computer dropping E1.31/etherdongle

[RichM]

I'm not sure if this is more of an e1.31, etherdongle, computer, or a personal lack of knowledge issue.  I have everything hooked up (computer to etherdongle to active pixelnet hub to Falcon-16) and start running a LOR sequence.  Everything is running properly, both the lights on the etherdongle are on(yellow and green).  Periodically and at random the yellow light will go off on the etherdongle and the signal is dropped.  About 5 to 10 seconds later the yellow light will blink then go on steady again and the signal is regained.  The sequence plays nonstop during this time.  I remember there being discussions on other forums about disabling some settings on the computer to keep them from interfering with the show but I can't find those discussions when I do a search.  I think this is what is causing my problems but I'm not sure.  Does this sound familiar to anyone?  Is there a checklist for which settings to change/alter to run a show?  Does anyone have any other ideas why I would lose the signal briefly then start up again?  This is the same problem I had last Christmas with signal loss.  With this Christmas being even more RGB/pixelnet controlled, this will be a major issue for me.

Thanks,
Rich   

[JonB256]

Tell me more about the Ethernet setup on your computer.

The Etherdongle only accepts Multicast and that seems to work most of the time.

But, your Ethernet output. Is it a Fixed IP address? Is it a second card you added or the only one in the system?
Are you going to a Switch before connecting to the Etherdongle or going direct?
If direct, are you using a Crossover cable or Patch cable?

I go to a Gigabit speed switch. I'm outputting 32 multicast universes to that switch, and surfing the net at the same time.
I don't have your problem, so it makes me curious.

Jon

[RichM]

I am outputting 32 universes on multicast, setup in the LOR sequencer under network settings.  LOR uses a comm listener for connection.  The computer has a network port on the back (E1.31?)and also has wireless connectivity.  There are two IP addresses showing, one for the wireless and one for the etherdongle.  When I ran the show last year, I disabled the wireless connection and only had the etherdongle connected.  I think it is the only card on the system.  I do not use a switch before the etherdongle.  It is a patch cable going directly to the etherdongle.  It is a show computer so I don't use it to surf the net.

Rich

[JonB256]

Do you have xlights installed? When running xlights, with LOR off, does it do the same thing?

I've been running lor for years and used e1.31 last year but didn't have problems like you describe except when I had both xlights and lor running at the same time.

Galaxy Note II

[David Pitts]

Just talked with Rich, and he  is running an extended test with Xlights running a test sequence.

[RichM]

I never caught the glitch happen while running an Xlights test.  However, I will have to do another test for a longer period.  I only watched it for about 20 minutes this time.  Sometimes LOR would go for 30 minutes or more before I would see this glitch happen.
On another note, when both programs (xlights and LOR) are turned off, the yellow light on the etherdongle would occasionally blink.  Is this normal?

Rich

[JonB256]

I'll watch for that flash.

Galaxy Note II

[David Pitts]

An occasional blink is normal.

[JonB256]

I have nothing running related to E1.31 at the moment but my Etherdongle yellow light flashes every two seconds. Occasionally it double flashes.

Since I can see the Switch it is plugged into, I see that the activity LEDs for the switch flash at the same time.