Building Automation Knowledge Base

Issue Chinese characters in TGML graphic become odd characters in WebStation, but display fine in WorkStation Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, TAC Vista Environment TAC Vista Webstation EcoStruxure Building Operation WebStation Chinese OS Cause The encoding method of WebStation is different from the one used in WorkStation. So the font of the Chinese characters should be changed. Resolution Change the Chinese character to Chinese font, like YouYuan or SimHei, etc, then it will work fine.

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 for assistance. Issue In some cases the event and trend database can grow really big although not all the space in the files is used Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment SQLite Building Operation Enterprise Server Cause Frequent inserts, updates, and deletes can cause the database file to become fragmented - where data for a single table or index is scattered around the database file. Running VACUUM ensures that each table and index is largely stored contiguously within the database file. In some cases, VACUUM may also reduce the number of partially filled pages in the database, reducing the size of the database file further. Read further information here: https://www.sqlite.org/lang_vacuum.html Resolution Stop the Enterprise Server Open SQLiteStudio (link to download) Select "Databases" --> "Add database" Select the event.db or trend.db file from the "historical" folder of the SmartStruxure database folder Execute the following command: vacuum;

Issue WebReports returns only partial results for the Consumption Report when using the Meter Utility Type   Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation  Environment Building Operation Report Server Building Operation WebReports Cause This is a limitation of the Meter report, where the report returns approximately 50 Meter reports at a time regardless of how many meters are selected. Resolution It is recommended that 30 - 40 meters at most be selected at a time for this report.  Selecting more meters for the report may result in data overlap and unexpected output. For more information regarding Consumption Reports, see the following help topic Energy Monitoring Reports

Issue After configuring the system per Setting up a Local / Internal NTP Server, the Automation Server's time would not sync to the local NTP computer's time. Wireshark capture shows a 'Root Dispersion' greater than 10 seconds. In the screenshots below, 10.169.90.13 is an Automation Server (NTP client), and 10.169.90.6 is the NTP server. CLIENT REQUEST SERVER REPLY This behavior of adding 10 seconds to the root dispersion is only observable when using the internal clock otherwise it is 0. This appears to be the intended behavior by Microsoft so that this NTP server would rank lower if using multiple NTP servers that might have more reliable time. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Automation Server (AS) Network Time Protocol (NTP) Cause The NTP client in the AS ignores the time sent by the NTP server if the root dispersion is greater than 'X' seconds (not known at this time) Resolution In the Windows registry of the machine being used as the time server, make the following change:  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\W32Time\Config\LocalClockDispersion The default for this key is “A” in hex. Change this to “0” and then restart the Windows Time service.  Do this by running the following command net stop w32time && net start w32time. Here is what Wireshark shows after the time has been synchronized. SERVER REPLY

Issue USB LON adapter from Echelon (PS3 Part Number:ECH-75010R) is not recognized by Workplace Tech. Environment USB LON adapter (ECH-75010R) Workplace Tech Cause The ldv32.dll file (Open LDV driver) loaded with Workplace Tech (located in C:\Program Files\WorkplaceTech directory) is an older version of the driver and it does not support USB interfaces. Resolution Download the latest version of the LDV driver (153-0212-01A_OpenLDV340.exe) The latest version of the LDV driver can be downloaded from the Echelon website (www.echelon.com) and it contains support for USB devices. In order to download from Echelon’s website, a (free) user account is required. Once it is created, proceed to “Recommended Downloads” and the LDV driver will be listed (towards the bottom) as "OpenLDV 3.4 Network Drivers for Windows Vista/XP/2000/Server 2003 (includes drivers for i.LON 10/100/600 RNI, PCLTA-20/21, PCC-10, and U10/20". The LDV driver is also posted on The Exchange Download Center. Install the new LDV driver Copy the ldv32.dll file from the C:\lonworks\bin directory, and paste it into the C:\ProgramFiles\WorkplaceTech directory. This driver is required for Workplace Tech version 5.6 or earlier. After installing the driver, Workplace Tech will now recognize the USB adapter.

Issue Receive “Timeout while waiting for server to get ready” error when starting PCT Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Project Configuration Tool, PCT Cause PCT can't reach DHCP server from the virtual machine. Resolution To change the Notification Address in the "Setup for use with remote server" to "localhost". 1. Select "Setup for use with remote server" after PCT start. 2. Update the "Notification address" to localhost  

Issue Can a graphical indicator be placed on a Niagara AX or N4 view to indicate when a point is overridden, analog or binary? Product Line TAC IA Series Environment I/A Series AX graphics I/A Series N4 graphics Cause By default, the StatusEffect setting is turned off (None). Change StatusEffect to Color to enable the graphical indicator. Resolution In the properties of the BoundLabel, set the StatusEffect attribute to Color (default is None). This will cause the object to turn purple (the default color) when it is overridden.

