Yes: one USB drive can carry both the firmware system files and the project for an HMI panel update, but only if you prepare it with the documented transfer or a panel backup. An FTP copy of the project file leaves the firmware behind. Prepare the drive, have the operator restore System and Project from the panel's System Screens, and verify the firmware revision on the panel before restart.
Yes, one USB flash drive can carry both the firmware system files and the project for an HMI panel update. The operator on site can load both from the panel's own screens. Two documented paths put that set on the drive: the Project Transfer to External Memory Device operation in the panel's programming software, or a System and Project backup taken from a panel that already runs the target firmware. Copying the project file over FTP skips the firmware entirely. The drive arrives able to restore a program with no firmware update behind it. Prepare the drive properly, put the restore items on the work order, and verify the result on the panel before the line restarts.
What you need
You are preparing media for someone else to use. Everything the operator needs has to be on the drive or on paper before it leaves your desk.
- The programming computer with the current project open, for the software transfer path.
- A panel of the same model family that already runs the target firmware, for the panel backup path.
- One USB flash drive sized for both backups. The example below fits 300 MB of backups on an 8 GB drive with room to spare. Which drives a panel accepts is its own subject; HMI panel USB drive compatibility covers it.
- A work order naming the restore items: System for firmware system files, Project for the program, or both.
- A maintenance window long enough for two restores, a reboot, and a revision check; 15 minutes covers the example below.
For the general backup and restore routine on either side of this job, back up and restore an HMI panel project the safe way is the baseline.
Prepare the drive in the programming software
This is the path to use when you hold the project file, because it is the one operation that puts both deliverables on the drive together.
- Open the current project in the panel's programming software.
- Select File > Project Transfer.
- In the Project Transfer window, select External Memory Device.
- Select the USB drive as the target.
- Select Transfer. The operation writes the open project and the system files to the drive as one set the panel's System Screens recognizes.
When the transfer finishes, label the drive with the project name and the date. An unlabelled update drive looks exactly like every other backup drive in the drawer.
Prepare the drive from a panel
Use this path when the target firmware exists only on a panel in front of you and the software route is not available.
- Insert the USB drive into a panel of the same model family that already runs the firmware you want to send.
- Open the System Screens on that panel.
- Run the backup for both System and Project to the USB drive.
- Remove the drive and label it.
This path needs no programming computer at all, which makes it the practical choice when a trusted panel with the right firmware is on the bench.
What the operator restores on site
Hand the operator the drive, the work order, and nothing else to decide.
- Confirm the drive is the one prepared for this update, by its label.
- Insert it into the target panel and open the System Screens.
- Select Restore for the item the work order names: System for a firmware update, Project for a program update, or both when the update calls for both.
- Confirm the prompt. A restore writes the backup over what the panel stores, so the confirmation is where the old contents go.
- Let the restore run to completion and the panel come back up. Keep power on the panel for the whole write; a restore cut off by a power loss has to be run again from the start.
If the machine's documentation sets an order for the two restores, the work order should carry that order word for word.
How to check it worked
Check the two deliverables separately, because they restore separately.
- Project: the screens the work order names load and behave correctly on the machine.
- Firmware: the panel reports its firmware revision in its system information screens. Read that revision before the transfer as well, so you have a before and after; check the HMI firmware revision before a project transfer explains the readout.
If the project is in place but the revision did not move, the System restore was skipped; rerun it from the same drive. If the panel stops communicating after the update, HMI panel will not communicate after a firmware update walks the usual causes. If the panel will not come back up after a restore and reboot, fix an HMI project restore that fails after reboot is the next stop.
Example: sizing and timing the drive
The job: a packaging line two states away needs a firmware update and a new program. The operator on site has no programming software, so you prepare the drive at the office.
The panel software reports a 120 MB project backup and a 180 MB system backup, so the drive needs 300 MB of space: 120 MB + 180 MB = 300 MB. An 8 GB flash drive holds that with room to spare; even a 1 GB drive would fit it. The largest single backup here is the 180 MB system backup, and the drive format must allow files of that size, so confirm the drive's format against the panel's documented requirements before you buy it.
Plan the write at about 10 MB/s effective speed, a realistic planning figure for an ordinary USB 2.0 flash drive. Preparing the drive writes 300 MB, and 300 MB ÷ 10 MB/s = 30 seconds. On site, the restores read the same 300 MB back at a similar rate, about 30 seconds per item. The panel's own write, reboot, and revision check add the rest. A 15-minute window covers both restores with time to spare, so there is no reason to rush the operator.
The decision for this job: prepare the drive with File > Project Transfer to External Memory Device, send a work order that says restore System and Project, and close the window only after the panel reports the new firmware revision.
If the job stalls
Four stop conditions end the remote attempt and send it back to you:
- The panel does not recognize the drive. Test the drive itself before blaming the panel; test a USB drive the panel does not recognize gives the sequence.
- The restore choices on screen do not match the work order. The wrong drive or an old backup is in the port.
- The restore reports an error part way through.
- The panel does not return to a usable state.
In every case, collect the panel model, the software package version, and the exact message on the screen, and take those to the panel manufacturer's support channel. Never let the site retry with improvised files or an unrelated backup to force the job through.
The decision
A remote update with no PC on site is a documented, ordinary job once the drive is prepared the right way.
- Firmware update only: prepare through the software transfer or a panel backup, and the work order says restore System.
- Program update only: prepare the same way, and the work order says restore Project. The prepared drive still carries the system files; the operator restores only what the order names.
- Both: the work order says restore System and Project, with any required order taken from the machine's documentation.
Recommendation: prepare every update drive through File > Project Transfer with External Memory Device selected, because that single operation puts the project and the firmware system files on the drive together; use the panel System Screens backup path only when the target firmware lives on a panel you can reach and the software route does not.
Questions
Can one prepared drive update several panels?
Yes, when the panels are the same model family and take the same firmware system files. Restore on each panel from its System Screens, one panel at a time, and check the firmware revision the panel reports before moving to the next. Label the drive with the project name and the date it was prepared, so a later crew does not load an old program onto a line whose project has since changed.
Does the site need the programming software for the restore?
No. The prepared drive exists so the operator works from the panel's own System Screens with nothing but the USB drive. Keep the programming computer at the office, where the current project and the firmware system files live, and send the work order with the drive. If a site does need a software-side fix, that is a separate trip with the laptop.
Why would the firmware revision stay the same after the update?
The usual cause is a Project restore on a job that needed System. The project restore loads screens and program data; firmware system files reach the panel only through a System restore. Reprepare the drive through the software transfer or a panel System and Project backup, return it with a work order that names System, and compare the revision the panel reports with the revision you intended.
Planning information, not legal or engineering advice. Rules differ by place: check codes and permits with your local authority and your licensed trades.