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Label: "andover continuum"

View in: "Building Automation Knowledge Base" | Community

2209 Posts | First Used: 2018-09-06

Building Automation Knowledge Base

Issue Is there anything that will convert AC256 drum programs to Continuum Plain English programs? Environment Cyberstation Plain English Cause When doing an AC256 to Continuum upgrade, is there a utility to convert drum programs to Continuum Plain English. Resolution Various partners and branches have written their own utility. Product Support does not distribute or support any of these. The results of most are underwhelming - PE code that looks "drum-ish" and often involves enough clean up that is better when PE is done from scratch. Alternatively, a request for improved or other utilities can be made on the Exchange Community.

Issue What is the accuracy of RTC? Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Site with controllers using the RTC Crystal Quartz chip (controllers such as the ACX) Cause What is the accuracy of Real Time Clock? Resolution When the controller is powered down, the battery-backed RTC Chip has an accuracy of +/- 1 minute per month. When powered on, the controllers use the RTC chip as a reference point but keep time in software. Experience has shown an accuracy of 1 – 2 seconds per month when controllers are offline and not re-synched from the Network. Since that is typical and not calculated, a conservative number would be +/- 10 seconds per month. When Online,the accuracy is determined by Cyberstation which can itself be synched to an extremely accurate NST Server. I2 and B3 controllers are re-synched once per hour. For Sync time in Cyberstation(s) and Server check Sync time in Cyberstation and Server. For more information see What are the differences between a hardware and a software Real Time Clocks (RTC)?. For how field controllers keep their own internal time check How do our field controllers keep their own internal time?

Issue Replaced an AC1Plus with an AC1 and the reader pattern is incorrect Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum AC1 AC1A Cause The AC1/AC1A module only has 1 LED pattern which is Alternate LED pattern, there is no way to alter this. See Description of LED patterns on access readers, and how to change them for description of LED patterns. Resolution If a different LED pattern is required by the site then use an AC1 plus or an ACX57xx which gives the ability to use an alternate LED pattern. See Description of LED patterns on access readers, and how to change them for configuration.

Issue Viconics stats are only showing as offline in Continuum using the "controller status" notification when being accessed Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum Viconics Stats Cause Viconics BACnet stats must be probed in order to return alarms Resolution There are 3 probe types that can be set up in Continuum. Probe, ProbeOnDemand and ProbeOff. These types can be configured in Cyberstation and in the Viconics Stat from Continuum Explorer (Edit>General Tab>ProbeType drop down selection) "Probe Time" can also be adjusted on the Cyberstation (default is 60 seconds) Testing Results Cyberstation Probe Type changed to "Probe", Probe Time=60 seconds. Viconics stat set to it's default of "Probe Off" Remove mstp connector result: no alarm until the Viconics stat is opened (This probes the device) Cyberstation Probe Type changed to "Probe", Probe Time=60 seconds. Viconic stat set to "Probe" Remove mstp connector result: alarm comes in automatically after 60 seconds Probe Type and Probe Time Definitions (Continuum Help) Consider and these options and their affects on the system when making a selection Probe - Probing occurs at the interval specified in Probe Time. The default is 60 seconds. The advantage of this is that CyberStation detects a device going offline regardless of whether or not CyberStation is attempting communications with the device. The disadvantage is excess probe traffic for devices. ProbeOnDemand - Probing does not occur unless a communications transaction with the target device fails. Once a transaction fails then probing occurs at the interval specified in Probe Time until the device comes back online. The advantage is that additional requests to the controller fail immediately. The disadvantage if that node failure is not detected until a CyberStation application needs to communicate with a controller. ProbeOff - Probing does not occur. The advantage is that there is never probe traffic to the device. The disadvantage is that each request to the device fails only after the transaction times out. Also see the following article related to Viconics stats and performance: Problems and cautions when communicating with TAC (Viconics) Bacnet communicating thermostats

Issue After powering off, pressing the reset and Reset IP button a bCX1 controller still will not start up. CPU does not flash and controller will not respond to a ping. Product Line Andover Continuum Environment bCX1-CR-INF 9640 bCX1-CR 4040 Cause The controller is connected to an Ethernet network that is in a broadcast storm condition. This scenario can also occur if a patch lead is inadvertently looped back onto the same Switch/Router. Resolution Disconnect the Ethernet cable from the controller and it will start up correctly. On a very busy network or under a broadcast storm condition the controller will protect itself as detailed in Controllers go offline during a broadcast storm.

