1. A network cloud based simulation system for simulating operation of a process control network as connected within a process plant, the simulation system comprising: a local supervisor module that is configured as a thin application locally at the process plant configured to collect: a first state variable indicative of a current configuration of the process control network during an operation of the process control network; and a second state variable indicative of an operation of a process during an operation of the process control network from the process plant; and a remote simulation module that is configured as part of a network cloud system, the remote simulation module being communicatively coupled to the local supervisor module via the network cloud system, the remote simulation module comprising: a simulated process control network configured to use one or more simulated process variable signals to produce one or more simulated control signals to provide a simulation of the operation of the process control network as connected within the process plant; a process model, communicatively coupled to the simulated process control network, configured to use the one or more simulated control signals to produce the one or more simulated process variable signals; and an update module, communicatively coupled to the process control network via the local supervisor module, the update module configured to: periodically receive the first state variable being indicative of a current configuration of the process control network during operation of the process control network from the local supervisor module, periodically receive the second state variable being indicative of an operation of the process during operation of the process control network from the local supervisor module, periodically configure the simulated process control network with the first state variable, and periodically update the process model using the second state variable, wherein the local supervisor module is further configured to function as a single consolidated access point to bridge communications between the process control network and the network cloud system and to control when to send the first and second state variables to the update module via communications with the network cloud system, the local supervisor module controlling when to send the first and second state variables to the update module when the local supervisor module has buffered a threshold amount of data including the first and second state variables, and wherein the remote simulation module is further configured to store the first and second state variables-as part of the network cloud system by communicating exclusively with the local supervisor module.