Building Automation Knowledge Base

Issue Some MSTP Devices show up when learned but other are not coming in. They worked fine on the Continuum install with the same MSTP network. Environment Automation Server Cause The AS has a maximum of 50 MSTP nodes and the b3 controllers that are not coming in are above this NodeId. Resolution Change the b3's NodeId's to a value below 50. 1. Use the Continuum system to change the Id by deleting the device object from the database, recreating it with the new NodeId. 2. Clear the controller to factory default.

Issue Bindings to PVB and PVR blocks in function block programs are lost after upgrading from 1.3 to 1.4.1. Environment StruxureWare Building Operation 1.4.1 Cause Text from Release notes for 1.4.1, page 38 10.2.2 Bindings to Public Variables and Public Constants in Function Blocks Bindings to Public Constants and Public Variables will be lost after upgrade from 1.3 to 1.4.1. The names of these Public Constants and Public Variables will be listed in the Conversion log produced by the 1.4.1 Device Administrator at the upgrade. Resolution After upgrade to 1.4.1 do the following: Locate the Public Constants and the Public Variables listed in the Conversion log. Select the Function Block Program that includes Public Constants or the Public Variables listed in the Conversion log and open the Edit Bindings View. Lost bindings will be displayed with: "Invalid- Variable not allowed to have a reference" Make a note of these bindings. Quit the Bindings View. Select and Edit the Function Block Program(s) that include the Public Constants or Public Variables, move a Function Block slightly to enable an insignificant change of the program to be discovered by the compiler. Save the Function Block program (the program then compiles again). Open the Binding View and re-bind the lost bindings. You will now also be able to select in which direction the value should be transferred. Save the bindings.

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 Function Block Editor does not open. Product Line EcoStruxure Building Operation Environment SmartStruxure Function Block Editor Cause There could be many reasons but in one of the case we found a malware called "sprotector.dll" somehow trying to hook into the Function Block Editor dll's. This malware is then crashing and prevents Function Block Editor from starting. SProtector.exe is typically added when you install another free software (video recording/streaming, download-managers or PDF creators) that had bundled into their installation this program. Resolution Reinstall this computer's Operating System completely, if that's not an option you can read more about how to remove "sprotector" here: http://malwaretips.com/blogs/sprotector-exe-virus-removal/

Issue How does the documented minimum pulse width translate into maximum pulses per minute? Environment All software/ firmware versions Cause The documentation defines the minimum pulse duration, not the number of pulses per minute. Resolution The documented 20ms min pulse duration for the Xenta 411 applies to both On and Off states. A complete min pulse cycle would be 20ms On + 20ms Off (50% Duty cycle), which equals 40ms. Therefore the max number of pulses per minute is 1000*60/40 = 1500 pulses/min or 25 pulses/ Second (25Hz).  

Issue When a graphic is opened in WorkStation, the graphic work area is just white. If the mouse cursor is moved over the white area, it is possible that some objects will show. Environment Detected in SmartStruxure version 1.4.1 WorkStation Cause This is caused by an issue in the graphics card display driver. Resolution Update the graphics card display driver to the newest version. Sometimes you will need to refer to the manufacturer of the card, and not the manufacturer of the PC.

Issue The option to download the application to a MNL-800 controller is not available in StruxureWare Building Operation Workstation. Environment StruxureWare 1.1 or higher Cause For the download option to be available the MNL-800 version must be 2.0. Resolution There are two options to handle this issue: Upgrade the controller board to version 2.0 Treat the controller as a 3rd party LON device by importing the XIF file and handling the program in an external version of WorkPlace Tech.

Issue Trouble with I/NET to Building Operation bindings. Site can bind an internal I/Net AO to a analogue value in Building Operation but the value won't update. Value appears with a blue triangle that says "unresolved".  Environment I/NET Seven together with StruxureWare Building Operation Cause I/NET points are integrated into Building Operation as points. When you upload the device configuration to the Enterprise Server, the configuration and point information are created in the System Tree pane. You edit and command the points as needed, using WorkStation and I/NET Seven editors. There are ten possible point types available in I/NET: Analog input (AI) Analog output (AO) Discrete input (DI) Discrete output (DO) Discrete alarm (DA) Discrete monitor (DM) Discrete control (DC) Digital input (GI) Digital output (GO) Pulsed input (PI) Resolution For any I/NET inputs (AI, DI, DM, GI and PI) it is only possible for operator changes to be made via the Building Operation Properties. It is not possible to programmatically control I/NET inputs and therefore not to be able to bind an output to an I/NET input point. It is also not possible to programmatically change any points Test state, any outputs (AO, DC, DO and GO) Manual state. And finally it is not possible to programmatically acknowledge an alarm. Therefore it is not possible to bind any script, schedule, FB, etc to any I/NET Points Test, Manual, Alarm Acknowledge or input point.

