Important

Everyone working with SP17 or newer must read the Whitepaper: Modularization from the User Perspective

Summary

With SP17 the CODESYS Development System has been modularised. This means that much of the functionality which was built into the SP16 installer has been moved to addons.  Normally, if one selects "Complete Installation" these addons are automatically installed, but there could be a problem installing these addons, for example low disk space.

Problem 1

I want everything that was in SP16 before the modularisation.

Solution 1

Here is an export of a fresh installer immediately after installing with SP17 Patch 0 "Complete Install" option.

Install it with Start > CODESYS > CODESYS Installer: EverythingFromTheSP17_0Setup.installation-config


Problem 2

I only have the option to create a POU in ST

Solution 2

Ladder, FBD, IL, SFC and CFC are now optional free addons.  The setup selects these by default but you are able to unselect them.  Also if you use CODESYS Installer to Add an Installation, it will not select these plugins for you.

So if you want Ladder or Function Block Diagram or Instruction List, you must open Start > CODESYS > CODESYS Installer, select "Change" for your installation, select Browse, and search for the package named "CODESYS LD/FBD" with the magnifying glass.  Note that for search purposes, the package does not have "Ladder" nor "Function Block Diagram" nor "Instruction List" in the name nor details.  If you need Instruction list, you still need to enable it in the IDE using Tools > Options > FBD, LD and IL editor > IL > Enable IL.

Continuous Function Chart is another package, you must search for "CFC".

Sequential Function Chart is another package, you must search for "SFC".


Problem 3

There was an error installing "Compatibility Package" during install

Solution 3

1. Uninstall CODESYS

2. Delete the following folder C:\ProgramData\AP\PlugInCaches

3. Cleanup CODESYS installation folder by deleting it (e.g. C:\Program Files\CODESYS 3.5.17.0)

4. Reinstall CODESYS

5. If the problem is still there, uninstall all Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable versions from windows, and then repeat the reinstallation above


Problem 4

I try to install package A, but it complains that it is missing a dependency package B

Solution 4

Install the package instead via Windows Start Menu > CODESYS > CODESYS Installer.  This will resolve the dependencies.  Alternatively, locate package B and install it first.

Problem 5

I cannot find the CODESYS Installer.

Solution 5

It is typical to find programs using \[Windows Key] + Type the name of the program you are looking for.  This Search however requires that your Start Menu is indexed by your operating system.  Often an administrator will have disabled Cortana.  If this is the case, your start menu index is not updated, so you can find old entries such as Notepad, but not new entries such as CODESYS Installer.

The alternative way to find programs from the start menu, if you have this MS Windows limitation, is to scroll through the list to CODESYS > CODESYS Installer

Alternatively, it is here: "C:\Program Files (x86)\CODESYS\APInstaller\APInstaller.GUI.exe"


Problem 6

I cannot use the newest version Vizualisation AddOn to work with an older PLC Application.

Or, I cannot use the newest version of a particular AddOn to work with an older PLC Application.

Solution 6

Essentially, if you want to use Visualisation Profile Version 4.1.0.0 in your project, you need to have exactly Visu Addon 4.1.0.0 installed as the latest Visu Addon.  Specifically not 4.2.0.0, nor 4.0.0.0.

If you want to use version 4.0.0.0 or earlier (eg 3.5.16.10) in your project, you need to have exactly Visu Addon 4.0.0.0 installed as the latest Visu Addon.  Specifically not 4.1.0.0.

This is because, through modularisation, the latest IDE no longer is tied down to a specific version of a package.  So for maximum compatibility, the user can now be assured that when working with a project at a particular Visu version profile, they are using exactly the matching addon for this.

So what are the options for the user:

  1. Always upgrade to the latest version.  If you open an older project, update the Visualisation version profile to the latest, and you can now use the old project.  The problem here is, you will not be able to go online to an exwithout downloading a change.
  2. Use CODESYS Installer to prepare another installation, which uses instead the other versions of the Addons.  Note that even though another installation is listed, in practice this is just one 'installation' of the CODESYS IDE on the hard drive, with each one loading a different set of plugins.

In future, when you open a project which was created with Visualisation Addon 4.1.0.0, in a Installation which has Visualization Addon 4.2.0.0, you will be prompted to either switch to an existing or create a new installation, which uses the correct Addon Version.

The same compatibility rules now hold true for almost all addons - if you want to use a previous project, you either use exactly the same addon versions, or you can choose upgrade the project to use the latest addons.  An upgrade may require either an online change, or a complete download.

Problem 7

For some fieldbusses, some tabs are missing, for example the General Tab of Modbus.

Solution 7

Use CODESYS Installer to install the correct Addon for your Fieldbus, for example CODESYS Modbus.