Building Automation Knowledge Base

Issue After downloading a hotfix for Device Administrator, it is not possible to install a new database onto an Automation Server **. **Note, for this article "Automation Server" will be used as a general term. This applies to all Smart-X controllers (Automation Server, AS-P, and AS-B). Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment AS, AS-P, AS-B  SBO Device Administrator Cause When the Device Administrator hotfix is downloaded to the machine, it replaces the "Full-Installer" version that was already installed. The new hotfix version does not include the necessary firmware to push down onto the Automation Server. This can be misleading because Device Administrator still indicates the base firmware version is present, as shown below. Resolution A full installer (such as 1.8.1.87 or 1.9.1.95) of Device Administrator must first be installed on the machine and used to install the base firmware onto the Automation Server. Then the hotfix version may be downloaded to the PC and used to apply the hotfix to the Automation Server.  **Note - In some instances a hotfix can be a full installer, which will allow for the download of a new database. Such hotfixes will be released either as a full installer or as a maintenance build. The release notes for the particular hotfixes will indicate their full installer build. 

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 Software installation problems with Windows 7 OS and above Configuration problems also known as UAC / User Account Control These problems occur when you receive an error message stating that you do not have the correct administrative rights to continue. Product Line Andover Continuum, EcoStruxure Building Expert, EcoStruxure Building Operation, Satchwell MicroNet, Satchwell Sigma, TAC INET, TAC Vista Environment Windows 7 Windows 8 8.1 Windows 10 Server 2012 Cause Windows 7 and above user administrator privilege settings (UAC) Resolution The solution to this issue is to turn off the user admin settings before the software is installed by following these instructions: Go to Start > Control Panel. Set the view to "small icons" to show all Control Panel icons Click on "User Accounts." Make sure that the account used for installing the software is a full admin user. On this page, click on "Change User Account Control settings", a slider bar that starts with "Never notify" up to "Always notify" by default will be set to "Notify me only when programs try to make changes to my computer" Set it to "Never notify." This will disable all the admin blocks that pop up in installing and configuring software Once set, restart the PC and then continue with your software installation and configuration Once all is installed and working, the feature may be turned back on if required. Additional requirements for Windows server 2012 and Windows 10. Please note: this process may open the "Windows 10 Firewall up" For Windows Server 2012 and Windows 10, additional steps are required to disable User Account Control. Although the slider bar can be set to “Never Notify”, the User Account Control does not disable completely. The User Account Control can be disabled for any user by setting the system registry value “EnableLUA” to zero in the system registry under the registry key “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies\system”. A Windows registration file has been included in the Continuum 2.01 release in order to expedite these additional steps. Or the attached file EnableLUA.zip can be used, unzip and execute.  Supplement: Using the right click "run as administrator" instead of this is not the same. The right click will only run that .exe as an administrator and not the whole install/configuration package, i.e. SQL2005 manager will fail to run if you do not do as instructed above. You will always get an error stating that you do not have permission to run this program.  Alternate Windows 10 Admin. to User privilege for I/Net Seven:   Go to this path: C:\Program Files (x86)\ Inet Seven 1) Rename and move to a new folder these files.       A) INetIoSrv.exe.manifest       B) INetW.exe.manifest       C) If there is a file equalization client, then there is INetEqzMerge.exe.manifest to do this change on as well.  2) Change the DbCreate by doing this:       Another problem for non-admin users will be logging into and using DbCreate. A work-around for that would be to create a new login into the SQL database that could be shared among all DbCreate users and would provide the necessary rights.       Alternate Windows 7 Admin to User privilege for I/Net Seven:  See the attached Document and Manifest Files  

Issue The Project Configuration Tool is installed as a Server. A project can be created but when it should be saved, an error says, "Failed to open project," and "Failed to start VM." Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment PCT version 1.1.1 Cause When PCT is installed as a server PCT, and a project is opened, the computer running PCT must have a connection to the DHCP server in the network. Resolution Make sure that the computer running PCT has a good connection to the DHCP server in the network.

