I am having some problems with the inControl software losing control of my switches (1 dimmer-Evolve LRM-AS and 1 switch-GE/Jasco 45609) by an Aeon Zstick 2.
I believe it's multiple problems. The GE switch is fairly far away with a number of obstructions. I have a USB extension cable on order to try and fix this. If that doesn't work I'll try and add another switch somewhere between the problematic one and the Zstick 2. What is strange is that sometimes it works just fine for a while and then doesn't. Is there any way to monitor/debug this loss of connectivity, other than taking guesses?
What is more puzzling is the dimmer. It is very close to the Zstick 2. It's one floor above and about 7 ft away in a metal box behind marble. InControl has lost control of it once or twice. It seems that it only happened when I had the InControl service running and also had the server open (opened by clicking on the Incontrol HA Server icon), for a few days, on the PC with the Zstick 2. Are the service and the server competing with each other? Do I have to stop the service and open the icon to manage my automation? Or is there some other way required to manage automation when using the service? When I want to go back to the service, do I have to close the server and start the service? Right now I have been running the service without starting the server for a few days and have had no problems.
Sorry for these newbie questions. Perhaps a debugging wiki page would be helpful.
Several Qs about service vs running server via icon and losing control of switches.
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I am having some problems with the inControl software losing control of my switches (1 dimmer-Evolve LRM-AS and 1 switch-GE/Jasco 45609) by an Aeon Zstick 2.
I believe it's multiple problems. The GE switch is fairly far away with a number of obstructions. I have a USB extension cable on order to try and fix this. If that doesn't work I'll try and add another switch somewhere between the problematic one and the Zstick 2. What is strange is that sometimes it works just fine for a while and then doesn't. Is there any way to monitor/debug this loss of connectivity, other than taking guesses?
What is more puzzling is the dimmer. It is very close to the Zstick 2. It's one floor above and about 7 ft away in a metal box behind marble. InControl has lost control of it once or twice. It seems that it only happened when I had the InControl service running and also had the server open (opened by clicking on the Incontrol HA Server icon), for a few days, on the PC with the Zstick 2. Are the service and the server competing with each other? Do I have to stop the service and open the icon to manage my automation? Or is there some other way required to manage automation when using the service? When I want to go back to the service, do I have to close the server and start the service? Right now I have been running the service without starting the server for a few days and have had no problems.
Sorry for these newbie questions. Perhaps a debugging wiki page would be helpful.
When your control fades away, do you get any kind of alert icon show up? What steps do you take to remedy it?
As far as the GUI (the thing you open up by double clicking the icon) or the server... when the GUI starts, it'll start the server if it's not already running. If you have not checked the "run as service" option in the tools menu, then closing down the GUI will also close down the server and control will be lost. If you have it checked, then you can safely close the GUI without worrying about the server also shutting down.
The button in the lower right hand corner of the GUI also controls the starting/stopping of the server with offline meaning that it's not running and online meaning that it is.
When your control fades away, do you get any kind of alert icon show up? What steps do you take to remedy it?
As far as the GUI (the thing you open up by double clicking the icon) or the server... when the GUI starts, it'll start the server if it's not already running. If you have not checked the "run as service" option in the tools menu, then closing down the GUI will also close down the server and control will be lost. If you have it checked, then you can safely close the GUI without worrying about the server also shutting down.
The button in the lower right hand corner of the GUI also controls the starting/stopping of the server with offline meaning that it's not running and online meaning that it is.
Thanks for your quick reply. When I was leaving the GUI open, I was getting a red exclamation mark with errors something to the effect of couldn't contact the device 10 times. Sometimes I got the error, something to the effect, device did not respond to command initial status. I started the gui and the following error is on the screen which repeats almost immediately after I clear it. I will post any other errors if I see them.
'Device did not acknowledge command BASICGET.Status from device: CompleteNoAcknowlege'
Is there a way to log the errors? I don't see anything related to the lost contact in any of the log files. However this error is appearing periodically:
11/26/2013 5:13:07 PM: Error during logging operation -
System.NullReferenceException
Object reference not set to an instance of an object.
at
MLS.HA.DeviceController.Common.HaControllerInterface.Controllers.HaZenZWaveController.nativeController_onDeviceLog(ZNode
device, Boolean incomingMessage, String logMessage) in
z:\work\mls\MLS.ZWave.Controller\MLS.HA.DeviceController\Controllers\HaZenZWaveController.cs:line
137
at MLS.HA.ZensysController.ZController.deviceLog(ZNode device,
Boolean incomingMessage, String logMessage) in
z:\work\mls\MLS.ZWave.Controller\MLS.HA.ZensysController\ZController.cs:line
290
at MLS.HA.ZensysController.ZController.processApplicationCommand(Byte
sourceNodeId, CommandClassValue[] values) in
z:\work\mls\MLS.ZWave.Controller\MLS.HA.ZensysController\ZController.cs:line
2120
For anyone else having z-wave connectivity problems. The $10 USB extension cable worked. There were quite a few metal HVAC ducts between the USB stick and switch that was losing connectivity. Using a 15 foot USB extension cable I moved the Zstick so there were no ducts blocking the signal. Now both switch and dimmer work reliably.