Issue What is the best way to update Modbus RTU points through the X Driver? Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum Modbus RTU XDriver Cause Requesting values directly will cause additional polling to occur and may conflict with the Plain English polling program. Resolution Polling of the X Driver points should be performed by a single Plain English program (or sequenced programs) that ensure only 2 requests are made per second (See Typical data throughput rates for Modbus XDrivers). Whenever programs, graphics, alarms, list views etc are going to be used to read the X Driver values then annex points should be used. An Annex point is a numeric point (not an X Driver point) that will get automatically updated by the X Driver if its name is put into Parameter 6 of the X Driver point. Annex points are required for block reads, but even if you are doing an individual value read, this is the most efficient way of mapping the X Driver point value into another point that can be used by the rest of the system. Another advantage of using annex points is that if an invalid or bad value is received by the X Driver, it does not update the Annex point even though sometimes the X Driver point itself can go to a NotSet or a 0 value until the next valid read is received. The annex point always holds the last known good value. Also see Using Modbus RTU X Driver to connect to PM700 and PM750 Power meters for an example application for polling Schneider Electric power meters.

Issue An error message indicates that EPICLM.exe can't be found in data1.cab using the Epi integration for badging or a 1309 when installing Cyberstation Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Windows XP Windows 7 Windows Server 2003 Windows Server 2008 Cause Kaspersky Anti virus is identifying and removing the file from the data1.cab during a scan. Resolution Place the cab file or the EPICLM.exe as an exclusion in Kaspersky's or EST NOD32 scan. For additional information see Kaspersky's website. http://support.kaspersky.com/4084 Note: The data1.cab file may need to be restored from the original CD or Continuum install zip file and then uninstall/reinstall EpiBuilder with the exclusion list in place to repair the problem. See Uninstalling and reinstalling EpiBuilder or error opening EpiDesigner configuration database for more information.

Issue Need to log a User off of a Continuum Workstation from a remote Cyberstation. Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum Cyberstation Cause No documented solution on how to log off a remote Workstation. Resolution If you know the name of the User that is currently logged on, you can open that User object from another Workstation and disable the user. This will immediately log that user off of their current session in Continuum and lock them out of the system until their User object is re-enabled. To determine the name of the User, you can use the solution in Is there a way to determine who is actively logged into CyberStation and onto which workstation? to determine what users are currently logged on to Continuum using the Activity Log.

Warning Potential for Data Loss: The steps detailed in the resolution of this article may result in a loss of critical data if not performed properly. Before beginning these steps, make sure all important data is backed up in the event of data loss. If you are unsure or unfamiliar with any complex steps detailed in this article, please contact Product Support Services for assistance. Issue Getting error inserting a row in the database when refreshing a personnel template. Product Line Andover Continuum Environment CyberStation Cause AreaLink table contains NULL instead of zero in the ClearanceLevel column. Resolution WARNING: Unless knowing exactly what you are doing, deleting entries from your database can cause irreversible harm to your database and can potential cause corruption. Make sure to perform a full SQL Database backup before attempting to make any changes to the database. (See Move / Backup / Restore a database on a Single User SQL2005 Express system for details on how to backup your database and if not already installed, where to get Management Studio from) Run the following query: Update AreaLink Set ClearanceLevel = 0 where ClearanceLevel is null

Issue When using Send to Text to export controller points to a text dump, some points are followed by the following error. VidioId - The object type specified is invalid. Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Video Export Send to Text Cause These errors are usually caused by is a “null” value primed in the DB for those attributes Resolution These errors are benign and should be disregarded. See also Errors when exporting extended log points.

