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Cumulus MX FAQ: Difference between revisions
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= Introduction = | = Introduction = | ||
[[Category:Cumulus_MX]] | |||
<div style="background: LemonChiffon;padding:5px; margin:2px;"> | |||
[[File:Crystal Clear info.png|40px]] This document is 'Work In Progress' so content may not be complete or accurate! | |||
</div> | |||
If you are seeking information on why you might want to use Cumulus, then please read [[About Cumulus|the About Cumulus article]] first. That is a general introduction to what Cumulus does and what might be its advantages over alternative software. | If you are seeking information on why you might want to use Cumulus, then please read [[About Cumulus|the About Cumulus article]] first. That is a general introduction to what Cumulus does and what might be its advantages over alternative software. | ||
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I started pasting in useful material, mostly from Steve Loft's posts in the forum about the beta version of MX, but as at that time I was not using MX I hoped somebody else would make sense of it and create a better layout. Of course nobody did. | I started pasting in useful material, mostly from Steve Loft's posts in the forum about the beta version of MX, but as at that time I was not using MX I hoped somebody else would make sense of it and create a better layout. Of course nobody did. | ||
When I did start using MX, I decided to edit other articles first, see [[Cumulus MX]], [[Cumulus MX formal release versions]], [[Webtags]], [[Cumulus.ini]], [[Dayfile.txt]], [[Category:Log Files]], [[Php webtags]], and various others. | When I did start using MX, I decided to edit other articles first, see [[Cumulus MX]], [[Cumulus MX formal release versions]], [[Webtags]], [[Cumulus.ini]], [[Dayfile.txt]], [[:Category:Log Files]], [[Php webtags]], and various others. | ||
So that left this page, | So that left this page, but I don't have enough time to complete updating this article. If you read this, and believe you can help with completing this update, please do. | ||
= Installation and Upgrading problems = | = Installation and Upgrading problems = | ||
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# Whether you are installing MX for the first time, or updating to a new version, you download the zipped software from [[Software|Software page]]. | # Whether you are installing MX for the first time, or updating to a new version, you download the zipped software from [[Software|Software page]]. | ||
#Unzip it either directly to the place where you want it, or to a holding | #Unzip it either directly to the place where you want it, or to a holding area where you keep downloaded software, and then use copy or another file transfer process to get it to final destination | ||
#You will find more advice in the [[Cumulus_MX|Cumulus_MX documentation page]]. | #You will find more advice in the [[Cumulus_MX|Cumulus_MX documentation page]]. | ||
#If there is a problem, the most likely problem is that you are trying to install onto say a SD card and that has failed, and needs to be replaced. You might want to consider investing in a SSD drive, they tend to be very reliable. | #If there is a problem, the most likely problem is that you are trying to install onto say a SD card and that has failed, and needs to be replaced. You might want to consider investing in a SSD drive, they tend to be very reliable. | ||
== I use Cumulus 1 and want to move to Cumulus MX == | |||
Please see [[Moving from Cumulus 1 to MX]] article. | |||
== Variation between releases == | == Variation between releases == | ||
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*Cumulus MX is currently being developed | *Cumulus MX is currently being developed | ||
*#Some functionality changes between version | *#Some functionality changes between version | ||
* | *Some bugs probably remain from the older beta versions of MX initiated by Steve Loft. | ||
*Each new piece of functionality has potential to add further bugs as it is impossible for the developer to test that feature with all possible weather station types, and with all setting permutations | |||
* Most releases are tested by a few beta testers prior to them being released generally, but again these people don't test all permutations. | |||
*#Consequently, if you always upgrade to the latest version, you might encounter new functionality that possibly might not work with your particular set-up. | *#Consequently, if you always upgrade to the latest version, you might encounter new functionality that possibly might not work with your particular set-up. | ||
*#Equally, if you don't always update to the latest version, you might miss out on a solution to a problem in the version you are using | *#Equally, if you don't always update to the latest version, you might miss out on a solution to a problem in the version you are using | ||
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= Troubleshooting - messages in MXdiags or in console/terminal output = | = Troubleshooting - messages in MXdiags or in console/terminal output = | ||
Mark Crossley lists the issues outstanding in beta version of MX [[MX Issues|in MX Issues article]]. Although that has not been updated since 2018, it might give you a hint of bugs that might still exist. | |||
=='''MESSAGE FROM SFWS'''== | =='''MESSAGE FROM SFWS'''== | ||
