperability and consistency between MTConnect and OPC specifications, as well as the manufacturing technology equipment, devices, software or other products that implement them. Press release can be found on the ATM site. Can also be found in the 'Company & Organization News' section of the OPC portal here.

2010-Sep-12

OPC UA Development Course Oct 18-21, 2010
The OPC Foundation will conduct a four day OPC UA Development Course October 18-21, 2010 in Scottsdale, Arizona. This event will teach attendees how to wrap OPC Classic products with OPC UA functionality using the OPC Foundation .NET suite of tools, as well as instructions on the use of OPC Foundation tools to expedite the creation of native OPC UA products. The workshop will also have an interoperability plug-fest session for vendors to test their OPC UA products. Register here

2010-Sep-03

UA SDK Beta update Build 320
A new Beta for Release 1.1 of the OPC UA SDK has been released. This build (1.01.320.0) resolves a number of Mantis issues, has updates for the HA information model/structures and adds preliminary HistoryData/HistoryEvents Quickstarts. Details can be found in the readme file.
As always, SDK downloads are available here to OPC Foundation Corporate Members.

2010-Aug-31

Interoperability Workshop, Germany Sept 20-24, 2010
Registration is now open for the annual OPC interoperability workshop in Europe the week of September 20-24, 2010. For details on this event and how to register click here. The next interoperability workshop will be held in North America in May 2011.

2010-Aug-12

OPC Foundation newsletter
The August 2010 edition of OPC Foundation's "OPConnect" newsletter has been distributed by email, and published as a web page. This main news of this issue is the upcoming IEC standards versions of the OPC UA specifications.

2010-Aug-03

OPC UA Development Course
The OPC Foundation will be conducting a four day OPC UA Development Course from 18-21 October in Scottsdale, Arizona. The course is intended to instruct attendees on how to create native OPC UA products and to enable existing COM based OPC Classic products with OPC UA capabilities. Registration information can be found here

2010-Jul-27

UA SDK Beta update Build 318
A new Beta for Release 1.1 of the OPC UA SDK was released on July 23rd. This build (1.01.318.0) resolves a number of Mantis issues, as well as adds support for a HTTPS binding to the .NET Stack and adds the UserAuthentication Quickstart. Details are documented in the readme file.
SDK downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members.

2010-Jul-19

OPCF Webinar: OPC UA and PLCOpen
On July 22nd the OPC Foundation will host a webinar entitled "Using OPC UA and PLCopen to Create Better Automation Solutions". This webinar will show how OPC UA can reduce the cost of operating and maintaining PLCs that implement OPC UA communications with the PLCopen model. Registration links are as follows:
Thu, Jul 22, 2010 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM CEST (Europe/Asia)
Thu, Jul 22, 2010 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM EDT (North America)

2010-Jul-08

OPC UA Security Model for Administrators Whitepaper
The OPC Foundation has released a whitepaper on the OPC UA Security model. The white paper describes how to use the OPC UA security model to ensure application and transport security. The target audience is systems administrators and end users. A planned second whitepaper will discuss the security model from the perspective of a software developer. This whitepaper is available to everyone. The link to this and other OPC UA whitepapers can be found on our OPC UA page in the Articles section.

2010-Jul-06

OPC Foundation 2010 European Interoperability Workshop Registration Open
The OPC Foundation 2010 European Interoperability Workshop will be held the week of September 20th, 2010 in Nuremberg, Germany. OPC Classic and OPC Unified Architecture products will be tested. Registration is now open.

2010-Jun-28

More on Honeywell-Matrikon Acquisition
Now that the acquisition of Matrikon by Honeywell is complete, more details have been announced regarding the MatrikonOPC brand. Norm Gilsdorf, President of Honeywell Process Solutions is quoted “Following our acquisition of Matrikon, Honeywell intends for the MatrikonOPC business [...] to preserve the vendor neutrality that has made MatrikonOPC successful. MatrikonOPC will operate as a separate business entity within Honeywell Process Solutions. Honeywell is committed to ensuring the continued success and growth of MatrikonOPC.”
More details and links can be found on the OPC Exchange blog

2010-Jun-27

OPC Xi Web Demo - June 29th
The OPC Foundation is hosting a Web Demonstration on June 29th, 10:00 AM EDT highlighting OPC Xi access to OPC DA, HDA, and A&E servers by various OPC vendor applications and products.
The registration for the web demonstration can be found here.

