Create and Manage Alerts

This article describes the key concepts of the Banner CDS Alerts system and describes the process for setting them up.

It is important to understand that an alert is the combination of an alarm and a notification. Creating only an alarm does not automatically create the corresponding notification that will alert an individual responsible for addressing concerns. That connection must be created using the framework described below.

The framework requires the collection of alarms into assets, then grouping those assets, and finally subscribing contacts to those asset groups for notification of alarms. Most users will begin by creating the Alarms first and then bundling those alarms into Assets, while others prefer to create Assets and then attribute the Alarms afterward. Either process will work assuming that the Assets are placed into Groups and then Contacts are subscribed to those Groups to receive the alerts. The process described below will begin with Alarm creation.

To create an Alert, navigate to the Alerts tab on the left and click on the Alarms icon. 

To create an Alert, navigate to the Alerts tab on the left and click on the Alarms icon. 

The Alarms screen displays all the alarms, associated information, and current status.  

There are two types of Alarms:

Connectivity Alarms indicate when a gateway has not pushed data to the CDS cloud for a certain period of time defined by the user.  

Register Alarms are more flexible and allow the user to configure basic logical operations on a particular register. 

To create a new Alarm:

1. Click the + New Alarm button
2. Enter a user-defined Alarm Name
3. Select the Alarm Type (Register or Connectivity)
4. Select the Company
5. Select the Gateway that receives the data for this alarm
6. If setting a register alarm, select the Data that will trigger this alarm from the dropdown list
7. If setting a register alarm, select the Operator for comparison (equal, less than, greater than, less than or equal to, greater than or equal to).
   **Pro Tip: In most cases when setting up a register alarm you will use greater than (>) or less than (<), not equal to (=). The Vibe and HVAC Masks are only used for Vibe-IQ or HVAC application guides from Banner Engineering. If you are using one of these guides, refer to instructions in that guide
8. Enter the desired Comparison Operation(s) and then the Warning and/or Critical text fields. The Warning value is optional, but the Critical value is required
9. If applicable, select the checkbox to require a Duration and enter the number of minutes for the operation to be true before the Alarm is triggered
10. If applicable, select the checkbox to Require Manual Clear. This means that the alarm will not clear automatically, even if the operation is no longer true
11. Assign this alarm to an asset by selecting a previously created Asset from the dropdown list that appears. Assets can be created prior to alarms as described in the next section
12. Click Save to complete the alarm creation
13. Repeat the process above to create additional alarms, then proceed to the Asset section
14. More information regarding alarm parameters is included at the end of this guide
    

All attributes of a created alarm can be modified by clicking the Edit button next to each Alarm.

Navigate to the Alert tab and click on the Assets button. 

The Asset screen displays the list of Assets and the Alarms associated with those machines or processes. Also indicated are the Groups that contain each asset and any alarm status from the latest data push. Remember, an Asset is a logical collection of Alarms that typically represents an entire machine or otherwise corresponds with a physical asset or process to be monitored.

To create a new Asset:

1. Click the New Asset button
2. Enter a user-defined Asset Name
3. Select the Company
4. Select the Gateway that receives the alarm signals for this asset.
5. Select an Alarm signal from the dropdown list and click the Add button. The alarm will appear in the list of alarms for that asset. Repeat this step until all desired alarms are assigned to this asset
   Note: An alarm can only be associated with one asset. After the association is established, the alarm will no longer appear in the dropdown list. The alarm must be disassociated before it can be used with different asset.
6. If a previously created group is available, select the Group from the dropdown list and click the Add button. The Group will appear in the list for this asset.If a Group is not available, proceed to the next step. Group creation will be covered in the next section
7. Click Save to complete the asset creation
8. Repeat the process above to create additional assets, then proceed to the Group section
   

All attributes of an existing asset can be modified by clicking the Edit Button next to each asset.  

**Pro Tip: The Edit Asset prompt window is the best tool to use for managing the association of alarms and assets.  Simply add or remove the alarm signals as needed using this prompt window. 

The Groups screen displays the list of Groups and the associated Assets. Also indicated are the Contacts currently subscribed to receive the Alerts from the alarms triggered in that group of assets. Asset alarms that have been triggered with the latest data push are also shown via the color of the Asset text.

To create a new Group:

1. Click the + New Group button
2. Enter a user-defined Group Name.
3. Select an Asset from the dropdown list and click the Add button. The asset will appear in the list of assets for that group. Repeat this step until all desired assets are assigned to this group.
4. If a previously created contacts are available, select the Contact from the dropdown list. The contact will appear in the list for this Group.
   If a Contact is not available, proceed to the next step. Contact creation will be covered in the next section.
5. Click Save to complete the group creation. 
6. **Important Note: Now that the association of a Contact to a Group has completed with the last step, alert notifications will begin.
7. Repeat the process above to create additional groups, then proceed to the Contact section.

All attributes of a created group can be modified by clicking the Edit button next to each Group. 

The Contacts screen displays the list of Contacts and the associated Groups. Also indicated is the contact information currently entered for that individual (email or cellular phone number). If an individual has entered their schedule information into the system, that will also display.

To create a new Contact:

1. Click the + New Contact button
2. Enter a user-defined Contact Name
3. Select the Contact type as either Email or Phone Number
   Email: Enter the email address for that individual
   Phone: Enter the 10-digit cellular number for that individual
4. If applicable, click the checkbox next to Set Schedule and select the days during the week and time period during those days that the individual is responsible for receiving alerts. If Set Schedule is not selected, the contact will receive alerts whenever an alarm is triggered from the latest data push.
   Note: Schedules are based on the time zone selected for your company (Settings-> Companies-> Edit). If End Time is less than Start Time, the period will elapse overnight. If Start Time is the same as End Time or is left blank, the period will elapse all day.
5. Click Save to complete the Contact creation

**Important Note: Ensure that an association exists between Alarms, Assets, Groups, and Contacts. If these associations have not been made, an alarm will not trigger a notification to the Contact.

All attributes of a created contact can be modified by clicking the Edit button next to each Contact.