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eHMI Authentication and Client Tracking

Rob HRob H
edited April 2020 in PLCnext Engineer

I have a couple questions regarding the eHMI. I am using version 2019.9. 

  1. If the Enforcement of user levels is set to PLCnext user management, how can I allow some functionality without a user login? I want some pages to be accessible without logging in then for it to prompt you when you try to access a page that requires it. What seems to happen is if the Enforcement of user levels is not None, I can see the home page without a password but if I go to any other page it prompts for login even though the page and all objects are set to Always available. Is what I'm trying to achieve possible?

  2. I would also like to know the IP address of the connected client(s). I can see the IP address under HMI_STATUS.CLIENTS[].IP_ADDRESS[]. Rather than client #2 showing up under CLIENTS[2], the IP address for CLIENTS[1] flips back and forth between the two clients. My first thought was maybe it's because I'm not logging in under different users, but that did not change the behavior. Is there a reason both clients show under the first client?

Thanks, 

Rob

Comments

  • lbrown@phoenixcontact.comlbrown@phoenixcontact.com

    I will chip in with my two cents and add another request about user management.

    @Rob

    1. The login page can be pre-populated with a default user.  I did this for one of my customers.  When you connect to the eHMI it will still prompt for a login, but the user name and password are already filled out so you can just hit the login button. Not ideal, but works.
    2.  This feature is something special implemented on a customer request.  As you can see, it is not useful to the rest of us. ?

    The other issue I have with user management is being forced to use the WBM to create accounts and set roles/privileges.  This is complicated and presents too many options (opportunities for mistakes) to the administrator.  There were firmware instructions for managing users in earlier versions and this allowed for the creation of a simple eHMI page for managing users.  

  • Frank Phoenix Contact Deutschland SupportFrank Phoenix Contact Deutschland Support

    Hi Rob,

    sorry for the delay, due to Corona situations it takes currently a bit more time...

    Please find below the feedback from our eHMI support team:

    1. There is no solution for 2019.9 or 2020.0. As of 2020.3, if the home page has PLC/global variables and Enforcement of User levels is turned on in webserver settings, then yes then the user has to log in to an account with role Admin or role EHmiViewer set in WBM. If the home page doesn’t have PLC/global variables, then no login should be required.

    2. In order to use the HMI_STATUS variable, each client instance has to be assigned a unique StationID. In the web client, you can do that by adding ?StationID to the end of the URL, so the clients could be for example https://192.168.248.55/ehmi/hmiapp.html?StationID=1 https://192.168.248.55/ehmi/hmiapp.html?StationID=2 https://192.168.248.55/ehmi/hmiapp.html?StationID=3 etc.

    Take care and have a great weekend!

    Frank

  • Rob HRob H

    The login page can be pre-populated with a default user.  I did this for one of my customers.  When you connect to the eHMI it will still prompt for a login, but the user name and password are already filled out so you can just hit the login button. Not ideal, but works.

    I liked this as an easy way to have a default user and/or password. 

    There is no solution for 2019.9 or 2020.0. As of 2020.3, if the home page has PLC/global variables and Enforcement of User levels is turned on in webserver settings, then yes then the user has to log in to an account with role Admin or role EHmiViewer set in WBM. If the home page doesn’t have PLC/global variables, then no login should be required.

    Thank you for this explanation, I was going insane trying to figure out the reason behind it. 

    In order to use the HMI_STATUS variable, each client instance has to be assigned a unique StationID. In the web client, you can do that by adding ?StationID to the end of the URL, so the clients could be for example https://192.168.248.55/ehmi/hmiapp.html?StationID=1https://192.168.248.55/ehmi/hmiapp.html?StationID=2https://192.168.248.55/ehmi/hmiapp.html?StationID=3 etc.

    Good to know. That should work quite well because I can set certain roles based on the client ID and/or IP address.

    Thank you, 

    Rob

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