FX 14.11.4 Supervisor + Vykon Jaces

[orion242]

Another day another Niagara system chuck full on nonsense.

I have an existing supervisor that parts where installed by several other contractors. It’s a biz park with seven buildings. Most of them are all FX jaces but some newer ones are Vykon.

Besides everything being in different locations than a stock Niagara install, I seem to run into a wall on a few things.

1. Syncing users from the super to the Vkyon Jaces. Fails and complains about missing “jciFxDriver” in the Jace. Ok…this is a stock feature why do I need that?

2. Go to setup provisioning – station backups. Try to add any steps to the job and it comes up with “There are no known job steps that apply to this object”. Again, stock feature that seems to be borked.

Not sure what else I’m going to find at this point. Is there a way to flip a switch and make the supervisor realize these Vykon jaces are not infected with the JCI crapware?

Contemplating blowing the super away and installing Vykon, but two of the buildings are not being touched and those graphics are all tied up in the JCI appliance.

[numbawunfela]

I am still exploring the minutiae of the FX 'Appliance'. Like anything Johnson, the assumption is that the boots on the ground are fundamentally incompetent and not to be trusted. So far, I start every JACE with blowing away the stock graphics file folders, and installing my own. It makes life a lot easier and the graphics do not suck NEARLY as much. Of course, I am doing retrofits so I have no controller programmed with a vanilla program, so no graphic that comes on a FX JACE work for me just yet. With a LARGE facility that might change.

The 'jciFxDriver' I believe plays a role in the default station where the users service will have a folder that has templates of users with various user access limitations. This is likely where the issue lies. The 'Billy Bob' user is likely a copy paste of one of those, the 'Operator' User, for example. You may wish to remake a new user that is vanilla and see if that takes. It might be hard to do this, as likely any single 'appliance' user will bork the process.

I have not gotten into provisioning yet on an FX system. My apologies.

[orion242]

The 'jciFxDriver' I believe plays a role in the default station where the users service will have a folder that has templates of users with various user access limitations. This is likely where the issue lies. The 'Billy Bob' user is likely a copy paste of one of those, the 'Operator' User, for example. You may wish to remake a new user that is vanilla and see if that takes. It might be hard to do this, as likely any single 'appliance' user will bork the process.

Well this isn't sounding good. All the network users are new, freshly created. None of the existing JCI roles/prototypes are assigned to them since I created my own rather than sort out what was going on with them. Double checked all the network users just to be sure, try to sync...nope need the jci module.

Wonder if I can turn it around. Create them in the Vykon jace and sync virgin users into the super then switch back to super out to everything? Getting to be alot of dicking around.

Like anything Johnson, the assumption is that the boots on the ground are fundamentally incompetent and not to be trusted.

Ctrl-T will be too confusing. No new tabs for you! Adding new views, too confusing. No new view for you! Turning those features off was a huge improvement. Seems I may have to take more drastic steps to restore user sync / provisioning though. None of these features seem to even be mentioned in the JCI help docs.

[VAEngineer]

I've had trouble syncing users the other way around, as you know I have Vykon Supervisor and almost all JCI Jaces. Ended up blowing out a whole bunch of user and nearly getting locked out of all the JACEs before I turned network users off!

Are you saying Johnson Workbench doesn't let you have Tabs in Workbench? I know it did in the old AX version of FX workbench, never used the N4 version though.

Would it be possible to install the jciFxDriver into the offending Vykon JACEs?

[numbawunfela]

Ctrl-T will be too confusing. No new tabs for you! Adding new views, too confusing. No new view for you!

I have double-clicked on an item while pressing control and had a new tab open. I have also added new views no problem. this is me using an FX workbench with an FX Station. I have manipulated FX Station on FX JACEs with a Distech Workbench without any issues that I noticed. I use tabs constantly, so I wuda noticed if that was a thing and I did not notice - so there must be something else happening here.

I have had great success with adding FX modules to pretty much anything. I asked about license checks for features on the FX support forums, and they have no idea what I am talking about -they are so useless there. So my feeling is that the only thing that will not work is the FX equivalent to Distech's Launch Wizard feature. Also talking N2 with the N2 driver needs a license for sure - obvious stuff. You can still ping CCT off a JACE that has routing enabled and make that work the 'hard' way, but the easy click and it opens CCT and shows the program - that does not seem to work. Basically - yes, install modules wherever you like. They are easy to get.

[orion242]

When I launched WB with one of the icons it installs, it launched in JCI application mode or some nonsense.

You can look at the properties of the shortcut and the target is C:\JCI\FXServer\bla\bla\wb_w.exe -profile:jciFxDriverAppliance bla bla bla.

And yes launching it that way, there is no Ctrl-T to open a tab. No view-new option to add a px to something. After about the 25th device I had to use the slot sheet to add the pxview, then swap to the property sheet to assign the px file, I made some calls.

Remove that profile from the shortcut and things are a little less annoying.

[orion242]

Would it be possible to install the jciFxDriver into the offending Vykon JACEs?

I assume its going to fail a brand check, but I haven't tried that. I'll have to wait till I get a new jace out there that's not doing anything just in case a pure vykon virgin decides it doesn't want to boot after infecting it with this nonsense.

[orion242]

I have also added new views no problem.

View - New did not exist in the normal menu. There where some JCI specific options that looked like they may do the same, but I assumed then I'm locked in to borg PX pages which is the last thing I wanted.

New menu just had the normal stuff, so can't add a view that way either.

[orion242]

I have had great success with adding FX modules to pretty much anything.

