Troubleshooting network connectivity issues

[m.mar301]

Here is an OmniPro 2 board....last revision note the 5 ports on the top left...to the right is the Ethernet port then the X10 port...
Firmware is upgradable via the Ethernet Port

View attachment 11139

Here is an early version of the OmniPro 2 panel. Firmware is upgradable via upgrade chips.
View attachment 11138

I've got the newer OmniPro 2 board above....with the 5 ports on the top left...2 empty sockets & flash chips below. Was having intermittent connectivity issues with Myro Home application, and getting about 1 in 6 pings back on local network from the OmniPro 2 IP address. Given that it is physically next to site's core ethernet switch, tried swapping patch cables no change.

Initially tried Dealer PC Access to re-flash to existing version 4.0b firmware, thinking that would help, but that stalled mid-way through, so I cancelled after 45 minutes. After that, Dealer PC Access will no longer communicate via Ethernet at all. (Connect fail)

I am able to communicate using Dealer PC Access via serial interface, and the controller does "write to controller" with all checkboxes active without error. System operates, as normal except for network connection. Alarm panels, programs, automations, time/date/etc all correct.


PS. I'm a network engineer, and the network seems just fine. Internet is up, gateway, NAT router port forwarding, unchanged etc. But system is non responsive on both internal and external IP addresses.

 

[dwalt]

If the flash process failed in the middle, I'm not very hopeful. Did you check if the ip address was reset?

 

[m.mar301]

There is no problem with the ip address. Or the firewall configuration, have checked both local private ip address and public address external to the NAT. Using the Myro:home app and the pc configuration application and both fail to reach the device. The only change was a failed code update which was interrupted. The update was then completed via rs-232 serial interface.

 

[pete_c]

Welcome to the Cocoontech Forum @m.mar301.

Can you plng the OmniPro Ethernet address inside of your home LAN from another device?

Did you cold boot (disconnect the battery and transformer) your OmniPro panel after updating the firmware?

Copy and paste here your ping... (if no ping response then nothing will work).

Was it working before the update?

Try the update again via the serial link. Then cold boot the panel and then ping the IP of the panel.

Here utilize OpenVPN to my home firewall to access the OmniPro rather than using NAT.

I utilize Snaplink for Android and Microsoft and Home Assistant OmniLinkBridge and Homeseer Omni plugin to access the OmniPro 2 panel on the Internet (and all of the old OmniPro/HAI windows clients). PFSense for my firewall.

What router / firewall are you using?

Here is a screen shot of OmniPro Touch running on Ubuntu Play on Linux that I use locally or remotely on my laptop.

All of the older Windows Omnitouch clients work fine here via PlayOnLinux and Windows 11 laptops / tablets.

 

[m.mar301]

Welcome to the Cocoontech Forum @m.mar301.

Can you plng the OmniPro Ethernet address inside of your home LAN from another device?

Did you cold boot (disconnect the battery and transformer) your OmniPro panel after updating the firmware?

Copy and paste here your ping... (if no ping response then nothing will work).

Was it working before the update?

Try the update again via the serial link. Then cold boot the panel and then ping the IP of the panel.

Here utilize OpenVPN to my home firewall to access the OmniPro rather than using NAT.

I utilize Snaplink for Android and Microsoft and Home Assistant OmniLinkBridge and Homeseer Omni plugin to access the OmniPro 2 panel on the Internet (and all of the old OmniPro/HAI windows clients). PFSense for my firewall.

What router / firewall are you using?

Here is a screen shot of OmniPro Touch running on Ubuntu Play on Linux that I use locally or remotely on my laptop.

All of the older Windows Omnitouch clients work fine here via PlayOnLinux and Windows 11 laptops / tablets.

View attachment 11305

I like your configuration, once mine works again, I will certainly look at these options.

No ping from same subnet (other devices ping fine), power cycled everything, removed 12 V batteries on both OmniPro II and expansion board, verified system cold boot and off for more than 3 minutes. Reset time/date from control panel, and also re-programmed IP address to same as prior, and also different IP, verified all settings, encryption keys from Myro App, and cold booted again. Still no ping & connection timeout.

