OPC .NET (OPC Xi) Whitepaper

OPC .NET (previously OPC Xi) is a communication interface specification designed for secure and reliable access to automation systems.

OPC .NET provides a set of methods for accessing real-time data, historical data, events, and alarms. It has been designed for fast local communication, and secure network communication (even through firewalls). OPC .NET defines a Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) that is based on MMS (Manufacturing Messaging Service) and WCF (Windows Communication Foundation).

The main design goals were:

• Security - for secure communications including access through firewalls
• Simplicity - to make servers and clients easy to implement, configure, and deploy
• Robustness - for reliable communications with error recovery
• Plug-and-Play - for automatic discovery of servers and their communications capabilities
• Backward compatibility - for accessing OPC DA, AE and HDA servers using a single .NET interface
• Protocol transparency - for efficient client/server communications when both the client and server are on the same platform or within the same local area network, and when the client is located on external networks, including the Internet.

Author: Advosol

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Advosol Inc. is the leading provider of .NET components for the developer of OPC DA, AE, HDA and XML-DA client and server applications. Advosol’s client components are up-to-date with the latest technology. They work in 32-bit and 64-bit systems and are Authenticode signed to ensure quality and to simplify Windows Vista Certification. The server toolkits reduce the OPC server development to a .NET assembly for the ‘device’ access. The OPC system integrator can use our XML DA Gateways and Bridge to eliminate DCOM issues and achieve secure remote access. All Advosol products include extensive documentation and 90 days support.