Firmware update failure

[Bill Morrow]

I tried to update my firmware from 4.9 to 5.3, but it failed during reboot. Now I have a red flashing led on powerup. The portal says my unit is offline. I tried to open a ticket, but I can't bring up my existing tickets either. 

Help.

 

[Geddy]

Have you been able to start a new support ticket?

Submit a Ticket: https://www.universal-devices.com/my-tickets

Email: support@universal-devices.com

In the meantime confirm the lights and review the meaning/behavior in the wiki…

https://wiki.universal-devices.com///index.php?title=Main_Page#Front_Panel_LEDs/Lights

Reseat the microSD. It might be corrupt if failed during update and you will need to follow the process of replacing the microSD card.  

[Bill Morrow]

30 minutes ago, Geddy said:

Have you been able to start a new support ticket?

Submit a Ticket: https://www.universal-devices.com/my-tickets

Email: support@universal-devices.com

In the meantime confirm the lights and review the meaning/behavior in the wiki…

https://wiki.universal-devices.com///index.php?title=Main_Page#Front_Panel_LEDs/Lights

Reseat the microSD. If might be corrupt if failed during update and you will need to follow the process of replacing the microSD card.  

Thanks, no I can't seem to start a new ticket so, I sent an email.

 

I replaced my SD card a few months ago, as the ISY was getting flakey.  

There are several blue lights and a red blinking light on power-up.

[Brian H]

If the LED pattern is not following the sequence in the wiki information but are constantly flashing. It could also be a power supply going bad.

If they are always flashing. The power supply maybe going bad. I had a unit doing the same thing and a replacement supply fixed it.  Supply may have enough power to keep it sort of running but the reboot kept the supply going on and off. There are also other posts here where the supply was the problem. If your supply has an LED on it. It maybe flashing if the supply is cycling on and off or it has too low an output. The blue power on LED is run directly from the ISY994i internal supply. It should be on all  the time. If it is also flashing another reason the wall wart is probably gone.

ISY994i has a input range of 5VDC to 30VDC. Center pin positive. Most here go for a 12VDC 1A or 2A. When I looked UDI has a 12VDC 2A replacement on their sales pages.  Mine had a 5.5mm barrel with a 2.1mm pin.

 

Edited August 3, 2022 by Brian H
Add information

[Bill Morrow]

18 hours ago, Brian H said:

If the LED pattern is not following the sequence in the wiki information but are constantly flashing. It could also be a power supply going bad.

If they are always flashing. The power supply maybe going bad. I had a unit doing the same thing and a replacement supply fixed it.  Supply may have enough power to keep it sort of running but the reboot kept the supply going on and off. There are also other posts here where the supply was the problem. If your supply has an LED on it. It maybe flashing if the supply is cycling on and off or it has too low an output. The blue power on LED is run directly from the ISY994i internal supply. It should be on all  the time. If it is also flashing another reason the wall wart is probably gone.

ISY994i has a input range of 5VDC to 30VDC. Center pin positive. Most here go for a 12VDC 1A or 2A. When I looked UDI has a 12VDC 2A replacement on their sales pages.  Mine had a 5.5mm barrel with a 2.1mm pin.

 

Yeah, the first time I tried to factory reset it, it came back with the power only light for a while, but this could have been my impatience. Replacing the power supply did seem to alter the LED sequence slightly, but I kept getting the error light and the memory light never blinked at the end of the sequence.

I took out the SD card to inspect it, but it did not seem to have any formatting or corruption issues. However, the guide indicates that an error light without a memory light is an SD card issue. I formatted a fresh SD card and replaced the card in my ISY. It booted up with the power light and the TX light blinked once. The good news is that it shows up in my router with the original IP again.

The bad news is that I can't launch the Admin Console, it just seems to hang. The weird news is that it says the firmware is now 5.3. I can launch the DashBoard, but I'm a little hesitant to a restore from here. If I open the portal, it says that my ISY is still offline. It makes me wonder if my firmware is corrupt, since it crashed while updating the firmware.

At least it does not seem to be dead. Any thoughts on Next Steps?

