Red Hat Linux version of Siemens Softnet

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Thread Starter

David Walker

Siemens sells a program called Softnet for Unix that will translate profibus and you install on a Unix Server.

I believe they have a RedHat "Linux" Version that is not available in the US as of yet.

Does anyone out there know where I can get a Red Hat "Linux" version of Siemens Softnet program available for use in the US?
 
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Donald Pittendrigh

Hi All

I think you are mistaken :

6GK17041CC020EA0 is softnet S7 for Unix @ +/- $4900
6GK17041CC203AA0 is softnet S7 for SCO same price
6GK17041CF203AA0 is softnet S7 for Unix SPARC +/- $7300

I do however recall seeing something about Softnet for Linux somewhere but sincerely doubt there was anything specifically for Red Hat. The
contact person at the source in Siemens A&D sales for softnet for Unix products is :

[email protected]

I suggest you contact him and get the bottom line, I would appreciate a courtesy email as to what you discover about this, which you could send
to:[email protected] unless you feel it is of general interest to the automation list.

Regards
Donald Pittendrigh
 
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Matt Rollins

I don't know if it is available for purchase, but aa linux version does exist. PCS/OSx systems transitioned from 1413 H1 cards to 3-Com cards on SCO unix. Then they ported to linux. Softnet is used on these linux HMI's. I am not sure of the release, but the "flavor" linux is Red Hat. I would imagine that the driver is very close, if not the same as the SCO unix one.
 
Are you sure you need Softnet?

Softnet was implemented to eliminate the special ISA and PCI cards needed to talk to Siemens equipment, such as the 1413 Ethernet card.

If you simply want to talk to some Profibus devices, from Linux, that is a different question.
 
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Donald Pittendrigh

Quite to the contrary, Softnet includes more products for proprietry Siemens interfaces than for non-Siemens ones.

Regards
Donald P
 
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Michael Griffin

My copy of the Siemens IK PI 2002/2003 Industrial Communications and Field Devices catalogue lists several Unix and Linux, products, but the Softnet (at least the one listed in this book) is for Industrial Ethernet. I thought I saw an equivalent version for Profibus a short while ago, but I couldn't find it today (it may have been in another catalogue or brochure). I will have another look on Monday if I can remember this.

The following link should take you to a web page in german for the Profibus CP5613/14 card Linux drivers (or whatever they call that for Linux). I haven't seen an equivalent page for english. I however tend to get lost in Siemens' web site so perhaps there is one.

http://www.is.siemens.de/cgi-bin/db4web_c.exe/itps/Loesungen/Ind_Loesung.mth?lsg=492&PL=1

If you click on "Produktblatt", you will get a PDF brochure (in german again) for the Linux stuff for this Profibus card. The Profibus version seems to support DP, S7, and FDL.

The Ethernet version supports SCO Unix, HP-UX, Sparc Solaris, x86 Solaris, and Suse Linux. The catalogue says that for Redhat Linux and Industrial Linux to ask their contact person. The Profibus version supports Suse Linux, Red Hat Linux, and Industrial Linux. I suppose you can make them work with most distributions of x86 Linux if you know what you are doing (it's all the same software - just configured and packaged different ways).

The contact listed in both my catalogue and on the Profibus (german language) PDF is:

IT4 Industry Team Werner-von-Siemens-Str. 60 D-91052 Erlangen, Germany
Tel: +49 91 31 74 61 11
Fax: +49 91 31 74 47 57
E-mail: [email protected]


Mr. Pittendrigh has also listed a contact (quoted below again) and some useful part numbers.

I assume that the "Industrial Linux" referred to in the above lists is the "Siemens Industrial Linux Distribution". I don't know much about this product as the only information I have on it so far is in German, which I don't read well enough to want to comment on what little I have seen.

http://www.is.siemens.de/itps/industriallinux/leistung2_fs.htm

Anyone who is interested can follow the above link to see for themselves - and perhaps tell us what they think. There are sections on "Linux distribution", "Linux training", and "Linux support". The pictures seem to show only one CD, so I suppose Siemens doesn't give you all the neat stuff that comes with Mandrake. But then I suppose "Industrial Linux" isn't supposed to be for amusement anyway.

On April 2, 2003 22:27, Donald Pittendrigh wrote: <clip>
> 6GK17041CC020EA0 is softnet S7 for Unix @ +/- $4900
> 6GK17041CC203AA0 is softnet S7 for SCO same price
> 6GK17041CF203AA0 is softnet S7 for Unix SPARC +/- $7300
<clip>
> The
> contact person at the source in Siemens A&D sales for softnet for Unix
> products is :
>
> [email protected]
<clip>

--

************************
Michael Griffin
London, Ont. Canada
************************
 
If you need a driver for S5 PLCs on Industrial Ethernet (or Sinec H1), look at http://www.eniker.com.

They have developed a Linux driver that works with Red Hat, Suse, Slackware... but only for the Series 5 for the moment.
 
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