How to Resolve Project Archiving and Retrieval Failures with PKZip on 64-Bit Windows Server in PCS 7

In SIMATIC PCS 7 V8.0 and V8.1 installations running on Windows Server 2008 R2, project archiving and retrieval failures with PKZip occur because legacy 32-bit command-line utilities encounter 64-bit file system redirection, User Account Control (UAC) path restrictions, or missing registry associations. To resolve this, open SIMATIC Manager, navigate to Options > Customize > Archiving, and change the preferred archiving program from PKZip to the built-in 'Internal PKZip' engine, or configure an external 64-bit archiver such as WinZip or 7-Zip by defining its executable path and command parameters.

Archiving Mechanisms in SIMATIC Manager and PCS 7

In SIMATIC PCS 7, multi-projects consist of hundreds of interdependent files, including STEP 7 hardware configurations, CFC charts, SFC state machines, SCL source files, and embedded WinCC OS database files (.mdf/.ldf).

To package, back up, or transfer these intricate multi-projects safely without database corruption, engineers rely on the Archive (File > Archive...) and Retrieve (File > Retrieve...) functions in SIMATIC Manager:
* The archiving subsystem coordinates with Microsoft SQL Server to detach or flush active WinCC database handles before compression.
* SIMATIC Manager does not compress files using proprietary code; instead, it delegates file packaging to an external or internal compression engine (such as PKZip, WinZip, ARJ, or LHA).
* The default tool historically packaged with STEP 7 is PKZip (from PKWARE).

Root Causes of PKZip Execution Failures on Windows Server 2008 R2

When PCS 7 V8.0 or V8.1 is deployed on 64-bit operating systems such as Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise:
1. 64-Bit File System Redirection (SysWOW64): Older 32-bit pkzip32.exe binaries struggle when called by 64-bit Windows shell processes, especially when archiving multi-projects stored in protected system paths or across mapped network drives.
2. User Account Control (UAC) and DEP Barriers: Windows Server 2008 R2 enforces strict Data Execution Prevention (DEP) and UAC file virtualization. If PKZip attempts to create temporary zip segments in C:\Windows\Temp or root directories without elevated tokens, Windows aborts the process silently.
3. Multi-Project File Size Limits (>2 GB): Legacy PKZip utilities use 32-bit zip headers with an absolute file size limit of 2,147,483,647 bytes (2 GB). Modern PCS 7 multi-projects containing several OS projects routinely exceed 2 GB, causing legacy PKZip to crash with out-of-memory or corrupt header errors.
4. Incorrect Executable Association: During PCS 7 installation on server operating systems, the installer may fail to register the command-line path to pkzipc.exe in the Windows system environment PATH variable.

Configuring Internal Archiving Engines in SIMATIC Manager

The most straightforward, reliable solution in PCS 7 V8.0 and V8.1 is switching SIMATIC Manager to its built-in internal compression engine:

Open Customization Settings:
* Open SIMATIC Manager.
* Select menu Options > Customize....
Navigate to the Archiving Tab:
* Click on the Archiving tab.
Select Preferred Archiving Program:
* Under Preferred Archiving Program, change the dropdown from PKZip to Internal PKZip (or PKZip (internal)).
* The internal engine is a native Siemens-integrated dynamic link library that bypasses external command-line shell spawning, respects UAC tokens, and handles paths cleanly on 64-bit Windows Server.
Set Target Directory:
* Specify a dedicated, uncompressed archive path (e.g., D:\PCS7_Archives) with full write permissions for the active Windows user.
* Click OK to apply the configuration.

