Back to ISY again after 9 years away

[ulrick65]

I just wanted to say that this product is awesome...

 

I bought my first one in 2007/2008 time frame and setup my house with it.  A couple years later I moved and took most of it with me (along with a huge pile of devices I bought at wholesale).  I upgraded to the 994i/IR PRO a few years ago but never really got back into it.

 

Bought a new house last year and just recently decided to put in the whole system again....WOW!  This thing has come a LOOONNGGG way from the old days.

 

I am about halfway done and have Alexa controlling everything without a hitch so far.  I have updated to the most recent rev and all looks great.  Well done folks...

 

One question:  I have an old 2412s PLM that ISY reports as v.63  I don't seem to have any issues, but just wondered if I should be looking to upgrade that for any reason (compatibility, speed, etc.).

 

Thanks...great work on this little gem!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Michel Kohanim]

Hi ulrick65,

 

Thanks so very much!

 

Please note that 2412 is not dual band and thus you might have some issues with newer dual band devices.

 

With kind regards,

Michel

[ulrick65]

Hi ulrick65,

 

Thanks so very much!

 

Please note that 2412 is not dual band and thus you might have some issues with newer dual band devices.

 

With kind regards,

Michel

 

Thanks Michel...

 

Actually, I AM having issues with new dual band switches (see my post in the Communications Problem section of this forum).  I messed with it for several hours and came to the conclusion that the PLM is likely the issue and I can link them all fine, but ISY just can't see them or see any of their traffic in event viewer.

 

I assumed that the dual band simply meant PL and RF, but I am guessing the PL side has some sort of new protocol that the 2412s doesn't understand...is that right?

 

Thanks...looking for to using ISY again, the Alexa integration is awesome and works flawlessly.

[Brian H]

One thing to remember.

The 2412S could power the ISY994i. The 2413S can not power it.

If  you have the wall wart from the ISY994i package. It will be fine.

If not, you will need a power supply.

 

The 2413S has a faster processor clock and memory. So you may also see improved performance.

[Michel Kohanim]

Also, if you are going to restore the PLM, please make sure to follow the instructions here:

http://wiki.universal-devices.com/index.php?title=ISY-99i/ISY-26_INSTEON:File_Menu#Replace_Modem_.28PLM.29

 

With kind regards,

Michel

[carealtor]

Where does the Smartenit EZIComm fit into this?  That's what I've been using for many years now.

[Brian H]

The Smartenit EZIComm is their version of a PLM. Serial or USB along with the RS485 option.

It is built on a main board they buy from Smartlabs and add a custom Daughter Board.

Present ones are on a 2413 main board and specifications say it is Dual Band.

I believe the earlier ones where on the 2412 main board.

I would expect the Dual Band ones would have the same power supply issues as the 2413S/U and hardware V2 2443 Access Points.

Never used one. I would think when used with an ISY controller. You could restore it just like a Smatthome 2412S or 2413S

 

My Simplehomenet {before changing name to Smartenit} EZX10RF is built on a 2412 main board.

[ulrick65]

Thanks for info everyone....I ordered one, will be here Tuesday (Amazon is awesome).

 

I am curious though to understand the WHY of this not working.  If the Switchlinc Dual Band can link just fine with an old non dual band (I assume it can, but I have not tried it I guess) then why wont it work with the 2412S?  Did they change something about the protocol or ?

 

If there is a link somewhere that points me to understanding the differences or versions of the protocol, I would love to have it...I got some catching up do!

 

Thanks Guys.

[ulrick65]

One thing to remember.

The 2412S could power the ISY994i. The 2413S can not power it.

If  you have the wall wart from the ISY994i package. It will be fine.

If not, you will need a power supply.

 

The 2413S has a faster processor clock and memory. So you may also see improved performance.

 

 

You are right...and I read that in the instructions.  I probably have the power brick somewhere as I have a bunch of power bricks in a box.  But just in case is there something special about it?  What voltage/amperage does the ISY need?  I want to be sure I pick the right one.

 

Thanks.

[stusviews]

Any power supply rated 5-30VDC, 2A capacity will suffice (center +, ring -). I use a 12VDC power supply originally meant for a camera. The ampere rating is more important than the voltage, so anything that supplies 2 or more amps should work.

[Brian H]

The one in my ISY994i kit was a 5 volt one.

As pointed out the voltage has a wide range.

The 2412S supplied unregulated +12 volts to the ISY controller. That typically was closer to 20 volts.

[MrBill]

Any power supply rated 5-30VDC, 2A capacity will suffice (center +, ring -). I use a 12VDC power supply originally meant for a camera. The ampere rating is more important than the voltage, so anything that supplies 2 or more amps should work

2 amp at 5 volts = 10VA

2 amps at 12 volts = 24VA

2 amps at 30 volts = 60VA

 

huge differences there...

[ulrick65]

Thanks...I am sure I will have something to work then.  I am not looking forward to reloading a new PLM...everything except these new switches works perfectly.  I am afraid of dumping to a new PLM will not yield perfect results...I am hopeful, but I am usually not that lucky! 

[stusviews]

Yup, the ISY regulators can handle the various voltages. Current ratings (amperage) is the maximum capability, not what is utilized. A 100 amp supply will provide 0.002 amps if that's all the device requires, it will not push 100 amps into the device.

[Brian H]

2412S firmware v.63 is old and is a 417 Link Database model. The later ones where >2000 Link Database but most found above 800 Links started missing things.

I don't have any exact data on it but it not cooperating with latest models would not surprise me. I also remembers some firmware versions being quirky.

I would seriously think about a new PLM.

The 2413S PLM also has a faster processor and memory. So it should speed up operations.

 

The wall wart in my ISY994I kit is a 5 Volt 1 Amp.

[ulrick65]

2412S firmware v.63 is old and is a 417 Link Database model. The later ones where >2000 Link Database but most found above 800 Links started missing things.

I don't have any exact data on it but it not cooperating with latest models would not surprise me. I also remembers some firmware versions being quirky.

I would seriously think about a new PLM.

The 2413S PLM also has a faster processor and memory. So it should speed up operations.

 

The wall wart in my ISY994I kit is a 5 Volt 1 Amp.

 

I agree and understand...I took your advice earlier and already ordered a new one (will be here tomorrow).  I am just curious as to why it doesn't work when everything else does perfectly.  I have less than 200 links in the PLM.

 

We will see when the new one arrives.  I will do the swap and post back about it.

 

Thanks.

[ulrick65]

I wanted to update the thread with my findings.  Upgrading to the new PLM worked like a charm.  The upgrade process went smoothly and all devices are now working properly.  I guess that confirms that the 2412s was not compatible with the new switches.

 

Thanks for all the input.

[intellihome]

Welcome back to ISY

 

I also had issues with my ISY seeing any insteon traffic from my devices. However I was using a 2413S. I reloaded an older backup and had the same issues. A manual tap of a switch or motion detection did not show up in my event viewer level 3. I factory reset one of my switches and restored the device with no luck. I removed the device with ISY and reinstalled and the switch traffic was restored. I did this to many of the devices and was successful about 80% of the time. Over the next 6 months I noticed I lost the incoming communication again on most of my devices. I bought a new 2413S but that did not help.

[paulbates]

I wanted to update the thread with my findings.  Upgrading to the new PLM worked like a charm.  The upgrade process went smoothly and all devices are now working properly.  I guess that confirms that the 2412s was not compatible with the new switches.

 

Thanks for all the input.

The other factor with a 2412 of that age is compatibility. I believe that it would not support the newer i2, i2cs protocols that the switches probably require.

 

i2, i2cs are relatively newer insteon protocol features

 

Paul