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If one of the sensors on your weather station fails, MX will reuse the same value for 6 reads, after that it will conclude the station is fault, and with default settings, MX will stop working. | If one of the sensors on your weather station fails, MX will reuse the same value for 6 reads, after that it will conclude the station is fault, and with default settings, MX will stop working. | ||
There are many places where you can look on the web for advice on setting up a weather station. In the UK, the best site to read first is '''the resources linked from''' [https://www.rmets.org/resource/how-can-you-make-high-quality-weather-observations how-can-you-make-high-quality-weather-observations] page. | |||
=== The Moon rise or set time is showing dashes. === | |||
The moon doesn’t rise and set every day, the dashes appear when that event doesn’t occur on that particular day. The period between a moon rise and set is approximately 12 hours and 25 minutes, on average. The moon rises (or sets) approximately 50 minutes later, on average, each day. It therefore follows that sometimes the moon will not rise or set on a particular day - i.e. it had risen the previous day, or will set on the following day. | |||
=== The Moon image is just black === | |||
It's probably a New Moon. | |||
=== I have a message about web tags === | === I have a message about web tags === | ||
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Maybe MX is trying to upload to your web server and that web server is not currently available. Or MX is trying to upload to a database server, and that is not currently available. | Maybe MX is trying to upload to your web server and that web server is not currently available. Or MX is trying to upload to a database server, and that is not currently available. | ||
== I have a message about missing web templates === | === I have a message about missing web templates === | ||
If you have selected the '''Include standard files''' option, MX expects to find all the standard web templates in the folder ''CumulusMX/web'', and will give an error message if it cannot find that folder or cannot find all the files in that folder that are provided in each MX distribution. | If you have selected the '''Include standard files''' option, MX expects to find all the standard web templates in the folder ''CumulusMX/web'', and will give an error message if it cannot find that folder or cannot find all the files in that folder that are provided in each MX distribution. | ||
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# When you first start running MX, it does not seem to be able to populate charts and recent history web tags for earlier times. | # When you first start running MX, it does not seem to be able to populate charts and recent history web tags for earlier times. | ||
= Dealing with rogue or | = Dealing with rogue values = | ||
==INPUT ISSUES== | |||
Input issues are when Cumulus reads the wrong information from the weather station. | |||
* Sometimes a weather station will supply incorrect data bits that mean wrong numbers are input to Cumulus MX or that MX looking at byte level does not recognise what it is being sent | |||
*What Cumulus outputs, for up to 3 different wind speeds it can calculate, depends on the weather station and which outputs from the weather station are processed by Cumulus. | |||
*For Fine Offset (not Ecowitt), MX has various options on '''Settings''' menu, ''Calibration settings'' page, '''Spike removal''' section to reject any readings that ''differ from previous value'' by more than figure selected. As mentioned, this is not available for most weather stations, only those that can optionally output to Easyweather software. | |||
*For all weather stations, MX has various options on '''Settings''' menu, ''Calibration settings'' page, '''offsets''' and '''multiplier''' sections to calibrate what is read from the weather station by applying a multiplier (in some cases both first and second order multipliers), and/or an offset. | |||
*MX can also reuse the last good reading (for up to 6 times) if there is a problem with individual readings. After that it gives up and labels that sensor as not working (see next point). | |||
*MX can stop running if it is unable to obtain readings for key measurements, i.e. temperature, pressure, wind speed, humidity, although there are some settings that can over-ride this action. | |||
== DERIVATIVES ISSUES == | |||
Derivatives are any values that Cumulus reports which it has not read directly from the weather station. In a sense, every out put by Cumulus is a derivative, because the units that the weather station supplies readings in, have to be converted to the units that the user has requested. | |||
*Cumulus MX ignores any maximum and minimum values supplied by a weather station; it calculates these highest and lowest derived values each metrological day for itself, from every measurement it processes, not the small sample of it actually writes to the standard log. | |||
**As each new standard sensor reading is read in it is first converted to units selected by user, then the reading is added to the recent history array, then it is compared against the previous highest/lowest for that meteorological day, updating those as needed, and finally the reading is placed into web tags (for web pages), application programming interface that can feed it to admin interface, and a subset are logged in the standard log file. | |||
*Currently, MX does not calculate maximum and minima for any extra sensor measurements. | |||
