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[soxfan1966]

Sorry, busy day and I did not get a chance to check any of the suggestions.  Will try tomorrow.
One note, the PiX10 does not have any connection to exa (I don't use the Hub for that and the service is disabled).  I only mentioned it in case the problem of a conflict with different x10 transmitter having collisions was possible.

[brobin]

When you moved to the P2 for Alexa did you remove all the devices in the Alexa app and and then run Discover devices again?  I had to do that when migrating from Alex 10 to the PiAlexaHub and then again when migrating to the P2.  It's important not to have dual entries in the Alexa app.  That said, I still think we're looking more towards the PLM or USB cable but look into that too.

[petera]

I’m convinced his Harmony hub is fine and Alexa is Alexa. A glorified microphone  I’ve a sneaking suspicion where his problem lies but I won’t commit either way till I know exactly what his setup is. Those hubs are generally bullet proof. Once they work they work.

[soxfan1966]

Good afternoon (almost said morning) - this lockdown has me
messed up with days of the week etc, but I digress ...

Here is my update:
I replaced the cat 5 cable, and switched the port on the network switch I was using for the P2 (swapped with my desktop computer).

I do not have another USB cable right now so could not swap
that.

I then reset the PLM as instructed.

I gave it a few minutes to get synched up to the network.

One thing I also did is in my HomeGenie setup I disabled all the x10 programs I had that essentially repeated a PLM command for a device as an RF command (I had originally had issues with some x10 commands not reaching things on the opposite phase, and this approach worked).

There is nothing specific connected from the P2 to the PiX10Hub other than they both send / receive X10 commands.

I tried a few Alexa commands and they worked with no lockups but need to let things run for a bit, especially later today when outside lights get triggered to go on to see how things are going.

Will report back later today or tomorrow.

[brobin]

If/when you have the problem again, before doing anything else, open the Smartenit app and see if the green circle goes on and off for a device you're asking Alexa to operate and look for the PLM LED flicker.
 
If the green circle goes on and off in response to Alexa then the internet side is good.
You can also try tapping the device in the app and look for the PLM flicker.
If the PLM doesn't flicker then it's likely the cable or the PLM.
If it DOES flicker then it may be a powerline issue and try retesting with a lamp plugged in to the same outlet.

[petera]

One thing I also did is in my HomeGenie setup I disabled all the x10 programs I had that essentially repeated a PLM command for a device as an RF command (I had originally had issues with some x10 commands not reaching things on the opposite phase, and this approach worked).

There is nothing specific connected from the P2 to the PiX10Hub other than they both send / receive X10 commands.

I think this action may well have resolved your issue. Definitely sounds like X10 signal duplication/collision. Not sure what you have installed on that PiX10 hub as there's a number of different "versions" circulating, some with HA Bridge, some without and others with various other items installed.

A straightforward install of HomeGenie should happily coexist with your setup. You've basically two X10 controllers operating on your setup, the CM15 on your Raspberry Pi and your Harmony hub and it appears they are duplicating the same tasks each time you issue an X10 command. Bearing in mind that the Harmony hub allows your setup to interface with Alexa that should be your main focus. I'd be surprised if you're not getting lockups on your CM15 too but they are not as obvious as the ones on the Harmony hub.

What ports are currently in use on your network. Have you checked what port Harmony hub uses. Have you HA Bridge installed. Is that conflicting with either the Harmony port or the HomeGenie port. Can you see the possible conflicts in your system. I've no doubt that your Harmony hub is fine, it's just all the other elements on your setup I couldn't be sure of. You've definitely got conflicts here. It's just knowing how your system is configured would help eliminate the conflict.

As you say let it run with the changes you made and report back. Do bear in mind @brobin uses the Harmony hub but not the PiX10 hub. I use HomeGenie but not the Harmony hub

[soxfan1966]

Well, my timers in HomeGenie ran for my outdoor lights but as I expected they did not turn on.   So I enabled my HomeGenie x10 RF programs and turned them on manually in HG and they worked again.

