Building Automation Knowledge Base

Issue Does I/NET support dual NICs (Network Interface Cards)? Is it possible to change which network interface card I/NET uses? Dual Network Interface Cards (NIC) will not allow selection between the Networks, option is grayed out. Product Line TAC INET, EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment I/NET 2.40 and above Cause Requirement for I/NET to have dual NIC support and option to change which network interface card I/NET uses. Resolution A New feature released with I/NET Seven 2.40 now allows I/NET to support dual network interface cards (NIC). The intent is to allow I/NET and Video the capability of using different Ethernet networks. This option also allows which network I/NET (and / or Video) uses. These settings are changed via the Advanced WAN Configuration (Advanced IP button) via the I/NET Configuration Editor (see image below). Requirements: I/NET Configuration needs to have TCPIP enabled and hardware (Ethernet card) needs to be installed on PC, I/NET (or I/O Server) must be running to select the Advanced IP button (Advanced WAN Configuration). If the PC is configured with multiple network cards, the above shown drop-down lists will be active: I/NET network Video network Use the drop-downs to select a network card for each network. You can use the same card for both networks, or you can use a unique card for each network. By using two networks, you can separate I/NET traffic from video traffic and conserve bandwidth on each network. NOTE: If you have dual Network Interface Cards and you are not able to select between these networks (so they are grayed out) you must have the following minimum requirements configured for this option to be available in the I/NET Editor: A Physical connection to its connection media. (i.e. A connected network status. If you have a status indicating Limited or no connectivity you will not be able to select between Interface cards). Valid IP address and subnet mask Valid Gateway IP address. (If you have no gateway router on the network then select a valid IP address within the same IP range, usually the IP of the PC is the best option here.) If you are using wireless NIC and have issue to choose it, refer to Host number conflict on a computer with dual Network Interface Cards (NIC).

Issue Where are the reports of fixed issues/bugs for the various product lines located? Product Line TAC Vista, TAC INET, Andover Continuum, Satchwell MicroNet, Satchwell Sigma, TAC IA Series, EcoStruxure Building Operation, EcoStruxure Building Expert, Access Expert, Security Expert Environment Technical Product Announcements Cause TPAs contain information of changes made per version of the different product lines. A TPA may report enhancements and/or broken functionality. Resolution Navigate to Exchange Extranet to view all TAC Vista documents tagged as TPA. The documents will be listed in reverse chronological order. Log in to view these documents. See Register for The Exchange Download Center for more information on registration.

Issue TAC Vista to SmartStruxure Interface does not connect in non-English Operation System Environment TAC Vista SmartStruxure Solution TAC Vista SmartStruxure Interface 1.0 TAC Vista 5.1.8 non-English Operation System Cause The Format setting to non-English will cause this issue. Resolution In the Windows Control Panel, select Region and Language. On the formats tab change the format to English. Click Apply. Vista 5.1.9 will fix this. For how to create Vista interface in SmartStruxure, refer to How to Create TAC Vista Interface to SmartStruxure.

Issue Configured Loytec LConfig application as a service but still do not get communication from the LonWorks Network. Not able to get Service pin from LON devices connected with Loytec NIC from Enterprise Server Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Enterprise Server 1.1 Loytec NIC852 (LConfig Tool) Windows 7 Cause LConfig tool version is too old. The LConfig tool, even if set to start as a service, also still needs to start before the Enterprise Server (ES), otherwise the Enterprise Server fails to establish its connection with the LonWorks interface. For information on how to set LConfig to run as a service refer to Not able to get Service pin from LON devices connected with Loytec NIC from ES. Resolution To rectify the cause 1, click here to verify if the LConfig version is the most recent one. If not please download the most recent NIC - LOYTEC Network Interface Software. To rectify the cause 2, you must set the Loytec (LConfig) application service to be a dependency of the Enterprise Server (ES), to do this follow these instructions: Using RegEdit (or similar) edit the Registry Key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\StruxureWare 1.1 Enterprise Server NOTE: For SmartStruxure version 1.3 and above, go to path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\Building Operation 1.3 Enterprise Server Locate and edit the DependOnService string Add the text LoytecSrv (service name for the LConfig application). Close the editor and reboot the PC Note: When running the LConfig as a service the LConfig Tool is not available from the System Tray and must be started from the program shortcut, located under Start > Programs> LOYTEC Network Interfaces> LConfig As a quick visual check, to see if configured correctly, you can perform a LonWorks Device Discovery on your Enterprise Server, this will show the NIC which has been defined with a red box (see image below). If these are all blue then you will not be able to receive any communications from your devices. Also remember if using the Loytec LIP devices that these should be configured in Smart Mode.

