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RTDS GTNET-SKT card RTDS Technologies logo

Example drafts: https://github.com/VILLASframework/node/tree/master/clients/rtds/gtnet_skt

The GTNETx2 card can be flashed with the SKT firmware to send/receive UDP and TCP packets over Ethernet. The card uses big endian byte order to send and receives data.

To exchange data with the GTNET-SKT block the socket node-type must be used with the raw format-type. This raw format does not include any meta-data such as the timestamps or sequence numbers. To work around this limitation, the fake option of the raw format can be set. This will cause the first three 3 signals to interpreted as sequence no, timestamp seconds and timestamp nanoseconds. A timestamp can be added by using the GTSYNC card with a GPS source in the draft file. Alternatively, if no timestamp is provided (value set to 0), VILLASnode will add a timestamp, thereby replacing the 0 value.

Common Problems​

Problems faced during setting up of GTNET-SKT card with GTSYNC card are:

The GTNET-SKT is not detected​

The GTNET-SKT card was not detected in the RSCAD config manager because the GPC processor port was faulty. Shifting the GTNET-SKT card to another port solved the issue. Also check the fiber cable if that is faulty.

The GTNET-SKT display shows wrong protocol​

The GTNET-SKT display should display the correct processor number and the protocol version. Use the SEL button to toggle between processor and protocol display. The processor value should be of the form i.e. 3.1 (processor 3 GT port 1) and the protocol should be 15 which is GTNET-SKT. If the protocol is 16 there is an error. Also processor number 0.0 means the GT-SKT card can’t detect the processor.

Outdated GTWIF firmware​

Check that GTWIF Firmware version is 4.104 build 7 or higher and RSCAD version is 4.003.1 or higher. In case the GTNET-SKT can’t detect the processor, restart the rack after repeating step 1.

In case GT-SKT can’t detect a correct protocol, telnet (login: rtds, password: commcard) into the card and run the command status to see which protocol version the card has.

If the card doesn’t display the correct protocol in the telnet but the “Firmware Upgrade” in RSCAD shows the correct version, downgrade the version in Firmware upgrade and then upgrade it to the desired version.

Timing source not synced​

In case the draft file gives an error “Timing source not synced”, the GTSYNC card is not connected to GPS source.

Contact​

Author: Umar Farooq umar.farooq@rwth-aachen.de