PowerGrid 9020 User Manual Version A2.
Introduction This user manual provides practical information for the installation, operation and application of the device. It is suitable for those with little or no networking experience, although some advanced topics are also covered. A glossary of acronyms is included in Appendix A for reference. Protect Our Environment This symbol indicates that when the equipment has reached the end of its useful life, it must be taken to a recycling centre and processed separate from domestic waste.
Table of Contents CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 3 CHAPTER 2 - BASICS .......................................................................................................................... 4 2.1 VISUAL OVERVIEW .......................................................................................................................... 4 2.2 FRONT PANEL .........................................................
Chapter 1 - Introduction This user manual provides details concerning the installation, configuration and application of COMTREND Corporation’s PowerGrid 9020 Powerline adapter. The PowerGrid 9020 extends Ethernet (10/100M) networks over internal power lines. It incorporates a power socket with AC filter, which allows for Powerline networking without depriving the user of a single power outlet.
Chapter 2 - Basics 2.1 Visual Overview These figures show the physical layout of the PowerGrid 9020.
2.2 Front Panel These two tables provide descriptions of the front panel interface. BUTTON FUNCTION CONFIG/RESET (Security Setup / Factory Reset) LED COLOR Press 1 ~ 10 seconds for One Button Security Setup. Press 10 seconds (or more) to perform a Factory Reset. MODE On FUNCTION Connection speed is less than (<) 4 Mbps. (or no PLC connection exists) Red Blink STATUS ETHERNET Orange On Connection speed is greater than (>) 4 Mbps and less than (<) 10 Mbps.
2.3 Default Settings The factory default settings are presented below. • Authentication password = paterna • Factory Reset password = betera • Factory Reset time = 10 seconds • IP Configuration = FIXED • FIXED IP address = 192.168.1.100 • FIXED IP subnet mask = 255.255.255.0 • Default Gateway IP address = 192.168.1.105 • DNS Server IP address = 192.168.10.
Chapter 3 - Quick Setup This section is subdivided into three parts: • • Sections 3.1 and 3.2 contain the setup procedures. Section 3.3 provides a description of the power saving feature. NOTE: A single PowerGrid 9020 unit and Ethernet cable are required for each device (e.g. PC, modem/router) you wish to connect to the network. 3.1 Internet Connection These steps show how to connect a PowerGrid 9020 unit to a modem or router. 1. Turn on your modem or router. 2.
3.2 Device Connection These steps show how to connect a PowerGrid 9020 to any network device. In this case, we use the example of a personal computer (PC). 1. Turn on your PC (or other device). 2. Plug a PowerGrid 9020 unit into the power socket closest to the PC. The Status LED on the PowerGrid 9020 should light up. 3. Connect the PowerGrid 9020 to the computer with an Ethernet cable. The Ethernet LED on the PowerGrid 9020 should light up GREEN. 4.
Chapter 4 - Network Performance The Status LED shows an estimate of available throughput in the application layer. There are three levels of throughput indicated by three different LED colors. A particular adapter shows, with one color, the throughput level with reference to the adapter sending the most data to it. In the case of a network consisting of two adapters, they always show the level of throughput with reference to the other.
4.1 Point-to-Point Network • CASE 1: Estimated throughput is less than 4 Mbps. The PLC channel is not able to transmit an SDTV channel. The STATUS LED will be RED as shown in the following figure: • CASE 2: Estimated throughput is greater than 4 Mbps but less than 10 Mbps. The PLC channel is able to transmit an SDTV channel, but not two SDTV channels simultaneously or one HDTV channel.
4.2 Point to Multipoint Network In the case where the PLC network is composed of three or more adapters, similar situations could arise as with a point-to-point network. These are illustrated in the following figures: The STATUS LED in each adapter will show the estimated level of the PLC link from which it is receiving the most amount of traffic at any given time.
4.3 Neighboring Networks The Status LED also takes into account the possibility of having neighboring networks. In such a case, the throughput evaluator will divide the available bandwidth in two when there is visibility between any two networks since the PLC channel must be shared on a time basis. In the following figure, an example of an isolated network is first shown.
Chapter 5 - Web User Interface The web-based user interface (WUI) provides access to information about your PowerGrid 9020 units and can also be used to configure or reset device settings. The WUI is accessed using a web browser, such as Microsoft Internet Explorer. The following instructions assume that the PowerGrid network has been configured correctly (i.e. according to the instructions in Chapter 3) and that the host computer is running Windows XP.