Issue Is it possible to acknowledge an alarm from a TGML graphic? Environment TGML graphics in StruxureWare Building Operation workstation and webstation. Cause Customers may wish to simplify the user interface and have a TGML graphic as the interface for all user operations. Resolution It is not possible to bind to an "acknowledge" attribute of an alarm from TGML, as this is not exposed. Our recommendation would be to use a panel and have an alarm pane in the panel as well as the graphic.

Issue DMO and SMO from SQL Environment DMO and SMO from SQL Cause A site which was running I/NET and StruxureWare Building Operation, and as required, I/NET is running as a service. The SQL DMO caused an issue with I/NET running as a service and interrupted the INET service. What is SMO and DMO DMO is part of SQL 2005 backwards compatibility. Which has to be installed when going to SQL 2008 to allow the old I/NET database to be imported. With SQL 2008 they now use SMO instead of DMO. You cannot remove DMO without creating a new data base.  Resolution I/NET SQL interface is based on DMO (Distributed Management Objects) so it will not work with SMO (Server Management Objects). That is the reason the backward compatibility must be installed.  Sites that are using a 64 Bit Workstation and 64 bit SQL then there is a 64 bit backward compatibility that should be installed. The 64 bit BCM is in the Support folder on the original install CD called SQLBCM_64Bit.

Issue Unable to find Modbus device on RS-485 line under an Automation Server. Environment Automation Server (AS) Modbus over serial line Cause Common wire is missing. Resolution Connect a common wire to the Shield connection on the COM port terminal

Issue How many events can be saved in the Enterprise server version 1.4.1? Environment StruxureWare 1.4.1. Cause The number of events which could be saved in 1.4.0 was 200 000 which some customers have thought is too few. Resolution The number of events which can be saved in the ES version 1.4.1 is increased to 1,5 million.

Issue The drop down menu to select WorkPlace Tech help manuals does not function in Internet Explorer 11. Environment WorkPlace Tech 5.8.6 Internet Explorer 11 Cause Internet Explorer changes how they handle compatibility mode for websites and webpage used to access the help files requires updating in a new version of WorkPlace Tech. Resolution Use one of the following options to access the help files Access them directly by going to the folder they are stored. On a Windows 7 (64 bit) operating system this is C:\Program Files (x86)\WorkPlace Tech\Help by default. Modify the index.htm, BACnet.htm, LON.htm, search.htm, Sensors.htm, and Software.htm files found in the C:\Program Files (x86)\WorkPlace Tech\Help\bin directory. Add the following line in front of the first "meta http-equiv=" line:   <meta content="IE=EmulateIE8" http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" />   <meta content="IE-EmulateIE8" http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" />

Issue Is it possible to acknowledge an alarm from a third party HMI? Environment StruxureWare Building Operation Cause The only way to acknowledge an alarm in SmartStruxure is via the Workstation/Webstation or EcoStruxure Web Service. Resolution The only way to acknowledge an alarm in SmartStruxure from a third party HMI is via EcoStruxure Web Service.

Issue How often is a SNVT in a Lon device polled if an StruxureWare Building Operation alarm monitors that variable? What happens if a shunt variable is used - is the polling rate still the same? Environment Lon Device StruxureWare Building Operation Cause Alarms are to monitor SNVTs in a Lon device put polling may overload the network. Resolution An alarm monitoring a SNVT will be polled every 100 ms. If a shunt variable is then activated the pollrate will drop to 5 000 000 ms. This can be seen in the variable manager: Go to Server 1/System/Modules/RuntimeDBManager/VariableManager/Variables in Workstation Locate the variable in question and ensure that the Imposed Pollrate column is shown.

