The frequently asked questions below provide information regarding SmartServer applications and references for more information, and consist of the following:

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Device Capacity and Maintenance licenses may be required for SmartServer 3.3 and higher depending on the application. See Manage Licenses as well as Frequently Asked Questions - Licensing for more information.

How do I use the SmartServer as a self-installed IP-852 router?

The SmartServer can be used as a self-installed IP-852 router, which allows you to create an IP-852 network with two or more SmartServer IoTs (e.g., connecting two buildings together) without using a LNS network integration tool to add the SmartServers to the existing LNS network. This application is similar to the i.LON 600 self-installed router as repeater feature and also requires the purchase of a U60. In this case, the SmartServers are used as repeaters and repeat all the traffic on any FT-10/XF-1250/Power Line SmartServer to all the other channels connected to other SmartServers. This method is useful when a network integration tool does not support IP-852 routers. In these cases, the SmartServers are physically connected to the existing network, but there are now two logical channels:

1. LON channel (FT-10, XF-1250 or power line) which has all the LON devices (except SmartServer routers) and is configured by a third party tool that doesn't know about IP-852 routers.
   1. The SmartServer U60/U70 are physically connected to these channel, but no SmartServer routers are added to the integration tool.
2. IP-852 channel, which connects the SmartServers together. Add both SmartServers to an IP-852 configuration server network. No other integration tools are required.

See the Using the SmartServer as a Self-Installed IP-852 Router section in (Optional) Set up the IP-852 Configuration Server for more information.

For this application, you do not need a SmartServer device capacity license. You only need a maintenance license if you want to upgrade to a new SmartServer software version.

Supported hardware platforms: SmartServer IoT

Can the SmartServer only be used as an RNI, IP-852 routing and/or multi-port routing for LON devices?

Yes, the SmartServer can be used just as an RNI, IP-852 router, and/or multi-port routing. To use it as a IP-852 router, or multi-port routing, change the SmartServer mode to IMM prior to commissioning it in IzoT CT or IzoT Net Server by using the CMS Devices widget. Click the SmartServer action menu and select Switch to LON Independent Management mode (IMM). If you use the default DMM to commission the IP-852 or U60/U70 routers, then the SmartServer will stop routing after a SmartServer reboot.

This application requires the separate purchase of one or more U60s/U70s.

For these applications, you do not need a SmartServer device capacity license. If you use any other of the built-in features, then you will need a SmartServer device capacity license. If you want to upgrade to a new SmartServer software version, then you need a maintenance license.

Supported hardware platform: SmartServer IoT

How can I use the SmartServer to do network recovery for an already provisioned LON network?

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• If using the SmartServer RNI to discover the network, then make sure the SmartServer LON Configuration page Domain Id is not set for the same domain Id the existing network. 
  • If the SmartServer domain Id is set to the same Id as the working network then you may see a NS, #51 error.
• In CT, when creating the network, in the Naming dialog, the first dialog, select Recover database from network and then continue with the rest of creating a network.
  • After you recovering the network go to the network properties and put the network interface onnet.
  • The devices may show up in a different subnet or drawing page.
• Add an IP-70 channel and a SmartServer IoT device to the CT drawing or IzoT Net Server database.
• Change the SmartServer mode to IMM.
• Use the IzoT Net Export utility to import the IzoT CT network or IzoT Net Server database into the SmartServer.

Supported hardware platforms: SmartServer IoT.

Do LON networks require a U60 or U70?

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See Add a U60 or U70 LON Network Interface and Router for information on how many network interfaces are supported.

Supported hardware platforms: SmartServer IoT, Remote CMS

How do I do Metering and I/O with the SmartServer?

