How To Troubleshoot Discovery Over A Managed Switch

Managed switches, a more powerful version of the basic network switch, can screen traffic on certain ports or protocols and may interfere with Room Alert communications.

Depending on how your managed switch is configured, a Room Alert Monitor connected to it may periodically become inaccessible on your network. In some cases, the IP address of the unit still responds to pings, and, typically, power-cycling the unit resolves the issue temporarily.

You may modify settings on the Room Alert itself to assist with this issue; you may also modify settings on your managed switch.

Modify your Room Alert's Ethernet Configuration settings

The instructions below show you how to change your Room Alert’s Ethernet configuration in the Settings–>Network tab to the following:

Ethernet Configuration

• MTU Size: 512 (Note that this is the lowest setting for the maximum transmission unit size.)
  • This setting cannot be manually changed on Room Alert S models.
• Auto Negotiate: Unchecked
• Speed: 100 Mbps
• Duplex: Full
• Gratuitous ARP Broadcasts: Unchecked

To change your settings:

1. First, open your Room Alert Monitor’s web interface. This FAQ shows you how: How To Open Your Room Alert Monitor’s Web Interface.
2. Then navigate to Settings–>Network–>Ethernet Configuration . . .

. . . on a current Room Alert model. . . on a legacy Room Alert model

• Select Settings in the navigation bar to the left.
• Then select Network from the options below Settings.
• In the Network Settings page, under Ethernet Configuration, enter the settings listed above for MTU Size, Auto Negotiate, etc..
• Select Save Settings at the top or bottom of the screen. Your Room Alert Monitor will reboot with you new settings.

• Select Settings in the navigation bar at the top of the screen.
• Then select Network from the navigation bar to the left.
• In the Network Settings page, under Ethernet Configuration, enter the settings listed above for MTU Size, Auto Negotiate, etc..
• Select Accept Changes at the bottom of the page to temporarily save your settings.
• Then select Save Settings in the navigation bar to the left. Your unit will reboot with its new settings.

Modify the settings on your managed switch

Adjust any settings on the switch that might interfere with Room Alert traffic.

• Configure the necessary port as unmanaged if possible: List Of Ports Required By Room Alert Products.
• Set the switch port speed to 100 / Full Duplex.

Another option that may mitigate the issue is to place a hub in between the Room Alert Monitor and the managed switch. This way, the Room Alert Monitor negotiates with the hub rather than the managed switch.