*For rainfall, MX does not use any rainfall readings supplied by the weather station, instead it works with a long term counter, and derives daily readings to output from subtracting one counter value (at end of required period) from another at start of day. For rain this month, Cumulus adds the current day's reading, and the readings logged in the [[Dayfile.txt|daily summary log]] for each preceding day in the month. For rainfall this year (also shown on the current conditions output, not any output for this year), the rainfall being output is the sum of the Year-to-date figure in the '''Settings''' menu, ''Station settings'' page, '''Annual rainfall''' section, today's rain, and the total rain stored in daily summary log for every previous day in the same calendar year. | |||
*Depending on weather station (and settings selected), Cumulus may either use values from the weather station, or values it calculates itself, for items like Wind Chill and Forecasts. | |||
*Weather stations do not supply Canadian Humidity Index (Humidex), USA Heat Index, Australian Apparent Temperature or the Feels Like temperature indices. For all these, Cumulus will calculate them by looking at various simultaneous readings (temperature, wind speed, and humidity for those two examples). | |||
*The current conditions that Cumulus outputs are derived from every individual measurement, although if the weather station does not update between every output by Cumulus (e.g. Fine Offset that update only every 40 seconds), then Cumulus may repeat its previous readings for two outputs in succession (Cumulus will output at least every minute, sometimes every second if weather station updates that frequently). | |||
**Cumulus provides recent history web tags to give you access to a selection of outputs for every minute in past 7 days. | |||
==EXTREMES ISSUES== | |||
Extremes appear on the records web page, these are highest/lowest in a month, in a year and all-time. | |||
When MX is calculating those maximum and minimum derivatives, these are within an individual day, but they are compared against others in the same month (to update both the this month web tags and the monthly extremes web tags), against others in the same year (to update the this year web tags) and against all previous derivatives (to update the all-time web tags). I say update web tags, because that is how you view the extremes, but actually there is a log file for maximum and minimum in a day (today.ini), for this month (month.ini), for monthly-all-time (monthlyalltime.ini), for this year (year.ini), and for all time (alltime.ini). These log files are where MX stores the extremes and where you need to do corrections. For total rain this month, this year, maximum rain for this month in all years and highest rainfall (hourly, daily, monthly), the same log files are used. The highest daily wind run per month, per year, in the same month for all years and all-time is similarly stored in these log files and made available as web tags. | |||
== Advice re problems == | |||
#Dealing with input problems depends on your weather station type | #Dealing with input problems depends on your weather station type | ||
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#* For other weather station types, look in the forum for advice or read the station instructions. | #* For other weather station types, look in the forum for advice or read the station instructions. | ||
# If the output values are frequently incorrect, MX provides some calibration settings in the admin interface. These vary dependent on the type of weather reading you want to correct. In general they use a formula like <tt> Output = Multiplier_2 X Input<sup>2</sup> + Multiplier_1 X input + Offset</tt> so in the settings you can specify the multipliers and offset to use in that equation. | # If the output values are frequently incorrect, MX provides some calibration settings in the admin interface. These vary dependent on the type of weather reading you want to correct. In general they use a formula like <tt> Output = Multiplier_2 X Input<sup>2</sup> + Multiplier_1 X input + Offset</tt> so in the settings you can specify the multipliers and offset to use in that equation. | ||
#If only a small numbers are incorrect, MX provides editors for the logs that store extremes (although for today only the rainfall can be edited). See the pages linked from [[:Category:Log Files|Category:Log Files]] to discover more about each log and how to deal with rogue values. View and edit these on'''Edit''' tab of admin interface. | #If only a small numbers are incorrect, MX provides editors for the logs that store extremes (although for today only the rainfall can be edited). See the pages linked from [[:Category:Log Files|:Category:Log Files]] to discover more about each log and how to deal with rogue values. View and edit these on'''Edit''' tab of admin interface. | ||
#You can correct any individual rogue value in a monthly log as MX (see viewer editor on '''Data logs''' tab of admin interface. | #You can correct any individual rogue value in a monthly log as MX (see viewer editor on '''Data logs''' tab of admin interface. | ||
#As rainfall has a lot of different derivatives stored for it (hourly totals, daily totals, rain rate) it is quite complicated to correct, so there are a series of instruction in the [[FAQ#My_station_invented_some_rain_that_didn.27t_really_occur.2C_and_I_want_to_set_it_to_zero_.28or_some_other_figure.29|C1 FAQ]]. | #As rainfall has a lot of different derivatives stored for it (hourly totals, daily totals, rain rate) it is quite complicated to correct, so there are a series of instruction in the [[FAQ#My_station_invented_some_rain_that_didn.27t_really_occur.2C_and_I_want_to_set_it_to_zero_.28or_some_other_figure.29|C1 FAQ]]. | ||
