Frequently Asked Question

IMPORTANT:   This FAQ listing is being left temporarily at this site because all of the information it contains has not been migrated to our new site at products.packetflux.com.   However, the latest firmware files are available on that site instead of this one.

Please use the new site to obtain the latest firmware files as the files on this site are outdated.

Note: We HIGHLY recommend ALL users upgrade to at least version 12 Jan 2015.  Other, earlier, firmware images had various issues, some of which will likely cause stability problems within your network.   The latest version is simply adds auto-reset capability.  See the notes below for more information.

Install instructions for this firmware is at http://tickets.packetflux.com/kb/faq.php?id=15

Known Issues Not Yet Resolved in any version:

• The SyncInjector will not receive GPS status information correctly from SyncPipe Deluxe receivers prior to revision G. All SyncPipe Basics and SyncPipe Deluxe Revision G and later should work correctly. A future firmware release will support receiving limited information from earlier SyncPipes.

Potential "Gotchas" in all versions:

• When used with a Revision G or later SyncPipe, the SyncInjector will switch the pipe automatically from Motorola Binary to NMEA-0183 output format. This enables the GPS status to appear in the SyncInjector GPS status fields, but disables the ability for earlier Canopy Radio firmware to receive this information from the Pipe's Timing port, as earlier firmware requires Motorola Binary formtted messages. Newer Canopy firmware reads NMEA as well as Motorola Binary.  If the described functionality is not desired, set the 'value' and 'poweron' fields for 'Switch to NMEA' to '0' in the Binary I/O table, and power cycle the syncpipe using the syncpipe power value on the binary tab using a SiteMonitor base unit.. This will prevent the SyncInjector from receiving GPS status information, but will continue to support the status information being provided to the Canopy modules.

• A bug in SiteMonitor base firmware released before 23 Oct 2011 prevents the sitemonitor from recognizing newer expansion module. If you are running a SiteMonitor base unit with firmware released before this date, upgrade the firmware in the base unit to a version released on or after 23 Oct 2011.

New Features:
We have added functionality to the SyncInjector firmware to automatically reset a tripped radio port.   This functionality is on by default.

This firmware adds the following values to the analog tab in a SiteMonitor system:

TripReset (0.1S):  This value is the amount of time the SyncInjector will wait until it resets a tripped port.  The default value is 600 which equates to 1 minute.   The minimum value this can be set to is 50 which equates to 5 seconds.   We recommend setting this to as high of a value as you can tolerate.  Setting this value to zero (or a number less than 50) will result in the auto trip reset feature being disabled.

Maximum Resets:  This value is the maximum number of times that the SyncInjector will automatically reset a trip before disabling the automatic trip reset functionality.  It uses the event counter to determine how many trips have occured (this counter will increment twice per trip - once for the trip and once for the reset - the logic in the device automatically adjusts for this).   The default value is 10.   It is not possible to disable this functionality.

TripAllClr(0.1S):  This value is the amount of time the SyncInjector will wait before resetting the trip event counter, causing the device to forget about previous trip resets.   It's intended use is to allow the SyncInjector to automatically clear the trip counter periodically to prevent infrequent trips to eventually exceed the maximum resets value.  It's default value is 432000 which is 12 Hours.  Setting this value to zero will disable this functionality.

Caveats/Cautions:
Upgrading to this firmware will cause this device to reset to factory defaults.   WRITE DOWN and/or PRINT any modified values before upgrading.

Because it was necessary to add additional values to the analog tab, the SNMP OID values for analog values on all SyncInjectors, and modules listed in the expansion tab after a syncinjector will shift.

This firmware is running a newer version of SiteMonitor communication firmware which enables more detailed reporting of status to a SiteMonitor Base Unit which is running enhanced firmware.  As of the date of this release, the SiteMonitor Base Unit firmware which supports this enhanced reporting is not yet released.  We chose to use this newer firmware as it make implementation of the automatic trip reset functionality easier.   As a result, customers should consider this release to be potentially unstable and test it initially in a controlled environment.

Firmware Files:
Firmware file for SyncInjector Revision H Products, Dated 26 August 2015.

Resolved Issues:
A bug where the description of the expansion module was corrupted during the transfer of the Sats Visible string received from a SyncPipe has been resolved.

Firmware Files:
Firmware file for SyncInjector Revision H Products, Dated 12 January 2015.

Resolved Issues:
This version resolves a detection issue where certain SyncInjectors were not detected via a SiteMonitor.   More details on this bug and how to work around it to permit an upgrade is available at  http://tickets.packetflux.com/kb/faq.php?id=14.
Firmware Files:
Firmware file for SyncInjector Revision H Products, Dated 08 January 2015.

Resolved Issues:
The only change for this version is a slight increase in the delay before a radio is turned off due to a overcurrent/short circuit condition. This reduces 'false trips' when radios are initially powered on. If the 29-Dec-2011 version is working without false trips, there is no need to upgrade to this version.

Firmware Files:
Firmware file for SyncInjector Revision H Products, Dated 28 January 2012.

Resolved Issues:
A bug where state information was not correctly saved during an interrupt service routine has been fixed. This bug could cause various random operation of the unit, including occasionally shutting off power and/or sync to radios attached to the unit. For this reason, all users should upgrade to this version which appears to have fixed this problem and improved the overall stability of the system.
Filtering of double pulses - which can occur in cases where the sync-over-power timing pulse is likely to induct into the syncpipe cable has been added to this release. This also resolves many issues where radios randomly reboot.
Firmware Files:
Firmware file for SyncInjector Revision H Products, Dated 29 December 2011.

Resolved Issues:
This version resolves an issue where the SyncInjector would misinterpret the initial surge of power required to power up a Canopy radio as a short circuit, and shut the power to that port off as a result. If trips still occur after this upgrade please contact us immedately so that we can obtain further in-field data in order to better characterize the characteristic of incorrect trips and revise the firmware accordingly.

THIS FIRMWARE IMAGE HAS BEEN REMOVED DUE TO CRITICAL BUGS FOUND IN THIS VERSION. Please download the latest image instead.

Known Bugs:
This firmware version will appear to not power on certain radios in certain circumstances. This will manifest itself by the 'Tripped' value for that radio being set to 1. This mostly has to do with a combination of power supply, cable lengths, exact radio and syncinjector, and other variables. In short, the SyncInjector detects the initial poweron current as a short circuit and shuts the unit down to protect itself.

THIS FIRMWARE IMAGE HAS BEEN REMOVED DUE TO CRITICAL BUGS FOUND IN THIS VERSION. Please download the latest image instead.