Access light scenarios from Profilux?

I have a couple light scenarios programmed for my Mitras lights that I use fairly frequently - "Red", for night viewing of the nocturnal goings on, and "White" for photography. It appears that to access light scenarios you have to connect directly to the lights from GHL Connect. Is that right? It looks like all other programming under the Illumination menu is accessible from within GHL Connect connected to the Profilux. Is there a reason you can't access light scenarios from the Profilux? Any plans to fix? It is a hassle to have to disconnect GHL Connect from the Profilux and reconnect it to the lights, every time I want to run a light scenario.

And a related question... I have two rows of 3 lights each over my 6 foot tank. Right now they're all in the same group, but I'm finding that I can't find a happy medium where either the sandbed in the front of the tank isn't too bright, or the rockwork in the back of the tank isn't too dim. I'd like to have LPS corals low down in the front, and SPS higher up in the back. So the obvious solution is to break my lights into two groups, with brighter programming running on the lights in the back row. Sound good? But this again brings up the hassle issue - If I want to run a light scenario like "Reds", I'd have to connect to each of the two groups of lights separately.

Any suggestions as to a better solution to this problem, so I don't have to have two different groups of lights?

Thanks!

Hello,

The light scenarios are available on ProfiLux since firmware 7.31 included in GHL Control Center, you need to update your device:
https://www.aquariumcomputer.com/dow...4-1/#changelog

The following article in our knowledge base explains the update procedure:
https://www.aquariumcomputer.com/kno...ux-4-firmware/

Gaël

That’s great. I’ll check it out. Thanks!

So I'm on firmware 7.28. I tried to update to 7.31, but it didn't work. I guess I need to do 7.29 first? How do I do that? On your download site, I only see downloads for GHL Control center, not for the firmware itself. I tried the GCC 1.1.3.9 download, but I didn't see where to specify the firmware I'm upgrading to...

No, this is not necessary.
What is not working, can you show me?
Can you also show me a screenshot of the firmware version that is now installed on the ProfiLux?
What is the model of your Mitras and their firmware version?

Gaël

It says "This file is unsuitable for updating this device.". Again, I'm on 7.28 now. I've tried updating to 7.30, 7.31, and even 7.28. I get the same error. I'm trying to do the update with GCC 1.1.3.9.

Why 1.1.3.9, download and install latest GCC:
https://www.aquariumcomputer.com/dow...enter-1-1-4-1/

I think you are not following the procedure correctly:
https://www.aquariumcomputer.com/kno...ux-4-firmware/

Be careful to use the firmwareupdate of the Maintenance menu and not from PAB.
Attachment 13372

Can you show a screenshot of the error?

Gaël

Thanks again for your help. After a lot of beating my head against the wall I was able to update the firmware to 7.32. I could show you the errors I got, but now that I’m updated let’s just move on.

But I still don’t see light scenarios in GHL connect when connected to the Profilux. See this screenshot, where you can also see I’m on 7.32.

Attachment 13374

What do you use to access ProfiLux?
In GCC you should see the lighting scenarios, same thing on myghl.com.
For GHLConnect your application must be up to date (for the moment the updated IOS application is not available), and for the local web interface, it must also be up to date: https://www .aquariumcomputer.com/knowledge-base/how-to-update-or-restore-wi-fi-module-firmware/

Gaël

As I said in my first post, I'm talking about GHL Connect. I use it on an iPhone. So I guess that's the issue. When is the updated IOS app expected to be released?

And I now see that GHL Connect does show light scenarios in the web interface. I could work with that in the meantime, but it doesn't seem ready for prime time. There are a couple issues:

* It doesn't carry over the light scenarios I programmed into the lights. Are you supposed to create new light scenarios when connecting to the lights through the Profilux? I guess I could work with that too, but it doesn't seem like the way it should work.

* The channels are improperly labeled. They say "Illumination 1", "Illumination 2", and so on, instead of "Blue", "Royal Blue", ... I guess "Illumination 1" links to "Blue", and so on? That's hard to work with, I wouldn't know what color went with what illumination channel number.

And getting back to my original post - you haven't addressed my second question - how should I set up my lights so that the rear row is brighter than the front row? Is there a way to do that without having to have two groups of lights that need to be independently addressed when doing things like starting light scenarios? How would I even talk to the two groups of lights from within GHL Connect connected to the Profilux?

The iOS application should be available in the coming days.
In the meantime, use myghl.com or the local web interface from via Safari.
The channel names are those of the descriptions of the ProfiLux illumination channels, so you must fill in the descriptions of the illumination channels in ProfiLux.

