New v10 Firmware Breaks PVPlus Wizard, Rockwell's Fix Hidden Behind Paywall

[Shawn Tierney]

Nobody is perfect, but locking bug fixes, wiring diagrams, and product drivers behind a paywall is not good for customer...

Click here to view the original article on The Automation Blog

[Shawn Tierney]

Sadly, a week later Rockwell's half page of text explaning how to "fix" the issue is still "locked" behind the "paywall" requiring a support contract.

Does anyone else think it's odd that Rockwell gives the Firmware away for free, as well as gives the Update Wizard software away for free, but won't let you see the half page of text about how the Firmware can break the Software (including how to fix it,) without a Support Contract?

[dlevine6487]

I ran across this issue, and first of all I want to thank you for posting your findings.

Rockwell differentiates between "Everyone" and "TechConnect" by defining their answers as "Public" or "Contract Level". Sadly the public answers are so vague they leave you scrolling all the way to the bottom to find a article title that matches specifically what your issues is. When you click it, you are immediately prompted for a techconnect login. It's the best bait and switch ever! The only feature TechConnect has that I even find very useful is their Chat feature. This allows for more multitasking than just having a phone glued to your face for an hour.

Alternatively, I know other major Controls companies such as Siemens provide FREE! Technical support, and do not lock you out of documentation. They have a vast forum with moderators that reply very promptly. You can call in to their helpline for free, and get up to an hour at a time to get assistance. If you go over the hour. Just hang up and call back, same ticket number and all, not a problem. If you do buy a support contract they are available for as long as you need.

Overall, I find more benefits in visiting theautomationforums.com than to be let down time and time again clicking through rockwell's customer support.

bait and switch.jpgbait and switch.jpg

[Shawn Tierney]

I ran across this issue, and first of all I want to thank you for posting your findings.

Rockwell differentiates between "Everyone" and "TechConnect" by defining their answers as "Public" or "Contract Level". Sadly the public answers are so vague they leave you scrolling all the way to the bottom to find a article title that matches specifically what your issues is. When you click it, you are immediately prompted for a techconnect login.

Good afternoon dlevine6487,

Thanks for letting us know this article helped!

And I will continue to encourage Rockwell to make Tech Notes for solving issues with free downloads free to everyone!

At some point common sense has to win out!

Sincerely,

Shawn Tierney,
Instructor, TheAutomationSchool.com

[William Qian]

Thank you very much, Shawn! You saved my day!

I don't like their paywall either. I signed up once for a year but just to find out that they still could screw things up even you pay the money. I was having an issue with their VFD and the first lady I talked to wasn't competent enough to know what the problem was, yet she insisted to have me followed her instructions, ignoring my suspicions all along. It ended up damaged my mechanical system. After it was repaired, I called again. This time a gentleman answered and he found and solved the problem right away.

Ever since I discontinued the subscription, and rely on their distributor for tech support. But this time even the distributor couldn't solve the problem until I got here. So thank you again. The sad thing, as for Rockwell, I don't know if they even care...

[Shawn Tierney]

Thanks @William Qian!

Yeah, most of the time local A-B Distributors can be a huge help, and this article in fact was based on an issue a friend of mine (who's still a distributor specialist) ran into, so I researched it after a student ran into it and published what I found on the blog.

I'll also likely let my "Self Assist" TC expire this summer too since software updates come out so slowly and with few features so I can just wait a couple of years to get more updates.

PS - I really wish they would release $2500 toolkits for those of us who are not OEMs :-( I don't need tech support, and don't need all Rockwell's expensive MES level software like Historian, Metrics, Transaction Manager, etc, so it makes no sense to spend $4500 a year :-(

Sincerely,

Shawn Tierney,
Instructor, TheAutomationSchool.com

[Rankhornjp]

I don't see a download link for the Firmware Upgrade Wizard. What am I missing?

[Shawn Tierney]

Good afternoon @Rankhornjp,

This article isn't about downloading a copy of the Firmware Wizard. I do have an older article on doing that below:

https://theautomationblog.com/downlo...nsfer-utility/

And here's some articles about getting and flashing firmware:

https://theautomationblog.com/how-to...mware-in-2018/
https://theautomationblog.com/flashi...us-7-firmware/

Good luck!

Shawn Tierney,
Instructor at TheAutomationSchool.com