A configuration system for a process plant includes a routine that automatically provides an indication of the relationships between units and sub-elements of the units, such as equipment and control modules, present within a process plant to a data historian. The data historian, which may be a batch historian, stores these relationships in a configuration file or a database, collects events generated within the process plant and associates those events to the proper unit within the process plant using the stored relationships. The automatic updating of the data historian configuration file eliminates the need for a user to manually update the data historian with these relationships, either at the time the process plant is configured or each time a change is made to the configuration of the process plant.