Issue Is it possible to configure Workstation so that certain users see certain alarm categories? Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment StruxureWare Building Operation Cause There may be a need to restrict access to certain alarms on a site, if for example a site is comprised of two or more buildings, it may be appropriate for users in Building 1 to only see alarms from Building 1, and not the others. Resolution To achieve this filtering a workspace, alarm view and user group must be configured. Start by creating an Alarm View object in Workstation. Edit the Alarm view and set an appropriate filter i.e. the alarm priority to be displayed. Next create a new Workspace. Ensure that an Alarms Pane is added and that the Initial Path property is set to the Alarm View created in step 1.  Create a new user group and add the Workspace created in step 3 to the group's Selected Workspaces. On the Software Permissions tab for the group, give the group Read permission for the Alarm View created in step 1. Add other appropriate permissions as required. Lastly, create a user a make them a member of the User Group created in step 5. Log in to workstation with the new user. You should then only be able to see the filtered alarms and the user should not be able to change the filter. Also check out the SmartStruxure Software Permissions Quick-Help video on the Exchange.

Issue During download to a b3 controller you may see the error: Unknown object Module: BACnet plugin Module code : 0 Technical info: BatchedWritePropertyError Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Automation Server WorkStation Cause Binding sending data to a point during the download process Resolution This error is benign and can be ignored. Also check out the SmartStruxure - b3 Engineering Process - Part 6 Downloading Quick-Help video on the Exchange. NOTE The "BatchedWritePropertyError" may also be seen with "Property value out of range" rather than "Unknown Object", in this case check the properties/settings of the BACnet Object, the channel may be out of range or an Expansion Module may be required

Issue Managing the address table in a Lonworks device Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, TAC IA Series, TAC Vista Environment I/A Series MNL TAC Xenta Third-party LON devices Building Operation Automation Server Cause A LonWorks device contains an Address Table which will hold a maximum of 15 addresses. Once this table is full, all bindings will only be able to use the broadcast setting which is not desirable. A Xenta 200,300 or 400 controller will have its first 2 address tables used with TAG 0 and TAG 1 binding. This leaves only 13 addresses for user bindings not the 15 addresses like other LonWorks devices. Resolution ​When you create a binding in LonWorks, you decide its behavior by selecting a binding profile. You either select a binding profile, or you use the default profile. There are basically three types of binding profiles: Acknowledged profiles Unacknowledged profiles Broadcast profiles Using an Acknowledged profile will consume one of the 15 available address table addresses on both the sending and the receiving device. The Unacknowledged profiles will only use one Address on the sending device's address table. Broadcast binds do not use an address but are not recommended. Use an acknowledged binding profile when the sending device should receive an acknowledgment from the receiving device indicating that the value of the bound variable was successfully sent. Binding profile Transmit timer Retry count Acknowledged Profile 96 ms 3 Acknowledged, Tx tmr 256, 3 retries 256 ms 3 Acknowledged, Tx tmr 256, 5 retries 256 ms 5 Acknowledged, Tx tmr 1024, 5 retries 1024 ms 5 Be careful of creating large, acknowledged fan-out bindings because they generate a lot of traffic, especially if the device of one of the recipients is offline.  Use an unacknowledged binding profile when the sending device should not receive an acknowledgment from the receiving device. Use this type when the value being sent is not critical and is of low importance to the control logic. Binding profile Repeat timer Repeat count Unacknowledged Profile   0 Unacknowledged Repeated Profile 48 ms 3 Unacknowledged Repeated, 5 repeats 48 ms 5 Use a broadcast profile when you do not want to use up an entry in the address table. The device address table has 15 available entries for bindings but the first entry is a reserved broadcast entry that all broadcast bindings can share. Binding profile Repeat timer Repeat count Broadcast Profile   0 Broadcast Profile, 5 repeats 48 ms 5 If no binding profile is selected, a default profile is used: Point-to-point bindings use the Acknowledged profile as default. Fan-out bindings use the Unacknowledged Repeated profile as default. Building Operation uses the broadcast profile as default when the device address table has run out of entries. If a point-to-point binding is changed to a fan-out binding, the binding profile is automatically updated to an Unacknowledged Repeated profile. If a fan-out binding is changed to a point-to-point binding, the binding profile is automatically updated to an Acknowledged profile.  This and other information about lon bindings is available on the online help guide Using a Lon Binding in StruxureWare Building Operation More information on the different tables used by each LON device

