Secure Disposal Guidelines

These guidelines describe how to take a GENESIS system out of use securely when you decommission a server, retire a workstation, or replace the system. Follow them in addition to the uninstallation steps so that no sensitive, confidential, or proprietary data or credentials remain on the computer, on other systems in your environment, or on the storage media.

Before You Decommission

GENESIS is used in many industries and companies, and each can be subject to different data retention and regulatory requirements. You may have long-term regulatory, operational, cybersecurity, or audit obligations that require you to keep data and documentation for years after the system is retired. Before you remove any data, consult your legal department and review the regulations and company policies that apply to your system.

  • Identify the data that you must keep, such as historical data, alarm and event history, audit logs, reports, and project configuration.

  • Back up or archive that data before you remove it. For the GENESIS databases, see Backing Up GENESIS Databases on the SQL Server.

  • Store the archives in a secure location with access restricted to authorized personnel because they contain the same sensitive data and credentials as the production system.

  • Plan how the functions of the system are transferred to a replacement system or discontinued, so that the decommissioning does not affect operations or safety.

Removing GENESIS from the Environment

To remove GENESIS from the environment:

  1. Stop the GENESIS services, and disconnect the computer from the automation network.

  2. If the server is a member of a redundant cluster, remove it from the cluster configuration before you shut it down, and verify that the remaining servers operate correctly. Learn more

  3. Release the license:

    • For a software license, kill the license so that it can be reactivated on another computer. If the license includes additional nodes, kill the node licenses before the license on the base node. Learn more

    • For a license bound to a USB security key, remove the key and store it securely, or move it to its new computer. Learn more

  4. Uninstall GENESIS by running the GENESIS installation in Uninstall mode. Learn more

  5. If WebHMI is deployed in Kubernetes, uninstall the Helm release and, if it is no longer needed, the K3s cluster. Learn more

  6. Remove the components that the uninstallation does not remove, as described in Securely Removing GENESIS Data.

Removing References and Configuration from Other Systems

Other systems in your environment can hold references to the decommissioned system, or credentials and trust relationships that it used. Remove them so that they cannot be misused.

  • Other GENESIS systems:

    • Remove the decommissioned server from remote FrameWorX Server connections, redundancy clusters, and data connections on other GENESIS servers.

    • Remove the server from the connection settings of Workbench and GraphWorX clients.

    • Remove GraphWorX displays and other project files that were published to web servers or shared folders.

  • Certificates and trust relationships:

    • Remove the certificates of the decommissioned system from the trusted certificate lists of other FrameWorX servers, OPC UA servers and clients, and third-party applications. Learn more

    • Remove its certificates from BACnet/SC, MQTT broker, and Azure IoT Hub configurations.

  • Accounts and credentials:

    • GENESIS stores the credentials that it uses to connect to other systems in its configuration. Disable or delete these accounts, or change their passwords and secrets, in the systems where they are defined. Examples include SQL Server logins, Active Directory service accounts, Microsoft Entra ID application registrations and client secrets, SNMP credentials, and MQTT broker and Azure IoT Hub device credentials.

    • Remove the client registrations for GENESIS from external OpenID Connect (OIDC) and SAML 2.0 identity providers. Learn more

    • Deactivate the accounts and API keys used for alert notification and integration services, such as Twilio, Vonage, email (SMTP) servers, ServiceNow, Salesforce, and Microsoft Dynamics.

  • Network configuration:

    • Remove the firewall rules, port forwarding rules, and DNS entries that were created for the system. Learn more

Securely Removing GENESIS Data

The GENESIS uninstallation does not remove the components listed in the following table. Remove the ones that are no longer needed. Some of these items might be used by other products, so verify that no other product needs an item before you remove it.

Component

Items That Remain After Uninstallation

Third-party prerequisites

The prerequisites identified in the System Requirements, such as Microsoft SQL Server, and the registry keys that these components create. To remove a third-party component and its registry keys, use the uninstaller or removal instructions provided by its vendor. Do not delete registry keys manually unless the vendor instructs you to.

MELCO EZSocket and EZSocketGOT
  • ProgramFiles(x86)\MELSOFT
  • ProgramFiles(x86)\EZSocket

Contact Mitsubishi Electric for details on removing these components.

Windows features

IIS-CommonHttpFeatures, IIS-DefaultDocument, IIS-DirectoryBrowsing, IIS-HostableWebCore, IIS-HttpErrors, IIS-HttpRedirect, IIS-ISAPIExtensions, IIS-ISAPIFilter, IIS-ManagementConsole, IIS-Security, IIS-StaticContent, IIS-WebServer, IIS-WebServerManagementTools, IIS-WebServerRole, IIS-WebSockets, IIS-WindowsAuthentication, MediaFoundation (Windows Server only), WAS-ConfigurationAPI, WAS-WindowsActivationService

Server certificates
  • IcoSelfSigned
  • FrameWorX
  • HyperHistorian

Delete these certificates together with their private keys from the Windows certificate store.

GENESIS databases

The GENESIS databases in the selected SQL Server instance, such as IcoSetup, IcoUnifiedConfig, and any custom databases created for your project. The databases contain configuration data, security settings, and stored connection credentials.

Program folders
  • [ProgramData]\ICONICS\11

Per-user settings

GENESIS run-time settings stored in isolated storage for each user, such as display resolutions for graphics, report settings, user profile settings, and data browser settings. Windows stores these settings in C:\Users\<myAccount>\AppData\Local\IsolatedStorage.

The [ProgramData]\ICONICS\11 folder contains sensitive data, including the following:

  • Logged data and store-and-forward files of Data Historian, Alarm Historian, and Internet of Things in the Data folder

  • The local configuration cache, a copy of the configuration databases, in the Data\Cache folder Learn more

  • Certificates and private keys in the pki folder

  • The license file in the License folder

  • Log files in the Logs folder, including TraceWorX logs, which can contain tag names and configuration file locations

  • Exported files in the Exports folder and published displays in the PubDisplay folder

Also remove GENESIS data stored in other locations:

  • TraceWorX logs written to a custom location specified in the TraceWorX Configurator Learn more

  • Pack and Go packages, database backups, SQL Server transaction log backups, exported reports, and virtual machine snapshots of the system

  • The local configuration cache on every server where it is enabled, including redundant servers

  • GENESIS settings and cached data on client computers that ran GraphWorX, Workbench, or other GENESIS clients, and on mobile devices that ran MobileHMI

Deleting a file or database with standard Windows or SQL Server commands does not overwrite the data, so the data can often be recovered from the storage media. Delete sensitive files with a secure deletion tool that overwrites the data, or sanitize the storage media as described in Disposing of Storage Media.

Disposing of Storage Media

Some data cannot be removed reliably by deleting it, for example data on solid-state drives, in database files that SQL Server has already reused, or in Windows paging and hibernation files. Before you dispose of, reuse, or return storage media that held GENESIS data, sanitize it according to NIST SP 800-88, Guidelines for Media Sanitization or your organization's media sanitization policy.

  • Choose the sanitization method (clear, purge, or destroy) based on the sensitivity of the data and whether the media will leave your control.

  • Use cryptographic erase for self-encrypting drives and for drives encrypted with BitLocker, and use purge or destroy methods designed for solid-state drives.

  • Include all media that held GENESIS data, such as server and workstation drives, virtual machine disks and snapshots, backup media, removable media, and the storage of cloud-hosted virtual machines.

  • Reset or physically destroy USB license keys that are no longer used.

  • Record the sanitization of each device, for example with a certificate of sanitization, to support audits.