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Changes for page Pharos Configuration

Last modified by Alexander Mott on 2024/02/26 15:10
From version 5.1
edited by Alexander Mott
on 2023/05/09 21:21
Change comment: There is no comment for this version
To version 8.1
edited by Alexander Mott
on 2023/05/15 15:11
Change comment: There is no comment for this version

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10 10  
11 11  == Creating a New Pharos Project for ShowRunner™ ==
12 12  
13 -Pharos projects are created using the free Pharos Designer 2 software from Pharos Controls. When creating a project for use with ShowRunner™, ensure that API version 5.0 is selected for the project. Individual loads control from ShowRunner™ is achieved with group-level commands using the Pharos Controller API, so each Fixture Group defined in the Pharos Project should correspond to a single load in ShowRunner™. In addition to group-level commands, ShowRunner™ also supports mapping ShowRunner™ Scenes to Pharos Timelines.
13 +Pharos projects are created using the free [[Pharos Designer 2 software>>https://www.pharoscontrols.com/support/designer/software-downloads/]] from Pharos Controls. When creating a project for use with ShowRunner™, ensure that API version 5.0 is selected for the project. Individual loads control from ShowRunner™ is achieved with group-level commands using the Pharos Controller API, so each Fixture Group defined in the Pharos Project should correspond to a single load in ShowRunner™. In addition to group-level commands, ShowRunner™ also supports mapping ShowRunner™ Scenes to Pharos Timelines.
14 14  
15 15  When creating a Pharos project for a ShowRunner™ installation, there are several things to consider:
16 16  
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32 32  The basic steps for creating a Pharos Project for use with ShowRunner™ are as follows:
33 33  
34 34  1. Open the Pharos Designer 2 software
35 +1*. Note that the version of Designer 2 lines up with the version of the Pharos controller firmware, and that any project that is created or edited in one version of Designer 2 will not necessarily be able to be loaded to a controller that is running older firmware without first updating the firmware
35 35  1. In the top-right, click "New Project" and select the type of Pharos controller that will be the primary controller
36 36  1*. Crestron SKUs DIN-DMX-1UNIVERSE and DIN-DMX-2UNIVERSE both correspond to "LPC" in Pharos
37 37  1. Navigate to the "Project" page by clicking the Pharos logo on the left
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72 72  
73 73  If modifications need to be made to a Pharos Project that is already working with ShowRunner™, there are some things that should be taken into consideration in order to avoid breaking the existing programming:
74 74  
76 +* The version of Pharos Designer 2 is tied to the version of the Pharos controller firmware. Editing an existing project with a newer version of Designer 2 than the project was last saved in may result in the newly edited project no longer being able to be loaded to the controller without updating the controller firmware.
77 +** To maintain full backwards compatibility with an existing installation, verify the controller's current firmware version and then download the corresponding version of Designer 2 from [[Pharos Controls' website>>https://www.pharoscontrols.com/support/designer/software-downloads/#software-archive]]
75 75  * ShowRunner™ does not pay attention to how Pharos DMX fixtures are addressed, only how they are grouped
76 76  ** ShowRunner™ provides direct control of Pharos fixture groups by their group ID. Avoid changing Pharos fixture groups or group numbers unless you are aware of how they are mapped in ShowRunner™
77 77  ** Adding newly patched/addressed fixtures to existing groups that are mapped in ShowRunner™ will allow those fixtures to be controlled without adding them to the ShowRunner™ configuration
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83 83  ** If a new Timeline is added that replaces the ID of an old Timeline, then the scene mapping in ShowRunner™ needs to be updated to prevent the old ShowRunner™ Scene from triggering the new Timeline
84 84  ** If an existing Timeline is deleted, it should be unmapped in ShowRunner™ to prevent errors when the mapped ShowRunner™ Scene is recalled
85 85  
86 -= Device Configuration =
89 += Pharos Configuration =
87 87  
88 88  ShowRunner™ must be able to communicate with the Pharos controller via Ethernet in order for control to work. Pharos controllers ship in DHCP mode by default, but they will sometimes fail to get an address if the controller is powered up before the DHCP server is running. If this happens, or if there is no DHCP server on the network, then it is necessary to configure the controller via USB:
89 89  
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93 93  1. Select the Pharos controller from the list
94 94  1*. If a Pharos project is open, controllers defined in the project will be displayed above the list of online controllers
95 95  1*. If there are multiple online controllers, use the "Beacon" function to flash all the LEDs on the front of the controller and verify the correct one is selected
96 -1. If the Pharos Designer 2 version is different than the firmware on the Pharos controller, then it is necessary to either update the controller by pressing the "Reload Firmware" button, or downgrade Pharos Designer 2 by downloading the appropriate version from Pharos Controls' website
99 +1. If the Pharos Designer 2 version is different than the firmware on the Pharos controller, then it is necessary to either update the controller by pressing the "Reload Firmware" button, or downgrade Pharos Designer 2 by downloading the appropriate version from [[Pharos Controls' website>>https://www.pharoscontrols.com/support/designer/software-downloads/#software-archive]]
97 97  1. Press the "Configure" button to open the network configuration menu
98 98  1. Set DHCP mode to Static and configure the IP address, IP mask, default gateway, and DNS servers as required for your network
99 99  
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170 170  ** Non-DMX loads in an area with Scene Tracking will still go to their predefined scene levels unless they are excluded from the scene
171 171  ** Pharos DMX loads will go to their predefined scene levels unless they are excluded from the scene, even if they are included in the Pharos Timeline being triggered
172 172  * If Timelines are being used to control DMX fixtures, then the Fixture Groups do not actually need to be defined in ShowRunner™ unless direct control of the Fixture Groups is desired
176 +
177 += Fixture Addressing =
178 +
179 +Pharos Designer 2 has several features that make it relatively straightforward to address DMX fixtures, or to change how fixtures need to be addressed in order for the lighting controls to work correctly. Since ShowRunner™ uses fixture groups to send commands to DMX fixtures on the Pharos LPC, the specific fixture addresses do not matter as long as they are addressed according to the Pharos project. This means that if fixtures are re-patched to different addresses in the Pharos project but kept in the same fixture groups, then no changes to the ShowRunner™ configuration are necessary.
180 +
181 +In addition to allowing the re-patching of fixtures, Pharos LPC have Remote Device Management (RDM) capabilities that allow for remotely addressing DMX fixtures provided the fixtures are RDM capable. See our [[DMX Fixture Addressing page>>doc:SHOWRUNNER™ Setup Guide.SHOWRUNNER™ Installation Guide.Device Addressing.DMX Fixture Addressing.WebHome]] for more general information regarding DMX networks and fixture addressing for non-RDM capable fixtues.
173 173  )))