Data logger communication issue

[picmanjoe]

First, let me say that I'm astounded by the fantastic work that's been done by Steve to develop such a useful piece of software. Thanks heaps and be on the lookout for a couple of pounds coming your way.

I'm new to PWS's and am currently running Cumulus 1.9.4/1088 on a Windows 8.1 machine talking to a Davis Vantage Vue via a WeatherlinkIP data logger. The system has been up about two weeks. I've checked the FAQ, wiki, and searched the posts here but have not found the particular issue I'm having.

Basically Cumulus seems to be having an issue communicating with the weatherlinkip data logger. The past few days it has not downloaded all the data residing on the data logger. For instance today I started Cumulus up when I get home from work and data from 0800-0930 was downloaded from the logger, but from 0930-1700 (the time I'm downloading), was not. Closing down Cumulus and restarting allowed the system to download more of the data, in today's case from about 1130 to current time, but then there's still a gap from 0930-1130. I know the data is coming in in some sort of fashion as the data from 0930-1130 is showing up on Wunderground (via weatherlinkip).

I've tried flushing the data logger (per the vantage vue manual), but that doesn't seemed to have helped. Any guidance would be appreciated. Diags.zip attached.

[steve]

It's finding invalid timestamps in some of the logger entries:

2/24/2014 20:20:44.680 : VP2: processing logger data entry 27 for 2/24/2014 9:35:00 AM
2/24/2014 20:20:44.680 : ih=35.0 oh=92.0 it=73.1 ot=35.4 wc=35.4 dp=33.3 pr=30.067 wg=1.0 ws=0.0 wd=4 rt=0.00 rr=0.00
2/24/2014 20:20:44.680 : hi=35.3 thwi=35.3 thswi=-3.28E4 idp=43.8 ihi=71.3 uv=-3.28E4 sol=-32768 et=0.0
2/24/2014 20:20:44.723 : Rain counter = 1.12999987602234
2/24/2014 20:20:44.734 : Writing today.ini, LastUpdateTime = 2/24/2014 9:35:00 AM raindaystart = 1.12999987602234 rain counter = 1.12999987602234
2/24/2014 20:20:44.735 : Rain last hour: 0.00
2/24/2014 20:20:44.742 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.742 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.743 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.743 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.743 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.744 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.744 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.745 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.745 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.746 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.746 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.746 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.747 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.747 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.748 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.748 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.748 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.749 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.749 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.750 : VP2: Error in VP2 data: Invalid argument to date encode
2/24/2014 20:20:44.750 : VP2: processing logger data entry 48 for 2/24/2014 11:20:00 AM

So it couldn't log the entries between 09:35 and 11:20 (in that example). Unfortunately it doesn't log the dates that it's trying to decipher, and I don't know whether the corruption is in the entries themselves, or whether it occurred during the reading/transmission of the entries. This has only started happening in the last few days - before that it was OK?

If you want to experiment (and maybe get those missing entries), you could try 'rewinding' to make Cumulus try to download the entries again. Look for the backup files that were created when you first started Cumulus this evening:

2/24/2014 20:20:07.922 : Creating backup folder C:\Cumulus\backup\20140224202007\

Stop Cumulus and copy all of the files out of that folder into the data folder, and then start Cumulus again. If it can download the entries this time, it was clearly a transmission error. If it fails on the same entries again, then those entries are probably corrupt.

[picmanjoe]

When I first set up the system and Cumulus I had no issues. It was only after a few days that things started happening.

I tried rewinding and got the same results. After royally fouling up the data files I deleted Cumulus in its entirety and reinstalled. Cumulus then downloaded about 8 days of data from the data logger, with gaps again. So I decided to experiment a little and only allowed Cumulus to download data once in the morning and once in the evening, shutting it down a minute or two after download.

The attached diags files show something very interesting, that being that when Cumulus does run into this issue, it errors for precisely 20 entries. Then it starts reading okay again. Sometimes the block of errors occurs once, sometimes twice in a download, but 20 entries each time. Until, that is, when it doubled up one time and errored 40 times in a row. But it looks like multiples of 20.

So basically I'm flummoxed. The data logger is uploading to Weatherlink.com and Wunderground.com (via weatherlink, not Cumulus) during these error sessions, so I know the data is successfully reaching the data logger from the VantageVue, and it is at least compatible with WU. Also, though I've had issues downloading from the logger to Weatherlink on my PC (and still do...another story), after enough tries I can successfully get Weatherlink to download all the data on the logger onto my PC.

Further guidance would be appreciated. Diags zip file attached.

[steve]

Also, though I've had issues downloading from the logger to Weatherlink on my PC (and still do...another story), after enough tries I can successfully get Weatherlink to download all the data on the logger onto my PC.

Further guidance would be appreciated. Diags zip file attached.

Sorry, I don't know what to suggest. I have no way of knowing why those sets of 20 entries are corrupt by the time they reach Cumulus.

As you're having problems downloading logger entries with Weatherlink as well, then presumably Weatherlink is having similar difficulties with the data being corrupt, and you should probably speak to Davis.

[picmanjoe]

I wasn't having the same issue with Weatherlink, but I was never able to download all the records from the logger in one go. I would have to download sometimes 15 times for every 100 records. So I got with Davis. Long story short: they replaced the data logger (and the ISS, but that's another story!) and everything seems to be working great with both Cumulus and Weatherlink. I have downloaded up to 6 days worth of data with no problems at all. It's great to have this solved. Thanks again!