Issue Automation Server CPU usage goes between 80-100% even with few programs, trends or alarms. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment AS Automation Server Cause Cause 1: BACnet into AS uses a lot of resources Cause 2: The AS has bindings from a point to a variety of places Also check out the AS CPU and Memory Loading Quick-Help video on the Exchange. Resolution Example Resolutions in order: The issue described is Functions as Design in StruxureWare Building Operation. The AS results with high CPU percentage with just one point from BACnet interface loaded; however, it had no effect on AS performance. Check the propagation of values. An example would be a Space Temperature which is required by the field bus, the BACnet interface, LON interface, etc. Make sure to properly disseminate this value so to avoid overloading the CPU.

Issue Experiencing issues with I/O modules that may include: Backplane failure causing modules to assume wrong module ID Input filtering problems on RTD modules Stability due to electrical noise Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment EcoStruxure Building Operation StruxureWare Building Operation Automation Server I/O Modules Cause The latest I/O module firmware version will correct known issues while also ensuring that the system is up to date and compliant. Resolution The latest I/O module firmware can be located on the Exchange by searching for I/O Module firmware. Each firmware download zip file will contain a ReadMe file that explains what was corrected in that version.  Refer to Upgrading SmartStruxure IO Module Firmware for the procedure to upgrade the I/O module firmware. 

Issue The status of a Forced BACnet value is not reflected in a Graphic or the Watch Window. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Enterprise Server (ES) Automation Server (AS) Cause This is functioning as designed. It was designed so that the "Forced" status for BACnet values would not be displayed in graphics or the watch window. Resolution It was designed so that the "Forced" status for BACnet values would not be displayed in graphics or the watch window. For a workaround using a PE Script program to show the forced icon for a BACnet value see How to show the forced icon for a BACnet value in a Graphic. In EBO version 3.0.1 and later this issue only occurs on internal BACnet points, points which are located in the Application folder under the BACnet interface for the SmartX server.

Issue Use of the Building Operation Script editor and general Script programming is covered in the Training courses and technical reference guide, what other techniques can be used to debug a program? Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment  Building Operation Script editor. Cause Often additional techniques are required to debug Script programs, especially when attempting to analyze, modify or fault find other people's code. Resolution Some techniques you can use for debugging your program and isolating problems are: Add in additional line labels to the program to isolate where the program is disabling or failing, if it disables you will be able to see the "CurrentLine" it has failed on and therefore know which line of code is causing the problem. Use the Trace feature to step through a program and monitor the binding variables, stepping through each line of code to ensure the values are all set as expected. Even if a program does not disable you can use the "Stop" keyword in the program, it will act as a break in the code and you can look at the values of the various variables, this may be a useful alternative to the Trace feature. Use the Watch window and the Binding Variables window to show the values of the various objects, when used with the above two techniques it allows you to accurately trace a program flow. Ensure all of the code used is compatible with the Script programming rules and that Continuum Plain English programs are not just used without conversion. Check the Plain English and Script Difference Guide. For programs in an i2 or b3 controller, ensure none of the Program size limitations are exceeded, see Plain English program limitations on number of characters in program and line labels.  

