Ever since making a splash in industrial automation last September, there’s been a tidal wave of headlines and discussions around many of the Ignition 8.3 release’s high-profile features.
But Ignition 8.3 is an expansive ocean of capabilities and enhancements. Like most major releases, it has features appreciated mostly by people closest to the code. These lesser-hyped features can have huge impacts on the day-to-day work lives of automation pros like you.
This blog is your access to insider insights, straight from the developers and engineers who built it. Whether you’re a new Ignition integrator, a plant floor operator needing a productivity win, or an executive looking to trim the team’s tedious task list, there’s something for you here.
Global Gateway Search: Find Anything In a Flash
If you’ve ever spent fifteen minutes (or longer!) sifting through a Gateway for one connection that ends up being buried three menus deep, Ignition 8.3 has a gift for you: Global Gateway Search.
The redesigned Ignition Gateway web interface in 8.3 includes an integrated global search function through which you can quickly search, find, and navigate to configurations, settings, and resources across your entire system.
No more mind-numbing navigation through stacks of sub-menus one at a time as if you’re reading a treasure map with half the clues missing or misplaced. What used to take several clicks now takes one second. All from one field, to save time — and your sanity!
This global search function really shines in large and complex deployments that have dozens of connections, devices, and profiles in play.
IA insider tip: Use the global search feature in conjunction with the new side-by-side configuration and diagnostic view of the Gateway UI to seamlessly secure updates, too!
Alarm Metrics Aggregation. Status: Easy & Efficient!
If you’ve ever asked an Ignition user how they get a rolled-up alarm count for an entire UDT or tag folder, you’ve likely heard an overly complicated story involving custom expressions and time-consuming polling of the alarm system.
Ignition 8.3 introduces a plot twist to that story with Alarm Metrics Aggregation at the folder and UDT level. In this oft-requested capability, what once was a tricky part of building a UDT-based system is now just a binding.
The IA team not only added new alarm metrics properties in Ignition, but also made more than a dozen other pre-existing properties bindable. No more scripting gymnastics or exhaustive system queries needed. Just bind properties directly to UDTs or tag folders, and watch Ignition handle the aggregation in real time.
You can retrieve alarm metrics faster and more accurately in Ignition 8.3 with expressions and tags that are now subscription-based rather than reliant upon inefficient polling scripts.
Building high-performance HMIs that meet high industry standards? With this feature, you’re ready to design dashboards and equipment overview displays that meet ISA 18.2 Alarm Management Standards right out of the box.
IA insider tip: Organize your tag structure well at the start to maximize this feature, as the subscription is applied to all tags under the folder or UDT.
Don’t Miss These Other Pearls Within Ignition 8.3’s Shell
Little Chart, Big Impact: Create graphical comparisons of multiple attributes at once with the new Radar Chart component in the Ignition Reporting Module.
Historical Simplicity: Save time and effort with a system.historian namespace of Python scripting functions for data retrieval, storage, and metadata management in the new Historian.
Open & Configurable: Access full status information or even change your Ignition configuration from the new Gateway web UI using the built-in REST API to leverage self-documenting endpoints for automated deployments using popular third-party tools like Postman or Ansible.
Discover Even More 8.3 Gems
Listen, the splashy features of Ignition 8.3 absolutely deserve the attention they get. But despite not having made the public highlight reels, the features in this blog are unsung heroes lifting up automation pros like you and making your day-to-day work measurably better. Now that you know to look for them, you’ll wonder how you ever worked without them!
Ready to uncover a few hidden gems of your own? Download your free unlimited trial of Ignition 8.3 and explore everything Ignition has to offer.
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Ignition 8.3 Ignition Gateway Global Gateway Search Alarming UDTs Tags HMI Design Reporting Charts Historian REST API Postman Ansible