[Brian H]

Did you use the special boot link if the SD card was fresh and no firmware was on it yet?

https://wiki.universal-devices.com/index.php?title=ISY-99i/ISY-26_INSTEON:Replacing/Formatting_an_SD_Card

[MrBill]

@Bill Morrow As @Brian H is explaining the firmware needs to be installed on a fresh MicroSD card.  The ISY has a shortened and older version that exists as a default boot-loader to get the machine online.  After that the next important step is to download and install the latest firmware, which is Step 3 in the link provided by Brian.

Edited August 4, 2022 by MrBill

[Bill Morrow]

4 hours ago, MrBill said:

@Bill Morrow As @Brian H is explaining the firmware needs to be installed on a fresh MicroSD card.  The ISY has a shortened and older version that exists as a default boot-loader to get the machine online.  After that the next important step is to download and install the latest firmware, which is Step 3 in the link provided by Brian.

Yes, Michael had sent me this link, but the launcher would not load. The standard launcher would load, but the Admin Console would not, as Brian was alluding to I gather. It just crashed the ISY.

I ended up using the Web Console to reload the latest firmware manually. I have not used the Web Console previously, but the load went well. The restore was also painless.

I just hope my 4.9 backup is OK, as that is the second SD card in a year. I also replaced the power supply, based on the LED sequence when I tried a factory reset the first time. The factory reset worked after I replaced the SD. I could not Telnet to the ISY until after the factory reset, although I suspect it was the power cycle that solved my problem, as the Admin Console was crashing the ISY.

Anyway, thanks for the help, hopefully it saves someone else the aggravation.

[Bill Morrow]

It looks like my ISY994i is dead. After I update the firmware I can get into the Admin Console once or twice, then I get locked out. I can't Telnet to it and my MobilLinc won't communicate with it. Although I did manage to turn on one light right after the firmware update.

I'm waiting for a replacement and wondering what my Next Steps are. I assume I upgrade the firmware on the new unit, load my backup and update the MAC ID in the Portal. Do I have to update the PLM?

I'd like to resurrect the old ISY eventually, although I have no idea what illness it has. The LED sequence is apparently OK, but it's not talking.

[Bill Morrow]

My 'new' ISY994i ZW IR Pro arrived.

I managed to get into it with the Admin Console. Although it seems a little finicky, the firmware version doesn't always load the first time and it seems a little slow to load. I was surprised that it came with firmware 5.3, as I didn't think 5.3 played well with Z-Wave. 

I changed my IP to match my old IP. I was able to get in after I rebooted, so I loaded my backup. Now I can't get back in again and the ISY994i no longer shows up in my router. I can't ping the IP either of course.

My ideas are as follows:

My backup is corrupt somehow? Although I loaded an older backup to my prior ISY with similar results 

It could be a router issue, since my IP no longer shows up in the router, although it was fine before 5.3. 

Somehow my programs are very unhappy with 5.3, although I tried going back to 4.9 on my prior ISY and that didn't help either.

At least I know that my previous ISY is OK, if I could figure out the software issue.

I think I'll update the router and see what happens, although I suspect it won't help. But the new router is in the job queue anyway.

Any process of elimination ideas?

[larryllix]

Power cycle your router. This sounds like you may have created a duplicate IP address, and power cycling your router may change some IP addresses around to allow you to connect with your ISY.

This also sounds like you are not using DHCP in your ISY. This can cause IP confusion when two IP addresses clash. Always set static IP addresses inside your router so that it can manage them properly, avoiding IP address duplications.

[MrBill]

11 hours ago, Bill Morrow said:

I was surprised that it came with firmware 5.3, as I didn't think 5.3 played well with Z-Wave. 

300 series z-wave boards need 5.0.16C.  500 series (which is the only thing that would be shipping in a new ISY994) is fine with the latest firmware. 

If 'new' quoted means used, the fastest way to check which z-wave board is installed is to look at the back of the 994, adjacent to port A, if there is a Blue LED that's a 300 series z-wave board.  (You might need your phones flashlight shining on it to realize it's a Blue LED).

For the rest of your issues... I'd just open a ticket.  UDI's support dept (aka Michel) will have you up and running in a flash.... support@universal-devices.com

[Bill Morrow]

2 hours ago, larryllix said:

Power cycle your router. This sounds like you may have created a duplicate IP address, and power cycling your router may change some IP addresses around to allow you to connect with your ISY.

