We have a client that we inherited from another installer here in Scottsdale. They have a good sized residential system – more than 30 devices in a 5000+ square foot house. The wire that was originally pulled for the NetStreams system is crap, and some runs were too short and is sliced in places. Yes, they spliced Cat5 wire. Bastards. Re-pulling new runs is out of the question because of the design and finishes used in the home. As a result, every time we go on site to do a minor upgrade or reconfiguration, one of the devices or one of the sources misbehaves and has to be whipped back into line.
Today I was on site installing an IRLinX module and a host SL220. It should have been a simple install – plug in the SL220 and IRLinX, add them to the project, and send config. No biggie, I thought. 10 minutes tops.
I should have been so lucky.
Instead, a TouchLinX decided to revert to the 10.15.X.X network (the rest of the project uses 192.168.x.x), and the audio from a DirecTV went missing. Not only that, but the SL220 didn’t want to take the firmware when it was configured to host an IRLinX. This kind of thing happens every time I visit this particular client. They must think I’m an idiot, because I always end up staying much, much longer than I expect, and often times I leave without having resolved all the issues. I usually leave swearing of DigiLinX for all eternity. A pint of Guinness later that night corrects that reaction.
When this sort of thing happens, I take one of two approaches. Sometimes I think it might be a configuration issue. When this is the case, I usually remove the offending device from the system, and re-add it to the project. Yeah, this is a pain because it usually requires me to reconfigure the static menus, but it’s usually faster than trying to tinker with little tweaks in hopes that a device will come back to life.
The other option is to pave and reconfigure an individual device. I usually take this approach when a device isn’t taking files, has fallen off the network, or is behaving oddly. The thing is, I can never remember the exact steps that are required to rebuild a device, and the steps for a TouchLinX are different than other devices. Do it wrong, and the file updates don’t take. That can be very time consuming in a large system, given the speed of Dealer Setup.
When I want to pave a device, I usually have to call tech support and have them walk me though the process. That’s a pain because a) I hate calling support in front of a client and b) I get terrible cell phone reception at this particular client’s home.
Today Rodney from support solved this conundrum for me. He sent me the attached document today when I called for the umpteenth time to ask for help with resetting a Digi device. I know it’ll save me a lot of time in the future, and I hope it’ll do the same for other dealers.
Thanks, Rodney!
Filed under: Dealer Setup, Digilinx, NetStreams, System Configuration, Troubleshooting
Thanks for this. I remember going through this with tech support and the tech support person was even confused about how to do it on a TouchLinx.
Excellent resource saved me a long call with poor reception.