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Yes, you can use the SmartServer to automatically discover BACnet, Modbus, and LON devices using the Discover button (Image Modified) on the Devices widget. Datapoint discovery is only supported for BACnet Devices. For LON and Modbus devices, you must import an XIF file prior to running device discovery. In most cases the device will show up in the SmartServer as unconfigured. To use the device you will in most case have to provision the discovered devices. Provisioning a LON devices will change the domain/subnet/node ids, change the datapoint values and remove any existing connection in the LON device.

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• BACnet – The SmartServer can automatically create a device type and discover the BACnet datapoints for each type of discovered BACnet device. See (Optional) Add a BACnet Interface.
• Modbus – The Modbus protocol does not support device discovery, but the SmartServer has a mechanism that can be used to discover Modbus devices.
  • To discover Modbus devices using the SmartServer, first create a MOD file with a unique identifier for that Modbus device type, and then import the file using the Device Types widget. During device discovery, if a Modbus device has that unique identifier, then that device is automatically added to the Devices widget. See (Optional) Add a Modbus Interface (TCP/RTU).
• EnOcean – If you import the device XIF before running device discovery, then any device that is discovered can be used. EnOcean devices push data to the SmartServer. The EnOcean driver does not support writing to devices. See (Optional) Add an EnOcean Interface.
  • Purchase an EnOcean 500U USB radio, which has an approximate range of 30 meters in order to communicate to the EnOcean devices.
• LoRaWAN – Configure the SmartServer to use ChirpStack and import the device XIF files. See (Optional) Add a LoRaWAN Interface.
• LON  – If you import the device XIF before running device discovery, then any device that is discovered can be used. If you run discovery before importing the XIF, then the SmartServer will create a device type without datapoints. These devices should be removed as they are not functional. 
  • There are two modes for discovering LON devices:
    • Using the SmartServer with LNS tools (IMM) – LON devices should be discovered with the LNS tool (e.g., IzoT CT or IzoT Net Server application). If you run discovery using the CMS Devices widget, then it may add any LON device that it discovers. Therefore, run the IzoT Net Export utility after you run discovery using the CMS Devices widget. Otherwise, what you see in the CMS Devices widget may not be what you see in the LNS SmartServer IoT device  subsystem.
    • Using the SmartServer as a standalone integration tool (DMM) – device discovery will add any discovered devices.

  • For LON device discovery, you can specify a domain ID or use the Enable Domain ID Discovery option on the LON Configuration page to check all 1-byte domains. When using Enable Domain ID Discovery option, the domain ID of the first device discovered, or the first service pin message received, will determine the domain ID that is used for all subsequent device discovery. See (Optional) Add a LON Interface for more information.
    

    Note

    The SmartServer can do LON device discovery. However, if the site is operational system, it may no longer be operational after using device discovery. Once LON devices are discovered, provision the devices (subnet/node ids are changed, existing datapoint values go to default, and existing connections to devices are deleted).  To add an existing network, or to discover a working network, first use an existing IzoT CT/IzoT Net Server database, or use OpenLNS Database Recovery Wizard, to do network recovery, then change the SmartServer to IMM mode, and finally use the IzoT Net Export utility to build up the network into the SmartServer. DO NOT use device discovery on an already working LON production site. If you mistakenly do so, then disconnect the SmartServer from the LON network and do a reset database. Deleting the devices in the CMS will also break the working network as the SmartServer will decommission the device before removing the device from the network.To delete LON devices, first remove the SmartServer from the LON network, then delete the LON devices, and finally re-add the SmartServer to the LON network after about 30 minutes (to allow the decommission command to timeout). Starting with SmartServer 3.4, LON devices can be discovered for a specific LON domain ID, or you can use LON domain ID discovery for one-byte domains. LON domain ID discovery chooses the domain ID based on the first discovered device, or if it receives a service message from a device. LON devices that are discovered using device discovery appear with current devices status (e.g., provisioned or unprovisioned). For provisioned devices, device discovery preserves the existing connections (that is, connections continue to work after discovery is completed).  For DMM, prior to SmartServer 3.4, discovered devices appear as unprovisioned (shown in blue in the CMS), requiring you to provision the device in order to use it. This process deletes all existing connections to the device. For IMM, run the IzoT Net Export utility after device discovery. If the SmartServer discovers LON devices, then only delete devices that are disconnected from the LON channel, otherwise the SmartServer will decommission the device before it deletes it from the CMS.   If you are doing device discovery starting with SmartServer 3.4 and higher, then the SmartServer will show any device that it sees using the current state of the edge device (i.e., if already commissioned, then it will show up as commissioned in the SmartServer CMS). If the SmartServer has a problem reading information from the device then the device will show up blue.