2010-Jun-15

Upcoming OPC Foundation Events
Some upcoming OPC Foundation Events for June. Asian IOP Workshop 2010 Tokyo, Japan June 16-18, 2010. For complete information about registering for this event and a list of companies that are participating, see here.
OPC Foundation Training Seminar Minneapolis MN on June 23, 2010. Free one day seminar that covers topics on Classic OPC, OPC UA, OPC Xi and Compliance. Registration details can be found here.

2010-Jun-05

UA Compliance Test Tool Video
The OPC Foundation has created a how-to video outlining testing an OPC UA server using the OPC UA CTT Test Tool. The video goes over the user interface layout, configuring a project, testing methods and results. The tool uses java based test scripts for the various profile conformance units.
The download is available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2010-May-31

UA SDK Beta update Build 316
A new Beta for Release 1.1 of the UA SDK is now available. This build (1.01.316.0) incorporates a number of fixes found at the last IOP. Details are documented in the readme file.
SDK downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members.

2010-May-30

OPC UA Java Stack update
A new Beta for Release 1.01 of the OPC UA Java Stack is now available. This build (1.01.305.0) incorporates a number of updates and is a Beta (Development) Build currently used for testing.
The download is available to OPC Foundation Members only.

2010-May-25

Product Announcements
Some OPC product announcements e-mailed out this week. Prosys has released a new version of the OPC UA Java SDK which includes enhancements to the server component. Additional changes are expected for an upcoming June release with a focus on improving performance and stability for the stack and SDK.
MatrikonOPC also announced adding DA 3.0 support to their popular OPC Data Manager product. Our free stuff page is updated with information on this new client download.

2010-May-25

OPC Interoperability Event: Classic, UA, Xi
The week of May 17 through May 21 the OPC Foundation held a successful interoperability workshop in California hosted by OSISoft. The event featured interoperability testing for OPC classic and OPC UA clients and servers as well as for new OPC Xi products. A complete list of all the vendors and products will be posted on the OPC Foundation site . after testing is completed.

2010-May-18

OPC Unified Architecture Webinar presented by the OPC Foundation and MatrikonOPC
This webcast will provide attendees with an overview to the new OPC UA specification and how it differs from “classic OPC”. This webcast will explore what the vision of OPC UA is and how OPC has evolved since its conception. The main teaching point of this webcast is to discuss the past of OPC and what the future of OPC holds.
The webinar will be held on May 19th. Interested attendees can register here.

2010-May-14

OPC Foundation newsletter and UA Webinars
The May 2010 edition of OPC Foundation's "OPConnect" newsletter is available and has been published as a web page.
Also some new OPC UA Development Webinars have been added to the member download area. Training videos can be found here.

2010-May-14

Honeywell Acquires Matrikon
Honeywell announced that it has acquired Matrikon. Matrikon will be integrated into Honeywell Process Solutions, which is part of Honeywell’s Automation and Control Solutions business group. No details yet on how Honeywell plans to leverage the OPC products, training and support expertise that Matrikon brings to the table. Certainly an interesting development for the OPC world. The full announcement can be found here

2010-May-11

OPC Xi Web demo on June 29th
Several OPC Foundation members will be conducting an OPC Xi web demonstration on June 29th. A kick-off meeting on the details is happening Wednesday, May 12th, as part of the regularly scheduled OPC Xi technology round table meetings. Registration information for this meeting and other OPC Xi round table meetings can be found on the OPC Foundation Event listings and also on the MatrikonOPC Webcast schedule. Those interested in what is happening with OPC Xi technology are encouraged to attend the demo.

2010-May-06

OPC Xi Deliverables Update
The OPC Foundation announce an update for the OPC Xi deliverables which include minor updates to the interface contracts. Downloads available here.

