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Troubleshooting the HAL Connection

Before troubleshooting a connection issue, it may help if you understand the basics of how Halogen discovers and then establishes communications with a HAL. HAL devices send occasional UDP broadcast messages. RaneLink II (a Windows Service installed with Halogen that helps establish communication with HAL devices) listens constantly for these messages and, when it receives one, does the following three things, if necessary: It sets up a temporary link-local IP address (in other words, the address is cleared when the computer reboots) on the appropriate network interface card (NIC). It also adds an entry to the computer's network route table. This entry tells Windows and Halogen which NIC to use for communicating with the HAL. The same UDP messages also indicate to Halogen that a HAL device is on the network, so it can be displayed in the Connect to Device dialog box. Lastly, so that it can receive system status updates, RaneLink II opens and maintains a TCP connection with the HAL.

note: To review the list of processes required for a HAL connection, see Required Processes for Communicating with HAL.

If no HAL devices appear in the Connect to Device dialog box, you may have a connectivity issue. Following are some suggested actions to take (click each option for more details):

1. Is the HAL device located behind a network router? (If not, move to the next item in this checklist.)
2. Give Halogen more time to establish the connection.
3. Verify that the HAL Ethernet connection is functioning properly.
5. Verify that the RaneLink II service is running. If not, restart it.
6. Verify that advertisements from the HAL are reaching your PC.
7. Verify that the correct network interface card (NIC) is being used.
8. Ask your IT department for some assistance.

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