Building Automation Knowledge Base

Issue Netcontroller power supply is not working as expected. Environment NC1 NC2 CX9900 CX9680 PS120 UPS Cause Problems with Netcontroller power supply. Resolution UPS not working Replace failed 5 Amp pico fuse (located on PC board adjacent to the UPS cable connector) UPS cable or connector has failed or is defective. Insufficient UPS battery capacity is attached to the UPS connector.  UPS requires two 12 VDC batteries). UPS Batteries are not sufficiently charged or have failed. No Power to NetController 3 Amp Slow-Blow fuse has failed.  (located on PC board adjacent to 120 volt power connector). Power switch is shut off. Insufficient supply voltage. General Mode switch is in the wrong position (See manual) Click here to download the PS manual

Issue Often data is required to be exported out from the Continuum system for record keeping or for further analysis, what keywords can be used to help with this? Environment Cyberstation Plain English programs - all versions. Microsoft Excel Product Line Andover Continuum Cause Specific help is available in the product for specific keywords but how can these be put together to export data to .CSV format. Resolution As we do not advocate 3rd party system trying to directly extract data from the Continuum database, you should create a Plain English program in a Workstation that can export logged data directly from the controllers out to a .CSV or .TXT file.   Keywords to use for this purpose are: OpenFile WriteFile CloseFile   Details of the above Keywords are available in the Cyberstation internal help pages.   The attached example dump file could be run on a daily basis to extract temperature logs from a controller and save them to files with a date stamped naming convention.   Click to download the example WriteFile dump file. 

Issue InfinityInput configured as counter does not count any pulses. Environment i2 devices B3 devices IOU modules Cause Here are two common reasons why the counter input may not be counting as expected: 1. No accumulation logic used with input. 2. Signal from the count source does not conform to specifications. Resolution 1. No accumulator logic used with input. The value of a counter input is reset to zero at every scan, in order to maintain the count value an accumulation strategy must be used, this can be accomplished via a conversion at the input or by using a PE program to accumulate the count in an InfinityNumeric object. a) Enter the following conversion in the counter input’s conversion field: Value + ElecValue Or b) Use the following logic in a PE program CountAccumulator = CountAccumulator + WaterMeterCount  (Where CountAccumulator is an InfinityNumeric object and WaterMeterCount is the name of the counter input)   2. The signal from the count source (Water meter, Power meter etc) does not have the minimum pulse width required by the input. For example, Infinet 2 devices (i.e. i2687) only support counter signal with a maximum frequency of 4 hertz and a minimum pulse width of 125 milliseconds. The DI8 IOU module has 2 channels that support counts of up to 10Khz with a pulse width as short as 50 microseconds. XPUi modules support counter inputs with a frequency up to 140 Hz and a minimum pulse width of 3.5 milliseconds. Refer to the manual for your count source (Meter) and verify the signal generated by it complies with the requirements of the Continuum hardware. For more information see the attached Infinity Technical Journal article. It describes several ways to reset the counter.   Note: Some meters will put out a pulse with a voltage equal to the supply voltage. In this case add a relay so the controller sees a dry contact per pulse.    

Issue Need to mirror a switch port in order to capture controller data with Wireshark.   Product Line Access Expert, Andover Continuum, EcoStruxure Building Expert, EcoStruxure Building Operation, TAC IA Series, TAC INET, TAC Vista Environment NETGEAR Prosafe Plus Switch Cause Need a step-by-step guide to set up a mirrored port and an understanding of how it works.  Resolution View the attached video.   Use the link to the original post in Area360 to get written instructions.

Issue Resource Advisor platform, which serves as a repository for water, gas, and electric invoices, enabling customers to focus on evaluating metered data. Assisting organizations that are committed to sustainability. Setup information. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, EcoStruxure Resource Advisor Environment Building Operation Automation Server Premium Building Operation Enterprise Central Building Operation Enterprise Server Cause Information on setting up Resource Advisor is not available for download Resolution Click this link for an overview of Resource Advisor. Attached is a more detailed document including EBO Setup Guide and links for additional Resource Advisor information.