    
    

See also Discovering, Defining, or Importing Devices for more information.

How do I use the SmartServer with a BACnet tool?

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1. Enable BACnet using the BACnet Configuration page. See (Optional) Add a BACnet Interface for more information.
2. Import a BACnet type map (BTM) file for each device type using the CMS Device Types widget. BTM files are used to define BACnet datapoint for the LON or Modbus device. BACnet Type Map (BTM) files are manually created, but can then be used on one or more SmartServers. See the Importing a Device Type section in Defining Device Types for more information.
3. Use the SmartServer CMS to add and provision the LON and Modbus devices. See Site Provisioning for more information.
4. For LON devices, an XIF file and any necessary resource file set are required. See (Optional) Creating a LON Device Interface (XIF) Definition for more information.
5. For Modbus devices, manually create a Modbus XIF file that defines the Modbus datapoints. See (Optional) Creating a Modbus Device Interface (XIF) Definition for more information.

How do I access BACnet datapoints with the SmartServer CMS?

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1. Enable BACnet using the BACnet Configuration page. See (Optional) Add a BACnet Interface for more information.

2. Start device discovery using the CMS Devices widget. For each discovered BACnet device, the SmartServer will automatically create a BACnet XIF if one does not already exist. See Discovering, Defining, or Importing Devices for more information. 

3. Provision the BACnet devices using the CMS Devices widget. See Provisioning, Deprovisioning, and Replacing Devices for more information.

Manually Create a BACnet XIF File

1. Create a BACnet XIF file that specifies the BACnet datapoints and how they are represented in the SmartServer. See (Optional) Creating a BACnet Device Interface (XIF) Definition for more information. The SmartServer BACnet discovery feature can be used to automatically discover BACnet datapoints and to automatically create the BACnet XIF file. The BACnet XIF file can also be manually created. See the Importing a Device Type section in Defining Device Types for more information.
2. Enable BACnet using the BACnet Configuration page. See (Optional) Add a BACnet Interface for more information.
3. Import the BACnet XIF file using the CMS Device Types widget. See the Importing a Device Type section in Defining Device Types for more information.
4. Add BACnet devices in one of the following ways:
   1. Use the CMS Devices widget to manually add the BACnet devices. See Discovering, Defining, or Importing Devices for more information. 

   2. Start device discovery using the CMS Devices widget. For each discovered BACnet device, the SmartServer will use the imported BACnet XIF file. If a BACnet XIF file is not found for a device, then one will be automatically created. See Discovering, Defining, or Importing Devices for more information. 

5. Provision the BACnet devices using the CMS Devices widget. See Provisioning, Deprovisioning, and Replacing Devices for more information.

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1. Create a Modbus XIF file that specifies the Modbus datapoints and how they are represented in the SmartServer. Modbus XIF files are manually created, but can then be used on one or more SmartServers. See (Optional) Creating a Modbus Device Interface (XIF) Definition for more information.

2. For Modbus RTU, configure the SmartServer RS-485 interface using the RS-485 Configuration page. See (Optional) Add a Modbus RTU Interface for more information. 
   

   Info
   The SmartServer IoT Pro EX Edition has two built-in RS-485 interfaces, and each IOX has its own RS-485 interface. For Modbus RTU, you can only use one of these RS-485 interfaces with a SmartServer. The other SmartServer, or IOX RS-485 interfaces, can be used for other protocols.

