Pulse 3.

51
SCADA/HMI
Installation Guide

December 2015

Copyright
The information in this document is subject to change without prior notice and does not
represent a commitment on the part of AFCON Control and Automation Ltd., AFCON
Software and Electronics Division.
No part of this document may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without
written permission from AFCON Control and Automation Ltd., AFCON Software and
Electronics Division.
The software described in this document is furnished under a license agreement or a nondisclosure agreement.
The software may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms of the agreement.
It is against the law to copy this software on any other medium for any purpose other than
the purchaser's personal use.
Copyright 2015 AFCON Control and Automation Ltd., AFCON Software and Electronics
Division.
All rights reserved.

Pulse logos are registered trademarks of AFCON Control and Automation Ltd., AFCON
Software and Electronics Division.
Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other
countries.

System Requirements
Hardware Requirements
Pulse Standalone Configuration

3 GHz Core i7 or faster

Minimum 8 GB RAM (16 GB recommended)

NOTE

The RAM size has to be increased as the database size increases, to ensure optimal
performance.
320 GB of free hard disk space

NOTE The size of the free hard disk space has to be increased as the size of the
database increases, ensure optimal performance.

Super VGA 3D display card with a minimum of 512 MB DDR3 memory

Keyboard and mouse or compatible pointing device

Network adaptor 100/1000 MB

USB

SEK (supplied with Pulse package); without the SEK, Pulse runs in Demo mode.

Pulse Server

2.4 GHz Xeon Quad Core processor 2.4 or faster

Minimum 16 GB RAM (32 GB recommended)

NOTE

NOTE

The RAM size has to be increased as the database size increases, to ensure optimal
performance.
Minimum 150 GB free SAS hard disk space

The size of the free SAS hard disk space has to be increased as the size of
the database increases, ensure optimal performance.

Keyboard and mouse or compatible pointing device

Network adaptor 100/1000 MB

USB (for Virtual Machine: USB over TCP adaptor)

SEK (supplied with Pulse package); without the SEK, Pulse runs in Demo mode.

Pulse 3.51 Installation Guide

Pulse Client

3 GHz i5 or faster (i7 recommended)

Minimum 3 GB RAM (4 GB RAM recommended)

60 GB free hard disk space

Super VGA 3D display card with a minimum of 512 MB DDR3 memory

Keyboard and mouse or compatible pointing device

Network adaptor 100/1000 MB

Pulse Client Running from a USB Flash Drive

1 GB free disk space

USB2 or faster port

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Software Requirements
The table below details the operating systems that you can use to run both Pulse server
and client components.
Pulse Components
Operating Systems

Pulse
Server

Pulse
Client

Standalone

Windows 7 Home

No

Yes

No

Windows 7 Professional 32-Bit

No

Yes

Yes*

Windows 7 Professional 64-Bit

No

Yes

Yes

Windows 7 Enterprise 32-Bit

No

Yes

Yes*

Windows 7 Enterprise 64-Bit

No

Yes

Yes

Windows 7 Ultimate 32-Bit

No

Yes

Yes*

Windows 7 Ultimate 64-Bit

No

Yes

Yes

Windows 8.1 32-Bit

No

Yes

No

Windows 8.1 64-Bit

No

Yes

No

Windows 8.1 Professional 32-Bit

No

Yes

Yes*

Windows 8.1 Professional 64-Bit

No

Yes

Yes

Windows Server 2012 Standard

Yes

Yes

Yes

Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard

Yes

Yes

Yes

Windows Server 2008 Standard 64-Bit

Yes

Yes

Yes

Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard

Yes

Yes

Yes

Windows 10 Professional

No

Yes

No

* - Installing Pulse Server/Standalone successfully on a 32-Bit operating

system depends on the application size.
NOTE

Windows 2003 and Windows XP are not supported in Pulse 3.

NOTE

Microsoft SQL Server Native Client 12.0, which is installed with Supreme Report is
not compatible with Windows 2008 SP1. For compatibility, use Windows Server
2008 SP2 or a higher version.

