---
title: "DCS reference and troubleshooting"
---

# DCS reference and troubleshooting

Settings, commands, views, file formats and vendor tools of the DCS module with their verification state, and fixes for common problems.

## Settings

Under **Neural Inverse DCS** in Settings.

| Setting | Type, default | Scope | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| `neuralInverse.dcs.enabled` | boolean, `false` | Window | Turns the DCS environment on (Emerson DeltaV first). Set it with **Neural Inverse: Enable DCS Environment** |
| `neuralInverse.dcs.paths.deltav` | string, empty | Machine | Where DeltaV is: the DeltaV folder, its `bin` folder, or `DBImpExpClient.exe`. Empty looks for `DeltaV\bin` at the root of the system drive, then of C:, D: and E:. Must be a full path |
| `neuralInverse.dcs.deltav.database` | string, empty | Machine | The DeltaV database this station works on, offered first by **Export DeltaV Database (FHX)** |
| `neuralInverse.dcs.naming.moduleTag` | string, empty | Resource | The site's rule for module tags, a regular expression a whole tag must match. Empty: no rule |
| `neuralInverse.dcs.naming.moduleClass` | string, empty | Resource | The site's rule for module class names, a regular expression a whole name must match. Empty: no rule |

## Commands

| Command | What it does |
|---|---|
| Neural Inverse: Enable DCS Environment | Turns the environment on for the workspace |
| Disable DCS Environment | Turns it off |
| Compare DeltaV Exports | Semantic compare of two exports in a tab ([Compare two exports](https://neuralinverse.com/docs/modules/dcs/compare/)) |
| Open Alarms | Alarms table of the export in the active editor |
| Edit Instances of a Module Class | Table of a class's instances and their overrides |
| Open Sequence (SFC) | Read-only view of one of the export's charts |
| Open Function Block Diagram | Read-only view of one of the export's diagrams |
| Show Impact of a Library Item | What a change to a class, composite or other library item reaches |
| Write DeltaV Configuration Report | Writes `<export>.report.md` next to the export |
| Export DeltaV Database (FHX) | Runs DeltaV's database export on a Windows station |
| Refresh DeltaV Plant | Reads every export of the workspace again |

Commands are under **Neural Inverse DCS** in the Command Palette.

## Views and tabs

| Where | What |
|---|---|
| Explorer: DeltaV Plant | Exports, areas, modules, classes and instances; Batch equipment; Controllers and I/O |
| Editor tabs | DeltaV Alarms, DeltaV Instances, DeltaV Sequence, DeltaV Function Block Diagram, DeltaV Impact, the export compare |
| Problems | Findings with source "our check" |
| Output, channel DCS | Edits, save guard decisions, DeltaV export runs, invalid naming rules |

## Vendors and tools

| Vendor or tool | How it is used | State |
|---|---|---|
| Emerson DeltaV FHX exports | Read, indexed, checked, compared, edited (values only) | Modelled; read on one real DeltaV 14.5.1 export |
| DeltaV database export, `DBImpExpClient.exe -e <database> <file>` | Run from **Export DeltaV Database (FHX)** | Kit shipped; not run against DeltaV |
| DeltaV import (DeltaV Explorer) | You run it yourself; see [Save an edited export and import it](https://neuralinverse.com/docs/modules/dcs/save-and-import/#bring-the-change-back-into-deltav) | Not driven by the module |

Other vendors and DeltaV tools are on [What's next](https://neuralinverse.com/docs/modules/dcs/whats-next/).

## File formats

| Format | Read | Written |
|---|---|---|
| DeltaV FHX (`.fhx`), UTF-16 LE or BE or UTF-8, with or without a byte order mark, any case of the extension | Yes: areas, classes, modules, instances, function blocks, parameters, alarms, sequences, function block diagrams, batch equipment, controllers and I/O references | Value edits only, in the file's own encoding and mark |
| FHX statements read but not interpreted | Cards, channels, DSTs, CHARMs; recipes; charts DeltaV wrote inside comments | No |
| Configuration report (`.report.md`) | No | Yes, UTF-8 Markdown |

Measured on the real export (25 MB, 430,087 lines, on a 4-core Linux container): it decodes and writes back byte for byte, parses in about 0.5 s, and all checks together take 1.3 to 1.6 s, in a background worker for large exports.

## Troubleshooting

| Symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| No DeltaV Plant view or DCS commands | Check the workspace is trusted and `neuralInverse.dcs.enabled` is on |
| An export in the view shows an error with a line | The reader stopped there. Check that the file is a complete FHX export; send the line and the DeltaV version if DeltaV wrote it |
| A tag your convention allows is flagged, or the reverse | Check `neuralInverse.dcs.naming.moduleTag`; an invalid expression is logged in Output > DCS and not applied |
| Many "module path names a module the export does not have" findings | The export is a part of the database; paths to modules in other exports cannot be resolved |
| A save asks before writing | The save would change more than values: read the list of changes and their lines. Cancel unless you meant them |
| A save is held back | It was an automatic save of a change that needs a decision; save explicitly |
| Export DeltaV Database says DeltaV runs on Windows | The command works only on a Windows DeltaV station |
| Export DeltaV Database cannot find the program | Set `neuralInverse.dcs.paths.deltav` to the DeltaV folder, its `bin` or `DBImpExpClient.exe`, as a full path |
| The export run ends without a file | Read **Output > DCS**: it names the command line, DeltaV's output and the verdict (not started, stopped, no file, an earlier file left, unreadable) |
| DeltaV skips the imported module | DeltaV may skip a module whose `Time=` stamp is not newer than the database's. The module does not change `Time=`; check `ImportExportProgress.log` |

## Known limits

- One real export of one DeltaV version (14.5.1) has been read; nothing has run on Windows or against DeltaV.
- Every view reads on the window's main thread at each refresh, except checks of large exports; a whole-plant export at its real size has not been tried in the running Editor.
- Only the open export is read: users of a class in other exports, and references between exports, are not known.
- To run the DeltaV export kit or check your own exports with the module's reader, ask your Neural Inverse contact. Do not send plant exports outside your company.