Changing 140+ Industrial IP Addresses in 30 Minutes
Have you ever ever looked at a room full of PLC trainers and thought, "I should change every single IP address in here today?"
We recently migrated our entire training center from the 192.168.20.x subnet to 192.168.1.x, and while it sounds like a weekend-long headache, we managed to knock out about 142 devices in just 30 minutes.
Here is a look at how we tackled the chaos and what we learned along the way.
Strategy is Everything
Before we touched a single cable, we did the legwork. We tested two stations first to make sure our plan held water. When you're dealing with over 140 devices, you don't want to find out there's a flaw in your logic when you're 50 devices deep.
We used the SIM-IPE tool, and the "Sort by Name" feature became our best friend. It allowed us to group similar hardware—like all the PowerFlex drives—so we could stay in one "mindset" at a time.
The Problem Children (PowerFlex & Micro800s)
Not every device plays by the same rules. If you've worked with PowerFlex 525s, you know they can be picky. You can’t just hit "replace" and call it a day; you have to enable BootP and cycle the power. It's a bit of a dance, but once you get the rhythm down, it moves fast.
Then there are the Micro850s. If you try to change their IP while they’re in Run mode, they’ll give you a "write privilege error." Luckily, those have a physical switch you can flip to Program mode. The Micro820s, however, don't have that switch, so those stayed on the "do it later in CCW" list while we kept the momentum going on the easier stuff.
Watching the Colors
One of the coolest things about the process was watching the SIM-IP screen. Devices on our "old" network showed up in green, while the ones we had already moved to the "new" network turned red. It’s a simple visual cue, but it’s incredibly satisfying to watch that list slowly turn red as you work your way through the room.
In the end, 142 devices in 30 minutes isn't too bad for a morning's work. Now, it's time for lunch!