Practical Support for Implementing PROFINET Security
The ongoing development of PROFINET Security is an important step towards robust and future-proof industrial networks. With PROFINET specification v2.5, security mechanisms are now defined as part of the standard and can be implemented consistently across devices and systems. Practical resources such as the updated SXP demo provide sample code and test scenarios that help device developers understand the specification and apply it in their own implementations. They also support preparation for interoperability testing and make it easier to validate secure communication in real PROFINET environments.
SXP Demo Updated
With the release of version 1.1, the SXP demo has been updated to align with the published PROFINET specification v2.5. This update brings the implementation into line with the published PROFINET specification v2.5 and further strengthens the demo’s role as a practical starting point for developers working with the Service eXchange Protocol (SXP).
The SXP demo provides PI members with functional examples and source code to explore secure SXP communication in practice. It helps developers gain practical experience with the mechanisms defined in the PROFINET specification and helps accelerate the development of their own implementations.
Secure Onboarding
A major focus of this release is secure onboarding. The demo now provides an additional example that shows how certificates can be deployed to securely onboard devices.
To simplify testing and evaluation, version 1.1 also allows users to load the predefined PROFINET Security Plugfest credentials for the Device Access examples and the IO-Controller / IO-Device examples. This enables the demo applications to be used at upcoming Plugfests for interoperability testing with other implementations, without requiring the full secure onboarding procedure first.
Alarm Handling
Version 1.1 introduces the ability for the IO-Device example application to send alarms. This makes it possible to evaluate alarm communication as part of SXP-based communication.
IPv6 Support
Version 1.1 adds IPv6 support alongside IPv4. This makes the demo more flexible for evaluating SXP communication in current and future network environments.
Learn More and Access the Release
The SXP demo is intended solely for evaluation and training purposes. It provides a simplified basis for understanding SXP interactions and helps developers get started with their own SXP implementations.
All PI members who have signed the license agreement for the PROFINET Community Stack can access the repository via the PI GitLab.
Access the repository here: https://gitlab.profibus.com/profinet/profinet-sxp-demo