   
   

3. Import the Modbus XIF file using the CMS Device Types widget. See the Importing a Device Type section in Defining Device Types for more information.

   Info

   Modbus datapoints cannot be accessed directly from IzoT CT or IzoT Net Server. To do so, use a SmartServer internal device to map the Modbus datapoints to LON datapoints so that you can use IzoT CT to monitor and control Modbus devices. Go to the How do I access BACnet or Modbus datapoints in IzoT CT / IzoT Net Server section for information on using an internal device to map Modbus-to-LON datapoints.

   
   

How do I access EnOcean datapoints with the SmartServer CMS?

REMOTE ENOCEAN INTERFACE (BETA) IS SUPPORTED WITH SMARTSERVER 4.3 UPDATE 1 AND HIGHER. 

LOCAL ENOCEAN INTERFACE IS SUPPORTED WITH SMARTSERVER 4.0 AND HIGHER.

The SmartServer can be used to access EnOcean devices either by performing device discovery, or by manually adding the devices. First, import the EnOcean XIF or DTP files (which are available on github) prior to discovering or adding the device. The purchase of a 500U USB gateway is required in order to communicate to the EnOcean devices. The 500U allows the SmartServer to see updates from devices within 30 meters of the SmartServer. The EnOcean driver can be used to see EnOcean device updates, but cannot be used to write to the EnOcean devices. As EnOcean use Energy harvesting and in most cases no batteries are required. EnOcean devices push datapoint updates to the SmartServer. That is, the SmartServer never polls EnOcean devices for datapoint updates so the EnOcean devices control how often datapoint updates occur.

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How do I access LoRaWAN datapoints with the SmartServer CMS?

LoRaWAN devices are supported with SmartServer 4.0 and higher; beta for SmartServer 4.0 and 4.1.

The SmartServer can be used to access LoRaWAN devices either by performing device discovery, or by manually adding the devices.  The SmartServer uses a ChirpStack LoRaWAN Network Server (LNS). The LoRaWAN service has to be configured first and then devices can be manually added to the ChirpStack server prior to discovering or manually adding them to the SmartServer CMS. Import the LoRaWAN XIF or dtp files (many are available on github) prior to discovering or adding the device to the SmartServer CMS. As LoRaWAN devices use batteries, so the devices push datapoint updates to the SmartServer. That is, the SmartServer never polls LoRaWAN devices for datapoint updates so the LoRaWAN devices control how often datapoint updates occur.

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See Provisioning, Deprovisioning, and Replacing Devices for more information.

How do I use the SmartServer with IzoT CT / IzoT Net Server?

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1. Configure the SmartServer to use Independent Management Mode (IMM) for LON devices using the CMS Devices widget. Device Management Mode (DMM) is the default. See (Optional) Switch From LON Management for more information.
2. Export the LON database that has been created, or a subset of the database, to the SmartServer using the IzoT Net Export utility in order to access the LON devices in the SmartServer CMS. See Importing LON Devices from an LNS Network with IzoT CT.

3. If you are using the IzoT Net Export utility, then add a SmartServer IoT device to the LON network. The SmartServer IoT should be added to an IP-70 channel. A separate IP-70 channel should be added for each SmartServer.
   