Pulse 3.51 Installation Guide

Additional Software Requirements

The following list describes other third-party software requirements to run the Pulse
Server:

Microsoft .NET Framework

Internet Information Service (IIS) installed on server computer.
Microsoft Message Queuing Service (MSMQ) installed on server computer.
NOTE

For IIS and MSMQ installation instructions, see Installing IIS and MSMQ Services
on page 16.

NOTE

When installing Pulse 3.5 on Microsoft Windows 8 or Microsoft Windows 2012

Server, it is strongly recommended to follow the .NET, IIS and MSMQ
instructions in this document, see Installing IIS and MSMQ Services on page 16.

Internet Explorer 7 or higher

User Accounts Control (UAC) disabled
For more information, refer to the relevant installation procedures.

The following software is installed by the Pulse Setup:

Aladdin HASP Device Driver 6.60

Microsoft Visual C++ 2010 SP1 Redistributable Package
Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 SP1
Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0
OPC Core Components 3.0
Windows Installer 4.5
NOTE

If you are using ESET NOD 32 Antivirus, use version 3 or higher.

Mandatory Services
The following services must be in the Started state on the Pulse Servers host computer
while the Pulse Server is running. Before starting up Pulse, ensure that the services are
started.

World Wide Web Publishing Service (IIS)

Net. TCP Port Sharing Service (SMSSVCHost)
Microsoft SQL Server services have to be running if the Microsoft SQL database is used
in a Pulse project.

Pulse 3.51 Installation Guide

Installing Pulse
NOTE

Before installing the Pulse Server, verify that your computer and network meets
the requirements described in the System Requirements chapter.

Pulse 3.5 supports upgrade and full installation. Pulse 3.5 does not support upgrade
installation from Pulse 1.52 or lower versions only.
If a previous version is already installed, do the following:
1

Back up all projects (using Backup and Restore Wizard)

Uninstall any previous version of Pulse.

Install Pulse 3.5.

Restore the backed-up projects.

==================================================
Follow these steps to install the Pulse server.
1

Close all open programs.

Insert the AFCON DVD to the DVD drive. The installation process starts automatically
and you can proceed to the next step. If the installation does not automatically start,
go to your DVD drive and double-click the Setup.exe file.
Alternatively, if youre installing Pulse from a network location, select Run from the
Start menu and then browse to locate and run the Setup.exe file.
The Pulse - InstallShield Wizard window is displayed.

3 Select the language for installation from one of the following drop-down list
options:

English (United States)

German

Spanish

4 Click OK.

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NOTE

The Pulse - InstallShield Wizard window may be displayed if one or more

software pre-requisites are not installed. See Additional Software Requirements to
install the required software components before installing Pulse.

The Welcome to the InstallShield Wizard for Pulse window is displayed.

Click Next; the License Agreement window is displayed.

Read the license and click on the I accept the terms in the license agreement
option then click Next.
The Destination Folder window is displayed.

Pulse 3.51 Installation Guide

By default, Pulse is installed in the C:\AFCON\Pulse\ folder. Click Change to change

the path of the destination folder, otherwise click Next.
The Custom Setup window is displayed.

Select the program features you prefer to install. To install any of the additional
features, click on the feature name to select and install it.
The installation script only installs two features, Program Files and Demo Project.
Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Express, Supreme Report and Samples components are not
installed by default.

NOTE
9

If the Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Express feature is not installed, the Pulse Server
will utilize the MDB database by default.

Click Next.

Pulse 3.51 Installation Guide

The Pulse Server Settings window is displayed.

In the Pulse Server Settings window, the servers external (public) and internal
(private) IP addresses, TCP port and the virtual directory name are defined (the virtual
directory holds the Pulse clients files). Use the default settings or define other
addresses or names.

10 Click Next to continue.

The Ready to Install the Program window is displayed and the wizard is ready to
begin installation.

11 Click Install to start the installation process.

The Installing Pulse window is displayed. The installation progress is shown in the
Status progress bar.

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When the InstallShield Wizard Completed window is displayed, the installation

process is complete.

