Filtering Application Data

Using configuration files, you can filter an application's data to hide or even to prevent the loading of certain tags based on the Area with which tags have been configured.

There are three categories of filtering that may be applied to the tags in a given application:

Tag Area Filtering: Tag area filtering enables you to prevent tags belonging to one or more specified areas from loading on a given workstation when your application runs. This type of filtering is generally used in applications where memory is limited, and certain workstations do not require access to all of your application's tags (e.g. in a large plant where a certain plant section is beyond the responsibility of operators in other sections). Tag area filtering is typically applied to individual workstations.

Alarm Area Filtering: Alarm area filtering enables you to only display alarm tags belonging to one or more specified areas on a given workstation. This type of filtering is generally used in applications where certain users do not need to be aware of certain types of alarms on their workstation (e.g. in a large plant where alarms belonging to equipment in a certain plant section is beyond the responsibility of operators in other sections). Alarm area filtering is typically applied to individual workstations.

Realm Area Filtering: Realm area filtering enables you to limit the tags that are shown in the tag browser to allow users in specific groups to see only the tags in a specified areas. Note that this filter applies only to the tag browser: all operators will still see all pages and tags running in the application. 

Unlike tag area filtering and alarm area filtering, realm area filtering "follows" the user from workstation to workstation, as it is linked to the user's security account instead of to an individual workstation.

All three methods of filtering may be applied to a single application, or you may apply a single type of filtering to an application, based on your needs.

Each type of filtering is described in detail in the following sections.