2010-May-06

Long awaited OPC UA Compliance Tool BETA Release
With the BETA release of the OPC UA Compliance Test Tool (CTT) it is now possbile to test OPC UA products for compliance. While the tool is not yet complete there are said to be over 900+ scripts available for testing. As a BETA version the tool is subject to change and it is not considered to currently be of production stability.

2010-Apr-26

UA SDK Beta update
A further Beta for Release 1.1 of the UA SDK is now available. This build (1.01.313.0) fixes a number of bugs in the COM wrapper and proxies, and restores the CustomNodeManager that was removed in Build 312. In addition, OPC Foundation has a new pre-recorded webinar 'An Introduction to the UA COM Interop Components' for download.
SDK downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2010-Apr-23

Overview of OPC technologies
With a variety of technology bases to choose from, getting started with OPC could be overwhelming for the newcomer. A new article at Automation.com attempts to address this: OPC Foundation's Manny Mandrusiak presents an overview of OPC classic (COM), Xi and UA.

2010-Apr-22

fasaLINK - embeddable UA server from Embedded Labs
fasaLINK, from Embedded Labs, is claimed to be the smallest footprint OPC-UA module currently available. This PCB module adds an OPC-UA Server to any product via an integrated RJ-45 Ethernet interface and ARM microcontroller. Embedded Labs is a member of the OPC UA Server compliance committee. The Embedded Labs site has more information.

2010-Apr-22

UA Webinar series
OPC Foundation has recently begun a major push to spread information about Unified Architecture (UA) and Express Interface (Xi). The new series of UA webinars is particularly recommended. See our UA introductory page for details of other OPC UA resources.

2010-Apr-22

UA Free Stuff - Vision Panel client from Inductive Automation
Our UA free stuff page is updated with information on this new client download.

2010-Apr-13

UA SDK Beta update
A new Beta for Release 1.1 of the UA SDK is now available. This build (1.01.312.0) incorporates a number of significant changes, documented in the readme file.
SDK downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2010-Apr-13

Xi Members' download updated
OPC Foundation has released a new version of the Express Interface (Xi) code download for Foundation members. The list of changes is in a separate download; differences include improved error checking in a few cases, and more consistent file naming.

2010-Apr-09

Delphi Toolkit now available as a free download
prOpcKit, previously available as a commercial toolkit for Delphi OPC development, has now been made available as a free download. See our Delphi page for other options for OPC development using Delphi.

2010-Mar-26

Free Webinar: The Ins and Outs of OPC UA Security
OPC Unified Architecture was designed with security in mind. It encompasses a broad spectrum of functionality including authentication, authorization an encryption. This free one hour webinar, supported by OPC Foundation and running at various times on Tuesday March 30th, will help you find out more.

2010-Mar-26

OPC UA for IEC 61131-3 Companion Specification released
The PLCopen/OPC Foundation Joint Working Group has released the completed OPC UA for IEC 61131-3 Companion Specification. This document is available to members and non-members of OPC Foundation alike, and more information is available from PLCopen.
Since the specification contains an introduction to IEC 61131-3 and OPC UA it can be used as standalone document, and is a good example for defining OPC UA information models.

2010-Mar-22

Updated UA SDK 1.00
The UA SDK and Sample Code have been updated to version 1.00.250.5. This release includes several fixes, and is required for any systems that were having problems with Windows certificate stores.
The downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2010-Mar-18

Express Interface (Xi) achieves v1.0 status
The Xi specification and code are now fully released at version 1.0. Downloads are available from OPC Foundation and the Express Interface site - see our Xi page for details.
Now that Xi is fully released, announcements of commercial developer solutions are expected. We have information on some Advosol products. Again, our Xi page has more information.

2010-Mar-17

New Xi documents available
Two new Express Interface documents are available from OPC Foundation: a handy Introduction, and a detailed comparison of performance using different transports and data structures.

