Building Automation Knowledge Base

Issue When saving a Plain English program, the program disables on the following error. Array index too large or too small. Environment Plain English Manual Log Array Error Cause Program is attempting to store a value in a numerics manual array slot when the array does not exist. Resolution Determine how many array slots the program intends to use when storing values in this numeric. On the Logs page of the numeric editor make sure the size matches the number of array values being used by the program.

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 Large data base log file causes Continuum to run very slow and/or crash. Environment SU CyberStation MS SQL Express Cause When Continuum starts and attempts to connect to the DB it takes too long due to the size of the log file (14GB in the case covered by this article) Resolution Shrink the database. Go to http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms190757.aspx for steps from Microsoft to shrink the database files.

Issue Once a backup to flash is successfully performed, will the restore be successful if the acc net id changes? Environment bCX9640 CX9680 ACX5740 ACX5720 Cause System design Resolution Upon attempting to restore a backup of its DB from flash, the controller checks its acc net id against what is in the backup, if a mismatch is found the restore operation is aborted. The error log will error 0x000014fb in the error code column and 0x1442000c in the Data1 column.

Issue IOU module(s) attached to CX9900 or CX9680 keep dying, some with blinking status light others just show online but cannot drive outputs on it. Environment CX9900 CX9680 Lon IOU modules Cause Static electricity discharging on the module via wire of Fan drive controller. Resolution Disconnect offending wire at the source. Re-route wire so it does not cause static discharge on the IOU modules. Make sure the IOU modules are properly attached to earth ground as per the installation instruction.

Issue Can a Netcontroller II be used to communicate directly to BACnet MS/TP devices? Environment BACnet MS/TP RS-485 XDriver Netcontroller 2, NC2 bCX9640 Cause No X Driver is listed for BACnet MS/TP. Resolution There is no X Driver available for the BACnet MS/TP protocol to allow a NC2 to communicate to 3rd party MS/TP devices. However a bCX1 4040 can directly communicate to BACnet MS/TP on its Comm2 and is BTL listed to confirm compatibility. Also a bCX1 9640 can be converted to a 4040 by flashing it with the 4040 flash file available on the Extranet.

Issue Customer does not have Microsoft Outlook/Exchange, only Lotus Notes/Domino. Environment Keywords: Email, Page, Lotus Notes Cause Customer wants email and paging of alarms but does not use Microsoft Outlook and Exchange. Resolution Lotus Notes is not a supported application for emailing or paging of alarms. Microsoft Outlook with Exchange is the only supported program for this application.

Issue Unable to run the  Database Initialization application. Receive error stating that "You must have NT local administrator access...". Even after logging in as a local administrator the same error occurs. Environment Continuum Cyberstation Windows Server 2008 Domain Cause The instances of this that have been reported all seem to be where there has been an upgrade to or new installation of Windows Server 2008 where the system is part of a Domain. It is not entirely understood at this time but something to do with the Domain policies being pushed down to the Workstations is causing problems.   Resolution Until the cause can be properly identified, a workaround that has worked in most cases has been to create/setup a local Administrator account and then run Database Initialization as an Administrator. Shut down all Cyberstations. Right-click Database Initialization and select "Run as... Administrator". With the EUR domain in the UK the following has been found - XP                 - "Right click" on the "Database Initialization shortcut" and “Run As” use local admin - Windows 7 - "Shift" & "Right click" on the "Database Initialization shortcut" and “Run as a different user”, use local admin

Issue How to safely de-commission an Access Controller with configured Doors and Personnel. Environment Continuum Cyberstation Access Controllers Cause In the past, when deleting Access controllers from a live site, problems have been encountered with controllers that had pending Personnel distributions. Resolution As long as there are no pending distributions to the controller, deleting the controller from Continuum should be problem free. The problem with distributions begins when a controller is still defined in the database but is not online. Any changes to personnel in this offline controller will be "buffered" until the controller comes back online. Deleting the controller device object out of the database stops these distributions from being attempted in the first place.   The most comprehensive method of removing personnel from a controller during de-commissioning is to do the following: For the Personnel, remove access to the Areas that the controller supplies access too. These changes will then distribute down to the controller and remove these personnel from it. Once the distributions are complete, remove the Areas from the door objects in the controller, if not using profiles.  (When using profiles in the Personnel Manager do not remove Areas, this can potentially cause database issues)  Then to complete the de-commissioning, delete the controllers Device object from the Continuum database.  

