Introduction to Power over Ethernet
Power over Ethernet (PoE) has long been linked with IP cameras, VoIP phones, and the like. Increasingly, though, the technology’s being adopted in more areas of traditional building automation. There’s even talk that PoE will drive the smart buildings of the future. Your building might already have lighting controls and fixtures, access control systems, and […]
How to Find and Fix Unresponsive Devices with Optigo Visual BACnet
In theory, unresponsive devices are quite simple: it just means that something, somewhere, is getting lost in translation. But if the device isn’t communicating on the network, you might not even know it’s supposed to be there. Unresponsive Devices can cause a lot of unnecessary traffic on an Operational Technology network, but it can be […]
Optigo Connect: Now for Every Building Project
Optigo Connect has long been a full-scale solution for large commercial buildings, from stadiums to high-rises and data centers. Now, we’re supporting all Operational Technology (OT) networks, both big and small, new and retrofit. Our latest release, Optigo Connect HybridTM, is available for copper, single-mode fiber, multi-mode fiber, and mixed cabling networks, making Optigo Connect […]
“Global Who-Is Explained: The BACnet Broadcast You Need to Know”
An excess of Global Who-Is/I-Am messages can devastate BACnet networks. Particularly on a big network with many devices, limiting broadcasts to only the necessities is important. But Global Who-Is messages play an important part in the BACnet network. They are vital for the smooth functioning of the system. And, if the devices are configured properly, […]
Become a BACnet Browser Pro
The BACnet Browser in Visual BACnet allows you to customize the information you see and isolate the specific packets you need to solve your problem. It’s one of the most powerful features in Visual BACnet, but an often confused or overlooked one. In this 10-minute webinar, we showed attendees how to navigate the BACnet Browser […]
Project Haystack and Tagging Explained
In building automation, there’s a growing — and very apparent — need for Project Haystack and tagging. For those not familiar, Project Haystack is a grassroots not-for-profit made up of industry representatives like Siemens, Lynxspring, and SkyFoundry. The group is promoting the adoption of data semantics (tagging) in OT networks. They’re dedicated to “fostering the common association […]
Which is ‘Better’: BACnet, LonWorks, Modbus, or KNX
BACnet gets compared to a lot of other protocols on the market, including LonWorks, Modbus, and KNX. In this article, we break down the advantages and disadvantages of each protocol. Be sure to check out our articles on each of the protocols: LonWorks, Modbus, KNX, and a few reasons we think you should adopt BACnet. […]
Learn to troubleshoot with Visual BACnet
Have a troublesome network and a packet capture (PCAP) file, but don’t know where to start with Visual BACnet? Our team of BACnet buffs has seen just about every BACnet issue under the sun. They regularly field questions on the best ways to filter, drill down, and pinpoint problems in Visual BACnet. To help, we […]
How to Use Visual BACnet Site Monitoring
Trying to keep up with rampant device issues, constant network changes, or vendors pointing fingers instead of solving problems? Visual BACnet Site Monitoring is indispensable on large BACnet networks. Our customers at Penn State University, Princeton University, and many other campuses have embedded it into their workflows, and they’ve seen a steady increase in their […]
Designing a Network Live On Camera
The worlds of IT and Operational Technology (OT) are merging more and more these days as the Internet of Things grows in prominence. This collaboration between IT and OT is great, but there are still gaps in understanding that keep these worlds from fully working together. To help, we teamed up with Distech Controls to […]
