OT System Associations

Many OT users don't think in terms of individual OT devices, but in terms of OT systems -- i.e. a number of OT devices combined to work in concert. In the process industries, this is usually referred to as a Distributed Control System. In manufacturing, it can be called a machine line. Unless you know the association of a particular OT device with its DCS, or machine line, you may know little about the device.

For this reason, OTbase allows you to group devices in systems. Once you have done this, a system profile will give you a consolidated documentation of that system, along with an overall network topology, integrity checking, and more.

In order to model your OT systems, first add a new system by going to INVENTORY and then SYSTEMS.

For starters, just add a system name, system ID, and a process location. The process location allows users to clearly identify. For example, you may end up having multiple systems named Line 1 in your database, but every system is at a different location.

The next step is to associate OT devices with your system. This is done in the DEVICES inventory. Select all devices that are part of the system and click on Edit. In the edit dialog, select the system that these devices are part of. Click on Save. Done!

Now if you go back to the SYSTEMS inventory, you can see that your system is populated. Double-click your newly created system to see the system profile.

To learn more about OT systems, check this article out.