Issue PSS recommends creating an ACC_Dump_Debug.txt file to troubleshoot save-to-database problems. Product Line Andover Continuum Environment ACC_Dump_Debug Debug file Cause Trouble saving a controller to database. One step in troubleshooting is to set up a debug file Resolution Note: Under normal operation, Continuum saves an ASCII dump file to the TEMP directory every time a “Save from Controller” (via the "Send to Database" option) is done and deletes the file after it is imported. In order to keep these files for inspection, follow this procedure. Open a dos command prompt, type Set TEMP, and record the location of your TEMP directory. In the TEMP directory, create a text file named Acc_Dump_Debug.txt. Edit the Acc_Dump_Debug.txt file and enter on the first line the directory where you would like the dump files to be stored (e.g., c:\DumpFiles\CNC1.) Note: The directory entered in the text file must already exist. If the directory does not exist, then an error message will be written to the Acc_Dump_Debug.txt file and the dump operation will proceed as normal. If the Acc_Dump_Debug.txt file is created but does not have a directory entry on the first line, .dmp files will be written to the root drive where continuum is installed. With the Acc_Dump_Debug.txt file properly configured, all .dmp files will be redirected to the specified directory. The file name of the dumped object is the continuum full path name of the object with a .dmp extension. To turn off the archiving, either delete the Acc_Dump_Debug.txt file or rename it.

Issue Want to create a listview that shows all expired personnel cards on or after today's date. Environment Cyberstation (all versions) Cause The built-in Personnel_Expired Cards listview does not have any date filters. Resolution Either edit the  built-in Personnel_Expired Cards listview, or create a new on.  Edit the listview, and click on the Qualifiers tab.  Check the Advanced Database Qualifier box, and type the following expression in the Database field:  ((ExpirationDate >=   [workstation name] \Date) & (Template = False)) where   [workstation name] is the name of the Cyberstation. When the listview is opened,  cards expiring today and after will be displayed.            

Issue Do not know the card information such as card type, card number and site code.  Environment  CX99xx , CX 9680 , ACX57xx , ACX7xx. Cause Need to know the card information that is to be used and need to configure the door for the card to be used.  Resolution Set the door configuration to Site + Card mode. Open the Access EventView and swipe the card to the reader of the door. Verify the card information from Access EventView.

Issue A third party personnel management system stores nine separate pieces of information in a single thirty two digit FASC number.  In order to migrate personnel data from a third party system into Continuum, the nine values that make up the FASC number must be separated in order to populate the various fields in each Continuum personnel Object. Product Line Andover Continuum Environment Continuum Personnel Import Parse Excel Cause In order to migrate personnel data from a third party system into Continuum, the nine values that make up the FASC number must be separated in order to populate the various fields in each Continuum personnel Object. Resolution Import the third party information into an Excel spreadsheet. Under the Data menu, use Text to Column to parse the nine values combined in the FASC number into nine columns based on fixed width. Import the personnel data in CSV format or use Personnel Import Utility to import the parsed data.  (Note:  The Personnel Import Utility is a available as a paid for option in Continuum). Also see the following Knowledge Base Articles for information on importing personnel information: Personnel.csv file fails to import into Continuum Creating Personnel objects via CSV import file that include area assignment and photo

Issue Controller inputs cannot be reloaded. Environment Reload I/O IO module Cause I/O module is offline. Resolution Resolve IO module communication issue and retry.

Issue Customer wishes to upgrade an existing controller to a CX9680. The existing controller has TankNet. Environment TankNet CX9680 Cause Are there any drivers available to connect a Tanknet system to the CX9680? Resolution TankNet is not available on any of the CX9680 comm ports. There is no driver to connect a TankNet system to it either. A controller with the TankNet option built into the comm port must be purchased. For leak detection applications there in an Xdriver for several Veeder-Root models. Here is a link to the Xdriver on The Exchange Download Center: Veeder-Root TSL 300 350 350R

