Network Tags are used to solve some of the complexity and to aid in staging the data. The complex task of network configuration is greatly simplified through the use of Network Tags (NTs).
NTs are intermediate names for groups of points that are used in configuration. NTs allow automatic reconfiguration for each point transferred over the network. A Network Tag can be used to refer to
- A single point, or
- An array of points of the same type in a single machine
Better Addressing Scheme
A single NT in a configuration file, therefore, could denote the configuration of EUR1 or the configuration of EUR1 to EUR1000. Note that the maximum number of NTs that any given node can handle is 1024. A single NT can address up to 4096 table locations. LSO allows tags to be any size but only the first 27 characters are considered significant for internal tracking.
Using Network Tags rather than array-based addresses simplifies the system by allowing a given set of values to keep the same name throughout the system. Automatic addressing is built into the system so that moving a console configuration from one node to another is easy and clean.
Easy Re-Fonfiguration
Because of Network Tags, the system can re-configure itself automatically. If you wish to switch the node on the network that is running your driver and producing the data for all the nodes on the ring, all you need to do is switch the configuration files between nodes, and make a few changes to the header section.
You do not have to re-map the points into your local ONSPEC tables over again. Once this is done, the rest of the configuration can be modified without changing anything in the other workstation configurations that are reading the data. LSO will automatically route data to the workstations that want it, without having to specify anything in the configuration of the workstation that is producing the data.
Controlling Outputs
Network Tags also help in the area of controlling outputs and allowing for demand-based transmissions. To set up an input or output connection across the network, you associate a list of names with the condition under which the data is to be demanded, rather than specifying a long list of table locations. This method is easily read and less time-consuming.