By Dovydas Kersys · Chapter 33 of 58 in Machine Commissioning.
Before you begin: Follow the machine documentation, risk assessment, site procedures and lockout/tagout requirements. Commissioning can expose personnel to electrical energy, stored pressure and unexpected motion. Never defeat a safety function merely to make a test easier. Examples and diagrams are generic and must be checked against the actual machine.
Industrial Ethernet commissioning includes physical link quality, addressing, topology, device identity, diagnostics and recovery. A network that is online at idle may still fail under vibration, traffic or power cycling.
Commission the network as an engineered system, not a collection of green link lights.
Why this matters during commissioning
Network faults can mimic sensor, drive or PLC problems because modern devices often depend on communication for both command and feedback.
Commissioning procedure
- Confirm cable type, connectors and shielding/grounding method.
- Verify device IP addresses, names and subnet arrangement.
- Compare physical topology with the design.
- Check switch port diagnostics, speed/duplex and error counters where available.
- Power-cycle devices and confirm automatic reconnection.
- Test loss-of-communication behavior for critical devices.
Common failure patterns
- Duplicate IP address.
- Device name/IP changed locally but project not updated.
- Connector passes static test but opens under vibration.
- Unmanaged switch inserted where diagnostics or redundancy is expected.
Evidence to record
- Device list
- Address/name
- Switch port
- Link/error diagnostics
- Recovery result
- Final topology update
FIELD RULE: If a device drops intermittently, capture switch and controller diagnostics before cycling power and erasing the evidence.
Continue the series
- Previous chapter: Reset, Restart and Recovery Behavior: Commissioning Guide
- Next chapter: PROFINET / EtherNet-IP Device Checks: Commissioning Guide
- Browse all Machine Commissioning chapters
Adapted from Machine Commissioning for Maintenance and Automation Technicians, by Dovydas Kersys. © 2026 Dovydas Kersys. Featured cover image is an AI-generated editorial illustration.