2010-Mar-16

OPC UA Alarms and Conditions Specification released
OPC Foundation has announced the release of the OPC UA Alarms and Conditions Specification. This is the last of the initial 11 parts of the UA spec to be released, and is available only to OPC Foundation members. Code support for this part is already included in the latest UA SDK downloads.

2010-Mar-15

OPC UA ADI Reference Implementation available
OPC Foundation has announced the availability of reference code for the OPC UA Analyzer Devices Integration (ADI) specification. UA C# SDK v1.01 is required, and the download is available only to Corporate Members of OPC Foundation.

2010-Mar-13

OPC UA training from Unified Automation GmbH
Unified Automation GmbH has announced a worldwide program of OPC UA training and webinars and is added to our list of OPC training providers.

2010-Mar-08

OPC Foundation newsletter
The March 2010 edition of OPC Foundation's "OPConnect" newsletter has been distributed by email, and published as a web page. This issue includes details of some forthcoming OPC events.
Past editions of the newsletter remain available, while Automation.com also runs a regular OPC newsletter.

2010-Mar-04

OPC Express Interface - additional downloads for OPC-F members
While the Xi documentation and a subset of the reference code remains available from the original Express Interface site, a complete set of downloads may now be accessed by OPC Foundation corporate members. See our Xi page for details. Xi remains at Release Candidate level, reportedly until March 15th.

2010-Mar-01

OPC Express Interface - Updated Release Candidate
The Xi Specification and Server Base Code has been updated to Release Candidate Version 2.01 and is available for download. Note that access is not restricted to OPC Foundation members only.
The final release is scheduled for March 15th 2010.

2010-Feb-15

UA SDK Beta update
A new Beta for Release 1.1 of the UA SDK is now available. This build (1.01.310.0) incorporates a number of changes including a completed HDA proxy, and a C++ version of the Local Discovery Server. Release 1.1 of the UA SDK will be the first to be supported by a Compliance Test Tool.
These downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2010-Feb-14

Free UA server included in Ignition by Inductive Automation
We've updated our listing of free UA servers to include Ignition by Inductive Automation - a cross-platform industrial application server written in Java.

2010-Feb-11

Updated UA SDK 1.00 Testing version
The UA SDK and Sample Code have been updated to testing version 1.00.250.3. This release includes bug fixes, and adds a separate installer for the Local Discovery Server. If no issues are reported over the next 2 weeks this will be relabeled as a Stable build.
The downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2010-Feb-09

OPC Express Interface - Release Candidate
The Release Candidate version of the Xi Specification and Reference Code has been released and is available for download. Note that access is not restricted to OPC Foundation members only.
The final release is scheduled for March 15th 2010.

2010-Feb-04

OPC Express Interface Webinar - now available online
The recent OPC Xi webinar, produced in conjunction with OPC Foundation and Emerson, is now available online. The webinar looks at the OPC Xi, outlining the benefits, and drawing comparisons with classic OPC and OPC UA.

2010-Jan-22

UA SDK 1.00 update
The UA 1.00 SDK and Sample Code have been updated to version 1.00.250.2. This full release version corrects a problem that prevented clients built with the .NET SDK from communicating with servers behind a NAT firewall. The downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2010-Jan-20

Prosys OPC UA Java SDK Released
Prosys has worked as a member of the OPC UA Early Adopter Group to develop OPC Foundation's UA Java Stack. Prosys has now released its own OPC UA Java SDK, which improves on the UA Stack by adding significant application layer libraries and classes to speed up application development. See our UA SDKs page for details.

2010-Jan-20

UA Alarms and Conditions RC Specification Update
A new Release Candidate version of the Unified Architecture Alarms and Conditions Specification is now available for download and review by OPC Foundation members. Written comments are sought.

2010-Jan-16

OPC UA white paper
Our UA introduction page has a link to a new OPC Foundation white paper "Implementation of the OPC UA Information Model for Analyzers". The general scope makes the paper a case study that can be useful for the deployment of any OPC UA product.

