Blink Mode Recovery

Overview

Blink Mode is a state OXTS products can enter which disables its primary function and disables communication on its primary IP address. It can be caused in several ways but the most common reason is an issue when updating the firmware. This may be incorrect firmware or simply applied in the wrong format.

Units that are in Blink Mode are recoverable via their fallback IP's, if communication is impossible then recovery is impossible and you should contact OXTS Support

There are also two different states of Blink Mode, the first being Recoverable and the second being Non-Recoverable. These can be deciphered based on the frequency of the lights flashing on the unit

Recoverable (Slow Mode) - The status LED flashes from Red to Green for 2 minutes then the unit resets. There is a small delay as the unit tries to work as normal. Communication is possible via FTP on the Fallback IP. You can also use any other networking tool to identify the IP address if need be.

Unrecoverable (Fast Mode) - The LED's flash very fast and communication with the unit is impossible. This happens immediately on start up In this state communication is impossible and you should contact  OXTS Support

The fallback IP depends on the firmware your unit runs, this IP will either be 195.0.0.133, 195.0.0.180 or 195.0.0.181 if it is an RT Range unit.

Firmware for all OXTS products is free and you can request it here.

Troubleshooting

1. Establish connection to the unit:

• Try to communicate with the unit with it's original IP address (195.0.0.xx where 'xx' is the last two digits of the unit's serial number
• If this fails, the user will need to resort to the fallback IP address (Scroll to Unit & Fallback IP Address Selection)
• If this fails, the unit is more than likely in a Non-Recoverable state and you will need to send the unit back to OXTS for service and repair. If this is the case please contact OXTS Support and we can advise on the next steps

 2. Re-flashing firmware file to the unit 

Firmware for all OXTS products is free and you can request it here. This should take 3 business days, if you urgently require firmware please raise a support ticket and you will be contacted within 1 business day.

Using FileZilla.

• FileZilla is the easiest way to FTP to your unit, simply enter the IP in the top left box of the screen and connect.
• Ensure that FileZilla is transferring the file in the correct format. Files without an extension tag are transferred in ASCII format by default. This should be in Binary to allow the firmware to work properly 

• This can be changed within settings or on the toolbar on the bottom right of the page, choose Binary and proceed

   

   

• Navigate to where you stored the supplied firmware on you PC and transfer it across. The progress will be shown in the "Queued Files" tab on the bottom left of your screen.
• Verify the file is in the lower right hand quadrant, this will be populated with your .rd files and various other setup files. 
• Power cycle the unit and if the unit powers on and behaves normally the firmware has applied correctly, if not repeat the above process 2 more times ensuring all steps are followed correctly. If the issue still persists please contact OXTS Support for further help

Using Windows File Explorer

• Open File Explorer, navigate to "This PC" and navigate to the upper search bar and enter the IP address, this is simply the IP address of your unit or likely the fallback IP in this scenario. The format is as follows "ftp://YOURIPHERE". If entered correctly you will then see all the files on your unit. Do not delete or touch any files you do not recognise.
• Simply copy and paste the new firmware onto this page and power cycle the unit to apply it. Normal operation of the unit should resume, if it does not apply then repeat this process twice and if issues persist contact OXTS Support 

Unit and Fallback IP Address Selection

When encountering a unit in Blink Mode, always try using the original IP address or the user configured IP address before resorting to using the Fallback IP address. The original IP address will always be 195.0.0.xx where 'xx' is the last two digits of the unit's serial number. Below is a table of OXTS units with their respective fallback IP Addresses. 

The majority of the listed units have two addresses listed, that is because the IP 195.0.0.132 to be used first, then if the user cannot establish a connection to their device then they should use IP 195.0.0.133. 

Below is a table with the fallback IPs listed for our commonly used units. The one exception to these tables is the xRED which runs on cbns. The fallback IP for this unit is 195.0.0.132

If you do not see your unit listed and none of the aforementioned IPs work then please contact OXTS Support