Configuring External Archiving Tools (WinZip / 7-Zip)

If plant standards mandate the use of enterprise compression tools like WinZip or 7-Zip (especially for large archives exceeding 2 GB or requiring AES-256 encryption):

Configuring WinZip:
1. In SIMATIC Manager Options > Customize > Archiving, select WinZip.
2. In the Path field, browse to the 64-bit WinZip executable: C:\Program Files\WinZip\WINZIP32.EXE (or WINZIP64.EXE).
3. Ensure command-line options allow batch processing without interactive dialog popups.
Configuring 7-Zip:
1. In the Archiving tab, select User-Defined.
2. Browse to C:\Program Files\7-Zip\7z.exe.
3. Configure the command parameters:
- Archive command: a -tzip "%ARCHIVE%" "%SOURCE%"
- Retrieve command: x "%ARCHIVE%" -o"%DESTINATION%" -y
  4. 7-Zip natively supports Zip64 extensions, allowing PCS 7 multi-projects exceeding 10 GB to be compressed and extracted seamlessly.

Comparison of Project Archiving Programs for PCS 7

The table below compares the compression tools commonly utilized for archiving SIMATIC PCS 7 multi-projects.

Archiving ProgramIntegration TypeWindows Server 2008 R2 SupportLarge Archive (>2 GB) SupportRecommended StatusLegacy PKZip (External)Command-line binaryUnreliable (UAC / 64-bit path issues)No (32-bit limit crashes >2 GB)Not RecommendedInternal PKZipNative Siemens DLLFully CertifiedYes (Supported in modern releases)Recommended DefaultWinZipExternal GUI / CLIFully Certified (with 64-bit version)Yes (Zip64 support)Recommended Alternative7-ZipUser-Defined CLIHigh PerformanceYes (Native 64-bit Zip64)Approved for Advanced Users

Verification

To confirm that project archiving and retrieval are functioning properly:
1. In SIMATIC Manager, open your active multi-project and select File > Archive....
2. Select the Multi-projects tab, choose the active project, and click OK.
3. Select the target archive destination folder (e.g., D:\PCS7_Archives\Project_Test.zip) and click Save.
4. Verify that the compression progress bar completes cleanly without error popups.
5. Perform a verification retrieval: Select File > Retrieve..., select Project_Test.zip, and extract it into a temporary directory (e.g., D:\PCS7_Temp). Confirm that SIMATIC Manager opens the retrieved multi-project and all CFC charts and OS projects open without missing file errors.

Limitations and Operational Precautions

Never attempt to archive a PCS 7 project using Windows Explorer right-click 'Send to Compressed (zipped) Folder' while SIMATIC Manager or WinCC Runtime is open; active SQL Server database locks will result in a corrupted, unrecoverable archive.
Never archive directly to removable USB flash drives or mapped network drives over unstable Wi-Fi; write latency spikes cause archive header corruption. Always archive locally and copy the resulting .zip file afterward.
Ensure sufficient free disk space exists: archiving a 10 GB multi-project requires at least 15 GB of temporary workspace on drive C: for SQL detachment and scratch packaging.
Do not use exotic compression formats (such as .rar or .7z); always format archives as standard .zip files so other engineering stations can retrieve them.

Engineer FAQ

Why does Windows Server 2008 R2 block external PKZip execution?

Windows Server enforces strict security policies, including User Account Control (UAC) and Data Execution Prevention (DEP). When SIMATIC Manager spawns the legacy 32-bit pkzip32.exe process without elevated privileges, the operating system blocks its memory access or file virtualization, causing archiving to fail silently.

Can an archive larger than 2 GB be retrieved in PCS 7?

Yes, provided the archiving tool and the retrieval engine support the Zip64 standard. The 'Internal PKZip' engine in PCS 7 V8.1 and modern versions of 7-Zip/WinZip support Zip64, allowing multi-projects of any size to be archived and retrieved without corruption.

Why did my retrieved project report missing WinCC database files?

This occurs if the project was archived while WinCC Explorer or SQL Server held open file locks (e.g., if the user manually zipped the folder using Windows Explorer instead of using SIMATIC Manager's File > Archive... command). Always use the native SIMATIC Manager archiving tool.