2010-Jan-02

UA SDK Beta update
A new Beta for Release 1.1 of the UA SDK is now available. This build (1.01.308.0) incorporates a number of changes including enhanced support for COM servers and clients. Release 1.1 of the UA SDK will be the first to be supported by a Compliance Test Tool.
These downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2009-Dec-21

OPC UA For Devices Companion Specification Released
This specification is now available for download by OPC Foundation members. The purpose of this document is defined by its Scope section: -
In today's automation systems devices from many different manufacturers have to be integrated resulting in effort for installation, version management and device operation. This challenge can be faced best with an open and standardized device model.
This specification is an extension of the overall OPC Unified Architecture specification series and defines the information model associated with Devices. The model described in this specification is intended to provide a unified view of devices irrespective of the underlying device protocols.

2009-Dec-03

OPC General Assembly - Webinar recording available
The recorded video and PowerPoint of the recent OPC Foundation General Assembly are now available. Highlights include updates on UA and Xi.
Note that a GoToMeeting codec may be needed to view the video.

2009-Nov-24

DA 2 Compliance Test update
OPC Foundation has updated the DA 2.05a module of its Compliance Test suite - available to Corporate Members of OPC Foundation. Various minor changes and bug fixes are included.
Update: it seems revised DA 3 tests have also been just been published, though the OPCF Downloads page shows a September date at the time of writing.

2009-Nov-24

OPC UA For IEC 61131-3 Companion Specification Release Candidate
The PLCopen/OPC Foundation Joint Working Group has made available a release candidate of the OPC UA For IEC 61131-3 Companion Specification. Foundation members are invited to review the specification and send comments by 2009-12-23.
Applications supporting this new information model are being shown at the SPS/Drives in Nuremberg Germany, November 24-26.

2009-Nov-18

OPC Foundation General Assembly
The annual OPC General Assembly webinar takes place Wednesday, December 2, 10:00 - 12:00 EST (15:00 - 17:00 UTC). The agenda includes updates on OPC UA and Xi. All members are invited to register.

2009-Nov-17

Express Interface licensing
Following OPC Foundation adoption of Xi, we understand the specification and server base code will remain available under the Xi Public License. This is good news: it will ensure continued speedy adoption of Xi, and is sure to increase pressure on OPCF to make other specifications more readily available.
Xi client and server sample code will be available only to OPC Foundation members, and first commercial toolkits should be appearing before year end.

2009-Nov-17

OPC Foundation confirms Xi adoption
OPC Foundation has confirmed that the Express Interface is to become part of the OPC portfolio, after which it will be known as OPC Xi. A new Xi page at the OPCF site gives a summary of Xi and states "OPC Foundation is currently transferring all specifications and information associated with OPC Xi to this website". The community will be hoping the Xi group has ensured the continuing open availability of key deliverables as the specification transitions to an OPC standard.

2009-Nov-07

Express Interface
With the new Express Interface gaining ground, we're giving it increased coverage with a new Xi page at OPCconnect.com.

2009-Nov-06

OPC-UA: new preview downloads from Unified Automation
Unified Automation has released new Technical Previews of a UA graphical modeling tool, plus a UA to DA gateway product. See our UA Free Stuff page for download links.

2009-Nov-05

OPCF adds Roadmap to UA Software Downloads
A new Beta for Release 1.1 of the UA SDK is now available. Identified as Build 307, this version is supported by a new roadmap page, explaining the purpose of each of the downloads. Also added is documentation for the COM interop comonents.
These downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2009-Nov-03

OPC Foundation newsletter
The November 2009 edition of OPC Foundation's "OPConnect" newsletter has been distributed by email, and published as a web page. This issue has preliminary news of planned events for 2010, incuding an international conference in Amsterdam.
Past editions of the newsletter remain available, while Automation.com also runs a regular OPC newsletter.

