The Status field on the DCD Management Screen tells you the status of the clocks connection to VTI. There are three statuses that may be reported in this column.
The Online status is telling us that the clock is online and VTI is receiving heartbeats from it. The Off status tells us that the clock has been declared offline using the online pick list, and VTI is not looking for heartbeats. The ERROR status tells us that VTI is not receiving heartbeats from the clock. Please note that this does not necessarily mean that the clock has ceased collecting punches, or sending heartbeats. It may indicate only that the clock is currently unable to communicate with VTI. If your device is reporting an ERROR status there are a few troubleshooting steps you can try before escalating the issue.
- Ping it.
A ping is a simple and easy way to test communication between VTI and the device. The Ping button will test VTI’s connection with the clock by sending out (and expecting to receive back) several packets of information. The number of packets that are returned will be shown. If the connection is good all of the packets will be returned. Please note that the IP address that the ping is sent to is the clock’s entered IP Address, not its Reported IP Address. If the entered IP address is incorrect VTI may be unable to successfully ping the clock.
A successful ping (a reply is received) indicates communication is open between VTI and the clock. However, if the DCD Status for the clock remains at Error you may also try clicking on the Clear Heartbeat button of the device reporting an error. The Clear Heartbeat button will clear the clock’s heartbeat log in the database (tblDCDHeartbeat) and will cause VTI to ping the device to reestablish communications. The Expected Heartbeat Interval field contains the interval (in minutes) at which we can expect the device to next communicate with VTI. After this time frame has passed, click on the Update button located at the lower left of the DCD Collection Device Management view to refresh the data.
If the ping request timed out or this did not resolve the issue try moving on to step two.
- Investigate it.
Loss of power or networking connections could cause errors. Verify the devices’ power supply and network cable are connected. If you suspected cabling was not securely in place, repeat step one after securing connections.
If the issue it still not resolved, move on to step three.
- Reboot it.
Disconnect power, count to 10 then reattach the power supply. There will be several screens displayed during the normal power-up process. When the Diagnostic display appears you’ll find the device’s IP address beneath the Initializing Network line. This screen doesn’t stay up long, but is typically long enough to write down the IP. If you run out of time, just restart the clock and try again. Verify the IP reported here matches what has been entered into DCD Setup in VTI. If it does not, update VTI with the new IP address and repeat step one.
*Power-cycling the device will not lose any punches stored on the clock.
Lastly, please contact IntelliTime to assist with additional troubleshooting if you were unable to resolve the issue with these steps.