Issue What SNVT_temp_p value in the AS local node is required to force an MNL controller to fallback to a Not Active (NA) condition?  The AS station is configured to use degrees Fahrenheit and standard SNVT_temp_p definition uses degrees Celsius. Environment StruxureWare Building Operation Cause SNVT_temp_p is defined by the standard as a degrees Celsius temperature with a range of - 273.17 to + 327.66 Deg C (0.01 Deg C).  A value of 327.67 Deg C (0x7FFF) will cause the MNL controller to fallback to an NA condition.  The AS station is configured to use degrees Fahrenheit the value must be entered in Deg F. Resolution Sending a Not Active (NA) To write SNVT values, one is to write from programming logic to the local node out of the mirrored network variable to the controller SNVT.  Example: Mirrored variable, local node -> Vav??? -> nvoSetpoint, writes to VAV??? nviSetpoint [MNL-V2RV3] Go to the local node Find the nvoSetpoint Expand to Temperature value Right-click and select Properties Under Basic tab, General Information Section, Limit Section, locate the Invalid value Use the following value for NA in your programming [for SNVT_temp_p it is 621.81]

Issue Receiving an 550 Unable to relay alarm in StruxureWare Building Operation alarm list when sending an alarm via email. Environment StruxureWare Building Operation Enterprise Server 1.4.0.4020 Cause The SMTP email server restricted sending to external email addresses Resolution Contact the IT department to resolve configuration. Until resolves restrict email messages to email addresses on the SMTP server.

Issue How many SQL client licenses to run SQL if SQL 2008 is used to run Report Server? When Report Server is installed, is there a connection between SQL and the Enterprise Server. Environment Report Server Licensing Cause Licenses must be purchased for supporting software (OS, SQL, etc). Resolution Because SQL and Report Server have to be running on the same machine, there is only one sequel user that requires licensing.  There is no connection between the Enterprise Server and SQL when Report Server is installed.

Issue Unable to log into Reports Server after upgrade Environment Reports Server Cause The Enterprise Server Address must be correctly entered in the required fields during the upgrade. If this is left as the default, the application will not function correctly. Resolution Browse to the SE.SBO.WebReports.Installer that was used for your original upgrade attempt. Right click on this and select "Run as administrator" In the Setup Type select the Upgrade option Follow the Prompts and be sure to enter the correct site information Under the Reporting Agent Section change the Enterprise Server URL to the correct Enterprise Server location and port. You may need to verify this on the ES PC. Complete the installation and attempt to log into web reports again.

Issue The thermostat appears to be in OFF mode and can't be cycled through the modes as indicated by the manufacturer's directions.   Environment Venstar T2700, VST2700 thermostats for red-wire control connected physically to a controller Cause It seems that the polarity of the dry contact was set to the default Normally Open (NO) state. Using the Venstar EZ-Programmer to apply the correct settings for use with an occupancy point did not overwrite the polarity of the Venstar's dry contact, but did overwrite the Dry Contact Operation. Also, by wiring everything up first, we did not power up the thermostat to change the mode before it got the closed dry contact command from the BAS. So when we did power everything up, the dry contact was closed, but the thermostat understood that this was an "unoccupied" command since it was still set to NO. Even though the security settings allowed the mode to be changed, when Dry Contact Operation is enabled, the mode can only be changed in occupied mode. When the thermostat goes unoccupied, it stays in whatever mode it was in previously, and controls to the unoccupied setpoints. By not realizing that the EZ Programmer didn't overwrite the polarity, we assumed the dry contact operation and polarity were correct and a closed dry contact would enable the occupied mode.   Resolution This issue can be resolved by powering up the thermostat before connecting the dry contact relay and changing the mode to "auto". If already wired, make sure the dry contact polarity is set to Normally Closed (NC) and Dry Contact Operation is "Yes". Then the modes can be cycled while occupied. < acc0432manualrev1.pdf="" manuals="" support="" www.venstar.com="">

Issue What version of LONMARK Resource Files are used within StruxureWare Building Operation? Environment StruxureWare Building Operation Cause SBO documentation currently does not provide this information.  The LONMARK Resource Files define the standard SNVTs and SCPTs that are supported by the platform. Resolution StruxureWare 1.2 ... LONMARK Resource Files version 13.02 StruxureWare 1.3 ... LONMARK Resource Files version 13.02 StruxureWare 1.4 ... LONMARK Resource Files version 13.20 StruxureWare 1.5 (next release) ... LONMARK Resource Files version 14.00