CLX Electronic Keying

[Jkennedy]

1st post for me here.....

Control Logix v20
RSL5K
Powerflex 755
Ethernet Comms
Hirachmann managed

Can anybody tell me what the disadvantages of disabling the electronic keying are? As my systems are aging, powerflex firmware revs are advancing. I do OEM work so I need to be able to ship replacement parts that will "plug and play". I guess my only other option is to back-flash the powerflex to an older firmware. I kinda don't want to do that.

Thoughts?

 

[Ken Roach]

Welcome to the Forum !

Your post ended up in the 'Practice Posting' section, where it won't get a lot of views. Make sure that you are posting in the main Forum area.

To answer the question: the main reason for using Electronic Keying is to decrease the probability that the controller will run the incorrect drive if the network address is entered incorrectly.

There are other reasons, like assuring that different firmware revisions have the same meaning for each I/O bit or value, but preventing mis-operation of a device because of an addressing error is the main reason.

If you only have one drive in the system, or the hazard of running the wrong drive is low, or the network is isolated from other networks, disabling electronic keying is fairly safe.