Troubleshooting failed Insteon network. Failed 2413U?

Running Indigo 7.1.1. Running MacOS 10.13.1.

It being time to get the Christmas lights up, I tried to add the LampLinc 2457D2 dimmer module to control the tree lights. Also tried to add in a pair of 2634-222 outdoor on/off modules to control the exterior lights. All of these modules works just fine last year.

Now I cannot add in these modules.

No matter how I try to add them I always get a "device not responding error". In the mean time, other existing modules work fine. I am able to operate Insteon devices that were working before.

I tried disabling and re-enabling Insteon. I have also tried power cycling the 2413U. No effect on adding new modules.

Not being one to leave well enough alone, I tried resetting the 2413U. I unplugged it, held down the start button, plugged it back in, and continued holding the start button for 10 seconds. The end result is that I can no longer communicate with any of my previously-installed-and-working Insteon devices nor can I add&sync with any Insteon devices, old or new.

Indigo seems to be able to talk to the 2413U. In the interface status display the PowerLinc 2413U shows up green. It seems to act like it is sending messages. (I see the status display show the outbound messages. I see the green LED on the 2413U flicker.) It just never seems to get a response.

This does suggest to me that something is wrong with the 2413U. Any suggestions on further testing/resetting?

Thanks.

You didn't upgrade the OS to 10.13 at the same time problems appeared, did you?

You didn't upgrade the OS to 10.13 at the same time problems appeared, did you?

Yeah, I did. I had upgraded other machines and run them so it seemed that everything was safe. Unfortunately I didn't test the machine running Indigo. It was the last machine I upgraded.

However, gut feel says this is not a MacOS issue. If it was I would expect Indigo to complain about comm with the 2413U. This seems like problems between the 2413U and the rest of the Insteon network.

Arggh! Now it is all working again. I can add devices. Previously added devices are working.

The only thing now is there appears to be extra latency. It can take several seconds from a command to a response from a device. Could it be that one of the channels, either X10 or RF, is not working in the 2413U?

Search the forums for a thread about High Sierra. Significant USB driver issues have been seen by many people.

Search the forums for a thread about High Sierra. Significant USB driver issues have been seen by many people.

Well, it is down again.

If the USB driver were the problem then I should be seeing problems on my Z-stick too. I am not. Z-stick is working perfectly. The problem is limited to the 2413U.

I'll look tho'.

[matt (support)]

Here is the High Sierra thread to read over. I'm not sure if this is related to that or not. It could be a malfunctioning PowerLinc, but I'd probably lean towards the High Sierra USB issue (even though your Z-Stick works okay).

Here is the High Sierra thread to read over. I'm not sure if this is related to that or not. It could be a malfunctioning PowerLinc, but I'd probably lean towards the High Sierra USB issue (even though your Z-Stick works okay).

The 2413U is working again. It is off and on. Works for awhile and then it doesn't. I did try a hard shutdown and reboot of the server. Regardless, at no time does Indigo complain about talking to the 2413U. The errors have to do with "no reply from <device>...". The flying green packet bar remains firmly stuck in the middle of the packet radar widget. Now that could mean that the modem never received a reply from the device or I suppose it could mean that the Mac never received anything on the USB port. But I have to imagine that there is some 2-way handshaking going on when the interface is initialized. Yes, there does because when the interface starts up it properly gets the device type and the device address. So I am thinking that the USB interface is working OK and the problem is elsewhere, like the RF channel is not working.

We need Insteon and Z-Wave packet sniffers.

Excellent! Thank you. I'll have to go play. I'm so glad I protected by security through obscurity. Oh ... wait ...

Did you make progress on your troubleshooting? I seem to be in the same boat, except that I don't have a system upgrade in the mix. My Indigo server is stil at 10.11, where it has been for some time.

It seems to be talking to the 2413U, but it's not picking up on any insteon traffic that I can tell. My setup hasn't change in a very long time (hardware or software). While I was out of town last week, all Insteon traffic seems to have stopped. The last timestamps I can see on devices are from 4/12.

[matt (support)]

If a factory reset of the 2413U (to rule out it being in a bad state) and trying different outlets/circuits using an extension cord (to rule out signal noise) don't help, then I think it has malfunctioned and needs to be replaced.

If a factory reset of the 2413U (to rule out it being in a bad state) and trying different outlets/circuits using an extension cord (to rule out signal noise) don't help, then I think it has malfunctioned and needs to be replaced.

This is the second time it has failed this way. I tried everything (power cycle and factory reset followed by resync, different outlet, etc.) and finally got a new 2413U. It worked for 4 months and then apparently failed again. I went over the troubleshooting with Smarthome and they agreed I needed a new 2413U, which I have received and installed. It suffers from the same problem. It receives messages just fine from modules but it does not seem to transmit to them. Every command ends with "no ACK received" in the log file. This is my third 2413U now.

I am slowly replacing Insteon devices with Z-Wave devices where I can but I still have about 15 Insteon devices left in the network.

If a factory reset of the 2413U (to rule out it being in a bad state) and trying different outlets/circuits using an extension cord (to rule out signal noise) don't help, then I think it has malfunctioned and needs to be replaced.

OK. Haven't gone to these extremes yet. Will try a factory reset first. Trying different circuit is challenging given location of server, but I'll see what I can do if other attempts fail.

I guess I won't be completely heartbroken if it does turn out to be the 2413U. It's been running a long time, generally without problems. I have quite a few instead switches in the house, and a smaller number of plug-in devices. This issue has rendered most of our main living area lights uncontrollable though, so I can't ignore it for too long...

I just realized that we both have the same problem and have both posted at the same time. I think Matt was responding to you rather than to me. Regardless, we are both dealing with the same problem at the same time. The only difference is, I am on my third 2413U and the brand-new one fresh-out-of-the-box is exhibiting the same symptoms. Could the new one be bad too? Could be.

Matt, you suggested interference but since I receive messages from devices, i.e., if I change the state of the device manually (turn a light on or off, or use a keypad button), I see a log entry showing the state of the device changing. That means that the 2413U is receiving data, either via RF or via powerline. (It would be nice if we knew HOW the message was getting back.) So I don't think interference is the problem.

I would really like to have an Insteon and a Z-Wave protocol analyzer so I could see what was going on over the air.

Well I have about the same problem trying to add new devices. I just got my second 2413U. I get the "failure to respond" messages. I cleared the internal links and opened indigo with an empty data base. I still could not add a new device (same response) but could add devices that had been working for years.
By the way, what is a persistent link? They come back even if they relate to non-existant links.
Right now all I can think of is to convert completely to Z-wave (not sure that would work) at substantial cost in time and money.
Are there any suggestions for next steps?