HMI
FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge
Build HMI applications in Rockwell's FactoryTalk Optix, from your first screen to alarms, recipes, faceplates and the edge.
FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge is a free, self-paced online course from EDWartens for engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers in automation and control. It has 13 modules and takes about 15.3 hours, with written notes, a practice task per module, a practical project and a final assessment of 15 questions (pass mark 60%). Learning costs nothing and needs only a free account. The optional EDWartens Certificate of Completion, verifiable by code, is a one-off US$23.99 for you; it is not a vendor credential. Updated 1 November 2026.
- Free
- Beginner
- 15.3 hours
- Self-paced
- Certificate optional
- Lab practice in your browser
No card, no trial. The course is free for good. Certificate US$23.99, optional.
- Who it is for
- Engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers in automation and control
- Jobs
- Roles that use this skill: SCADA engineer, HMI developer, control room technologist and systems integrator. No course guarantees a job.
- Tools
- FactoryTalk Optix Studio (free to develop) and Logix Echo or the Micro800 simulator. Hardware: none required. An OptixPanel, an OptixEdge or an industrial PC makes deployment real.
- Updated
After this course you can
By the end you will be able to:
- Build responsive Optix screens linked to a Logix controller
- Reuse graphics with aliases, UDTs and faceplates
- Configure alarms, trends, logging and recipes
- Set up users and languages
- Connect other controllers and use Optix as an MQTT and OPC UA gateway
Who it is for, and what you need first
Who it is for
Engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers in automation and control.
Level: Beginner. Beginner to intermediate. Any HMI experience helps.
What you need
Software: FactoryTalk Optix Studio (free to develop) and Logix Echo or the Micro800 simulator.
Hardware: None required. An OptixPanel, an OptixEdge or an industrial PC makes deployment real.. What to download, and how.
How this course works
Watch the lessons
Short video lessons, one module at a time, at your own pace.
Read the notes
Open the Reading tab for the written notes and diagrams of the module.
Practise in the 3D labOptional
Try the module in the free 3D lab, in your browser.
Check yourself
Answer the questions to see what stuck before you move on.
Final assessment
Pass the final once you have been through the modules.
Certificate, if you want oneOptional
Optional, with a page anyone can use to verify it.
What you learn
13 modules in order, at your own pace. 15.3 hours of video lessons, with written notes and a practice task in each module.
- 1What Optix Is and Getting the Software30m
- 2Studio Interface, Communication and the First Screen, with lab practice: 11m
- 3Containers, Responsive Design and Object-Oriented HMI22m
- 4Linking to a Logix Controller, with lab practice: 51m
- 5Reusable Graphics, Aliases and UDTs37m
- 6Faceplates, Popups and Library Deployment, with lab practice: 1h 0m
- 7Alarms, Alarm History, Trends and the Data Logger, with lab practice: 39m
- 8Recipes, Reports, ODBC and ListView, with lab practice: 56m
Show the other 5 modules
- 9Users, Languages and Presentation Engines35m
- 10Other Controllers: Micro800, Modbus, Siemens and REST1h 17m
- 11Optix at the Edge: MQTT, OPC UA and NetLogic2h 4m
- 12Deploying, Sizing and View SE Integration38m
- 13Final Assessment
Software you need
What to download, where from, what it costs and how to install it. Every link goes to the maker's own site, never a mirror.
The Micro800 simulator in Connected Components Workbench gives Optix a free PLC to talk to.
Show what to download (2 tools)
Required
- 01Free edition: Studio Standard
FactoryTalk Optix Studio
Rockwell Automation
- Runs on
- Windows 10 or 11 64-bit, or Windows Server 2016 to 2025
- Account
- A free Rockwell Automation account (check the download page)
FactoryTalk Optix Studio Standard is a free download for building and testing HMI applications on your own PC. Studio Pro adds cloud features and has a 90-day cloud trial. Runtime devices need a runtime licence; unlicensed devices run in demo mode and stop after two hours.
Steps
- 1.Open the FactoryTalk Optix Try it now page on rockwellautomation.com.
- 2.Choose the free FactoryTalk Optix Studio Standard download and sign in if asked.
- 3.In the Releases section tick FactoryTalk Optix Studio, click Download Now, then accept the licence agreement.
- 4.Run the downloaded .exe, choose Customize, then Install.