Expansion board has a slight hiss sound which has been there for many years.

Yes, it was working before the failed update & serial port recovery, running software 4.0B. I have yet not attempted a second serial port code recovery, but will do that shortly.

** changed IP address
Pinging 172.xx.xx.203 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 172.xx.xx.29: Destination host unreachable. (reply is from my own IP address)

** initial IP address
Pinging 172.xx.xx.201 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 172.xx.xx.29: Destination host unreachable. (reply is from my own IP address)

** known good host on same network
Pinging 172.xx.xx.2 with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 172.xx.xx.2: bytes=32 time=4ms TTL=128
Reply from 172.xx.xx.2: bytes=32 time=11ms TTL=128
Ping statistics for 172.xx.xx.2:
Packets: Sent = 40, Received = 40, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 4ms, Maximum = 11ms, Average = 7ms

Myro Home: "Could not connect to controller!" Please verify you have a network connection and that the controller address and port are correct.

 

[pete_c]

Still no ping & connection timeout.

See what happens when you reinstall the firmware via serial link and cold boot it again.

Check the OmniPro 2 Ethernet port as it lifts off the motherboard sometimes...loosey goosey...

 

[electron]

Welcome to CocoonTech! I split up the thread to avoid the original thread creator getting unrelated post notifications, plus we can focus on your specific issue.

1. What are your switch port configuration settings (duplex/speed/etc)?
2. Can your switch show Ethernet stats on that port (counters in the IOS world)?
3. Do you have the ability to mirror that port so you can capture traffic? Curious to see if there's any type of chatter on the line originating from the panel (ARP requests etc).
4. What do your capacitors look like? Considering the age of you system, failed caps can cause all sorts of weird issues like these.

 

[WWQ]

I've got the newer OmniPro 2 board above....with the 5 ports on the top left...2 empty sockets & flash chips below. Was having intermittent connectivity issues with Myro Home application, and getting about 1 in 6 pings back on local network from the OmniPro 2 IP address. Given that it is physically next to site's core ethernet switch, tried swapping patch cables no change.

Initially tried Dealer PC Access to re-flash to existing version 4.0b firmware, thinking that would help, but that stalled mid-way through, so I cancelled after 45 minutes. After that, Dealer PC Access will no longer communicate via Ethernet at all. (Connect fail)

I am able to communicate using Dealer PC Access via serial interface, and the controller does "write to controller" with all checkboxes active without error. System operates, as normal except for network connection. Alarm panels, programs, automations, time/date/etc all correct.


PS. I'm a network engineer, and the network seems just fine. Internet is up, gateway, NAT router port forwarding, unchanged etc. But system is non responsive on both internal and external IP addresses.

My OP2 board and issues are EXACTLY like yours! I can't even think of how to revert to the serial connection for communications. Initially my problem started out as just a minor issue of failing to make the network connection; then it seemed like the "write to controller" function was mired down in quicksand and after a couple years, the ethernet connection has simply died. I'm not a network engineer, but I have been able to confirm my network is fine and that the signal is making it all the way to the OP2 board.

After almost two weeks of working with different computer savvy folks, just today I FINALLY got a good answer out of the Leviton tech guys!

Utilizing the "crossover cable to controller" direct connection with my laptop was one of the troubleshooting methods I used just a couple days ago, confirming that the wiring was good, but the connection still could not be made. One Leviton tech said the controller is obviously in need of repair. But yet a different Leviton tech emailed me with instructions to manually set an ethernet IP address for my laptop that was compatible with the OP2. He didn't quite have the right instructions for a Windows 11 computer, but after some "interpretation" of his old Windows XP instructions, plus a Google search, I found the modern methodology to do just that. Turns out the laptop IP address must be on the same subnet as the OP2, which in my case had been modified by my installer from a 192.168.0.101 set at the factory, to 192.168.10.111 (If anybody knows WHY an installer would have modified that IP, please tell me. Also, would it behoove me to change back to the factory issued IP?) PLUS, that new laptop IP must have a suffix that is one digit off of the OP2 IP address, so in my case he had me use 192.168.10.110 - no, that is NOT a typo. It now works perfectly!

