go-profinet
PROFINET IO-Controller and IO-Device: DCP, LLDP, records, I&M, diagnosis, alarms, cyclic RT data, shared device, MRP rings and GSDML. Raw Ethernet on Linux, macOS and Windows. No dependencies.
go get github.com/otfabric/go-profinet← Standards and alliancesIndustry alliance · Industrial · Global
PROFIBUS & PROFINET InternationalPI
PROFIBUS & PROFINET International is the umbrella of the PROFIBUS Nutzerorganisation (PNO) in Germany and the Regional PI Associations around the world. It maintains the PROFINET and PROFIBUS specifications and profiles such as PROFIsafe, PROFIdrive and PROFIenergy, and IO-Link. Certification by an independent PI Test Lab is mandatory for every PROFINET device, members get the specifications, the PROFINET Test Bundle and the PROFINET Community Stack, and regional associations hold Plugfests. The protocols are also in IEC 61158 and IEC 61784 as Communication Profile Family 3.
- Cheapest way in
- Fees not published
- Standards
- PROFINET
- Verified
- 29 Oct 2026
OT Fabric is not affiliated with PROFIBUS & PROFINET International. This profile is independent and based on the organization's own published pages, linked next to each fact. PI is the authority on its terms and fees.
What PI does
- MaintainsPROFINET and PROFIBUS specifications, with the PROFIsafe, PROFIdrive and PROFIenergy profiles, and GSDML
- CertifiesPROFINET certification through PI Test Labs and the PI Certification Office
- PublishesPROFINET Community Stack, for membersSource code for members under the PNO Community Source Code License, not an open-source licence.
Taking part
Each question is separate, because "open" and "free" mean different things here. A yes always means open or free to someone who is not a member.
- Can anyone read the specifications for free?
- NoAccess to the specifications is listed as a member benefit for device manufacturers. The IEC 61158 and 61784 versions are sold by the IEC. profibus.com
- Can anyone take part in the community?
- PartlyMembership runs through a Regional PI Association; member-only training documents and webinars are listed as benefits, while public guides and the PI forum are open. profibus.com
- Can an individual take part for free?
- UnknownThe membership pages describe device manufacturers, users and consultants, and a separate student membership; we found no free individual tier.
- Can an organization join for free?
- Not publishedFees are not on the membership pages; applicants are sent to their Regional PI Association.
- Are technical working groups open to non-members?
- PartlyCompanies that join working groups must accept the TC/WG guidelines, the codes of conduct and the IPR policy; we found no statement on access for non-members. profibus.com
- Can non-members take part in interoperability testing?
- UnknownRegional associations hold Plugfests, such as PI North America's in April 2026 with thirteen companies; the page does not say whether membership is required. us.profinet.com
- Can a non-member certify a product?
- PartlyCertification is mandatory for PROFINET and open to non-members, but the certificate costs EUR 6,000 instead of EUR 1,800, the PROFINET Test Bundle is for members only, non-members must license the patents themselves and may not use the PROFINET logo. profibus.com
- Does it maintain or host open-source implementations?
- NoThe PROFINET Community Stack is free of charge for members only, under the PNO Community Source Code License, which forbids combining it with copyleft code. profinet.com
Membership tiers and published fees
Published examples as listed on the organization's pages on 29 Oct 2026. Where a page does not say whether a fee recurs, we do not guess.
| Tier | Published fee | Who can join | Votes | Working groups | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Member, through a Regional PI Association | Not published | Companies and research institutions; device manufacturers and users and consultants have different benefit sets.Specifications, patent rights, test tools, the Community Stack and certification discounts. | Unknown | Unknown | profibus.com |
Certification and interoperability
- Certification · open to non-membersPROFINET certificationA test at an independent PI Test Lab, paid to the lab, then a certificate from the PI Certification Office: EUR 1,800 for members, EUR 6,000 for non-members. Valid for three years; any change to the device invalidates it. Device certificates for products, technology certificates for stacks, ASICs and evaluation boards. profibus.com
- Test tool · members onlyPROFINET Test BundleThe test software of the certification test, downloadable free of charge by members; non-members have no access. profibus.com
- Plugfest · membership rules not statedPROFINET PlugfestVendors test controllers and devices against each other, often before certification. PI North America's fourth was held in April 2026 with seven controllers and fifteen devices. us.profinet.com
What stands out
PROFINET is the one protocol in this directory where certification is mandatory for every device, and it is open to non-members at a higher fee. The test software is not, so a young company in practice joins before it certifies.
PI's own source code, the Community Stack, is free but members-only and cannot be combined with copyleft code. Open implementers therefore work from public documents, Wireshark's dissectors and each other's behaviour, as go-profinet does with p-net, pnio-rs and profinet-py.
OT Fabric is not a PI member. go-profinet lists what that costs, from official schema validation to certification, in its PI-MEMBERSHIP document, and makes no conformance claim.
Related organizations
Related OT Fabric projects
Independent open-source work on the same protocols. Listing them here does not mean they are certified by or associated with PI.
profinetctl
Discover PROFINET devices, set station names and IP addresses, read I&M, records and diagnosis, map the cabling, check GSDML files, and connect as IO-Controller to watch cyclic IO and alarms.
profinet-interop
Independent PROFINET references in containers: rt-labs p-net and pnio-rs as IO-Devices, profinet-py as IO-Controller, pnio-dcp, two MRP ring nodes, Net-SNMP, and Wireshark and scapy as decoders.
Sources
- Membership profibus.com
- Product certification profibus.com
- The PROFINET Community Stack profinet.com
- 2026 North American PROFINET Plugfest us.profinet.com
- PROFINET Community Stack governance document
- Product certification governance document
Verified on 29 Oct 2026; due for a re-check by 27 Apr 2027 (180 days). Found something out of date? Report a correction or edit the data on GitHub.