- 5.Open FactoryTalk Optix Studio, create a new project and run it on your PC to test it.
- Rockwell lists 8 GB RAM and 20 GB free disk as the minimum.
- Testing on the development PC does not need a runtime licence.
Official download pagerockwellautomation.com
Optional
Useful, not needed to finish the course.
- 02Free
Connected Components Workbench Standard Edition
Rockwell Automation
- Runs on
- Windows 10 or 11 Pro or Enterprise 64-bit, or Windows Server 2019/2022
- Account
- A free Rockwell Automation account (sign in to the Product Compatibility and Download Center)
The Standard Edition is free and needs no activation. It includes a demo version of the Micro800 Simulator; the full simulator comes with the paid Developer Edition.
Steps
- 1.Open the Connected Components Workbench page on the Product Compatibility and Download Center.
- 2.Click Available downloads next to the latest version (23.00.00 on 27 Sept 2026) and sign in.
- 3.Accept the licence agreement and download the installer.
- 4.Run the setup as administrator; it installs .NET Framework 4.8 if needed.
- 5.Start Connected Components Workbench, add a Micro800 controller and open the Micro800 Simulator to test your program.
- Rockwell lists 8 GB RAM and 20 GB free disk as the minimum.
- The installer does not work on the very first Windows 10 releases (1507 and 1511); update Windows first.
Official download pagecompatibility.rockwellautomation.comAlternatives
- FactoryTalk Design Workbench: Rockwell's newer free Micro800 design tool.
Checked against each maker's own page on 27 September 2026. Trial lengths and editions change; the maker's page is the final word.
Practise in the 3D lab
Practise what makes a good HMI screen: build a plant overview with faceplates and trends, and set alarms people can act on.
- Read the P&IDProcess lab, about 20 minOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Read the P&ID
- Build an operator screenProcess lab, about 45 minOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Build an operator screen
- Alarm rationalisationProcess lab, about 50 minOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Alarm rationalisation
- Connect the panel to the PLCProcess lab, about 55 minOpen in the lab (opens in a new tab): Connect the panel to the PLC
Optional. Skip it whenever you like: it never blocks your progress or your certificate.
Course project, about 14 hours
Tablet-coater HMI on an OptixPanel: Logix UDT aliases, alarm grid, batch report and a record of who changed what
Design, build, test and document a FactoryTalk Optix application for a pharmaceutical tablet coater. You deliver the Optix project, your own HMI specification, tag list and FAT record, and a backup and hand-over note.
- 10documents in the pack
- 9steps to follow
- 6things to hand in
- 14 hof work, at your pace
- URSUser Requirements: Coater CT-1 Operator Interface and Batch Records
- HMI specHMI Specification: Screen Hierarchy and Screen Specification, Coater CT-1
- Tag listTag List: Logix Tags, Optix Paths and Naming Convention, Coater CT-1
- Alarm philosophyAlarm Philosophy: Solid Orals Coating Area
- Alarm listAlarm List (Master Alarm Database): Coater CT-1
- SDSSoftware Design Specification: Optix Application CT1_HMI
The project is optional practice. The certificate needs only the modules and the final assessment.
After the course, your next step
Show what you can do, then keep going in the same field.
A certificate you can verify
Finish the modules and pass the final assessment (15 questions, pass mark 60%) and you can add a certificate with a public verification page. One-off, US$23.99 for you. It is not a vendor credential.
Want a free certificate? Do the matching Free internship: 4 weeks, nothing to buy, with a free certificate of completion.
SCADA and HMI
Eight short weeks of tags, screens, alarms and trends: notes, diagrams, a few videos and practice in LADX Mini and free web SCADA tools. Finish weeks 1 to 4 and the final, then claim a free Internship Completion Certificate with your real dates and study hours, and a QR code anyone can scan to verify it. Training, not employment.
See the internshipPart of a learning path
Courses in a planned order, so each one builds on the last.
More free courses
Roles that use this skill
- SCADA engineer
- HMI developer
- Control room technologist
- Systems integrator
These are the kinds of roles where the skill is used. We make no promise of a job or an interview.
Plain notes
- Free: the whole course, the notes, the practice tasks, the final assessment and support from practising engineers.
- Paid, and optional: the course certificate, and the Engineer-verified internship (the Free internship costs nothing).
