EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore
Guide
EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore
Guide
User Guide
EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
Distech Controls, Inc.
Brossard, Quebec,
Canada
Legal Notice
©, Distech Controls Inc., 2023. All rights reserved. While all efforts have been made to verify the accuracy of in-
formation in this manual, Distech Controls is not responsible for damages or claims arising from the use of this
manual. Persons using this manual are assumed to be trained HVAC professionals and are responsible for us-
ing the correct wiring procedures, correct override methods for equipment control and maintaining safe working
conditions in fail-safe environments. Distech Controls reserves the right to change, delete or add to the informa-
tion in this manual at any time without notice.
Distech Controls, the Distech Controls logo, EC-Net, and Innovative Solutions for Greener Buildings are regis-
tered trademarks of Distech Controls, Inc. LON, LonMark, LonWorks, LNS, and Neuron are registered trade-
marks of Echelon Corporation registered in the United States and other countries. NiagaraAX and NiagaraAX
Framework are registered trademarks of Tridium, Inc. BACnet is a registered trademark of ASHRAE. Windows,
Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Visual Basic.Net, Visual Basic.Net are registered trademarks of Mi-
crosoft Corporation. Intel and Pentium are registered trademark of Intel Corporation in the U.S. and/or other
countries. AMD is a registered trademark of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. EnOcean is a registered trademark
of EnOcean GmbH. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.
Contents
About this Guide .................................................................................................5
Document change log .................................................................................5
Related documentation ...............................................................................5
Chapter 1 EC-BOS-9 backup and restore overview ..........................................7
About Host ID .............................................................................................8
Validating the MicroSD card’s Host ID ..........................................................8
Chapter 2 Backup procedures ..........................................................................9
Creating an automatic backup to an SD Card................................................9
Creating a manual backup to an SD Card .....................................................9
Backing up a station using Platform Administration......................................10
Chapter 3 Restore procedures .......................................................................13
Restoring from a microSD card backup.......................................................13
Restoring a backup distribution file .............................................................14
Restoring factory defaults (EC-BOS-9) .......................................................18
July 15, 2023 3
Contents EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
4 July 15, 2023
About this Guide
This topic contains important information about the purpose, content, context, and intended audience for this
document.
Product Documentation
This document is part of the EC-NetTM technical documentation library. Released versions of EC-Net software
include a complete collection of technical information that is provided in both online help and PDF format. The
information in this document is written primarily for Systems Integrators. In order to make the most of the infor-
mation in this book, readers should have some training or previous experience with EC-NetTM 4 or EC-NetAXTM
software.
Document Content
This document includes topics that describe how to create USB backups and restore them to your controller. Al-
so included are instructions for recovering factory defaults, and safely shutting down a controller.
Document change log
Updates and changes to the document are listed in this topic.
July 15, 2023
Initial release publication.
Related documentation
Additional related information is available in the following document(s).
• EC-BOS-9 (15885) Mounting and Wiring Guide
• EC-BOS-9 Install and Startup Guide
• EC-Net 4 Platform Guide
July 15, 2023 5
EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
6 July 15, 2023
Chapter 1 EC-BOS-9 backup and restore
overview
Topics covered in this chapter
♦ About Host ID
♦ Validating the MicroSD card’s Host ID
You can backup a EC-BOS-9 in several ways. This topic provides an overview of the backup and restore proce-
dure options that are available. Other topics in this document provide information that can help you understand
the different specific backup and restore processes.
Following are options for backup:
• Automatic backup with microSD card
• Manual backup with microSD card using Serial Shell connection
• Manual backup to a Supervisor platform using Platform Administration connection.
Following are options for restore:
• Restoring from a microSD card backup
• Restoring from a backup .dist file
Backup to the microSD card
The EC-BOS-9 allows you to backup the entire controller platform and station to a microSD card without requir-
ing access to the backup functions of EC-Net 4 Pro.
• Only Distech Controls- configured microSD cards are supported.
• If you install a non-Distech Controls microSD card in the unit, the system will not generate a Host ID and
EC-Net will not run.
