By default, alarms are enabled for all database items, but in certain circumstances, you may wish to disable alarms for one or more items. For example, you may want to disable the alarms for a device that is known to be faulty or is due to be decommissioned (as the alarms may be distracting). To do this, you need to use the Disable Alarms action.
The Disable Alarms action is only available if:
- Alarms and Events are enabled on your system (via the Alarms and Events Enabled setting on the Alarms section of the Server Configuration Tool).
- The Disable Alarms setting is configured to be Infinite (No Timeout), Fixed Duration, or Variable Duration. The Disable Alarms setting is located on the Alarms section of the Server Configuration Tool.
- Your user account has the Disable Alarms permission for the selected item or Group.
When the Disable Alarms action is used, alarms are disabled (withheld) for an item. This means that:
- The alarm actions for the item, such as Acknowledge, are unavailable
- Alarms for the item are no longer shown on the various Alarms displays.
- Geo SCADA Expert continues to detect alarm conditions for the item. When the item’s alarms are enabled again, the Alarms displays will show information about the item’s alarms. This will include any alarms that were detected while the item had its alarms disabled.
- Any alarm redirections for the item are canceled while the item’s alarms are disabled. When the item’s alarms are enabled again, any redirections for alarms that occurred during the disabled alarm period are not applied.
All items that can have alarms, including Groups, have the Disable Alarms action. It can be selected from the item’s context-sensitive menu or can be triggered automatically by Logic, a Schedule or a Method Call. The Disable Alarms permission is required if you want to access the Disable Alarms action (see Allocating Security Permissions in the Geo SCADA Expert Guide to Security).
You can use the Disable Alarms action in three different ways, each of which are specified using the Server Configuration Tool (see Working with the Geo SCADA Expert Server Configuration Tool in the Geo SCADA Expert Guide to Server Administration). In the following sections, we explain how the Disable Alarms action works when the Infinite (No Timeout), Fixed Duration, and Variable Duration server settings are in place. For more information, see the topics that are listed in the gray footer section at the bottom of this topic. Select the relevant entry to display the topic that you require.
NOTE: In addition to the pick actions mentioned here, Geo SCADA Expert provides various methods that enable activities to be performed on alarms programmatically. This includes methods that are designed to trigger activities at specific times, such as the AcceptAtTime method that can be used to specify the time at which Geo SCADA Expert is to acknowledge an alarm and to optionally log a comment for that acknowledgment. For more information on such methods, see the Database Schema (specifically the Methods section in the CAlarm class).
Further Information
Logic Programs: see the Geo SCADA Expert Guide to Logic.
Schedules: see Using Schedules to Automate Regular Functions in the Geo SCADA Expert Guide to Core Configuration.
Alarms Settings at the Server: see Define the Disable Alarms Settings in the Geo SCADA Expert Guide to Server Administration.
Use Visible Time As Alarm Active Time: see Define whether the Visible Time is used as the Active Alarm Time in the Geo SCADA Expert Guide to Server Administration.