After installing firmware rel 4.06, the unload command has changed the way it is working: we use commands with start and stop time to unload parts of the log files, like:

UB(09:40:00,2004/09/28)(END)

The result of this command is all entries for the current job, schedule B. This command worked ok in rel 4.02. The setting of p31 is 3 and p39 is 0.

I have also tried the [] version of the unload command

UB[2004/09/28,09:40:01](END)

this seems to work ok. Is the command changed in version 4.06? If so we need to modify some of our programs.

baidarabj

Good afternoon baidarabj,

I've just spoken to the software engineers who work on the code. They have been going through the code and making it more modular and simplifying it where appropriate. As a result there are some functions that have changed slightly in the way they work.

In the manual it states the format is time then date, this is now being enforced. From a programming point of view it would be better to use the ISO format as it doesn't care about how the display time date is formatted.

Cheers,
Roger

Thanks for the quick reply Roger, but I'm still confused about how the Unload command is supposed to work. The manual is not very specific about the format on time and date when using the U() command.

I do agree that it makes more sense to use the ISO format, but before we go ahead and order a modification on our driver I would like to be sure what versions of the U command is going to work.

Is there anything wrong in the format of this command:

UB(09:40:00,2004/09/28)(END)

given the parameter settings P31=3 and P39=0?

According to the manual, the U[] command only takes specific time and dates, not BEGIN or END as parameters. I tried the command:

UB[2004/09/28,09:40:01](END)

and it seemed to work, but as it is not documented, I am reluctant to use it in production.

Good morning baidarabj,

The ISO unload does not support the from BEGIN to END, but expects constructed dates.
The time range of your data is returned by the STATUS12 command.
e.g.
STATUS12 returned
16:41:10.187 2004/09/13,00:00:19.659 2004/09/30 Internal data Start,End times

You can then use this to construct your down load in the form

UB[2004/09/13,16:41:10.187][2004/09/30,00:00:19.659]

The command you used

UB[2004/09/28,09:40:01](END)

worked because it picked up the start date/time and ignored the round bracket part. (Which is a syntax error)

Cheers,
Roger

Good morning Roger,

You describe a possible workaround for our problem, but you avoid answering my question regarding the format of the U() command. As far as I can see, our driver is consistent with manual in this respect, so before starting to implement a modified protocol with possibly new pitfalls I want to know why our current solution has stopped working (it has been used for over a year).

Any ideas?

Regards Bertil

Good morning Bertil,

I didn't mean to avoid answering your question, sorry if it appear like that.

I've been spending some time testing the unload functions and the only time I can get the unload command to fail is if I have the date format set incorrectly.

I would still recommend you use the ISO unload format as it is now sensitive to time and date formats.

Cheers,
Roger

Hello again Roger,

I have done some testing on a datataker with firmware 4.06, using different settings for the date format (P31). Return format is set to fixed (/H).

Using the Ux() command, the logger always returns all data for the selected schedule. It seems that everything withing the () are almost completely ignored. The only time I get an error response is if I use commands like U(x,y) (but U(x1,y2) returns all logged data without an error record).
Please give me some guidance on how to use the U() command.

I know that you recommend using the U[] command, and that might be our only solution if the U() command is not "fixed".

To solve the immediate problem we have reverted to release 4.02, which seems to work ok.

Regards Bertil

Good morning Bertil,

The testing I did not involve the fixed format mode.
There does appear to be something here and I have put in a bug report.

We still recommend you use the ISO format for recovering your data.
Using the the round bracket unload will be unstable if someone changes the date or time format on you.

Cheers,
Roger

Good morning Roger,

(a few degrees below zero and snowing)

We have tested the 4.07 beta software, with little success I'm afraid. The U command still does not work according to the manual ( as it did with release 4.02 and before). The only response I get is either all data from the schedule or no data at all, not from the time requested in the command.

I also tested the U[] version and it still works, but we need the U() command for our driver.

Regards
Bertil