2009-Oct-29

Express Interface to be part of OPC portfolio
OPC Foundation is to work towards adoption of the Express Interface. Xi is a new .NET specification created by a group of automation vendors. This activity has taken place outside the control of OPC Foundation. The Xi specification is based on WCF (Windows Communication Foundation) and MMS (Manufacturing Messaging Service), and is backward compatible with OPC DA, AE and HDA. In essence, Xi solves the same problem as the original OPC specifications, but using Microsoft's current technology backplane - .NET, in place of the original COM.
Working outside the auspices of OPC Foundation has allowed the Xi member companies to proceed quickly. Adoption could also be swifter, being unshackled from the restrictions placed by OPC Foundation on distribution of its own specifications and code. The announcement that OPC Foundation is setting up a task force to "create a plan for including Xi as part of the OPC Foundation umbrella" is interesting therefore. We must hope that the Xi group can maintain its prgamatic and open approach even in the face of this move to adopt.
We'll have more on Xi in the near future.

2009-Oct-12

Intel OPC-UA Case Study
Intel has worked together with Ascolab and Unified Automation to evaluate OPC-UA performance across a variety of Operating Systems (Windows, Linux, VxWorks, QNX, ...) and Intel CPUs. The case study (PDF) is available from Intel's website. This includes a summary only; detailed results will be published in a white paper later in the year.

2009-Oct-12

dOPC Client Toolkit Update
Kassl has released new versions of its excellent dOPC Client Toolkits for Delphi and C++Builder. The primary enhancement is support for Delphi 2010. The company also offers a range of freeware client programs, plus a useful 'crap cleaner' for removing unwanted server registry entries.

2009-Oct-09

UA SDK Beta update
A new Beta for Release 1.1 of the UA SDK is now available. This build (1.01.305.0) incorporates a number of fixes to the COM DA Proxy and COM DA Wrapper, as well as new Quickstarts. Release 1.1 of the UA SDK will be the first to be supported by a Compliance Test Tool.
These downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2009-Sep-26

Prosys Sentrol adds support for Delphi & C++Builder 2010
Prosys Sentrol is an OPC client and server SDK for Delphi & C++Builder. Its advanced RAD framework and native code model offer a development platform that's arguably unsurpassed for productivity and performance. New version 5.1.0 brings Prosys Sentrol up to date with support for Delphi & C++Builder 2010.

2009-Sep-15

Kepware makes late entry to OPC server toolkit market
Kepware has announced the launch of CID - Custom Interface Driver for KEPServerEX. This "OPC Toolkit that Isn't" allows development of an add-on driver application for the popular KEPServerEX server framework, with the two programs communicating via a shared memory pool. Find out more on our Toolkits page.

2009-Sep-15

Once more: another UA SDK 1.1 Beta
A third Beta for Release 1.1 of the UA SDK is now available. Importantly, the COM DA Proxy now passes the DA2.05 and DA3.0 Compliance Tests, and there are also fixes for issues affecting communication across firewalls. Release 1.1 of the UA SDK will be the first to be supported by a Compliance Test Tool.
These downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2009-Sep-15

Softing to provide OPC-UA technology for Wind River operating systems
Industrial OS vendor Wind River has announced an extension to its Partner Validation Program, whereby partner companies will "provide their software solutions integrated and validated with the latest releases of Wind River's industry leading operating systems, VxWorks and Wind River Linux". One of four new partners listed, long time OPC vendor Softing will provide its OPC-UA Factory Gateway solutions.

2009-Sep-08

Further UA SDK 1.1 Beta
A second Beta for Release 1.1 of the UA SDK is now available. Changes include improved COM DA support, and a significant number of bug fixes in the ANSI C stack. We're happy to see that the ReadMe now includes a change summary again. Release 1.1 of the UA SDK will be the first to be supported by a Compliance Test Tool.
These downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2009-Sep-07

OPC UA: SDKs vs. stacks
Recent discussions on the OPC Foundation forum have highlighted some confusion around the area of toolkit/SDK provision for OPC UA. To help clarify the situation, we've updated our UA toolkits page to explain the difference between stacks and SDKs, highlighting that OPC Foundation only offers a complete SDK for the .NET platform.