STEP 2: From the desktop (as shown below), click on the Start button and select Network Connections. Next, double-click Local Area Connections to open its window and then click the Properties button. NOTE: You may also access this window by double-clicking the Local Area Connection icon on your taskbar.
STEP 3: Select Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) and click the Properties button. STEP 4: Check the settings in the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) Properties dialog box (shown on the far right in the figure above). Make sure to record all the settings you see here, as you may need to reset them. STEP 5: If the “Obtain an IP address automatically” radio button is selected, then your PC is configured in DHCP mode. You should select the “Use the following IP address” radio button to enter FIXED IP mode.
STEP 7: Close the previous two windows. Since you made changes, click OK, but not Cancel! You then must wait for the LAN connection to reset. After the connection recovers, you should check the connection status on the support tab of the Local Area Connection Status dialog box, as shown below. 5.1.2 Isolation Now that the IP configuration of the computer is complete, we will proceed by isolating the PowerGrid 9020 unit you wish to access.
5.2 Login Screen Perform the following steps to login to the WUI: STEP 1: Start the Internet browser and enter the IP address as a HTTP link in the URL address field and press Enter. For the default IP address of 192.168.1.100, you must input http://192.168.1.100, as shown below. STEP 2: The login screen should appear, as shown below. Enter the login password in the top section and click OK to continue.
5.3 WUI homepage If login is successful, you will arrive at the WUI homepage. This screen provides summary information concerning the PowerGrid 9020 and its connections. It also provides access to the Further Information and Change Configuration screens discussed in sections 5.4 and 5.5. See the table below for details.
Available Connections PLC Connections The total number of PowerGrid units in the network. PLC PORT The PLC data connection port for each connection. MAC Address This is a code that identifies all remote devices connected to this unit. On PowerGrid units, it is printed on the back label under the barcode. Phy Tx/Rx Throughput Physical Transmission / Reception Throughput is a measure of network bandwidth. Available data transmission capacity is roughly half this value.
5.4 Further Information This screen provides more detailed information concerning your network. It is divided into various sections with each section divided by a “Return to main page” link back to the WUI homepage. These sections are shown below and each section is followed by a table that explains it. SYSTEM INFORMATION Field Description Uptime This shows the length of time the PowerGrid unit has been on. Firmware Version This shows the PowerGrid installed firmware version.
NETWORK STATUS This section shows the current IP configuration. Field Description IP Configuration Either DHCP (Automated) or Fixed (Manual) IP Address / Subnet Mask These values define the location of the PowerGrid unit on the local area network. Default Gateway IP Address The IP address of the router that forwards traffic to a destination that is out of reach of the PowerGrid unit.
LLTD STATUS LLTD (Link Layer Topology Discovery) is a protocol supported by Windows Vista. LLTD enables applications to discover the topology of a network and includes optional QoS Extensions that applications can use to diagnose problems. Field Description Link Layer Topology Discovery (LLTD) When enabled, multicasting is limited to either IGMP or MLD Aware Multicast Syndication.
Video Optimization Mode Description Automatic Optimization Optimization based on video traffic type (TCP or UDP). Optimized for Media Player Improved transmission of TCP video. Optimized for IPTV Service Improved transmission of UDP video. POWERSAVING MECHANISM This function activates a low power mode when the PowerGrid 9020 is inactive, unless that unit is assigned as a master or repeater within the Powerline network.
PRIORITY STATUS Improve the end-user experience by prioritizing audio, video and voice traffic and optimizing the way shared network resources are allocated among applications. Field Description Default Priority The priority level assigned to non-prioritized traffic. Criteria (1 & 2) None, Custom, 8021p, TOS, ARP, TCP_8021p, or TCP_TOS Custom Criterion 1: Description Offset A decimal ordinal number representing the starting byte for the pattern in the data packet.
Class Offset A decimal ordinal number representing the starting byte for the class pattern in the data packet. Class Bitmask(hex) A bitwise operation applied to Class Patterns 1-8. Class Pattern 1-8 (hex) Defines a class pattern (8-byte size). Class Priority 1-8 This value ranges from 0 to 7, with 0 being the lowest priority and 7 the highest priority.
SECURITY STATUS This section shows the current login password requirement status.
5.5 Change Configuration This screen provides various configuration options with each section divided by a “Return to main page” link back to the WUI homepage. These sections are shown below and each section is followed by a table that explains it. MAC CONFIGURATION This section provides options to configure the PowerGrid 9020 MAC characteristics and network encryption mode. Field Description MAC Type In-Home AV is the only option at this time. Node Type Choose Fixed AP or EP.