- No job promise: the course teaches a skill. It does not place you in a job.
- Lessons by: Rockwell Automation, Wayne Welk, The Reynolds Company, ASEM S.r.l., Daniel Van Dam. Independent creators; the lessons stream from their own channels. EDWartens wrote the study plan, notes, practice tasks and assessments.
Rockwell Automation · Wayne Welk · Wayne Welk · Wayne Welk · Wayne Welk · The Reynolds Company · ASEM S.r.l. · Daniel Van Dam. If you are one of these creators and want a lesson removed or credited differently, write to info@edwartens.com.
Practise what you learn in the free 3D lab
Technical work is judged on what you can do: wiring, commissioning, finding a fault. Doing a task yourself teaches more than watching it a second time, and a lab lets you try it safely before you meet real equipment. It does not replace working on real hardware.
- Practise safely, so a mistake costs nothing.
- The lab checks your work like a site test, so you know when it is right.
- Free, in your browser, with nothing to install.
Why learn with EDWartens
What you get with this course, and what comes after it.
- Free from the first lesson to the final assessment.
- Practice in a free 3D lab in your browser, with nothing to install.
- Video lessons with written notes and a project.
- An optional certificate that anyone can verify online.
- Free internships to keep practising afterwards.
Common questions
Is Optix replacing FactoryTalk View?
It sits beside View ME and SE and shares data with them; new projects increasingly start in Optix, which is why it is worth learning now.
Is the software free?
Optix Studio is free to download and develop with; only deployed runtimes are licensed.
Which PLCs can it talk to?
Logix, Micro800, Modbus TCP, Siemens S7, OPC UA servers and MQTT brokers, all covered in the course.
Is the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course really free?
Yes. Every module, practice task and assessment. You create an account so your progress is saved and the assessments can be marked. The certificate is the only paid item, and only if you want it.
What certificate do I get, and is it a vendor qualification?
An EDWartens Certificate of Completion, issued when you pass the final assessment, with a verification code anyone can check. It is not a vendor credential and is never described as one.
Who made the video lessons in the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course?
The creators named in the Credits block at the foot of this page, on their own YouTube channels. EDWartens did not make the videos and the creators are not affiliated with EDWartens. What EDWartens wrote is the study plan, the notes, the practice tasks and the assessments.
How long does the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course take?
Plan on about 15 hours in all, including the video lessons, notes and practice tasks. It is self-paced, so you work through the thirteen modules at your own speed.
Do I have to use the lab?
No. The lab is optional practice. You can skip it whenever you like, and it never blocks your progress, the final assessment or your certificate.
Is the lab free?
Yes. Every lab level for this course opens in your browser, free, with nothing to install.
What topics does the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course cover, module by module?
The FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course has 13 modules. It opens with "What Optix Is and Getting the Software", goes through "Studio Interface, Communication and the First Screen", "Reusable Graphics, Aliases and UDTs", "Users, Languages and Presentation Engines" and "Deploying, Sizing and View SE Integration" and ends with "Final Assessment". The full list with minutes is under "What you learn" on this page.
What can I do after the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course?
After the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course: Install Optix Studio and build responsive, object-oriented screens; Link to Logix, Micro800, Modbus and Siemens controllers; Use aliases, UDTs, faceplates and libraries. These are the practical outcomes the course is written around, and the final assessment of 15 questions checks them.
What software and hardware do I need for the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course, and does it cost anything?
For the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course, software: FactoryTalk Optix Studio (free to develop) and Logix Echo or the Micro800 simulator. Hardware: none required. An OptixPanel, an OptixEdge or an industrial PC makes deployment real. The course itself is free.
Is the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course suitable for me, and what level is it?
FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge is rated beginner. Beginner to intermediate. Any HMI experience helps. It is written for engineering students, apprentices, technicians and working engineers in automation and control, and takes about 15.3 hours at your own pace.
Which jobs use the skills from the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course?
Skills from the FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge course (for example: install Optix Studio and build responsive, object-oriented screens) are used in roles such as SCADA engineer, HMI developer, control room technologist and systems integrator, and in automation engineer work. The course gives you practical evidence of the skill; it does not promise a job, and employers decide on experience and interview.
Start free today
FactoryTalk Optix HMI and Edge, at your own pace. Add the certificate only if you want one.