Recovering Spyder Hardware Calibration
IMPORTANT: This article contains information about overwriting Spyder hardware calibration, and should be performed either by or under the supervision of a trained professional. Before you overwrite hardware calibration, make sure you understand and are comfortable with the steps outlined below. For more information or help following the procedures below, contact Vista technical support.
Note: The steps outlined below used to recover calibration data requires the Spyder frame to be running in master mode. Spyder frames running in slave mode will not process the SystemCalibration.xml file, and so slave frames must be switched to master mode before performing the steps below.
Summary
The embedded computer within Spyder stores an XML data file containing the hardware calibration information on all installed modules. This file is generated at the factory for the purpose of calibration recovery in the case of one or more modules loosing calibration while in the field. This knowledge base article describes the process of using this XML data file to restore factory calibration to the modules within Spyder.
How Calibration Files Work
The first time a Spyder system starts up at the factory, a special file is create an XML file containing the calibration information for each module in the system. The purpose of this file is to allow for hardware recovery in the case of module calibration being lost on a Spyder system in the field, mitigating the need for the unit to be returned to the manufacturer for re-calibration. Note that it is extremely rare for a module to loose calibration and may be a symptom of a greater hardware problem. The files listed below are used by the Spyder server for the purpose of storing module calibration information:
- C:\SpyderCalibration.xml: The presence of this file at server startup will cause the Spyder server to overwrite the calibration data in every module within the Spyder frame with the contents of the file. After the calibration data has been written to hardware and verified, the Spyder server will rename the file to c:\SpyderCalibration.old, which prevents the calibration from being loaded from file each time the server starts. Note that if the calibration data does not verify after being written from the SpyderCalibration.xml the file will not be renamed, causing the hardware to be re-loaded again at the next server restart.
- C:\SpyderCalibration.old: After the Spyder server has successfully written the SpyderCalibration.xml file to the hardware modules, the file is renamed to SpyderCalibration.old. This prevents the calibration from being loaded from file at each restart of the Spyder server, and the presence of this file indicates that the calibration was successfully written and verified.
- C:\SpyderCalibration.cal: If this file does not exist when the Spyder server starts, the server application reads the calibration information from all hardware modules in the system and writes the information into this file. If one or modules looses its calibration data at a later point in time, this file can be used to restore it in the field. After physically replacing any modules, it is recommended that this file be deleted, causing the Spyder server to create a new calibration file containing the new module calibration information at the next startup.
More Information
To restore factory calibration to the modules within Spyder, perform the following steps:
- Open a Remote Desktop connection to the Spyder server. For information on performing this step, see 'Connecting to Spyder Server Using Remote Desktop' in the related links list for this article.
- Double-click the 'My Computer' icon on the desktop within remote desktop.
- Within the 'My Computer' window, double-click the 'Local Disk (C:)' icon.
- Create a copy of the SpyderCalibration.cal file, and rename the copy to SpyderCalibration.xml. The contents of the SpyderCalibration.xml file will be written to the hardware modules on the next Spyder server application restart.
- Restart the Spyder server application. This application will already be running on the desktop, and will have a title bar containing text similar to 'Frame: 0 Version X.X Build:XXX'. Closing this window by clicking the 'X' in the upper right-hand corner will cause the Spyder server application to be automatically restarted.
- After the Spyder server application has restarted, check that the c:\SpyderCalibration.xml file has been renamed to c:\SpyderCalibration.old. This indicates that Spyder was able to load and then verify the calibration data stored in the XML file. If the file has not been renamed, contact Vista technical support for further instruction.