After a Boot Application is created on a CODESYS 3.5 WAGO controller it is stored in the flash memory of the device and loaded on boot. This boot project can be backed up and restored directly from the controller over a network connection for the purposes of backing up and deploying a boot application to a controller without the CODESYS IDE.
When a boot application is created on the WAGO controller the files are stored in the /home directory of the Linux file system. The Application.app and Application.crc files in /home/codesys_root/PlcLogic/Application are the primary files created for the boot application and are loaded by the CODESYS runtime on boot. If visualizations are included in the project then files in /home/codesys_root/PlcLogic/visu are also written to.
One other important file is CODESYSControl.cfg in home/codesys_root. The [CmpApp] setting in this text document needs to have Application.1=Application under it.
In the Configuration tab of the Web Based Management of the controller under the Package Server menu is the Firmware Backup. Check the “PLC Runtime Project” box and click “Create Backup”. This will create a firmware_backup_codesys.tgz archive of the /home directory folder on the controller.
The boot application can then be loaded on to a matching controller with the corresponding firmware in the Firmware Restore menu by loading the firmware_backup_codesys.tgz archive into the “PLC Runtime Project” field and clicking “Restore”. The controller will automatically reboot and load the boot application.
These files can also be transferred with an SFTP or SCP client such as WinSCP for Windows. Logging into the controller as root allows access to the file directory.
For minimal file transfer only Application.app and Application.crc need to be transferred.
However to some compile data used by the CODESYS IDE is contained in the /home directory and then entire directory should be copied to allow for immediate login with the CODESYS IDE on the next connection.
To verify the data integrity of the Application.app and Application.crc the MD5 sum command can be used. MD5sum is for verifying data integrity and identifying file corruption. It generates a 32-character hexadecimal string, where any change to the file alters the checksum. This can be used on either side of transfer to verify the file has been copied correctly.