Issue Without knowing the Device ID / Device Instance these devices cannot add to the MSTP network in the AS or ES. Product Line Andover Continuum, EcoStruxure Building Expert, EcoStruxure Building Operation, Field Devices Environment Automation Server Enterprise Server BACnet SE7000 Cause Only the MAC ID / Com Address is shown in the display but not the Device ID / Device Instance. Resolution SE7200x Models Default Device ID is set to: 72000 + MAC Where MAC is the current MAC address of the device. The device ID will also be upgraded as soon as there is a change to the device’s MAC. For example, when a SE7200F5045B controller with a MAC address of 41 is connected to a network, its default Device Name will be SE7200F5x45B-41 and its default Device ID will be 72041. SE73xxx Models Default Device ID is set to: 73000 + MAC Where MAC is the current MAC address of the device. The device ID will also be upgraded as soon as there is a change to the device’s MAC. For example, when a SE7300C5045B controller with a MAC address of 63 is connected to a network, its default Device Name will be SE7300C5x45B-63 and its default Device ID will be 73063. Click here for the Integration Manual. Please refer to the SE7300 series BACnet controller does not come online in StruxureWare Building Operation if SE7300 controller does not come online.

Issue Installing StruxureWare Building Operation Workstation fails The following error message is displayed when installing Workstation:     Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment StruxureWare Building Operation Workstation Earlier versions Cause This issue occurs if the PC has a newer version of Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Tools for Office Runtime Language Pack previously installed than the one in the Workstation installer, which will abort the installation. Resolution Uninstall the Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Tools for Office Runtime Language Pack from "Add or remove programs" in Windows. Run the Workstation installer again. It should now complete successfully. Before step 1 (uninstalling) you may first check which version of Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 Tools for Office Runtime Language Pack you have installed, this is also found in "Add or remove programs".  After finishing step 2 you may download the latest  Runtime Language Pack separately from Microsoft, or even the complete Runtime.  Note: This resolution only applies if you specifically get error 1603. There is a similar issue but with error 3010, please see Getting the error "Failed to install XXXX redist, error: 3010" during installation.     StruxureWare Building Operation

Issue Unit Conversion Exceptions Unit selection of 'bar' defaults to N/m 2 unit Units are not displaying unit as selected in the properties Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment StruxureWare Building Operation 1.2 and above Cause Building Operation supports both the SI metric system and the US Customary System for units of measurement. The operating system regional settings on which WorkStation is installed determine whether SI units or US Imperial units are displayed. The conversion between the two measurement systems is managed automatically. For example, the temperature 42,82 °C is stored in Building Operation. A WorkStation on an operating system with the US Customary System converts the temperature and displays it as 109.08 °F. To display the original unit of a value in WorkStation, open the Properties pane for the value and go to the Unit selection dialog box. As part of this process some units selected, default to a default display unit, and not what was originally selected.  For example, selecting the pressure unit 'bar' when configured in a SI regional setting will display by default the unit 'N/m 2 ' and not 'bar' as selected.  This functionality is as per design but can be altered by using the Unit Conversion Exceptions feature. Resolution First reference Adding a Unit Conversion Exception on the Building Management WebHelp site.    In the release version 1.2 and above there is a feature that allows the operator to create unit exceptions, called Unit Conversion Exceptions.  This is located under the Domain folder and allows various conversions for different domains.  The steps below indicate how this is achieved. Locate the Unit Conversion Exceptions under the required Domain The Unit Conversion exceptions are now displayed in the Workspace.  The Add remove buttons are located at the bottom of this workspace Add the Configured unit, which is the selected unit for the variable you wish to be converted Then change the SI Display Unit and / or US Display Unit to the desired unit you wish the configured unit to be displayed / converted too Save these changes and confirm that it is now displayed in the desired unit.  In some cases you may need to log out and then back in for the changes to be applied. Online Web Help is also available here: If your system is based in US region then you can default you measurement system to US as per Metric vs. English (Imperial) Operating System.

Issue Webstation TGML links used to navigate between Graphics pages do not work. These TGML page links work in workstation Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment SmartStruxure Cause The name of the Enterprise Server database has an illegal character. A sample of this would be if the Enterprise Server is named "Server'1"  The ( ') affects the HTTP application and prevents the page links from working. Although the name is accepted and works in Workstation, WebStation does not allow this character. This will be corrected in a later revision. Resolution The only resolution at this stage is to rename the Enterprise Server to a name with valid characters. If there are Automation Servers already installed under the Enterprise Server then there is a major issue with renaming the Enterprise Server and we would not recommend renaming you servers unless you are in the early stages of your project. You will need to detach and delete all of the Automation Servers and then Rename the Enterprise Server. Bindings will be lost in this process and will need to be recreated when the Automation Servers are added back in. See Illegal object name characters in StruxureWare Building Operation.

