You can access your SmartServer from a computer using a web browser, SSH console, or USB serial console. With SmartServer 3.5 and higher, you should always use HTTPS (not HTTP) in the browser to access the SmartServer.

You can use a web browser to access the SmartServer Configuration page for initial setup and configuration, and you can also use a web browser to define, provision, and manage edge devices using the SmartServer Central Management System (CMS). For low-level system maintenance tasks, you can also use a console client application, such as PuTTY, to access the SmartServer Linux command line interface using either SSH over an Ethernet connection, or the SmartServer console USB interface.

This section has the following topics:

Connecting the SmartServer Ethernet Interface

You can communicate with your SmartServer using the SmartServer LAN and/or WAN interface, and you can communicate with your SmartServer using a USB console interface.

To communicate with the SmartServer using a LAN or WAN interface, connect it to an Ethernet switch or hub that can communicate with your client IP devices and services. The SmartServer has two Ethernet interfaces labeled LAN (ETH0) and WAN (ETH1), shown in the following figure.

You can use either interface or both of them, but do not connect both to the same network. Two Ethernet interfaces are available so that you can connect to two different networks. The LAN interface is typically used for a local network, and the WAN interface is typically used to communicate with a modem or router that interfaces with a wide area network. If you connect both interfaces to the same network, then you will see communication failures. Connect the LAN (ETH0) interface if you only have one network.

To connect to the LAN (ETH0) or WAN (ETH1) interface connect one end of a Category 5, 5e, or Category 6 Ethernet cable to the LAN (ETH0) or WAN (ETH1) connector, and connect the other end to an Ethernet switch or hub for the network to be connected, or connect directly to your computer. The SmartServer will then automatically adjust to the polarity and speed of the data port, and will illuminate the LAN or WAN LED indicator on the front panel of the SmartServer indicating that a connection has been made.

The SmartServer can use the network connection to communicate with IP-enabled devices and routers, such as BACnet/IP, ModBus TCP, LON IP-852, or LON IP-70 devices and routers. The SmartServer can also use the network connection to provide LON remote network interface (RNI) services to a remote IzoT Net Server, LON Protocol Analyzer, or other compatible tools and applications.

Finding the SmartServer IP Address

The SmartServer supports both DHCP and static IP addresses. By default, the SmartServer starts up using Startup Mode, which uses DHCP to assign its IP address, but it will fall back to a known static address. To maintain a stable IP address, change the IP address setting in the SmartServer Network Configuration web page (see Configure Your SmartServer) so that only DHCP or static IP address is used (not Startup Mode).

Each SmartServer ships with a unique host name marked on the product label located on the back of the SmartServer. The host name begins with smartserver- and ends with the install code. For example, smartserver-17q2eyh.

Use one of the following methods to find your SmartServer address:

If you are using DHCP to assign an IP address to your SmartServer, and your network includes a local DNS server, enter the following address in your web browser: https://<hostname>.
If your computer and the SmartServer are on the same subnet, follow these steps (this procedure may not work if your computer is using a Wi-Fi connection to the LAN, even if the Wi-Fi channel and SmartServer LAN channel are on the same IP subnet – this happens when the Wi-Fi access point or gateway does not implement IP subnet broadcast messaging for Wi-Fi clients):
1. If you are using a Linux or Mac OS-based computer, skip steps 2 and 3.
2. If you are using a Windows computer, verify that Bonjour Print Services are installed. The SmartServer IoT supports Bonjour (also known as Zeroconf) to allow SmartServer discovery on a network that does not include DHCP and DNS servers.
  To do so, open the Programs and Features applet in the Windows Control Panel and look for Bonjour and Bonjour Print Services. The figure below shows that version 2.0.2.0 is installed on this computer. Both versions must match.
3. If your Windows computer does not already have Bonjour or Zeroconf installed, go to this link to install Bonjour Print Services Installer.
4. Enter the following address in your web browser: https://<hostname>.local.
Connect your SmartServer to a network without a DHCP server, or connect your SmartServer directly to your computer using an Ethernet cable. In this case you most likely need to setup a static IP address on your PC. Enter one of the following addresses depending on whether you connected the cable to the LAN or WAN connector:

LAN Port Default: https://192.168.1.222
WAN Port Default: https://192.168.2.222

If you have a problem accessing the SmartServer consider setting you PC Gateway IP address to point to the SmartServer. For example, if you are using the LAN then you could set your PC gateway IP address to 192.168.1.222.
Use the SmartServer Console port ifconfig command to determine the SmartServer IP Addresses.
Connect your computer using a USB cable attached to the console connector on your SmartServer. Each SmartServer will have a different COM port number. Open a console application such as PuTTY on your computer with a 115,200 bps bit rate (see the Connecting to the Console using a USB Serial Connection section below for full settings), log into the SmartServer, and enter the ifconfig command at the Linux prompt. The response will list the IP addresses of the LAN interface as eth0, and the WAN interface as eth1.
The figure below shows the IP address for the LAN interface. See Connecting to SmartServer Console section below for more details.

See Configuring the SmartServer IP Address and Hostname for more information and next steps.

Security Warning

When you open a web page from the SmartServer using the default self-signed certificate, you browser may display a security warning. For example, the Chrome browser may display a Your Connection is not Private message. Select the option to proceed with the connection. For example, using Chrome, click Advanced and then click Proceed to <hostname>.local (unsafe). You can eliminate the security warning by enabling a signed certificate as described in Securing Your SmartServer.

