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Advise - House came with control4 but it’s not working


Vandak

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I recently moved into a new house that had an existing control4 install. Unfortunately, nothing seems to be working. All of the components are still in the rack, but when I push buttons on any of the remotes, the only UI, nothing happens.
 

The prior owner gave me the name of the installer/company but I can’t get a hold of them. 
 

Im looking for any advise on where to start. I wouldn’t mind getting a copy of composer to get in there and see what’s going on, but I thought I had better ask for advise first. 
 

thanks!

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Thanks for the quick reply. I’m hoping to DIY much of this. I have basic programming skills and have played with other open source automation systems in the last. Control4 and is new to me… I don’t know where to start.

 

I understand it’s pretty locked down unless you are a dealer. Is it common that dealers are willing to work with DIYers or am I looking for a small subset? 

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17 minutes ago, Vandak said:

Thanks for the quick reply. I’m hoping to DIY much of this. I have basic programming skills and have played with other open source automation systems in the last. Control4 and is new to me… I don’t know where to start.

 

I understand it’s pretty locked down unless you are a dealer. Is it common that dealers are willing to work with DIYers or am I looking for a small subset? 

No, Dealers that give a license to Composer Pro to their customers risk losing their entire dealership.

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5 minutes ago, Dunamivora said:

No, Dealers that give a license to Composer Pro to their customers risk losing their entire dealership.

Apologies for not being clearer, I would use ComposerHE but would want support from the dealer and of course they would need to do whatever HE doesn’t allow me to do. 

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56 minutes ago, RAV said:

How much of the original network was left in place?

There is a 6-port switch in the rack that connects all of the components.
 

The prior owner seems to have taken the main network switch, so I installed an unmanaged 24-port gigabit switch. I also replaced the cable modem (since the provider, Shaw Cable, would not reactive the old one) and I added a new Deco mesh wifi network.

I can see the Apple TV and the Lurton controller on the network and there were a few other “unknown” devices that also joined then I connected the switch in the C4 rack, so I assume that’s the C4 box and the other components, but haven’t explored it any further yet. Also, the C4 remotes no longer complain there is no net work, they did before I added the switch. 

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your issues are very likely network-related, as Control4 communicates over the network to control devices for the most part.  probably need to perform some network resets, change some IP addresses in Composer (Pro).  Once everything is communicating correctly then with Composer Home Edition you can make your own tweaks/customizations but Home Edition doesn't allow the end user to change network settings unfortunately.

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10 hours ago, Dunamivora said:

No, Dealers that give a license to Composer Pro to their customers risk losing their entire dealership.

You made an assumption that he was trying to use Pro.  Not sure why, although not surprised.

@Vandak Yes - it’s common for dealers here on this forum to work with DIYers.  They can sell you Composer HE which gives you quite a bit of programming functionality. @chopedogg88comes highly recommended.

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Just now, Dunamivora said:

New user + DIY comments. Assumed because generally the desire is full control with Pro, not HE.

My assumption was wrong in this case, but I'd argue it is the atypical case.

All good, no harm done. I did know the difference between Pro and HE so I should have been more clear in my ask. I appreciate the response just the same.

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Two cents from someone who is leaving C4 behind in the near future:  connect with a remote dealer such as the one posting here, they will help you get it up and running for not too much, assuming there is not some big problem that wasn't disclosed to you.  Spend the $150 to get Composer HE plus the remote access subscription.  Then play with it and see if the DIY capabilities are enough for you.  If not, there are options.  But what i've described is probably the cheapest way to find out what you want to do next.

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Are your subnets the same as the previous owner?  Its possible they tied everything to static IPs or more likely they had DHCP reservations in the router you replaced, thus the director is looking for specific IPs and not using SDDP.  If that's the case, you'll need dealer intervention to readdress those IPs in the controller.

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