For your other question, if you want some Mitras to have different brightness while following the same programming, I suggest you change the power output of those Mitras:
Attachment 13375

Gaël

Thanks. And sorry - someone else set up my lighting for me and I'm not too versed in the GHL terminology when it comes to lights. What is an "Illumination channel"? Is that the same as the colors of the bulbs?

Regarding changing the output of the lights, how do I individually address the lights to adjust that setting? Can I do it from the app? If I have to do it with a USB cable and GCC, that's not going to work. I have 6 lights, and trying to tweak them individually, disconnecting and reconnecting to each light, rechecking the lighting with a PAR meter, that would take forever.

Meanwhile, I now see that after I updated the firmware in my profilux, it lost all knowledge of my expansion boxes and my KH Director!!!!! I will open a support ticket for this.

Hello Dave,

Don't be sorry, there's no problem, we're here to help.
Yes, each Mitras LED color channel corresponds to an illumination channel.
The Mitras output power adjustment is done at the level of each Mitras, so you have to connect to it individually either by USB or via the network or via myGHL if you have added them to myGHL.
Concerning the update of the ProfiLux, during a major update it is necessary to restore the parameters from a backup (this is why it is necessary to systematically save the parameters as well as the parameters of the probes before an update) and it is also necessary to redo PAB assignment.
Vinny takes care of your ticket.

Gaël

Okay... So I have to manually label the illumination channels, I guess I have to figure out on my own what colors they are assigned to. I think I've seen that somewhere, I'll try to find it.

And please help me understand how to individually address each light over the network. That would also be a hassle, but much easier than using GCC and a USB cable! So if I have all the lights as slaves to a single master light, there is still a way to individually talk to each light and separately assign it a "max output power" setting? I didn't know you could do that.

Regarding my ticket - yes, Vinny is helping me. But it seems that I lost all history for the sensors connected to my expansion boxes, as well as the units settings, and I'm not sure what else.

With a ProfiLux, the Mitras are not slaves of a master Mitras but they are normally all slaves of the ProfiLux which must be the only master.
I'm afraid I missed a step with you, can you confirm that your ProfiLux is equipped with a PLM-PWC card?
This card is essential for the ProfiLux to act as a master with Mitras lamps.
But indeed yes, I confirm that the MitrasLX7, (unlike a Doser SA in slave mode) always respond via myGHL or the network even in slave mode, this in order to be able to configure individual parameters such as maintenance, offset clouds, or sunrise and energy parameters.

Gaël

Aha! This is all news to me - that you can configure the lights as slaves of the profilux.

I think I do have the expansion card in there, how do I check? Is this something I would need to physically connect to the lights, or does the Profilux talk to them over wifi...?

Right now, I have 6 mitras lights on my display tank - one master and 5 slaves. I did all programming by adjusting the settings on the master. So I can make the lights all slaves of the Profilux? Is this new? That would be useful. When light scenarios were not accessible from the profilux, I'd have been less interested, but maybe I should change things over, now that they are. Is there anything else that you can't do with the lights if you access them exclusively through your profilux?

If I make all the lights as slaves of the profilux, how do I carry my settings over from what I have now? Will I still be able to make global changes that affect all the lights, or would I have to configure each individually? One fly in the ointment is that I also have a 7th Mitras on my frag tank. I'd like to be able to separately configure that...

The card will appear on the system page under "Expansion Card"
Attachment 13380
Attachment 13381
Attachment 13382

The following article in our knowledge base talks about this topic
https://www.aquariumcomputer.com/kno...-via-profilux/

As I said, the illumination schedule will be set on the ProfiLux, as well as ligh scenarios, and the launch of maintenances, only the individual parameters such as maintenances settings, cloud offsets or sunrise offsets and the energy parameters remain to be configured directly on each lamp.

Gaël

Ok! This sounds like the way to go, much better than having to configure the lights by having them be slaves off of the master light.

So I think I do have the expansion card. But it doesn't show up in the system page. I checked my invoice, and I actually purchased two of the PLM cards. I think they're installed in two of the expansion boxes I have, does that make sense? If so, is there a way to check?

And once I have that working, just to be clear - will I need to reprogram the lights? They are already configured as I want them, will that programming carry over when I make them slaves to the profilux? And will I still be able to have two groups of lights - one for the lights over my display, and one for the light over my frag tank? I'd want to be able to program the schedules, light scenarios, etc, separate for each of those two groups.

Attention, all the cards are called PLM-something, here it is PLM-PWC (reference PL-1011).
There is no point in having two PLM-PWC cards because the ProfiLux can currently only manage one.
The cards installed in Expansion box do not appear in System, you have to open the boxes to find out.

