Random Insteon communication problems

[autoperformance]

hello I am currently experiencing communication problems with my insteon devices. Everything had worked in an impeccable way for 6 months, and since a week, everything works erratically, absolutely nothing works or everything works. It is rather rare that it works since this week cons.

Here is what I noted as an error in the diagnostic log.

 

jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:02 : [INST-SRX    ] 02 50 29.EA.7A 3D.96.69 2B 14 00    LTOFF-F(00)
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:02 : [Std-Direct Ack] 29.EA.7A-->ISY/PLM Group=0, Max Hops=3, Hops Left=2
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:02 : [D2D EVENT   ] Event [29 EA 7A 1] [ST] [0] uom=0 prec=-1
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:02 : [  29 EA 7A 1]       ST   0
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:29 : [INST-TX-I1  ] 02 62 29 EA 7A 0F 12 00
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:29 : [INST-ACK    ] 02 62 29.EA.7A 0F 12 00 06          LTON-F (00)
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:33 : [D2D EVENT   ] Event [29 EA 7A 1] [ERR] [1] uom=0 prec=-1
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:33 : [  29 EA 7A 1]      ERR   1
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:44 : [FileOpen    ] Open failed for [/CONF/INTEGER.VAR] (r)
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:45 : [FileOpen    ] Open failed for [/CONF/INTEGER.VAR] (r)
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:46 : [FileOpen    ] Open failed for [/CONF/STATE.VAR] (r)
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:00:47 : [FileOpen    ] Open failed for [/CONF/STATE.VAR] (r)
 

or 

 

jeu. 02/22/2018 00:12:36 : [  29 C9 82 1]       ST   0
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:12:41 : [  29 C9 82 1]       ST 255
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:12:46 : [  29 C9 82 1]      ERR   1
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:12:59 : [  29 C9 82 1]      ERR   0
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:13:01 : [  29 C9 82 1]       ST   0
jeu. 02/22/2018 00:13:08 : [  29 C9 82 1]      ERR   1
 

I reinstall backup on my ISY just to be sure, but not success.

 

PLM Status is connected.

 

All my devices have connection problem when I open the universal devices admin console

 

Thank for your help.

[Michel Kohanim]

Hi autoperformance,

What I recommend is to move the PLM to a different outlet and one which is not shared with other transformers and power supplies.

 

With kind regards,

Michel

[autoperformance]

On ‎2018‎-‎02‎-‎22 at 11:48 AM, Michel Kohanim said:

Hi autoperformance,

What I recommend is to move the PLM to a different outlet and one which is not shared with other transformers and power supplies.

 

With kind regards,

Michel

Hi Michel, There has been absolutely no addition to where PLM has been for over a year. I should have taken ZWAVE instead of Insteon. I thought that having two communication systems made them more reliable, but it seems that devices do not use wireless communication at all, with the exception of battery-powered systems. They, moreover, never have a communication problem. Powerline signal is not reliable at all. The smallest device connected to a circuit can blow up the whole system.

[mwester]

2 hours ago, autoperformance said:

Hi Michel, There has been absolutely no addition to where PLM has been for over a year. I should have taken ZWAVE instead of Insteon. I thought that having two communication systems made them more reliable, but it seems that devices do not use wireless communication at all, with the exception of battery-powered systems. They, moreover, never have a communication problem. Powerline signal is not reliable at all. The smallest device connected to a circuit can blow up the whole system.

That's certainly been my experience -- I've found that something as small as a phone charger can kill the Insteon network!  It turns out that the RF feature only works if there's no noise on the powerline -- on dual-band devices, it seems the RF needs to be synchronized with the power-line and thus noise (as opposed to a weak signal) kills the device entirely.

My house is littered with filterlincs - filterlincs on everything!  That's the only solution I've found to be effective -- you can't really isolate the noise-makers, because just like the insteon signal, the noise travels back to the breaker panel and out to the rest of the house.  So the idea that you can isolate something just by putting it on a circuit is just silliness, pure unadulterated wishful thinking (not sure why so many people recommend that -- neither fuses nor circuit breakers function as filters!). 

[oberkc]

6 hours ago, autoperformance said:

There has been absolutely no addition to where PLM has been for over a year. 

Perhaps this is true, but things get old and characteristics change.  Rather than dismiss an easy potential fix, try it and see.  If need be, get a long extension cord.  Try the easy things first.

What other gadgets, BTW, do you have on the circuit that powers the PLM?

[stusviews]

I moved slowly from X10 to Insteon, way before RF was incorporated. In the beginning, I did need more than few FilterLincs, but I've never experienced a noise-maker/signal-sucker affecting any circuit other than one that the errant device was connected to, not ever. By the time the errant signal gets to the breaker panel, it's distributed fairly equally to all other circuits, too weak to affect other circuits. Many people recommend filtering that specific device because it works.

I don't know why you haven't had that experience, but I certainly don't deny in any way whatsoever that you didn't get the expected result. Now that virtually all my Insteon device are dual-band or RF-only sensors (plus one Icon), I have need for only one filter.

Interestingly, that one device is a Panasonic 2-line phone with a clock and radio. If I plug it into a different circuit, then only Insteon devices on that specific circuit have communication problems. I tried several circuits with the same result. What makes the problem interesting, at least to me, is that I have two other identical phones that do not affect the powerline, at least not to the extent that the problem is apparent.

[autoperformance]

On ‎2018‎-‎02‎-‎24 at 4:18 PM, oberkc said:

Perhaps this is true, but things get old and characteristics change.  Rather than dismiss an easy potential fix, try it and see.  If need be, get a long extension cord.  Try the easy things first.

What other gadgets, BTW, do you have on the circuit that powers the PLM?

From the breaker box to the outlet there are Nothing else on this circuit. Everything else work (others programs)

So I really don't know what is the problem here !!

[oberkc]

8 hours ago, autoperformance said:

From the breaker box to the outlet there are Nothing else on this circuit. Everything else work (others programs)

So I really don't know what is the problem here !!

I still think I would try the extension cord test on a different circuit.  (It is simple enough.)

Have you also confirmed communication between legs of your electrical circuit?

If temporarily moving the PLM does not solve the problem, and you confirm communication between legs of the electrical system, I am afraid you are on a mission to seek out whatever offending devices might be the cause.  I am sure folks around here can offer advice on the most common culprits.  UPS?  Power supplies?

[ELA]

Hello Autoperformance,

Reading this thread from the beginning it appears that you complained of wide spread comm issues.  You posted one instance.

If you focus on the original post - what was happening in that capture?  

It has been too long ago that I could interpret the logs without a lot of study...What do we think the "ERR 0", "ERR 1" means?

I thought I had seen something similar when I sent a command to a device ( like fade?)   that it received but then rejected for some reason.

 When hops left =2 , one would not usually jump to  suspecting comm issues.  Not saying it is not a comm. issue.  Just that it might be helpful to focus on one problem device  at a time and analyze the issue for that one device.