Building Automation Knowledge Base

Issue Trend Chart shows dotted line across the screen instead of expected chart data. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation Enterprise Server Building Operation Automation Server Cause Chart is waiting for a new record possibly caused by incorrect time in the Enterprise/Automation Server Resolution When waiting for a new record, the trend chart draws a dotted line (1) from the last recorded value and forward.  When a new value is recorded, the dotted line between the last and the new record is replaced by a solid series of lines.  Please see Trend Charts. Check the start time (2) and end time (3) period being observed in the chart includes data readings.  Additionally, ensure the Network Time is set appropriately .    

Issue When installing Building Operation software i.e. License Administrator, Workstation, etc. the following error may show: "This software requires .NET Framework version 4.7.2" Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation installers Microsoft .NET Framework Cause Building Operation requires .NET Framework 4.7.2 or greater to install and function Resolution Most Windows machines have the latest version of Windows installed and updated for security reasons. If for some reason an older version of Windows hasn't been updated then it may show the error until .NET has been updated.   Here is a Microsoft article that shows how to determine what version of the .NET Framework is installed on the Windows PC. How to: Determine which .NET Framework versions are installed There are several methods, this is the registry method:   Windows 10 version 20H2 includes 4.8 as part of its default components. It is recommended to upgrade Windows to this version or greater.   Once the version of .NET Framework is upgraded, the error dialog will no longer appear

Issue Values from a third party BACnet device display the question mark character (?) instead of the correct engineering unit. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation Enterprise/Automation Server Building Operation Workstation Third party BACnet device Cause The BACnet Standard revisions support a list of engineering units as enumerations, as shown in the extract below: - Enumeration Unit Unit type 0 square-meters Area 1 square-feet Area 2 milliamperes Electrical 3 amperes Electrical …. …. …. The question mark (?) placeholder is used when Building Operation reads an unknown BACnet unit enumeration identifier.  It is either a unit from a later revision of the standard, that has not been implemented by Building Operation yet, or it is a unit that is proprietary to the devices vendor. Resolution Based on different BACnet revisions, Building Operation can interpret the enumeration of units but proprietary units may not be handled correctly since these can vary by vendor, model and even the software version.   Any lookup is specific to the vendor, model and software version. The vendor of the third party equipment should be approached to modify their implementation according to the BACnet standard.  Additionally please see Points from an MPM display ? 

Issue DHCP server is required to assign addressing to IP devices Product Line TAC IA Series, EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment I/A Series Jace 8000 I/A Series ScheniderMPx Modules Building Operation Multi-purpose VAV  Building Operation Multi-purpose Controller Building Operation Room Controller (RPC) 24 V Building Operation IP-IO Cause When working with the SchneiderMPx modules for engineering Spacelogic devices, the Jace can be used as a DHCP server for the field devices. Resolution This video discusses how to; - Configure the second IP network port for DHCP server use - Add an additional IP Port to the Jace station  

Issue Is EBO External Log Storage with PostgreSQL and TimescaleDB tested on Linux? Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation Timescale Database Cause Need to install External log storage with PostgreSQL on Linux. Resolution Quality assurance testing has been performed by Schneider Electric with TimescaleDB and PostgreSQL installed natively in Windows enviroment. Other deployment scenarios have not been tested by Schneider Electric. For tested Windows versions, check: Information Technology System Planning Guide

Issue When attempting to edit a graphic on an SBO/EBO ES or AS the Graphics Editor, Function Block Editor or Script Editor reports it has lost connection. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation Workstation Building Operation Automation Server Premium Cause A second instance of the workstation is running on the same computer The firewall is blocking the connection. The password was recently changed during the same session Workstation is connected via HTTPS but there is no valid certificate Resolution Solution 1 If using Remote Desktop (RDP) to access the SBO/EBO ES remotely, a second instance of the workstation could be initiated. Close the workstation on both the remote connection and at the SBO/EBO ES. Then open the workstation either at the SBO/EBO ES or via remote connection, not both.   Solution 2 Check if the firewall has been enabled while logged in to the SBO/EBO ES or AS, and disable the firewall Here is an example for McAfee   Solution 3 Make sure the network information (such as gateway) for the PC is entered correctly.   Solution 4 If you just changed the password of the logged in user, log out and in again   Solution 5 Workstation is connected via HTTPS but there is no valid certificate. Ensure that certificates are installed and trusted on the workstation/server so that no certificate warnings are received or use HTTP to connect to the server.   Solution 6 Update the Certificate Revocation List as described in First time a TGML graphic is opened after logging in it takes a long time for the graphic to load.