2009-Sep-06

Matrikon Product Updates
Matrikon's OPC Explorer has been one of two or three essential test clients since the earliest days of OPC. The tool has continued to evolve, and in its latest incarnation adds support for OPC A&E - see our Free Clients page. A newer Matrikon product is Excel Reporter, allowing reporting on OPC DA and HDA data through Microsoft Excel. This, and other OPC/Office integration tools, are listed on our Tools & Techniques page.

2009-Sep-03

Delphi Code Updates
Our Delphi conversions of the OPC custom interfaces, plus sample Delphi clients, have had minor updates for compatibility with new Delphi 2010.

2009-Sep-02

A Roadmap to UA Downloads
Great to see OPC Foundation's Randy Armstrong blogging again. He has a handy post for developers on getting started with UA, tailored for various specific needs - e.g. "I am a developer and want to see code that can get me started". Recommended!

2009-Aug-31

New UA SDK Beta
OPC Foundation has published the first Beta version for Release 1.1 of the UA SDK. Changes are not itemized in the readme - we hope this will change when the SDK comes to full release. A visit to the OPC Foundation bug tracking system apparently shows 18 issues resolved, of which 3 were major - all of these 3 in the Server Toolkit. Release 1.1 of the UA SDK will be the first to be supported by a Compliance Test Tool.
The downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2009-Aug-24

Softing Toolkits for OPC UA
Our UA SDKs page now references Softing's OPC Toolbox UA range, expected to be available 2009-Q4.

2009-Aug-06

New pages on OPC UA
With OPC UA now fully released, we continue to enhance our coverage. New today are pages on OPC UA Free Stuff and SDKs and Toolkits.

2009-Jul-30

OPC UA SDK Released!
OPC Foundation has today announced the release of UA SDK 1.00. This includes support for C/C++ and .NET development environments, along with source code and sample applications. Congratulations to all involved on the completion of a mammoth task!
The downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

2009-Jul-30

OPC UA Overview For Developers & Architects Webinar - Video and PowerPoint now available
A recording of the recent UA webinar is now available to both members and non-members of OPC Foundation.

2009-Jul-26

Release Candidate updates for OPC Test Lab Specification
The OPC Test Lab specification forms part of OPC Founation's enhanced certification logo program, covering Compliance Tests, Interoperability Workshops, and Independent Test Laboratories. Parts 6 and 7 of the spec, covering COM DA Server and Client test cases respectively, are now available in a new Release Candidate form. These documents are available to OPC Foundation members only.

2009-Jul-26

OPC UA Overview For Developers & Architects Webinar - Wednesday, July 29
A reminder that this OPC Foundation webinar is just a few days away. OPC Unified Architecture Overview For Developers & Architects Webinar: Wednesday, July 29, 2009, 10:00 EDT (14:00 UTC). The OPC Foundation site has full details.

2009-Jul-11

OPCconnect.com is evolving
You may notice a few changes to OPCconnect.com starting today. OPC has evolved, and this will be reflected in our content - in particular we'll soon be giving more attention to UA, including toolkits, free trials and other solutions. If you're an OPC vendor offering anything in the UA space, please continue to keep us informed.
Some older items will be going from OPCconnect.com, including our XML-DA Interop Server which has been used by numerous OPC developers over the last several years (thanks for working with us!). This has closed from today, to reflect the attention of the OPC community moving to UA.

2009-Jul-09

Updated Cyberlogic product info
Our Free Clients and Free Servers listings are updated with current Cyberlogic trial product details. These include a time-limited demo of the company's new OPC Crosslink Suite, allowing data exchange between any combination of OPC DA servers and PLCs.

2009-Jul-03

New UA SDK Release Candidate brings introduction of OPC licenses
The UA SDK, Sample Code and Help have been updated to Release Candidate version 1.00.240.1. This build incorporates new OPC Foundation license agreements: all binaries and documentation are subject to the terms of the "OPC Redistributables License Version 1.00" (PDF), while each source file is subject to one of 3 new licenses.
Build 240.1 also adds a C++ Quickstart with a sample client and server, and reorganizes the Merge Modules. This is planned as the last Release Candidate before the full Release at the end of July. The downloads are available to OPC Foundation Corporate Members only.

Recent updates...