• If you insert or remove a microSD card from a EC-BOS-9 the Host ID will change for that controller.
Preparing for backup and restore
NOTE: Always remove power from the controller before installing or removing a microSD card.
To insert the microSD card into the controller, slide it into the card carrier, label side up, until the spring catch en-
gages. If properly inserted, the card is behind the Access Shutter track.
The manual backup procedure uses a serial connection to the controller DEBUG port. This connection must be
established before any backup or restore steps occur. The DEBUG port is a USB-C port for serial debug
July 15, 2023 7
Chapter 1 EC-BOS-9 backup and restore overview EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
communications to the controller. You can use a serial terminal program (for example: PuTTY) with the DEBUG
port to access the controller’s system shell menu.
About Host ID
Unlike other controllers, the ATLAS-1B22-B800-1CD8-A54B has a Host ID that can change based on the
presence or absence of a MicroSD card. It is important to understand the role of the MicroSD card and its part
in the creation of the controller Host ID, which is unique and essential for licensing the controller.
• To support portability between EC-BOS-9 devices, the Host ID of a EC-BOS-9 will change to reflect pres-
ence of MicroSD card. This ties the license file to the Host ID on the SD card and makes it portable.
• For a EC-BOS-9 without an MicroSD card, the Host ID is derived from the CPU ID. It takes the format: AT-
LAS-1B22-B800-1CD8-A54B.
• For a EC-BOS-9 with a MicroSD card, the Host ID is derived from data on the MicroSD card. It takes the for-
mat: ATLAS-SD-F93E-14C2-6345-D321
Validating the MicroSD card’s Host ID
The EC-BOS-9 Host ID depends on the presence of a MicroSD card. This ties the license file to the Host ID on
an MicroSD card and makes it portable. All MicroSD cards are programmed with the Distech Controls secret,
which validates the authenticity of the MicroSD card-based Host ID established using Card Identification (CID)
values. The CID number is a unique identifier or serial number created on the MicroSD card at the time of
manufacturing.
Prerequisites: The controller is plugged into the wall outlet with its power off.
Step 1 Insert a MicroSD card into the card slot.
Step 2 Turn the power on.
If no MicroSD card is present, the device uses a CPU-based Host ID. When the MicroSD is present at
boot time, the MicroSD card is checked for authenticity using the Distech Controls secret. The Host
ID’s authenticity will be verified. If the MicroSD card fails authentication, the Host ID is considered in-
valid. If the MicroSD card passes authentication, the MicroSD card-based Host ID will be used.
8 July 15, 2023
Chapter 2 Backup procedures
Topics covered in this chapter
♦ Creating an automatic backup to an SD Card
♦ Creating a manual backup to an SD Card
♦ Backing up a station using Platform Administration
You may back up a controller automatically or manually using the system shell or the EC-Net 4 Pro’s Platfor-
mAdministration feature.
Creating an automatic backup to an SD Card
You may create a backup while a station is running or stopped.
Prerequisites: You have a microSD card.
Step 1 Confirm that the controller’s power is off.
Step 2 Insert the microSD card.
Step 3 Apply power to the controller.
The system initiates an automatic backup at 02:00 local time daily. The most recent three backups
are stored on the microSD card. The system removes older versions.
Creating a manual backup to an SD Card
The serial menu option Create SD backup manually creates a backup.
Prerequisites: You have installed EC-Net and commissioned the controller with up-to-date core software.
Step 1 Start the controller.
Step 2 Make a serial connection from your PC to controller’s Debug serial port.
Step 3 Run the shell command to display ATLAS System Shell using the controller’s platform credentials.