Issue What are the basic steps when doing a conversion from TAC Vista to EcoStruxure Building Operation (EBO)? Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation Enterprise Server Building Operation Automation Server Premium Vista Server Cause When doing a conversion from TAC Vista to EcoStruxure Building Operation (EBO), a tool called TAC Vista Conversion tool is used to build the EBO database using an export file from TAC Vista. Resolution This video shows a basic conversion of a TAC Vista database to EBO, and the steps that needs to be taken for a successful conversion.

Issue During certain situations, it may be required to switch from a hardwired to a wireless connection or wireless to a hardwired. In addition, you may be required to replace a failed NIC card with a new variant that may or may not be the same in terms of connection type. Other more rare situations where a technician travels with a laptop that has PCT "SERVER" mode installed would also be affected. Example: PCT Version - 1.1.2.57 Server mode was set up on a physical server that has two NIC cards. The initial setup was performed on NIC1 and now we are required to utilize NIC 2 which is wireless as a temporary solution. NIC card 1 is disabled and NIC card 2 is set up with the same IP details as NIC card1. In addition, the wireless network is an extension of the original network that was configured in NIC card 1. The server then gets rebooted. Once the server is up you start PCT and attempt to open a project. You receive the following errors: "VBoxManager.exe: error: Nonexistent host networking interface" "Failed to open project."    Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Windows Client versions (64 Bit Only) Windows Server versions (64 Bit Only) PCT SERVER versions (64 Bit OS Only ) SBO Project Configuration Tool All versions Cause During the initial setup of Project Configuration Server mode, you are prompted to select a network interface card from a list of available NICs. PCT requires that you continue to use the same interface and if you change your connection type at the windows level PCT has no method of knowing this and will not be able to connect to previously created projects. PCT will produce the following complaint as seen in the log below: "Nonexistent host networking interface"   You can find the log path as follows: C:\ProgramData\Schneider Electric StruxureWare\Building Operation\Project Configuration Tool\loggermodule "ProjectsModule.log"   Resolution There are two solutions to address this: Revert your connection type back to the original Network Interface Card. Reboot the machine. Open PCT and attempt to get back into the project. If the idea is to stick with a different NIC, you would simply need to reinstall PCT and select the new NIC during "SERVER" mode setup. Reboot the machine. Open PCT and attempt to get back into the project.

Issue After setting up a REST gateway in SmartConnector, how can it be tested to see that it is working using the built in test client called Swagger? Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation Enterprise Server Building Operation Enterprise Central SmartConnector   Cause Swagger is a built in test REST client which can be used to read and set values in EBO. So it can be used instead of a "real" REST client to test the REST gateway in the SmartConnector and test that the connection between SmartConnector and EBO is working. Resolution The objective in this video is to set up a REST gateway in SC and show how we can test that the gateway is working using the built in test REST client called Swagger. Please see video.