Issue Muster Report triggered to generate and print Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Muster Reports on a Continuum site Cause With Muster Report loaded, can you trigger from a input (example: fire alarm) for a report to be generated and automatically print? Resolution With some workstation PE programming, you can launch the Muster Report to automatically print. You will need to install and configure the "Plain English Alarm Function" available from Can Plain English interact with the Continuum Alarm Engine? This will trigger a workstation Function each time an alarm is received. You will write PE code to detect the specific alarm and/or point, then "Shell" to launch the Muster Report. Please find the attached Muster Report User Guide and .dmp file which is renamed as .txt file which should be useful.

Issue How to Lockdown your facilities using Continuum area/door lockdown functionality. Product Line Andover Continuum Environment CyberStation CX9680 ACX5740/20 Cause Need a fast and efficient way to lock down multiple areas in one operation when a threat is perceived at a site. Resolution The Continuum Physical Access Control System supports an advanced feature that allows for quickly locking down parts of or an entire building or campus via the areas/doors that are under physical access control by the Continuum system. This functionality is available in second-generation access controllers such as the CX9680 (NC2) and the CX5720/5740(ACX2) In Continuum, lockdown of an area or door means that access to the area/door via the physical access control system is restricted in such a way that prevents the movement of individuals into the locked-down area/door as well as keeping individuals from leaving the area/door under locked down. Locking down an area automatically locks down all doors associated with the area; Continuum also allows doors to be locked down individually. When a door/area is locked down, all credential access attempts and exit requests are denied. The only way to gain access into the locked-down door/area is by the use of a credential that has been designated with ‘Executive Privilege’ in the system. Note though, that a person with executive privilege may gain access into a locked-down area/door via the credential reader but if the mode of egress from the area is via Exit Request then such person would not be able to exit the door thru the normal exit request mechanism as there is no way for the person to indicate her ‘executive’ privilege by any means other than presenting the proper credentials (card or PIN) at a reader. This document outlines several methods of implementing area lockdown for a building or campus such as a school, the methods outlined in the document are provided for illustration purposes only and are not to be taken as a complete solution but rather as general guidelines. On legacy controllers that do not support the Area Lockdown feature (CX99xx, ACX7xx), we can still secure the doors by setting their state to disabled which prevents the doors from processing credential access attempts as well as Request to Exit, please note that in this case, NO ONE (including executive privilege personnel) will be able to gain access to the door until it is re-enabled How to Lockdown your facilities using Continuum area lockdown outlines several methods of implementing area lockdown for a building or campus such as a school, the methods outlined in the document are provided for illustration purposes only and are not to be taken as a complete solution but rather as general guidelines.

Issue Cannot establish communications to Modbus RTU using BCX X-Driver on Comm2 Environment BCX 4040 Modbus RTU Cause Configuration of BCX to communicate with Modbus RTU device Resolution This excerpt from the Modbus RTU guide describes the parameters to configure the X-driver for Modbus RTU communications using the BCX. Click Here

Issue What HHC (Hand Held Console) cable do I need to connect to a DCU, UCI, or PCU? Product Line TAC INET Environment I/NET HC7410 HHC (Handheld Console) Cause Can not locate documentation to indicate which cable is required. Resolution Original HHC: The part number is 602135-0003. It is a six foot (or 1.8 m) coiled, silver modular cable. Refer to the appropriate controller TCON for more details.   HHC (Hand Held Console) is also called the HC7410. Refer to TCON 073 for more details. Updated USB HHC: This is the replacement for the HHC. TCON318 has more information. The HHC-USB-IF cable allows you to connect the hand-held console (HHC) port of a TAC I/NET device to the USB port of a PC. You can then use the HHC emulator running on the PC to configure the I/NET device’s controller LAN address, tap emulation, baud rate settings, monitor and control points, and perform the other typical local maintenance functions supported by the earlier HC7410 console product. The HHC-USB-IF cable can be used with the model 7716, 7718, 7756, 7780, 7790A, 7700, 7740, and 7750 Distributed Control Units (DCUs), and the model 7760 UCI

Issue Can I use a Setpoint Adjust Device (LTS80 Setpoint Adjust Knob or S/STAT Setpoint Adjust Slider) on most Controllers? Product Line TAC INET Environment LTS80 Setpoint Adjust Device S/STAT Setpoint Adjust Slider Cause Provide users with a physical knob or slider to control the space temperature setpoint. Resolution With a little programming it can be done. Refer to Tech Tip G074.