ATLAS System Shell
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
hostid: ATLAS-SD-F93E-14C2-6345-D321
serial number: 0
system time: Tue May 2 14:17:37 EDT 2023
niagara daemon port: https 5011
en0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP,LOWER_UP> mtu 1500 qdisc mq state UP group
default qlen 1000
link/ether 00:01:f0:96:41:8d brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
inet 172.31.67.86/22 brd 172.31.67.255 scope global noprefixroute en0
valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
inet6 fe80::201:f0ff:fe96:418d/64 scope link
valid_lft forever preferred_lft forever
en1: <NO-CARRIER,BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP> mtu 1500 qdisc mq state DOWN
group default qlen 1000
link/ether 00:01:f0:96:41:8c brd ff:ff:ff:ff:ff:ff
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Update System Time
2 Update Network Settings
3 Ping Host
4 System Diagnostic Options
July 15, 2023 9
Chapter 2 Backup procedures EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
5 Change Current User Password
6 Change System Passphrase
7 Create SD Backup
8 Restore SD Backup
9 Reboot
L Logout
Enter Choice : 7
Step 4 To start the manual backup , enter option no 7 Create SD Backup.
The shell prompts you to confirm this action.
Do you want to start backup now? [y/N]? y
Step 5 To start the backup, type y.
The backup procedure starts and, when finished, displays “Backup Successful.”
Backup Started,
Please wait for backup to complete...
Backup Successful
Backing up a station using Platform Administration
The Platform Administration view performs a complete backup of the connected controller, saved as a .dist
file on your PC. The backup dist contains the entire station folder, the specific NRE config used by the platform,
license(s), certificate(s), pointers to the appropriate NRE core, Java VM, modules, OS and the TCP/IP configu-
ration of the host.
Prerequisites: You are working in EC-Net 4 Pro and are connected to the Supervisor or remote controller.
Step 1 Expand the Platform node in the Nav tree or double-click Platform.
The contents of the Nav Container View opens in the tree or in the main view.
Step 2 Double-click the Platform Administration.
The Platform Administration view opens.
Step 3 Click the Backup button.
If the station is running, EC-Net 4 Pro asks you to confirm that you intend to connect to the station to
back it up.
You can perform a backup with a station running on the target host, or when no station is running.
Step 4 If you choose to stop the station, click No, double-click the Application Director, select the station,
click Stop, then go back and click Platform Administration→Backup.
If no station is running on the controller, the platform daemon performs its own offline backup or you
may log in as a station user.
If the station is running, EC-Net 4 Pro uses the station’s BackupService to perform an online backup.
In either case, the File Chooser window opens.
10 July 15, 2023
EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide Chapter 2 Backup procedures
The Current Path defaults to ~backup and the File name property defaults to the current station.
The ~ in the path name represents the path to a folder under the file system’s EC-Net 4 Pro User
Home. For example: C:\Users\<user>\<Niagara version>\tridium\backups where:
• <user> is your user folder.
• <Niagara version> is your installed version.
Step 5 Navigate to a target location to save the backup file, rename it if desired, and click Save.
By default, the backup function automatically creates (if not already present) a backups subdirectory
under your EC-Net 4 Pro User Home. The default file name for a backup file uses a format of: back-
up_stationName_YYMMDD_HHMM.dist
If the station is running, the system performs a Fox Backup job and a notification popup opens in the
lower right of your display when the backup is done. This job is recorded in the station’s BackupSer-
vice and is visible in that component’s Backup Manager view. Details are also available by access-
ing the job in the station’s Job Service Manager.
If you perform an offline backup (no station running), the platform daemon provides another progress
window during the backup to the .dist file.
Upon completion, you can click Close to return to the Platform Administration view, or click Details
to see another popup with a log of actions performed in the backup.
July 15, 2023 11
Chapter 2 Backup procedures EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
If needed, you can restore a backup .dist using the platform Distribution File Installer view. When restoring
the backup, you can select to restore these settings, or retain the TCP/IP settings currently in use by the target
host.
12 July 15, 2023
Chapter 3 Restore procedures
Topics covered in this chapter
♦ Restoring from a microSD card backup
♦ Restoring a backup distribution file
♦ Restoring factory defaults (EC-BOS-9)
The following sections describe how to restore a EC-BOS-9 from a backup.
Below enhancements are implemented in EC-BOS-9:
• To move a backup to a new EC-BOS-9 requires that the controller is connected to your PC serial port using
a serial shell program, such as Putty. This is true even if both the old and new controller have the same
passphrase.
