H8P5-CE Locking Up

[iHomes Cheshire]

We have a customer with a H8P5-CE processor and the system is randomly locking up without obvious cause. Not due to power cuts etc. Customer then has to turn the power off and leave until all indicator lights are off and then turn power back on.

Lutron Tech Support are suggesting a new processor @ £5340 List or QS upgrade which would be in the region of £22k+ due to the number of links used in the program.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

[randyc]

There is a battery on the mother board that is probably failing. It only takes a slight flicker in power to cause an issue if the battery is failing. The flicker may not even be noticeable.

You can try adding a UPS but it would have to be a really fast one. You can replace the battery on the mother board. Tech support should be able to give you the model number. Some soldering is involved.

I'm surprised the power-cycle works. The next step is having to connect to the processor and see if it will "restart." If not you have to upload the OS and database.

[iHomes Cheshire]

Hi Randy.

Thanks for your comments. My thoughts would have been the battery if it was losing the program on power failure. This issue isn't caused when the power fails to the processor. The processor randomly stopping working and was fixed by a reboot using the power switch and the side of the casing. It happened three times over the weekend.

Thanks Again
Andy

[Jerrytofu]

Hello,

I have a HomeWorks Interactive system in my house and it was working perfectly until the power went out and it appears the memory was erased, all the keypad lights scroll from top to bottom and it says “OF” on the diagnostic screen in the processor. I want to either solder a new battery on the processor or buy a refurbished one with a new battery, as I feel the only issue is the battery. My problem is I’m unable to get support to rewrite the file that seems to be lost due to the battery failure. Can you help me get my system up and running?


Thanks

[randyc]

Hello,

I have a HomeWorks Interactive system in my house and it was working perfectly until the power went out and it appears the memory was erased, all the keypad lights scroll from top to bottom and it says “OF” on the diagnostic screen in the processor. I want to either solder a new battery on the processor or buy a refurbished one with a new battery, as I feel the only issue is the battery. My problem is I’m unable to get support to rewrite the file that seems to be lost due to the battery failure. Can you help me get my system up and running?


Thanks

The "OF" means the operating system is missing, another indication of battery failure. The keypads scrolling means they can't communicate with the processor, probably because the operating system is missing.

You won't need to rewrite the database. With power to the processor, upload the OS. You will need to change the DIP switch to do this. Then upload the database.

[Jerrytofu]

Thanks Randyc, How do I upload the database? I don't have a backup disk, you think it's still in the processor? How would I upload it?

Thanks again,

Jerry

[randyc]

Hi Randy.

Thanks for your comments. My thoughts would have been the battery if it was losing the program on power failure. This issue isn't caused when the power fails to the processor. The processor randomly stopping working and was fixed by a reboot using the power switch and the side of the casing. It happened three times over the weekend.

Thanks Again
Andy

The reboot bringing the system back seemed odd to me as well. Have you looked at the event log to see what happened at the time the processor locked up?

My guess would be a glitch in the OS. You can try uploading the OS again but but there is a 50/50 chance the glitch would remain. I would wipe the processor first. You will need to connect directly to the processor when doing this. Tech support can give you the super-secret code. You can email me and I will send it to you. It literally completely wipes the processor so I'd rather not publish it here.

[Jerrytofu]

Hi Randy,

Can I get your email address? I really appreciate your help.

Thanks,

Jerry

[randyc]

Hi Randy,

Can I get your email address? I really appreciate your help.

Thanks,

Jerry

Sorry, I thought it was in the signature.

lighting@elementintegration.com

[randyc]

Thanks Randyc, How do I upload the database? I don't have a backup disk, you think it's still in the processor? How would I upload it?

Thanks again,

Jerry

There are 2 programs on the processor. The operating system and the database. The OS acts like Windows, the database would be like Excel, etc.

You will need the programming software (published by Lutron). If you are not a dealer, there used to be a homeowner version. I'm not sure if it is still around. There is a terminal program in the program in the software that will allow you to transfer. The command "OSSTART" (no quotes) will attempt to restart the database. I'd give that a 50/50 chance of working. If that works, try extracting the database. If the previous programmer did not upload a backup copy of the program, you are <expletive deleted>!

If the OS is missing or corrupted there is a high probability that the database is also. The OS is included with the programming software. If you don't have a copy of the database, you are <expletive deleted>!