Issue webClient schedules getting error 'request for permission of type' system.security.permissions Product Line Andover Continuum Environment webClient Cause Require to run the Caspol commands. Resolution Run the Caspol commands, here is a batch file that runs these commands without typing them in. Click Here to download the batch file   Rename the caspolwebclient.txt to .bat Run the batch file at each WS that needs to access webclient schedules. Below are the actual commands: The following command will add FullTrust to the Internet_Zone in DotNet 2.0: C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\caspol.exe -m -addgroup Internet_Zone -zone InterNet FullTrust -name FullTrust The following command will add FullTrust to the Trusted_Zone in DotNet 2.0: C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\caspol.exe -m -addgroup Trusted_Zone -zone Trusted FullTrust -name FullTrust This will result in output like: The operation you are performing will alter security policy. Are you sure you want to perform this operation? (yes/no) Then select Y and you should see: Added union code group with "-zone" membership condition to the Machine level. Success In some configurations, you may need to add the IIS computer into Internet Explorer as a trusted site for each browser. Internet Explorer > Internet Options > Security > Click trusted Sites > Click Sites Type in http://yourservername/webclient and click Add (Ex. http://tacweb/webclient) Deselect the checkbox for Require server verification (https:) for all sites in this zone. Click OK and Ok Close Internet Explorer and access webclient See Removal of MS KB2858725 Dot Net 4.5.1 causes issues with Web Servers IIS Functions if this is for 1.94 SP1 - Uninstalling KB2858725 * It may be necessary to give specific permissions in the registry if you are seeing system.permissions.UIPermission, mscorlib Make a backup of the From Windows, Start> Run> Regedt32.exe Expand the hives(folders) to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{00B01B2E-B1FE-33A6-AD40-57DE8358DC7D}\InprocServer32\2.0.0.0 Right Click on 2.0.0.0 and select export, name the file and save. (This file can be used to restore the original settings of this branch)  Right click on this folder again and select permissions, select Users and add Full Control See below for snapshots

Issue Instructions and programming example for using SNVT_Switch as an input or output in Menta Product Line TAC Vista, EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Menta Function Block Cause The attached programming example is intended to clarify how to properly use SNVT_Switch in Menta. SNVT_Switch is a structured SNVT with two attributes, or members, State and Value. Programmatically this will be one SNVT in the device template, but it will be programmed as two separate analog points in Menta. These two public blocks will have different names in Menta, but they will share the same SNVT name with the exception of one of the points being the state member, and the other being the value member. It is important to remember that these points must always be programmed as analog points in Menta. AI's for input points, and AO's for output points. The state attribute is intended to be used for a binary on-off signal, but also contain the value -1 for Invalid value. The value attribute is intended to be used as a 0-100% signal. This SNVT is typically used in the market for starting and stopping a VFD drive and sending a speed reference with the same SNVT. The 0,1 value on the state member will start and stop the drive, and the value member will send a 0-100% speed signal. Resolution Please see the attached Menta macro as a guide to using SNVT_Switch in Menta. This example shows you SNVT_Switch as an input and as an output to the Xenta controller. To use this macro please follow these steps: Download the attached macro from above. Unzip the file and extract the SNVT_Switch.MTA from the archive to the local hard drive. Open Menta Right-click in Menta and click Load Macro Browse to the SNVT_Switch.MTA on the local hard drive and open it. It should import into the Menta file that is open.