Issue Procedure for balancing a parallel fan VAV box with supply side flow sensing, using the WorkPlace Flow Balance Tool (WFBT). Product Line TAC IA Series Environment I/A Series MNB VAV Cause Request from field Resolution In summary, the procedure is to complete the balancing process with the fan disabled then enable the fan and use the verify functions to check operation with the parallel fan running. Perform all steps of the flow balance procedure as usual up through and including the maximum flow balancing and minimum flow balancing. For the first pass at balancing the reheat minimum flow, use the fan control on the screen to turn the fan ON then set the minimum flow setpoint to 0. Verify that the flow as measured by the pressure sensor goes to zero. Measure the total flow manually using the flow hood and adjust the fan speed so that the required airflow is obtained. The easiest way to do this is to take the first set of readings from all the diffusers then adjust the fan speed as needed and then recheck the sum of the new readings to confirm the adjustment is correct. Click the "Restart" button to restart the Reheat Min Flow balancing process. Set the parallel fan to OFF and re-enter the desired Reheat Min Flow setpoint value. Balance the Reheat Min Flow using the normal balance procedure. For reference, see Chapter 5 of the WorkPlace Commissioning Tool and Flow Balance Tool Users Guide (F-27358).

Issue What is the BACnet Network ID - UDP Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum BACnet bCX4000 bCX4040 Cause Documentation Resolution The BACnet Network ID - UDP identifies the BACnet IP network that the bCX controller communicates on, it is 1 by default.  The BACnet Network ID - UDP should be the same for all bCX controllers that need to communicate on the BACnet IP network.  Consult UDP setting in bCX40x0 have been set to different values for additional information. Note: - CyberStation does not have a setting for BACnet Network ID - UDP.   CyberStation will communicate with all ethernet level BACnet devices regardless of the network they sit on.

Issue bCX shows BACnet Network Number zero in the Continuum Explorer Device Editor even though the BACnet Network Id - Comm2 shows value such as 2765 in the bCX configuration web page. Product Line Andover Continuum Environment CyberStation bCX4040 bCX4000 b4920 b3 devices Cause bCX sits on IP level network which Cyberstation identifies as network 0. Resolution The value entered in the bCX's BACnet Network Id - Comm2 from the configuration webpage is the number of the network the bCX will host on its MSTP port.  The bCX itself is located on the IP level network that CyberStation identifies as Network 0. BACnet devices located in the MSTP field bus of the bCX will show their BACnet Network Number as the value configured in the bCX's BACnet Network Id - Comm2 (default value 2765)

Issue How to get server date and time into a datetime variable. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Building Operation Automation Server Building  Operation Enterprise Server Cause Documentation Resolution Create a 'Value' object of type 'Time Stamp Value' in the server. Right click on the server's name and select 'Edit bindings' Find the time stamp value created in step 1 in the object tree on the right. Bind the value of the time stamp object to the server's time as seen in the screen shot below.

Issue Update OS, changing a controller, BACnet to Infinet or Infinet to BACnet Can b3 controllers be converted to i2 controllers? Can i2 controllers be converted to b3 controllers? Converting between bCX4040 and bCX9640   Product Line Andover Continuum, EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment i2 b3 Controllers - See Compatibility Matrix bCX Controllers - Continuum 1.7 onwards Cause Only a limited number of controllers can be converted, BACnet to/from Infinet, using Update OS. Resolution The following controllers can be converted between Infinet and BACnet, using the appropriate firmware files: bCX (bCX4040 to/from bCX9640) (options like Xdrivers, node count, IO modules and expansion IO modules are not effected) i28xx-V - b38xx-V (i2865-V to/from b3865-V, i2866-V to/from b3866-V, i2885-V to/from b3885-V) Please see link for swapping the firmware of non -V model i2/b3 Attempting to flash (Update OS) any other controllers BACnet to/from Infinity is not recommended. In nearly every instance, the result will be a non-functioning controller.   UPDATE: A procedure is now available to convert the non -V i2s to b3s in the field https://community.se.com/t5/Building-Automation-Knowledge/Conversion-of-Continuum-devices-from-i2-to-b3-and-vice-versa-in/ta-p/416712    (Note: In the bCX controllers, the ACCNetID will revert back to the default of "1", you may need to change this in the Controllers configuration webpage back to what it should be.  See Will IP settings persist when flashing a bCX4040 (BACnet) to a bCX9640 (Infinet)? for details.)   Please refer to Exchange for specific firmware: BACnet Firmware Infinet Firmware The following can be used as a general rule to determine which OS is currently running in the controller. bCX only. (b3 & i2 CPU is green) CPU LED is Green = BACnet OS CPU LED is Yellow = Infinet OS

Issue How to reset an ACX 57xx model controller Product Line Andover Continuum Environment ACX 57xx Cause While upgrading/downgrading the controller firmware, communications were lost and the controller is not communicating afterwards. Resolution Consult How to reset a ACX 57xx controller to reset the controller and then re-commission.

