Opening the MERLIC RTE Setup
The MERLIC RTE Setup is a stand-alone application that can be opened in various ways: via the MERLIC Creator, the Windows start menu, and the command line.
It can be connected to your local system or to a remote system. If you open the MERLIC RTE Setup via the MERLIC Creator, it is automatically connected to your local system. If you open it via the Windows start menu or the command line, you can usually select between local and remote system in the first step. However, no matter to which system the MERLIC RTE Setup is currently connected, you can always change to a different system at any time. All configuration changes in the MERLIC RTE Setup will be applied on the respective components of the currently connected system.
Only one instance of the MERLIC RTE Setup can be connected to a system at the same time, regardless of where that instance is running. For example, if the MERLIC RTE Setup is already running in the background of your local system and you try to open another MERLIC RTE Setup on your system, an error occurs that the local system is already being configured. In this case, you have to switch to the first instance of the MERLIC RTE Setup that is already connected to the local system in order to access the configuration. However, it is possible to connect one instance of the MERLIC RTE Setup to your local system and another instance of the MERLIC RTE Setup to a remote system at the same time.
The following sections give more information about the different ways to open the MERLIC RTE Setup, how to select the desired system, and which configuration options are available for the local system and for remote systems.
Opening the MERLIC RTE Setup via the MERLIC Creator
There are various options to open the MERLIC RTE Setup from the MERLIC Creator:
- Click on the "
Runtime Environment Setup" button in the menu bar. - In the "Window" menu, select " Open Runtime Environment Setup...".
- Press the F8 key.
If you open the MERLIC RTE Setup directly from the MERLIC Creator, a connection to your local system will be established. However, you can change to a remote system. For more information, see the section Connecting a Remote System.
Opening the MERLIC RTE Setup via the Windows Start Menu
- Open the Windows start menu.
- Click on the start menu entry "MVTec MERLIC 5.6 > MERLIC 5.6 RTE Setup".
- Select the system you want to connect to. If you want to change your local configuration, select the local system. If you want to change the configuration on a remote system, select or define the desired system in the respective menu. For more information, see the section Selecting the System.
Opening the MERLIC RTE Setup via the Command Line
- Open a command prompt and change to the "bin\x64-win64" directory within the MERLIC installation path, for example, "%PROGRAMFILES%\MVTec\MERLIC-5.6\bin\x64-win64".
- Open the MERLIC RTE Setup with the following command:Copy
merlic_rte_setup.exe - Select the system you want to connect to. If you want to change your local configuration, select the local system. If you want to change the configuration on a remote system, select or define the desired system in the respective menu. For more information, see the section Selecting the System.
List of available command line options for "merlic_rte_setup.exe"
|
Command line option |
Description |
|---|---|
|
-h, --help |
Get help for the available command line options. |
|
--ini |
Set the path and file name of the .ini file that is used for the configuration of the MERLIC settings. |
|
-V, -- version |
Display the MERLIC version. |
|
--host |
Specify the hostname or IP address of the system to which the MERLIC RTE Setup shall be connected. For the local system you can use "localhost". |
|
--tab |
Specify which tab is pre-selected when starting the MERLIC RTE Setup: (image_sources|communication|recipes|io) |
Opening the MERLIC RTE Setup with a Specific .ini File
By default, the MERLIC RTE Setup is opened with the settings defined in the default "MERLIC5.ini" file. If you want to use the MERLIC RTE Setup with the settings defined in a different .ini file, you have to open the MERLIC RTE Setup via the command line and use the command line option "--ini". You have to specify the path and the file name of the .ini file to be used.
Example
merlic_rte_setup.exe --ini C:\Users\Public\Documents\MVTec\MERLIC\merlic_settings.iniWhen the MERLIC RTE Setup has opened, the "Select system" dialog is shown and you can connect to the desired system.
Selecting the System
The MERLIC RTE Setup can be used for the configuration on the local system and on remote systems.
If you open the MERLIC RTE Setup via the MERLIC Creator, it is automatically connected to your local system. This means that the configuration settings for devices and components that are available on your local system will be activated and shown. If the MERLIC RTE Setup is opened independently from the MERLIC Creator, you can choose between your local system and a remote system after the startup.
