The system my T3-BB controls is reasonably important and it is considered necessary to keep a spare controller on site. Although a failure is unlikely, the downtime waiting for a replacement has unacceptable consequences. I have therefore purchased a spare T3-BB controller.
I would like to set the spare up so it can be swapped in easily. I plan to use the same PC/T3000 system - temporarily disconnected from the “running” controller and instead connected to the new/spare controller
Can I/How do I set the same IP address as the original?
I expect there will be program updates over time, so every so often I would need to refresh the program in the spare controller. But of not, is there any time limit for the program memory retention?
I guess for mission critical operations this would be a concern but a spare unit in the closet is good enough for most HVAC applications.
Throwing out a few comments:
PROGRAM STORAGE:
The program is stored in non voltatile flash which lasts for decades with no power. Also there’s a small supercap on board which keeps the clock alive during power outages, that will be drained but the controller can get the time from other panels in the network (if any) or NTP time serevers if you have that configured.
DUPLICATE IPs
As I recall you have an HMI that depends on the T3 controller being at a fixed IP address so both the master and the backup need to be set to the same IP. When the master controller goes down you power up the backup and all should be good.