Issue When creating an ETL task the "Run Once" option works, but when configured to run as a service, it doesn't work and an error occurs in the error log: 2015-05-22 17:13:59,069 ERROR ETLEngine (TaskName) - Thread ID (119) - Power Monitoring Expert Load Task: Task Power Monitoring Expert Load Task failed System.ApplicationException: Failed to populate the MetaDataSet. ---> System.Data.SqlClient.SqlException: Cannot open database "ION_Data" requested by the login. The login failed. Login failed for user 'NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM'. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation, Other Environment Power Monitoring Expert Energy Expert (formerly Power Manager) ETL Tool Cause When testing the ETL task using "Run Once", the Windows account currently logged in, will be used to access the SQL database. However, when the same Task is then configured to run as a service, the account configured on that Service will be used to access the SQL database instead.  By default that account is the built-in account 'NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM'.   The Position values for all of the mapped trend logs are set to an unreasonable timestamp. The timestamp is either very old or a date the preceeds the oldest values in the database.  Resolution Changing the Windows system account for the ETL service Either give the system account access to the database, or change the account used to run the service. Correct/Adjust the timestamp values in Positions tab of ETL The timestamps can be changed all at once by setting the Initial value field at the top of the "Positions" window in the ETL tool. 

Issue Seeing "An Object_Identifier has been specified for an object that does not exist in the object database of the addressed BACnet device", when trying to open a BACnet Device in Continuum Product Line Andover Continuum Environment bCX 4040 BACnet Cause When trying to send a controller's obejcts to the Database on the BACnet side the following messages are seen in the Distribution Properties window. 10/10/2013 12:50:07 PM The operation 'Save to Database' is finished. 10/10/2013 12:50:07 PM Unable to save objects to the database from Id:36922175.           An Object_Identifier has been specified for an object that does not exist in the object database of the addressed BACnet device. 10/10/2013 12:50:07 PM The operation 'Save to Database' is starting.   In the case of the affected controller being a bCX, all b3's underneath the bCX are able to be seen and their objects opened, but a user is unable to open any of the objects in the bCX itself on the BACnet side of the Continuum system tree.  Some/all objects are either not located in the BACnet side of the bCX Device or they have been malformed as they were initially created. Resolution The Device needs to be removed and re-discovered Delete the BACnet side of the bCX Device. Perform a "Find new BACnet Devices" from the Root. Then "Send to Database" on the BACnet side to upload all of the BACnet objects back into the Database.  

Issue How can a BACnet b4920 be reset back to its factory default IP address? Product Line Andover Continuum Environment BACnet b4920 Cause There is no Reset IP switch on the b4920 Resolution There are 2 ways of accomplishing this.   Method One - The first method resets the controller to factory default address settings: IP Address: 169.254.1.1 Subnet Mask: 255.255.0.0 Gateway: 0.0.0.0 Webserver Port: 80 Web User Name: acc Web User pwd: acc EnergyNet ID: 1 BacNetMstpNetId: 2764 BacNetUDPNetId: 2765 During controller startup, there is a 2 minute window in which the controller will be restored to factory defaults based on the following: Seconds since startup is < 120 A Ping packet is received by the controller with a matching Ethernet address but unmatched IP address. Ping payload size of 255 bytes. Prior to running the procedure, the controller must be on the same network as the PC that that is used to issue commands.  The engineer will need to have on hand (1) IP address that is both valid and NOT in use on the network that the PC and Controller are connected to.   Get the Controller's MAC Address Each controller has a 6 byte hardware address, also known as the MAC address or Ethernet address. The address is represented in HEX. The first three bytes of the MAC address are constant and represent Andover Controls vendor ID : 00-40-11 The last 3 bytes of the MAC address are derived from your controller’s serial number. The controller’s serial number is printed on the board and is represented as an Integer value. You must convert this value to HEX in order to obtain the last 3 bytes of your controllers MAC address. Ex. Integer Serial Number: 1033394 Converted to Hex: FC4B2 Controller’s MAC: 00-40-11-0F-C4-B2   Create a batch file Create a batch file named Acc.bat with the following content: arp -s %1 %2 ping -l %3 %1 arp -d %1   Restart the b4920 Controller Within 2 Minutes of restarting, run the batch file with the 3 arguments: Acc.bat IP_Address 00-40-11-XX-XX-XX 255 Where IP_Address = valid IP on the network Where XX-XX-XX = last 3 bytes of controller’s MAC Where 255 = Ping Payload size   After Issuing the command, the controller should restart, and the factory default address settings are restored.    Method Two - Capture the Controllers Currently Configured IP Address This second method is easier to do and is currently recommended because of its ease. Download and install a network sniffing application, such as Wireshark which can be downloaded from their website here. Connect a Cross over Ethernet cable between the b4920 and a PC running the network sniffing application. Start up the network sniffing application and then reset the b4920 by hitting the reset button on the controller. On start up, the controller will send out the IP address (Gratuitous ARP Packet) which it currently has assigned to it.  Once this IP address is captured with Wireshark etc the IP of the Workstation can then be changed to allow connection to the controller's web configuration page to change its IP address as required.  