However, no matter to which system the MERLIC RTE Setup is currently connected, you can always change to a different system at any time.
Local System vs. Remote System
On the local system, all configuration options of the MERLIC RTE Setup can be used. You can configure image sources for the image acquisition, manage recipe files, and configure communication devices and Communicator plug-ins that are available on your local system.
On remote systems, the configuration of image sources and Communicator plug-ins is available but the configuration of the MERLIC recipes and devices for which MERLIC provides built-in plug-ins, for example, digital I/O devices, is not possible.
The following table gives an overview which components can be available for the configuration on a local and on a remote system:
|
Configuration Tab |
Local System |
Remote System |
|---|---|---|
|
Image Sources |
✔ |
✔ |
|
Communication |
✔ |
✔ |
|
Recipes |
✔ |
✘ |
|
I/O |
✔ |
✘ |
The prerequisite for an activated "Communication" tab on both types of systems is that a configuration service of the MERLIC Communicator could be found on the selected system, that is, a MERLIC Communicator must be running on the system.
The configuration options in the "Image Sources" tab are only available if one of the following conditions is met. Otherwise, no image source can be configured because no service for the image source configuration is available.
- MERLIC Creator is currently running on the system that is connected.
- MERLIC RTE is currently running on the system that is connected and MERLIC is in one of the following states: "Preoperational", "Initialized", or "Error" (in certain circumstances).
For more information, see the topic Configuring Image Sources During Process Integration.
Opening the "Select system" Dialog
The "Select system" dialog allows you to connect the MERLIC RTE Setup to the system on which you want to change the configuration. If you open the MERLIC RTE Setup via the Windows start menu or the command line, the dialog is automatically displayed after the startup.
If you opened the MERLIC RTE Setup via the MERLIC Creator or if you want to change to a different system, you can open the dialog manually by clicking the button on the top right of the MERLIC RTE Setup.
If you changed your mind about switching the system and want to continue on the currently connected system, you can simply close the "Select system" dialog without establishing a new connection.
Connection Status
The icon displayed on the button to open the "Select system" dialog indicates the connection status of the MERLIC RTE Setup.
|
Icon |
Status |
|---|---|
|
|
Connected |
|
|
Connecting |
|
|
Disconnected |
Connecting the Local System
If you want to connect the MERLIC RTE Setup to your local system, open the "Select system" dialog and select "Local system". Confirm with a click on "Connect".
If you opened the MERLIC RTE Setup via the MERLIC Creator, it is automatically connected to the local system.
Connecting a Remote System
If you want to connect the MERLIC RTE Setup to a remote system, you can use the "Select system" dialog or the command line.
If another user is already connected to the specified host or using the MERLIC RTE Setup locally on the specified host, you can still force the connection to the host. Any unsaved configuration changes of the other user will be lost.
Using the "Select system" Dialog
- Open the "Select system" dialog and select "Remote system".
- Select the hostname or IP address of the system to be connected. Open the drop-down menu and check if the desired system is provided in the list. The drop-down menu lists all systems that have been connected in any previous sessions. It also lists systems on the network on which the Communicator or MERLIC RTE is currently running. If the system you want to connect to is not listed, you have to manually enter the hostname or the IP address of the remote system.
- Confirm your selection with a click on "Connect".
Using the Command Line Option
- Open a command prompt and change to the "bin\x64-win64" directory within the MERLIC installation path, for example, "%PROGRAMFILES%\MVTec\MERLIC-5.6\bin\x64-win64".
- Open the MERLIC RTE Setup with the following command and use the command line option "--host" to specify the desired remote system.Copy
merlic_rte_setup.exe --host <HOSTNAME OR IP_ADDRESS>
The MERLIC RTE Setup will automatically try to connect to the specified system after the startup.
If you need to start the MERLIC RTE Setup repeatedly on a specific system and don't want to specify the remote system each time, you can use the command line option and create a shortcut for the command. This way, you can start the MERLIC RTE Setup with a double-click on your shortcut and the setup will automatically try to connect to the desired system.