Issue During a Vista 5.x.x installation, failure can occur during the SQL installation portion of the install. This solution could encompass many different SQL installation errors; however, one that is known and verified is shown below: Failed to create or configure database on SQL Server! ([17] SQL Server does not exist or access denied.) Here is another common one:   Failed to create or configure database in SQL Server ([1802] CREATE DATABASE failed. Some file names listed could not be created. Check related errors.) If you have previously uninstalled Microsoft SQL Server, data files for the database may still exist in the SQL Server data directory. Remove the files manually and click Retry or click Cancel to abort installation. Product Line TAC Vista Environment TAC Vista Server 5.x.x Cause Uninstalling and reinstalling the software can leave pieces of SQL behind. Even if you try to uninstall everything in Add/Remove Programs, left over portions may cause the TAC Vista installation not to be successfully installed. The Program Files\SQL Server directory is flagged for compression or encryption. Installing Vista version below 5.1.5 on a Windows 7 64bit machine will cause this error. Resolution Please check the Windows Event log for the specific installation error. See Viewing, Saving, Sharing Windows Event Logs for Troubleshooting Purposes for information on viewing the Windows Event Log. Consult Log file of SQL installation when installing Vista Server for information on viewing the SQL Server installation log. If the Event log reveals Error 28001, the sa password must meet SQL Server password policy requirements, please refer to the solution provided in Error 28001 - sa password complexity error when installing TAC Vista 5. If not, then please proceed with the resolution below: If the SQL Server installation log file complains that the Program Files\SQL Server\ directory is flagged for encryption or compression then right click on the directory and select properties. The advanced option exposes the check boxes for compression and encryption. If the folder is flagged for compression the it will be visible in blue instead of black font. Remove the encryption or compression flags and apply then reinstall. If the PC operating system is Windows 7 64-bit, install Vista 5.1.5 or higher. Resolution below will not solve the issue. In most cases this is caused by MSXML 6.0 parser. This software is commonly installed by programs using SQL, and also during the TAC Vista installation. If this can't be removed using Add/Remove Programs, you can download a program from Microsoft that cleans up and removes this software (and others). It is called Windows Installer Cleanup. Link to download: msicuu2.exe. NOTE: Microsoft recently removed this utility from the downloads section of their support site. They have this to say about the utility: While the Windows Installer Cleanup utility resolved some installation problems, it sometimes damaged other components installed on the computer. Because of this, the tool has been removed from the Microsoft Download Center. Use this utility with care at your own risk.   In most cases TAC Vista will install successfully after removing MSXML 6.0 parser. For alternative solutions see SQL Express install fails on MSXML 6 and Error when installing SQL 2005 Express on a machine that had previously had MSDE installed .

Issue External resistors are required for Biasing and Terminating RS-485 trunks connected to an Automation Server (AS) Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment SmartStruxure Automation Server (AS) with  RS-485 trunk(s) under it. Field controllers on the RS-485 trunk; for example, the Network 8000 ASD controllers (MZ2, PEM1, etc)  Cause Bias and terminating resistors are not built into the AS hardware. Resolution External resistors are required for Biasing and Terminating RS-485 trunks connected to an  Automation Server (AS). See the Technical Reference Guide, revision 1.3, pages 2723, 2724, and 2771. Also check out the SmartStruxure-RS485-Network Installation Quick-Help video on the Exchange. Biasing and Termination details are now found in the "RS-485 Communications" chapter of SpaceLogic - Hardware Reference Guide

Issue Satchwell ALE series Linear Actuator requires replacement. Product Line Field Devices Environment Satchwell ALE series Linear Actuator installed on Satchwell MJF, MZ, MZF, VJF, VSF, VZ or VZF series Plug and Seat Valve Body.  Actuator type :- ALE series.  Cause Obsolescence of Satchwell ALE series Linear Actuator. Resolution Replace Satchwell ALE series Linear Actuator with Schneider Electric M800 Linear Actuator and Linkage Kit :-   Linkage kit to mount a M800 actuator to a Satchwell valve (MZ,MZF, VZ, VZF, VSF and MJF) = L2SV Replace ALE Actuator with M800 + L2SV combined part number 880-0650-000 Replace ALE with Auxilary Switch kit with M800-S2 + L2SV combined part number 880-0651-000 Just linkage kit = 880-0124-000 Just M800 = 880-0310-030 N.B.  Should the Satchwell ALE series Actuator include a wired Auxiliary Switch then the following Accessory should also be installed on the S-E M800 Actuator as appropriate :-  S2 - Two independent 24 volt 4amp AC-1 rated SPDT Auxiliary End Point Switches. (880-0104-000)   Particular care should be taken when selecting an Schneider Electric Forta M800 Actuator to replace an existing Satchwell ALE series Actuator. The Schneider Electric Forta M800 Actuator may be used to replace an existing Satchwell ALE series Actuator but it should be noted that where an existing Satchwell ALE series Actuator has been connected directly to a Satchwell Controller, an independent Transformer rated to provide the greater level of power required by a single Schneider Electric Forta M800 Actuator (50VA) will also be required. (e.g. Schneider Electric Transformer Type TR60)   Where an existing Satchwell ALE series Actuator has been connected via an independent Transformer, it is possible that the Transformer may have been rated to provide the level of power required by a single ALE series Actuator (9.5VA) only.   In such circumstances the existing independent Transformer may also require replacement by another independent Transformer, rated to provide the greater level of power required by a single Schneider Electric Forta M800 Actuator (50VA) (e.g. Schneider Electric Transformer Type TR60) Details of the Schneider Electric M800 Actuator may be viewed here Details of the Schneider Electric TR60 Transformer may be viewed here

