Apex Lite Restart issues

[mtrcyclefish]

I finally got my Apex Lite setup and connected to the net after having some issues with my ISP. Now it works fine for about a day or two and then I have to restart it to be able to connect to it. This issue even effects my pc, which is connected directly to my Apex via an ethernet cable. Any suggestions?

 

[aquamanic]

Is DHCP turned OFF on both the Apex and your PC? It sounds like the IP address on the Apex might be going stale. If you direct connect a PC to the Apex (vs. going through a router) you must have both IP addresses static.

 

[mtrcyclefish]

It was off on my Apex, but ON in the router settings. I turned it off. Let's see if that fixes the problem. Thanks for the help. I think Neptune should put you on their payroll

 

[aquamanic]

Having it DHCP enabled on your router is probably correct. I thought you said you had the Apex and your PC direct connected to each other.

 

[mtrcyclefish]

I thought you said you had the Apex and your PC direct connected to each other

My mistake. I meant that I have it connected directly to my router via an ethernet cable. No wireless adaptors.

 

[aquamanic]

OK, well normally you're going to want to keep DHCP turned ON on your router so that as IP devices come/go they will get addresses assigned automatically. This is not what you want for the Apex if you're going to expose it to the web like most of us do.

There's nothing wrong with statically assigning IP addresses to all your IP devices like your PC, network printers, wireless cameras, etc. but it can be a bit of a pain if you frequently add IP devices (friend comes over with a laptop).

I think I would re-enable DHCP on your router, make sure your PC is set the same but turn DHCP off on your Apex.

If you then still have the problem then one of the network gurus here will undoubtably have some other suggestions/troubleshooting steps.

 

[mtrcyclefish]

Still having this problem. Anyone else have any ideas? Thanks

 

[aquamanic]

Do you have access again to the controller but it's hanging every couple of days, forcing you to cycle the power?

 

[mtrcyclefish]

That's exactly it. The apex works perfectly for a day, maybe 2. I either have to reset the Apex or unplug it. Right now my display unit is on it's way to Neptune for repair, so I have to unplug the base unit. After restart I can access it with my computer, via the internet, and with my phone app.

 

[Just2Many]

Ask your ISP sometimes they log the IP of devices and they might be trying to send information to the Apex unit causing it to crash. Does it have this problem without the NET unit?

 

[mtrcyclefish]

What do you mean, "without the NET unit"? Even if my ISP were trying to access the Apex and send it info, wouldn't the password and login prevent that from happening?

 

[mtrcyclefish]

anyone?

 

[mtrcyclefish]

Still having this issue, but tonight I found out that my Apex can still email me even when it can't be accessed by either the net or my computer. Does that make sense to anyone? I thought that if it wasn't communicating with my computer than it wouldn't be able to send out emails either?

 

[aquamanic]

If for example, you were trying to access it by 'http://bogusname' but the hostname was really 'apex', then you wouldn't be able to access it but the controller would be working just fine.

 

[RussM]

Try http://apex in your browser.

 

[mtrcyclefish]

When it stops working nothing works. Not "http://apex" or "192.168...." or the web address I set up through dyndns. After restart they all work perfectly.

 

[RussM]

So it works fine for a day or 2, then you lose access to it, but it can still send email, right? Does the Apex still control your lights and pumps properly during those periods you cannot access it? I assume so since you have not mentioned that it totally craps out.

Download the latest firmware from Neptune. Reboot the base unit and verify you can access it with your browser. Save a copy of your Apex configuration. Then install the new firmware, then install the new web pages.

 

[mtrcyclefish]

Everything else on the unit seems to work fine when it looses contact with my comp.

Download the latest firmware from Neptune. Reboot the base unit and verify you can access it with your browser. Save a copy of your Apex configuration. Then install the new firmware, then install the new web pages.

Done. I'll wait a couple days and see what happens.

 

[mtrcyclefish]

Still having this issue. I called Neptune and they have no ideas.

 

[mtrcyclefish]

I think I've finally solved this problem. I changed the default gateway setting to match the IP address of the Apex. It's been working for about 14 days with no restarts.