This also sounds like you are not using DHCP in your ISY. This can cause IP confusion when two IP addresses clash. Always set static IP addresses inside your router so that it can manage them properly, avoiding IP address duplications.

I have never used DHCP for my ISY and it has never had an issue. I have at least 20 static IPs for various servers and embedded devices, wth no issues. 

I rebooted my router twice after update, with no change in my router's clients. 

I'm reasonably certain that my issue is related to my ISY restore. I'm only upgrading my router, as it is reaching EOL and I'm moving to a complete Ubiquiti network.

I suspect I'm going to have to rebuild my ISY from scratch, but it's really odd that a restore seems to be effecting the base code (network and Admin Console) on two separate units. 

I'll replace the router first, although I'm not looking forward to rebuilding the client list, port forwarding, etc.

[Bill Morrow]

1 hour ago, MrBill said:

300 series z-wave boards need 5.0.16C.  500 series (which is the only thing that would be shipping in a new ISY994) is fine with the latest firmware. 

If 'new' quoted means used, the fastest way to check which z-wave board is installed is to look at the back of the 994, adjacent to port A, if there is a Blue LED that's a 300 series z-wave board.  (You might need your phones flashlight shining on it to realize it's a Blue LED).

For the rest of your issues... I'd just open a ticket.  UDI's support dept (aka Michel) will have you up and running in a flash.... support@universal-devices.com

Thanks for the Z-Wave info.

[Geddy]

1 hour ago, Bill Morrow said:

I suspect I'm going to have to rebuild my ISY from scratch, but it's really odd that a restore seems to be effecting the base code (network and Admin Console) on two separate units. 

It’s very possible that your backup is corrupt. If you were having SD card issues or other issues prior to failure of last ISY.

And, yes, I think network settings are stored in the back up file so it might be causing you issues when you restore and try to put it on your new network. It has always been commonly suggested that the ISY be in DHCP mode and handle IP reservation at the router level. But you seem network savvy enough to do it however best fits your system.

 

[Bill Morrow]

9 minutes ago, Geddy said:

It’s very possible that your backup is corrupt. If you were having SD card issues or other issues prior to failure of last ISY.

And, yes, I think network settings are stored in the back up file so it might be causing you issues when you restore and try to put it on your new network. It has always been commonly suggested that the ISY be in DHCP mode and handle IP reservation at the router level. But you seem network savvy enough to do it however best fits your system.

 

Thanks for the breadcrumbs.  That might explain a lot. Yes, I had to replace the SD card in December. 

A power cycle of the ISY got me back in the last time, but it only lasts about one access before I'm locked out again.

[Brian H]

If the power supply is starting to go bad. It can cause all kinds of issues. I have had a few fail myself. Not all on one controller but over my ISY26 to ISY99i and then the ISY994i. One of mine was working maybe slightly flaky and then I did a power reset. It never came back up. Even the power On LED was flashing along with the LED on the supply itself.

Take a wide range of voltages 5V to 30V. 2.1mm center pin 5.5 mm barrel. UDI sells a replacement of 12V 2A last time I looked. Some of mine where 5V 500mA.

[larryllix]

I have never used DHCP for my ISY and it has never had an issue. I have at least 20 static IPs for various servers and embedded devices, wth no issues. 
I rebooted my router twice after update, with no change in my router's clients. 
I'm reasonably certain that my issue is related to my ISY restore. I'm only upgrading my router, as it is reaching EOL and I'm moving to a complete Ubiquiti network.
I suspect I'm going to have to rebuild my ISY from scratch, but it's really odd that a restore seems to be effecting the base code (network and Admin Console) on two separate units. 
I'll replace the router first, although I'm not looking forward to rebuilding the client list, port forwarding, etc.

That sounds like a recipe for disaster. Unless every device is manually IP address locked or you even have one dynamic IP address that your router can DHCP assign, sooner or later you may experience what looks just like what you have right now.

I have been there a few times over the years and trouble is it can change every time you reboot or power cycle.

