Distribution / exchange of user databases

Allow operating system access for authorized users only The content of the user database is protected against manipulation with a signature. The names of groups, object protection levels and users are not encrypted and could be read. Access to the IPC should be restricted to authorized users via the operating system.

No changes in settings of a user database when a project is open No project may be open when changing the settings of a user database.

Note the following when working with user DBs:

• In the current TwinCAT 3 version the user DB must always be stored in directory c:\TwinCAT\3.1\CustomConfig\UserDBs.
• A user DB can be freely copied and pasted at the file level.
• When a user DB is created a one-to-one user DB key is generated, which identifies this database unambiguously.
• When a project is linked to a user DB, it can only be opened with a user DB with the same name and the same user DB key.
• Modifications of the content of a user DB do not affect the user DB key (this key is only generated once at the time when the user DB is created). In principle, you can therefore work with several different versions of a user DB. Example: The "in-house" version of a user DB contains other user accounts than the version supplied to the end customer on the control computer. The end customer can only see a specified selection of the available user accounts. You can severely restrict the available access options on the delivered machine, compared with the “in-house” development environment.
• Once a user DB has been created, the OEM certificate is no longer required for working with the user DB.
• Changes to the user DB must be signed by a (signing) administrator of the user DB. After changes to the user DB the corresponding query comes automatically when exiting the software protection configurator.