SmartNet

Communicating via Smartnet

SmartNet is the system which links SMART users to each other and to Sendem users.  Sendem is the simplified, web-based version of Smart.

All Sendem and SMART users are automatically enrolled in SmartNet. (If you are a SMART user you have been provided with  a free Sendem account.) By default you will appear in lists of Smartnet users which are viewed by Smart users.

To disappear from the list, go to your Companies entry and set MessageVia to No Link.

If you are enrolled in SmartNet then SMART users can dispatch work to you (if you are a service provider) and you can dispatch work to SMART users or view details of work dispatched on your behalf.

You can also choose to have SMART users dispatch jobs or updates to you via SMS or email. Change your MessageVia setting accordingly. If you select SMS or email, your jobs will also continue to appear in Sendem.

Jobs may not reach you even though you make these settings if the SMART user's system or account is not in order.

You may also receive jobs via SMS or email from SMART users without joining Sendem, provided their SMART system is configured for this. Just supply them with your contact details.

SmartNet communicates using a 'web service', which uses the same technology as your web browser except that it is fully automated. Only operational details are transmitted at this time. (Subject to demand, transfer of billing and payment details may be enabled in a future release of Smart.)

The end result is much as though your industry partners were using your SMART system, except that they can only view and update details that concern them.

SmartNet is provided free of charge to existing Smart users. There is a nominal monthly charge to use Sendem.

System Requirements

One of your PCs (usually the same one that acts as the database server) must have the Smart Communications Processor installed and running.  Provided that PC can access the internet using a web browser, you have the Internet access you require.

Workstations must have Smart version 4.3 or later installed.

Setting up

1. Install the Smart Communications Processor. Go to this page for instructions.

2. After a couple of minutes of operation the Communications Processor will obtain your SmartNet ID from Sendem. Press the 'Enable Database for SmartNet' button in the SmartNet tab to complete the configuration. Warning - this can take several minutes if you have a lot of history in your SMART system, so you should do it at a quiet time.

3. Go to \Maintenance \Smart Setup \ General Configuration, SmartNet tab, and setup as required

  • Incoming jobs: set the default service code for an incoming job.
  • Outgoing jobs: tell the Service Provider who to bill to and who the Alarm Company is.

4. For those customers, alarm companies, or Service Providers you want to communicate with via SmartNet, link them to their SmartNetID. In the Customer Details and Alarm Company Details windows (usually on the last tab), you will find a button which enables you to look them up in a list of SmartNet users. This list is automatically kept updated for you by SmartNet, so it will not be available until the Communications Processor has been running for a few minutes.

In the Service Provider there is no lookup button. Ask the Service Provider for their SmartNet number.

Dispatching with SmartNet

You create a SmartNet job just like any other. However, when you select a provider who is on SmartNet and then press the F6 button to dispatch the job, the job request is immediately transferred via SmartNet.

If the job's Customer or Alarm Company has a SmartNet ID they will be automatically copied in as the job proceeds. Service Providers do not receive any information until the job is dispatched (you press F6 and then OK).

Once the job is complete, no further details are exchanged. If you want remote users to see changed details, set status to Incomplete, save the changes, then set the status back to Complete.

Information about SmartNet communications is shown in the box below the list of jobs in the Dispatch window. If you can't see this box, press F2 and tick 'show details below job list'. This box turns red when changes arrive or communications problems occur. To remove the red colour, open the job and press OK.

For a more detailed explanation of dispatching with SmartNet, go here.

Receiving jobs

When a remote control room sends you a job request, it simply appears in your job despatch screen as an active job with a SmartNet icon next to it. As you proceed with the job (depending on configuration), information about the job is copied back to the originating control room.

Preferably, the remote control room should use the same customer account number and site code as your system does to refer to customers and sites when placing a job request. However, depending on your system configuration (see below), the remote control room may use their own customer acount number or site code, in which case matching entries (internally tagged as belonging to the remote control room) are created.

Do not make changes to the 'Alarm Status' field for a job you received from another control room. Any changes you make will be over-written if the remote control room also makes changes to this field.

SmartNet and Sendem

Smartnet is a system for exchanging jobs between SMART installations. Sendem is our web-based application which may be thought of as a simplified version of SMART. Sendem users may exchange jobs with you provided they have a Sendem account and a SmartNet ID. Your setup is exactly the same; SMART works out how to communicate with them.

Because Sendem is a simplified version of SMART, jobs which are exchanged between the two may experience some minor anomalies.

  • If someone is sending you a new job for a Location or Alarm Company which already exists in SMART, a new record for the Location or Alarm Company will be created. This is to ensure that if the remote user updates address or contact details they do not affect your existing records.  However it also means that duplicate entries will appear in your list of Locations or Alarm Companies.  The name of the remote user who created the entry will be shown.
  • If a remote user saves changes to a job at almost exactly the same time (within 30 seconds or less) that you make changes to the same job in your system it is possible that each change will overwrite the other.  Should this occur, find your changes in the change log (small button to the right of the Job Setup/Notes/Times tab of the Job Details window) and reenter them.

Trouble shooting

Items to check if SmartNet is not working

  1. Does your SMART enabling code allow you to run SmartNet? Select \Help \Register Smart from the SMART Main Menu and see if there's a tick next to SmartNet Link. If not, contact Smart support.  Provided your Smart registration is in order there is no charge to have SmartNet enabled.
  2. Are your email settings correct? To check, go the Email Setup tab of the Smart Communications Processor, and review the instructions on this page .
  3. Has your SmartNet ID come through? This number should appear automatically in the Other Setup tab of the Smart Communications Processor within a few minutes of setup, and must be a number greater than 100. If it doesn't come through, and your internet link appears to be working correctly, contact Smart support.
  4. Check the log in the Processing tab of the Smart Communications Processor and see if any errors have been reported there.

© Skorpion Pty Ltd 2009