BTW: I ran various models of ASUS routers and unless you power cycle them, some problems never clear up from a reboot. I have 2 x ax92u WiFi6 mesh routers for sale right now. Lots of features but as undetectable ad the last one I dumped. I hear reports that Ubiquiti are about the same calibre, from some sources. ***sigh***

Sent from my SM-G781W using Tapatalk

[Bill Morrow]

1 hour ago, Brian H said:

If the power supply is starting to go bad. It can cause all kinds of issues. I have had a few fail myself. Not all on one controller but over my ISY26 to ISY99i and then the ISY994i. One of mine was working maybe slightly flaky and then I did a power reset. It never came back up. Even the power On LED was flashing along with the LED on the supply itself.

Take a wide range of voltages 5V to 30V. 2.1mm center pin 5.5 mm barrel. UDI sells a replacement of 12V 2A last time I looked. Some of mine where 5V 500mA.

Yeah, I'm on my 3rd power supply, one replacement on the original ISY and a new power supply on the new ISY. But the results are pretty much the same on both ISYs.

[Bill Morrow]

52 minutes ago, larryllix said:

That sounds like a recipe for disaster. Unless every device is manually IP address locked or you even have one dynamic IP address that your router can DHCP assign, sooner or later you may experience what looks just like what you have right now.

I have been there a few times over the years and trouble is it can change every time you reboot or power cycle.

BTW: I ran various models of ASUS routers and unless you power cycle them, some problems never clear up from a reboot. I have 2 x ax92u WiFi6 mesh routers for sale right now. Lots of features but as undetectable ad the last one I dumped. I hear reports that Ubiquiti are about the same calibre, from some sources. ***sigh***

Sent from my SM-G781W using Tapatalk
 

Yeah, the ISY has been working that way since 2013 and no new devices have been added since the trouble started. The other static devices have been around since 1998. The router has changed obviously.

If I power cycle the ISY, the IP shows up for a while then disappears. If I can get back into the Admin Console I'll reset the IP settings, but I'm thinking it's the router.

[larryllix]

Yeah, the ISY has been working that way since 2013 and no new devices have been added since the trouble started. The other static devices have been around since 1998. The router has changed obviously.
If I power cycle the ISY, the IP shows up for a while then disappears. If I can get back into the Admin Console I'll reset the IP settings, but I'm thinking it's the router.

I have had an IP duplication a few times in my life. It isn't always the devices with duplicate addresses that act up. A few times the whole router network acts up and they can take turns at random or stay with the same device lockout.

I had about 60 devices locked down in my last setup with IP reservations and when you get a duplicate due to some bootup error you can sweat for days trying to find it. The symptoms are way to random to zoom in and you can't get your system performing properly to diagnose it either.

Sent from my SM-G781W using Tapatalk

[Bill Morrow]

Thanks, I'm not sure how many static IPs I have, but it's not that many. The NVR, the aquarium controllers, my voice controller, my server, my ISY and maybe a couple of others. Things like the thermostat, etc. I just leave to DHCP. I haven't changed any of these for quite some time. The router has been glitchy though, slow downloads or streaming issues, which are cured by a reboot.

Real Life has been in the way for the last couple of days, so I haven't been stressing about it. I hope to get the Dream Station installed this week.

[Bill Morrow]

☹️

OK, new router installed.

ISY shows up in the Admin Console, but does not display a firmware version

A power recycle on the ISY brought it to life in the router, no change in the Admin Console

I can Ping the ISY, but I can't Telnet to it, I get connect failed

I can't get in using the Portal because I didn't grant permission in the Console 

I guess I'll factory reset it tomorrow

[MrBill]

9 hours ago, Bill Morrow said:

OK, new router installed.

sounds like a routing problem.  You have communication in one direction but a rule blocking communication the other direction.

Don't factory reset the ISY.... it's the NEW router.  That's what changed.....

[Bill Morrow]

I think it's more likely some kind of corruption issue. The issue didn't really change with the new router. A power cycle would help things with the old router too. The ISY has disappeared from the new router too. I'm sure if I power cycle it I can get it to appear again, but I still won't be able to get into the ISY.

The last time I factory reset it I was able to get into the Admin Console, but as soon as I loaded my backup I was screwed again. 

Assuming I believed the DHCP issue, I would need a way to alter the network settings in my backup before loading it, as someone had said the backup contained the network settings.