Issue Personnel.csv file fails to import into Continuum No error message is shown Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum access control Keywords: CSV, Import, cardholder, personnel Cause CSV file gets modified by MS excel such that the import fails During the process of manually changing and saving a personnel.csv file within MS excel, a number of commas are added to the first line (corresponding to the number of column fields in the CSV) Resolution Use notepad or similar to delete commas before importing into Continuum as Microsoft Excel does not show up any trailing commas This will NOT import correctly Personnel,,,,, Name,FirstName,LastName,CardNumber,CardType,SiteCode Smith_Fred,Fred,Smith,10,Infinity_37,3701 This will import correctly Personnel Name,FirstName,LastName,CardNumber,CardType,SiteCode Smith_Fred,Fred,Smith,10,Infinity_37,3701 For more information on CSV imports Click Here For an example .csv file for testing Click Here Note: If importing X Driver points using a .csv file the comm port attribute "Port" must always be defined before the X Driver parameters Param1, Param2 etc. The Port must contain the full path e.g. "Network1\CXName\Comm1" Example X Driver Numeric: InfinityNumeric Name,Alias,Format,Description,Port,Param1,Param2,Param3,Param4 XDRPoint1,XDRPoint1,##,First X Driver Point,Network1\CX1\comm4,1,3,10001,1

Issue AVU2201 Replacement Product Line Field Device Environment AVU2201 Cause AVU2201 obsolescence, replacement required. Resolution The replacement actuator is the MZ300S-24F actuator.

Issue EBO 3.2.x SNMP Engine ID seen in EBO 3.2.x is not the one used by the EBO 3.2.x system. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation Workstation (from v3.2) Building Operation Automation Server (AS-P and AS-B) (from v3.2) SNMP Cause EBO 3.2.1 introduced a new SE3Linux operating system for the AS-P and AS-B servers. The engine ID: seen in Device Administrator or Workstation is the engine ID: contained in Linux, this is not the one used by EBO 3.2.x Resolution The SE3Linux engine ID:  “0x80001f8803005006042bd7” viewed using the Device administrator: The SE3Linux engine ID:  “0x80001f8803005006042bd7” viewed using the Workstation The engine ID used by EBO for this example would be: 0x80002a1d03005006042bd7 The difference is always 2a1d compared to 1f88 and the rest of the bytes are the same. For further information see the attached document SNMP SBO 3.2.x Engine ID Explained.

Issue The TGML JavaScript methods alert(), confirm() or prompt() do not work on Advanced Display when using the Webstation app. Nothing happens when the methods are used, and the modal window that is expected is not displayed. See attached TGML file for a graphic example using the JavaScript methods. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation Advanced Display V2 Building Operation Advanced Display V3 Cause The embedded browser in the Webstation app does not support alert(), confirm() and prompt(). Resolution Use other ways to interact with the user that do not use modal windows. It is also likely that the usability of your graphics will benefit from removing the above mentioned JavaScript methods.

Warning Hazard of Electric Shock: Remove all power from all devices before removing any covers or doors of the system. Disconnect power at the device and at the power source. Issue Need for a dual redundancy power supply for the Automation Server. Product Line EBO EcoStruxure Building Operation. Environment Building Operation Automation Server. Cause Understanding how to create a fail-safe power supply for an Automation Server.  Resolution To provide dual power redundancy to an Automation Server, a possible solution can be to use a Phaseo ABL4_ABL8RED24400. This will allow the connection of two 24V PSU's to be connected to the inputs. Then connect the output of the Phaseo ABL4_ABL8RED24400 to the AS's PS-24V See the attached document and diagram for more information.