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 What is the procedure for replacing a CX9200, CX9400 or 99xx with a BCX9640 Environment BCX9640 CX9200 CX9400 CX99xx Convert Conversion Cause While Continuum Versions 1.91 and higher have a direct procedure for upgrading a CX9200, CX9400 or 99xx to a CX9680, no such option exists for converting a controller to a BCX9640 controller.  Resolution There is no quick and easy way to replace a 9200 (9400 or 9900) with a BCX9640.  In order to do this it will be necessary to bring the BCX9640 online as a new controller (with a new ACCID) and copy the contents of the 9200 (9400, 99xx) into the BCX9640.   Do not copy the System Variables from the 9200, 9400 or 99xx into the replacement controller. As always a backup of the Continuum database should be made prior to making any such changes to the system. External point references, point references on graphics and alarm links would have to be checked and repaired where they have been lost.  Other controllers that referenced points in the original 9200 (9400 or 99xx) will have to be corrected so that they point toward the corresponding object in the new BCX9640.  A full recommissioning of the controller may be required.  Once the conversion is complete the original controller object would be deleted from the system. While importing a text dump of the (9200, 9400 or 99xx) is another approach, this can be a messy process that requires the dump file to be manipulated.  This can lead to more substantial problems if done incorrectly.

Issue MSTP capture shows no destination network in the I-Am packet from the third party device.  Environment BACnet Third party device Zone IO 583 I-am Who-is MSTP Wireshark Cause The third party device may still respond to the Who-Is broadcast from Cyberstation, but is programmed to exclude the Destination Network in its I-Am response when the Network ID (UDP) is set to a value of 1.  Resolution Use a Network ID that is an integer other than 1, or have the third party vendor correct the configuration issue.

Issue Repeater for large distances between card reader and controller Environment Site with iBMS using Access Control Cause Site has large distances between card reader and access controller Example: maximum permissible cable length for a HID reader to the ACX controller - the length depends on the gauge of cable used: Wiring Distance Card Reader to ACX: 200 ft. (60.96 m) max using 22 AWG 500 ft. (152.4 m) max. using 18 AWG Resolution The communication between access controllers and card readers is using RS-422. Access controllers supply power as well as data to the card readers. To increase beyond the recommended guidelines a repeater can be used which extends the data length. A separate power supply would have to be installed to power the card reader.  Solutions for RS-422 data repeaters are: Westermo Cypress Computer Schneider Electric PSS in no way is endorsing nor including support of Cypress Computer & Westermo products in the following example: An example of a site using Continuum: the project used the Cypress SPX-1300 and was able to run the cables up to 3000 meters as long as the reader was powered from within the lift car, he utilised the Continuum elevator add on module with the Net11 and AC-1 Module per car.

Issue Many  of our products have Web page functionality, can I test out if my animation plug in's are operating correctly? Environment Web pages, Web Client, Web Server Embedded Pinpoint web pages Silverlight, Flash player, Java and other Web animations. Cause Need to confirm if a web page  Animation plug in operates within the product or just on the Web browser used on the PC.  Resolution See Website: http://bubblemark.com/ for the links to the different animation tests.

Issue Is the error LED on the ACX781 linked to the errors system variable in the controller? What events constitute and error that would cause the LED to be illuminated? How is the nature of the controller error determined? Can this value (and the error LED) be cleared by setting it back to 0? Environment LCX780 LCX781 Error Light LED Cause The error led is associated with the errors system variable.   Resolution Try using Command Line to set the Errors system variable  to 0 and see if the error led goes away. The most common reason why the error would be non-zero is because there is a program that went disabled.

Issue Are examples available to show how to write Plain English programs and create points for a Modbus RTU X Driver linked to Schneider Electric Power meters? Environment Modbus RTU X Driver Schneider Electric PM800 Power meters. Cause How can Modbus RTU X-Driver programs be written to poll for the data in a 3rd party Modbus device? Resolution The attached example show how to use the modbus RTU x-driver to read 4 16 bit data values from the PM800 meter, then using plain english to get the values to output to a single infinity numeric the total Power reading in kWH/mWH/gWH depending on the scaling factor of the meter. Create 4 Numerics reading the four registers that are used to store the data. Registers, 1716, 1717, 1718, 1719 are used in the PM800 Then create another numeric and via PE do the following calculation Energy Calc = (Register 4 x 1000000000000) + (Register 3 x 100000000) + (Register 2 x 10000) + Register 1. This will give you the value in wH. Then use a multiplier to give you the final reading in kWH etc.