Issue Using I/NET trends in StruxureWare Building Operation Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, TAC INET Environment I/NET StruxureWare Building Operation 1.3 Cause Ideally trends should reside in the controller rather than at the sever level as this prevents sample data loss due to communication errors. Resolution Before you begin, ensure that all I/NET trends are set up correctly and trend data is visible. For assistance with this see Setting Up I/NET Seven Trends. Ensure that messaging is working so that SmartStruxure receives I/NET messages, and ensure that all controls have points to be trended, are already added to the I/NET Interface. NOTE: For the Enterprise Server level integration, the I/NET Trend Object must be configured as a Seven Trend. For the Automation Server level integration, this is not required, therefore skip to step 3. In I/NET, Select Trends>Data Inquiry/Edit View the trend you wish to see in SmartStruxure and verify that it has data. Open StruxureWare Workstation Refresh the system tree and upload any I/NET controllers that do not show a green dot. Right click on the I/NET Interface and select New>Value When the "Create Object" Window appears, name the value and click "Create" The Value will appear in the I/NET Interface Right Click on the newly created Value and select "Properties" Locate the "Point to Trend" Field Click on the "..." and select the point object you wish to trend Click the select button Verify that the Point to Trend field is correct and Click OK Wait enough time for several samples to populate. Right click on the Value object in the I/NET interface and select View>Trend log lists>New Trend log list The New Trend log List should open and values should visible. The Trend Value object under the I/NET interface will now function the same as a trend object in StruxureWare. If you wish for the I/NET trend to show up as part of an Energy Report, you will need to Ensure that the Extended Trend Log is referenced in a Meter's "Meter Trend Log" property NOTE: For the Enterprise Server Level Integration, In order for the initial connection between the StruxureWare Value Object and the I/NET Seven Trend to be enabled, the following conditions need to be true: The Controller with the I/NET point being trended must not require an upload The Controller with the I/NET point being trended must have a current save file The Controller with the I/NET point being trended must be online The I/NET workstation located on the Enterprise Server must be masked to receive data from the trend log on the controller to the Seven Trends Definition For the Automation Server Level Integration, In order for the initial connection between the StruxureWare Value Object and the I/NET Seven trend extension to be enabled, the following conditions need to be true: The Controller with the I/NET point being trended must not require an upload The Controller with the I/NET point being trended must be online The I/NET trend object and point object must have some level of masking so that the data will leave the controller.

Issue After updating Java, webstation doesn't show graphics. The window is blank/white. If the error you get is "Error. Click for details" and not a blank window, please refer to Webstation graphics not working after Java updated to Java 7 update 51. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, TAC Vista Environment Java Webstation Cause There's an issue with Java and Webstation in SmartStruxure 1.5 when using panels. There's a hotfix available (1.5.0.2307) correcting this issue. Either Contact Product Support for this hotfix or download it on The Exchange Download Center. If panels are not used or the SmartStruxure version is lower than 1.5 or you are working with another product line such as TAC Vista, this article might help. This issue is usually only seen when updating an existing Java installation. If no version of Java has been installed previously, the issues doesn't seem to appear. According to Sun, there's an issue with the deployment.properties file. Read this article for further information. Resolution First try to install the newest version of Java. Version 1.7u67 has just been released, and is supposed to solve the issue. If you are using a x64 operating system, make sure you install both the x86 and the x64 version of Java in order to support both 32 bit and 64 bit browsers installed. If that doesn't work, try the procedure below. 1: Make sure all browsers are closed 2: Uninstall all Java versions 3: Make a copy of the file C:\Users\%username%\AppData\LocalLow\Sun\Java\Deployment\security\exception.sites (replace user_name with the profile name of the user logged into Windows) 4: Delete the folder C:\Users\%username%\AppData\LocalLow\Sun (replace user_name with the profile name of the user logged into Windows) 5: Install the latest version of Java (https://java.com/en/download/manual.jsp) - if you are using a x64 operating system, make sure you install both the x86 and the x64 version 6: Verify that you have the latest Java version and that you don't have older versions using the Java uninstall applet: https://java.com/en/download/uninstallapplet.jsp 7: Move the exception.sites file back into C:\Users\user_name\AppData\LocalLow\Sun\Java\Deployment\security (replace user_name with the profile name of the user logged into Windows) - if the directory doesn't exist, make the directories missing to complete the path 8: Try viewing TGML graphics again