Issue For various reasons it maybe necessary to change a b3's device id, one way to accomplish this is using the RoamIO2 with the BACnet Service Tool. Product Line Andover Continuum, EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment B3 RoamIO2 BACnet Service Tool Cause The device ID of a b3 controller needs to be changed. Resolution Disconnect the b3 from the MSTP network and connect the RoamIO2 directly to the b3's service port. Launch the BACnet Service Tool and in the 'View' menu de-select 'By Networks' and 'BACnet Only' menu entries Click the green icon to make the RoamIO 2 join the MSTP network and discover the b3. (NOTE: If the b3 has not been previously assigned a valid MAC ID see How to change b3's mac ID using RoamIO service tool) Once you see the b3 in the object tree select it then switch to the grid view and double click on the device id value on the 'object-identifier' field. In the 'Property View/Set' window enter the new device id to set and click on apply. You should get a feed back of 'Success!' if the device id was changed.

Issue What are the different values for the Alarm Enable attribute on a Continuum object when viewed in a list view? Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum Alarms All Infinity Controllers Cause The Alarm Enable attribute is a number that represents the binary combination of the 8 possible alarms that can be used on the "Alarm" tab of a Point or a Numeric. Resolution The screenshot shows a numeric that has 2 Alarms enabled, the binary combination of these 2 points would be 3 (Bit 1 + Bit 2). If a third alarm was added and enabled the Alarm Enable Value would change to 7 (1+2+4). If you disable the first alarm leaving just 2 & 3 Enabled the value would be 6 (2+4). The weighting of the 8 bits are: 1 2 4 8 16 32 64 128 When an alarm is not setup it defaults to 255, but if the alarm enables are all de-selected it will be 0. Although Plain English programs cannot write to this attribute you can change the alarm checking under different site conditions or by time of day using the Shunt alarm points 1-4, See Alarm Point Clarification.

Issue Getting error unhandled exception when trying to run a report of extended log data Product Line Andover Continuum Environment CyberStation Cause ACCTrace reveal workstation is handling excessive extended log data (>100,000 lines in ACCTrace in a couple minute) Resolution In the CyberStation properties, set the 'Download extended log data from Controllers on the LAN' to false. Reboot CyberStation If reports runs ok now the Extended logging configuration should be revised. See Extended Logging gaps, performance and load balancing for more information.

Issue Preset isn't working, but video pops up Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Cyberstation Windows XP Windows Vista Windows 7 Windows Server 2003 Windows Server 2008 Cause If record on alarm isn't selected for at least 1 second then the preset will not work Resolution Set record on alarm for at least one second Check that time between the DVR/NVR, Cyberstation and Controllers are in synch Teach Cyberstations and restart Cyber Ensure that none of the Cybers have an error or crash on accvideorecordingsrvc.exe, if so restart Cyber on that PC and try the PTZ alarm again If this is selected then configure the video.log to gather information for PSS For additional information, see How to create a log file for troubleshooting video integration issues in Continuum.

Issue Does Continuum support Windows Server 2012? If not, are there plans for supporting this in a future release? Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum Windows Server 2012 Windows 8 Cause Unsure of the roadmap for support for Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012. Resolution The current version of Continuum (v1.94) only supports up to Microsoft Server 2008 R2 (SP1). The next release of Continuum may support MS Server 2012 if that is the OS commonly available at the time the product is qualified. Update from Marketing "Today the support for Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 is under investigation both from Technology and Market/IT adoption perspective; hence at this moment no timeline nor any commitment for its support can be provided" This won't be addressed until the OS becomes adopted more by the general market. For details on supported Operating Systems for Continuum, consult the Compatibility Matrix link found in Software and Firmware compatibility matrix for older versions of the traditional product lines.

