FAQs: Local Network Access
What do I need to do to access the web pages of my controller?
From an overview perspective, you need to do the following:
1. Have power applied to the controller
2. Have the physical Ethernet connection installed
3. Have a working DHCP server on your network
4. Get the IP address and port from the lcd display of the controller
5. Using a pc on the same local are network as the controller, type in the IP address and port into your browser.
See the following questions for more information on this subject.
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How does my controller get an IP address?
Proliphix controllers are DHCP clients. When a controller initializes; it sends a request for an IP address to a DHCP server. The DHCP server responds and provides the controller with a unique IP address.
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What is a DHCP server?
A DHCP server provides unique IP addresses to computers or other networked devices on the same IP subnet network. The DHCP server guarantees that no two devices on the network will have the same IP addresses. This address resolution prevents IP collisions that can cause network problems.
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What is the difference between dynamic and static IP address?
The NT controller defaults to a dynamic IP address. Therefore it requires a DHCP server to resolve its IP address. The Dynamic address could be different each time the device does an IP address request. A static address does not change and therefore does not require a DHCP address resolution.
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Why do I need a DHCP server on my network?
The controller requires a DHCP server to be present on the network to provide the initial address resolution. Once the controller has an IP address you are able to access the unit by using your browser.
It is recommended that once you access the controller via the web pages, you should set your controller to a static IP address. This will ensure that your controller will always be at the same IP address when you try to access it.
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What else should I know about static addresses?
When your DHCP server gives you an IP address, it is from a pool of available addresses the DHCP server maintains. If you change your IP address method to static without changing the IP address to something outside the pool of available DHCP addresses, the DHCP server may assign another device the same address as your were given from the DHCP server. It is strongly recommended to set your static address outside the range of the DHCP pool. Here’s an example of this process:
If you have a Linksys router, you are most likely going to be given an IP address in the range of 192.168.1.100 to 192.168.1.150. This is because the default setting for most Linksys routers is to have 50 addresses available to the DHCP pool. When you change the controller IP address mode to static, you should set your IP address to something like 192.168.1.50 to 192.168.1.99, this way you will not end up with two devices that have the same address.
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What does locally connecting to my controller mean?
Locally connecting to your controller means that your pc is on the same subnet as your controller and no routing is needed for the two devices to communicate with each other. For example, your controller has an IP address of 192.168.1.50 and your pc has an IP address of 192.168.1.100. The two devices are considered to be on the same network. All you would need to do is type in http://192.168.111.100 in the address field of your browser and you would then see the Proliphix web pages from your controller. In this example, there is no need for an active Internet connection to allow the pc to talk to the controller.
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How do I access my controller from a browser on my local PC?
The controller can be accessed through your LAN with a browser. You will need to know the IP address and the port number of the controller you are trying to view. To get the address from the controller, go to the lcd on the controller, select “Next” and then “Network Status” to display the current IP address and port for the controller. Type the address and port number into you browser address bar with the following format:
http://xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx: . This can be bookmarked for future access.
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What browsers are supported?
We have tested our controllers with Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and Mozilla’s Firefox browsers. Safari on the Macintosh has been reported by end users to work, but we do not provide a Macintosh firmware upgrade utility. If you are a Macintosh user and need to perform an upgrade, you will need access to a Windows based pc.
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