Issue Troubleshooting LON Network communications. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, TAC Vista, TAC IA Series Environment Xenta Controllers MNL I/A Controllers EcoStruxure Building Operation AS-P LPA Protocol Analyzer Cause Intermittent communication failures, high bandwidth, error packages, noise on the line -- these can be difficult to pin down and identify. Resolution These two documents attached produced by Loytec are invaluable resources in troubleshooting a LON network.  The first deals with common causes of noise on LON Wires.  The second details what to do once you've procured an LPA protocol analyzer -- how to use it and interpret data.   For a Vista system, also see Actions for reducing Bandwidth in a Vista network. For an EcoStruxure Building Operation system, also see Bandwidth Throttling.    If an LPA protocol analyzer is not available there is also an option to log the Lon communication to and from the ES, AS-P, or AS-B. To do that you change the debug level from "Information" to "Trace" for: /Automation Server/System/Modules/Trace/Loggers/nsp/nsp.pin/nsp.pin.lon/nsp.pin.lon.comm After the investigation make sure to set the debug level back to "Information" again. For debugging assistance a Tool called SBO Lon Decoder can be used.

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 How to share the thermostat data (room temperature, setpoints) among Xenta 102-AXs? Product Line TAC Vista, EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Xenta 102-AX with or without plug-in Cause Using the wrong SNVT in Xenta 102-AX or sending the nvoEffectSetPt incorrectly will result in different unit behavior among Xenta 102-AXs. Resolution Assign the Xenta 102-AX wired with the thermostat to be the master (A), and other Xenta 102-AXs to be slaves (B to N). Use the built in SNVTs to transfer data from the master to slaves as shown in the diagram below. Sharing space temperature Bind master's nvoSpaceTemp to slaves' nviSpaceTemp. Make sure set Node Minimum Send Time and Node Send Heartbeat to be a non-zero number. (Read more information in Values sent from a 102-AX via SNVT bindings are not making it to the receiving controller.) Sharing setpoint It is recommended to share the setpoint through the normalized nvoEffectSetpt in order to have the same unit behavior between the master and slaves. Read more information about how the nvoEffectSetPt is calculated and displayed in Xenta 102-AX Effective Setpoint (nvoEffectSetPt) Calculation. The steps of sharing the setpoint among Xenta 102-AXs are listed below: Set occupied/unoccupied heating and cooling setpoints on the master and slaves. The suggestion is to use the same setpoints setting on the master and slaves if want all rooms to operate in the same manner. In Xenta 102-AX plug-in Select Operating Parameters tab. Set the Cooling Setpoint and Heating Setpoint to desired value Without Xenta 102-AX plug-in Find SCPTsetPnts under VAV_Controller. Set the Cooling Setpoint and Heating Setpoint to desired values.   Set master's nviSetpoint under VAV_Controller to a desired temperature (eg. 72 °F or 22 °C).   Set the nvoEffectSetpt to be normalized. In Xenta 102-AX plug-in Select Operating Parameters or I/Stat Configuration tab. Under Effective Setpoint Source choose Norm of Heating and Cooling Setpoint Without Xenta 102-AX plug-in Find UCPTvavSelection.ESS under VAV_Controller Set UCPTvavSelection.ESS to 1. (Default is 0: Actual Setpoint).   Bind master's nvoEffectSetpt to slaves' nviSetPoint.   Make sure set Node Minimum Send Time and Node Send Heartbeat to be a non-zero number. (Read more information in Values sent from a 102-AX via SNVT bindings are not making it to the receiving controller.)   Additional Suggestions: If the number of slaves is more than 30, it is better to tier up the transaction as shown below.

Issue Sigma and Windows Server 2012 Product Line Satchwell Sigma Environment Sigma 4.08 Windows Server 2012 Cause Is Sigma 4.08 supported on windows Server 2012 Resolution No version of Sigma is supported on a Windows Server 2012 platform except: Sigma 4.08 can only be installed on Windows Server 2012 when the software is used as a transition into EcoStruxure Building Operation ( EBO ) and used with the correct version of transition component. For full details of Sigma 4.08 versions, build numbers and operating systems supported, see What operating systems is Sigma 4.08 supported to run on?.

Issue After installing an update to SmartXKiosk, an error message is shown when trying to launch the app License file not found. Please contact Schneider Electric. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment SmartX Advanced Display SmartXKiosk Cause The SmartXKiosk update (apk file) needs to be installed on top of the factory delivered version. If the current version of SmartXKiosk is removed before installing the update, some files are missing on the tablet. Also refer to Which address and port does the SmartX Controller Advanced Display use for activation for additional information regarding license activation. Resolution A full installer of the app is needed. Contact Product Support and request a full installer.

