Resolve DCOM communication issues with OPC Tunneler

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OPC Expert has built-in OPC tunneling enabling OPC data transfer by a mechanism other than DCOM. Don’t waste time fighting with DCOM settings. OPC Tunneler provides an option to get OPC data moving quickly. Consider OPC tunneling when DCOM configuration is not appropriate or to avoid configuring DCOM altogether.

Case studies below show how OPC Expert to Excel has been used.

Land O’Lakes | DES Global.

Tunneler Configurations

Full Tunnel

In a full tunnel configuration, OPC Expert runs on the server computer (bottom) and a second OPC Expert runs on the client computer (top). All OPC Classic DA communication is local. OPC Expert transports data between OPC Experts using standards-based OPC UA. This case uses two OPC Expert licenses. A full tunnel consists of:

  • One OPC Expert license on the client computer
  • One OPC Expert license on the server computer
  • Converts OPC DA data to OPC UA during transport
  • Converts OPC UA data back to OPC DA which is read as a local OPC connection
Full Tunnel Configuration

Half Tunnel (Client Side)

In this half tunnel configuration, OPC Expert only runs on the client computer (top). OPC Expert handles all network OPC communication to the remote server. This case uses only one OPC Expert license. Use this connection when OPC Expert can connect to the remote OPC server using OPC DA. This half tunnel consists of:

  • One OPC Expert license on the client computer
  • Local communication to OPC client using OPC DA only

Half Tunnel (Server Side)

In this half tunnel configuration, OPC Expert runs on the server computer (bottom). The OPC client application handles all network OPC communication to the remote OPC Expert. Use this configuration when the OPC client application can connect remotely to OPC Expert (using OPC DA), but not the OPC server. This half tunnel configuration consists of:

  • One OPC Expert license on the OPC server computer
  • Remote communication to OPC client using OPC DA only
OPC Tunneling
OPC Tunneling
OPC Tunneling
OPC Tunneling
OPC Tunneling

OPC Expert’s tunneling is unique because it uses standards-based communication instead of proprietary methods:

OPC UA provides standard-based infrastructure enabling OPC Expert to tunnel without forcing users to rely on proprietary software made by a single vendor. Instead, users can mix and match OPC Expert’s tunneling with any software application supporting OPC UA.

Optional Windows security can be used when working in a Windows environment. Users can benefit from their existing IT infrastructure investment like domain authentication or even reliable local accounts.

Optional OPC UA security can be used when connecting to OPC UA clients or servers. Choose from available connection methods using 128-bit or 256-bit encryption. OPC Expert uses reliable communication libraries directly from the OPC Foundation as opposed to vendor-independent libraries lacking open-source transparency.

Secure data transportation enables OPC Expert to smoothly and reliably transport data between its tunnels while preventing hacking attempts from eavesdropping and man-in-the-middle attacks. Data transportation mechanisms include high-speed binary encoding, or HTTP and XML to enable the crossing of highly restrictive network barriers.

Single port communication enables users to easily configure the tunnel to use any port they require. OPC Expert’s default tunneling port is 57888 and users can change this port to comply with IT requirements and firewall traffic allowance. In addition, the port only needs to be opened in one direction and no additional ports are required to establish callbacks.

Connect OPC Classic DA client applications to OPC UA servers, and the reverse. OPC Expert acts as a converter to enable connectivity of otherwise incommunicable servers and client applications. Find out more.

OPC Expert does not require installation, does not change Windows Registry and is free to download, making it safe to use on any computer. Download OPC Expert and use the OPC tunnel immediately.

Do you need additional options or features specific to your production environment? Do you have any suggestions regarding additional features you would like added? Let us know, and we’ll happily consider implementing them in a future OPC Expert release.

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