I am 'now' having the exact same problem ...which started when I updated from v3.38 to latest 3.54 version. I am running on WHS 2011, and have been doing so for over a year without problems. Until I updated everything was working great for weeks/months at a time.
I never saw the 'red-encircled' explanation points before, at least not until I updated to the latest version. I have now twice uninstalled and reinstalled v3.54 (I am a Pro subscriber), and after the first uninstall, I even went into the Registry to eliminate/clear-out all key references found to InControlHA ...before I reinstalled.
Now I just uninstalled InControlHA for the third time, but this time I went back to installing v3.38 to see if I could get InControl to work. Result: Nay. Now, unlike before, I get the 'red-encircled' exclamation point on all three of my light controllers -- [3] Intermatic HA02 Appliance Modules.
To repeat, never any issues until now. The first 'HA02 is about 8~10 feet from the Aeon ZStick, the next HA02 is 35-ft from both the Aeon ZStick and the first HA02. And the third HA02 is on the 2nd floor, about 30~-ft unobstructed view from 2nd HA02 (or about the same from the first HA02, but through ceiling/floor).
I have not yet tried finding a USB extension cable like the previous User. Too late now, will attempt tomorrow. Nonetheless, I find that having to do that as ridiculous because I have not changed a darn thing regarding the location of my ZStick. The only thing changed is upgrading the software from v3.38 to v3.54 ...and now back to v3.38 ...but now retaining the same problem.
Note: When I uninstalled and reinstalled each time, I retained the same ol' "zwave.sds" file; I did not Reset my ZStick; I did NOT delete/remove my HA02 devices and re-add them ....net net, I left everything except the software version the same. AND ...adding to my frustration, I have Homeseer's ZTool on my Netbook, which I use more easily add/remove and test my Devices. ....and guess what, when I moved my un-modified ZStick to my Netbook, and opened Homeseer's ZTool, all my devices were recognized, responded properly, and correctly turned ALL three of my HA02-contolled lights on and off without any issues, and I did this standing right between my WHS 2011 Server and the closest HA02 Device (or 4-ft away from the first HA02 Device).
My reaction is that something 'software-driven' is messed up because nothing else changed. And as for those 'red-encircled' exclamation points, ...where did they come from (i.e., I never saw them before, so what version did they enter the picture)???
If you need any more info, please advise. If you can help, would be much, much, much appreciated ...because at this time, I've out of commission for nearly a week.
As a final note, things started to go astray before I updated to v3.38. I was getting on-again somedays, and next day 'caput' again functionality, which prompted me to go to InControl website where I found there have been two or three updates since v3.38 (I never got the usual automatic 'pop-up' that heretofore alerted me that a new.)
Hope the information I provided is helpful. Otherwise, I am at a loss.
...as a follow-up thought to my precedeing commentary ...., maybe I was on v3.37, and when I updated to v3.38 is when I started having on-again-off-again issues, which now are really magnified. ...????
The USB extension solved my problem with not being able to reach ONE of the z-wave devices. The system worked perfectly for about a week and then lost contact with all the switches at the exact same time (I looked in properties for the devices and saw the 'last communication' field). I rebooted the windows 7 system that was running inControl. It blue screened on shutdown, but finally rebooted. Everything is working once again. When I have more time, I will add more information (or create a new topic) about this.
One of my thoughts was to either reboot every night, or stop and start the service every night. Perhaps that would prevent the server from getting stuck.
I am running 3.43.5050.17923
Now I just uninstalled InControlHA for the third time, but this time I went back to installing v3.38 to see if I could get InControl to work. Result: Nay. Now, unlike before, I get the 'red-encircled' exclamation point on all three of my light controllers -- [3] Intermatic HA02 Appliance Modules.
What is the message you get when you click the exclamation point? What else can you tell me about what you are experiencing? Are you having problems controlling lights or just polling for updates on the lights?
As a final note, things started to go astray before I updated to v3.38. I was getting on-again somedays, and next day 'caput' again functionality, which prompted me to go to InControl website where I found there have been two or three updates since v3.38 (I never got the usual automatic 'pop-up' that heretofore alerted me that a new.)
Can you expand on the 'on-again somedays, and next day 'caput' again functionality'?
Two things in my following comments: [1] what I did since my extensive commentary of last evening, and [2] a reply to Ryan Scott;s latest question of me.
