This object contains attributes common to many Metasys system objects. These common attributes are described in the Common Object Attributes section. This section includes attributes of the Focus/Configuration tab, the Diagnostics tab (if applicable), and any other tab specific only to this object. See the Object and Feature Tabs section for information on the attributes that appear on the other tabs of this object (for example, the Hardware and Options tab appear on point objects).
For information on the Custom Enumeration tab, see User Defined Enumeration Editor Tab.
Attribute Name |
Notes |
Initial Value |
Description |
---|---|---|---|
Advanced Security Enabled |
C,W |
True |
Indicates whether the site uses the advanced security settings. This attribute provides an improved layer of security between Metasys Site Directors and devices. With this attribute set to true, backward-compatible methods of communication between the Site Director and its network engines are disabled, which means a Site Director at Release 10.0 or later discards all communication attempts from network engines prior to Release 10.0. This attribute, which SCT sets to True for any site archive that is created at, or upgraded to, Release 10.1, applies to the entire site. Therefore, if you have any network engine on the site that is running a Metasys release prior to Release 10.0, change Advanced Security Enabled to False. If you change this attribute from False to True, a user message appears to indicate that all network engines prior to Release 10.0 remain online, but are disconnected from the site because they no longer communicate with the Site Director. If this message appears, click OK to continue and set the attribute to True, or Cancel to keep the attribute set to False. |
All Items Update in Progress |
C,W |
False |
Indicates when the cache update completes after executing an Update All Items Cache command. Starting at Release 5.0, the All Items navigation tree in the Metasys UI depends on the data cached in the Site Director, which is called the All Items cache. The All Items cache automatically updates for engines at Release 5.0 or later. The cache does not automatically update for engines at a release prior to 5.0 after making changes when the UI is logged directly into the engine (that is, not through the Site Director), or when downloading an engine from the SCT (not through the Site Director). For these scenarios, you must use the Update All Items Cache command to update the All Items cache on the Site Director. This attribute appears only in the online UI. |
BACnet Encoding Type |
C,W |
ISO 10646 (UCS-2) |
Specifies the type of string encoding to use in BACnet messages. Unicode should be specified unless third-party BACnet devices are employed on the site. In this case, specify the BACnet encoding type supported by the third-party BACnet devices. This attribute is automatically distributed to the site devices. Note: When a site is upgraded to Release 10.1 with SCT
13.2, and the BACnet Encoding Type for the Site object is automatically changed to
ISO 10646 UTF-8 during the archive upgrade process. If you require UCS-2 as the
BACnet Encoding Type, make sure you set this attribute back to UCS-2 after the
archive upgrade is complete.
For information on how to set up an NAE as a BACnet system integrator in a Metasys system network, see the BACnet® Controller Integration with NAE/NCE Technical Bulletin (LIT-1201531). |
BACnet Site |
C,W |
False |
Specifies whether specific information from the BACnet device for each Metasys object is shown in the UI. When true, BACnet information integrates into the UI for objects. When false, the information is omitted. Internally, the BACnet protocol is used at a certain level regardless of this attribute. This attribute is distributed automatically to site devices. For information on how to set up an NAE as a BACnet system integrator in a Metasys system network, see the BACnet® Controller Integration with NAE/NCE Technical Bulletin (LIT-1201531). |
Broadcast Disabled |
C,W |
False |
Specifies if broadcast messages are sent by the device. When false (default value) or no Broadcast Management object exists, the device sends broadcast messages as defined by BACnet communication. When the Broadcast Management object is configured and this attribute is true, the device does not send network broadcast messages. This attribute appears only in the Snapshot Focus view on a Site Director engine. |
Certificate Renewal Period |
C,W |
60 |
