Version 1.9.5.29 Changes

Synchronization Master Property Group Type

Warning: While PropertyGroups were introduced in 1.9.0.01, they have seen limited usage so far. As a result, they should be considered to be very much beta. Please report any issues you may encounter.

This version adds an additional Property Group type called Synchronization Master.

Property Groups were introduced in 1.9.0.01 and you can learn more about how they work by reviewing the Beta Documentation for version 1.9.0.01. The original implementation included redundancy groups and synchronization groups. This version adds the Synchronization Master Property Group type. The differences between Synchronization Group and Synchronization Master are subtle but important in determining which is appropriate.

Synchronization Group attempts to keep items in sync by using the last change to any item in the group. When one item is changed, the others are sent commands to change to the same value. In the case a device reboots and comes back in a state that is different from the group, the new state is the most recent and therefore would be used. However, this also means that a manual change on one item in the group will automatically get sent to all other items in the group.

Synchronization Master on the other hands has a property called MasterValue. Setting that MasterValue property to a certain value will send the value to all items in the group. In the case where one of the items in the group gets changed manually or via a reboot, there are two possibilities depending on the Allow Out Of Sync Parameter shown above. If allow out of sync is true, then the groups state will get set to "out of sync" and no other action will take place. In that case, you can build your own logic to decide what action should be taken. If the Allow Out Of Sync property is false, then a command will be sent to try to force the item back into synchronization. Any time an item in the group changes its value away from whatever is defined in MasterValue, an attempt will be made to force it back if the Allow Out Of Sync Property is false.

<NoChange>

The one exception to the rules above is if the MasterValue is set to <NoChange>. In that case, the items in the group can behave independently again until an actual value is set in the MasterValue again. The state will still show whether the items are in sync or out of sync, but this can be used to disable the enforcement of master value when necessary. It is important to note that the MasterValue is not retained between restarts of PathfinderCore PRO. By default when a SynchronizationMaster group is first started, the MasterValue will be set to <NoChange>. If you wish the value to be retained between restarts, this can be accomplished using a memory slot with the StartupState set to LastValue and a logic flow that hooks the memory slot to the MasterValue property. Then you can change the MasterValue property by changing the memory slot, and the value will get reset when PathfinderCore PRO restarts.