halo 20+ radar Ethernet delay

[Sawleeah]

I have installed a new radar with a switch as suggested in the instructions for installing with an OpenCPN display and no Navico MDF. The switch is a 5 port Netgear metal cased GS105 with a 12V supply as suggested. There is nothing else between the scanner and the computer.


When the radar is selected it starts in a initialization mode to get the Ethernet between the scanner and the computer going. This can go on for a long time, hours, and I think needs a restart to get to working with good communication.


I have several times had the radar come up and work as it should. It occurred each time after restarting. It is a terrific radar with a clean and sharp image of the reflections overlaid on the chart. The radar can be hidden and shown as well as changing the range etc, but later on after the system has been turned off and then restarted it will come up in an initialization mode that, the same as the first time, needs hours to get through initialization.


I suspect there is something missing in a system file that should make subsequent starts very quick, but I have no idea what to do. What is clear is that I need help.


Before this radar I had a 4G radar. It had the same slow start up the first time but after that came up immediately.


Thank you for making making all this terrific software.



Please let me know what other information you want.

[Sawleeah]

Added 2022-10-20
It occurred to me that the OpenCPN file running on my boat was originally installed several years ago (updated many times) and this might be a problem. Yesterday I went to the boat and uninstalled OpenCPN, then made a new clean install. So now it is running a new clean copy of all parts of the software, OpenCPN and Plugins. It has made no difference to the long delay in establishing the ethernet connection, in a couple of hours no proper operation of the radar was reached. Just initialization was indicated.


The scanner has a small red light that flashes in different ways to report the condition of the scanner. I look at this periodically during my attempts. It has never shown anything but the slow flashing that indicates all is well.


I wonder what initialization delay others have experienced?

[Sawleeah]

The fresh installation made no difference, after more than an hour the info windows shows initiation going on, but no data displayed in the PPI window. I began to wonder if the radar scanner was defective. To test this I installed OpenCPN on a laptop and connected an Ethernet cable from it to the Ethernet switch. I selected the radar plug in and a radar picture of my surroundings appeared immediately in a PPI window. So the radar scanner was working. I couldn't test overlay on the chart because the laptop isn't supplied with the GPS and compass information needed.



Next I thought maybe the Ethernet connection to the computer may be malfunctioning. So I bought a USB to Ethernet device to plug into one of the USB ports on the Intel NUK computer. Windows recognizes this as an Ethernet connection and shows it as connected. But still no radar information showing on a PPI window after waiting more than an hour of initialization.


I would appreciate your ideas on what else I could try?

[Sawleeah]

Reading in the Electronics Forum I came across the notion that heavy data traffic might flood the system and cause trouble. It crossed my mind that the AIS system involves high data rates. I have an em-trak transponder that is normally just left on. It, along with all the AIS information, provides the GPS information to the computer running OpenCPN and also conveys the compass information from a Simnet network. So I turned the AIS off before starting OpenCPN and then the radar. When the radar came on it showed as on standby and when I clicked on this it said spinning up. The PPI showed a full mass of echos from the surrounding marinas. More testing showed the radar and display would work even if the AIS was left on for a full startup sequence of the computer and radar. It seems the one time start with no AIS running left some benefit to the computer and radar system.


It looks like my problem is over.



So thanks and I hope my experience is helpful to someone in a similar situation.

[AKA-None]

Great trouble shooting