Technical data

Configuring Messages
16.1 The Message Concept
Programming with STEP 7
342 Manual, 05/2010, A5E02789666-01
The system attributes are assigned automatically if the message blocks that you use in your
program are SFBs or FBs with corresponding system attributes and are called as multiple
instances.
16.1.7 Message Type and Messages
Message configuration allows you to use different procedures to create a message type or a
message. This depends on the message-type block via which you gain access to message
configuration.
The message-type block can be either a function block (FB) or an instance data block.
• With an FB you can create a message type to use as a type for creating messages. All entries
you make for the message type are entered in the messages automatically. If you assign an
instance data block to the function block, messages for the instance data block are generated
automatically in accordance with the message type and assigned message numbers.
• For an instance data block, you can modify messages generated based on this message type
for a specific instance.
• The visible difference here is that message numbers are assigned for messages but not for
message types.
Locking Data for a Message Type
Message configuration allows you to enter texts and attributes for event-dependent messages. You
can also specify, for example, how you want to display the messages on specific display devices.
To make it easier to generate messages, you can work with message types.
• When you enter data (attributes and texts) for the message type, you can specify whether they
are to be locked or not. With locked attributes a key symbol is added next to the input box or a
checkmark is placed in the "Locked" column. Locked texts show a checkmark in the "Locked"
column.
• With the message type "locked data" you cannot make changes in the instance-specific
messages. The data are only displayed.
• If you do need to make changes, you must go back to the message type, remove the lock, and
make the changes there. The changes do not apply for instances that were generated before
the change.