Insteon devices clarification

Posted on
Tue Aug 22, 2017 6:11 pm
george99 offline
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Joined: May 27, 2015

Insteon devices clarification

One thing I have never understood with Indigo is the "Manage Device Links" section.
I just don't understand what it is doing. I originally thought that it was for 3-way light switches, but it didn't do anything. No matter what I set there I don't see any differences.

That brings me to my next question. 3-way lighting.
I have several places in my house that have 3 way lighting. (2 light switches that control the same light). I also have a 4-way (3 light switch to control same light).
I did insteon's method of making each a controller and responder of each other, and I also created triggers in indigo to match each other.
What is the best way to set up 3 way lighting?

Posted on
Wed Aug 23, 2017 1:07 pm
jay (support) offline
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Re: Insteon devices clarification

We have a wiki article that discusses Insteon links. That's the way I implement my multiway scenarios.

Jay (Indigo Support)
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Posted on
Wed Aug 23, 2017 1:31 pm
george99 offline
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Re: Insteon devices clarification

Thanks Jay.
I do have another question, not sure if it is related or not.
I have the insteon fanlinc. However until now, I have only been able to turn the fan and light on/off using Indigo, because I don't have any physical switch associated with it.
So I bought the 6-key insteon keypad. I am trying to set it up to control the fanlinc. But no matter what I do, I cannot find a "clean" way of connecting them so that when I use the switch, indigo will know.
I did find a way to update the switch when I use indigo to control the fanlinc. I just made some triggers to turn on/off the appropriate buttons.
However, when using the switch, sometimes it works, but there is a very long delay. I am also seeing errors in the indigo log:

Here is an example of the errors. Also, I should point out that lately (past month or so), I have been getting alerts the the "insteon interface" connection has been restored. I have alerts set up to tell me when an interface goes down/up. Seems like it is crashing a lot. Happens about once or twice per day.

Code: Select all
   Received INSTEON                "Veranda Switch" on (button 4)
   Trigger                         Veranda Fan Medium via Switch
   Z-Wave                          received "Motion - Upstairs" status update is off
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Sent INSTEON                    "Veranda - Fan" status request (received: medium)
   Trigger                         Veranda Fan Medium via Fan
   Error                           resending previous command (reply mismatch)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   Error                           resending previous command (busy or unexpected command)
   PowerLinc                       Unexpected command 02 62 (flushing)
   Error                           "Veranda Switch" raw insteon command; send failed (no acknowledgment)
   INSTEON Commands Error          Failed to get current LED states for device 1796299582 - aborting

Posted on
Wed Aug 23, 2017 1:56 pm
jay (support) offline
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Re: Insteon devices clarification

There's a wiki article on how to set up a FanLinc and a KeypadLinc.

Those errors indicate that the PowerLinc is having some kind of issue communicating with the Mac and/or the Insteon network. Often it's because there is a lot of noise on the powerline - check the signal troubleshooting page for tips about that. You can also make sure that your PowerLinc is plugged directly into a hub port on your Mac unless your Mac has USB 3, in which case you might want to try getting a USB1 or USB2 hub and using that. It could also be a bad USB cable.

Long delays in other Insteon commands support the idea of signal noise and that's about 95% Insteon issues we see so I'd start there.

Jay (Indigo Support)
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Posted on
Wed Aug 23, 2017 1:59 pm
george99 offline
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Joined: May 27, 2015

Re: Insteon devices clarification

My powerlinc is connected via a USB hub. THe hub is externally powered.
It is a USB-3 Hub. I have a 2011 mac mini. I beleive it is USB 2, not sure though.
Also the powerlinc is plugged into an APC UPS Backup. I know they recommend against it, but I have had it like that for a few years without issue.
I'll try moving that stuff around and see what happens.
Any suggestions on the best way to set up the keypad to control my fan and light?

Posted on
Wed Aug 23, 2017 4:27 pm
jay (support) offline
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Re: Insteon devices clarification

The PowerLinc should be plugged directly into a USB port on your Mac, not a hub (particularly a USB3 hub).

george99 wrote:
Any suggestions on the best way to set up the keypad to control my fan and light?


Did you read the first sentence in my reply above and follow the links?

Jay (Indigo Support)
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Posted on
Wed Aug 23, 2017 4:54 pm
george99 offline
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Re: Insteon devices clarification

Doh!
Thanks

Posted on
Wed Aug 23, 2017 11:08 pm
george99 offline
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Joined: May 27, 2015

Re: Insteon devices clarification

Ok, I followed directions about setting up the keypad and fanlinc.
However, when I got to the part about setting up device links, something went wrong and wasn't clear to me.
In the "Manage INSTEON Device Links" window, in the dropdown at the top, I selected my keypad.
Then I selected "New Link to Responder", and then I tried to select the FAN from the fanlink device, but it was completely missing fro the dropdown.
So instead I then tried it the other way and in the dropdown at the top of the window, I selected the FANlink hoping to add the keypad as a new controller. But as soon as I selected the fanlink, I got an error in red saying:
Cannot remotely modify the links in this device type.
To define the links between this device and other devices, follow the instructions with the device hardware.

Please help...

Posted on
Thu Aug 24, 2017 8:37 am
jay (support) offline
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Re: Insteon devices clarification

Links must be done to the light device, not the fan device due to an oddity in how fanlincs work - so select the fan light device and you can link to the fan speeds.

Jay (Indigo Support)
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