Regulates when certificate expiration reminders begin. It specifies the number of days prior to security certificate expiration before the operator is notified daily that a certificate is about to expire. For example, if you use the default period of 60 days, and a server certificate on a network engine expires on January 1, beginning on November 1, an event requiring acknowledge is sent to the Site Director once a day or until the self-signed certificate is renewed or a new trusted certificate is installed. The Certificate Renewal Period applies only to engines at Release 8.1 or later, and is synchronized to all affected child network engines. A change to the Certificate Renewal Period may take up to five minutes to synchronize with all network engines. For more information about certificate management, see Metasys SCT Help (LIT-12011964) and Network and IT Guidance Technical Bulletin (LIT-12011279) . |
Default Language |
C,W |
Specifies the site's default language. All devices on the site have a dictionary using this language. This attribute appears only in the Snapshot Focus view on a Site Director engine. |
|
DNS Refresh Period |
C,W |
20 |
Specifies the time in minutes between DNS lookups to update the IP address of a BACnet Broadcast Management Device (BBMD) referenced by host name. If an IP address is changed within a DNS server, the BBMD system automatically obtains the new IP address upon the expiration of this period. A value of 0 is used to disable periodic DNS lookups. |
Default ADS Priority Threshold |
C,W |
255 |
Allows you to specify the priority of an event that triggers the Engine to connect (dial-up or LAN connection) to the defined ODS and deliver the event messages from the Engine local event repository to the event repository of that ODS. This attribute is used for Alarm and Event Management only. For example, a value of 20 for this attribute means that any event having a priority of 20 or higher (1 is highest) forces a connection to the ODS and forwards event messages from the Engine local event repository to the event repository of that ODS. |
Default ADS Connection Type |
C,W |
LAN |
Specifies whether the ODS (identified in the Default ADS Repository attribute) is connected through a LAN or dial-up connection. This attribute is distributed automatically to the site devices. |
Default ADS Delivery Time |
C,W |
12:15 AM |
Specifies the time of day when a connection should be established to the ODS (identified by the Default ADS Repository attribute). A connection is attempted at least daily at the specified time to deliver audit, alarm, and trend data to the ODS. This attribute is distributed automatically to the site devices. All Metasys devices that are part of the Site use the time zone they are located in. |
Default ADS Repository |
C,W |
0.0.0.0 |
Specifies the resolvable host name or IP address of an ODS. The ODS is the device to which local audit, alarm, and trend data is delivered. Repository refers to the files in the ODS in which this data is stored. A host name may be specified only if a DNS server is available to the device. This attribute is distributed automatically to the site devices. The Default ODS Repository of the Site is intentionally left blank and must be updated by the user (online or offline). If the user does not populate the Default ODS value and leaves the Default ODS Repository value for all devices at 0.0.0.0, the ODS does not receive any audit, alarm, or trend data. The SCT does not automatically populate the Default ODS Repository value because of the many different possibilities that could exist during archive creation, including multiple ODS on a site or no ODS for a site. In these cases, it would not be immediately clear which ODS should be the Default ODS under the Site object. |
Default Time Zone |
C,W |
Central Time (US and Canada) |
Specifies the site’s default time zone. The Site object determines and updates the UTC offset from this value. Once set in the Site object, the time zone is propagated to the other devices on the site. All Metasys devices that are part of the Site use the time zone of the Site Director, even if some of those devices are physically located in a different time zone. |
Device Time Servers |
C,W |
This attribute is used only for Windows time synchronization. Leave this attribute blank if you are not using Windows time synchronization. Specifies a list of resolvable host names or IP addresses of Simple Network Time Protocol (SNTP) server devices that the devices on the site (except the Site Director) use as their time server. Do not use an SNTP server name that has a dash (-) as its last character (for example, SNTP_Server-). Periodically, each device on the site (except the Site Director) attempts to sync time from an SNTP server from this list. Contact with an SNTP server is attempted one at a time in list order until one successful contact is made. A host name may be specified only if a DNS server is available to the site server. If the site server is also an SNTP time server, the site server may be specified in this attribute. This attribute is distributed automatically to the site devices. The NxE or ODS designated as the Site Director is the device time server for the site and provides the time management for all other engines/servers on the site. The Engine accepts BACnet Time Sync messages only if no SNTP server is defined for that Engine. |
