OPC UA Simulator in 5 Minutes with SPX: Quickstart

This is a hands-on quickstart. For a technical overview of OPC UA capabilities and testing workflows, see OPC UA Simulator.

Simulation timeline for the “Pressure Upset” scenario — spx_s7_1500_process_cell. The model simulates a process-cell pressure disturbance and streams updated PLC and sensor values via the S7-1500 OPC UA Server, allowing you to validate live value changes, alarm/limit behavior, and downstream automation responses during rapidly changing operating conditions.

In this quickstart you’ll launch a realistic OPC UA server simulation in about five minutes using SPX. The flow is intentionally simple: download the SPX package, run the setup wizard, start the local stack, open the SPX UI, select a ready-made OPC UA instance, and verify it with a standard OPC UA. The result is a repeatable “virtual device lab” environment you can use for integration testing, demos, and CI-ready baselines.

Tip #1 - Install SPX and select Smart Building Pack

1. Get your Product Key + installer package

   1. Log in and open Product & Keys: https://www.simplephysx.com/keys

   2. Copy your SPX Product Key

   3. Download the installer package (e.g. spx-examples-<version>.zip)

2. Extract the ZIP

   1. Unzip the package into a dedicated folder (e.g. spx-examples-<version>/). You should see platform launchers like spx-setup.*.

3. Run the Setup Wizard (spx-setup.*)

   1. From the extracted folder, start the launcher for your OS:

      1. Windows: double-click spx-setup.bat

      2. macOS: double-click spx-setup.command

      3. Linux desktop: double-click spx-setup.desktop

      4. Terminal (macOS/Linux): ./spx-setup.sh

4. In the wizard: select Industrial Pack + paste your key

   1. Select Industrial Pack (ENTER accepts recommended defaults)

      

      
      

   2. Paste your SPX Product Key when prompted

      

   3. Review the summary and choose Start the stack now

   Note: For the full, always up-to-date installation instructions (including prerequisites and OS-specific launchers), see the SPX Installation Guide in the docs: https://docs.simplephysx.com/getting-started/installation-guide.
   

Tip #2 - Open the SPX UI

Open: http://localhost:3000

SPX web UI (localhost:3000): Industrial Pack instance catalog — choose a ready-to-run simulator such as spx_s7_1500_process_cell.

You should see the SPX interface with a list of available instances from the Industrial Pack.

Tip #3 - Start the OPC UA simulator instance (one click)

• From the list of available instances, select:

  spx_s7_1500_process_cell

From the Industrial Pack list, select spx_s7_1500_process_cell and click Open/View Instance to access the instance details and controls.

• Open the instance. At this point you already have a working OPC UA simulation of a real-world style device stack (gateway + weather station), ready for testing.

Instance details for spx_s7_1500_process_cell — status, OPC UA connection info, live attributes, and scenario controls (e.g., HeatUp Cycle*) in one place.*

Tip #4 - Verify it’s alive

To validate the simulator is live, connect with UAExpert (or another OPC UA client)

1. In SPX instance view, copy the OPC UA endpoint URL, e.g.

2. In UAExpert:

• Add Server → paste the endpoint

• Connect

• Browse the address space

• Subscribe to a few variables and confirm values update

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Expected outcome (what “done” looks like)

You can browse nodes, read values, and observe live updates — confirming the simulator behaves like a real OPC UA server.

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Next: customize and extend (coming next)

Next we’ll take this same instance and:

• Tweak the model in the editor and reload it

• Generate a new variant via an LLM workflow

• Run scenario-driven tests and capture reproducible baselines