PlantStruxure PES [V3.1 + SP1]: How to install Security patches and Hot Fixes in the Virtual Machine(VM)of PlantStruxure PES

Goals and Symptoms

How to install Security patches and Hot Fixes in the Virtual Machine(VM) of PlantStruxure PES

Facts and Changes

PES 3.1 SP1
Oracle VM VirtualBox 4.1.22

Causes and Fixes

I. Introduction

The Image of the Virtual machine of PES is in immutable mode. It means no alteration of the VM can be done permanently. The purpose of this behavior resides in the need to have a virtualized environment used by the   PES Sever to succeed every time it needs to use the participants installed in the VM. Basically the participants used by the PES Server, and installed in the VM, are Unity Pro, Vijeo Citect, Advantys Configurator and OFS.
While running the VM ,the user can install or copy any software, but after rebooting the PES Server, the VM returns to its saved image and all the changes are lost.
However if, user need to permanently modify the actual VM to install:

1. A Security Patch.
2. Windows Update.
3. New Unity libs.
4. A DTM

PES, provides two mechanisms to permanently modify the VM, and install all this files:

1. Silent installation can be installed by using the Patch.bat mechanism
2. User interaction installation can be installed by changing the VM to normal mode.

II. PES Implementation

1. Patch Mechanism: Installation without user interaction
Process Expert allows user to modify automatically the VM by using batch files. A batch file is like a script file (text) containing a series of commands to be executed by the commander interpreter. So any command supported by the command prompt of windows can be used.
In PES there’s a specific location to store all the batch files: [System Server\VM\Patches] folder.

User can create a new folder with any name that will help  to identify which patch is installed in the VM.
In this folder, user must create a windows batch file called Patch.bat, and copy all the files that he/she wants to install/copy into the VM.



To Execute the batch files, while user start PES Server, press F2 and force the generation
State of the VM:



By doing this, user will apply all the batch files defined in the VM\Patches folders.



Examples of common command lines to be defined in the Patch.bat file.

Copy a file
Xcopy /Y /R name_file “location in the vm”

Example:
Xcopy /Y /R tesyst.pdf “c:\program files\shneider electric\” The document TesysT.pdf will be copied in program files\ Schneider electric folder  inside the VM permanently.


Install a Unity Lib
"c:\Program Files\Schneider Electric\Unity Pro\SetupEF.exe" "%~dp0family.dsc" -i –h
Run the setupEF in silent mode and install the new library defined in family.dsc .

III. Edit mechanism: Installation with user interaction

If user need to modify the setting of the participants embedded in the VM, and can‘t do it in silent mode, it means that the user interaction is needed, then user needs to edit the VM to modify or install the patches manually. To do it, follow next steps:

1. Open a command windows.
2. Go to the System Server folder
3. Execute the next command to register the VM in normal mode:
SoCo.HostAgent.exe edit SoCo.Vm.1.9



4. Start the VM by launching Oracle VM virtualBox



5. Now you can change the setting of the participants or install any patch in the VM.
6. After installing, shutdown the VM.
7. Launch PES Server, and the VM will return to immutable mode.

Released for: Schneider Electric Macedonia