Connectivity Testing

Depending on your SmartServer environment, you can use the ping command to test connectivity to the SmartServer as follows:

Hostname as marked – DHCP network with a local DNS server:
ping <hostname>
Hostname.local – DHCP network without a local DNS server, PC and SmartServer are on the same subnet (fails on some WiFi routers):
ping -4 <hostname>.local
FQDN Hostname – secure certificates enabled:
ping <hostname>.echelon.cloud
Direct wire to the SmartServer and factory configuration, static IP address:
ping 192.168.1.222

Connecting to the SmartServer Console

You can connect to the Linux console on the SmartServer to perform low-level diagnostics and system maintenance. You can connect to the console interface using a USB cable connected to the Console interface on the SmartServer and to your computer, or you can connect to the Linux console using the Ethernet connection to the LAN or WAN interface on the SmartServer.

To open a console interface you must have a terminal emulator installed on your computer. Typical terminal emulators include PuTTY for Windows and Terminal for Mac. The following sections describe different console interface options.

Connecting to the Console using a USB Serial Connection

You can connect to the Linux console on the SmartServer using USB connection from your computer to the console connector on the SmartServer. You can use any computer with a serial console application that supports a USB serial console interface. To connect to the console using a USB serial connection using a Windows computer, follow these steps:

Connect your computer to the SmartServer Console connector using a USB-A to USB Micro-B cable. The SmartServer console is shown in the following figure.
If you are using a Windows computer, you will likely not have issues accessing the SmartServer console port. If you do see a driver issue, then follow these steps to enable the virtual COM port (VCP) driver:
1. On your Windows computer, type Device Manager in the Windows search box. The Device Manager window opens.
2. Under Ports (Com & LPT), note the port number that is indicated for the USB Serial Port (e.g., COM 7). If a new COMx device appears, skip to step 3.
3. Under Universal Serial Bus Controllers, double-click the USB Serial Converter at the bottom of the list, which is added to your Device Manager when you connect your computer to the SmartServer using the USB cable.
4. Click the Advanced tab. On some systems, the Advanced tab may not be displayed. If it is not, skip the next step.
5. Enable Load VCP, as shown below, and then click OK.
6. Once the Load VCP option is set, unplug and then replug the USB cable to initiate device discovery. A COM port to access the SmartServer should appear.
Start your console application with a 115,200bps bit rate, 8 bits per character, no parity, 1 stop bit, and no flow control. For example, follow these steps if you are using the PuTTY application.
1. Open the PuTTY Session page.
2. Select the COM port number for the Serial Line (such as COM7).
3. Enter 115,200bps for the bit rate.
  1. The serial data frame is formatted as 8-N-1 (8 bits, no parity, 1 stop bit) with no flow control for the serial data frame.
4. When using PuTTY, change the backspace character that PuTTY sends to the SmartServer. Other console applications may also require this accommodation.
  1. Change the backspace by clicking the Terminal → Keyboard and change the Backspace key to Control-H, and then click the Apply button.
5. Click Open to connect to the SmartServer. A console window opens. If no login prompt appears, press the Enter key to display the login prompt.
Log into the SmartServer. See the Logging into the SmartServer section below.

Connecting to the Console using a LAN Connection

Connect both your computer and the SmartServer to a common LAN or WAN as described above under Creating a Network or USB Interface to the SmartServer.

Your SmartServer IoT will announce itself with the host name smartserver-{nnnnnnn}, where {nnnnnnn} is the SmartServer's unique Install Code (in lower case), located on the label on the back of SmartServer IoT. For example, a SmartServer IoT with the Install Code t3tzgft is configured with the host name smartserver-t3tzgft.

Once you have connected your computer and the SmartServer to a router, you will want to determine the IP address for the SmartServer. There are various ways of determining the SmartServer's IP address, including logging in to the router, and using the linux command ifconfig.

Development network configuration. Use the eth0 port, which is closest to the right side of the SmartServer.

Connecting to the Console using a LAN with PuTTY on Windows

With your computer and the SmartServer connected by to same LAN, follow the steps above to establish an IP address or use the hostname, and verify that you can reach your SmartServer IoT by opening a Windows command window and typing ping -4 [IP address | hostname | hostname.local].

Launch PuTTY.
On the Session page, indicate the host name or IP address of the SmartServer.
Select SSH as the Connection type.
Click Open to connect to the SmartServer. A console window opens and displays the login prompt.
Log into the SmartServer. See the Logging into the SmartServer section below.

Connecting to the Console using a LAN with Terminal on Mac OS

Enter either the host name or IP address for the SmartServer.

Connect your Mac computer and the SmartServer to a router.
Start the Terminal app.
Use the Terminal app to connect using SSH.

For example: ssh apollo@192.160.1.22 or ssh apollo@smartserver−t3tzgft
Log into the SmartServer. See the Logging into the SmartServer section below.

Logging into the SmartServer

You can log into your SmartServer once you have connected a console application using the USB console interface or a LAN or WAN interface as described in the previous sections. To log into the SmartServer, use the SmartServer system apollo username and password. The default SmartServer system password is printed on the label on the bottom of the SmartServer. If you changed the default apollo password (as described in Managing Passwords in the (Optional) Secure Your SmartServer section), use the password you selected.

To logout and close the SmartServer console session, enter logout at the $ shell prompt.

The SmartServer system also includes a root user, with the username of root. When you login as a root user, many operations will corrupt the operation of the SmartServer since many actions performed by a root user can change permissions on files and directories that make them no longer accessible to the SmartServer software. Do not login as a root user unless required by a particular procedure. Logout as a root user as soon as you complete any procedures requiring it. The root password is the same as the SmartServer system apollo user password. If you change the SmartServer system apollo user password as described in Managing Passwords in the (Optional) Secure Your SmartServer section, the SmartServer software will also change the root password.

To logout and close the SmartServer session as a root user, enter logout at the # shell prompt.

Step 2 - Connect to Your SmartServer