Issue A site has to replace a legacy device with newer hardware and wants a continuity of values being read into trend logs. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment This has been tested for I/NET hardware replacement, but the process will work for any device which has values stored in the Extended Trend Log Cause The Extended Trend Log allows users to change the Monitored trend log attribute as needed for continuity of data. This process can be used to ensure that regulations are met regarding requirements for trend data. It is important to ensure that the new trend log is created in such a way that no significant time is lost between samples on the old log and samples on the new log. The Extended trend log will be the warehouse for the long term data of the two source logs to be stored.  Resolution In this example we are looking at an Extended Trend Log which has been collecting values for some time. To Ensure all values are transferred from the Old Log to the Extended Trend Log, Right-Click on the Extended Trend Log and select Activation>Force Transfer Edit the Properties of the Extended Trend Log and delete the Monitored Trend Log which was monitoring the old input value. Save the change to the Extended Trend Log. At this point the log will no longer collect data from it's original input source Locate the new location of the value being monitored. This could be the input an Automation Server, Field device or a logical output of a program. NOTE: Steps 6-9 show the basic process for creating an Interval Trend Log. This may change depending on the new device type or location. For creating I/NET trends, please see Using I/NET trends in StruxureWare Building Operation   Right Click on this new object and select New>Trend Select the identical type and use the identical (or similar) configuration settings. Click OK View a Trend Log list of the new Trend log to verify that it is functional. Edit the Properties for the Original Extended Trend Log Click on the ellipsis to change Monitored Trend Log setting so that the Extended Trend Log now references the newly created trend log. Save the Changes Right click on the Extended Trend Log object and select Activation>Force transfer. View the Extended Trend Log list. You should see the new values after the record of the property changes.

Issue Can a BACnet Automation Server and b3's be programmed offsite with temporary IP addresses? Are there any considerations to be made when moving the system to site and configuring with new IP addresses for the Enterprise Server and Automation Server? Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Enterprise Server Automation Server b3xxx Controllers Cause Do not have complete IP address details for the new project but need to start programming the controllers in the office. Not sure if there will there be any issues when moving this to site. Resolution You can do this programming with a temporary IP address for the AS and then when you get to site Change the AS IP address to whatever is required. See Changing IP address of Automation Server that explains how to change the AS IP address.

Issue After creating the MSTP network from an imported XML file, all devices under the network are offline and the network is unreliable. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment BACnet Cause The MSTP network number is not included in the XML and must be reset manually. Resolution In the MSTP network property window set the Network ID to the appropriate number. Note: To bring the devices online see Importing an exported MSTP network back into StruxureWare Building Operation.

Issue How and when does a Xenta 121 resynchronize floating control outputs? Product Line TAC Vista, EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Xenta 121 - All versions Cause Documented reasons for floating control resynchronization on a Xenta 121 controller. Resolution There are 3 events that cause a Xenta 121 to resynchronize its floating control output logic. These reasons are: After a restart of the controller from a power cycle or reset command. The resynchronization is randomly initiated within the first 42 minutes after this restart. Testing shows an average of 20 minutes. After the controller is powered up and has done it's initial resynchronization, it will resynchronize every 18 hours there after. Commanding the snvt_switch input nviDOResync value member to  >0, and the state member to =1 Please see Programming SNVT_Switch in Menta for instructions on how to program snvt_switch in Menta.

Issue Making all Binary/Digital point types appear the same in a TGML graphic Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment TGML Cause When bringing multiple devices into the same system, 2-state values can be expressed in many different ways.  On/Off 0/1 True/False etc. Resolution Use this snippet Binary Corrector.zip to normalize the text content of all 2-state objects on a single graphics page. Delete existing binds Add this snippet to any text object and set the bound attribute as "Content" Change the True/False properties of the bind to the desired values Also check out the JavaScript Essentials - Episode 3 - Value Types Quick-Help video on the Exchange.