Yes, it will be necessary to redo the lighting schedule on the ProfiLux, it is not "transferable".

Unfortunately the ProfiLux can currently manage only one "group" of Mitras LX (since it manages only one PLM-PWC card).
Only the lighting power can be set individually on each Mitras, as well as a delay in the scheduling of + or - 60 min. (it is for example possible to configure the Mitras of the main tank with an advance of 60 mn and those of the frag tank with a delay of 60 mn and there will be then 2 hours of delay between the two), it will not be possible to define different schedules or different lighting scenarios.
It is also possible to keep one of the Mitras of the frag tank as master and therefore to manage via the ProfiLux only the Mitras of the main tank.

Gaël

I did purchase two of the PLM-PWC cards. Vinny helped my vendor put my order together. If you're right, that must have been a mistake. I think he thought I needed two for wifi coverage? My display tank is on the opposite side of my house from my sump. I have an expansion box located next to each of those.

As long as I can adjust the power separately, I think I can live with that. I definitely need different power on my shallower frag tank, but I don't suppose I'll need any other differences in programming.

But that would be a shame if I can't move the schedule over, or my other programming. Can you backup/restore lighting schedules at all, if you manage the lights from the profilux? People share lighting schedules all the time, I'm currently using an AB+ schedule I got from your website:
https://www.aquariumcomputer.com/cat...oser-projects/

So if I manage the lights from the profilux, I'll no longer be able to load/adapt projects that other people have created for the Mitras?

So indeed, if you need to manage Mitras LX at a distance of more than 30m from other Mitras LX, having a card in each Expansion Box makes sense, but I admit I have never tested if it works technically, even if logic dictates that it should work and that the 2 cards therefore broadcast the same schedule. On the other hand I have the impression that until now your cards are useless if on the 2 places there is a master Mitras. Again this has nothing to do with wifi even if the frequencies are close. I let Vinny answer.

Gaël

Thanks. Whether or not I have an extra card is a seperate issue. Either way, it sounds like I do have the capability to control my lights from the Profilux.

But can you confirm that there is no way to back up, or restore, light composer projects if you manage the lights from the Profilux? If so, I'm not sure I'd want to manage the lights from the profilux anyway.

The PLM-PWC card is not supported by the Expansion Box 2 at this time.

It was always possible to backup and restore LCP files via the ProfiLux. Instructions for that can be found here:
https://www.aquariumcomputer.com/kno...lightcomposer/

If you want to put an LX7 over a different tank with a completely different schedule, you can do so by running that fixture on Standalone mode. If multiple fixtures are going to be over that same tank, the other fixtures over this tank would have to be set to "Slave" mode. In order for groups of Mitras LX7 not to interfere with each other, the 2nd group and its accompanying fixtures must be set to a different channel.

Thanks Vinny!

So to be clear, if I want full control of my lights from GHL Connect when connected to my Profilux, I need the PLM-PWC card in my Profilux? Even though the lights and Profilux are already connected to my WiFi, and the Profilux can already talk to the lights?

Yes, that is correct. The PLM-PWC is what allows the ProfiLux to "talk" to the LX7 fixtures it will be controlling. Once you have this installed, you can upload your existing light schedule onto the ProfiLux's Light Composer page, then sending that schedule to the lights by pressing "Transmit illumination run to illumination channels". From that point on, you can use the light scenarios feature in the ProfiLux. Anytime you activate it, the command will be sent to the LX7s.

Does the pwc equipped Profilux talk to the lights using something other than Wi-Fi? If so, I don’t think that will work for me, my Profilux is nowhere near my lights. It’s 60 feet, one floor, and several walls away. It is wired to an expansion box that’s next to my lights, but you already said that you can’t add a pwc card to an expansion box.

I’m still not getting the purpose of the pwc card, given that the lights and Profilux already support Wi-Fi.

At that distance, the PWC card would not be the right fit. It would be better to just keep those Mitras running separate from the ProfiLux.

The PWC card provides the convenience of having control over lights using the same ProfiLux connection, instead of having 2 separate connections (ProfiLux and Mitras).

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Vinny

At that distance, the PWC card would not be the right fit. It would be better to just keep those Mitras running separate from the ProfiLux.

The PWC card provides the convenience of having control over lights using the same ProfiLux connection, instead of having 2 separate connections (ProfiLux and Mitras).

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Ok, so it sounds like the answer to my first question is that the profilux does NOT talk to the lights over wifi. Is there any reason for this? Are there plans to make it so it can? Being able to control the lights from the profilux is a nice benefit I'd like to have.