|
Dynamic Broadcast Management |
False (SMP) True (SCT) |
Configures the Metasys system with BBMDs automatically when a Metasys system includes more than one IP subnet so that BACnet protocol broadcasts reach all Metasys system devices. The feature automatically determines the number of IP subnets and ensures that each IP subnet has exactly one BBMD. The feature uses the Third Party BBMDs List attribute when determining the list of devices to be BBMDs. When False, the selection of devices occurs only when the Update Broadcast Management command is issued to the site. When True, the selection of broadcast management devices occurs automatically as devices are added or removed from the site. |
|
Enum Set Memory Used |
0 |
Indicates amount of memory used by the created auto and custom sets. | |
File Name |
C,W |
Specifies an XML file containing site organization data within the file system of the host computer. This attribute appears only in the Snapshot Focus view on a Site Director engine. |
|
Multicast Group Address |
C,W |
224.0.1.1 |
Specifies the IP address used to multicast the SNTP message. The RFC-2030 defined standard address is 224.0.1.1. The address is configurable to allow site-specific use. |
Multicast Heartbeat Interval |
C,W |
5 |
Specifies the number of minutes between forcing a multicast time synchronization message. |
Multicast TLL |
C,W |
1 |
Specifies the Time-to-Live for a multicast message. The value indicates the number of router hops allowed before the message is not sent. Routers must be configured to pass multicast messages to allow the time sync message to pass. |
Multicast UDP Port |
C,W |
123 |
Specifies the UDP port on which multicast time synchronization polls and listens for messages. The RFC-2030 defined standard port is 123. |
Online Archive Transfer in Progress |
False |
Indicates whether the Metasys Server is currently archiving changes to its database as a result of a network engine download from SCT. This attribute changes to True during the archive process, then changes to False after the archive update is complete. |
|
Poll Rate |
C,W |
Fast |
Specifies the frequency at which the Site Director checks its communication status with site devices. This setting affects the detection time of offline NxEs, and the amount of network bandwidth needed to support this detection. At the default setting Fast, the detection time is short, but the network bandwidth use is high. At a Slow setting, the detection time is longer, but network bandwidth use is low. The calculated Detection Interval is shown in the NxE. This setting only affects communications with devices at Release 5.2 or later. |
Remaining Auto Sets |
1000 |
Indicates the number of remaining auto sets available. | |
Remaining Custom Sets |
256 |
Indicates the number of remaining custom sets available. | |
Security Level |
C,W |
Medium (1) |
Specifies the security level to be used by this device. This attribute is distributed to the site's devices automatically. This attribute appears only in the Snapshot Focus view on a Site Director engine. Valid options include: Low [0]: Login required. Medium [1]: Low plus authorization. High [2]: Medium plus signatures. |
Site Director Reference |
|
Specifies the object name of the Site Director for the site. If the site has more than one Site Director, the attribute becomes a selection list from which you can change the Site Director Reference. When you change the Site Director, a message appears to request you to log in to the new Site Director. |
|
Site Security Level |
C,W |
Encrypted Only |
Selects whether encrypted only communication or encrypted and trusted communication is enabled between the Metasys server and its network engines. Do not set this attribute to Encrypted and Trusted until all network engines reporting to the Site Director have been downloaded with trusted certificates. If the site has one or more network engines with self-signed certificates only, but not trusted certificates, set this attribute to Encrypted Only. |
Site Time Servers |
C,W |