[1] Before retiring lasdt evening, I uninstalled v3.38 and went backward some more, and re-install v3.35. Then put my WHS 2011 SERVER into a 'RESTART' ..then went off to bed. This a.m., just before writing these comments herein, I logged in to my SERVER via remote to see where things stood with InControlHA running under v3.35. Surprise! Surprise! InControl now seems to be working just fine; I can turn on and turn off my all HA02 devices without any issues. I chose not to mess with my Rules for now, and will find out later today if my On-before-Sunset and On-just-after-Sunset rules 'kick in' properly, just as they always reliably have before I upgraded a week or two ago to later versions. ....Prospectively, I may try to once again do a series of update/install-overlays and progress version-by-version from current v3.35 ...to 3.38 ...then one-by-one to latest version. ...Unless, in the meantime, I/we get some worthy feedback/fix/solution/update from Ryan Scott, I will try to monitor what I experience and in which version I experience it ...and continue to provide that feedback to Ryan. I love InControlHA and really want to help get whatever 'glitch' there might be causing this ussue resolved for benefit of all.
[2] Ryan, it will be difficult to provide a distinct answer to you question: Can you expand on the 'on-again somedays, and next day 'caput' again functionality'? The reason is that I had been tweeking y upgraded InControlHA installation for about two weeks. My problems first started just after Thanksgiving when my lights (HA02 devices) didn't seem to be coming on or going off properly. I had house guests, so I really didn't get into messing around with my InControl installation until last week. I can't specifically remember if I had just recently, before Thanksgiving, updated to v3.38 or 3.39, from v3.35. I did upgraded first to v3.38 or v3.39 (I think it was 3.39)sometime before T-Giving. And I specifically remeber, when I started having problems and mounting frustration because I couldn't seem to get InControl to work consistently or 'at all', I went to the website and was surprised to find there were two or three version releases of InControl since I last updraded. ...At that time, I downloaded v3.54 and overlayed-installed to whatever version I was running at the time (3.38 or 3.39 ???) ...After installing 3.54, InControl would not work for me at all. ....Before this latest update, I had only recently upgraded to either 3.38 or 3.39 (I think it was 3.39) when InControlHA bgan acting funky. ....So to try to answer your question.... when I was messing around with InControl after T-Giving, before I found out there were even more recent releases of the software, it seemed that 'sometimes' I got InControl back to working because I could turn my manually lights on and off through my Server grahic interface ....but when sunset came around, my lights wouldn't kick on. I would then go into my Server interface, and found that now the manaual on-off interface directly my Server's graphic interface was responding either. After a couple of overlay reintall/repairs of my then version (3.39 I think) of InControl, I really couldn't get InControl to work consistently. It was just wierd. After enough frustration, I went to the website to trouble shoot, when I found new versions had been released. Thinking my woes would be fixed, I downloaded and installed v3.54. But found that the upgrade to 3.54 fixed nothing, and possibly things got even w
Let's get things taken care of for you... when you are ready, please contact us at our support site (click Contact Support link). I'll setup a screen share and a phone call with you to get to the bottom of things.
For the record, all was taken care of and fixed on Monday afternoon, which I think included some magic.
Ryan was kind enough to do a remote session with me to delve into my case. When we started our session, I had not done anything since my last post here in ...i.e., I had uninstalled InControl, and went backwards and re-installed the old v3.35, which for some reason had cured everything for me. So when Ryan 'remoted' with me, my InControl was working fine again, as it had been before I started a week or two ago with upgrading to the subsequent series of releases. Somewhere in those upgrades, for still unknown reasons, my InControl installation started to run wired, then basically would not function at all.
The cure:
Ryan checked to make sure my v3.35 reinstall was indeed working as I stated, then proceded to upgrade me straight from 3.35 to v3.54. Ryan must have secretly provided some magic as well, because after the upgrade, everything continued to work just fine. (And still is now, two days later.)
I asked Ryan if it was because we went straight from v3.35 to the latest v3.54 (skipping the three in between versions). He didn't know. Could be; couldn't be. But we both thought it best to leave things alone. He looked into some logs, did some other 'exams', and I tested a few things with him. I even tested the latest Andoid interface from my mobile phone. All worked just as it should.
....Just wanted all to know how my dilemna was resolved. Nonetheless, Ryan advised that I continue to keep an eye on things and let him know if things begin to go astray again.
Since the 'fix' was magically quick, Ryan graciuosly spent a few moments showing me how to use some of InControl's newer feature mod's which he noticed I still hadn't taken advantage of yet.
To an A-1 guy ....Thanks, Ryan. I'm a fan.
The USB extension solved my problem with not being able to reach ONE of the z-wave devices. The system worked perfectly for about a week and then lost contact with all the switches at the exact same time (I looked in properties for the devices and saw the 'last communication' field). I rebooted the windows 7 system that was running inControl. It blue screened on shutdown, but finally rebooted. Everything is working once again. When I have more time, I will add more information (or create a new topic) about this.
One of my thoughts was to either reboot every night, or stop and start the service every night. Perhaps that would prevent the server from getting stuck.
I am running 3.43.5050.17923
Fixed my problem with inControl hanging and then getting blue screen on reboot. It's been stable for over a week. It turns out it was the cp210xvcp driver for windows 7. I upgrade it recently to 6.7 dated 4/11/2014. The earlier release (5.4.24?) that I installed in Nov 2013 must have had a bug. I haven't changed the versions of either inControl or the zStick driver.