12 Click Finish and restart the computer.

NOTE

If upgrading from Pulse 1.10

If SQL Server 2005 Express was previously used as your project database, the
Setup program will upgrade it to Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Express. The
installation may pause and display the following message:
Microsoft SQL Server 2008 SP1 Installation Failure. To solve this
problem, complete the current Pulse installation and restart your
computer. Run the Pulse installation again and select the Repair option.
Follow the instructions to complete the installation successfully.

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Installing Communication Drivers

In Pulse 3.5, the Pulse Driver Setup Wizard simplifies the process of installing drivers.
Drivers can be installed either from your AFCON Pulse DVD or downloaded from the AFCON
web site (www.afcon-inc.com). Click the Products link, and then click Drivers 32 bit to
locate and download the relevant driver zip file to your computer. Additionally, the Install
Driver option in the Communications Setup dialog box enables assigning an installed
driver to a Pulse project. From all of these entry points, the Driver Setup Wizard will
execute the installation.
To install drivers from the AFCON Pulse DVD
1

Before installing a driver, shut down Pulse.

Insert the AFCON DVD into the DVD drive on your computer. Wait for it to open on
your screen.

Select Pulse and then select Communication Drivers to open the Communication
Drivers dialog box.

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Locate and select the required driver. Click the Install button to run its setup.
The Pulse Driver Setup wizard is displayed.

Click Next. Select a project or install the driver into multiple projects using the
standard Windows selection key combinations (<Shift>+click, <Ctrl>+click, <Ctrl>+A
[for all]).

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Click Next. Review the summary information. You may expand the driver table to see
which files the driver setup will install and their destination folder.

Click Install. The Install Progress page shows you the progress and status of the
driver installation. When the Current Task and Setup Status bars display 100%, the
installation is done.
As an option, you can generate, store, and print installation reports:
Report All

Generate a report detailing the installation of the driver files.

Report Errors

Generate a report detailing any errors which may have

occurred during the driver installation.

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Click Next. If successful, the wizard notifies that the driver was successfully installed.
If you want to install another driver, click Install Another Driver to start the process
again. Otherwise, click Finish to close the wizard.
Start Pulse Server

Pulse 3.51 Installation Guide

The Pulse Server will start up after you click Finish. After the
Server completes startup, the Driver Setup wizard closes.

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Installing IIS and MSMQ Services

The Internet Information Service (IIS) is a Web-based platform that is required to
host the Pulse Server.
The Microsoft Message Queuing (MSMQ) service is required for Pulse to route
alarms and messages from the Pulse kernel to their destination users.
NOTE IIS and MSMQ are not included with the Pulse installation DVD, and
therefore, must be installed separately.
NOTE You must be a member of the Administrators group on the local computer
to install IIS and MSMQ.
Installing IIS and MSMQ on Windows 7
Installing .NET Framework, IIS and MSMQ on Windows 8
Installing IIS and MSMQ on the Windows Server 2008
Installing .NET Framework, IIS and MSMQ on Windows Server 2012

Installing IIS and MSMQ on Windows 7

Installing IIS on Windows 7
1 From the Windows 7 interface, click Start and then click Control Panel.
2 In the Control Panel, click Programs and then click Turn Windows features
on or off.
3 In the Windows Features dialog box, select all the features and then click
OK.

Installing MSMQ on Windows 7

1 Open the Control Panel.
2 Click Programs, and then under Programs and Features, click Turn
Windows features on or off.
3 Expand Microsoft Message Queue (MSMQ) Server, expand Microsoft
Message Queue (MSMQ) Server Core, and then select all the check boxes
for the Message Queuing features.
4 Click OK. If you are prompted to restart the computer, click OK to complete
the installation.

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Installing .NET Framework, IIS and MSMQ on

Windows 8
Installing .NET Framework on Windows 8
To enable the .NET Framework 3.5 feature.:
1

Go to the Control Panel and then click Programs.

Under Programs and Features, click Turn Windows features on or off.

The Windows Features dialog box opens.

If your computer does not have an internet connection then do the following:

Insert the Windows 8 DVD or mount the ISO image.

Open cmd.exe with Administrative privileges.

Run the following command (E: the Windows installation media drive letter):
Dism.exe/online/enable-feature/featurenameNetFX3/All/Source:E:\sources\sxs/
LimitAccess.

