Sigma – Understanding Alarm Archiving in Release 4.05 SEB or Later

[Product_Support]

Issue

Clarification needed on how alarm archiving works in Sigma release 4.05 SEB and subsequent versions.

Product Line

Satchwell BAS & Sigma

Environment

Sigma 4.05 SEB or later

Cause

The alarm archiving mechanism in Sigma 4.05 SEB and later is not clearly documented, leading to confusion about how and when alarms are archived.

Resolution

Sigma 4.05 SEB and later provide two types of alarm archiving mechanisms:

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1. Automatic Alarm Archiving

This process is triggered based on user-defined thresholds:

• Alarm File Sizes Configuration:
  • Current (Max): Defines the maximum number of alarm records (in thousands).
  • Archive (%): Specifies the percentage (between 20% and 50%) of the “Current (Max)” value to be archived.

These settings are located in:

System Setup > General > Archive Sizes

• Behavior:
  • Archiving occurs automatically when thresholds are met.
  • A low-level informational alarm is generated during archiving. This does not require user acknowledgment.
  • Archived alarm files are stored in:

    C:\Sigma\Data\ArchivedAlarms

    Files are named using a sequential reference number.

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2. Timed Alarm Archiving

This method allows scheduled archiving based on user-defined actions:

• Configuration Steps:

  1. Navigate to:

     System Setup > General > Scheduled Actions
     

  2. Create a new Action.

     

  3. Define a Daily or Once Only schedule:

     

• Note: Even with scheduled archiving, the system still adheres to the limits set in Archive Sizes.