-

Ad-hoc IP address instead of project-defined address

The controller in your project has a defined IP address within the project IP range. This address has been set in the 'Settings' editor of the controller node. See topic "Setting the Controller IP Address" for details.

In particular scenarios (e.g. with several controllers behind a router or when working with temporary addresses) you may need to connect to a controller with a different address than set in the project. In PLCnext Engineer you can use an arbitrary IP address without modifying/rebuilding the project.

Precondition for using an ad-hoc IP address: Make sure that no connection to the controller with the set IP address exists. The shield icon in the PLANT should be displayed grey and the 'Connect' icon in the Cockpit appear unpressed. If necessary disconnect the controller.

Proceed as follows:
  1. Double-click the controller node and open the Cockpit.
  2. Open the category 'Ad-hoc IP address'.
  3. Activate the 'Enable' checkbox in the editor and enter the IP address which is to be used instead of the address set in the controller properties.

    Now, the IP address defined in the controller properties is ignored and the ad-hoc value is used as target address. All further commands are applied to the controller under the ad-hoc address.

    The use of an ad-hoc IP address is indicated by the target list box in the Cockpit toolbar: The list box becomes inactive and the extension " - ad-hoc" is attached to the entry 'TCP/IP':

  4. Proceed with writing and starting the project or connecting/monitoring/debugging the controller as ususal.

Disable the ad-hoc address by deactivating the 'Enable' checkbox after you have terminated the communication connection. Alternatively, enter a different ad-hoc address to connect to another controller in the network.