I have not tried the P2 via Alexa since this morning but I will.

I usually do not use Alexa to turn on / off my exterior lights (but occasionally do) so I could try disabling the x10 RF programs for those items I use Alexa for most and see what happens but if it's an issue with the PLM units flooding / colliding with each other not sure that would work.

I have not had an issue using my PiX10Hub with those programs enabled and I do not have HA Bridge running on my PiX10Hub (it's not even installed).

My home was.adding the P2 would provide a reliable, trouble free option for using Alexa and X10 so hopefully whatever the hangup I am running into is fixable and I get my wish.

[petera]

I suggest using the setup @brobin has. Just eliminate your Raspberry Pi HomeGenie from the equation for the moment so you can confirm all is well with the Harmony hub. Once that’s confirmed working from there you can start troubleshooting your Raspberry Pi HomeGenie setup. Just for clarity could you confirm what X10 controller you have connected to your Raspberry Pi.

You refer to your “HomeGenie X10 RF programs” Why do you refer to them as X10 RF programs if you are using a CM15 X10 controller. As I mentioned as much info as possible on your HomeGenie setup would help troubleshoot your problem. Did you install HomeGenie from official sources or was it from an image you downloaded here.

[brobin]

I'm not sure how the other X10 signals could be causing a problem and why RF would enter into the equation. The P2/PLM does not have any X10 RF capability.  When RF is sent from a remote or a CM19A it is received by an X10 transceiver that sends X10 signals.  The P2 would see the X10 signals like any other controller but I don't see how it would prevent the P2/PLM from transmitting or cause it to lock up.
 
When it does lock up it would really be helpful to run the tests in my earlier posts to help isolate the issue.  It could be that doing the factory reset on the PLM cured the problem but it's hard to tell as other changes were made simultaneously.  It's best to try one thing at a time, evaluate, and move on to the next step.  At this point, it would be interesting to see what happens if the HG configuration was put back the way you want it either before or after you do as @petera suggests.

Resetting a new PLM to factory defaults to clear test programming is a well known cure for PLM issues.

[petera]

I'm not sure how the other X10 signals could be causing a problem and why RF would enter into the equation. The P2/PLM does not have any X10 RF capability.  When RF is sent from a remote or a CM19A it is received by an X10 transceiver that sends X10 signals.  The P2 would see the X10 signals like any other controller but I don't see how it would prevent the P2/PLM from transmitting or cause it to lock up.
 
When it does lock up it would really be helpful to run the tests in my earlier posts to help isolate the issue.  It could be that doing the factory reset on the PLM cured the problem but it's hard to tell as other changes were made simultaneously.  It's best to try one thing at a time, evaluate, and move on to the next step.  At this point, it would be interesting to see what happens if the HG configuration was put back the way you want it either before or after you do as @petera suggests.

Resetting a new PLM to factory defaults to clear test programming is a well known cure for PLM issues.

That's what's puzzling me too. I'm assuming a CM15 is being used on the Raspberry Pi/Homegenie combo which obviously combines rf/plc commands. I know nothing about the Harmony hub but I'm assuming X10 commands end up transmitted down plc as does the CM15 if I'm not mistaken.

Now say, for instance the harmony hub and the CM15 are executing the same X10 command to the same address is there likely to be a collision and lockup.

Once it's confirmed that the Harmony hub is functioning correctly as per your setup the OP can go to the next troubleshooting point.

[brobin]

I'm not sure how the other X10 signals could be causing a problem and why RF would enter into the equation. The P2/PLM does not have any X10 RF capability.  When RF is sent from a remote or a CM19A it is received by an X10 transceiver that sends X10 signals.  The P2 would see the X10 signals like any other controller but I don't see how it would prevent the P2/PLM from transmitting or cause it to lock up.
 
