Ethernet networks have taken over as the prominent bus architecture for industrial automation networks. And for good reason.

Ethernet simplifies and homogenizes connectivity between industrial devices. We don’t have to worry about male or female DB9 and DB25 serial connectors, no concern for DTE or DCE devices, and forget about straight-through vs. null-modem cables. In general, the world is a much happier place.

However, even with the added simplicity Ethernet offers, troubleshooting Ethernet networks can be a bit more involved than serial networks.

Let’s assume you’re trying to establish communication with an industrial Ethernet device that for whatever reason has dropped off the network. Here are a few tips I always use when starting to troubleshoot an industrial Ethernet network.

Attention industrial engineers: If you're not thinking about how secure that new wiz-bang-flashy PLC or PAC is before you purchase it, you're setting yourself up for a world of pain down the road.

Industrial control systems are used across a wide range of industries, from manufacturing and fabrication, to electricity generation and transmission, to oil refining and water treatment—all industries where a network security compromise could mean huge losses of capital for the business.

Recently we’re seeing many of these traditionally proprietary control systems—distributed control systems, PLCs, and SCADA applications—adding new, more open technologies like Ethernet and TCP/IP. And with organizations' increasing interest in the business advantages of obtaining system data, industrial control systems are now being connected to information technology (IT) networks.

That's scary.

If you're looking to connect real-world signals and industrial "things" to Information Technology (IT) systems, cloud software, and mobile devices, you already know Opto 22 products will serve you well.

And It’s Going to Happen Again.

Last week the Internet experienced the largest cyber attack in history. Many popular websites went offline for the better part of a day as three waves of cyber attacks hit the DNS infrastructure company DynDNS.

But how could an attack on a single infrastructure company wreak such havoc across the entire Internet?

In my last blog post I talked about the TCP/IP model and why you should care about it. In a phrase: the Internet of Things (IoT). 

With all the recent attention around the IoT, the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), and Industry 4.0, I’m sure you’re starting to realize that networking, Internet communication, and network security are going to be important in your job as an automation professional.

When you're troubleshooting a network communications problem, it's often best to start from the bottom and work up. 

Opto 22 engineer Matt Newton shows you how in his recent blog post about the TCP/IP Model:­ Troubleshooting the Link Layer. 

You already know that groov is the simple way to build your own mobile operator interface—your own mobile app—so you can securely monitor and control your systems and equipment from a smartphone or tablet.

With groov it really is easy to build your interface and control who can use it.

But there's one part that can be more complicated: setting up your network so you can access the data you need while maintaining security for your systems. 

How is going to your favorite website like getting data from your PAC to your groov Box, or from your PLC to your HMI? 

Opto 22 engineer Matt Newton's recent blog post answers that question and introduces you to the underpinnings of both the Internet and a whole lot of industrial automation communications.

Have you ever wished you could troubleshoot a networking problem faster, more accurately, and with greater efficiency? Stay tuned for the next few series of blog posts where we’ll discuss exactly how you can do that.

Have you ever wondered how data gets from one side of the Internet to the other? How an email you send from California ends up in Paris in just a couple of seconds? How your programmable automation controllers send data to your groov appliance to be displayed on your smartphone or tablet, wherever you are in the world? The magic behind all of this is called the TCP/IP model.