   Info
   title Use-case considerations
   If you are only using the SmartServer for IP-852 routing, then the IzoT Net Export utility is not needed in this application. Instead, perform the following: Use the CMS Devices widget to change the SmartServer to use IMM for LON devices. See (Optional) Switch From LON Management for more information. Enable IP-852 using the SmartServer LON Configuration page. Doing so allows you to use the SmartServer like an IP-852 router. See (Optional) Set up the IP-852 Configuration Server for more information. To support multiple U60s, configure the SmartServer routers to reduce traffic on the U60 channels by adding an IP-70 channel for the SmartServer backbone and connecting a router for IP-852, as well as a router for each U60, to the IP-70 channel. If you are using the SmartServer for scheduling, then consider using an internal device that is controlled by the scheduler. The IzoT Net Export utility is not needed in this application. If you are only using the SmartServer to access Modbus or BACnet datapoints, then the IzoT Net Export utility is not needed in this application. If you are using LON devices, and the built-in CMS features (i.e., scheduling, alarming, data logging, etc.), then use the IzoT Net Export utility to export some, or all, of the LON database. IzoT Net Export utility requires that you use IzoT CT 4.2 or a newer version, or IzoT Net Server 4.2 or a newer version.

   
   

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To use the SmartServer with an IzoT CT network, add a SmartServer IoT device to the SmartServer IP-70 channel backbone. Depending on what type of network interface you are using (IP-852 or RNI), add one or more routers. All devices in the same subsystem as the SmartServer IoT device, and child subsystems, will be exported with the IzoT Net Export tool (inex). The SmartServer needs to be set to IMM before exporting the database to the SmartServer. Depending on the number of devices on the network, more than one SmartServer may be used.

See also the How To References listed below:

• How to export a CT network with an existing SmartServer 2 Web Server FB into the SmartServer IoT
• How to add dynamic datapoints to a SmartServer IoT using CT
• How to access BACnet, Modbus, EnOcean and LoRaWAN devices with IzoT CT

How do I use the SmartServer with IzoT CT, IzoT Net Server, and a BACnet tool?

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1. Enable BACnet using the BACnet Configuration page. See (Optional) Add a BACnet Interface for more information. 
2. Create a BACnet XIF file (either using device discovery or manually). See (Optional) Creating a BACnet Device Interface (XIF) Definition for more information.
3. Import the BACnet XIF file using the CMS Device Types widget. See the Importing a Device Type section in Defining Device Types for more information.
4. Use the SmartServer CMS to add and provision the BACnet device. See Site Provisioning for more information.
5. Use an internal device to map the BACnet to LON datapoints.

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In IzoT CT / IzoT Net Server:

1. If using Modbus RTU, make sure the RS-485 port is correct configured using the using the RS-485 Configuration page. See  (Optional) Add a Modbus RTU Interface for more information. 
2. Manually create a Modbus XIF file. See (Optional) Creating a Modbus Device Interface (XIF) Definition for more information.
3. Import the Modbus XIF file using the CMS Device Types widget. See the Importing a Device Type section in Defining Device Types for more information.
4. Use the SmartServer CMS to add and provision the Modbus device. See Site Provisioning for more information.
5. Use an internal device to map the Modbus to LON datapoints.

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1. Create a BACnet type map (BTM) file for each device type in order to access the Modbus datapoints in the BACnet tool. See (Optiona) Add a BACnet Interface for more information. 
2. Import the BTM file using the CMS Device Types widget. See the Importing a Device Type section in Defining Device Types for more information.

To access LON devices that you added and provisioned (commissioned):

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1. Configure the SmartServer to use Independent Management Mode (IMM) for LON devices. Device Management Mode (DMM) is the default. See (Optional) Switch From LON Management for more information. 
2. Use the IzoT Net Export utility to export the LON database, or a subset of the database, to the SmartServer. See Importing LON Devices from an LNS Network with IzoT CT.

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1. Create a BTM file manually for each LON device type. See (Optional) Add a BACnet Interface for more information. 
2. Import the BTM file using the CMS Device Types widget. See the Importing a Device Type section in Defining Device Types for more information.

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1. Use an internal device to map the BACnet/Modbus/EnOcean/LoRaWAN datapoints to LON datapoints, which can be accessed with your LON integration tool. See (Optional) Add a BACnet Interface for information on how to do the mapping.
2. Use the localDev.exe application from the SmartServer GitHub repository to create an internal device with 64 empty LON Functional Blocks (FBs).

