Will Restore Device overwrite all links?

[yardman 49]

Hello all:

 

I know that I have spoken with Michel about this in the past, but I'm not certain what the correct answer is for revision 2.4.15 to this question:

 

When either a "Restore Device" or Restore (all) Devices" is done, should this overwrite all links in the device link database, including ones created "manually" at the switch?

 

Because if it is supposed to, then I think that I have found that it doesn't. Manual links persist.

 

Of course, if it doesn't, then it's working as planned.

 

However, the third option is that when a device is added that has manual links, that those links are saved to the ISY, but not "shown" in the GUI. Therefore, Restoring a device would then push the same "hidden" links back to the device.

 

 

 

Thanks

[Chris Jahn]

ISY maintains a copy of the link database for each device. Restore Devices copies that link database into the device, and removes all other links.

 

It sounds like you added the device to ISY using the "Keep existing links" option, in which case, all links in the device are kept. If you factory reset the device, and then do restore devices, all the old links will be written back.

 

The bug is actually that you are not seeing the links in the GUI because it should have created or updated a scene based on all of those links.

 

To get ISY to recognize a "hidden" link, create a scene in ISY as if you were creating that link. ISY will then take ownership of it, and you can remove it if you wish.

[yardman 49]

Hello Chris:

 

You wrote:

It sounds like you added the device to ISY using the "Keep existing links" option, in which case, all links in the device are kept. If you factory reset the device, and then do restore devices, all the old links will be written back.

 

No, actually I have never used that option! That's what is confusing me.

 

I've never used "Keep existing links".

 

When I first started experimenting with the ISY a couple of weeks back or more, I one time used the "Add Devices found in Links and remove existing links". I only did that once, and since then have done another factory reset on that device. Every time I've added that device back in again I've used "Remove Existing Links".

 

 

All other times I've added devices, I've used "Remove Existing Links" without exception.

[Chris Jahn]

One other thing to be aware of is that if there is a link in a responder (eg. lampLinc) for a given controller (such as a KPL button), then it doesn't matter what links are in the KPL. If you press that KPL button, the responder will turn on/off; even if you have just factory reset the KPL.

 

In other words, the links in the controller are really just there for cleanup; its the link in the responder that matters.

[yardman 49]

Hello Chris:

 

Yes, that's a very important point. I tend to forget that and automatically assume that it's the controller.

 

 

Thank you!

[sloop]

In other words, the links in the controller are really just there for cleanup; its the link in the responder that matters.

i gotta write that on a postit note

[Sub-Routine]

In other words, the links in the controller are really just there for cleanup; its the link in the responder that matters.

i gotta write that on a postit note

 

You could have an unlimited number of devices responding to one controller as long as the controller doesn't know about more than X number of them

[yardman 49]

In other words, the links in the controller are really just there for cleanup; its the link in the responder that matters.

i gotta write that on a postit note

 

 

That's the reason that only one "on" command has to be issued from a controller, and then everything flagged as a responder will turn on. I guess that keeps traffic down on the network, since a controller doesn't need to send out discrete commands to every device that it controls.

 

Sort of like "X10" but with discrete addresses rather than house codes, which then allows devices to belong to multiple groups.

 

Pretty cool.

 

On the ISY, what I find to be pretty cool is the way that the ISY doesn't have to keep polling the network for device states. Rather, it remembers the last state, and then in the case of a power failure or reboot, it does an entire network state query. This seems to be the best compromise, and again helps to keep network traffic down, which neither Insteon nor X10 seem to like very much.

 

I guess that means that Insteon is not a full duplex protocol.