Issue When a XIF file contains NCI's (SCPT's and UCPT's) default values (NVVAL) must be described in the XIF file. In some cases if NCI's are present, but some or all NVVAL initializers are missing commissioning the device will fail. For information regarding NCI's that are part of a FILE definition, please refer to Understanding the FILE part of a XIF file. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, TAC Vista Environment LonWorks XIF Cause When commissioning a device default values to configuration variables must be assigned. If the tool (TAC Vista, SmartStruxure, LonMaker, NL220) does not know what default value to assign, it can cause an error. Resolution Make sure all NCI's have proper initializers defined. Read XIF file - NVVAL initializers.pdf guide as reference. Here is an example of a NVVAL section: VAR nciHrtBtRcv 2 0 0 0 0 1 63 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 "&1,0,0\x80,48; 107 * 1 4 0 2 0 0 VAR nciHrtBtSnd 3 0 0 0 0 1 63 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 "&1,0,0\x80,49; 107 * 1 4 0 2 0 0 VAR nciLocation 4 0 0 0 1 1 63 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 "&1,0,0\x80,17; 36 * 1 4 0 31 0 0 VAR nciDeviceName 5 0 0 0 0 1 63 0 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 "&1,0,6\x80,3; 36 * 1 4 0 31 0 0 NVVAL #VAR nciHrtBtRcv \x00,\x00 #VAR nciHrtBtSnd \x00,\x00 #VAR nciLocation = empty string \x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00, \x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00 #VAR nciDeviceName = empty string \x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00, \x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00,\x00

Issue Difference in Triggered time and Timestamp Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment SBO Alarm view Cause In alarm view there, there are two timefields: "triggered time" and "time stamp." Resolution The Timestamp is the time at which the most recent state change occurred to the alarm. It is when the AS or ES received/detected the state and logged the alarm. The Triggered time is the first occurrence of this alarm. It could be when the alarm was originally detected, before possibly going in/ out of alarm several times. It could also be the time stamp when detected by a field controller. Triggered Time Stamp behavior also clarifies a few things on when they are updated.

Issue Using the keypad on the stat to set the comm address may result in duplicate Device Instance IDs on a BACnet network. Product Line Andover Continuum, EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Viconics Cause Find New BACnet Device does not result in new Viconics stat added to the system. This is due to the default assignment ID scheme used by Viconics. It is resulting in a duplicate Device ID on the BACnet network. Resolution By default, the Device Instance ID (called the Device Node ID in Continuum) is generated using the first two digits of the model of the thermostat + the comm (MAC) address assigned to the stat. Example: For a VT7200C5000 thermostats with MAC address 115, the default Device Instance would be 72115. The problem is that when installing the same model stats on multiple MSTP networks on the same BACnet system, this scheme can easily result in duplicate Device Instance IDs. The resolution is to change the duplicates or use a scheme to assign unique IDs manually to all the stats on a system. Any number between 1 and 4194303 (between 1 and 3FFFFF in Hex) is accepted by the thermostat. One scheme would be to use the BACnet Network ID and append the MAC address to it. Since each BACnet Network ID must be unique across the entire system, and the MAC address on each BACnet Network must be unique, this assures the combination is unique across the system. For example, if you have a bCX with an MSTP bus on comm2 that has a BACnet Network ID - Comm2 of 2765 and a stat with a MAC address of 9, assign it the Device Instance ID 2765009. A BACnet Explorer that provides write access to the Device Instance ID is required to change the default Device Instance ID. See Changing the BACnet device instance of the SE7000 series room controllers for a link to the Viconics VT7000 BACnet Configurator utility. For additional support on the above utility contact Viconics Support at 1-800-563-5660.