When it does lock up it would really be helpful to run the tests in my earlier posts to help isolate the issue.  It could be that doing the factory reset on the PLM cured the problem but it's hard to tell as other changes were made simultaneously.  It's best to try one thing at a time, evaluate, and move on to the next step.  At this point, it would be interesting to see what happens if the HG configuration was put back the way you want it either before or after you do as @petera suggests.

Resetting a new PLM to factory defaults to clear test programming is a well known cure for PLM issues.

That's what's puzzling me too. I'm assuming a CM15 is being used on the Raspberry Pi/Homegenie combo which obviously combines rf/plc commands. I know nothing about the Harmony hub but I'm assuming X10 commands end up transmitted down plc as does the CM15 if I'm not mistaken.

Now say, for instance the harmony hub and the CM15 are executing the same X10 command to the same address is there likely to be a collision and lockup.

Once it's confirmed that the Harmony hub is functioning correctly as per your setup the OP can go to the next troubleshooting point.

To keep it simple, the Harmony P2 acts like the PiX10Hub in that it's a controller.  The PLM acts like the CM15A in that it handles the powerline interface and sends the commands. 

[soxfan1966]

As you are likely aware, one of the limitations of x10 is that power line signals from one phase do not cross to the other phase of a 220 volt circuit breaker panel.  So when you have some x10 devices on each phase there can be issues.

There is device (forgot the model /name) that is supposed to allow the signals to pass over to the other phase, and uses the dryer plug.  I used to have one but it didn't prove all that reliable.

So what I have is a CM15 (I believe that's what I have) attached to my PiX10Hub and plugged into an outlet on one phase. Then I have a TM15 (again, I think that's the model) plugged into an outlet on a different phase.

So in HomeGenie I have programs defined that are triggered when a power line commands are received it sends an RF signal for that same device.  That RF signal is picked up by the TM15 on the other phase and the signal makes.it down the power lines on the other phase.
Note:. I think I actually have 2 TM15 units one on each phase, which may be something I can fix to remove one.

So that's what I am referring to by my HomeGenie RF programs.

So my hunch is that the PLM device attached to the P2 may be suffering from x10 collisions, but it's just a hunch.

I will see how things go after resetting vthe PLM device this morning.

[petera]

A lot of X10 controller and RF transceiver equipment operating in the same area. I can’t make any suggestion on what can be done with the Harmony equipment as I don’t own it but I am very familiar with the Raspberry Pi/CM15/HomeGenie setup and I’m guessing that’s the source of your problem. You know how to eliminate the Harmony hub as a source of your problems. Once you’ve done that it’s on to the Raspberry Pi/CM15/HomeGenie setup.

I’m assuming you have your macros/timers cleared off your CM15 and your ports are correctly configured for each individual piece of hardware you have attached to your network.

[brobin]

Yes, I remember you mentioning that and appreciate the greater detail.  Using two TM751's can be problematic if they're both receiving from the CM15a transmitter at the same time. The fix would be to install a proper coupler like an XPCP at the breaker panel or, better yet, an XTB-IIR amplifier/coupler or one of the others available.  If you want to continue with the way you're doing it, you could program a 1 second delay on repeating the command via RF. 

I still don't think that the collisions are the cause because the PLM would have already finished transmitting. I assume it's been stable since resetting the PLM so fingers crossed that it stays that way!

For signal issues the gold standard is the XTB-IIR at http://jvde.us/xtb/xtb-iir.pdf
Other options are here: https://www.x10.com/x10-pro/specialty-devices/couplers-repeaters/xpcr-coupler-repeater-amplifier.html
and https://www.x10.com/x10-pro/specialty-devices/couplers-repeaters/xpcp-ratio-passive-coupler.html

[soxfan1966]

Things with the P2 have been good since Saturday - I used it a few times yesterday and also this morning.  In all cases the devices responded and worked as expected.  Will monitor how things go the rest of the week and update here, but so far an improvement.