• A microSD card is formatted as a FAT32 partition and you use a system passphrase to encrypt backups.
Therefore, if you have a backup of a system and the passphrase, you can extract the station data using a
Windows PC.
Restoring from a microSD card backup
Restoring from a microSD card backup returns the controller to the state it was in when the system made the
backup. You may restore to a controller other than the one on which the backup was made, provided that the
target controller is the same model. The restore procedure does not require access to EC-Net 4 Pro. Launch
the System Shell and use the shell menu to initiate a back up the data to the microSD card from the controller's
Embedded MultiMediaCard (eMMC), where it is stored.
Prerequisites: You have a MicroSD card with a backup.
Step 1 Connect your PC to the Debug serial port using a USB-C cable.
Step 2 Log in to System Shell menu.
The Restore Menu opens. If more than one backup exists, the Restore Menu lists the files.
Restore Menu
----------------------
1. backup-20230502141937-v1
Select Backup file for Restore from list(Eg: 1) : 1
Selected backup file for restore: backup-20230502141937-v1
Step 3 Select the backup file to restore from the list and press Enter.
The System Shell displays the file to restore and prompts with:
Is backup passphrase same as the system passphrase [Y/n]? n
Enter the passphrase used to encrypt the backup :
Confirm passphrase :
Step 4 Do one of the following:
• Enter Y if the backup passphrase is the same as the system passphrase.
• Enter n if the backup passphrase is not the same as the system passphrase.
The restore operation resets the controller to its factory state, then restores the backup.
Restore operation will take several minutes and performs a few reboots when required
Restore operation will initiate after reboot
Waiting for device to reboot
July 15, 2023 13
Chapter 3 Restore procedures EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
Press ENTER to continue
Importing Backup
Snapshot backup imported
Snap backup imported
System Configuration backup imported
Restore operation is ongoing
Wait for system installation to complete
<-NOTE: There is currently a long wait with no user feedback after this step
Restoring snapshot of core20
Restoring snapshot of hbt-imx-kernel
Restoring snapshot of network-manager
Restoring snapshot of snapd
Restoring snapshot of tridium-atlas-gadget
Restoring snapshot of tridium-atlas-protod
Restoring snapshot of tridium-atlas-updatemgr
Restoring snapshot of tridium-niagara
Restoring snapshot of tridium-usermgr
Restoring system configuration
Restore Succeeded
Rebooting system
After the backup is restored, the system reboots. This process can take up to five minutes or longer.
Restoring a backup distribution file
This procedure restores a controller to a factory default state.
Prerequisites:
• A backup .dist file of the station on the target controller exists.
• The software database of your EC-Net 4 installation includes matching versions of all software modules
used by the station when the station backup was made. Without these modules, restoring the backup .
dist will fail.
• Any controlled equipment, which might be adversely affected by the station stopping (and the removal of
software) is put in a manually controlled state.
• If the .dist file is protected with a file passphrase, you know this passphrase.
Step 1 Using EC-Net 4 Pro, open a platform connection to the remote host.
Step 2 If a station is already running on the remote host, use the Applications Director to stop the station.
Step 3 To locate the .dist file, do one of the following:
• In the Distribution File Installer click the Backups button ( ). This opens the !/backups
folder.
• Click the Choose Directory button to point to another backup .dist file location.
The Installer parses through the distribution files, and makes selectable only those files that are com-
patible with the opened platform. When done parsing, available backup .dists open in a list.
14 July 15, 2023
EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide Chapter 3 Restore procedures
Distribution files that are inappropriate, for example those that are for a different target platform or
have unmet dependencies, are dimmed and the Install button does not become active if you select
one of them.
Step 4 For details on any .dist file, double-click it.
The system opens a popup that includes a list of dependencies.
The details window provides information about the selected distribution file, including all contents and
any dependencies.
Step 5 To restore any selected backup, click Install.
When you click Install, the system attempts to validate the file’s passphrase. If the file passphrase
and system passphrase are the same, the process continues without prompting for a file passphrase.
If the file passphrase and system passphrase are different, the distribution file installer prompts you
for the passphrase.