NETWORK CONFIGURATION The section provides options to configure the IP configuration. Field Description IP Configuration Either DHCP (Automated) or FIXED IP (Manual). NOTE: In FIXED mode the IP Address, Subnet Mask and Default Gateway IP Address can be set manually, while in DHCP mode they are assigned by a server. Changes do not become effective until after a reboot of the PowerGrid unit. IP Address / Subnet Mask These values define the location of the PowerGrid unit on the local area network.
Field Description Notches RF interference reduction is disabled by default. Power Control This function minimizes the transmission power of each PowerGrid unit while maintaining data throughput performance. *Dynamic PSD Control The modem’s Ethernet port monitors the incoming traffic rate and subsequently calculates the transmission power required that permits this rate of transmission. The higher the incoming traffic rate, the greater the phy rate and transmission power required.
Field Description Automatic Multicast Auto-configures the local network for multicasting. IGMP Aware Multicast Syndication (IPv4) Multicasting for IPv4 networks. Enabled in EP mode. Disabled in AP mode. (See LLTD description above) MLD Aware Multicast Syndication (IPv6) Multicasting for IPv6 networks. VIDEO OPTIMIZATION Select an optimization strategy for video streams. Video Optimization Mode Description Automatic Optimization Optimization based on video traffic type (TCP or UDP).
VLAN STATUS With this function an 802.1Q VLAN Tag is added to the data packet header. This enables a physical LAN to be divided into several discrete virtual LANs. Data packets are given priority based upon their VLAN Tag and VLAN Priority settings. Note, the PowerGrid 9020 does not filter data packets; it merely tags them. Field Description VLAN Configuration Enabled = VLAN tagging on Disabled = VLAN tagging off VLAN Tag Choose a number in the range of 2 to 4094.
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The table below provides details about the section shown in figure above. Field Description Default Priority The priority level assigned to non-prioritized traffic. Criteria (1 & 2) None, Custom, 8021p, TOS, ARP, TCP_8021p, or TCP_TOS The QoS criteria are applied as follows: a) Criterion 1 is processed first (and Criterion 2 second) b) If Criterion 1 is met, Criterion 2 will NOT be applied Thus, Criterion 2 should be more general than Criterion 1.
Field Description Status Password is currently installed / No password installed Set Configuration Password To change the configuration password, notice that you must enter it twice; first in the New password field and again in the Confirm new password field. The configuration password can be up to 20 characters in length. To remove the configuration password, leave these fields empty. Click OK to make a change.
Field Description Status Reports the current status of the flash upgrade. Flash section Choose Firmware, Loader, NVRAM, DSP, Analog Symbols or Factory settings. Upgrade Protocol Choose FTP, TFTP or L2 protocol. Server IP Address Input the IP address of the FTP or TFTP server. FTP User and Password Input the user name and password if required Filename This is the filename of the flash upgrade on the server. The firmware and loader have .bin extensions, while factory settings are stored as .
Flash Upgrade Status Failed This status message means the upgrade was not successful. Click the back button on your browser and check settings before trying again. If the file upload fails, we recommend the following: (1) Once you have decided on the file you want to upload (firmware or factory setting), make sure the name is correct and there are no typing errors. Also, ensure that the file (name) and the required flash section match. (2) Make sure that the TFTP or FTP server is ready for upgrade.
DOWNLOADING This status message indicates that the file has been successfully located on the server. You can watch the Download Progress at the bottom of this section. The browser will automatically refresh every 30 seconds; but to check the download progress more frequently, you can manually refresh the browser at any time. UPGRADE SUCCESSFUL If the upgrade was successful the status message will display as shown below.
Chapter 6 - HELP The PowerGrid 9020 has been designed to be a reliable and easy-to-use home networking device. However, should you experience any problems, please refer to the troubleshooting and FAQ sections below to resolve your issue. 6.1 Troubleshooting Please consult the following procedures to resolve your current issue. The first two sections (steps A-C) provide general procedures that are used in later steps. FACTORY RESET A.
iii. If the LED indicators on the two units display as shown above, then the test was successful. If the STATUS LED on the EP unit is ORANGE or RED then the PowerGrid 9020 may be damaged. Contact your local agent for further assistance. iv. If the EP unit tested successfully, the problem you are experiencing is likely due to RF interference or poor wiring in your home. In this case, you can contact your local agent for further assistance. 6.
Appendix A - Acronyms The following list of acronyms is provided for your reference.