However, one has to ask, why was this change necessary and what caused it? This system is 20-years old, was updated to the OP2 controller in 2015, and has been operating via my ethernet LAN with DealerPCAccess3 running on my desktop computer for over 8-years. Something must have changed in the way Windows is managing the ethernet connections.

To note: My LAN has always been a "68" subnet and the OP2 has always had a "10" subnet, and the two were able to find each other to transfer data back and forth via a network switch.

Last question: If I change my OP2 IP address back to a "0" subnet, would that allow the OP2 to accept a query from another device with any subnet on my LAN? In other words, does a "0" subnet act like a wildcard?

 

[dwalt]

(If anybody knows WHY an installer would have modified that IP, please tell me.

As an installer, I always changed the ip of the OmniPro so that it was on the house subnet. If the house subnet was 192.168.1.xxx, the OmniPro had to be on the 192.168.1.xxx subnet. The size of the subnet is determined by the subnet mask. The default subnet mask for most homes is 255.255.255.0 which gives the range of 192.168.1.1 to 192.168.1.254 for this example. To access the OmniPro from a different subnet, a router needs to be involved. There is a lot more to explain about ip addressing and subnet masking than is practical here. I'd suggest you read a FAQ if you want more detail.

Here is one example:

Understanding IP Addresses, Subnets, and CIDR Notation for Networking | DigitalOcean

IP addresses, networks, submasks, and CIDR notation can be difficult concepts to understand. In this guide, we will cover some of the ideas behind how these …

www.digitalocean.com

There are other reasons as well. The default ip of 101 is a bit problematic for DHCP. The router hands out ip addresses to devices on the subnet based on the subnet ip, mask and assigned dhcp range. 101 is roughly in the middle of the default dhcp range. Theoretically the router could hand out 101 to another device causing issues. The OmniPro does not understand dhcp so requires a static (always the same) ip address. This address should be outside the dhcp range. So, I would modify the default DHCP range the router could use so it would never hand out the static ip to another device. There were other devices that needed static ips as well (old AXIS cameras, Russound SMS3, etc.).

 

[WWQ]

As an installer, I always changed the ip of the OmniPro so that it was on the house subnet. If the house subnet was 192.168.1.xxx, the OmniPro had to be on the 192.168.1.xxx subnet. The size of the subnet is determined by the subnet mask. The default subnet mask for most homes is 255.255.255.0 which gives the range of 192.168.1.1 to 192.168.1.254 for this example. To access the OmniPro from a different subnet, a router needs to be involved. There is a lot more to explain about ip addressing and subnet masking than is practical here. I'd suggest you read a FAQ if you want more detail.

Here is one example:

Understanding IP Addresses, Subnets, and CIDR Notation for Networking | DigitalOcean

IP addresses, networks, submasks, and CIDR notation can be difficult concepts to understand. In this guide, we will cover some of the ideas behind how these …

www.digitalocean.com

There are other reasons as well. The default ip of 101 is a bit problematic for DHCP. The router hands out ip addresses to devices on the subnet based on the subnet ip, mask and assigned dhcp range. 101 is roughly in the middle of the default dhcp range. Theoretically the router could hand out 101 to another device causing issues. The OmniPro does not understand dhcp so requires a static (always the same) ip address. This address should be outside the dhcp range. So, I would modify the default DHCP range the router could use so it would never hand out the static ip to another device. There were other devices that needed static ips as well (old AXIS cameras, Russound SMS3, etc.).

Great info! And yes, the article you linked was extremely educational.

So now I truly do NOT see why my OP2 installer changed the factory IP address from 192.168.0.101 to 192.168.10.111

I think I can see some logic in HAI wanting to isolate their devices by building a separate subnet for its suite of products to operate on, utilizing a range of 192.168.0.xxx but I can also see where that is probably an outdated "need." Am I wrong?

