Five steps
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Source
You choose where the TIA project is read from. The options are on the source selection page.
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Selection
You mark the HMI devices and the content to convert.
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Settings
You set the project name, the file path and the conversion options.
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Convert
The data is exported and converted. Before the project is written, the pre-analysis panel opens.
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Result
Counts, PLC addresses, warnings and a page preview appear. The details are on the conversion report page.
When no conversion is running, you can go back to the earlier steps by clicking Source, Selection or Settings in the side bar.
Device and content selection
When the source has been read, the devices are listed as cards. A card shows the device type (HMI or PLC) and the HMI family (Basic / Comfort / Advanced, WinCC Unified, WinCC Professional). You mark the HMI devices to convert with the check box; a device that cannot be converted stays inactive and states the reason. The PLC card is not selected: the PLC is the source of the addresses and is always read. Clicking an HMI card opens its content on the right.
| HMI family | Content you can select |
|---|---|
| Basic / Comfort / Advanced | Screens, Pop-up windows, Templates, Slide-in screens, HMI tag tables, Text lists, Graphic lists, VBScript scripts |
| WinCC Unified | Screens, Text lists, Script modules (JavaScript), Alarms (Discrete alarms, Analog alarms, Alarm classes) |
| WinCC Professional | Screens and VBS scripts |
Each category has a search box and the Select all and Clear buttons; screen groups appear as headings. An item that is not selected is left out of the conversion.
What is always included
The Always included section of the Selection step lists what is converted regardless of the selection: read cycles, connections and connection information, the graphics in use, and, from the PLCs, the data blocks used by the HMI tags and the PLC tag tables.
The data blocks and PLC tag tables are needed to convert symbolic addresses to absolute addresses. Address resolution is described on the tags and addresses page.
The Settings step
There is one row for each HMI device: the project name and the .fvs file to be saved. You pick the folder with Browse…. The file path must end with .fvs and the project name must not be empty.
| Option | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Font size scale | The font size (pt) in TIA is applied to the screen pixels one to one. If text looks too small or too large, scale it with the slider: 0.7 to 1.5, default 1.0. |
| Text language | Which language takes priority in multilingual projects: Turkish (English if missing) or English (Turkish if missing). |
| WinCC symbol library objects | WinCC Professional only. When on (the default), symbols are converted to Studio control objects; when off, they are transferred as images. Details are on the WinCC Professional page. |
| Show the pre-analysis before writing | On by default. Before the project is written to disk, PLC communication, tags whose address could not be resolved and the conversion quality are shown in a panel; you can cancel before writing. |
| Connect optimized DB tags via OPC UA | On by default, for S7-1200 and S7-1500. Tags in optimized data blocks are moved to an OPC UA connection created for each PLC; their addresses become node IDs. |
| Also keep the export package | With a TIA or project folder source, the package is written next to the .fvs file as a folder ending in _Paket; it is used to convert again on a computer without TIA.
|
| Open the project in Studio when the conversion is finished | If ticked, the project opens in Studio when the conversion ends. The Open in Studio button in the Result step does the same afterwards. |
Conversion
Convert › runs for each device in turn:
- The source is read and the data is exported to a temporary folder; with a TIA source, the connection to TIA is released when reading is finished.
- For WinCC Professional projects, a symbol mapping panel may open.
- The data is converted in memory and the pre-analysis panel opens. Write project › writes the
.fvsfile and the reports.
Each device has a progress bar, and a log appears below. Stop interrupts the running step and stops before the writing step; no half-written project is saved. If a device fails, the details are written in the log, and you return to the Settings step with ‹ Go back.
Frequently asked
Can I convert several HMI devices at once?
Yes. You can mark several HMIs in the Selection step. In the Settings step you enter a separate name and file path for each, and each becomes a separate .fvs project.
Why did the symbol mapping panel not open?
The panel opens only for WinCC Professional projects, when the symbol option in the Settings step is on and there is a symbol without an exact match.
Related pages
Pre-analysis and PLC addresses
PLC communication and address problems before writing; an OPC UA connection for optimized data blocks.
ConvertClassic HMI
Screens, tags, lists and scripts of Basic, Comfort and Advanced panels.
ConvertWinCC Unified
Unified screens, tag dynamizations, event scripts, alarms and connections; what is not converted.
ConvertConversion report
Objects reported as exact, approximate or placeholder, the Warnings list and the preview.