Issue Receive alarm messages as "Server does not exist or access denied", "08001: [FreeTDS][SQL Server]Unable to connect to data source" or "08S01: [FreeTDS][SQL Server]Unable to connect: Adaptive Server is unavailable or does not exist" when using SQL Server Express for External Log Storage even though login credentials are correct. 08001: [FreeTDS][SQL Server]Unable to connect to data source 08S01: [FreeTDS][SQL Server]Unable to connect: Adaptive Server is unavailable or does not exist" Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Enterprise Server Workstation External Log Storage SQL Server Cause SQL Server Express is using Windows Authentication and/or the TCP/IP network protocol is disabled. Resolution To use external log storage with SQL Server Express the User must be able to login with SQL Server Authentication (e.g. a username and password) and the TCP/IP Network protocol must be enabled.  Consult Setup External Log Storage using MSSQL for additional details.   Check SQL external log storage host address: In the host address type the IP address or DNS name of your external log storage, without the SQL instance name. Having the SQL instance name in the host address can cause communication failure if EBO server is connecting to remote SQL server, refer to: Microsoft SQL Server - Basic Tab. To check the User login credentials: Open SQL Server Management Studio and enter the details from EcoStruxure Building Operation into the SQL Server connection window.  Choose SQL Server Authentication (A), enter the server details (1), user name and password (2) and attempt to login. If an error message appears indicating cannot connect and the credentials are correct it is possibly SQL Server Authentication is not enabled. Login to the SQL Server using Windows Authentication and follow the Microsoft article Change server authentication mode to set to 'SQL Server and Windows Authentication mode'. Attempt to login to SQL Server and the specific database should be visible. To enable the TCP/IP Network protocol:  Open SQL Server Configuration Manager (1) In the SQL Server Network Configuration menu, select Protocols for SQLExpress (2) Right-click TCP/IP (3) and select Properties (4) In the window that opens, click the IP Addresses tab (5) Either set a different port number for each one of the IP addresses or simply set one for all (6).  The default is 1433 but will need to be a port that is free.   Click OK. Back in the SQL Server Management Studio ensure the SQLExpress service is restarted. For additional information please consult Default SQL Server Network Protocol Configuration and Enable or disable a server network protocol            

Issue When using EBO's registration page, the registration website that is opened allows the user to login and enter the new system ID, however, the user then cannot proceed any further. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation WorkStation Cause The link https://registration.smartstruxure.schneider-electric.com/, which redirects to the https://registration.smartstruxure.schneider-electric.com/WebConnectUI/RegisterUser/home This page may not allow the user to complete the site’s registration with the new system ID. Resolution Register the site’s EBO new system ID using the following website address. https://registration.smartstruxure.schneider-electric.com/ebo/Home

Issue When trying to change a BACnet value unit, the following error message pops up Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment EcoStruxure Building Operation Cause Using a unit that is not supported by BACnet standard or using a prefix with a unit that doesn't support a prefix in BACnet. In the following example, we can see the "Airflow Input" has the kPa unit. Now, if the user wants to change the unit to N/M 2 , without removing the prefix k(10 3 ), an error pops up upon saving the settings.   Resolution Make sure to select a unit that is supported by the BACnet protocol. Supported engineering units in BACnet are listed in BACnet standard, ASHRAE 135 clause 21, refer to BACnet Engineering Units enumerations. To resolve the issue in the above example, the user needs to omit the prefix before selecting the unit OR  They need to make sure the selected unit supports that prefix.    

Issue When using an Echelon U10/U20 USB or other Lon network adaptor for communication with a laptop and standalone WorkPlace Tech, not WorkPlace Tech Editor, you must change the default configuration settings.  The default Lon Network Domain ID length (1 byte), Domain ID (18 decimal) and Subnet (254) in the AS-P conflicts with the defaults used by WorkPlace Tech. Product Line TAC IA Series, EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment I/A Series WorkPlace Tech (Lon Network communication settings) Building Operation Automation Server Premium Building Operation Enterprise Server Cause Lon Network configuration Resolution Look at the LonWorks Network "Advanced" tab in the AS-P to determine the addressing information. Open the WorkPlace Tech WorkStation Communication Settings and select LonWorks.  Open the Change Address window Select the "Manual Setup" radio Button Modify to match the AS-P Lon Works Network configuration.  If a different Domain ID or subnet has been assigned in the AS-P, it will need to be assigned the same in WorkPlace Tech You can now browse the LonNetwork from the laptop.  If the MNL devices are assigned applications from the AS-P, do not modify the programs from the WorkPlace Tech Tool  