Specifies a list of resolvable host names or IP addresses of SNTP server devices that the Site Director uses as its time server. Periodically, the Site Director attempts to sync time from an SNTP server from this list. Contact with an SNTP server is attempted one at a time in list order until one successful contact is made. A host name may be specified only if a DNS server is available to the site server. Important items: - The Site Director provides the time management for the site. - On the NAE35/NAE45/NCE25, only the first listed address is used. - An error message appears when you have configured one or more Site Time Servers and attempt to change the time and date using the Set Time and Set Date commands. - The Engine accepts BACnet Time Sync messages only if no SNTP server is defined for that Engine. - The Site Time Servers attribute must be set to an SNTP server to facilitate synchronization when in Multicast mode. Only the first Site Time Server is used if more than one is specified in Multicast mode. - When the Time Sync Method is set to Windows, also set the Internet Time Server in the Windows operating system of the Site Director to match the IP Address specified for the Site Time Server. In Control Panel of the Site Director, search for Date and Time. On the Date and Time dialog box, click the Internet Time tab. Click Change Settings and enter in the Server field the same IP address that you defined in the Site Time Server attribute. Click OK to apply the change. |
|
Third Party BBMDs |
C,W |
The Third Party BBMDs attribute is used by the Dynamic Broadcast Management feature to help determine the placement of BBMDs. BBMDs are used in the BACnet protocol to eliminate broadcast messages sent across multiple subnets on an IP network. A single device on each subnet, referred to as the BBMD, receives messages from other BBMDs and broadcasts them locally on its own subnet. If one or more third-party BBMDs exist, this attribute should specify the complete list of IP addresses of third-party BBMDs and Metasys system devices that should act as a BBMD. Each IP subnet should have exactly one BBMD, either a third-party or Metasys system device. To function properly, each third-party BBMD must be configured with the list of all other BBMDs within the system as well. If the Metasys system does not include any third-party BBMDs, then this attribute typically should be left empty. A possible exception would be if you want to designate a particular Metasys system device as a BBMD, then that device could be added to the Third Party BBMD list. If no device is specified by this attribute for an IP subnet, the Dynamic Broadcast Management feature automatically assigns a Metasys system device. Do not specify more than one Metasys system device per IP subnet. The devices are configured in the Third Party BBMD list in the following ways: - Address-UDP Port: Use the BACnet UDP Port address. The default is 47808. - Address-IP: Use the IP address of the device. - IP Broadcast Mask: Use the BACnet Broadcast Mask as defined by BACnet standard 135-2004, section J.4.3.2. Specify 255.255.255.255 if messages should be directly sent to remote BBMDs using a unicast IP address or broadcast messages are not allowed through the IP router to the remote subnet. Otherwise, specify the subnet mask of the remote subnet if broadcast messages are allowed through the IP router to a remote subnet. In most cases, IP routers do not allow broadcast messages to be passed to a remote subnet; therefore, the mask should be set to 255.255.255.255. If the IT department knows that broadcast messages are allowed to the remote subnet, then set the mask to the subnet mask that the BBMD resides upon. |
|
Time Sync Method |
C,W |
Windows |
Determines which mode is used to synchronize time. The available modes are Windows or Multicast. Windows mode uses the Microsoft W32Time service. Multicast mode uses a specific implementation of the standard SNTP, which includes periodic multicasting of system time to maintain better time synchronization across devices. |
Time Sync Period |
C,W |
1 hour |
Specifies the interval at which the Site Director polls the defined site time server (STS) (for example, the Atomic clock) for the time. We recommend leaving the default value for this attribute. This attribute applies only to the Engine. |
Field | Description |
---|---|
Address-UDP Port | Use the BACnet UDP Port address. The default is 47808. |
Address-IP | Use the IP address of the device. |
IP Broadcast Mask | Use the Broadcast Mask of the Metasys system device. Important: This is not the subnet mask for Metasys system devices.
Metasys system devices automatically use 255.255.255.255 for the broadcast
mask.
|
Authorization Category |
Display Text |
---|---|
Standard Object Categories (Standard Object strings cannot be modified.) |
|
HVAC |
HVAC |
Fire |
Fire |
Security |
Security |
Services |
Services |
Administrative |
Administrative |
General |
General |
Lighting |
Lighting |
Refrigeration |
Refrigeration |
Critical Environment |
Critical Environment |
Air Quality |
Air Quality |
Power |
Power |
Energy |
Energy |
System |
System |
Custom Object Categories (Display text can be modified). |
|
Custom 1 - Custom 150
Note: Devices at a release earlier than 5.2 are limited to 12 categories.
|
Custom 1 - Custom 150 (default) |