Issue Can the Continuum OPC Server be configured to run as a service to enable the application to start without a user having to log on to the relevant machine? Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum OPC Server Cause Need to have OPC Server running without requiring a user to logon to Windows to start the application. Resolution The OPC Server can not be run as a service. It can only be run as an application which will require a user to logon to Windows and start the application. See OPC Server further information on OPC Server.

Issue When adding a workstation to be used for security can I use a SEC version of the software even though other workstations have Integrated (INT) security keys for HVAC parts of the system? Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum Workstation and Web Client all versions Security Key Dongle Cause Mixing Security key options on different workstations could have undesired effects. Resolution It is not recommended to mix the security key options on different workstations, Continuum uses the Security levels to determine exactly what information a User can see or change. So any system user should be able to log onto any workstation in the system and see the same information. All Keys should also support the same I/O point count and Cyberstation version to operate correctly. An exception to this may be the badging option -B that may only be required on certain workstations. See What are the different options on the CyberStation security key? for a full list of options.

Issue A numeric has been created and has its Setpoint attribute = true. Its value is being calculated and set by a Plain English program. When the controller is reloaded the numeric assumes a different value than expected. Product Line Andover Continuum Environment All controller CX ACX BCX b3 i2 Cause The setpoint attribute is designed to restore the point value that is stored in the ContinuumDB. The database does not know when changes are made to the points value by a Plain English program since this occurs at the controller level and not at the database level. Resolution The setpoint attribute is not designed to restore last calculated value to a point on reload of a controller. Note: For a possible workaround to this involving Plain English programming see How to save array information to a Database so that values are not lost when reloaded.

Issue Do we support the DoubleTake redundancy solution with Continuum? Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum DoubleTake Cause This product used to be available from Andover Controls, is it still available for purchase and support today? Resolution The DoubleTake redundancy solution is no longer supported for use with Continuum. This third-party product (with some additional in-house custom software) has not been supported for quite some time now and there has not been any new development work done on our side of the solution (Failover Manager) for over 10 years. Marathon (AKA EverRun) is the only Disaster Recovery / Redundancy solution we currently support. Also see What are the solutions available for database fail over redundant Continuum system.

Issue The following is a typical entry in a controller error log: 184 I 01/07/2012 16:02:16.19 0x00010000 0x0021a600 0x00177b9a 0x00000000 0x00000136 Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Network controllers Infinet controllers b3 controllers Cause The above entry is an indication of a clock change in the controller. Resolution 184 I 01/07/2012 16:02:16.19 0x00010000 0x0021a600 0x00177b9a 0x00000000 0x00000136 The above entry is just an informational log entry - not an error. This can be seen by the "I" after the line number 184. The three types of entries in the controller error logs are: 'I' (Informational) 'W' (Warning) 'E' (Error) It is not unusual to see the Clock Change entry a few times a day as many sites are set up with a time sync program that runs in one workstation every hour and synchronizes the WS time to the lowest ID network level controller in each network object. In this case there were dozens of entries per hour as there was a looping time sync program updating the clock whenever the time difference was >1 sec. For a program to sync time, see Time sync controllers to workstations.

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AC256 Drum to Continuum PE Conversion Utility

What is the accuracy of Real Time Clock?

AC1/AC1A does not have alternate LED pattern

Viconics stats and controller offline alarms

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When should the Modbus RTU Annex points be used?

Error "1334 EPICLM.exe can't be found" when attempting to print preview, print a badge, or 1309 when installing Cyberstation

How to log a User off of a Continuum Workstation remotely

Error inserting a row in the database when refreshing a personnel template

Object type Specified is invalid when exporting points

How to change b3's device ID using the RoamIO service tool

How is the AlarmEnable attribute derived?

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Cyberstation PTZ preset is not working when a video alarm is triggered

Does Continuum support Windows Server 2012?

Continuum OPC Server cannot be configured to run as a service

Can you mix HVAC and Security versions on the same system?

Limitations of the Setpoint attribute

DoubleTake redundancy solution is no longer supported for use with Continuum

The controller error log indicates many entries marked 0x00010000

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