If I am NOT wrong, should I re-address my OP2 to a .168 subnet? From what I'm reading I don't see any downside to doing that.

I do have DHCP devices on my LAN, so will I be in danger of my router assigning a duplicate address? Or would I just pick a host number at the far end of the spectrum that should never be assigned by my router, e.g., .202? (I do see your caveat to limit the range of the addresses the router can hand out, but my home LAN is never going to have many new devices added in my lifetime.) What about going back to a low host # that has been abandoned? (I suppose I should find an article on the protocol routers use to assign IP host addresses. Do they get to the end of the line, 255 or whatever it is, then loop back to 1 and start over again, skipping "in use" host numbers?)

I am quite happy that my OP2/PCAccess communications via a direct crossover cable connection from a laptop to the controller is fully operational. I thought my system had been reduced to toxic waste. But it will be icing on the cake if I can restore that same communications link to my desktop computer via my LAN.

 

[dwalt]

To determine what ip address you should assign to the OmniPro:
either log on to your router or run ipconfig from a command prompt on your pc.
From that info you will have your gateway (router) ip address which should be something like 192.168.1.1
You also will see the subnet mask which generally is 255.255.255.0
If you are logged on to the router you can find the DHCP range. The default is usually 192.168.1-254.
In this example, it would be prudent to put the OmniPro at an address like 250 or more.

As to why the installer moved to the 10 subnet, it depends on how your router was configured at install time. I have run into many cases where the local isp changes router configs due to software updates or hardware failures and can cause situations like this.

DHCP is another topic where a FAQ would help. In short, routers generally assign DHCP addresses from the lowest usually 2 to the highest 254.
There are other factors like lease time. This is a DHCP concept where the router reserves an ip for a set amount of time in case a device disappears then returns so it can continue with the same ip. lease times can range from minutes to days. You may not add any devices to your home network but consider every guest to your house with their cell phone, tablet, game, etc, as well as video streaming devices like TVs and Roku.

What Is DHCP? (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol)

DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) is a system used in computer networking to automatically assign networking information to a client.

www.lifewire.com

 

[WWQ]

To determine what ip address you should assign to the OmniPro:
either log on to your router or run ipconfig from a command prompt on your pc.
From that info you will have your gateway (router) ip address which should be something like 192.168.1.1
You also will see the subnet mask which generally is 255.255.255.0
If you are logged on to the router you can find the DHCP range. The default is usually 192.168.1-254.
In this example, it would be prudent to put the OmniPro at an address like 250 or more.

As to why the installer moved to the 10 subnet, it depends on how your router was configured at install time. I have run into many cases where the local isp changes router configs due to software updates or hardware failures and can cause situations like this.

DHCP is another topic where a FAQ would help. In short, routers generally assign DHCP addresses from the lowest usually 2 to the highest 254.
There are other factors like lease time. This is a DHCP concept where the router reserves an ip for a set amount of time in case a device disappears then returns so it can continue with the same ip. lease times can range from minutes to days. You may not add any devices to your home network but consider every guest to your house with their cell phone, tablet, game, etc, as well as video streaming devices like TVs and Roku.

What Is DHCP? (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol)

DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) is a system used in computer networking to automatically assign networking information to a client.

www.lifewire.com

Another great article!

With all the great information you've provided me, along with the few good tidbits provided by the Leviton techs, I decided to try placing my OP2 on my LAN with a static IP of 192.168.68.251 The DealerPCAccess3 works perfectly with my desktop computer! I modified my laptop LAN address to a static IP address on the .68 subnet and it too communicates with the OP2 utilizing the crossover cable.

If you don't see any downside to what I've done here, I think my problem has been solved, and I also can rest easy knowing I have the knowledge and skills to re-set my system back to its original, troublesome state - if necessary.

Thanks a million for your help!

 

[dwalt]

Glad to hear it helped.