Issue When external internet access is not possible an alternative NTP Server is required to allow ES and AS to by time synchronized onsite. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Enterprise Server / Automation Server on closed network Eg Windows 7 Cause AS will not synchronize the time with a local NTP such as Windows 7 (32 or 64 bit) without it first being configured. Even then, increasing Cyber Security features within EBO means that the use of a 3rd Party NTP is becoming a much better option. Resolution Preferred Solution The very best option for the latest versions of EBO would be to investigate. Meinberg NTP which is a third party NTP server that runs on the Win7 or Win10 OS and provides NTP by synchronizing with four or more Internet clocks and is a trusted time source in NTP.  It is not an officially supported PSS tool, but it does fix the issue of the ES/AS not trusting the time.   Windows 7  Config If you still wish to attempt the Windows 7 NTP option first the procedure to setup is as follows:    In the 'Services' window (part of Administrative Tools) Stop the 'Windows Time' service if already running. The 'Startup Type' could be set as Manual or Automatic depending on the user needs. In the Registry Editor following changes to be made under the Key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\W32Time: ** Config -> AnnounceFlags = 5. ** HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\W32Time\TimeProviders\NtpServer -> Enabled = 1. Start the 'Windows Time' service in the 'Services' window(part of Administrative Tools). Note: NTP uses UDP Port 123 Below is a Wireshark capture using filter udp.port == 123 indicating the “Leap indicator” bits are 11, meaning “clock unsynchronized”. NOTE: The NTP client in the AS may ignore the time sent by the NTP server if the root dispersion is greater than 'X' seconds (unknown at this time). See Automation Servers ignore time sync message sent from Windows NTP server that uses local internal clock for information on how to determine whether this is a problem at the site and how to resolve it. Note: Test Lab results show that once validated and synchronized, the AS asks the time from the NTP about every 17 minutes. Two enhancements have been requested for a future release: Workstation gets an alarm if the NTP is not a valid reply A tick box setting in Workstation so the ES/AS can accept an invalidated reply(time)

Issue Some attributes used within Continuum PE programs on b3/i2 controllers are no longer appropriate with EBO Script programming Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment b3 Infinet Building Operation Server Script Programming Cause Some attributes used within Continuum PE programs on b3/i2 controllers are no longer appropriate or cannot be used with EBO Resolution An example of this would be the ElecValue attribute for an input or output. This can be used within the Conversion field of an input but cannot be used within a Script Program or Script Function. The Continuum example PE program for an STR502 or STR504 includes the line "If STR5xx ElecValue <= 0 then Return Upper" The correct result can be obtained within SmartStruxure by dropping the "ElecValue", so "If STR5xx <= 0 then Return Upper" Then ensure the STR5xx analog input is a Voltage type with no conversion configured. Note: The ElecValue keyword can still be used in the Conversion line of an Analog Inputs (e.g. for Counter input scaling). Some other Attributes not supported in Script Programming are: Size LogType

Issue When attempting to enable .NET Framework 3.5 on Windows using the DISM command mentioned in the WebReport installation guide, the attempt fails with error 1910 Command: dism /online /enable-feature /featurename:NetFX3 /all /Source:e:\sources\sxs /LimitAccess Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool Version: 10.0.14393.0 Image Version: 10.0.14393.0 Error: 1910 The object exporter specified was not found. The DISM log file can be found at C:\WINDOWS\Logs\DISM\dism.log Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment WebReports Cause The Windows Modules Intaller service is not operating correctly, and has to be restarted. The service is however protected, so this can not be done through the services control panel. Resolution Kill "TrustedInstaller.exe" from the Windows task manager (CTRL+SHIFT+ESC) Start the "Windows Modules Installer" service from Windows services (Start->Run->services.msc) Try again, either using the command or the SBO Reports Preparation tool.

Issue When importing an XIF into SmartStruxure, errors can be generated that vary in nature. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment SmartStruxure Enterprise Server SmartStruxure Automation Server Building Operation Workstation Cause The XIF does not import successfully for a variety of possible reasons: There exists a device template in the server already that contains the same device ID as the XIF that is being imported.  The XIF does not comply with the LonMark Device Interface File Reference Guide published by LonMark. Resolution Before performing any of the steps below: Import the XIF file provided by the manufacturer of the Lon controller - if the manufacturer did not provide a XIF, try searching the LonMark product catalog If the provided XIF does not work, upload the XIF from the device to ensure that it is the correct file by following How to extract an XIF out of a Lon controller. Use the SBO SNVT Support tool found on The Exchange to identify unsupported SNVT's. Work through the troubleshooting steps below.   Device Template Fails without an Error This issue has been seen in some of the older versions of SmartStruxure (1.5 and older) and upgrading to the latest version will resolve the issue in many cases. If the issue occurs at the latest version of SmartStruxure: Use the SBO SNVT Support tool located on The Exchange to identify unsupported SNVTs. If the SBO SNVT Support tool does not identify any unsupported SNVTs, then send the XIF in to Product Support for further investigation.    Device Template Already Exists In order to complete the import of the XIF, follow these steps. Delete all controllers in that database that are using the device template that has the same device ID as the XIF file you are trying to import.  Now import the XIF again. Select the server in the system tree on the left and go to File > LonWorks import > Device Template. Click the Browse button and select the XIF you want to import. Click Import. Note: When the import is complete it will have overridden the old device template with that device ID. Two device templates with the same device ID will not be able to reside in the same database. For more information about device templates see Delete Device Templates.   Detailed Error Prompt with Specific Fields Listed Some examples of the detailed errors include but are not limited too: "Field X has error(s). The string must between X and X characters. nvoActualCapacity has X characters" on row X. "Field X has error(s). The number must between X and X. Field X has value X." on row X. "Field X has error(s). The value must be X but was X." on row X. Space or tab are not allowed in field 0Node Object on row X.   To Address these issues: Download Notepad++ to be able to better navigate the XIF by row number. Using Notepad++, open the XIF. NOTE: Backup the original XIF just in case there is a mistake when modifying. Find the row and field number prompted by the error messages and modify them accordingly. All the rules can be found in LonMark Device Interface File Reference Guide published by LonMark. Import the XIF again to verify whether it works. If not, contact Product Support for further investigation.