Well, sounds like I'm going to have to give that a whirl. Do you know which modules need to be loaded.

Gonna feel dirty if this is what it comes down to.

[numbawunfela]

Johnson decided that the vanilla wb_w.exe file we all use is WAY too easy to understand, and they are missing a sales opportunity here. When you launch that, you get a Vykon branded workbench. Without the vykonpro modules.


When you use the start menu shortcuts, it runs the wb_w.exe in a 'profile' that enables all the cool stuff. Badsically making the switcher2 app useless. If you start it with the non pro start menu shortcut, it eliminates some features. So they can sell 2 versions of workbench with only 1 install file. And, incidentally, the server version is IDENTICAL to the workbench version. Only took 3 weeks with the Johnson 'tech support' to beat that out of them. So useless...




Anyway, the point being, start it with the start menu shortcuts, with the one that says Pro on it. Also, I have no issues adding a view to the Bacnet device folder in the screenshot. Again, you may want to check whether the version you are running (pro vs non pro) or a permissions issue. I spend NO time in the non pro version, so I dunno if that might be your issue.

[numbawunfela]

Well, sounds like I'm going to have to give that a whirl. Do you know which modules need to be loaded.

Gonna feel dirty if this is what it comes down to.

HA! dirty!?!? hehe.

I do not. I would just load the whole suite of JCI modules. Ya know how that goes. it asks for 1, then you add that 1, and it asks for another... So may as well get ahead of it and add all of them. Maybe the profiles thing gets you some of the way there.

You will know you did it right because the splash screen on the workbench at startup will say pro - that is the only indicator you get tho. Or go to Help > about - and bring up the splash screen that way.

[Right Control]

Numba is spot on. When I install FX. I create desktop icons. Then immediately delete the non pro version. I then create a folder with all my versions of pro launch because as stated any switcher tool is useless because it looks for the wb_w.exe not the added path with the profile. I always use the pro.If I don't want the pro I just old school start the non pro with the niagara console. I agree just load all FX jars should help the issues.

[numbawunfela]

Numba is spot on.

Woah mark your calendar... hehe - we agree!!! Woooooo!

I will pass you $5 later RC...



Orion, if you need the path that the pro vrsion it is:

C:\JCI\FXWorkbench-14.11\bin\wb.exe -profile:jciFxDriverAppliance:JciFullApplianceProfile

The last bit of text is the difference. The non-pro version is:

C:\JCI\FXWorkbench-14.11\bin\wb_w.exe -profile:jciFxDriverAppliance:JciApplianceProfile

a little creative editing of a Windows shortcut should get you the keys to the kingdom.

[greggreg]

Excellent information. Thanks

[orion242]

if you need the path that the pro vrsion it is:

C:\JCI\FXWorkbench-14.11\bin\wb.exe -profile:jciFxDriverAppliance:JciFullApplianceProfile

The last bit of text is the difference. The non-pro version is:

C:\JCI\FXWorkbench-14.11\bin\wb_w.exe -profile:jciFxDriverAppliance:JciApplianceProfile

a little creative editing of a Windows shortcut should get you the keys to the kingdom.

I just removed the profile completely from the shortcut and was greeted with the stock Vkyon splash screen. That may be part of provisioning be borked. Got tons to plow through so some of the nice to haves are taking back seat to getting owner initial access. Just getting tabs back and adding views without 10 clicks had been an extream improvement. For now manual station backup isn't that big a deal vs hours of pissing around unwinding JCI's bastardization of niagara.

[numbawunfela]

I just removed the profile completely from the shortcut and was greeted with the stock Vkyon splash screen. That may be part of provisioning be borked.

Not likely

Johnson decided that the vanilla wb_w.exe file we all use is WAY too easy to understand, and they are missing a sales opportunity here. When you launch that, you get a Vykon branded workbench. Without the vykonpro modules.

What you are seeing is standard issue Johnson. So confusing.

[Right Control]

I started with HW workbench. So when I first started using FX. It was a little confusing, but overall came to understand and appreciate some of the features. I also can't see where the any the FX appliance adds would disrupt the provisioning. Could be a 100% wrong on that. Maybe a little more seat time will lesson the frustration of the adds JCI incorporates. Or maybe you just hate it? Heck if it was up to me I would still be installing AX. LOL

[orion242]

FX appliance adds would disrupt the provisioning.

Try it once. Add the provisioning network extension under the niagara network. Open that up and just try to add a step. It pukes for me. That was with their stupid profile in the OG short cut and after I removed the profile from the shortcut. No mention of provisioning in the FX user guide also seems a bit odd.

[Right Control]

Try it once. Add the provisioning network extension under the niagara network. Open that up and just try to add a step. It pukes for me. That was with their stupid profile in the OG short cut and after I removed the profile from the shortcut. No mention of provisioning in the FX user guide also seems a bit odd.

Huh? Have provisioning setup on many FX sites. Now these would be all FX sites. I was trying to think of one that has FX mixed with other flavors of niagara I could look at. Can't say I have one that I can recall.

[Right Control]

Try it once. Add the provisioning network extension under the niagara network. Open that up and just try to add a step. It pukes for me. That was with their stupid profile in the OG short cut and after I removed the profile from the shortcut. No mention of provisioning in the FX user guide also seems a bit odd.

Yep got the same message “There are no known job steps that apply to this object" Sorted that out by adding the BatchJobService from the provisioingNiagara palette to services in the station. Then provisioning looks normal to me. I imagine you've done all this. At least from my test station that I just started with FX pro appears to work fine on my end.