Note: The user must have administrator access level in SERVICE to be able to access the shop floor LAN network devices analysis tool in the Admin > Networks page.
The Direct Ping Test is a network tool that lets users test reachability to any IP address and port from the Amphion, without having to add it as a target destination first. This is useful for quickly checking connectivity to a specific device, such as a PLC, HMI, or other machine network equipment, from the shop floor network connected to the Amphion.
For a given IP address, this test will determine whether:
- The IP address responds to a ping
- The specified port is open (if a port is provided)
In SERVICE, navigate to Admin > Networks and search for the project number of the network you would like to test from.
On this page the user will be able to see the Network Devices icon. Clicking this will take you to the Network Tools launch page, which includes the option Direct Ping. This option will be unavailable if the network is offline, or the Amphion software is not up to date.
The minimum Amphion software versions required are:
- S14 – 4.8.0.0 and above
- S14+ – 5.0.15.0 and above
Clicking Direct Ping opens the Direct Ping Test dialog.
Running a Test
- IP Address – Enter the IP address you want to test reachability to.
- Port (optional) – Enter a port number if you also want to check whether that port is open. If this field is left blank, only the ping check is performed, and Port Open will show as N/A in the results.
- Interface – Choose which network interface on the Amphion to run the test from:
- Any – Lets the Amphion choose the interface automatically. The results table will show the specific interface that was actually used.
- To ei3 (eth0) – Tests reachability from the Amphion’s internet-facing interface.
- To Machine (eth1) – Tests reachability from the Amphion’s machine-facing interface. Use this option when you want to confirm a device is reachable specifically from the shop floor / machine network side.
Click Run Test to start the test.
Reading the Results
When the test completes, the results appear in a table above the form:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| IP Address | The address that was tested |
| Port | The port that was tested, or blank if none was entered |
| Interface | The interface the test actually ran from |
| Port Open | Green if the port responded as open, red if it was closed or unreachable, N/A if no port was entered |
| Ping Success | Green if the ping succeeded, red if it failed |
| Ping Time (ms) | The round-trip ping time, or N/A if the ping failed |
Click Test Another to run another test without closing the dialog, or OK to close it.
Note: If a ping or port check fails for a device that is normally reachable, this does not necessarily indicate a problem with the Amphion itself. It can also mean the target’s network was temporarily offline at the moment of the test, for example because the machine was powered down or there was an ISP outage. If you get an unexpected failure, it is worth retrying the test before troubleshooting further.
Recent Ping History
Below the results table, the dialog keeps a Recent Ping History of up to the last 10 tests run during your current session. This history does not persist between visits to the page, so it will be empty again the next time you open the Direct Ping Test.
