Operations & Data Entry · PI Vision Custom Symbol

How to Add a Playback Pro to AVEVA PI Vision

Everything you need to get the PIForge Playback Pro symbol running on your AVEVA PI Vision server — installation, license activation, and a tour of every feature with live video.

Installation — 5 steps, about 10 minutes

1. 1

   Download the package

   Purchase the symbol at piforge.app and download the ZIP from your profile. It contains four files: the symbol script (.js), two templates (.html) and an icon (.svg).

2. 2

   Copy the files to the PI Vision server

   Extract all four files into the PI Vision extension folder on the server: %PIHOME%\PIVision\Scripts\app\editor\symbols\ext\ (create the ext folder if it does not exist yet).

3. 3

   Restart the PI Vision application

   Recycle the PI Vision application pool in IIS (or run iisreset), then hard-refresh the browser (Ctrl+F5) so the new symbol script is loaded.

4. 4

   Add the symbol to a display

   Open a display in edit mode. The new symbol appears in the symbol palette on the left. Select it, then drag a tag or AF attribute onto the canvas.

5. 5

   Activate the license

   Open Format Symbol, paste the license key from your purchase email into the License field, and save. The watermark disappears immediately — no restart needed.

What you can do with it

Getting Started

Time Travel for PI Vision — Play, Pause, Reverse at Any Speed

One symbol turns any PI Vision display into a historical replay console

Drop PIForge Playback Pro onto a PI Vision display and every symbol on the screen gains time-travel controls. Press play and the entire display rewinds or fast-forwards through historical data — trend charts scroll, gauges swing, KPI tiles update, and status indicators reflect what was really happening at each moment.

• Forward and reverse playback — scroll back to any point in history
• Speed control: 0.5x · 1x · 2x · 5x · 10x
• All PI Vision symbols on the display update together in sync
• LIVE button snaps back to real-time immediately
• Works with any PI Vision display — no reconfiguration of other symbols

Timeline Scrubbing

Drag the Scrubber — Every Widget Responds Instantly

Click anywhere on the timeline to jump — gauges, trends, and KPIs update in real time

The interactive scrubber lets you jump to any moment in the configured time range with a single click. Drag slowly to watch the trend chart scroll, the gauge needle sweep, and status indicators flip from OK to CRITICAL — then drag back to confirm the return to normal. Incident investigation in seconds.

• Click anywhere on the timeline for an instant time jump
• Trend chart window follows the current playback position
• Gauge needle moves continuously as you scrub
• Status table rows update color and text with each new time position
• Colored event markers on the scrubber mark exactly where to look

Event Frames

PI Event Frames on the Timeline — Jump to Any Alarm Instantly

Critical (red) · Major (orange) · Info (blue) — click ⏮⏭ to step through events

PIForge Playback Pro fetches Event Frames from the PI AF database and plots them as color-coded markers on the scrubber. The ⏮ and ⏭ buttons step backward and forward through events chronologically. At each event, the entire display reflects the actual process state at that moment — gauge in the red zone, status table showing CRITICAL, trend chart revealing the run-up to the alarm.

• Fetches PI AF Event Frames automatically once AF database is configured
• Color-coded by severity: Critical · Major · Minor · Warning · Info
• Prev/Next buttons step through events in time order
• Jump lands exactly at event start — see the plant state at alarm trigger
• Up to 200 events displayed per query window

A-B Incident Replay

Mark A and B — Loop the Incident Until You Understand It

Set A at normal · play to the peak · set B · watch it repeat

Mark point A before an incident begins and point B at the peak. PIForge Playback Pro loops continuously between the two markers, replaying exactly what happened on every symbol — from normal green readings to CRITICAL alarms and back. The A-B range is highlighted on the scrubber so the incident window is always visible.

• Mark any two points as A and B with dedicated buttons
• A-B range highlighted in teal on the scrubber for clear visual context
• Loops automatically: B → A → B, repeating until cleared
• Perfect for training new operators on how an incident developed
• Clear A-B removes the loop; playback continues normally

Bookmarks & Share

Bookmark Key Moments — Share the Exact Time with Your Team

★ Mark saves the timestamp · diamond on timeline · 🔗 Share copies a URL

Found the moment that matters? Click ★ Mark to drop a bookmark diamond on the scrubber. Continue reviewing and click the diamond at any time to jump back instantly. When you need to share the finding, click 🔗 Share to copy a deep-link URL that encodes the exact playback position, bookmarks, and A-B loop — paste into Slack or email and your team lands at the same moment.

• ★ Mark saves the current playback time as a diamond on the scrubber
• Click any bookmark diamond to return to that exact moment
• Multiple bookmarks per display — persistent across sessions
• 🔗 Share encodes time, bookmarks, and A-B loop into a URL
• Recipient opens the link and lands at the same moment automatically

Event Frame List

Set AF Database → Get a Clickable Event List — Jump in One Click

Configure AFDB path once · event list populates · click any event to jump

Enter the PI AF database path in the configuration panel. PIForge Playback Pro queries the Event Frame database and shows a scrollable list of all events with their name, severity color, and timestamp. Click any row — Pump Cavitation, High Temp Alarm, Shift Changeover — and the display jumps immediately to that event, showing the exact plant state at that time.

• Configure AF database path once — event list auto-populates
• Events shown with severity color, name, and timestamp
• One click on any event row jumps the display to that exact moment
• All widgets (gauge, trend, KPIs, table) update together on each click
• Filter by event name or limit to a single element path for focused analysis

Configuration

PI Vision Properties Panel — Full Control, Zero Code

Playback, Time Range, Event Frames, Appearance — all in the standard PI Vision panel

Every PIForge Playback Pro setting is exposed in the standard PI Vision Format Symbol panel. Configure step size, default speed, time range mode, AF database for event frames, and accent color — all without leaving PI Vision. Changes take effect immediately; the accent color ripples through the entire control bar in real time.

• PLAYBACK: Step Seconds, Default Speed, Auto Start
• TIME RANGE: Duration (rolling), Custom dates, or PI Vision TimeBar sync
• EVENT FRAMES: AF database path, name filter, lookback days
• APPEARANCE: Accent color, background — updates live while you type
• LICENSE: Key entry and status — ✓ Licensed confirms activation

Frequently asked questions

Does Playback Pro work with my PI Vision version?

Yes — PI Vision 2019 R2 through 2023+ are supported. The symbol uses the standard PI Vision extensibility model, so regular version upgrades do not break it, and one year of compatibility updates is included.

Do I need to install anything on client PCs?

No. The symbol is installed once on the PI Vision server; every browser client gets it automatically from there.

How is it licensed?

One license covers one PI Vision server, with unlimited displays and unlimited users on that server. The key is delivered instantly by email after purchase.

Can I try it before buying?

Every feature is demonstrated in live video on the product page, and a free symbol (Combo Chart Free Edition) is available on GitHub to validate the install workflow end to end. For evaluation keys, contact [email protected].