Issue Sigma Transition in StruxureWare Building Operation, where the Sigma controllers and the ES are on different subnets. Globals are not being passed to or from the Sigma system. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, Satchwell Sigma Environment Globals Global values Link addressing Cause This issue is being caused because the Sigma controllers are on a different subnet to the Enterprise server. Sigma global data is passed between controllers using "Broadcast" messages, 192.168.1.255 for instance. These messages are normally stopped by network switches/routers, and are not passed between different subnets. To overcome this, Sigma employs "Link Addressing". For further information on this please review Link Addressing on a Sigma System Resolution As Sigma servers do not make use of the global broadcasts, on a current Sigma system there may not be any Link Addressing in place for the Server subnet, and this will mean that if an ES is placed on that subnet, it will not see any global broadcasts either. When carrying out a Sigma Transition consider if there is a need to pass global data to or from the Sigma system, and if so, add a DNN3 to the subnet and Link Address it..

Issue Can a Webpage be embedded in a TGML Graphics like in Continuum? Environment Workstation Cause Documentation Resolution As of version 1.4 web pages can not be embedded in graphics, however a similar solution maybe achieved using panels, see discussion in the community... https://community.se.com/message/8203

Issue Which substitution codes are available for write to file notification objects? Customer wishes to write dynamic values to file. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment StruxureWare Building Operation 1.3/1.4 Cause When using write to file notification objects it may be desirable to have dynamic text containing actual values etc. Resolution For write to file notifications, the substitution codes can be used in the message but not in the file name. A substitution code for notifications has the form @([property]) where [property] is replaced by one of the alarm properties. If you use a substitution code that is invalid for the specific alarm event, the substitution code is replaced by an empty string. For alarm email notifications, see Displaying different properties of an alarm in an email notification.

Issue Xenta 102-AX temperature sensors reading in the range of 130°F (54.4°C) when they should be closer to room temperature. Wiring has been checked and everything appears correct. What kind of temp sensor do I use for a 102-AX? Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, TAC Vista Environment Xenta 102-AX ETD-1xx duct temperature sensors ETR-1xx room temperature sensors STR-1xx room thermostats Cause Every other Xenta controller uses a 1.8k-ohm thermistor as a standard. Because the Xenta 102-AX is a modified version of the I/NET MR-VAV-AX, it still uses the 10k-ohm thermistors native to the I/NET product line. Resolution The Xenta 102-AX uses 10k-ohm thermistors. See 10k Thermistor compatibility with Xenta controllers for detailed information on the thermistor curve that is acceptable. Approved sensors are: ETD-2xx duct temperature sensors ETR-2xx room temperature sensors STR-2xx room thermostats STD-2xx duct temperature sensors

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 Is serial tunneling, using XPSI to Network 8000 controllers, possible through an Automation Server? Environment Automation Servers (all revisions) Cause Remote connectivity to Network 8000 controllers in a building is a desired feature Resolution There is no serial tunneling with XPSI available from Schneider-Electric. The Communities website may offer an option:  https://community.se.com/message/19507?commentID=19507?sr=search&searchId=b7102b14-5f13-4971-8a5d-ef0a0e591271&searchIndex=2#comment-19507

Issue Sometimes it is required to gather a trace log between the I/Net USB adapter and the AS or AS-P it is connected to for deeper troubleshooting investigation.  Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Automation Server  Automation Server Premium  Workstation  Cause The I/Net adapter trace log may be requested by Product Support to help identify problem experienced in the field.  Resolution How to collect the I/Net interface adapter trace log In the Workstation System Tree, go to System > Modules > Trace > Loggers > nsp > nsp.pin > nsp.pin.inet-nsp.pin.inet.IoPort Right click on nsp.pin.inet.IoPort and go to properties. Under the Basic tab > Settings > Level, set the Level to Trace. Click OK.  Let the system run for the desired amount of time (usually 10-15 minutes). To collect the log, in the system tree go to System > Modules > Trace > TraceSettings Right click on TraceSettings and select Trace Settings and then Get trace log. Finally go back to System > Modules > Trace > Loggers > nsp > nsp.pin > nsp.pin.inet-nsp.pin.inet.IoPort, right click on nsp.pin.inet.IoPort and go to properties.  In properties under the Basic tab, change the Level back to Information.    Parse the Trace Log You can use the TAC INET LANMon Decoder tool found on the Community site.