The 12-part video and blog series continues with a look at what's behind the System button on the groov Manage menu.
Over the past few weeks we've been taking a peek behind each of the main groov Manage menu options, both in a quick video and here in this blog. This week we are going to be jumping into the System menu.
Watch groov Manage: System.
When commissioning a new groov device, the common practice is to set it up in the following order:
- Create an administrator account.
- Set the hostname.
- Set the system time.
- Generate your server certificate.
(Spoiler for next week: You don’t want to create an SSL certificate that is too old or only valid in the future, so be sure and set the time zone so that the date & time are accurate for your locale.)
If you are using an external HDMI monitor, you can set it up here with various options like landscape or portrait, and screen resolutions. Even if you are not, I like to jump into this menu on any groov EPIC I'm setting up and turn on the "Show Mouse Pointer" option. It makes navigating the front touchscreen a cinch.
The Files section accesses the file system on your groov, so it's kind of like File Explorer on your Windows PC. You can use this screen to upload, view, and delete any reference docs, images, or other file types directly on the groov. If perhaps you are doing some logging via Node-RED or any of the other control engine options, your files will show up here in the Files section, too.
Need to apply a license for groov View or Shell access? Jump in and get those tasks done here. And yes, Shell or SSH access has proven to be extremely popular. Our customers are developing amazing applications in Python, .Net, and C++, and running these directly on their groov EPIC or RIO.
Because groov is secure out of the box, the USB ports are turned off by default. If you want to do some data logging to a USB memory stick, connect a keyboard or mouse, or use a USB-to-serial adapter (tip: use Authentic FTDI devices only), then you will need to first enable the USB ports here.
The same goes for Bluetooth. Yes, our groov devices support a limited number of Bluetooth devices through Node-RED. If you have an industrial Bluetooth device you want to use, drop us a line in the comments or at our Opto 22 forums.
Did you know that you can choose which application appears on the groov EPIC touchscreen after it boots? You can select groov Manage, groov View, or if installed, any Node-RED dashboard screens you may have built.
Finally, as last week's blog post about groov network options made clear, we know that many of you are remote from your groov device. If you need to reboot it, it can be tough to reach the power button when remote, so the last option in the System menu is the Restart button.
Would you like a sneak peek at the entire 12-video series? Well, good news. We've combined all 12 groov Manage videos into one 18-minute version if you want to watch the complete overview in one viewing. But remember, over the next several weeks we'll take a deeper dive into each segment.
Be sure and join us next week when we take a look at the fourth step of commissioning a groov device - the Security menu option.
Till then.
Cheers Mate.
-Ben