Issue When discovering the SLP Series Living Space Sensors they show up in the BACnet discovery summary as Non-conformant. Attempting to add this non-conformant sensor results in a WorkStation error similar to the following:  Validation Error Workstation Error in "~/BACnet Interface/MSTP Network/Living Space Room Unit 4E5932F5_«1»_07/ForeignAddress". Property value "<device, 10000>" already assigned to "~/BACnet Interface/MSTP Network/SLPSTC2/ForeignAddress". COML Validator0 Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment BACnet MSTP Living Space SLP Series Air Quality Sensors Living_Space_REV2.05.21 Cause Building Operation does not allow duplicate BACnet IDs and hence, during discovery, if a device is found with a BACnet ID (Object Identifier) the same as an existing device it shows as a non-conforming BACNet device. The default device ID for SLP devices should be equal to (Vendor ID * 1000) + MAC Address. Where vendor ID is our Schneider Electric BACnet vendor ID = 10 and the MAC address is unique to each devices MAC address DIP switch setting. This will be corrected in a future release of the Living Space firmware.  Until corrected, and since the Device ID is a read/write attribute the customer is able to change it to avoid duplicates on the bus. Unfortunately, Building Operation does not currently have a method to write a new device ID. Resolution The current workaround is to use a third-party BACnet Explorer such as Yet Another BACnet Explorer (YABE) to write a new device ID value. Once the new ID has been updated the SLP device can then be rediscovered within Building Operations'. 

Issue Firewall issues when trying to reach out to the activation server for a license Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, Satchwell Sigma, TAC Vista Environment Building Operation Licensing Firewall Cause If the corporate network has a very restricted firewall policy or rules, the port needed to reach and activate a license may be blocked. Note: The same license server is used for EcoStruxure Building Operation, Satchwell Sigma and TAC Vista software licenses. Resolution Open Port 443 (HTTPS) for the server hosting the license server, and ensure that the routing paths to the Flexnet Licensing server URL's are all fully open. The Licensing Server URL should be opened from the site, and it is: https://schneider-electric.flexnetoperations.com If the site of the old server has issues with the non secure communications or the communications forwarding between the previous and the new server, there is a tool available to configure EBO to only use the new server. See the Exchange Community article for the download: SBO License Setup Note: From EBO V2.0 only the new license server is used, port 80 is no longer required and HTTP is redirected to HTTPS.

Issue When using the 20k (Honeywell) thermistor type on an EcoStruxure IO Module, the temperature value does not change and reads an inaccurate value. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation Workstation Building Operation Automation Server IO Module Cause The 20k (Honeywell) thermistor type does not work properly in Automation Server IO module firmware versions 2.009 and older. Resolution Check and upgrade the Automation Server IO module firmware to the latest version. Follow the steps below: Select the module in the System Tree (1) and on the Properties tab (2) check the Firmware version (3) If the firmware requires upgrading the latest version can be downloaded from The Exchange Download Centre.  For instructions on how to upgrade the firmware see Upgrading Automation Server IO Module Firmware.