Click OK.

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Installing IIS and MSMQ Server on Windows 8

If the following message is displayed during the Pulse installation then do the following
steps below:

Enable the Internet Information Services (IIS) Windows feature.

Enable the Internet Information Services (IIS) > Web Management Tools >
IIS 6 Management Compatibility > IIS Metabase and IIS 6 configuration
compatibility.

Enable the Internet Information Services (IIS) World Wide Web Services >
Application Development Features > ASP.NET.

Check the checkboxes as shown below.

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Continue checking the checkboxes as shown below.

Click OK.

The Windows Features window is displayed informing you that Windows completed the
requested changes.

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Installing IIS and MSMQ on the Windows Server

2008
Installing IIS on the Windows Server 2008
1 Open the Control Panel, click System and Maintenance, and then click
Administrative Tools.
2 In the right pane, double-click Server Manager. The Windows Features dialog
box opens.
3 In the left pane of Server Manager, select the node that represents the server
that you are currently working on.
4 In the right pane, expand the Roles Summary section and then click Add
Roles. The Add Roles Wizard opens.
5 Click Next. The wizard moves to the Select Server Roles step.
6 Select the Web Server (IIS) check box and then click Next.
7 The next wizard step that appears is information that guides you in the
installation. Click Next.
8 The wizard moves to the Role Services step. A list of available role services
appears. If you click the name of a role, a short description of the role
appears.
Select all of the role services and their options and click Next and verify the role
service selections.
9 Click Install to start the IIS and ASP.NET installation process.
10 When the installation is complete, click Close.
11 Open the Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager. From the Start menu,
click All Programs, click Accessories, and then click Run. In the Open box,
type inetmgr and then click OK.
12 In the left pane, expand the Local Computer tree to the Web Service
Extensions folder.
13 Set the status of ASP.NET v2.0xxxx to Allowed.

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Installing MSMQ on Windows Server 2008

1

Click Start, point to Programs, point to Administrative Tools, and then click
Server Manager to display the Server Manager.

Click Add Features to start the Add Features Wizard.

Expand MSMQ, expand MSMQ Services, and then select all the check boxes for the
Message Queuing features.

Click Next, and then click Install. If you are prompted to restart the computer, click
OK to complete the installation.

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Installing .NET Framework, IIS and MSMQ on

Windows Server 2012
Installing .NET Framework on Windows Server 2012
If the following message is displayed during the Pulse 3.5 installation the follow the steps
below.

Go to the Control Panel and then click Programs.

Under Programs and Features, click Turn Windows features on or off.

Enable the .NET Framework 3.5 feature in the Control Panel > Programs > Turn
Windows features on or off.
If your computer does not have an internet connection then do the following:

Insert the Windows 8 DVD or mount the ISO image.

Open cmd.exe with Administrative privileges.

Run the following command (E: the Windows installation media drive letter):
Dism.exe/online/enable-feature/featurenameNetFX3/All/Source:E:\sources\sxs/
LimitAccess.

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Installing IIS and MSMQ on Windows Server 2012

If the following message is displayed during the Pulse 3.5 installation the follow the steps
below.

Enable the Roles Summary > Add Roles > Web Server (IIS) feature and click
Next.

Enable the Application Development feature.

Enable the Management Tools > IIS 6 Management Compatibility in the Control
Panel > Programs and Features > Turn Windows features on or off.

For the Microsoft Message Queuing (MSMQ), enable Features Summary > Add
Features > Message Queuing in the Control Panel > Programs and Features >
Turn Windows on or off.

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In the Add Roles and Features Wizard window, select the Role-based featurebased installation option.

Click Next.

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In the Add features that are required for Web Server (IIS) prompt, click to
activate the Include Management tools (if applicable) option and click the Add
Features button.

In the following window, click Add Features to continue.

Check to select the checkboxes as shown below and click Add Features to continue.

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10 Check to select the checkboxes as shown below and click Next to continue.

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11 Check to select the checkboxes as shown below and click Next to continue.

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12 Click Install to complete the IIS and MSMQ components installation.

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