Why does my Wall station stop communicating with my Controller after a few days?

The WAC Wall Station communicates using multicast, and if it stops functioning after a day or so while remaining online, various network settings or behaviors could be causing the disruption. Below are some settings that may contribute to this issue: 

1. IGMP Snooping & Querier Issues

   • Many switches enable IGMP snooping by default, requiring an IGMP Querier to periodically refresh group memberships.
   • If no querier is present, the switch may stop forwarding multicast traffic after the IGMP group membership timeout (often ~24 hours).
   • Suggestion: Ensure an IGMP Querier is active on the network.

2. TTL (Time-To-Live) Expiry

   • Some multicast applications rely on TTL settings to control message forwarding.
   • If TTL is too low, packets may not reach intended devices after router/switch restarts or topology changes.
   • Suggestion: Increase the TTL value in multicast packets.
     
     

3. Multicast Flooding Prevention / Filtering

   • Some managed switches or routers may enforce multicast rate limiting or timeout policies for group memberships.
   • Suggestion: Check switch/router multicast filtering policies and increase timeouts if needed.

For further details on this topic, we recommend consulting your Internet Service Provider or router/modem manufacturer to identify specific settings that may remedy this type of disruption.