Issue What has to happen for CyberStation to generate an offline controller alarm. Product Line Andover Continuum Environment CyberStation Infinity Controller Offline alarms Cause Receiving offline controller alarms yet controller appears to be online. Resolution Controllers can be offline for many reasons, such as a broadcast storm or will not come online, but consider the following points: In order to determine whether a controller is offline, a CyberStation will send out a probe to the controller.   The frequency with which CyberStation sends out the probe is determined by the value of the Probe Time field on the General Page of the workstation configuration. If an Infinity Controller does not respond to a probe, CyberStation will wait until a probe can be sent to all other Infinity Controller nodes in the system.  If the controller fails to respond to a second probe the controller is designated as Offline by CyberStation. Each CyberStation evaluates the commstatus of all controllers and reports alarms to the database.  Occasionally a CyberStation will show a controller as being offline while another CyberStation will show the same controller in an online state. When more that one workstation detects that the same controller is offline, this information is negotiated so that there will normally not be multiple offline alarms for the same controller.  Some versions of Continuum handle this better than others.  When an offline controller responds to a probe it is marked as Return to Normal. The controller may also be marked as Return to Normal if the workstation receives some other communication from the controller.

Issue The localhost cannot be opened in the R2 Admin Tool. The error messages: “Cannot open admin session. java.net.ConnectException: Connection refused: connect” is displayed in the popup. The error messages “Niagara service could not be started.” when attempting to start WorkPlace Pro via the console. Product Line TAC IA Series Environment Niagara R2, WorkPlace Pro Cause The WorkPlace Pro PC has AVG software installed. The AVG software stripped out the “niagarad.exe” executable file during the installation of WorkPlace Pro. The Niagara R2 service could not be started without the niagarad.exe file. . Resolution Turn off AVG software and then reinstall the WorkPlace Pro software.

Issue When trying to open the admin tool in Niagara R2 Workplace Pro, the following error message appears: Cannot open admin session Java.net.connect Exception:Connection refused:connect Product Line TAC IA Series Environment Niagara R2 Workplace Pro Cause This error occurs because the local Niagara service is not running. Resolution Open the console of the desired version Type admininstall install /start Now you should be able to log into an Admin tool session.

Issue What type of objects can be viewed using "Edit in Spreadsheet" mode Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment Edit in Spreadsheet mode Building Operation WorkStation Cause The objects that can be edited in Spreadsheet mode vary depending on the device or object you are viewing Resolution When you are viewing the AS IO Bus or an AS IO module, then clearly the only objects that cab be configured are Points. Below you can see the "IO" tab, but the "New" tab is greyed out. When viewing a "Folder" in an AS then possible tabs are "Alarm", "Value", "Folder" or "Trend". Below this can be seen (v1.3) LON device, Modbus Devices etc. will allow different access via the spreadsheet mode. This will vary for different versions If you need to find out what spreadsheet access is possible with your chosen device/folder, then it is best to navigate to the relevant Object, folder or device, enter Spreadsheet mode, then check what tabs are available when "New..." is select NOTES: If there is only a single possible spreadsheet object type, then even if there are zero of these object types created, then a blank spreadsheet is shown. If there is more than a single possible spreadsheet object type, and none of these object types are created, then no blank spreadsheet is shown. "New..." needs to be selected. When a row is selected, then an entry modified, all the text data in that row that is visible will be modified. Most EBO objects can be edited using Spreadsheet View with the exception of BACnet Objects. It follows that all objects that exist within MP/RP series controllers cannot be edited in Spreadsheet View as these are all BACnet Objects (This would include Modbus objects within the RP controllers that are actually BACnet objects) For further information refer to the Spreadsheet Overview EBO Webhelp topic