Evolve PL200M User manual

PL200M
200Mbps powerline adapter
User Manual

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Content
1Introduction ........................................................................... 130
1.1 System Requirements....................................................... 130
1.2 Packing List .................................................................. 130
2Safety Precautions ................................................................... 131
3Getting to Know the Adapter....................................................... 132
3.1 Ethernet Port ................................................................ 132
3.2 Buttons ....................................................................... 132
3.3 LEDs ........................................................................... 133
4Installing Powerline Utility ......................................................... 135
5How to Use Powerline Utility....................................................... 143
5.1 Main tab ...................................................................... 143
5.2 Information Tab ............................................................. 150
5.3 About Tab..................................................................... 151
6How to Use the Security/Reset Pushbutton ...................................... 153
6.1 Forming a HomePlug AV logical network ................................ 153
6.2 Joining a Network........................................................... 154
6.3 Leaving a Network .......................................................... 155
7How to Enter and Exit from the Standby Mode .................................. 156
7.1 Entering the Standby Mode ................................................ 156
7.2 Exiting From the Standby Mode........................................... 156
8How to Improve the Transmission Capacity ...................................... 157
Appendix A Specifications............................................................ 158
Appendix B Acronyms and Abbreviations .......................................... 159

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1 Introduction
EVOLVE PL200M (also called “the device” hereinafter) is a low power consumption
PLC device. It can transmit network data in the household powerline. The device
is compatible with the latest requirements of the EUP Directive. When the device
enters the lower power consumption mode, the consumption is less than 0.5W.
The device can detect 200Mbps PLC-Ethernet bridge devices in the powerline
network, measure data rate performance, ensure the security of the powering
network, and perform system diagnosis.
1.1 System Requirements
Operating System Windows 98SE, Windows 2000, Windows
ME, Windows XP 32/64 bit and Windows
Vista 32/64bit
CPU Intel Pentium III or higher and clock rate
faster than 2.0 GHz are recommended.
RAM At least 128 MB
Screen Resolution Any resolution
Free Disk Space At least 20 MB
Network Interface At least one fast Ethernet (100 Mbps)
network interface card (NIC) and one
Ethernet cord
1.2 Packing List
1 x x Mini-PLC Devices
1 x CD-ROM
1 x RJ45 Ethernet cables

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2 Safety Precautions
This device is intended for connection to the AC powerline. For installation
instructions, please refer to the installation section of this guide. The following
precautions should be taken when using this product.
Follow all the warnings and instructions marked on the product.
Unplug the device from the wall outlet before cleaning. Use a damp cloth
for cleaning. Do not use liquid cleaners or aerosol cleaners.
Keep the device away from a radiator or heat register.
Do not use an extension cord between the device and the AC power source.
Only professional technicians should service the device. Opening or
removing covers may result in exposure to dangerous voltage points or
other risks.
Unplug the device from the wall outlet and refer to professional service
personnel for the following conditions:
–If liquid has been spilled into the product
–If the device has been exposed to rain or water
–If the device does not operate normally when the operation
instructions are followed.
–If the device exhibits a distinct change in performance

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3 Getting to Know the Adapter
3.1 Ethernet Port
Ethernet: Ethernet port. Connect one end of an Ethernet network cable to PLC’s
Ethernet port and the other end to your computer or other Ethernet-enabled
network device.
3.2 Buttons
Figure 1: Side panel of the device
Security/Reset: Set the status of the device members or restore the factory
default settings.
Factory Reset: Press and hold the Security/Reset button for 10 seconds.
Exit the existing AVLN: Press and hold the Security/Reset button for 5-8
seconds, and then release it.
Make the adapter a member of the existing AVLN: Press and hold the
Security/Reset button for 1-3 seconds. For more details, see Chapter 6.

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3.3 LEDs
There are 3 LEDs on the front panel to indicate the adapter status.
Figure 2: Top view
The following table describes the LEDs on the device.
LED Color Behavior Description
Power
Green On The adapter is supplied with power and
running normally.
Green Blink System is in the process of security
setup.
Orange Blink every
4 seconds System enters the standby mode.
- Off The adapter is powered off.
Ethernet Green On
The adapter is connecting to other
devices via the Ethernet port but not
communicating with them.

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Green Blink The adapter is receiving or transmitting
data via the Ethernet port.
- Off The device is not connecting to other
devices via the Ethernet interface.
Data
Green/
Orange/
Red
On The device has connected to the power
line network.
Green/
Orange/
Red
Blink
The Data LED color varies with the
physical rate.
Green: Link Rate > 40 Mbps
Orange: 20 Mbps < Link Rate <40
Mbps
Red: Link Rate < 20 Mbps
- Off
The adapter has not found any other
compatible powerline devices that use
the same encryption key.
Note:
The Power, Ethernet and Data indicators blink on and off when the device is
powered on. At that moment, the Ethernet indicator is green, and the Power
and Data indicators are orange

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4 Installing Powerline Utility
Powerline Utility is a configuration management tool for BCM60321-chip devices
developed based on HomePlugAV and XtendnetTM. It can trace and scan GGL
devices and BCM60321-chip devices in the same network.
Before installing Powerline Utility of PL200M, uninstall other Powerline Utility on
your computer.
To properly run Powerline Utility, first install WinPcap. For more information
about WinPcap, visit http://www.winpcap.org.
Do as follows to install Powerline Utility:
Step 1 Insert the CD into the CD drive. Open the PLC 200M Utility Installation
folder and double-click Setup.exe to start installing Powerline Utility.
Figure 3: Open the CD folder
Step 2 If your computer has not been installed with WinPcap, WinPcap will
automatically be installed first. Click OK to start install WinPcap. See
the following figure.
Figure 4: Prompt for installing WinPcap
If your computer has been installed with the latest WinPcap, Powerline Utility will
be installed directly. Proceed to step 11.