July 15, 2023 15
Chapter 3 Restore procedures EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
NOTE: If prompted for the .dist file passphrase and you do not know it, you cannot install the file.
Step 6 If you are prompted for the Passphrase, enter it and click Next.
If the host is already running a station, a window opens telling you that the station must be stopped.
If the station backup .dist file contains software modules that are different from (or in addition to)
those already installed in the remote host, another window opens:
Step 7 To continue, click Next.
Another window asks if you wish to restore the TCP/IP settings stored in the .dist file (as displayed)
into the remote host.
16 July 15, 2023
EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide Chapter 3 Restore procedures
The TCP/IP settings contained in the .dist file are listed, and by default, the check box Update the
remote host’s TCP/IP settings is cleared.
Step 8 Do one of the following:
• To use the same .dist file on differently addressed hosts, leave this check box cleared.
• To use the TCP/IP settings stored in the .dist file, enable the Update the remote host’s
TCP/IP settings check box.
Depending on your choice, after the .dist file installs and the host reboots, it retains its current TCP/
IP settings or uses the TCP/IP settings stored in the .dist file.
Step 9 To begin the installation, click Finish.
The .dist installation process opens a window that tracks its progress.
July 15, 2023 17
Chapter 3 Restore procedures EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
The installer automatically stops the station, then continues with the distribution file install process,
which overwrites the station, After the distribution file (and modules, if selected) are installed on the
platform, the controller reboots, and the progress window indicates complete.
Step 10 To continue, click Close and open a new platform connection, perhaps to view output in the Applica-
tion Director.
Restoring factory defaults (EC-BOS-9)
The process of recovering factory defaults deletes all platform and station data, and returns the controller to the
state it was in when it shipped from the factory. If you cannot commission the controller because you made an
error when entering the default platform daemon credentials or passphrase, you can restore factory defaults
and start again. Also, when decommissioning a controller, a best practice is to recover the factory defaults,
which removes the platform and station data from the controller. This procedure uses a terminal emulator pro-
gram to access the controller’s system shell menu.
Prerequisites:
• You have administrator-level platform credentials.
• You have backed up all data from the controller.
• If you are planning a “power—on” reboot using the serial shell menu
– The controller’s DEBUG port is connected to your PC using a USB-to-micro USB cable.
– Power is currently applied to the controller.
– You are logged into to the controller serial shell using a terminal emulator (system shell program), such
as PuTTY and the serial shell menu is visible on your PC.
CAUTION: Recovering factory defaults removes all platform and station data from the device. Make sure this is
what you intend before you follow this procedure.
18 July 15, 2023
EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide Chapter 3 Restore procedures
To reset a EC-BOS-9 to factory default state:
Step 1 With the outer panel cover open, press and hold the SHUT DOWN button on the EC-BOS-9 contol
panel.
SHUT DOWN
COM 1 COM 2
DEBUG
STAT BEAT SEC PRI
1 SHUT DOWN shuts down the controller and serves as the factory defaults recovery button.
2 STAT (status LED) blinks during recovery of factory defaults.
3 DEBUG port is a USB-C port for serial debug communications between the controller and serial shell run-
ning in the PC.
4 BEAT (Yellow); heartbeat LED that blinks at 1Hz during normal operation. Refer to “BEAT (Heartbeat)
LED” section for details.
Step 2 While still pressing the SHUT DOWN button, reboot the controller using one of the following actions:
• Add power to a powered off controller.
• Choose option 9 Reboot from the serial shell menu and enter “Y” at the confirmation prompt.
Reboot is initiated.
Step 3 Release the SHUT DOWN button 5 seconds after reboot is initiated.
Factory default restoration process begins.
When the BEAT LED blinks at normal rate the process is complete.
To setup the restored controller platform you will need to login to the serial shell using factory default
credentials.
July 15, 2023 19
Chapter 3 Restore procedures EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
20 July 15, 2023
Chapter 3 Restore procedures EC-BOS-9 Backup and Restore Guide
21 July 15, 2023
EC-BOS-9 Backup Restore_UG_10_ EN