3. Use your integration tool, such as IzoT CT, to dynamically add datapoints to the internal device. If the LON and BACnet/Modbus datapoint types are similar, then you can use a connections (CON) file to do the mapping between the LON and BACnet/Modbus datapoints.
   
   For example, a float datapoint for the BACnet/Modbus translates directly to SNVT_temp_p. You can use shadowConnect.exe (from the SmartServer GitHub repository) if you have similar datapoint types.

   Info
   title Considerations for BAC and MOD files
   There are some limitations for BACnet XIF and Modbus XIF files when using shadowConnect.exe. Additionally, there are limitations for the names of dynamic datapoints added to IzoT CT/IzoT Net Server database. Once you add a dynamic datapoint into IzoT CT/IzoT Net Server, you cannot rename the datapoint. In this case, you must delete the datapoint and add a new datapoint with a new name. See Naming Considerations for BACnet XIF and Modbus XIF Files in the (Optional) Setting Datapoint Names for more information.

   
   

What older products can the SmartServer replace?

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• i.LON 100s, i.LON SmartServer, and SmartServer 2 – purchase a SmartServer IoT and separately purchase a U60/U70 for each channel (i.e., XF-1250, FT-10, or power-line) that you want to support. If you are only using BACnet or Modbus devices, then purchasing a U60/U70 is not required. See  KB1365 for more details on how to transition from a SmartServer 2 to a SmartServer IoT.
• i.LON 600 and i.LON 700 – purchase a SmartServer IoT and separately purchase a U60/U70. See Migrating from the i.LON 600 to the SmartServer IoT and Migrating from the i.LON 700 to the SmartServer for more information. See also i.LON 600 and i.LON 700, as well as Documents Archive and search for i.LON 600 or i.LON 700 for additional resources. 
• LPR-10 and LPR-12 – purchase a SmartServer IoT and separately purchase at least two U60/U70s. See Migrating from the LPR and MPR Routers to the SmartServer IoT for more information. 
• MPR-50 – purchase a SmartServer IoT and separately purchase at least one U60/U70 for each channel (i.e., XF-1250, FT-10, or power-line) that you want to support.

Supported hardware platforms: SmartServer IoT

How can a third-party tool access the SmartServer data?

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• Using the SmartServer IAP REST API and/or IAP WebSockets API. See IAP/REST API Reference and IAP/WS API for more information.
• Using the IAP MQ (MQTT) API. See (Optional) Remotely Accessing the IAP/MQ Server and IAP/MQ Fundamentals for more information.
• Creating an internal device to interact with your remote client/server. See Creating a Custom LON App for more information.

• Using Node-RED flows to interact with your remote client/server. See SmartServer IoT Node-RED Tutorial and Creating Sequence of Operations for more information.

How can I customize the SmartServer?

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• Using the built-in Node-RED editor. See SmartServer IoT Node-RED Tutorial for more information.
• Creating an internal app (e.g., node.js, Python). See Creating a Custom LON App for more information.
• Creating custom web pages. See Creating Custom Web Pages for more information.
• Using connections to connect device datapoints. See Setting up Datapoint Connections for more information.
• Using a third-party tool to setup and manage the SmartServer. See references in the above FAQ.
• Create a custom device driver to support new device protocols (built-in protocols include BACnet, Modbus, LON, EnOcean, and LoRaWAN). See Creating a Custom Driver.
• Replace or modify the SmartServer homepage. See Creating Custom Web Pages.
• Change the look of the CMS web page. See Customizing the User Interface in the Managing Customer and User Accounts section.
• Customize the CMS Web web page for each user. See Customize Your CMS Dashboard.
  • You can define what specify user access to particular contexts and devices user have access to. See Defining and Using Contexts.
  • Users can create their own have dashboards.  See Customize Your CMS Dashboard.
• Customize web page login prompts. See Adding an Access Warning Banner.

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