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Step 3 Click Next to continue installation.
Figure 5: WinPcap installer
Step 4 Click Next to continue installation.
Figure 6: Setup wizard

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Step 5 Click I Agree to accept the license agreement of WinPcap.
Figure 7: License agreement
Step 6 Click Install to install WinPcap 4.1.2.
Figure 8: Install WinPcap 4.1.2

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Note:
If WinPcap of an earlier version has been installed in your computer, the
system notifies you to uninstall the earlier version when you try installing
WinPcap included in the CD.
Step 7 If WinPcap of an earlier version has been installed in your computer,
the system notifies you to uninstall the earlier version when you try
installing WinPcap included in the CD. Click Yes.
Figure 9: Dialog box for uninstalling earlier WinPcap
Step 8 Click Uninstall to start uninstallation.
Figure 10: Uninstalling earlier WinPcap

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Step 9 Click Finish to complete uninstalling earlier WinPcap.
Figure 11: Complete uninstalling earlier WinPcap
Step 10 Click Finish to complete installing WinPcap and start to install
Powerline Utility.
Figure 12: Complete installing WinPcap

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Step 11 Click Next to follow Powerline Utility setup wizard.
Figure 13: Setup Wizard for Powerline Utility
Step 12 Select I accept the agreement. Click Next to continue installation.
Figure 14: License agreement

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Step 13 Click Browse… to change the path for installing Powerline Utility. The
default installation path is C:\Program Files\Powerline Utility. Click
Next.
Figure 15: Select an installation path
Step 14 Create a shortcut in the Start Menu folder. Click Browse… to select a
folder to place the shortcut. Click Next to continue the installation.
Figure 16: Select a folder to place the shortcut

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Step 15 Select Create a desktop icon or Create a Quick Launch icon if necessary.
Click Next..
Figure 17: Select additional tasks
Step 16 Click Install to start installing Powerline Utility.
Figure 18: Ready to install

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Step 17 Click Finish to complete installing Powerline Utility. If you select
Launch Powerline Utility, Powerline Utility is automatically run after
it is successfully installed.
Figure 19: Complete the installation
5 How to Use Powerline Utility
Click the icon in the desktop or quick launch bar to open Powerline Utility.
5.1 Main tab
The Main screen provides a list of all powerline devices logically connected to the
computer. The top panel shows the local HomePlugAV devices connected to the
network interface card (NIC) of the computer or remote devices that pass
verification.
Click Connect, and Powerline Utility automatically scans the powerline
periodically for other HomePlugAV devices connected to it. If no local
HomePlugAV device is discovered, the screen displays “0 device(s) found”.

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Figure 20: Main tab
Note:
Usually, only one HomePlugAV device will be detected and displayed on the
top panel of the screen. However, more than one HomePlugAV devices will
be detected if your computer has multiple NICs.
The lower panel displays all the HomePlugAV remote devices discovered in the
current logical network. The total number of remoter devices connected in the
same network is displayed above the remote device panel.

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Figure 21: Lower panel of the Main tab
The following information is displayed for all the devices that appear in the lower
panel.
Device Name
This column shows the default device name, which may be modified. To change
the name, click Rename.
Mac Address
This column shows the MAC addresses of the remote devices.
Password
By default, this column is blank. You can click Enter Password to enter it. For
some operations (for example, changing network passwords), you must first get
devices’ password verified by entering correct passwords.
The steps for entering the password of the device are as follows:
Step 1 Click the device name to select the device in the lower panel.
Step 2 Click Enter Password. A dialog box appears, showing the device name
and password. The default password (DEK) is printed on labels on the
bottom of devices.

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Figure 22: Change the device’s password
Step 3 Click OK to verify the password.
This process might take a few seconds to get completed. If the password is
entered correctly, the device’s password shows in the Password column on the
lower panel. If a device is not found, a message appears, suggesting trying again.
Change NPW (Network Password)
The Change NPW button is used to remove a remote device from its
existing network by changing the NPW for the remote device. All devices
are shipped with a default NPW (“HomePlugAV”). Devices with the same
NPW are located in the same network.

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Note:
Only devices that have their password verified can be removed from a
network by clicking Change NPW. Before changing a device’s NPW, click
Enter Password to enter the device’s password to achieve verification.
If the device is found and has its password entered correctly, enter a new NPW
different from the existing network in the Set Network Password dialog box
displayed. Then, the device is successfully removed from the network.
Figure 23: Change the network password
If a device does not have its password entered, a “Not change!” message appears.
You need to click Enter Password to enter the device’s password to achieve
verification first.
Figure 24: Not Change message