Reconnecting the System
In some cases, the connection to the selected system or the current service in the MERLIC RTE Setup, for example, the "Communication" tab, might be lost and you have to reconnect to the system or start the required MERLIC application to continue the configuration. Depending on the cause of the disconnection, different actions might be necessary to restore the connection. In the following, we list the most common use cases for the respective tabs in the MERLIC RTE Setup.
Missing Configuration Service for the "Image Sources" Tab
The configuration options in the "Image Sources" tab are only available if either the MERLIC Creator or the process integration mode of MERLIC, that is, MERLIC RTE, is currently running. Otherwise, no image source can be configured because no service for the image source configuration is available. The MERLIC Creator or MERLIC RTE must be running on the system that is connected, for example, for the configuration on your local system, MERLIC Creator or MERLIC RTE must be running on the local system.
If you are connected to your local system and the configuration service for the "Image Sources" tab is lost, you can easily restart the MERLIC Creator or MERLIC RTE in the MERLIC RTE Setup via the respective buttons. If you start the applications outside of the MERLIC RTE Setup, for example, via the Windows start menu, you can also use the button "Retry connection" to reconnect to the respective configuration service. This is also necessary if you are connected to a remote system because you first have to start either MERLIC Creator or MERLIC RTE on the remote system before reconnecting the configuration service using the "Retry connection" button. However, all unsaved changes at the image source configurations will be lost when the configuration service is lost.
Missing Configuration Service for the "Communication" Tab
The configuration options in the "Communication" tab are only available if the MERLIC Communicator is currently running on the respective system. If you want to configure Communicator plug-ins that are available on your local system, you have to ensure that the MERLIC Communicator is running on your local system. For the configuration of Communicator plug-ins on remote systems, the MERLIC Communicator must be running on the selected remote system. Otherwise, no configuration service for Communicator plug-ins is available and the configuration options in the "Communication" tab cannot be accessed.
If you are connected to your local system and the configuration service for the "Communication" tab is lost, you can easily restart the MERLIC Communicator in the MERLIC RTE Setup via the "Start MERLIC Communicator" button. If you start the MERLIC Communicator outside of the MERLIC RTE Setup, for example, via the Windows start menu, you can also use the button "Retry connection" to reconnect to the respective configuration service. This is also necessary if you are connected to a remote system because you first have to start the MERLIC Communicator on the remote system before reconnecting the configuration service using the "Retry connection" button. However, all unsaved changes at the configuration of the plug-ins will be lost when the configuration service is lost.
The "Recipes" and "I/O" Tabs Are Not Available
The configuration options in the "Recipes" and the "I/O" tab of the MERLIC RTE Setup might not be available in some cases as described in the following.
MERLIC RTE is Running
If you want to manage your recipe files in the "Recipes" tab or if you want to configure communication devices for which MERLIC provides built-in plug-ins, for example, Hilscher card, you have to ensure that the process integration mode of MERLIC, that is, MERLIC RTE, is currently not running. Otherwise, the recipes and the configuration options cannot be accessed. This ensures that the configuration for MERLIC RTE is not changed during the processing.
Connection to a Remote System
If you are connected to a remote system with the MERLIC RTE Setup, the "Recipes" and "I/O" tab will not be available. The configuration options of these tabs are only available for recipes and communication devices on the local system. In contrast to Communicator plug-ins which can be configured remotely, the communication devices for which MERLIC provides built-in plug-ins can only be configured on the local system.
If you change to one of these tabs while you are connected to a remote system, the configuration options will not be displayed. However, the MERLIC RTE Setup gives you the possibility to quickly change to the local system via the button "
Select local system".
Expired Session
If another user forces a connection to the system to which you are currently connected, your session will be expired and the configuration cannot be continued. All unsaved changes will be lost. In this case, the "Select system" dialog is displayed with the respective message. You have the possibility to force the connection to the respective system by checking the "Force connection" check box and clicking on "Connect". Then the user who previously held the connection will receive the same message that the user's session expired.
